Lorraine

Into my 8th year of housesitting, as a Platinum member of Aussie HouseSitters.

ABOUT ME
Semi-retired, self-funded.
Non-smoker/non-drinker
Enjoy a healthy lifestyle, regular cycling/walks

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6.1.24 Update
Sorry . . . . not available now till end of June 2024

Thanks for the few recent contacts I have had for housesits going forward
All the best with finding what you need

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4.1.24 Update

Thanks for recent request for housesit in coming week/s.
Just letting all know - will not be doing housesitting for a while as want to travel OS myself in coming year.
Have now changed my AVAILABLE DATES

All the best to you all as you hit the road! : )

Regards
Lorraine

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7.12.2023 Update

Hi there and thanks to those who have been in touch recently

Just changing my availability calendar to reflect changes in my situaiton.
Have a confirmed housesit from 18 Dec 2023 t0 5 January 2024 in upper Blue Mountains area. Best wishes to others who have contacted me recently.

Thanks so much to those who I have met and also have sat for in the past.

It's been a really rewarding, educational, interesting, eye-opening, satisfying thing to do!

See bottom of this page for feedback from previous house sitters

Au revoir!
Lorraine

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HOUSE SITTING

Really enjoy taking care of your babes while you are away.
Getting to know their characters and the language we will use to communicate.
What their likes, preferences, needs are.

Love "walkin' the dog".
The 'scene' that develops in a neighborhood when dog walkers encounter each other daily.

Enjoy gardening - leaving it better than you found it thing.

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LET'S DO IT!!
Your housesitter-in-waiting!
"Leave it better than you found it"
(Motto picked up at my first stay at a YHA hostel at Pittwater north of Sydney when I was 18yo)

PAST SITS
** For Josie and Tony - who were off to see family and get away for a bit. Interesting couple with background in dance/theatre and doing really creative renovation work - giant metal sculpture of a dragon fly attached to ceiling above the living area.
My room was gorgeous - esp paint job

** For Graeme and Lyndy, two bush ecology scientists. Included Big Puss who climbed the ladder up into the ceiling of their house which is being renovated, when he wanted to get away from it all.

CONTACT ME NOW!
Look forward to working with you to support your needs during your time away. Loving the opportunities for travel and exploration as well as learning from each situation.

Happy to care for your babes and house/garden, empty the letterbox, take calls etc.
Let's talk!

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PREVIOUS SITS

- Inner city SYDNEY
- Bush turkeys, water dragons and blue tongue lizards of TELOPEA
- Towns across the BLUE MTNS . . . Hazelbrook to Blackheath
- LITHGOW for local museum operator couple away for a conference
- Waterfront million dollar guesthouse on Belongil Beach at BYRON BAY
- Outback desert BROKEN HILL

So many interesting people and their two and four-legged housemates.
All of whom have their own distinctive personalities as well.

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FIRST NEG FEEDBACK IN 8 YEARS

No hint of this neg feedback coming when they returned.

However, . . .
I took this sit on even though my impression was a bit wary after initial meetup over coffee in cafe for about 40 minutes.
Got the impression the woman thought I was a threat to her relationship.
Absolutely not - never had this issue previously.

She dominated the conversation over the whole period, and cut into any effort by the other two of us trying to have a say.

However, later on, at one point, she and I found ourselves sitting in the lovely outside area with couches and table, etc just by ourselves.
I think this was before they went away. Or maybe not, Not sure.

We had quite a long and very interesting and enjoyable talk, which was a great experience also.
So final negative stuff after I left was a serious let down.

ON RETURN OF HOUSE OWNERS AT END OF HOUSESIT

Washing house linen before I left.

Final house stuff including returning items moved from back bedroom (used for storage) to front bedroom (which was setup for me during my stay).

Original move from front room to back done due to issues with noise from large trucks negotiating the roundabout on one of the busiest intersections in town - just metres from the wall beside my bed in front room, and opposite a service station open till late at night

FIXED LARGE FISH TANK PUMP PROBLEM MYSELF
Fixed water pump to large thigh high fish tank several times over final weeks as it started to fail. Pulled apart, cleaned out problem items once I figured it out. Re-assembled. Turning water source from tank on and off and pumping by hand to reactivate pressure regularly toward end of sit.

CLEARED UP VERY MESSY VERGES/OVERGROWN FOOTPATHS
Inside fence, owners kept beautifully.
Outside their fence - the public space - was a mess.

Broken glass, rubbish, cigarette butts, branches, coffee cups, plastic spoons, newspaper, food bags and random bits of car parts/rusty metal that were spread across the outside verge next to the footpaths.

Took on the job of doing this as part of my "leave it better than you found it" mantra.
Told off for doing that by woman who was great at her best but too much imagining negative stuff that didn't exist. She said it should be done by council.

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RESPONSE TO SPECIFIC REMARKS
"The last thing we expected to have to do was thoroughly clean our house on our return"

The whole house and yard were swept/vacuumed/cleaned/tidied/floors washed/bathroom done/green waste bagged etc

Apart from floor in living room (which I barely used after first 2 weeks - preferred the lovely outdoor seating area) which was vacuumed and waiting for a mopping.

I moved out to a room at the back of the house - a spare room used for storage - to get away from the noise of the large trucks that came by all times day and night a few metres from where my bed was in the front room.
(There was a bed in that back room covered in stuff being stored).

Beautifully set up room at the front of the house they did, but the noise was too much.

One of Broken Hill's famous dust storms the day before they returned meant dust entered the living room via overhead air vents.
I also swept and tidied up back garden again whilst waiting for washing - the bedding and towels they let me use - to be done.
Just one small area out there still dusty when they returned.

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"Old food left in a saucepan on the sink, floors filthy, dirty washing thrown on top shelf in laundry"

DISHES had been done the night before in the dishwasher and some hand washing.

Few things on the sink from breakfast that morning.
One pot was in final stage of removing some small black spots from soup boiling dry - had worked on it already a few times using vinegar and bicarb soak.
Linda, "don't worry about it, I'll take care of it"

FLOORS all done except living room needed to be mopped

WASHING in laundry - bed linen and towels.
Not very dirty at all.
Bedding done before their return - about to do the towels.
Linda "Don't worry about that, I can do it later."

How does that become all that neg feedback including "dirty washing thrown on top shelf in laundry"

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"We realise we live in a dusty town but honestly if the housework had been done regularly this is not a problem."
Insulting and not true.

I was regularly doing work inside and out.
Totally incorrect and strongly negative interpretation of how it had gone in her absence.

Using her partner's name on the neg feedback as if he had written it.
I know that he had no such feelings as we had a lovely conversation before I left, whereas she was not so . . . . nice to see again.

I believe all of this negative feedback was due to this woman trying to stop the conversation her partner and I were having just I was about to leave - she was doing stuff in the house - and he came out to say goodbye.

Ended up chatting for a bit about similarities we had in our personal history that emerged during that final chat.

She came out and called to him but he didn't let her achieve her aim of stopping us having this final chat. Hence this feedback.

And none of it necessary as there was absolutely no threat to her - sad for her to be so insecure and for me to get this feedback due to that insecurity.

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"Cupboards in disarray (items thrown in)"

1. Pantry - emptied of my food except a few gifts I left.
2. Cups, glasses, dishes - as they were when I arrived.
3. Pots and pans - random when I arrived - no change.
4. Storage containers - full of plastic storage, bottles, other items perched on top of each other. Fell out on the floor when I tried to take a larger one from under the pile. Not in the same order as when I arrived.
Not "thrown in".

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"Marks left on newly painted door in her bedroom"

Vac handle fell against the door as I was returning stuff now in front room back to the spare room out the back.

Whole thing due to too much noise in front bedroom so close to massive 2 storey trucks of sheep, cattle, hay bails, and even 6-8 cars as their load in transit on a truck as they negotiated the roundabout a few metres from the wall near my bed.

Not really an ideal house sit situation.

Vacuum cleaner handle left a scratch on the white paint on the door.
Intended to repaint - a few minutes to do.
Forgot about it till they raised it.

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"Still cleaning after 3 solid days of work and still not finished"

Sounds like BS from where I stand, knowing what the situation was when I left as above.

The dust storm the day before they came back put it's usual fine coat of dust over everything, both inside and out to differing degrees. Coming into the house via the airvents overhead. So cleaned it all up again.

Garden was swept/tidied up early the previous day and then dust storm arrived, so was all covered in dust and stuff blown in on the wind as well as a few of Megsy's hair shedding balls of fur. So redid it all on day they were due to return.

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"Rubbish bags left sitting in back yard.
Mound of rubbish left on verge near driveway, not from this property"

Not RUBBISH BAGS - GREEN WASTE bags.
Due to green waste bins not being emptied by Council on prev collection date.

So remaining green waste from my garden work during last week - weeding/pruning discoloured leaves/dying branches, removing leaves covered in tiny insects on the underside - had nowhere else to go.
Alongside prev work in bags not collected.
Qu'elle horreur - green waste bags!

** STUFF ON THE VERGE **
He told me to put it there for god sake!!!!

I cleaned the verge on both sides of this corner block - and removed large amounts of overgrowth spreading from sidewalk area onto the footpath.

From a few inches onto path to covering 2/3 of the path in some parts.
Also removed silt buildup that covered the footpaths where they merged on the corner. Better for people with walking sticks, prams, shopping trolleys, scooters, bikes and just walking.

Terry called up one day and I told him about this.
And that I had put the silt and the grass soil mix just inside the back gate and would prob take it to my land before they got back.

He said, you know, you can put that stuff out on the edge of the verge and council will come and collect it if its from working on the verge.

So in the end I did that. Contacted council as required.
Then comments re "not from here" - for god sake where else would it be from!

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"Would not recommend this House Sitter"
Would not recomment this house sit.

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