Finding Enough

Contractor chaos and a week in the Lake District, September update

findingenoughwombat

24th Oct 2025

The vans that would fit in the courtyard behind the house – the rest are nose to tail down the track.

The 1st September brought 6 vans full of 9 contractors to start work on our energy efficiency improvements. By day 2 we were up to 8 vans, and I have no idea how many people. The cacophony of SDS drills, impact drivers and slamming van doors was a bit overwhelming. You couldn’t go anywhere without getting in someone’s way, so I mainly hid out in the shepherd’s hut. Mr Wombat became a kind of default foreman, as although the individual trades were competent, the plumbers didn’t really collaborate with the electricians and the guys doing the insulation didn’t plan work with anyone else. Also, no one really seemed to grasp the implications of having a pump in a well feeding the house and therefore limiting the way pumps could be installed downstream if they removed the header tank as they originally planned. They did eventually concede that he probably knew what he was talking about, and there was less rework from that point on.

Visiting family and destroying our house some more, August Update

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23rd Sep 2025

Some of this years competitors at the local agricultural show

A very tardy update this month, as September has turned out to be very eventful (in a good way), but more about that next month – or in a couple of weeks.

August started in fairly unremarkable fashion. I carried on with the cement stripping and re-pointing the gable end of the house, we spent a lot of time outside with the vegetable garden in full flow after a slow start to the year, and it was time for the local agricultural show again. This year I volunteered to help out on the beekeepers association stand, so I got in for free, wore a bee suit all day and talked to a lot of people about bees, but saw less of the rest of the show.

A new shed roof, a new record high for the freedom fund and more pine martens, July update

findingenoughwombat

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15th Aug 2025

One of July’s swim locations, not far from home

July was the first whole month we have spent at home in a long time, and it showed in the amount we managed to get done on the house. The bees returned from their holiday to the field beans, and it has been lovely watching them on their favourite blooms in the garden when I’ve taken a break from DIY.

No hot water, a holiday and pine marten kits, June update

findingenoughwombat

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8th Jul 2025

Pine martens in daylight out of the window! This turned out to be Mum.

June started in very positive fashion, with the stonemason we had been waiting on for months finally being available to repair the cracked linted in the newly revealed large fireplace. We finally got the in line extractor installed in the ceiling above the shower room and changed the aged halogen lights for LED spots and there were wildflowers popping up everywhere. Just as we were patting ourselves on the back and working out which order to do all the jobs required to put the ‘rubble’ room back together, the hot water cylinder sprung a leak 🙈

Probate, a heatwave and a mini-adventure to the Isle of Bute, May update

findingenoughwombat

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8th Jun 2025

The view from Bute across to Argyll and the ferry at Colintrave, on a perfect sunny day

May was improbably warm and dry in SW Scotland. The weather was glorious, but drought is perilous for those (like us) with private water supplies. A daily hike down to the well became the norm once the burn (stream) past our house stopped flowing. Just the circumstances you want for when your in-laws are about to visit 🙄

The arrival of spring, and the loss of a parent, April update

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10th May 2025

The ominous glow from our window on the first night

April began in dramatic fashion with a wildfire in the Galloway Hills that we could see out of the window! Even if you live in the UK, you probably didn’t see it on the news, as despite it burning for 5 days and extending to 45 miles in length at one point, not many people live here, so it’s not very news worthy. The first night I saw a red glow behind the ruined barn, when I went to lock the door at bedtime. I wandered out with a torch, expecting to see the rear lights of some kind of farm vehicle in the field behind, but was astonished to see the hill in the distance aglow. I assumed that unless there had been some kind of alien invasion, it must be a wildfire, but there was no mention on any of the local social media groups. Having been quite close to the California fires in January, we we kept a close eye on developments, but thankfully it spread away from us.

A bee keeping beginner’s course, and the arrival of some new (buzzy) tenants, March Update.

findingenoughwombat

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26th Apr 2025

The new residents in our garden have the best view in the place!

I’m running a bit late with this update, as almost as soon as I had updated the numbers for last month, we were overtaken by a life event that has rather dominated the last few weeks. I will talk about it more in next month, but I suspect this update may be a bit more brief than usual as a result.

March saw the beginning of spring creeping in. I have always loved this time of year, but in SW Scotland it is particularly special. Each week a different flower or bird appears, nests start to be built and new voices join the dawn chorus.

An American roadtrip and renewed renovation momentum, February update

findingenoughwombat

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9th Mar 2025

Some Californian wilderness from our recent trip

February was a bit of a whirlwind. A very positive one, but a whirlwind nonetheless. Our 3 week San Diego house sit continued into the first week of the month, and because we thought it unlikely that we’d find ourselves in that part of the world again, we tacked a short road trip on the end of our sit. After a lot of consideration of options of where to go, we opted to check out some very contrasting wilderness from what we are used to. Desert.

A new year and some Californian sunshine! January update

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26th Feb 2025

The home in San Diego we looked after while the owners were away

January was a month of huge contrast, as we spent the first 2 weeks at home in Scotland after returning from Christmas and New Year down south, but then the last 2 weeks were spent on our most adventurous house sit to date – in San Diego! We enjoyed the winter sunshine in Majorca last Christmas, so kept an eye out for winter sits somewhere sunnier this winter. When California came up, we applied. We got on well with the homeowners on a video call and were invited.

2024 – 2 years of ‘retirement’ and 10 years of FIRE investing

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4th Feb 2025

As 2025 rolled in, I started crunching the numbers on our second year of ‘retirement’ and reflected on the investment journey that got me here. September 2024 marked 10 years since I made my first investment, so it seems appropriate to consider what is possible in a decade as well as just what we’ve achieved in the last year. I should clarify that in September 2014, I wasn’t starting from zero. I had been contributing to corporate pensions since I started my first full time job in 2000 and I had made a minor investment in unit trusts in 2002, through a work-provided financial advisor, when I received a small inheritance from my grandmother. I was starting from just over that magic £100k level when I actually took an interest and added it all up. Technically this was not my first investment, but it was the first I had taken control of, and responsibility for and that felt daunting to say the least.