I am discovering a funny thing. As it turns out, adding new responsibilities doesn't do anything to eliminate the old responsibilities.
Tonight I went to the gym and then did the grocery shopping. And that's why I still need to screw on 3 vent covers, call 2 contractors and AT&T, buy a decent broom and sweep the patio, finish unpacking, put together some window screens, and figure out what to do about the missing closet doors in the bedroom.
But hey -- at least this way I can cook myself a decent meal. If I ever get around to it.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Walking Around
Yesterday evening, after work, I went for a walk around my neighborhood.
It appears that lot of us are trying to figure out how to avoid watering a lawn.
I saw a great many ex-lawns: bare dirt with piles of dead grass heaped in a corner, bare dirt with gaping holes where trees or bushes used to live, bare dirt baked hard with a light scattering of yellow weeds. I also saw lawns in the process of being demolished: a strip of bare dirt being gradually widened by a guy with a shovel, a pile of rocks and black plastic hanging out on a driveway next to a yellowed law. And I saw a few yards that had finished the lawn removal process and moved on to become low-water landscaping: short stubby palms and succulents in little islands of dirt surrounded by a sea of wood chips, white and red gravel arranged into a swirl pattern, sand-colored rocks surrounding a single palm tree, hard dirt covered by an orchard of small trees in individual pots.
It also appears that having a small terrier is a requirement for living on the street directly up from me. I thought I might identify which house has the little yappy dog that wakes me up 3 or 4 times some nights with its endless barking. Sadly, when there is an entire row of houses with identical looking dogs yapping at me as I walk down the street, it is very difficult to identify the one that is left out all night. I guess this means that the next time I'm woken up at 2:30 in the morning by a dog that will. not. shut. up., I'll have to walk around the corner to figure out where it's at. Or maybe stand on a ladder in my back yard with a big flashlight...
It appears that lot of us are trying to figure out how to avoid watering a lawn.
I saw a great many ex-lawns: bare dirt with piles of dead grass heaped in a corner, bare dirt with gaping holes where trees or bushes used to live, bare dirt baked hard with a light scattering of yellow weeds. I also saw lawns in the process of being demolished: a strip of bare dirt being gradually widened by a guy with a shovel, a pile of rocks and black plastic hanging out on a driveway next to a yellowed law. And I saw a few yards that had finished the lawn removal process and moved on to become low-water landscaping: short stubby palms and succulents in little islands of dirt surrounded by a sea of wood chips, white and red gravel arranged into a swirl pattern, sand-colored rocks surrounding a single palm tree, hard dirt covered by an orchard of small trees in individual pots.
It also appears that having a small terrier is a requirement for living on the street directly up from me. I thought I might identify which house has the little yappy dog that wakes me up 3 or 4 times some nights with its endless barking. Sadly, when there is an entire row of houses with identical looking dogs yapping at me as I walk down the street, it is very difficult to identify the one that is left out all night. I guess this means that the next time I'm woken up at 2:30 in the morning by a dog that will. not. shut. up., I'll have to walk around the corner to figure out where it's at. Or maybe stand on a ladder in my back yard with a big flashlight...
Monday, May 25, 2009
Switches and Pruning and Blinds, Oh My!
There are no longer curtains held up by painter's tape in my office. Instead there are blinds, which would lend a suitably professional touch were my equipment, papers, and reference materials out of their boxes and properly arranged. Since there's still no phone line in the office, however, and given that some of the carpet is still not tacked down after the flood, it continues to look rather like a junk room with a desk. And a very nice office chair.
My dad came over today to help put up the blinds. (Only he puts up the blinds, and I measure things, hold things, and hand over tools when prompted.) He also put in a new vanity light for the bathroom and rewired a light switch that was making suspicious noises. (Turns out someone installed a dimmer switch to control something that doesn't dim. It didn't look at all like a dimmer switch.) Then we went to work on the yard.
There is still a rather large flock of dandelions, but the aloe vera plant is no longer being strangled by the surrounding shrubbery, the weeds along the east fence have been cut back, and the mounds of dry leaves (a.k.a. perfect tinder) have been raked up and gathered for disposal. Hooray for free yard waste recycling.
Yesterday, I spent a chunk of time cleaning in anticipation of a visit from some friends. The result is looking very home-like. This is progress.
My dad came over today to help put up the blinds. (Only he puts up the blinds, and I measure things, hold things, and hand over tools when prompted.) He also put in a new vanity light for the bathroom and rewired a light switch that was making suspicious noises. (Turns out someone installed a dimmer switch to control something that doesn't dim. It didn't look at all like a dimmer switch.) Then we went to work on the yard.
There is still a rather large flock of dandelions, but the aloe vera plant is no longer being strangled by the surrounding shrubbery, the weeds along the east fence have been cut back, and the mounds of dry leaves (a.k.a. perfect tinder) have been raked up and gathered for disposal. Hooray for free yard waste recycling.
Yesterday, I spent a chunk of time cleaning in anticipation of a visit from some friends. The result is looking very home-like. This is progress.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Flock of Dandelions
What have I been doing this weekend? Uprooting dandelions, for the most part. At least, that's what it seems like. You wouldn't know it by looking at my yard, though. Sadly, there is still substantial uprooting to go.
I did get one rosebush pruned. (I'll wait until winter for the other two. One of them continues to bloom like crazy, and the other has some promising buds.)
As I was pulling dry, woody stalks out of the planter box on the patio, it became evident that I was removing the remains of an herb garden. The aromas were lovely. I uncovered just a bit of still-living oregano, to which I've added a clump of basil. It's supermarket basil, purchased on a whim; it's looking rather defeated. I may have to just eat it, and start over from seeds.
I also ripped out a fair amount of dead brush and ivy.
But it's still a jungle out there.
I also cleaned the house as best I could. The bathrooms and kitchen are in pretty good shape (if you don't look in the oven), and the carpet is vacuumed (at least the bits where the boxes have been cleared off).
This evening, I've been tormenting myself by pricing furniture online. The bottom line: if I like it, I can't afford it. Hooray for the money pit.
I did get one rosebush pruned. (I'll wait until winter for the other two. One of them continues to bloom like crazy, and the other has some promising buds.)
As I was pulling dry, woody stalks out of the planter box on the patio, it became evident that I was removing the remains of an herb garden. The aromas were lovely. I uncovered just a bit of still-living oregano, to which I've added a clump of basil. It's supermarket basil, purchased on a whim; it's looking rather defeated. I may have to just eat it, and start over from seeds.
I also ripped out a fair amount of dead brush and ivy.
But it's still a jungle out there.
I also cleaned the house as best I could. The bathrooms and kitchen are in pretty good shape (if you don't look in the oven), and the carpet is vacuumed (at least the bits where the boxes have been cleared off).
This evening, I've been tormenting myself by pricing furniture online. The bottom line: if I like it, I can't afford it. Hooray for the money pit.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Tilling the Fields
After work yesterday, I went to the library and checked out some gardening books. One is a basic primer, and two are more specific to caring for Southern California flora. While numerous indoor tasks await (not the least of which is unpacking), I'm looking forward to spending some of my Memorial Day weekend out in the yard. My neighbors, no doubt, are likewise looking forward to me spending some time in my yard.
So what about my yard?
In the front, the yard is encased on 3 sides by a short retaining wall of concrete bricks. The short retaining wall results in a fairly level yard, which I appreciate, given the precipitous slope of the driveway. At the east and west front corners of the lawn, evergreen shrubs, roughly manicured into triangles, serve as boundary markers. Roughly centered on the lawn is a large shade tree, grown rather wild and unruly in the absence of care.
Along the edges of the front walk, and under the front window, additional short retaining walls enclose raised flower beds. I have positively identified the daffodils planted in the beds; the other flowers remain a mystery to me. A series of fledgling bushes may very well be seedling versions of the huge tree in the yard, and need to be uprooted before they undermine the foundation of the house.
One of my tasks will be to move the flower beds. Their level of elevation means that water is draining into the foundation, and that's not so great. I want to keep the daffodils and mystery flowers, however, so I hope they'll survive being uprooted and relocated.
Before I get to that, though, I need to pull out the dandelions that are rapidly overtaking the front lawn. Dandelions, it appears, need rather less water than grass, so while the grass is mostly dead, the dandelions are proliferating.
Ultimately, I'd like to take out a bunch of the grass, and put in more succulents and native plants. Not only will this have the benefit of saving water, but it will help my allergies. As it turns out, I'm allergic to just about every kind of grass there is. There are a lot of people thinking along similar lines in my neighborhood (which is not surprising, given ongoing promises of water rationing this summer), so I'm hoping to take some walks this weekend to get inspiration.
And that's just the front yard. I think I'll save the back yard for another day.
So what about my yard?
In the front, the yard is encased on 3 sides by a short retaining wall of concrete bricks. The short retaining wall results in a fairly level yard, which I appreciate, given the precipitous slope of the driveway. At the east and west front corners of the lawn, evergreen shrubs, roughly manicured into triangles, serve as boundary markers. Roughly centered on the lawn is a large shade tree, grown rather wild and unruly in the absence of care.
Along the edges of the front walk, and under the front window, additional short retaining walls enclose raised flower beds. I have positively identified the daffodils planted in the beds; the other flowers remain a mystery to me. A series of fledgling bushes may very well be seedling versions of the huge tree in the yard, and need to be uprooted before they undermine the foundation of the house.
One of my tasks will be to move the flower beds. Their level of elevation means that water is draining into the foundation, and that's not so great. I want to keep the daffodils and mystery flowers, however, so I hope they'll survive being uprooted and relocated.
Before I get to that, though, I need to pull out the dandelions that are rapidly overtaking the front lawn. Dandelions, it appears, need rather less water than grass, so while the grass is mostly dead, the dandelions are proliferating.
Ultimately, I'd like to take out a bunch of the grass, and put in more succulents and native plants. Not only will this have the benefit of saving water, but it will help my allergies. As it turns out, I'm allergic to just about every kind of grass there is. There are a lot of people thinking along similar lines in my neighborhood (which is not surprising, given ongoing promises of water rationing this summer), so I'm hoping to take some walks this weekend to get inspiration.
And that's just the front yard. I think I'll save the back yard for another day.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
New Sink!
I am still delighted about the sink. Doing the dishes, believe it or not, makes me positively giddy. Plus, I've cleaned and scrubbed and disinfected the kitchen counters enough that I now feel able to actually cook. I've eaten dinner at home twice in a row now, and gone 2 entire days without eating out at all. Does this new fondness for doing dishes and cooking represent a shift in paradigm? Only time will tell.
The rest of the house continues to come along. I have the science fiction and fantasy paperbacks shelved, and am working through the hardcovers and graphic novels. I am geek; hear me roar. I still haven't figured out where I'm going to put the rest of my books (a miscellaneous hodgepodge of English-language, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French fiction and non-fiction), but I need to uncover the dictionaries as soon as possible. (I've found the Webster's Unabridged for English, but I'm woefully unprepared should a translation project come my way.)
The phone lines are my next big challenge. I hope to talk to the phone company tomorrow, so be prepared for a sudden loud shriek of horror and disbelief sometime around mid-morning.
The rest of the house continues to come along. I have the science fiction and fantasy paperbacks shelved, and am working through the hardcovers and graphic novels. I am geek; hear me roar. I still haven't figured out where I'm going to put the rest of my books (a miscellaneous hodgepodge of English-language, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French fiction and non-fiction), but I need to uncover the dictionaries as soon as possible. (I've found the Webster's Unabridged for English, but I'm woefully unprepared should a translation project come my way.)
The phone lines are my next big challenge. I hope to talk to the phone company tomorrow, so be prepared for a sudden loud shriek of horror and disbelief sometime around mid-morning.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Progress
There are blinds in the bedroom and middle room now, and towel racks in the bathroom.
There are 3 bookcases up, at least, and bolted to the wall, and I just about have the first one filled with books.
And even though I can't use it yet, do to a few inches of gap between the drain pipe coming down and the drain pipe going into the wall, I have a new sink! Already, the kitchen looks so much better, I don't have words to express it. It looks like a place where I could cook food without dying of food poisoning!
(Sorry about the continued lack of pictures. I haven't talked much about my phone line problems. Suffice it to say that the same person that glued together the pipes in the house and jury-rigged the sink in the garage seems to have had a phone fetish, and there is a tangled mess of phone lines and cables in the walls. This is making it hard to get a good Internet connection at home.)
Lesson learned: a sink made of porcelain over cast iron is very heavy, so you probably shouldn't drop it on your drain pipe.
There are 3 bookcases up, at least, and bolted to the wall, and I just about have the first one filled with books.
And even though I can't use it yet, do to a few inches of gap between the drain pipe coming down and the drain pipe going into the wall, I have a new sink! Already, the kitchen looks so much better, I don't have words to express it. It looks like a place where I could cook food without dying of food poisoning!
(Sorry about the continued lack of pictures. I haven't talked much about my phone line problems. Suffice it to say that the same person that glued together the pipes in the house and jury-rigged the sink in the garage seems to have had a phone fetish, and there is a tangled mess of phone lines and cables in the walls. This is making it hard to get a good Internet connection at home.)
Lesson learned: a sink made of porcelain over cast iron is very heavy, so you probably shouldn't drop it on your drain pipe.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Flooding
Now that I have had a chance to recover, would you care to hear about how I ended up with flooding on move-in day?
To get there, I have to start with the day the washer and dryer were delivered. The outlet for the dryer vent, as it happens, is located behind the utility sink in the garage. Because the dryer requires a semi-rigid, metal vent pipe, the delivery guys weren't able to hook the pipe up to the outlet. Ultimately, my dad ended up taking out both a portion of the utility sink's jury-rigged support system (a bright green vanity on a plywood support) and a mystery pipe jutting out to nowhere from the sink's drain. The vent pipe was attached securely.
In the process of securing the dryer's vent pipe, however, the washer's drain hose was knocked loose. You see where this is going. Monday morning, I decided to do a load of wash before the movers came, et voila!, flood.
Water streamed out of the garage. Water streamed through the wall of the garage and down the front walk. Water streamed through the front closet and into the entryway. Water streamed under the door and into the hallway. And water streamed through the wall and into the closet of the front bedroom.
Several soaked rags and 24 hours with 4 power blowers and a fan later, dryness was accomplished.
I still, however, need to get the carpet tacked back down.
To get there, I have to start with the day the washer and dryer were delivered. The outlet for the dryer vent, as it happens, is located behind the utility sink in the garage. Because the dryer requires a semi-rigid, metal vent pipe, the delivery guys weren't able to hook the pipe up to the outlet. Ultimately, my dad ended up taking out both a portion of the utility sink's jury-rigged support system (a bright green vanity on a plywood support) and a mystery pipe jutting out to nowhere from the sink's drain. The vent pipe was attached securely.
In the process of securing the dryer's vent pipe, however, the washer's drain hose was knocked loose. You see where this is going. Monday morning, I decided to do a load of wash before the movers came, et voila!, flood.
Water streamed out of the garage. Water streamed through the wall of the garage and down the front walk. Water streamed through the front closet and into the entryway. Water streamed under the door and into the hallway. And water streamed through the wall and into the closet of the front bedroom.
Several soaked rags and 24 hours with 4 power blowers and a fan later, dryness was accomplished.
I still, however, need to get the carpet tacked back down.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Calming Down
I spent yesterday evening cleaning my old apartment, and dropped off the keys first thing in the morning. I've been sleeping in my new house for four nights now. I'm getting used to being there, but it still doesn't quite feel like "home."
Getting to this point has been challenging. I feel like I've been subjected to a sleep deprivation experiment. Just about every part of me is bruised, cut, or aching. Some hours, the fatigue makes it very hard to think straight. There are boxes everywhere. The dandelions, dead grass, and plant skeletons in the yard are taunting me.
Still, I'm starting to feel like I'm making progress. And I have been taking pictures. I just have to find some free moments to download and post them.
Getting to this point has been challenging. I feel like I've been subjected to a sleep deprivation experiment. Just about every part of me is bruised, cut, or aching. Some hours, the fatigue makes it very hard to think straight. There are boxes everywhere. The dandelions, dead grass, and plant skeletons in the yard are taunting me.
Still, I'm starting to feel like I'm making progress. And I have been taking pictures. I just have to find some free moments to download and post them.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Moved
I have moved in.
There are currently 4 high power blowers working on drying out the flooded front of my house.
The curtains in the front room are held up by painter's tape. They're the only window coverings in the house.
There are currently 4 high power blowers working on drying out the flooded front of my house.
The curtains in the front room are held up by painter's tape. They're the only window coverings in the house.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
The Flooring Is In
The movers are coming on Monday.
Panic has ensued.
On Tuesday, when I opened the house up for the carpet installers, the morning light coming through the doorway revealed all manner of holidays in the paint over the opening leading to the dining room.
But dealing with that has to compete with getting a fully functional bathroom together before Monday. The holes are patched, and I just bought the primer and paint. Now I have to tape, prime, and paint; finish assembling and connecting the toilet; install the vanity and medicine cabinet; and put up the towel racks, toilet paper holder, shower curtain rod, and shower curtain. Adding a little over-toilet storage would be a nice bonus, but not likely to happen before move-in.
Other than that, I still need to cut a path from the dryer to the vent hole, get the locks rekeyed (a call is in to the locksmith), and put up curtains. I also need to figure out what I'm doing about bookcases (keeping the open-faced white ones or getting myself to Ikea for 3 more with doors to match the 2 in my apartment's dining room).
Oh, yeah. And pack.
Panic has ensued.
On Tuesday, when I opened the house up for the carpet installers, the morning light coming through the doorway revealed all manner of holidays in the paint over the opening leading to the dining room.
But dealing with that has to compete with getting a fully functional bathroom together before Monday. The holes are patched, and I just bought the primer and paint. Now I have to tape, prime, and paint; finish assembling and connecting the toilet; install the vanity and medicine cabinet; and put up the towel racks, toilet paper holder, shower curtain rod, and shower curtain. Adding a little over-toilet storage would be a nice bonus, but not likely to happen before move-in.
Other than that, I still need to cut a path from the dryer to the vent hole, get the locks rekeyed (a call is in to the locksmith), and put up curtains. I also need to figure out what I'm doing about bookcases (keeping the open-faced white ones or getting myself to Ikea for 3 more with doors to match the 2 in my apartment's dining room).
Oh, yeah. And pack.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Back to Work
After a lovely weekend of rest and recharging, I'm back at work.
Among other things, I'm currently trying to figure out what to do about the sink and counter tops. It appears that the original laminate counters were goldenrod, to coordinate with an avocado green sink. At some point, the counters and the sink were painted white. The counters are now stained and chipped, but I could live with them. The sink, however, is in bad shape. The white paint has peeled and chipped, and the resulting mess is both unsightly and unsanitary. On top of that, the faucet is corroding and the drain covers look to be rusting.
At first, the obvious solution seemed to be to replace the sink and live with the counters until I was ready to remodel the kitchen. (The cabinets look to be aged walnut veneer; the flooring is made up of individual vinyl adhesive tiles.)
The problem is that my primary consultant (I usually call him Dad) is convinced that taking the sink out is going to crack the counter top, since they may be both glued and painted together.
So I'm waiting for a bid on replacing the counters (new laminate, for the time being; I still want to remodel down the road).
Meanwhile, the carpet goes in tomorrow, and I still have a bathroom to paint and finish. (When I'm not busy packing. And boy, do I need to get busy packing. I hope to move next Tuesday.)
Among other things, I'm currently trying to figure out what to do about the sink and counter tops. It appears that the original laminate counters were goldenrod, to coordinate with an avocado green sink. At some point, the counters and the sink were painted white. The counters are now stained and chipped, but I could live with them. The sink, however, is in bad shape. The white paint has peeled and chipped, and the resulting mess is both unsightly and unsanitary. On top of that, the faucet is corroding and the drain covers look to be rusting.
At first, the obvious solution seemed to be to replace the sink and live with the counters until I was ready to remodel the kitchen. (The cabinets look to be aged walnut veneer; the flooring is made up of individual vinyl adhesive tiles.)
The problem is that my primary consultant (I usually call him Dad) is convinced that taking the sink out is going to crack the counter top, since they may be both glued and painted together.
So I'm waiting for a bid on replacing the counters (new laminate, for the time being; I still want to remodel down the road).
Meanwhile, the carpet goes in tomorrow, and I still have a bathroom to paint and finish. (When I'm not busy packing. And boy, do I need to get busy packing. I hope to move next Tuesday.)
Friday, May 1, 2009
One Step Forward...
As happy as I am about my lovely new laminate flooring, I am heartily wishing that the installer had been a little more careful about the finishing work. I found out the hard way that there are blobs of adhesive, roughly the size of a large jawbreaker, lying about on the exposed concrete portions of the floor. By "the hard way," I mean that I stepped in a blob without realizing it, and tracked adhesive all over my nice new floors.
It has taken a fair amount of elbow crease and some cussing to get it off.
I hope that I have found and disposed of all of the remaining free-range adhesive blobs, but I'm not certain.
This and the amount of paint touch up work that I've put in this morning (without finishing the job) has worn the shine off my optimism. But I'm off for a couple of days of rest before coming back for the final move-in push, and I hope to have plenty of shiny hope back by Monday.
It has taken a fair amount of elbow crease and some cussing to get it off.
I hope that I have found and disposed of all of the remaining free-range adhesive blobs, but I'm not certain.
This and the amount of paint touch up work that I've put in this morning (without finishing the job) has worn the shine off my optimism. But I'm off for a couple of days of rest before coming back for the final move-in push, and I hope to have plenty of shiny hope back by Monday.
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