We had our first renovation hiccup today.
I got called to the basement for a meeting this morning. I walked down the stairs wondering if the conversation was going to cost me $10k. Or worse. Gulp. I could almost hear the doom and gloom music. Had a little conversation about plumbing. You know you're in trouble when your plumber says, "I've never seen anything like it." Yeah, that's not good news. Not good to be unique in the plumbing department.
Bottom line, we have to put the bathroom on the other side of the house. (Which is funny, because that was the initial drawing waaaaaaayyyyy back at the beginning of this process.) We held an emergency designer/contractor/client meeting this afternoon to figure out what to do (they called it, not me!). Our first instinct was to tear out the existing storage closet in one corner and plunk in a bathroom there. The issue with this idea is that there is a beam running across, reducing the ceiling height to about 6' in the area. Not a huge deal, since we're all short, but not ideal. We'd need to work around the water meter and sump pump as well, and we'd lose a really nice closet.
Alternatively, we could put the bathroom against the laundry room wall. The plumbers have checked everything out and say there is enough room there to work their plumbing magic. The bathroom will jut into the play zone of the basement, but not by a lot, and it's actually in a great location for a quick basement bathroom trip. Instead of traipsing through an entire house on either level, it'll be a simple dash down the stairs. Much more convenient for when we're outside, for example. So, it looks like that's where the bathroom is going to go. The new plans will be drawn up and we'll go from there.
What surprised me most today? Well, it's weird, when I got the news it was kind of like, sigh, yup, this house loves to surprise us, let's put the bathroom somewhere else then. (To be honest, my biggest concern was that if we put the bathroom where the storage closet is, I'd have to move all the junk in the closet - and there is lots! I've counted on storing a LOT of our belongings in there during this reno. I really don't want to move it all and figure out where else to store it.) Anyway, apparently this reaction is called "taking the news well." The contractor thanked me several times and said I was being very gracious about the whole thing.
I'm pretty sure that's the first time in my life I've ever been called gracious. Sarcastic? Yes. Funny? That's happened a couple times. Totallyandcompletelyanaltype1wouldyoujustrelaxalittletakeadeepbreathandchillout? More than once. Gracious is a new one.
I guess some people would yell? Blame the plumbers or the contractor? Because seriously, how could I possibly get mad over this? It's not any fault of theirs. Am I supposed to cry? I'm not crying over moving a bathroom at the rough-in stage! It's a renovation, shit will happen, we will soldier on. I am much more annoyed at how difficult it's been to get a front door (and, again, not annoyed at any person in particular, just at the general door manufacturing process and their standard sizes that don't match my door).
Not like I didn't cry today, I cried hard, but it was because I watched this video on Facebook about refugees landing in Greece and oh my goodness I can't believe people pile into those little floaty boats and show up cold and hungry and wet, with only the clothes on their back. All in the hopes of a better life. Holy crap, we are so fucking lucky and we don't even appreciate it most of the time.
Anyway, I digress. Back to my stupid little inconsequential plumbing issues in my house with running water and food in the fridge, located in a non-war-torn area of the world. The trench the guys dug out yesterday? It's filled in now. De-trenched, as it were. We had some family fun putting our initials in the fresh concrete. I will spend some time this weekend moving stuff out of the way of our new bathroom location.
All for now! Stay tuned, I do have some "during" pictures to share. Our addition is looking very torn apart right now, the difference is amazing already!
Friday, November 20, 2015
Monday, November 9, 2015
Shut the front door: I found one!
Let's talk about my front door. It's 60 years old, original to the house. Part of our renovation plans include replacing this door. Sounds simple enough, right?
HAHAHAHA. Clearly you have never met my house. It's always got a surprise up its sleeve. Our current front door is 6'10" tall and 2'10" wide. They don't make doors this size anymore, at least not on the assembly line. Standard doors now are either 6'8 or 8' tall, and 2'8 or 3' wide. You want a different size? Then you must pay!
OK, fine. The contractor said we can put in a smaller standard size door, 6'8 by 2'8, and do some brick mould magic (read: make the edges of the frame wider).
Sounds good I say. As long as you can do that without having it look stupid, I'm fine with that. I am assured it will look great, this plan will work well.
Alright, let's go ahead. I will choose a standard size door. I like this one (a random Craftsman style door).
Sorry, they don't make these in 2'8. Only 3'.
Is there any way you can custom make one for me in 2'8?
No can do.
Sigh. Fuck. Sigh.
The contractor gave me a few leads on other door companies. I dug and I dug and oh my, they sure like making 3-foot-wide Craftsman style doors! Still couldn't find a 2'8 one.
OK fine. I know when I'm beat. I gave up. Accepted the door that I have now. Took a break from this door business.
Our contractor toiled on, hunting far and wide for a door that would make me happy. He tracked down a company that he's used in the past, they assured him they could cut down a bigger door to fit my weird door size.
I admit, I didn't quite believe it. But we met on Wednesday and this company carries a Craftsman style 2'10" wide door that's 7' tall, and they can cut it down to fit.
Well hallelujah! And Craftsman style. Double hallelujah!!
Sure, there will be some trickery with the frame, because their standard door frame mouldings would extend into the brick area of our house, but they can work around that.
So yay! I will have a new front door! I almost can't believe it! (OK, granted, pessimistic me knows that it hasn't actually happened yet so who knows what else can go wrong, but let me float on my little cloud of happiness for a while, ok?)
HAHAHAHA. Clearly you have never met my house. It's always got a surprise up its sleeve. Our current front door is 6'10" tall and 2'10" wide. They don't make doors this size anymore, at least not on the assembly line. Standard doors now are either 6'8 or 8' tall, and 2'8 or 3' wide. You want a different size? Then you must pay!
OK, fine. The contractor said we can put in a smaller standard size door, 6'8 by 2'8, and do some brick mould magic (read: make the edges of the frame wider).
Sounds good I say. As long as you can do that without having it look stupid, I'm fine with that. I am assured it will look great, this plan will work well.
Alright, let's go ahead. I will choose a standard size door. I like this one (a random Craftsman style door).
Sorry, they don't make these in 2'8. Only 3'.
Is there any way you can custom make one for me in 2'8?
No can do.
Sigh. Fuck. Sigh.
The contractor gave me a few leads on other door companies. I dug and I dug and oh my, they sure like making 3-foot-wide Craftsman style doors! Still couldn't find a 2'8 one.
OK fine. I know when I'm beat. I gave up. Accepted the door that I have now. Took a break from this door business.
Our contractor toiled on, hunting far and wide for a door that would make me happy. He tracked down a company that he's used in the past, they assured him they could cut down a bigger door to fit my weird door size.
I admit, I didn't quite believe it. But we met on Wednesday and this company carries a Craftsman style 2'10" wide door that's 7' tall, and they can cut it down to fit.
Well hallelujah! And Craftsman style. Double hallelujah!!
Sure, there will be some trickery with the frame, because their standard door frame mouldings would extend into the brick area of our house, but they can work around that.
So yay! I will have a new front door! I almost can't believe it! (OK, granted, pessimistic me knows that it hasn't actually happened yet so who knows what else can go wrong, but let me float on my little cloud of happiness for a while, ok?)
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Smashed my decluttering goal for 2015
After a very successful 2014, where I got rid of more than 2028 things, I set out to do the same thing this year. The goal was 4030 things out of the house.
So far I've gotten rid of 5897 things! And there's still two months to go. Yowza!
How did this miracle of decluttering happen? Honestly, I'm not exactly sure. I can tell you that my office looks a LOT less full than it used to. There is floor space in there! Outgrown clothing is relatively easy to get rid of. I'm even getting better at letting go of the kids' art. Yay me.
One thing that has helped a lot is our impending renovation. Having to pack up most of the house has made me much more selective about what I want to keep. I fail to see the point of packing things that I don't need/want/use.
And that's the key. There are things in my house that have been here since we moved in. I'm figuring that if I haven't used these things in the 10 years I've owned this house, I don't need 'em. A good example of this is wine glasses. When we cleaned out my grandmother's house after she moved out, I kept her set of fancy glasses. So, um, confession time, there's something you need to know about me. I don't like wine. Like, at all. Those glasses have been in a box for over 10 years. If I haven't used them by now, I'm not going to. I don't even WANT to use them. It's time for them to go. Ba bye, glasses!
Clothes have become much easier to part with. I think I reduced my wardrobe by at least 20%. I got rid of anything I wore that I didn't like but wore anyway because it was there. Said bye to pants in sizes I will never be again - and even if I am that size, my body shape has changed with motherhood and I need a different fit now. Got rid of shoes I don't really like, that don't fit well, that I'm tired of.
I even convinced The Husband to get rid of some clothes. I told him it didn't matter how much the item cost (splurge or deal), he should get rid of anything he didn't like and just keep the good stuff.
Our local children's museum has benefitted from my decluttering. They take donations for their craft area. I've dropped off tissue paper, construction paper, crayons, CDs/DVDs, flashcards, puzzle pieces, fabric (man, a lot of fabric!), yarn, coffee stir sticks, plastic cutlery, pom poms... like I said, lots of stuff.
Just today I was clearing out our office closet. Came across manuals for cameras. I got rid of the French manual - I've got the English one and believe me, I understand that one better! Old software on DVD. Warranty and quick install instructions for various devices - ciao! And oh boy, a stack of file folders left over from my PhD literature review. I do NOT need that many folders. They will go to the children's museum.
So far I'm still keeping track even though I'm past my goal. I'm not sure how long I'll keep that up but it's still interesting to me from a data collection point of view so tally marks will keep piling up.
So far I've gotten rid of 5897 things! And there's still two months to go. Yowza!
How did this miracle of decluttering happen? Honestly, I'm not exactly sure. I can tell you that my office looks a LOT less full than it used to. There is floor space in there! Outgrown clothing is relatively easy to get rid of. I'm even getting better at letting go of the kids' art. Yay me.
One thing that has helped a lot is our impending renovation. Having to pack up most of the house has made me much more selective about what I want to keep. I fail to see the point of packing things that I don't need/want/use.
And that's the key. There are things in my house that have been here since we moved in. I'm figuring that if I haven't used these things in the 10 years I've owned this house, I don't need 'em. A good example of this is wine glasses. When we cleaned out my grandmother's house after she moved out, I kept her set of fancy glasses. So, um, confession time, there's something you need to know about me. I don't like wine. Like, at all. Those glasses have been in a box for over 10 years. If I haven't used them by now, I'm not going to. I don't even WANT to use them. It's time for them to go. Ba bye, glasses!
Clothes have become much easier to part with. I think I reduced my wardrobe by at least 20%. I got rid of anything I wore that I didn't like but wore anyway because it was there. Said bye to pants in sizes I will never be again - and even if I am that size, my body shape has changed with motherhood and I need a different fit now. Got rid of shoes I don't really like, that don't fit well, that I'm tired of.
I even convinced The Husband to get rid of some clothes. I told him it didn't matter how much the item cost (splurge or deal), he should get rid of anything he didn't like and just keep the good stuff.
Our local children's museum has benefitted from my decluttering. They take donations for their craft area. I've dropped off tissue paper, construction paper, crayons, CDs/DVDs, flashcards, puzzle pieces, fabric (man, a lot of fabric!), yarn, coffee stir sticks, plastic cutlery, pom poms... like I said, lots of stuff.
Just today I was clearing out our office closet. Came across manuals for cameras. I got rid of the French manual - I've got the English one and believe me, I understand that one better! Old software on DVD. Warranty and quick install instructions for various devices - ciao! And oh boy, a stack of file folders left over from my PhD literature review. I do NOT need that many folders. They will go to the children's museum.
So far I'm still keeping track even though I'm past my goal. I'm not sure how long I'll keep that up but it's still interesting to me from a data collection point of view so tally marks will keep piling up.
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