Country Retreat - 48. Smaller Adelaide Home

After looking at seven houses during the few days in Mount Gambier, I cut the list down to three houses and I went and inspected them one final time, and after that, I made my decision. The winner is… a delightful former community church built in 1866, that has a six-bay lockup garage behind it. Inside, there are two bedrooms at the front of the building, with a loungeroom beyond that. Next, some stairs lead up to the mezzanine level, to a lounge area and 4^th bedroom and private bathroom at the back of the building.

Behind the dining area is the main laundry, and another full bathroom and extra toilet. While, the master bedroom with a kitchenette sitting room and an ensuite bathroom, is located off the main kitchen and dining area near the back. I had also arranged with my grandparents to purchase the ½ acre block of vacant land next door, to not have any buildings close to the property, with the other neighbours already having their buildings furthest away from the old church, on their property.

Located in the small town of Allendale East, the small rural town property building is surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens, including a private side pergola and garden, two water tanks, and it is just a 24-kilometre and 20-minute drive south of Mount Gambier, and just 6 kilometres north of Port Macdonnell, and I had no concerns about driving that distance each day to get to work.

I had managed to negotiate for the settlement to take place in two weeks, just two days before the start of the new teaching year at TAFE and Uni, and I would spend a few days staying at the motel until the settlement happens, and thankfully the majority of the furniture would remain with the property, so there were only a few white good items that I needed to purchase.

Once back in Adelaide, I let my housekeeper – Antonio know that I would be moving east to start working at Mount Gambier TAFE while also studying at the Uni SA campus there. I let him know that I would appreciate it if he would remain living at the house, to keep it in good order and to look after Giles when he returns from WA. I also mentioned that I would be coming back at least once a month for a weekend break, and also on holidays as well, so I wasn’t going to be gone for good.

That evening, I called Giles to let him know that I have a two-year contract for work at the Mount Gambier TAFE campus and that I would also be studying part-time there as well. Giles didn’t sound too happy with this news, “What am I going to do without my good friend close by?” he asked me sounding quite upset. “I will be coming back to Adelaide at least once a month for just a weekend, to spend some time with you mate,” I replied.

“Yeah, I guess that will be good, but I will still miss you. By the way, I was given a new car for Christmas, by my parents, so I will be driving back to Adelaide in it,” Giles announced to me, “Awesome news mate, what sort of car is it?” I replied happily to try and cheer Giles up a bit. “An All Wheel Drive Jeep Compas of course,” Giles replied, and I laughed when I heard this. “So you like my vehicle so much that you decided to get a smaller model for yourself eh?” I asked, “Yep, that’s about right,” Giles replied and he sounded happier now.

“I look forward to checking it out when you get to Adelaide and I get there,” I said to my friend, “Well, I am leaving in two days, so I will be in Adelaide by Friday, I hope,” Giles responded. We chatted for a bit longer before ending the call, and I smiled knowing that Giles has a similar vehicle to mine. I decided to delay my move to Mount Gambier by two days, so I could still be in Adelaide when Giles arrived.

In the meantime, I was doing a lot of preparation for the year ahead, with work as well as studies going to keep me very busy for the next two years. I decided to call Gamps and Gran to discuss the house in Adelaide, now that I am no longer living there full time, I feel that a much smaller house would be more suited for when I am in Adelaide, which the other two can still live in, eventually they agreed with me, and allowed me to search for a smaller house and to organise the sale of the current house in Harrow Road, and I had already decided that somewhere closer to Flinders University would be the better option.

It didn't take me too long to find an ideal place, and I put an offer on it as soon as I had finished my very thorough look around the four-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse located opposite the community sports grounds in Mitchell Park, just a 4.5-kilometre drive or a four-minute walk and a 14-minute train ride to Flinders University. The property has two levels with a double garage and a small pool in the small backyard, and it was very modern and sleek which I like.

I was informed that the townhouse next door was also up for sale if I was interested. When I was contacted the next day to inform me that my offer had been accepted, I informed the agent that I was interested in buying the townhouse next door as an investment, which she was happy to hear.

When Giles arrived back in Adelaide in his new car, I was very impressed with it, and I suggested that we take it for a drive, and surprisingly he tossed me the keys, and driving around North Adelaide to avoid the city traffic, we were soon heading south for my set destination, which I refused to say where we were heading. Twenty-five minutes later I parked the car right outside my new Adelaide home.

“Nice park, but why have we stopped?” Giles said to me, which made me chuckle, “Look to your left and tell me what you see?” I asked, “A group of nice modern townhouses, but why… You bought a townhouse?” Giles said, stopping for a moment when he realised what I was up to. “Yes, I decided that since I won't be around all the time, and that house in Harrow Road is ridiculously too large, I would buy a more compact home, that is much closer to the university for you and away from the city noise and traffic,” I replied.

“Awesome, can we have a look inside, and when can we move in?” Giles asked me, just as I heard a vehicle pull up behind us, and I smiled, knowing that it was the agent coming to give me a second viewing. As we were looking at the upstairs areas, I stopped in the living room and waited for Giles to finish looking into the master bedroom. “Since I won’t be home all the time, that is your room. I will have the one downstairs,” I announced.

“What! Really? Wow, thanks mate,” Giles said happily in response to this news. “You are welcome, just one condition on that though, I won't be here for moving day, so you will be in charge of that, although there won't be much to move over, I plan to sell some of the furniture with the other house, except the white goods and enough stuff to furnish this place, but I will let you make all those decisions, and Antonio can help you with that since he will be moving too… well I presume he will be, I haven't said anything o him about it yet,” I said to Giles.

When we arrived back at the Harrow Rd house, Antonio had been home for a short while and he was busy preparing dinner for us all. While he was I mentioned that I had put this house on the market and that I had purchased a townhouse in Mitchell Park, so it is closer to Flinders University. I asked if he was interested in moving into the new house as well, and happily, he said yes.

During the evening, we had a long chat about the move to the new house, and I showed Antonia photos of the place, he was pleased that it was a lot smaller in area than this place, even with a pool. The following day, leaving the lads to organise the packing ready for the move in two weeks, I set off for the long drive back to Mount Gambier, due to the lateness of my departure from Adelaide, due to my packing up all of my belongings so they are ready for the move, I didn’t get there until nearly 5 pm.

Staying at a motel until my new home was ready, I spent the next few days getting prepared for the start of the semester at TAFE and UNI SA, and I also spent a day driving down to Allendale East, to see what needed to be done before I move into my new home. Calling into the general store before heading back to the store, I had a good look around, as this would probably be my main shopping location from now on.

“Can I help you with anything?” a lady asked me, as I turned and smiled. “No, all is good thanks, I am just having a look around to see what you have, as I will be calling in here regularly soon,” I replied. “Oh! You are moving into the area?” the lady asked me. “That is right, I will be working up at Mount Gambier during the weekdays, and travelling up there each day,” I replied. “Well welcome to the district, I am Clare by the way, the store owner and also part-time librarian for the school across the road,” the lady said to me.

“I am Oscar, and I am from Adelaide, where I have been studying at University for the past few years, and now I will be working in Mount Gambier as of next week,” I replied, before waving goodbye and leaving the shop, not wanting to reveal too much information about me, knowing what small town gossip is like. Back in Mount Gambier, I headed to the pub for an early dinner, as I had a busy few days ahead of me, and this is when I spotted a young man who looked quite shabby and his clothes were a little threadbare in places.

Feeling a bit of a chill in the air, I took off my jacket and approached him. “Here, you need this a lot more than I do, keep it, as you need to stay warm,” I said to the young man who looked to be around the same age as me, as he tried to smile and nodded his head as he accepted the gift and I headed into the pub, was I ordered two meals as well as a bottle of fruit juice and water, and when the first order arrived, I stepped outside, where I found the young man in the same place I last saw him.