gobble?
People, I am barely keeping my head above water these days. I have a part time teaching job, which isn't really more demanding than it should be, but I've had to put in some extra hours lately. Also, the freelance work has ratcheted up, as it always does at this point in the semester. Lately I've had a few 12+ hour work days, including weekend gigs. The end is in sight but I may have to drag my sorry ass over the finish line with a glass of wine in one hand and a sledgehammer in the other. BECAUSE DID I MENTION THAT WE'RE DOING KITCHEN DEMO TWO DAYS AFTER THANKSGIVING? THAT HAS ME JUST A LITTLE BIT STRESSED.
Yeah, I think it's time for a quick update on the renovation project. How about a random list?
1. The siding still isn't quite done, but we're close:
2. It's beautiful, isn't it? Painter guy helped pick out a color that matches the roof and I'm thrilled.
3. One thing that can hold up construction work is lots of rotten wood around the windows because whoever did the siding and windows before did a really crappy job and didn't seal up the nail holes, so water leaked in and rotted the wood. It's getting fixed now but that takes extra time.
4. One thing that can hold up construction work is when you have no power. Example: yesterday, when the electrician and utility people spent several hours moving the power line to its permanent location (rather than across the basement floor, which was an unsightly tripping hazard) and the electricity was off, which meant the carpenters could not plug in their tools.
5. One thing that can hold up construction work is a day of rain and wind gusts, so running saws in the back yard and standing on ladders with large pieces of wood is not only unpleasant, but dangerous.
6. One thing that can hold up construction work is the opening weekend of deer hunting season. I won't elaborate except to say that I can not over-emphasize the importance of this for certain people in Wisconsin.
7. One thing that can potentially hold up construction work is when your contractor's vehicle breaks down and he has to be towed out of your street.
8. Did I mention Stuart has to travel for work before the end of the year? And that I still don't know exactly when he's supposed to leave town?
Despite all these setbacks (which are admittedly minor - we haven't encountered anything catastrophic like a termite invasion or something), demolition is scheduled for this weekend. Tomorrow, the kids are off school and we're going to bake some pies and dinner rolls to take over to my friend Pat, who I think is an angel straight from heaven because she knows what we're in for and invited us to her place for Thanksgiving dinner. Friday we pack up the kitchen, Saturday we pull out cabinets and break down the chimney, and Sunday the asbestos floors will come out while I spend 3+ hours in woodwind rehearsals.
My house already looks like it was raided by angry elves. And that's going to get worse before it gets better. I can handle it, though. I think. We have a plan to put the stove in the basement (temporarily, of course) and I'll be getting up close and personal with the slow cooker and an electric skillet borrowed from a neighbor (a nice neighbor, not the mean one.)
But just in case, if anyone has good take-out recommendations for the west side, bring 'em on. We may need it.
Yeah, I think it's time for a quick update on the renovation project. How about a random list?
1. The siding still isn't quite done, but we're close:
2. It's beautiful, isn't it? Painter guy helped pick out a color that matches the roof and I'm thrilled.
3. One thing that can hold up construction work is lots of rotten wood around the windows because whoever did the siding and windows before did a really crappy job and didn't seal up the nail holes, so water leaked in and rotted the wood. It's getting fixed now but that takes extra time.
4. One thing that can hold up construction work is when you have no power. Example: yesterday, when the electrician and utility people spent several hours moving the power line to its permanent location (rather than across the basement floor, which was an unsightly tripping hazard) and the electricity was off, which meant the carpenters could not plug in their tools.
5. One thing that can hold up construction work is a day of rain and wind gusts, so running saws in the back yard and standing on ladders with large pieces of wood is not only unpleasant, but dangerous.
6. One thing that can hold up construction work is the opening weekend of deer hunting season. I won't elaborate except to say that I can not over-emphasize the importance of this for certain people in Wisconsin.
7. One thing that can potentially hold up construction work is when your contractor's vehicle breaks down and he has to be towed out of your street.
8. Did I mention Stuart has to travel for work before the end of the year? And that I still don't know exactly when he's supposed to leave town?
Despite all these setbacks (which are admittedly minor - we haven't encountered anything catastrophic like a termite invasion or something), demolition is scheduled for this weekend. Tomorrow, the kids are off school and we're going to bake some pies and dinner rolls to take over to my friend Pat, who I think is an angel straight from heaven because she knows what we're in for and invited us to her place for Thanksgiving dinner. Friday we pack up the kitchen, Saturday we pull out cabinets and break down the chimney, and Sunday the asbestos floors will come out while I spend 3+ hours in woodwind rehearsals.
My house already looks like it was raided by angry elves. And that's going to get worse before it gets better. I can handle it, though. I think. We have a plan to put the stove in the basement (temporarily, of course) and I'll be getting up close and personal with the slow cooker and an electric skillet borrowed from a neighbor (a nice neighbor, not the mean one.)
But just in case, if anyone has good take-out recommendations for the west side, bring 'em on. We may need it.
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