NOLA CASA

House Paint

2011-09-06T14:52:00.000-05:00

I've been looking at house colors for a long time now - and I've decided on one thing: it's hard to find a nice color that goes well with a brown roof. I think we've got it narrowed down to these three options: Deep Brown, Dusty Teal, and Sage Green (I named the colors - you like the descriptives?).

Option 1: Deep Brown
It's very striking, but maybe too brown? Not pretty enough?

Option 2: Dusty Teal
This is my absolute favorite - but not sure it's got enough widespread appeal to keep the market value of the house up where we want it. Might need something safer.

Option 3: Sage Green
I originally thought this would be the hands-down winner, but looking at it now, it just seems a little un-special.

What are your opinions on these three? Any other ideas? And before you say it, I've already tried hot pink with orange trim - no bueno.

I love this Chair...

2011-06-14T13:46:00.003-05:00

But I'm not sure where I should put it. I feel like I have enough seating in this place already.

Not a bad deal, either - check it out:
http://www.wisteria.com/Architectural-Iron-Chair/productinfo/W3766/

My friend Trina introduced me to Wisteria.com today. Not good for someone who's trying to be productive all day!

So Much Time

2011-06-09T14:41:00.003-05:00

I've been spending a LOT of time at home lately, since I've started my own business. I'm now working from home, and although I try to get out of the house as much as possible, there are days when I'm stuck here going stir-crazy. So, I've decided to resurrect this blog as I work to keep this place clean, well-decorated, and smelling like a place where I can entertain guests and clients alike.

And though I'm poor and trying to save money to keep my new venture up and running, I've also decided to pretend that I'm rich and visit my favorite home stores around the city, snapping pictures & blogging about what I would do (or will do) if/when I'm rich!

Maybe, just maybe, if I blog like I mean it, I might start to have some credibility on the subject of home decor and where to find the best stuff. Even though I have no formal training on the subject of interior design, I like to think that I have a good eye & an innovative approach to mixing the old & the new. And then, one day, out of the blue, people will start to PAY me to blog about them... and Perch will start giving me free things... and Eclectic Home will ask my advice... and New Orleans Homes & Lifestyles will want me to write a column... and the Gambit will make me guest-editor of their CUE issue.

That happens to people all the time, right?

Dirty Day

2011-03-27T18:01:00.008-05:00

I spent 6 hours doing yard work today. That's a record for me. Here is a brief list of the best things I discovered while digging up what used to be (and are now again) flower beds, pulling weeds, raking leaves, chopping down dead plants, etc:

1. 9-ft long chain - looks like it holds a plant from a porch ceiling
2. 6 small gold Christmas ornaments
3. One green wreath frame
4. A baby gate. Seriously. There was a 2 ft x 3 ft white plastic baby/dog gate in my yard and I didn't even know it.
5. An empty pack of Salem cigarettes
6. One cupid-themed pinwheel
7. Several shingles, pieces of 2x4s, bottle caps and a piece of metal pipe

And some before and after pictures for you:

New gloves (purchased this morning from Lowes):

Gloves after 6 hours of work. I've thrown these away, but I think I got my $2.99 out of them:

Beautiful feet (not mine actually, but you get the idea):

Sock line post-yard-work. That's not a tan (nor is it very hairy legs, thank you very much), that is dirt my friends!

Bed 1 before:

Bed 1 after:

Bed 2 before:

Bed 2 after:

I also cleaned out several other areas of the yard, but didn't take After pictures because I didn't think to get Before pictures. I filled up 9 (that's right, NINE) 42-gallon trash bags with leaves, weeds and aforementioned random items.

I'm exhausted, but proud of myself! I really want to pressure wash my front porch & steps so that I can put pretty flower pots on the stoop. I never thought I'd be so excited about yard work. Being middle-aged is changing me.

Bedroom TV Project: Check!

2011-03-27T11:38:00.008-05:00

I have a long list of things to do to get my bedroom in order. One of those things was mounting my flat screen TV to the wall so that I could watch it without straining my neck as a I fall asleep at night. This also helps to clear up some floor space in my bedroom, which actually makes the room feel a tad bit bigger.

My parents came in town last week and gave me a belated bday present of a wall-mount that would allow the TV to be almost flush with the wall - perfect. So - in the interest of being very thorough, here is my process of hanging it:

1. Called/texted several friends to see if I could borrow a stud-finder.
Adam's response: you just found a stud.
Greer's response: yeah, I have one. Her name is Melanie.
Karl's response: beep..... beep.... beep BEEP BEEP BEEP! (pointing to himself)

2. Borrowed Greer's ACTUAL stud finder (not Melanie).

3. Realized my whole house is made of studs, in the form of barge boards, so steps 1 & 2 were a bit pointless.

4. Attempted for almost an hour to get the base off my TV. This included several expletives shouted so loudly that my neighbors probably think I have tourette's syndrome, and one trip to Lowe's to purchase a reversible ratcheting magnetic philips-head screwdriver. (I highly suggest you pick one up - SO handy!)

5. Measured the distance between my porch door and bathroom door, then eyeballed a place to hang the TV.

6. Drilled two holes, screwed two screws into the wall & four screws into the TV.

7. Very carefully hung the TV on the bracket, plugged everything back in, and enjoyed Babar the Elephant on Nickelodeon.

Now I need to get some of those fancy cord-covers so that my room is pretty again. Anyone have any good sources for these? I want something that matches the wall or has a subtle pattern to them. I think I could make one pretty easily, but a trip to Bed Bath & Beyond is probably much less stressful than trying to sew a 9 foot pocket.

Up next: curtains for the archway in my bedroom. I do need to sew these - I can't find any pre-made curtains that are long enough. Wish me luck.

Hedge-clipper MADNESS!

2011-01-24T18:03:00.002-06:00

I spent about 5 minutes of my Friday night looking for landscapers/gardeners online, and then spent about 2 hours of my Saturday cleaning up the yard myself. It's amazing how much you can get done in 2 hours, how sore it will make you the next day, and how many calories you supposedly burn. Apparently, gardening is the best household chore for a cardio and strength workout.

I wish I'd taken a before picture, but let me tell you that the fence line is GORGEOUS after I went to town with a pair of clippers (compared to the mess it was before, anyway). Saturday's accomplishments include:

- chopped down about 100 weeds that had grown to be taller than me
- pulled out about 100 yards of vine that were choking my beautiful Camellia and Rose bushes
- picked up several pieces of trash that someone felt appropriate to just toss in my yard
- had a nice conversation with my neighbor about dead plants
- accidentally chopped down a part of my beautiful Rose bush; salvaged the one rose that had bloomed and put it in a bud vase in my living room

It's the time of year when my white rose bush starts to produce some amazing results. I look forward to cutting off their heads and bringing the nature inside. I feel like I could spend 2 hours every day cleaning up that yard and it still wouldn't be perfect. I need a mulcher - any loaners out there?

Once in a Lifetime Opportunity

2011-01-24T17:50:00.006-06:00

I have a few simple questions for you:
1. Do you love the feeling of being home wherever you are?
2. With the new year, do you feel a need to increase your philanthropic activities?
3. Do you like the notoriety of having your name on a plaque*?
4. Would you like to own a small portion of a home in New Orleans?

Then do I have the opportunity for you!

Several things in my house need fixing! With your check and support, there are no limits to what we can do together. Imagine:

"The YOUR NAME HERE Oven"
"YOUR DEAD GRANDMA'S NAME Memorial Wine Fridge"
"Headboard on permanent loan from the YOUR COMPANY'S NAME collection"

For just pennies a day, YOU can fix a hinge, hang a flag on my front porch, or give an out of work landscaper the opportunity to clean up my yard!

With every dollar comes hope for a better tomorrow.
Call or email today.

*Plaque not actually included with donation

Who knew Table-Setting could be so fun?

2011-01-07T13:52:00.005-06:00

I don't really remember my mother ever making me set the table for dinner, but I've heard other people complain about what a horrible childhood chore it was. I have a feeling that I probably would have enjoyed it, especially considering that as an adult, I find table-setting to be one of life's great pleasures.

I had some friends over for New Year's Eve and set the table for 8 with stuff I had around the house:
- Leftover paper placemats, turned upside down to show the white side
- Gold Chargers that I got at World Market; regularly only $2.95 each, but a stranger gave me a coupon for $10 off, so I got a GREAT deal on them
- White plates
- Brown & white damask patterned napkins leftover from Thanksgiving
- My grandmother's Gold-rimmed martini glasses, which I used for champagne
- A centerpiece of metallic horns in a vase (not pictured here; twas an afterthought)
- Hats for everybody!

I'm pretty proud of how it turned out. We had a pretty schmancy meal, as well - but I took no pictures of the food before it was devoured. Happy 2011!

I'm debating whether to take down my Christmas tree this weekend, or just convert it to a Mardi Gras tree. I don't want it to go away - it makes me so happy and the house smells so good. How long do those things last before they're a true fire hazard?

Bad Ass Grannies

2011-01-06T12:37:00.004-06:00

Another quick art project, also inspired by my realization that 2010 was almost over & I hadn't finished anything I'd started.

I found these two photos of my grandma & great-grandma while visiting my grandma (mom's mom) in Ponchatoula. I discovered them on different visits, but loved them both and thought that the obvious theme here was too wonderful to not use them somewhere.

So, after a quick call to my mom to confirm that she didn't have a similar photo of herself lying around somewhere, I converted my Gaga's photo to black and white and played with the contrast a bit so that they would match up. Then I uploaded them to Snapfish, picked up prints at Walgreens a few hours later (80 cent art project!), bought a cheap frame at Big Lots and put them on the wall in my bedroom next to my dressing table so that I have a little inspiration as I get ready in the morning.

It's my new favorite piece in the house.

Tis Been a While

2011-01-06T12:22:00.003-06:00

It's been a long while since I blogged. I can't say that nothing has been happening at the house, it's just that I'm the kind of person who gets all excited about a project and then ditches it quickly. So, I've been spending the past month or so trying to wrap up projects that I started. And, when things get wrapped up, it's bloggin time!

So - first post of the New Year, and a resolution to post at least once a week. (I may need you to hold me accountable for that)

A few years ago, I bought a 3'x5' canvas at a garage sale for only 10 bones (great deal, right?). It's been sitting in my office waiting to be adorned since then. I've always known that I wanted it in my dining room, but never took the time to do anything with it - for several reasons:
1. I was holding out until I could afford a Rebecca Rebouche painting that I've loved for years. That's not happening anytime soon, unfortunately
2. I wasn't sure what to do with the canvas
3. I was afraid I would hate my own art, and constantly critique it, and it would ultimately lead to my own misery

I decided to put these reasons aside and realize that for a $10 canvas, I can afford to not be totally in love with my own art. So, on December 30th, in preparation for my gold-themed New Years party, I made a trek to Michael's. Gold leaf, copper leaf, spray fixative, rust oxide paint and some sponge brushes later, I arrived back home to compile my masterpiece.

Step 1: put the canvas down in the middle of my living room/dining room so that I could not forgot or ignore it before it was finished

Step 2: paint the whole thing in a rusty orange-ish red color to provide some contrast against my teal dining room walls

Step 3: use brown paint (leftover from my clawfoot tub) to add some dimension to the flat surface

Step 4: VERY carefully apply gold and copper-leaf squares to the surface. This was a fragile mess, especially after sampling a gift of Ruby Red Absolut Vodka that I received for Christmas. Although, I have to say that the vodka helped to punch up my liberal artistic tendencies

Step 5: I used a gold paint pen to draw a border around the whole canvas - it just felt too red and I wanted to dull it down some

Step 6: Hang it on the wall next to my wonderfully decorated NYE table. It's probably not finished yet, but it works for now and it's nice to not have so many blank walls.

So - you like it? It's a bit modern and shiny, but the good thing is that I can keep working on it - dull it down, add some more dimension and color - and the piece will evolve until I eventually love it enough to sell it to someone else for $2000 and then I can afford that Rebecca Rebouche painting that I had in mind the whole time.

Oh - and Yikes!

2010-05-19T09:34:00.004-05:00

In the midst of all the glorious news about my upgraded kitchen, I didn't mention that the redheaded stepchild column on the front porch has decided to rapidly deteriorate as a result of the recent rains and hot weather.

The column has split from top to bottom and is in desperate need of repair. I've tried calling guys from Craigslist to repair it, but you know the old story - they never call back. I mean - SERIOUSLY - they're the ones putting ads out saying that they need work, and that they do column repair, but when I need something, they disappear. Maybe they shouldn't be allowed to use Craigslist if they don't really mean it. What's a girl gotta do to get a freakin column repaired?

You can see in the photos above the giant split down the column, and the piece of wood that popped out of it & landed across my little side table. Anyone know anyone who handles this sort of thing? Hit me up.

When in Rome

2010-05-19T09:28:00.003-05:00

This has nothing to do with Rome, or even the expression "when in rome" but I was trying to think of something clever to incorporate my new roman shades, and that's all I got.

Here's some money shots of the kitchen window: sanded, painted, caulked, painted again, and with the new handmade roman shades installed. My mother is a badass.

The colors just aren't coming out well on my blackberry camera... either I need to get a new camera so that you can experience the true beauty of the fabric, or you all just need to come over for Champagne brunch so that you can admire my excellent taste in fabric & my mother's amazing handiwork.

Fabric Overload

2010-05-18T10:11:00.004-05:00

I went to another fabric store after work yesterday - best one I've been to so far. The selection was bigger and better, and the prices were lower than the other stores I've been to. If you're ever looking for home fabrics in the greater New Orleans area, check out Interior Fabrics on 19th & Severn in Metairie.

I found three more fabrics - all very different. I've actually decided on one of these, but I'm not telling you which one yet - you'll have to check back and see photos of the completed curtains. Ooooh - the suspense!

Option 2A:

Option 2B:

Option 2C:

*Note that my flash did a number on these fabric samples - the colors are much richer in person.

Curtain Poll

2010-05-17T13:47:00.006-05:00

Alright kiddos, now that the kitchen is coming together, it's time for curtains. My mother is in town & has offered to sew up some roman shades... I just have to pick the fabric (much easier said than done). I'm finding, once again, that I am very picky and have very expensive taste.

Here are the 8 fabrics - that's right EIGHT - that I've narrowed it down to. Vote today, because I'm shopping tonight!

Option A:
Yes, that's giraffe print. Just something I'm considering... probably won't be the winner. But imagine a Safari-themed kitchen! Helmets with fans for everyone!

Option B:
I think this is too boring.

Option C:
I like this one - the pattern could be a winner, but the quality of the fabric is questionable.

Option D:
Again, walking that fine line between my style & that of an old lady. I need to be careful with this, as I'm still questioning my chair fabric decision.

Option E:
I think this is too busy - the pattern is tiny; maybe not a good idea in such large quantities.

Option F:
Tending a bit to the pink side... I was going for red accents, but I like the idea of it.

Option G:
This is my completely girly option. But hey - it's my kitchen! If I want it to look like a 9-year old picked out the curtains, that's my call.

Option H:
Ok, I realize this looks like a circus tent. But who doesn't love circus tents? I'm including this just because I love it, but they don't even have enough fabric left at the store to make the curtains, so it's really not an option.

Obviously, I'm going for a brown/cream/red theme to coordinate with everything else. The red accents in my kitchen are RED - like cherry red - so I was considering leaving the red out of the window treatments (didn't want to do anything permanent in case I change my mind). Now that I have that backsplash up, the kitchen feels lighter - so maybe I should go with darker curtains? I'm not sure, but I realize that if this is the hardest thing I have to figure out this week, my life is pretty good.

Now, please realize that as much as I value everyone's opinion, my own ridiculous taste will trump your votes and input. Mwaaa ha ha.

Kitchen in Progress

2010-05-17T13:38:00.003-05:00

I love the brown walls in my kitchen, but the truth is, they got banged up a lot & brown paint isn't very forgiving - you could see every little white knick. So, the time had come to put up a backsplash.

Actually, the time came a while ago - I've had the subway tile for years now, and I've had the trim pieces for months. However, every tile person I found either came back with a ridiculously high estimate, or they never came back at all. I guess you can't trust people on Craigslist to follow through on their promises - but that's a whole other topic.

My mother got her tile guys from Florida to come over this weekend and put up the backsplash in the kitchen. They left Pensacola on Saturday at 5 am, banged on my door at 8:30 am, and were out of there by around 4:30 pm.

The kitchen is looking better all the time - here's some before, during and after pictures of Operation Tile.

BEHIND THE STOVE BEFORE:

BEHIND THE STOVE DURING:

BEHIND THE STOVE AFTER:

LEFT SIDE OF COUNTER BEFORE:

LEFT SIDE OF COUNTER AFTER:

RIGHT SIDE OF COUNTER BEFORE:

RIGHT SIDE OF COUNTER AFTER:

Exciting stuff, huh? Take a deep breath - I know this is a lot to process. Up next, curtains & rugs! Then we'll move on to my bedroom... slowly but surely.

The Blog Fairy

2010-05-13T14:25:00.002-05:00

You like the new look? Thank the Blog Fairy for hooking me up! Love it! I'm re-inspired to write more and do more.

Like George & Weezie...

2010-04-15T13:37:00.002-05:00

I'm moving on up. Got myself a real live domain name - www.nolacasa.com. So don't be freaked out if you go to the old URL (nolacasa.blogspot.com) and your computer magically redirects you.

Up next - a cool new design for the page, and then I'm going to expand beyond my self-centered world and write about other homes I love in this great city. Could be a mansion I've only seen from behind the wrought-iron St. Charles Avenue gates, could be a friend's house with great couches for sleeping.

I'm also working on starting up my own stationery & invitation business, which may or may not be called Nola Casa. I've been through about 7 names so far, but I think I like this one best because it's unique and easy. So - you may have to start tolerating posts on wedding invitation etiquette and my problem with thank you notes that come printed with "thank you" already on them. (Nothing against anyone who uses those notes - you just won't ever catch me with a pack)

It's a whole new era. Brace yourselves.
xoxo.

My Thumb

2010-04-13T16:36:00.003-05:00

I used to have quite the black thumb. The Lowe's garden center was my least favorite place in the world, I would rather lick a hobo's feet than mow the yard, and even cut flowers sent to me from a florist would somehow die within a day.

I'm not sure why, but I'm getting a bit of green thumb these days. I'm not saying that I'm good with plants and lawn care, but at least I'm beginning to enjoy it. Mowing the lawn is therapeutic - I love the instant results, the smell of freshly cut grass, and the hard-core gangster rap music on my pawn-store-Christmas-present-ipod.

The azaleas (I think that's what they're called) in front of the house are blooming pink and white, and I have a gorgeous pink camellia bush & white rose bush on the side of the house. I haven't even touched them except to cut off flowers to bring into the house. I guess I got lucky on that.

I need to take some photos of my hedges - I'm particularly proud of them. Thanks to my new hedge trimmer and a hack-saw, the bushes are perfectly straight across the top and down the sides. The combination of nature and order is really gratifying to my OCD tendencies.

I've removed about 15 bags of raked leaves from the yard in the past couple of weeks, and I think my mother took out about 9 bags of dead plants from the winter freeze. So, the yard is sparse right now, but it's going to get a lot better! Maybe one day I'll actually plant something!

Spring has Sprung

2010-04-08T22:34:00.002-05:00

Everything is blooming - roses, azaleas, camellias... it's glorious.

With the gorgeous flowers comes a ridiculous amount of pollen, fallen oak leaves, and little oak spore-y things (I'm clearly not a botanist). This is what my car looked like this morning:

Ugh. I learned my lesson and this evening I parked down the street, away from the trees.

TJ Maxx and Marshalls

2010-03-31T12:35:00.003-05:00

It's no secret to any of my friends that I LOVE TJ Maxx and Marshalls. I love the thrill of the hunt, and feeling like I've gotten a GREAT bargain.

My grandparents gave me a gift card to TJ Maxx for my birthday in February so that I could get some new rugs for my kitchen. Well, I've been back every week since to see what they've gotten in so that I can find the perfect rugs. Unfortunately, I still have not found the perfect rugs. In my search, however, I have found:

An adorable, yet flamenco-esque pink pillow for my ruffly bed:

A jewelry organizer for my dangly earrings (only $3.99!):

The jewelry organizer makes me want to go buy more dangly earrings, though. When I started organizing everything, I realized that I have lost several pair. If anyone out there has any of my earrings, please return immediately. I'm particularly missing my:
- black hoops
- wooden hoops
- bronze chandeliers
- black beaded strands
- small silver hoops (only missing one of these, actually - I have its lonely partner)

I also found some amazing lamps at Marshalls - heavy, solid, clear bases. I've seen these in other stores for hundreds of dollars (once even for thousands of dollars at Hurwitz Mintz, but that was just insane). I got them at Marshalls for $99, and I'm in love with them. They are perfect for these black laser-cut floral lampshades that I got in Florida 18 months ago and still had in a box (shameful, I realize).

I did need to adapt the lamps to fit the shades a bit - a few simple washers from the old Home Depot and about 15 minutes of tweaking, and I'm set!

My room is one of the last in the house that really needed updating. This week, I've added a bedskirt from ebay, and two silver trays from a local thrift store for my perfumes and nail polishes. My bedroom is getting girlier by the minute - and I love it. Here's what is left to do:
- make a big white tufted fabric headboard
- mount my TV on the wall
- find some pink floral artwork
- buy a zebra skin rug
- get a big white wingback chair
- hang some white curtains between my bed & the dressing area
- make some roman shades for all of the windows

I'm sure that once I tackle this list, I'll find 100s more things to do. I need to do something hard and tough soon so that I can balance this flighty silly girly phase I'm in. Maybe my next post will be about my new yard work addiction. Nothing makes me happier than my new Black & Decker hedge trimmer!

My New Trash Can

2010-03-30T21:21:00.003-05:00

Wow. The title of this post sounds about as exciting as that Greg Kinnear movie about Windshield Wipers. If you're reading this, then you probably already know that I'm a nerd and you can tolerate my excitement for having found the perfect trash can.

So - here's the backstory: a few years ago, I went to Memphis for my friend Mary's wedding. Some of the other bridesmaids & I stayed at her friend Kristen's house. Kristen had impeccable taste, including the use of a big wicker laundry hamper as a trash can in her kitchen. She used 32 gallon bags, and said it was a huge help because she didn't have to take the trash out as often. It's embarassing that the memory of her trash can has stuck with me all of these years, but it has.

I'd been looking for a similar wicker hamper to use in my own kitchen, but they were all so freaking expensive. I eventually gave up on the hamper idea when I saw an adorable red metal trash can in a catalog. However, that trash can was teeny tiny, and $140. I'm shocked at how much people spend on hampers and trash cans!

I eventually merged these two concepts - giant trash can, but in red metal to match some of my other kitchen accessories. The search for a huge red metal trash can was not successful... yada yada yada, my craftiness kicked in.

Today, using a Home Depot gift card from my bday (shout out to Lauren D!), I purchased a large silver metal trash can and 2 cans of spray paint - one white primer, one glossy red.

After scrubbing off the "made in America, buy American, support America, go Red White & Blue" stickers that the manufacturer felt necessary, I was able to prime and paint the trash can all in one night - success!

Here's the before:

The During:

And the after:

I love it! I was worried it would look huge and gaudy and silly, but I really think it's the perfect size and color for my kitchen. Now, when people come over, they'll actually have a place to put their trash! Hip hip hooray.

Sidenote: I realize that I haven't blogged in a while, but now that the renovations are done, I feel very shallow writing blog posts about things that I'm buying. My mother thinks that's ok, so I'm getting back on the wagon. I am pretty proud of my bargaining abilities, so my next post will be about the great deals I got while shopping today!

The Glory of Curtains

2009-12-20T23:41:00.004-06:00

My mother sewed me up some real sweet curtains for Christmas. I looked at about 100 different fabric patterns before deciding on this one:

The reasons I chose it:
- it's beautiful
- it's slightly modern without being trendy
- it works with the colors in the living & dining rooms
- it pulls the blue out of the old-lady chairs

I spent the past two days sanding, painting and scraping windows so that they'd do the curtains justice. Here's a before shot of the living room:

I'm obsessed with the curtains. They are glorious and beautiful and make the house feel warm and cozy. Blinds are on order; can't wait for them to get here. Until then, here's a shot of the dining room with the new curtains:

I've said for a while that once I have rugs & window treatments, the house would feel more comfortable. While that's definitely true, they don't provide a totally settled feeling, because they also make me want to keep going - Armoires! Knick-knacks! A new TV! All in good time....

Thirty Dollar Rug

2009-12-18T11:52:00.003-06:00

So... after a year of searching for the perfect rug for my living room, and finding a few things that I loved, but couldn't afford, and a few things I could afford, but didn't love....

I found a rug at Big Lots for $30. Ridiculous. It matches the colors in my living room perfectly - the blue, beige, brown, and a teensy bit of olive green. It's a little smaller than I would have wanted, but I can live with that for $30.

This weekend, my mother is bringing my Christmas present - CURTAINS!! We found the perfect fabric at Joanns over Thanksgiving, and she sewed them herself. Don't you just love custom stuff? I can't wait to put photos up.

In the meantime, I need to get the window frames sanded and painted, and finish making my curtain rods. I bought some wooden dowels from Lowes, and I'm painting them to match the trim, then drilling holes in the end for finials. I think I'm going to get glass door knobs instead of real curtain rod finials; and I'm putting up some pullbacks that were in the house when I bought it. Hopefully this all ties together nicely!

It's starting to feel warmer in here... good things.
Merry Christmas!

House & Solitude

2009-11-21T14:00:00.007-06:00

This is the first weekend in a few months when I have had no one in from out of town. I believe it will be the last weekend with no visitors until 2010. I'm embracing the solitude & using my time to get some things done around the house.

Todd, the cabinet guy, came over Thursday and put up the re-cut shelves in the back kitchen. Now my parents can cook safely without fear of lighting the shelves on fire. I spent some time today painting the interior of the shelves - as there were a few little white spaces left between my mother's paint job and the end of the shelves. I think I did a pretty good job, especially considering that I'm much better at rolling paint on than being meticulous with a brush.

Also on my list today was new exterior house numbers - out with the 7804, in with the new 7806. However, once I got the 7804 numbers down, I realized that I should have new 7806 numbers to put up before I take that set down. I was going to go to the Bank today to find some new ones, but they close at 2. Sham.

I got a new mirror for my bathroom - it's not as large as I originally wanted, but I'm in love with the look of it. It's a tad bit grandiose, but muted with matte white paint, and I have it leaning between the sinks instead of hanging on the wall. To be honest, I can't take much credit for it. My friend Danielle found this in a gaudy gaudy gold & painted it white herself. I saw it hanging in her dining room a few months ago and told her that if she ever got rid of it, let me know. Her recent move into a new apartment became my lucky day! I really can't stop looking into the bathroom. The style of the mirror makes me want to hang a chandelier in there... maybe I will.

Now Bo(I guess I do have a guest this weekend, after all) and I are off to Lowe's to find some trim pieces for the kitchen backsplash. Hopefully I can get the tile guy over here early in the week so that my kitchen is closer to perfect before Thanksgiving.

This is Bo. He's a good boy:

Thief!

2009-09-24T18:09:00.002-05:00

When I got home from work today, the alarm system was off, one of the toilet seats was up, and the shelves were missing from the back kitchen!!

Clearly, someone has been here & has stolen our cabinetry!!! AAHHHHHH!!!!!!

House Numbers

2009-09-21T19:25:00.004-05:00

We're refinancing the house to get a lower interest rate. In order to do this, I need to show the appraisers that it is now a single-family home, no longer a double. Part of this process is removing the old house numbers & replacing them with one set of house numbers between the 2 front doors.

I really want something unique for house numbers, but I'm not sure I have the energy to go find something unique this week. Plus, I went to Home Depot tonight to peruse the numbers section, and they really have some pretty nice stuff. Here are my top 3 choices - let me know what you think:

1. Pewter numbers on a black backing. Pretty traditional looking, but very clean; and the plaque will help the issue of trying to mount numbers on uneven siding.

2. Brass numbers on a white plaque. I think this matches the house the best, but it's a little country-looking to me.

3. Modern font - floating numbers. These look cool, and could be mounted directly to the house, but I'm not sure if they'd be too hard to see.

What do you think? Opinions?

Neighborhood on Fire

2009-09-21T19:18:00.004-05:00

Thursday night, my friend Trina came in town. We were sitting in the den, drinking wine, around midnight, when we heard fireworks going off in the street. Then the power to the house went out & realized that noise wasn't fireworks - it was an electrical wire in the street sparking all over the place.

We went outside to see that a wire from the house had burned in half - it was laying across my yard, across the fence, and out into the middle of the road. The other piece of it was hanging from the electric pole, on fire - literally.

I called 911 and got a fire truck there pretty quickly, but they couldn't do anything until the Entergy people came to turn the power off, which took a while. It was a pretty eventful evening - I got to know the neighbors a little better than I had before.

The most amazing thing was watching the one-man-Entergy-crew do his thing at 1 am. He shut off the power to the whole block, went up in his truck, cut down the burnt wire, put in a new wire, and had the whole block back up & running in about 30 minutes. Incredible. I'm just glad the tree didn't catch on fire & burn everything down before he got there.

I tried to take pictures, but they didn't come out well. Here's one of Trina in front of the fire truck:

And, for the record, this fire was unrelated to my previous incident with the outlet on the porch. I was assured of this by my electrician.

House on Fire

2009-09-16T21:23:00.004-05:00

The house has been on fire in the past few weeks - literally and figuratively. I'll get the literal part out of the way first so that you can enjoy the figurative part without the anticipation & worry.

Last night, I was washing down the back of the house to get it ready for the painters to come. As I was spraying the back porch with a hose, a covered electrical outlet started making a very troublesome noise. Before I could investigate further, black smoke started coming from the outlet, and then it burst into flames. I put the fire out with the hose, let the outlet cool down, and checked it out. It's grey & kinda melty-looking. We'll have to get the electrician to come check that out.

Now, when I say that the house has been on fire figuratively, I really mean that my mother has been on fire. I went out of town for 11 days, and when I came back, she had stripped most of the doorknobs, painted several doors, painted window trim, sewn curtains, hung blinds, cleaned up the yard, etc etc etc. I need to put more pictures up here of the progress, but for now, these will have to do.

She sewed these red curtains out of some old curtains that I had - like a modern day Maria VonTrapp. They are 11 ft tall - which made them difficult to hang, but I think I did a decent job. Just don't get too close to the hardware.

She also sewed these curtains for her room - I think they're gorgeous, especially when they're open. She did a much better job of hanging them than I did with mine. After I hung the red ones, I went back and looked at her handi-work with these and was disappointed in myself.

And, a very exciting addition to the house... my mom brought my piano here from Florida!! I've been playing almost every day - not sure if the neighbors are annoyed yet, but I am loving it.

I have a few more projects in the works - got some good deals at Big Lots & TJ Maxx today. So there should be more updates more often. Come visit sometime - it gets lonely in here every once in a while. (And no, the ghost hasn't been keeping me company - no appearances since the hand-squeeze... I'm finally starting to sleep like a normal person.)

Extreme Home Makeover

2009-08-19T17:50:00.005-05:00

See if you can notice the subtle differences that I made to the house. I think it really adds a new level of curb appeal.

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

Who Dat!

Your Neighbor Probably Did

2009-08-04T11:08:00.003-05:00

I worked from home this morning so that I could get some things done without all the distractions of the office. You know - coworkers, clients, phones, emails, text messages, instant messages, intercom pages, screaming bosses, etc.

It was also fun to stay at home because the Spray-Foam insulation people came today to work their magic. So while I typed away on a script, I could hear the spraying noise under the house. I found the noise very entertaining - except when I had to pee; then I was afraid that they could hear me. So I held it until I came in to the office.

When I walked out of the house to come to work, this is what I found:

Apparently, they didn't want to ask me to move my car, so they just set up camp around it. I tried to get some pictures of the foam guys under the house, but the hoses were the best I could do - not as exciting, but here you go:

Also, as I was driving off, I saw a sign that they put in my yard - which I told them they could do. After I saw the sign, I thanked myself for letting them put it there because their tagline is "Your neighbor probably did", which will make me laugh everytime I see it. Here is a horrible picture of the sign with a bad glare:

The owner also has "Your Neighbor Probably Did" as part of his outgoing voicemail message. These people are not only spray-foam experts; they are marketing geniuses.

Hopefully this spray-foam will lower the ole Entergy bill by keeping the a/c where it belongs. It should also keep out bugs, lower echos, and possibly lock in a ghost. Eeek.

Things I Found out Yesterday

2009-08-01T10:46:00.002-05:00

1. Rachel died in the house. At 2 am. (I'll give you a minute for your goosebumps to go away)

2. I should not tell my friends this story if I ever want anyone to hang out here.

Apparently, Rachel was the most loving, spiritual, kind, nurturing lady that everyone I talked with has ever met. According to several sources, I am lucky to have her here. I learned a lot about her life yesterday, and I have a list of messages to give her if she comes back. Hopefully, I'll be able to speak next time instead of frozen, shocked stuttering.

Last night, before I went to bed, I spoke out loud to Rachel for a while - letting her know who I had talked to, what they had said, and that I would appreciate a good night's sleep. I felt like a kook, but I slept like a baby.

Helpful Hint

2009-07-31T14:18:00.003-05:00

If you're ever lying in bed at 3:30 am, alone in the dark, and have just been shaken up by a ghost visiting your home, don't Google "can ghosts squeeze?". If you do, Google will prompt you with scary questions like these:

And then, if you weren't frightened before, you'll start thinking of all the things that ghosts can do, even if they're friendly ghosts, and you won't be able to fall asleep until 7:45 am. Then you'll wake up at 8:30 and be tired in your morning meeting at the office, and you'll have to drink a Diet Coke to pep yourself up, even though you gave them up in August 2008.

I'm sure this is obvious to most of you.

Thank God for Late-Night E!

2009-07-31T02:53:00.003-05:00

I'm so happy that Chelsea Lately repeats on E! at 2:30 am. It gives me something funny to watch right after Rachel visits.

Warning: Megan - do not read this!

It's 2:54 am right now. Approximately 54 minutes ago, I felt something squeeze my left hand and then hold it very firmly, but not so firm that it hurt - more like the kind of hand hold that someone would give you to comfort you when you were really upset. I opened my eyes and saw Rachel again - much more clear this time, and more than just a face. It was a complete torso - like she was leaning against the wall next to my bed & I could see her from the waist up. She seemed very short.

I think she was trying to talk to me - I could see her mouth moving, and I tried to guess what she was saying. It looked liked "Does anyone want to see me?" I tried to answer back and say "I don't know - I haven't asked them," but I was so frozen that I'm not sure my voice was working. I think I got out every other word.

Then she said "Oh Really?" in a way that was kind of surprised, like she assumed that I had asked around. I'm not sure if I actually heard it, or if I just saw her mouth move and figured it out - it was such a surreal experience.

Then the vision of her dissolved inward, ending with what looked like wire-framed glasses. At some point during the dissolve, the squeezing feeling released from my left hand. Then, again, I sat up startled, awake & very aware.

It wasn't scary - just startling and unfamiliar. She was smiling the whole time, especially when I was trying to figure out what she was saying - she was encouraging me and helping me figure out the words. I think the whole experience lasted a full minute - when I finally looked at the clock, it was 2:02.

My mother is here right now (I didn't wake her up - figure I'll wait til the morning to fill her in), and she said yesterday that she wanted Rachel to visit her - which REALLY surprised me. She said that she has layed in bed asking out loud for Rachel to come. I, on the other hand, have asked out loud for Rachel to let me sleep in peace. Usually, Rachel does let me sleep - but I guess she has an agenda too, so I need to respect that.

And now it's 3:09, I'm watching E! and wondering when I'll be able to fall back asleep. I'm guessing 4:30ish. Tomorrow, I'm doing some research on this whole thing - can ghosts talk? can they squeeze? are there even rules for this? should I just start setting an alarm for 2 am?

Small-Scale Installation Project

2009-07-19T13:11:00.002-05:00

Today, using some scotch tape, a sharpie, a mechanical pencil, a level, tape measure, hammer, and 9 small nails, I completed the installation of my piece, entitled "People drinking at Pat O'Brien's over the past 8 years."

Seriously, I'm pretty proud of my accomplishment. I got them to hang in a perfect grid pattern with exactly 3" of space around each frame. It looks really good above the bed in the guest room (if I do say so myself). These little projects are definitely more fun than painting trimwork & installing doorknobs.

In less-related-to-the-house news: This weekend, my brother & sister-in-law came for a visit. We had a great time, ate at some great places, and drank some delicious beer. The most amazing feat of the weekend was Neal's triumph at the Creole Creamery on Saturday night. He demolished the Tchoupitoulas Challenge, which involved eating, in one sitting:
- 5 large scoops of vanilla ice cream
- 3 large scoops of raspberry sorbet (which he later decided was a bad choice)
- Graham Cracker Crumbs
- 2 whole bananas, sliced
- 5 large strawberries, sliced
- Hot fudge
- Hershey's chocolate syrup
- Caramel Topping
- 6 huge dollops of whipped cream
- a handful of sprinkles
- 6 maraschino cherries
- 4 wafer thingies

It took him just under 2 hours. He started a quick pace, but slowed after about 15 minutes. At the hour mark, he did some stretches, and then got back in the game with the encouragement of a 7-8 year old boy who told Neal that "he would die if he didn't finish." Here are some pictures of the accomplishment:

Never been more proud.

New Roomie!

2009-07-17T12:53:00.006-05:00

Disclaimer: I don't normally believe in this sort of thing, so I'm not sure how to process this, but thought that I would share the story.

I think the house is haunted. Two nights ago, while sleeping, I felt someone poke me on the back of my left shoulder. When I turned my head to the left, I saw the face of an older black woman with big smiling cheeks and a rounded chin. Her face was very close to mine, and I got so startled that I became wide awake more quickly than I ever have before. I looked at the clock, it was exactly 2 am. I couldn't sleep very well for the rest of the night.

I wasn't wearing many PJs, so I pulled the covers all the way up to my chin to cover myself, so as not to offend the ghost. When I woke up the next morning, there was sweat all over my sheets from me being freaked out & hot (gross, I know).

Yesterday, I researched the woman who owned the house before me (who died while living there). I found a Times Picayune article about an artist who lives around the corner from me who was great friends with this woman. The online article had photographs of the woman, and she looked exactly like the face that I had seen the night before. Again, freaky. Goosebumps-level freaky. I looked up the artist's phone number on whitepages.com and tried to call him, but there was no answer, no voicemail.

At least she was a friendly ghost, so I'm not entirely scared, I'm actually more uncomfortable than anything else. However, it was definitely more difficult to fall asleep last night than usual. Then, last night, at exactly 2 am, my house phone rang 3 times, stopped, then rang 3 times again. I assume that it was someone dialing a wrong number, let's just hope they weren't dialing from the Beyond. The timing was very creepy. Plus, I bought a cool old retro rotary dial phone, and its ring is something straight out of an old horror movie. It ain't no happy digital ringtone, you know?

I think it's odd that this didn't happen while Rebecca was living with me. Perhaps she's a ghost-deterrent. In any case, I'm not totally cool with the new roomie. It may be time to call in Drs. Venkman & Stantz.

Hammock!

2009-07-07T16:34:00.004-05:00

And now, after a month or so off, back to the blogging!

I got a hammock. It was too small for the hammock stand, but I can't complain - they were both free. The problem was easily remedied by a quick trip to Lowes, which is a place I've been missing. I bought 2 pieces of chain, 1 ft long each, both capable of handling up to 1300 lbs, which is, I hope, more than the hammock will ever handle. Best $5.47 I've spent this week.

I plan on lounging as soon as I get home from work. Not for long, though - I have to go buy a Viking costume for this Friday's bar crawl. Tough life.

Days of Yore

2009-05-26T11:15:00.003-05:00

Things that happened in 1890:

Nellie Bly completes her round-the-world journey in 72 days.

Idaho is admitted as the 43rd U.S. state.

At Auburn Prison in New York, the first execution by electric chair is performed, with murderer William Kemmler as the subject.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially renounces polygamy.

In West Point, New York, the United States Naval Academy defeats the United States Military Academy 24 to 0 in the first Army-Navy football game.

In New Orleans, Louisiana, a house is built at what will eventually become 7806 Dominican St. Cool, huh? That's one old house.

Old Chair, New Chair

2009-05-19T14:23:00.001-05:00

I am recovering the dining room chairs in white linen. I think it's going to look really good because everything else in that room is so dark. Let me know what you think - here's a side-by-side of old chair/new chair.

Semi-Finished Rooms

2009-05-17T08:04:00.004-05:00

None of the rooms in the house are as finished as they will be when they're finished. But here's a glimpse into the most finished of the unfinished.

The powder room:

This room looks much more red, less orange, in person. The powder room is pretty done, actually - just need to get a little trashcan. I saw one at Target shaped like a monkey eating a banana. Maybe I'll go back and pick that up.

(side note: As of this morning, "Target Monkey Trash" is the most random thing I have ever Googled.)

The dining room:

I plan on recovering these chairs in white linen, and getting a big rug. Plus, I need curtains and one huge-mama-jama piece of art for the ginormous wall.

The office:

This is where I sit now as I type. This room is pretty done, also - I just need to clean the tools out of the closet so that I can finish unpacking my stuff. And I need come curtains.

The living room:

I'm trying to find a photo that really lets you see these chairs. I think they're beautiful. It's not showing up well on camera.

My bathroom:

Next on my list is a 5'x7' mirror for this room - but I think the countertop & sinks are lovely even without a mirror.

My parents are in town this weekend - they brought a new couch and a new mattress, bedding, etc., so their den & bedroom are coming along nicely. I need to take some pictures of it. They'll probably be finished with rugs, curtains & accessories long before I am.

The good news is that the house is almost pretty much in shape for visitors, if you're willing to make a few concessions like not having a handle on the door to the bathroom. So c'mon over!

I was about to finish this post, but 2 ladies on horseback just rode past my office window. I felt that deserved a mention. Gotta love this "city."

It's Brown, Damnit

2009-05-13T09:14:00.002-05:00

Saturday, the "construction" guys (that's right - plural) spent 4.5 hours installing a little bit of 1/4 round and a few baseboards.

Yesterday, the granite guys spent 8 hours installing countertops in my parent's kitchen. Apparently, they ran into a few hiccups, but everything looks great.

Now, most of you, when viewing these photos, will think "what lovely black granite countertops!" And you're right - they are lovely. However, they are BROWN. Antique BROWN. Not black. I don't care what anyone says.

Today, the tile guys are here re-tiling my parent's bathroom floor. If you recall, that tile was laid crooked & made me dizzy. So - they're fixing it. Hopefully, they won't follow the lead of the last 2 groups and spend all day on something that should only take a couple of hours.

Next up, the amiable plumber & jolly electrician come back to wrap up their work. After that, there should be no more men knocking on my door at 8 am.

Old Lady Chairs

2009-05-07T10:40:00.003-05:00

My chairs, cocktail table (I don't drink coffee) and side table came in at the furniture store yesterday. They are truly beautiful - these pictures don't do them justice.

The chairs are borderline old lady, but mostly awesome. And the best part - they recline!! Now I just need a rug in that room & we'll be set.

Adios, El Dumpster

2009-05-05T10:01:00.002-05:00

I awoke this morning to the sound of a big truck hauling away the dumpster. I would have gone outside to take pictures, but I wasn't very appropriately dressed for greeting a truck driver, so I took these from my bedroom window.

Oh, Dumpster. How well you served. Tis a bittersweet day.

New Stuff

2009-05-01T08:29:00.005-05:00

JK about that last post. Duh! There's still stuff going on. OMG.

Todd the cabinet guy came back yesterday to install the cabinets in my parents kitchen. The granite people may or may not have come to measure for countertops (that's still a mystery) - but the cabinets look damn good:

Also, he drilled holes for cabinet hardware in my kitchen. I put some of them on last night, but ran out of hardware & time. I'll have to go back to Lowes tomorrow and swap out handles for knobs. Here's what they look like:

I realize I never mentioned that my dining room table was delivered last week. It's big and gorgeous. My roommate says she's afraid to eat on it because she doesn't want to get it dirty. I guess I can't give her too hard a time about that - I haven't eaten on it, either. I'm waiting to get a rug - don't want those chairs to scratch the pretty floors.

Tomorrow should be another fun day of house stuff. I'm going to try to get the office totally organized... I'm well on my way (I'm actually in the office now, typing this). And I want to find a rug for the living room so that it will be ready when the new furniture arrives.

And I just need to keep cleaning. It reminds me of painting a cruise ship - as soon as you get to the end of it, the beginning is ready for another coat. Ahhh... remember the days when I used to paint cruise ships? Good times.

I Live Here Now

2009-04-30T19:31:00.002-05:00

Well, I live in the house now - so I guess there's no more need to publish posts. I mean - what am I supposed to do? Blog everytime I change a roll of toilet paper?

Bruised & Tired

2009-04-27T09:32:00.004-05:00

Well, I moved this weekend. I have bruises & cuts all over, and I'm exhausted. Thankfully, my boss had her baby last night, so today should be a slow day at the office.

The house is still a bit of a wreck - but by the end of the week, I hope to have everything in its place. I think it will be a looong process to get everything done that I want done - curtains, rugs, art on the walls, etc. But it's looking good & I hope to have you all over soon.

The dining room table should be delivered today (I think) and the living room furniture is coming in next week. I did get my mattress delivered & I got my new bedding all set up - it's gorgeous & girly. And my kitchen is impeccable - all of the glasses are lined up in perfect rows.

It's probably easier to put pictures up than describe everything. I'll try to take some pictures tonight and show the progress on here - mostly right now, it's boxes everywhere.

Special thanks to: Mom, Dad, John (who helped me move everything, ran stupid errands with me & is awesome), Uncle Barry, Aunt Daphne, Rachel & everyone who showed up and drank beer on the porch. It really was a fun weekend. Could have only been made better if Neal & Megan were here. Or Vince Vaughn - I think we'd get along. Or this guy:

And now, the one picture I took this weekend: my little brother, in a wheelchair, going down the front steps:

Moving

2009-04-24T09:11:00.004-05:00

The floors are finished - they turned out a bit darker than I thought they would, which is great, because I wanted them darker. Here's a shot of the dining room:

And the den:

Tomorrow is moving day - the house isn't finished, but it should be livable by the end of today. Keep your fingers crossed that the plumber gets all the sinks & toilets installed and working. If you want to help move, you are more than welcome - just stay on the paper & don't scuff the floors!

I'm going to try to get one set of pictures when the house is finished and clean and empty of all contractor stuff - boxes, tools, etc., and before I move in the furniture. But I'm not sure that there will actually be a time when the house is in that condition.

Craig & His List

2009-04-21T11:43:00.002-05:00

I'm selling a lot of stuff on Craigslist this week. Let me know if any of you are interested in this stuff before I sell it to strangers.

- Table & 4 chairs
- Daybed (broken, but functional)
- Red curtains (4 tab-top panels)
- Blue & brown curtains (2)
- 12 Pint glasses
- 1 small white microwave

If you want it, come and get it. This week only. I'm not moving any of this stuff.

Spit Shine

2009-04-20T09:47:00.003-05:00

The guys are still working on the floors. As of yesterday afternoon, all they had done was sand down the whole house & put a coat of polyurethane (sp?) on the kitchen floor. Then they moved the fridge in, leaving 2 track marks across the nice new floor. So then they had to re-sand & re-finish the kitchen.

I went buy again last night around 8:30 & it looked like they had put a coat on the rest of the floors - so I didn't walk through the house. Here are some shots of what the floors look like sanded down:

And here's where I spit on the floor to see what the color will be like once they're finished:

I can't go in the house for a few days, so I'll be packing and getting ready to move this weekend. I believe that my little brother John is going to come help me. I've never slept in the house; in fact, the only person who has is my father. So John & I have a competition to see who will be the 2nd person to sleep in the house. I'm going to buy him a cup of coffee & buy myself an Ambien. Challenge extended.

RIP, Old Friend

2009-04-16T15:23:00.005-05:00

I know this is completely off subject, but I am grieving and I need an outlet.

I have had a very productive, busy week. I felt like I deserved a treat. So, when I left my meeting today, I drove 20 minutes out of my way to get a Chicken Salad Wrap from Arby's. They are truly delicious, and they don't make me feel guilty like fast food would normally do.

I pulled up to Arby's, ordered a #17 (that's right - they have more than 17 value meals), and requested, as usual, to have the wrap instead of the sandwich. At that point, I was informed that they NO LONGER MAKE THE WRAPS. I know - it's shocking. So, I ordered the sandwich - same chicken, pecan, apple & grape salad, but on wheat bread. It's not good. Everything falls out when you try to take a bite. The bread-to-salad ratio is all off. I can't even look at it without getting upset.

Just a word to you all about the loss of a treasured lunchtime tradition. I will not visit another Arby's until the wrap is back. Who did this? Who? Who's the crackpot who made this decision? GIVE ME BACK MY WRAP!

Note that even in this photo, Arby's has chosen to make the wrap take a backseat to the sandwich. My sandwich is in the garbage. My stomach and my heart are empty.

Enter Sandmen

2009-04-16T10:21:00.002-05:00

I worked late last night, so I didn't get a chance to go see the finished granite until this morning. When I arrived, the floor guys were already there - sanding down all the floors. It's amazing how different the floor looks sanded down - you can't even tell the difference between the 3 colors of wood in the hallway anymore.

Here's a shot of the cooktop (stove) complete with granite (the guy on the left definitely knew he was having his picture taken; I need to get sneaky again).

And a shot of the sink in the countertop - this is in the opening that connects to the living room. I had a nightmare last night that the granite guys had put a wall of granite halfway up the opening so that I couldn't pass anything through. I keep having nightmares that the subcontractors have screwed up - like the other day, I dreamt that the cabinet guy installed these crazy unfinished, gnarled pine cabinets & put blue carpet in the living room as a "surprise." But I digress...

And a shot of the counter from the doorway to the kitchen - I do still love this Caramello Granite. I'm so happy with all my decisions so far - no regrets yet. But I guess everyone thinks they have good taste, or it wouldn't be their taste - right?

And a shot of the hallway - this used to have paint down the left side, a stripe of raw nasty wood down the middle (actually, to be honest - I kind of liked the racing-stripe-effect), and stained wood down the right. Now it's all one color. Incredible.

I don't think I can go in the house for a few days while they're finishing the floors - so maybe I'll get some yard work done this weekend if it doesn't rain.

The Little Things

2009-04-15T11:08:00.003-05:00

Here are a few little things that I am proud of.

1. My porch swing. I assembled it myself (although my friend Greg helped me hang it, then called permanent dibs on the seat; so if any of you are ever sitting there, you have to give it up to Greg)

2. The Clawfoot Tub. I sanded, primed and painted this myself (although my Dad helped to spraypaint the feet, so by Greg's logic, if you're ever bathing, you have to get out of the tub when my Dad comes)

3. The ceiling fan on the back porch. I just picked it out - but I think it's pretty.

Busy Bee

2009-04-14T17:00:00.003-05:00

Lots of stuff is happening. Work is crazy busy right now, and I'm working really long hours. I realized around 2 pm today that I hadn't eaten since 11 am yesterday. I don't even know when I'll have time to read all my emails - so I apologize to anyone who has tried to call or write lately. I'm too tired to write this in a narrative form, so here's the list:

- My parents came in town this weekend and cleaned up the house; it looks great.

- I bought and assembled a porch swing, then put cute pillows on it. It's freaking adorable. I need to take some pictures of it.

- The electricians are almost finished installing everything.

- The cable guy set up the phone lines, Internet and cable; although there are no phones, computers or TVs yet.

- The cabinet guy came back to add the doors. (see pictures below)

- The granite people are coming tomorrow to install the countertop (then it will almost be a real kitchen).

- The wood floor guys are coming Thursday to refinish the floors; then no one can go in the house until after the weekend; so I'll probably use this weekend to pack.

- Next week, we have to get the plumber in there so that there is running water before I move in. I find that sinks & toilets come in handy.

- I need to remember to call the security people next week after the floors are finished so that they install the security system before I move in; would someone please remind me to do that? Also, remind me to pick up the white light fixture from the wired lady - I'll know what you're talking about.

More Lights!

2009-04-08T15:03:00.002-05:00

I went to the house today to drop off a ceiling fan for the back porch. They've installed quite a bit today.

Dining Room Light Fixture (which I've fallen in love with all over again)

Master Bath Pendant Lights (very pretty)

Bar Kitchen Pendant Lights (which I love, but my mother thinks we need more color)

Oven/Microwave (needs a little trim, but looking good)

I also got the cable/telephone/internet thing worked out today. I'm meeting the Cox guy at the house between 1-3 pm on Friday. Once the phone is installed, the security people can come lock up the place. I got the home phone number today - I don't want to put it on here, because I don't want any prank calls. I checked it out on www.phonespell.org (a fun site to use when you get new digits). There's nothing exciting for this number. Ah well.

Chandelier Installed.

2009-04-03T10:26:00.003-05:00

The re-wiring lady finished re-wiring the chandelier that needed re-wiring. So, the electrican wired-it-up to the kitchen (it was formerly in the living room). He also installed the hood over where the cooktop will be. It's really starting to look like a kitchen. (pay no attention to the fallen-soldier daiquiri cups lined up on the ledge).

My grandparents & uncle came in town yesterday to help my mom paint & caulk. It's looking good in there - things move fast with that many people. I think all the painting will be complete by the end of the weekend (hope so, anyway).

The Glory of Cabinets

2009-04-01T12:10:00.004-05:00

Todd the cabinet guy kicked booty yesterday. All of the cabinet bases are installed in my kitchen. He just needs to come back and add doors and drawers. Here's a view of the kitchen from the living room:

The brown looks more brown now next to the lighter paint on the cabinets - just perfect. I really need to get my camera fixed so that I can take better pictures.

Last night, my mother and I put another coat on the dining room & on her bedroom. Here she is up on the scaffolding like a champion.

Today, the electrician is installing light fixtures all over the house. So, when I go back this afternoon, there should be chandeliers & pendants & recessed cans and bathroom lights. Pretty fun stuff. It's starting to look like someone could actually live there.

How Now, Brown TUB?

2009-03-31T09:32:00.005-05:00

Bet you thought I was going to say "Kitchen" again. GOTCHA!!

Last night, I Goo-Goned the bejeezus out of the windows in the den. This was necessary because the windows previously had fake-stained-glass-stickers adhered to them, which my mother removed. I guess they weren't her taste.

I also painted the outside of the clawfoot tub a beautiful Satin Java Brown. I then taped off the door to the room so that no one will go in there & get dust or sheetrock texture or paint on my beautiful tub. I'm trying to decide whether it needs another coat. Opinions?

This morning, I went to the house at 7:15ish to meet the cabinet guy, Todd. He is installing the bases for the kitchen cabinets today. They look really pretty - I'm excited!

He's hoping to be finished by 3 today, but I'm not sure that's possible considering all the leveling he has to do. It's making me very nervous to have him there with the electrician. I want to leave work & go hang out at the house.

Tonight, my mom is coming back to town. That woman needs a hybrid car. We're planning on painting my bathroom so that Randy's* guys can install the bathroom countertop soon. I'm hoping we'll also have time to put a second coat on the dining room.

This weekend, my friend Trina is coming to town to help me furniture shop. Not sure where we'll put everything. I might just need to leave things on hold all over town. I bought a brown loveseat last weekend & just left it at the store. I need to go pick it up this weekend.

So - things are coming together quickly. Today's the day I give my landlord 30 days notice. Wish me luck.

*Names have been changed to protect the author.

Teal - Beautiful Teal

2009-03-30T14:16:00.004-05:00

We got a lot of painting done this weekend - almost everything has a first coat, and the kitchen & bathrooms have 2 coats. Except my bathroom, because I'm very picky about the color & the Benny Moore people didn't get it right the first time, or the second time. Third time's a charm - wish me luck tonight.

These pictures are horrible, I'll take better ones with a real camera tonight, but here are some shots of the dining room.

The cabinet guy is coming tomorrow to install my kitchen cabinets, then the countertop people will hopefully come by the end of the week to measure for counters, and they can be installed in a couple of weeks. I think I'm going to have to push back the move-in date to the last weekend in April, but I'm totally okay with that.

My dad helped me tape off the feet on the clawfoot tub & paint them hammered gold. They look good. Tonight, I'm going to paint the outside of the tub brown. I'm pretty excited about it.

Last night, I bought ceiling fans and cabinet pulls from Lowes. I've never been there when they're shutting down. It's scary - they announce that they're closing, then they immediately start turning off lights. I was grabbing handfuls of cabinet pulls & running for the register like I was on Supermarket Sweep.

Next time you're at the checkout counter & you hear that beep... think of the fun you could have on SUPERMARKET SWEEP!

How Now, Brown Kitchen?

2009-03-26T10:00:00.004-05:00

My mom and I painted the kitchen last night - it is DARK brown & beautiful! (although my grandfather thought it was purple)

My mom also painted the bathrooms - the pictures aren't that great, but here you go:

The tile guy did the floors in my bathroom - they look good! Much straighter than the floors in the other bathroom.

Also, my grandparents cleaned the whole front of the house. It's amazing how different things look when they're clean - the color of the siding is totally different & the shutters next to the doors are actually white. It was too dark to get a good shot of this, so I'll have to go back & take another one.

Next up - teal dining room! Watch out!

Introducing.... PAINT!

2009-03-24T10:34:00.005-05:00

Ok - I was able to find swatches of the colors we picked out - so here you go. Keep in mind that everyone's computer monitor is different, so these colors may not appear accurately on your screen. (This is something I have to tell my clients everyday). Please read this list out loud to yourself, announcing each Color's name as if you were announcing the starters at an NBA game. Ladies & Metros, you can pretend you're Oprah announcing the name of her next guest.

For the living room, hallway, back kitchen & den, we have selected ELMIRA WHITE!

And here's a shot of it in action:

For my bedroom, I have chosen BUXTON BLUE!

And again, an action shot (all action shots stolen from other people's blogs):

For the dining room, BEAU GREEN!

There is no action shot of this; I guess no one else wants to paint an entire room teal. That makes me happy!

The kitchen will be MINK! But you won't see much of this because of the cabinets, so don't get scared or start to feel claustrophobic.

And a shot of Mink in action:

My parent's room will be CHESTERTOWN BUFF:

Chestertown in a lovely and well appointed living room:

We'll be using some variations of these colors in other rooms - like my bathroom will be 25% Buxton Blue, and the guest rooms will be 150% of the Elmira white. It should be just lovely when finished. Like a crayon box for awesome people.

Get excited people - this is the fun part. I'll be honest, I've had these colors picked out for a looong time. I had paint chips in my car before we closed on the house.

White Walls, White Russians

2009-03-24T10:13:00.004-05:00

Every title I thought of for this post came out sounding racist - "Ain't it grand to be white." I think I found a nice alternative.

Well, the sheetrock is complete, up, taped, floated, textured. My friends Tara, Rachel & Dan came to help me clean up the house on Saturday after the sheetrockers left. It was a huge honking mess, but I felt better about it after a few hours of dumpster loading. Afterwards, I thanked my friends by buying them daiquiris.

My parents & I met with Randy* on Sunday to discuss final details, like trim work, caulking the porch, etc. His guys are supposed to come back this week to wrap some things up.

On Monday, my mom stayed at the house all day scraping paint off of windows while the sheetrockers became painters & primed all of the walls and ceilings. Now the whole house is BRIGHT WHITE and seems quite sterile despite the mess and dust.

Dining Room from the living room:

Kitchen from the living room:

Hallway from the living room:

After I got off work, I met my mom at the paint store & we picked out colors for the whole house. We ordered 38 gallons of paint in 7 different colors - which should all be delivered as I type this. I'll try to find photos of the colors online so that I can share with you, but I don't want any criticism. Some colors make me happy & even if the painter thinks they're gaudy, I don't care. After we got all the paint, we again rewarded ourselves with daiquiris. White Russian count for the weekend was about 5 total.

Today, they are painting all of the ceilings. I believe my mom is caulking the trim, scraping paint off the windows, and starting to paint the kitchen so that it's done before the cabinet guy comes to install on Tuesday (one week from today). So - the photos should be fun for the next week or so as the colors start to appear. I'll do my best to keep you posted.

*Names have been changed to protect the author.

Tile Problems

2009-03-20T10:25:00.003-05:00

The reason I haven't been posting as much lately is that things are going wrong, and I try to only put up happy news.

The sheetrock is looking good - but there's a thin layer of white dust over everything in the house, including the new appliances, which were supposed to be covered up. The sheetrockers are a few days behind schedule. Hopefully, they'll really be done on Saturday and we can start painting.

Also - the tile guy started out strong with a very pretty laundry room floor, and an ok looking guest bathroom. But I went last night & saw what he'd done in my parents' bathroom. The tile is cut crooked to line up with the crooked walls, and it made me feel dizzy:

Also - the tile on the shower floor isn't consistent - you can see where the sheets break. It should look like one continuous pattern, but you can clearly see the separation:

So, we're working to get this all straightened out - literally & figuratively. Rather, I should say that my mom is working on it & kicking ass. I can't even wrap my head around everything right now.

I'm still hoping for a mid-April move-in date, but now I'm hesitant to share this news with my landlord, who needs 30 days notice before I move. Yikes.

Man on Stilts

2009-03-16T12:10:00.003-05:00

Here's a lovely picture of a 6 ft tall man on 4 ft high stilts - he was applying sheetrock mud, and was amazing to watch. He can maneuver like nobody's business:

I went to the house last night to check on progress - they've been sheetrocking all weekend. I didn't realize that sheetrock mud takes a while to dry, and I pushed my finger into a wall, so now there's a little hole that needs to be fixed.

I worked on the clawfoot tub this weekend, too - wire brushed it smooth, wiped it clean, and put on a coat of primer, which made me high. That, combined with the mild hangover I had from the Addy Awards Friday night, caused me to go home and lay on my couch in the dark for a few hours. I'm going back tonight to paint the feet gold, then tomorrow night I'll paint the outside brown & then it will be beautiful and you can all come bathe in it.

They should be done with sheetrock & trim by the end of the week - then we'll get to painting this bad boy. To all you out there who said there was no way I'd be in there by mid-April - I'm not saying "I told you so" just yet... but wait for it!

Sheet Rock & Roll

2009-03-13T14:17:00.006-05:00

Here are some pictures of the lovely sheetrock being up today. It's looking good, but made me feel a little claustrophobic in there - it's odd not being able to see through the walls. Randy* says they should be finished putting up the sheetrock today, then they'll finish it (smooth it out) early next week. We're moving along & hopefully staying on schedule.

The new kitchen looking into the living room (they need to cut this back to the arch):

My bedroom, looking into the closet:

The back kitchen:

The hallway down the middle of the house:

The dining room from the living room:

*Names have been changed to protect the author.

New Photos

2009-03-08T21:31:00.002-05:00

I took another round of photos today - I tried to take them from the exact same angles as the first round that I took before we bought the house. Some of those angles don't exist anymore, and there are some new angles- so I had to improvise, but...

click here to see the new photos.

I'll write more tomorrow. I am tired tonight, even though I should feel 60-minutes-less-tired because of the time change. Hmmmm....

Super Fun Sunday!

2009-03-02T13:31:00.003-06:00

Yesterday at 11 am, I met my parents & Randy at the house to review some things & figure out the next steps. We made Randy aware of a plumbing error made in the master bath, discussed the placement of baseboards, and talked about how much money is left in the budget.

Then the 4 of us went to Lowe's to buy tile, cement board, and insulation. My mom picked out tile for her bathroom, I picked out tile for the laundry room. I still need to figure out what to do for the tile in my bathroom. I really really want the tile that I picked out from Jeff the tile guy, but it's just not in the budget. I'll have to do some tile shopping this week and figure out a good alternative.

The plumber & electrician should be done this week. As soon as they're finished, we'll have inspections, then sheetrock, then painting & installing appliances. I still think that I can move in by mid-April. My sister-in-law said that no one else believes that except me.

After the Lowes excursions, we had a nice early dinner at Superior Grill, where I accidentally left the leftovers on the table. Those crawfish quesadillas would've been good for lunch today. I hate when I do that.

I feel like I've lost some steam on this blog. I'll get more enthusiastic soon, I'm sure. In the meantime, if anyone needs a clawfoot tub, here's a link to a great one I found on Craigslist (wink wink):

http://neworleans.craigslist.org/hsh/1056980668.html

Sexy Siding & Waterful Dreams

2009-02-26T11:06:00.006-06:00

Well, Mardi Gras is over. Back to work, back to working on the house. I went over last night to return a stereo that I taken to the parade route. The place is looking good! There are railings & stairs on the back porch! I love it back there.

Looks like Randy found a window that matches the other windows in the house. This window is right by the toilet in my bathroom. So... I guess I need to find some good curtains, or else the neighbor is going to get to know me a little too well.

The most exciting part is the siding that they have put up. It's really beautiful and new and just perfect. I know this makes me sound like a weirdo, but I couldn't stop touching the house. My friend Tara said that it was Sexy Siding - she liked touching it, too. Maybe we're both weirdos.

This weekend is going to be a whirlwind of housing activity. I'm running to about 5 different stores to pick up things I've ordered. I need to confirm things with the cabinet guy, find someone to refinish the clawfoot tub, and pick a security system. Also, my parents are coming in town - my mom says that she wants to wash the windows before the sheetrock goes up. That is awesome news because I'm not so much into washing windows. They are also planning on taking all the old aluminum siding to be recycled, which should earn a couple hundred bucks. And, my grandparents are bringing some of their BFFs to see the house. So... fun times.

Last night, I dreamt that the house was almost finished, but that my father had decided to add 2 pools, a hot tub, and out door shower, an in-ground beer cooler, and a waterslide to the backyard. The whole yard was covered in water features. I told him that it looked awesome, but that I was really concerned about my water bill. Hopefully it was just a dream & he doesn't have some sort of scheme up his sleeve to turn the place into WaterWorld.

Been a While

2009-02-19T12:08:00.004-06:00

I know it's been a while since my last post. It's Mardi Gras in New Orleans, so I'm focusing some energy on that. Which means that I probably won't give you another update until after Fat Tuesday. We shouldn't miss much, since the construction crew is also off for the holiday. God Bless this city!

In the past week, the electrician & plumber have gotten to work, Randy's crew has kept up the work on the back porch, which is almost finished & looking good (photo coming soon). I met with 2 security companies to get estimates on a system for the house. My mother has gotten 3 or 4 estimates on sheetrock, and I think she's picked one for us to use. I bought all of the recessed lighting for the house at Armstrong's, my mom got all the smoke alarms & exhaust fans from Lowe's, I ordered some plumbing fixtures for the claw-foot tub from Southland Supply. Just doing our part to stimulate the local economy.

In other news, Mary (the "pregnant life partner" who loves to comment on here) is in labor right now. Say a little prayer for her & Lilly!

Happy Mardi Gras!

Free Toilet!

2009-02-12T09:15:00.004-06:00

It rained a lot yesterday, so I was worried that they guys didn't do much work. Fortunately, it appears that they were able to get some stuff done inside by removing the toilets, sinks & tubs from both bathrooms, building some storage space above the closet in my bedroom, and doing a little more work on the back porch.

Unfortunately, the bathrooms look like meth dens right now. Not that I've ever been to a meth house; but I've seen them on TV. It's just disgusting. I want to go over there with a huge bottle of Clorox & sanitize the bejeezus out of the whole house.

Here's the guest bathroom where they took out the tub:

Here's my parent's bathroom where they took out the sink & toilet:

And here's the one lone toilet that they left in place:

The toilet & 2 sinks that they removed are sitting on Dominican Street. If any of you need a free toilet, please help yourselves before the neighbors start to scowl at me for being disgusting.

Tomorrow, I'm going to meet the plumbing fixture lady at lunchtime to pick out sink & tub drains, and then meeting a sheetrock guy after work for another estimate. After talking to the sheetrock guy on the phone, I have a feeling I'm going to like him about as much as I liked Barker (the old, fired contractor). Hopefully it will be a productive day.

George & Spider

2009-02-11T11:53:00.005-06:00

Yesterday I met the plumber (George*) and the electrician (Spider*) and had to answer a lot of questions that I never thought I'd have to answer. For example, I've never thought about where I wanted a switch for a garbage disposal. It's not the sort of thing a girl thinks about.

The two of them should get to work next week. After they are finished, sheetrock can start, then painting, cabinet installation, appliance installation... it's a chain reaction. The new target move-in date is the first week of April. I hate not being able to control these deadlines.

Yesterday after work I went to Armstrong's Lighting & bought 2 lanterns for the back porch that match the lanterns for the front porch. I also bought a big flourescent light fixture for the laundry room. It's not pretty, but that's ok - it's just the laundry room. Maybe I should put a big old ugly chandelier in there and fancy it up a bit.

After Armstrong's, I went to Lowe's & got a refund of $75 because that Freddy guy never delivered on the cabinet layout (due to the fact that I cancelled the whole order). So - that's a little budget bonus. I spent some time looking at rugs & found 2 that I like - here's the one I'm thinking about for the dining room. It has some blue in it, which should look nice with the teal wall color:

I also found one for the living room, but I can't find a picture of it online. It's called "Nutty" - which I like because that's what I call people when I don't agree with their opinions. It's a tan-on-tan damask pattern - very pretty.

The sinks for my bathroom were delivered today, too. I read a review of the sinks online that said the backs of them weren't finished. Because of this, I was going to have to place the mirrors above the vessel sinks so that you won't be able to see the unfinished back in the mirror. But, the backs of the sinks ARE finished - so I'm very very happy about that. Now I can get the taller mirrors that I want. Here's a sink shot:

Today I'm working on figuring out which security system I want to use. Either Protection One or ADT. I don't even know how to begin getting estimates from these people. I just know that I need to feel safe from hoodlums, Jehovah's witnesses, and overzealous Girl Scouts with their cookie order forms.

*names have been changed to protect the author.

View from Burdette St.

2009-02-09T09:16:00.005-06:00

Well, I didn't do what I was supposed to this weekend. I forgot that I had a wedding shower to go to on Saturday, so I didn't make it to Pine Grove to buy the light fixtures. I'll have to go next Saturday.

The roofer is almost finished, though - the house looks good now that it's more symmetrical on the outside. I just love symmetry!

Took these yesterday:

Here are some pictures from Burdette St. of the house before we bought it - so you can see the difference:

When I went to the house yesterday (Sunday) to take these pictures, the back door to the house was unlocked - no deadbolt, no latch, no nothing. Just open & ready to be burgled. I locked up & made sure that Randy knows that can't happen again.

Todd the cabinet man is going to the house today to mark some stuff up in the kitchen so that the plumber & electrician know where the appliances are going. We're meeting the plumber, electrician & contractor at the house at 11 tomorrow to walk through, make sure we're all on the same page, and get them started!

Photo Update

2009-02-05T19:03:00.004-06:00

Last August, my boss dropped my camera on the floor at a bowling alley. It hasn't been the same since - and although she promised to pay to fix it, I haven't taken her up on that yet. The problem with the camera is that it takes in way too much light. Every time I tried to take a picture of something, it just came out white-bright. Well, I found out that this is actually advantage when taking pictures inside of a dark house at night.

Here are a few shots of the roof & addition on the back of the house:

Also, while taking these photos off of the camera, I found some oldies but goodies. Here's a fun idea for something you can do at home with a little painter's tape and eyeshadow:

Hopefully my camera will fix itself before Saturday so that I can take a full set of photos.

Faucets Again

2009-02-05T09:45:00.003-06:00

I ordered the shower head & bathroom faucets from Lowe's yesterday. I decided to go with the Rustic Pewter. It's prettier. Anyway - this guy DEFINITELY heard the camera sound go off. I need to spend some time figuring out how to quiet that thing.

I found out last night that Lowe's will NOT honor the 20% off Home Depot coupons. So - I guess it's a good thing that I didn't order the cabinets from Lowe's. Although - the manager at the store where I was ordering the cabinets said he would take the Home Depot coupon. Maybe I just need to stick with the Lowes on Jefferson Hwy & steer clear of the Lowes on Veterans Blvd.

I took some good pictures of the house last night, but I took them on a camera instead of my phone, so I need to find the cord that will allow me to get the pictures onto the computer. Then I will upload them for your viewing pleasure.

Randy emailed me this morning & said they should be finished with the roof framing by tomorrow, and that the roofing guy (shingles & such) is standing by ready to go as soon as they are finished. Good news!

I'm going back to the lighting store in Covington on Saturday morning to pick out the rest of the light fixtures. After that, all we should need are toilets! Yippee!

I do realize that we'll also need cabinet pulls, paint, molding, shower drains, door knobs, toilet paper holders, towel bars, etc etc etc. The toilets are just the last thing on the "big stuff" list.

Ceiling Fans Are Fascinating

2009-02-04T14:04:00.004-06:00

I just went to Lowes on my lunch break. Again. The receptionist thinks I'm crazy.

I found out that the Rustic Pewter fixtures (see yesterday's posting) are way more expensive than I thought they were. Plus, I'd have to order all the towel bars, robe hooks, etc to match because Price Pfister is the only one who sells them in that finish. So... I think we might be back to the Kohler brushed nickel shower head, pictured here:.

I also took a look at some ceiling fans. Here's a handy guide on the suggested length of fan blades by room size (for those of you who don't know):

Bedrooms: 42" - 48"
Living Rooms: 50" - 56"
Rooms with high ceilings: 60" +

So, I'm guessing that I'll need 3 bedroom sized fans, 1 56" for the living room, and something nice for the back porch. I realize this is probably boring information to most people, but I'm finding it fascinating. I found 2 fans that I like. They're pretty similar.

1. Harbor Breeze Halston II in Aged Bronze

2. Hunter Stanford Collection in Bronze

I think I prefer the Hunter. It is, of course $40 more expensive than the Harbor Breeze. Such is life.

On a happy note - I bought a padlock for the Mardi Gras port-a-potty & found out that I could get duplicates made of padlock keys. So - now we have 4 keys instead of just the 2. Should make for a happier Mardi Gras experience. However, I need to be very selective with who gets to be a KeyHolder, because SOME people think it's ok to let all their random friends use the toilet. Tricky tricky.

Also - Armstrong's Lighting is having a clearance sale. So I'll probably swing by there after work.

Faucet Shopping

2009-02-03T22:33:00.003-06:00

Well, it's crunch time. Apparently all this stuff that we've been putting off has to happen NOW. So - the cabinets have been ordered (through a guy from Ponchatoula who is making them custom); we've decided on a plumber and an electrician; now I need to finish getting all of the plumbing & electrical fixtures.

I was going to put Brushed Nickel faucets in my shower & sinks in the master bath. But, today at Lowe's, I found this new finish called Rustic Pewter that I like a WHOLE lot more. Here's what the sink faucets & shower head will look like:

Also, today I went to the house and saw that the frame of the roof is up. Looks like the roof should be finished this week. It's pretty crazy to walk in the house and be able to see up through the ceiling, through the roof, and to the stars. I kinda like it like that.

I'm going back to the Northshore this weekend to pick up some lighting fixtures from Pine Grove - the stuff that I ordered is in, and I have a list of about 27 million other things I need. Should be a fun day.

I'll try to get to the house in the light tomorrow so that I can take some good pictures of the progress for you.

Good night!

Missing: Yellow Ladder

2009-01-30T12:00:00.006-06:00

I went to the house last night after work, but it was too dark for pictures, and I was too lazy to go inside & turn the lights on. So - I went back this morning to get a few shots of the progress. Walls up, porch down, holes cut. Great progress this week - and they're working tomorrow, so it only gets better from here!

Check out that decking! I think I'm going to put a lawn chair out there & drink some wine on my back porch tonight.

Tara came back in town this week and needed her ladder to hang some curtains & change lightbulbs in her apartment. However, we couldn't find the ladder. We looked everywhere. It's not there. I put a piece of tape on it a few weeks ago that clearly said "ALSOP" so that the construction crew wouldn't take it. Tarzan & Aidan* are supposed to check around at other job sites this afternoon & let me know where that ladder is. I hope they can find it, or I'm going to have to figure out a way to buy Tara a new ladder. In the meantime, she borrowed my blue shorty ladder. Here she is loading it into the back of her rented SUV.

I found some nice looking furniture on Craiglist - I'm going to check it out this afternoon. I'm not sure if I like this armoire or not. I might just think I like it because it's 9 ft tall & only $500. What do you think?

*Names have been changed to protect the author.

Take a Ride with Randy

2009-01-29T09:59:00.003-06:00

Randy took me for a ride in his truck this morning to look at columns around the neighborhood, meet some of his crew, and see his dining room table. It's quite pretty. I'm excited about him making my dining room table. It's not as ridiculously priced as I would have thought, either.

Here's what the railing on the back porch will look like:

We're meeting again on Sunday morning at 10 to finalize plans for the plumber & electrician so they can get moving. Randy had the insulation guy & roof guy come by today. He said that there should be a roof on the addition next week. Good things.

I'm going to pick out my Caramello granite slab today at lunch. Mmm... granite for lunch!

It's Not Raining

2009-01-28T10:26:00.005-06:00

Well - things are moving along. They put up some column/post thingys & added some plywood where the floor of the addition will be. When I went over there yesterday afternoon, the decking for the porch area was all laid out & ready to be installed. I was mentally prepared to head back this afternoon & be able to walk across the deck. However, I just got an email from Randy that they're not working today due to the rain. Curious, seeing as how it's NOT raining today. They're working Saturday to make up the time.

My mother found a potential solution for the cabinet problem. She's having someone else give us a price on custom-made cabinets. Apparently he made my grandmother's cabinets for a great price. Let's hope this works out.

Sills, Floor Joists & Inner Peace

2009-01-27T11:41:00.005-06:00

Here are some picture of the sills & floor joists. They're really booking it. Should be even better by this afternoon!

The cabinet situation is a big old mess. Ordering cabinets from Lowe's is like pulling teeth because Freddy doesn't want to share the plan we worked on Friday unless he can install it. But - they won't install it unless they measure the kitchen with sheetrock. If we wait for sheetrock, that means we have to wait for a plumber, and an electrician, then sheetrock, then measurements, then order the cabinets, wait 5 weeks, install the cabinets, order countertops, wait 3 weeks, install the countertops. That process has me moving in to the house by approximately June 2027. Not going to work.

So - on to Cabinet Plan F:
1) Force Freddy to share his plan
2) Measure the room myself & do some simple math to determine the dimensions with sheetrock
3) Order the cabinets from Lowe's against their will (before Jan. 31st, when the sale ends)
4) Hire someone else to install the cabinets

I met with a wood-worker guy this morning to see if he could give me a better price than Randy on the bar cabinets, the master bathroom countertop, and my dining room table. He was one weird bird. I'm very interested to see what kind of pricing he comes back with. I'm hoping nothing can be higher than Randy's estimate, but who knows?

Also, the countertop/tile guy emailed me today to let me know that a lot of what I picked out on Saturday turned out to be very expensive... so now everything is changing in that department, too. At this moment, I don't really care. Just slap some tile on the floor.

I just want ONE THING to go smoothly. Just one part of the process where I make a decision, it fits within the budget, comes in on time, and doesn't cause a chain reaction of disaster. When I get frustrated, I close my eyes and envision cooking a big meal that requires a lot of counterspace, eating it in my beautiful dining room, and then putting all of the dishes in a dishwasher. Ahh... peace!

Brace Yourselves

2009-01-26T09:46:00.005-06:00

This is exciting business. As of Saturday afternoon, there are PIERS at the house!! These glorious towers of cinder block & cement will one day support my bathroom, laundry room, and deck. I'm soooo excited to go back this afternoon & see the progress. Now that the permit is taken care of, nothing's holding us back!

I need to call Randy so that I can meet him over at the house today & make a list of things for the crew to do so that they're not standing around wasting time and money. I'll let you know how that goes.

Also - I'm thinking that it's time to take another full set of pictures like the first set that I took - I want 4 complete sets from the same angles so that I can make the best possible photo album of Before, During & After. You can see the before photos here.

Do the Freddy!

2009-01-24T18:05:00.005-06:00

5 points to who ever can name that movie! What 1980's cult classic featured a dance called the "Freddy"?

And - what friendly neighborhood home goods store has a cabinet installer named Freddy? Well, that's Lowes. It's getting more and more fun to take these pictures without the subjects' knowledge or consent. I'm like a spy.

I met Freddy at the house on Friday so that he could measure before we finally place the damned cabinet order. Well, he told me that he couldn't measure until they install the sheetrock. Something that Kathy (see previous post) hadn't told me when I told her that the house was still being renovated. So - Freddy was able to take some preliminary measurements, but he'll probably have to come back after the sheetrock is up... which won't happen until plumbing & electrical is done... so we're pushing back the process again. Not fun.

On a brighter note, Freddy made some great recommendations on things to change about the cabinets to make them work better. So I think we have a solid cabinet layout now.

Other things that happened yesterday:
- they poured the concrete for the piers on the addition
- I got a little upset with Randy because there were 5 men standing around, doing nothing, on the clock, for about 2 hours. I'm about to become a hardass like Ms. Johnson from the Permit Office.

Things that happened today (Saturday):
- they put in the blocks for the piers on the addition - so next week, they should start cranking on building up from there
- I met with Jeff, the countertop guy. I like him a lot. He has good ideas & I think he gets my style - which is awesome, because I'm not even sure that I know my style right now.

And now, I'm going to play glow-in-the-dark putt putt. A lovely ending to this glorious Saturday.

Robbed of Glory

2009-01-22T09:25:00.005-06:00

Well - a few things happened yesterday that would have been frustrating enough on their own, but combined... it was bad.

Before we get into all that, Happy Birthday Mary!

1. The permit finally came through so the guys can get started on the addition to the back of the house. You're probably thinking, "This is great news, Lauren! Why so bummed?" Well - I'll tell you. Randy went to pick up the permit from City Hall himself, rather than having me do it. This means that:
a) His parking & gas will probably show up on the next bill.
b) The City Hall vs. Dumpster vote is now horribly & irreparably screwed.
c) I couldn't get a picture of the sassy permit lady smiling. I was all prepared to ask her to pose with the permit.

2. I tried to order the cabinets from Lowe's. I don't even want to go into the cluster-flip that happened at the Lowe's. I was there for 2 hours, working with a woman who clearly didn't want to help me because she hadn't eaten all day & was therefore grumpy. The end result is that Lowes is coming to measure the kitchen and the cabinets are all in the system ready to be ordered once the measurements are done. The bright side of this is that I did get a picture of the cabinet lady (without her knowledge or consent, so it made up for the lack of Permit Lady picture)

To be fair, I think that this woman did have some idea that I was taking her picture, because I couldn't figure out how to get my phone's camera noise to go silent. So I just pretended like my phone was broken & had it make that sound a few times - providing a viable cover-up for the one legitimate photo. Oh - and to put your mind at ease - she finally got a sandwich around 8 pm.

I also spent some time looking at cabinet pulls & paint colors at Lowe's. I picked out a nice blue for the bedroom, blue for the bathroom, and some shades of brown for the kitchen. In a shocking twist, the cabinet pulls I like best were the least expensive of all the pulls as Lowe's - only $2.49 each! Half the price of my 2nd favorite pulls. This never happens. I always pick the most expensive option. It's a curse. This is a bad picture, but it should give you an idea:

I'm also upset because my favorite contestant got kicked off of Top Chef last night. It wasn't even her fault - so what if she's not a good waitress? That's NOT the point of the show! They should kick off the worst CHEF! Carla should've gotten the boot. That man-fraggle can't make a decent sorbet to save her life.

Caramello: The Granite

2009-01-21T15:14:00.003-06:00

I know - you got all excited when you saw the word "Caramello" because you thought I was going to write about candy bars. Everyone LOVES candy bars. Well, I'm actually talking about Granite. Just as fun, with less cavities.

I went with my mom & my grandma to a couple of granite places today to look at slabs. After quickly judging about 200 slabs, the one that I like best is Caramello, pictured here:

I think this will go well with the Antique white cabinets & the brown walls. I just hope it's not crazy expensive. That tends to be my taste.

I'm going to order cabinets at Lowe's tonight (for real this time - had to reschedule 3 times). And I'm going to pick out some new paint swatches, because I decided to paint my room blue instead of green, so that I can have a light blue bathroom & it won't clash with the bedroom. I'm going to use the Tarragon Green that I had previously selected for my bedroom in the powder room. Exciting stuff, huh?

Not a Dern Thing

2009-01-21T11:06:00.002-06:00

I went to the house last night to get the mail & look around. I don't think they did a thing yesterday. They might be out of work to do until that permit shows up. Let's hope that happens today.

Furniture Shopping

2009-01-20T09:18:00.004-06:00

Yesterday after work I went to Hurwitz Mintz - a ridiculously over-priced furniture store on Airline Hwy. I found lots of things that I love, but hardly any that I can afford. If anyone out there is looking to get rid of furniture exactly like this, I'd be happy to take it off your hands at absolutely NO COST to you! Just say when.

1. Curved linen couch (this is actually a sectional) & flowered ottoman
Hurwitz-Mintz cost: $2399 for the couch; $749 for the ottoman
I'll give you $5.99 & a used pair of rollerblades

2. 9'x12' Teal rug with a bird/branch pattern (much prettier in person)
HM cost: $4281
For you: One night of babysitting (kids ages 4 & up)

3. Lucite Lamp with Blue shade
HM cost: $1149 (I'm not kidding)
I think I can get this at Marshall's for $49.99

4. Glass & Metal Cocktail Table
HM cost: $219
I might actually be able to afford this next time I get paid. Yippee!

5. Beige Velvet Headboard with Nailhead trim (again, prettier in person - this is hideous bedding)
HM cost: $799 (it's on sale for 1/2 price right now, regularly $1600)
For you: An old daybed with a broken leg (comes with mattress!)

Let me know when you're ready to make the trade.

Bigger Holes!

2009-01-20T09:14:00.004-06:00

Here's what happened yesterday (as far as I could tell in the dark):

They framed the wall in the rear bedroom on the left. Randy did it horizontally instead of vertically - I can't remember the explanation for this, but my dad agreed with him, so I assume it's a good structural thing.

They raised the height of the door to the powder room to 8 ft so that it will match the height of the rest of the doors in the hallway.

They also cut a bigger hole to the door from the back kitchen/bar to my parents' room. I'm hoping that City Hall is open today so that we can get that permit & they can get going on the back of the house.

Today, I'm finally going to order those cabinets, and I'm going to look at some granite that my mom found on Craigslist. I'll let you know how that goes.

Weekend Fun

2009-01-19T14:14:00.005-06:00

Saturday, I went with my mother & grandmother to a lighting store in Abita Springs. They had a great selection. I got 2 lights for the bathrooms, and 2 lights to go in the hallway down the middle of the house. We also went to a tile/stone/granite place in Covington & met Jeff Taaffe - the husband of Kate Taaffe, our mortgage lady. He seems to have good taste & a wealth of knowledge, so he should be a good resource.

Then my mother & I went to Pottery Barn, where we couldn't buy anything on our list because it was all Catalog/Internet only (including the mirror below). However, I did find some good deals on sale stuff at Pottery Barn. I think I'm going to go back & buy a glass dish that was on clearance. You should go check out the sale.

After that, we met my dad at the house, went to a BBQ place called Squeal, ate a platter of nachos, and then went our separate ways.

Sunday, my parents did some work at the house - most cleaning up & pulling down stuff in the bathrooms. We found a few little errors that the construction guys had made. When I called Randy this morning to ask him to fix things, I accidentally called Randy Ball, a friend from high school. We had a nice conversation. I think he's coming to visit New Orleans in a few weeks, so hopefully I'll get to see him.

No word on the permit today - probably no word on it tomorrow, either - thanks to these guys:

HOLES!

2009-01-16T20:39:00.003-06:00

They cut more holes today... a hole to the rear bedroom on the right (the guest suite, as I like to call it... or my mother's room, as she likes to call it).

They cut a hole from the master bedroom to what will eventually become the master bathroom. They also did some more framing on the master closet. (for those of you who don't know, I am the master.)

My parents are coming in town tomorrow so that I can shop for light fixtures, tile, and mirrors with my mother.... and so my dad can spend some alone-time at the house with this thoughts.

BTW - if you want a good laugh, and you're not easily offended, go back & read my friend Mary's comments - she just found out about the blog today, and she's made a comment on almost every post so far. The lady is a hoot.

Cabinet Ordering

2009-01-15T11:05:00.004-06:00

I need to go order the cabinets from Lowe's. Here's the trickiness we've developed to get them for cheap:

1. Sale starts today! 10% off all Kraftmaid cabinets, plus a free sink base.

2. Mom bought some coupons off of eBay for 20% off at Home Depot. You have to be an employee to use them at Home Depot, but Lowe's will match Home Depot Coupons, so - yahtzee!

3. The eBay coupons are only good for purchases up to $3000. Cabinets are a bit more than that, so I've divided the itemized list they gave me into $3000 chunks. We'll just have them separate the order so I can use more than one coupon.

4. I think I can get the contractor to install the cabinets cheaper than Lowe's can - so after Lowe's drops off the cabinets, the construction guys can install them.

Logistical Genius! Yeah Mom!

ps. Credit is due to www.marriedtothesea.com for the amazing comic above.

There's a Hole in My Wall

2009-01-14T17:52:00.005-06:00

Looks like they cut the hole in the wall between the living room & the kitchen. They also framed out the wall in the kitchen & removed the closet (it used to be a bedroom) and the door to the bathroom (because you shouldn't shit where you eat, literally or figuratively).

I think today is the first time that it's really felt like one big house - rather than 2 separate apartments. I had to tape off the mailbox to the 7804 side because they framed the dining room right over the mail slot.

We are still waiting on that 2nd permit. My dad says that he should have drawings ready to send to the friendly man at City Hall by tomorrow. As soon as that 2nd permit comes through, Randy's guys can pour concrete in the back & start working on the addition.

Can't wait to see what happens tomorrow...

Two Rooms Become One

2009-01-13T21:36:00.006-06:00

Today, the construction crew accomplished:

1. taking down the wall between the two living rooms
2. putting up a beam to support the ceiling in the dining room
3. taking out the upper walls at each end of the hallway

Today, John accomplished:

1. sleeping until 11:30
2. bringing some old stuff to the Green Project
3. emptying a trashcan
4. eating a sandwich at Reginellis
4. some other stuff... I don't know. I'm tired.

Dumpster Count: 3

Framing Walls, Gangsta Dog

2009-01-13T09:39:00.003-06:00

Here's what happened yesterday (as far as I could tell).

1. They took out the arched wall in the old kitchen on the right side of the house (what will become the bar).

2. They framed out the powder room.

3. They framed out my closet.

4. I put a hoodie on a dog - cute, huh?

5. I gave John a 2-page list of stuff to do. I think he should be able to get it all done today. I am really nervous about him being there. Is it bad that I trust my 19 year old cousin more than my 23 year old brother? (at least with this stuff)

John's Here

2009-01-13T01:09:00.002-06:00

John called at 9 to say that he was leaving Pensacola & coming over. Now he's here! He got in just before midnight and he's sitting next to me right now. We went over to the house so that I could show him what to do while I'm at work tomorrow. I'm kind of nervous that he's going to donate a new appliance, or tear down something that the construction guys just built. I marked everything with tags that say Keep, Donate, Street, or Trash. Hopefully that will keep him from f-ing up.

Looking Up (Literally & Figuratively)

2009-01-12T13:45:00.004-06:00

Randy opened up between the kitchen & the addition - that space looks and feels huge. The ceilings have been raised from 8 ft to 12 ft.

My parents and I met with Randy on Sunday morning & gave him the OK to move ahead with some work on the interior of the house - building some walls, tearing down some walls, cutting a hole in a wall, etc. He said that he should be able to get most of it done this week & next - so there should be a lot of progress.

My Mimi (dad's mom) came to see the house on Saturday. She said that I "bit off a big chew, but that I'm young enough to chew." She also said that she'd be praying for me. My sister-in-law also came in town to see the house. Actually, she came in town for an interview, but she saw the house while she was here. I think she really liked it (Megan, feel free to comment if I'm wrong). She seemed especially happy that there is a fence around the whole house. Now when Harlan comes to visit, he'll have lots of space to run. Because he sure as hell isn't running through my dining room.

My mother got a quote back from another plumber today - he was way under the estimate we got from the original plumber, so that's great news. Now we can have toilets INSIDE!!

This week should be a busy one. I think that my mother & brother are coming in to do some work on the house. I'm planning on spending the weekend there working on little things.

Raise the Roof; Protect the Floor

2009-01-09T10:11:00.002-06:00

Looks like they're hard at work raising the roof on the addition to match the roofline of the rest of the house.

However, it also looks like they're not covering up... if they mess with my hardwood floors, there will be HELL TO PAY.

Meeting with Randy this weekend to discuss all the interior carpentry work. I'm sick of this. I just want things to happen. Less talk and more action.

Hey Look - A Wall!

2009-01-08T11:12:00.004-06:00

They finally BUILT something instead of just tearing it all down.

I went back to City Hall this morning to get the other half of the permit. I was told (by the same stern woman, but in a much friendlier tone), that it would take 1-2 weeks for them to review & get back to me on whether I could get the permit (which means another trip to City Hall). I spoke with Randy & he said that this shouldn't hold anything up, so that's good news.

I also went to the Tax Assessor's office (at the direction of the Permit office) to see what it would take to get the house changed from a double to a single. Some guy changed my address on a mailing list & he said that took care of it. I'm guessing that's not the end of that story.

Boss Ideas

2009-01-07T15:45:00.008-06:00

My boss loves home renovation & decoration. She has lots of really good ideas, and her own house is very nice - she has great taste just like I do.

So, I took her by the house today and showed her around. She helped me come up with some really good ideas.

Idea #1: Kitchen
Move the light fixture from the current living room into the new kitchen where the fan used to be - which should add some character to the kitchen. I also think that I want to go with the white cabinets and paint the walls chocolate brown. That way, the room will still have some drama, but shouldn't seem as dark as it would with the cabinets that I originally picked out. The brown should contrast well with a light color ("malted milk") in the adjoining living room, and the teal dining room.

The only problem is that I just got off the phone with the cabinet guy, and he says that the Antique White finish is 8.5% more expensive than the Rustic Alder dark wood. The good news is that I spoke with a co-worker, Danielle, who told me that she got several quotes on cabinets when she was redoing her house, and that the place I tried first was her most expensive place. So, if I get another quote, hopefully it will come down.

Idea #2: Sink
My dad loves this sink - apparently they don't make 'em like this anymore. We were trying to figure out a place to use it.

I don't know if this will fly, but my boss suggested leaving it on the porch & using it as a cooler for beer when we have parties. My dad says there is already more space for booze in this house than anyone should ever need. But, I still think the sink-cooler idea is a good one.

Also, while we were on the way to the house, I got a call from Randy (the contractor). I really like this guy. He was calling to check on the permit (which I'm going to get tomorrow morning - wish me luck at City Hall) and also to give me an update on how things are going at the house. I asked him about making a dining room table out of the old barge board that they took out of the walls. He was really excited about it & said that's what he loves to do most. He said that I needed to go check out his dining room table. I'll have to do that soon.

All in all, a fun day. I'm over the BS about the lamps now.

By the way - if you're reading this, let me know. Leave a comment or something. I'm just throwing this stuff out there & I don't know if anyone's reading it (except Neal - it's like his Lord of the Rings)

Some Asshole Bought My Lamps

2009-01-07T12:50:00.004-06:00

I went to buy those lamps yesterday. They were gone. I hope that whoever bought them loves them. It was a worthless trip to the Westbank. $1 in toll-fare that I'll never see again. I guess the lamps weren't meant to be. Maybe this is a sign that I should take Trina's advice & buy the big furniture before I start accessorizing.

I went to the cabinet store yesterday & had them design the layout for the cabinets. I picked out a wood, a door style, and a finish. It turned out to be a bit over the budget. I've always had expensive taste. They only gave me one copy of the cabinet plan. I'll try to scan it & put it in here. The closest thing I could find online is this photo:

The color I picked out is much darker than this, but the rustic finish is the same. Now that I see it all together, I'm worried it might be too much. I'm thinking of swtiching to antique-white cabinets, which might have a nice contrast against the dark floors.

I never thought I'd spend so much time debating cabinets. I always thought of myself as a decisive person.

I took Tara & Robert to see the house last night. It was dark & rainy, so I didn't take any photos. The crew dug some holes for piers for the addition yesterday, but they were filled with muddy rain water by the time I got there. The workers also uncovered some floral wallpaper in the old kitchen. Robert said I should frame pieces of the wallpaper and hang it on the wall. Tara laughed because she knows that everyone who comes to the house suggests that I frame something old as art - wallpaper, wood, fabric, newspaper. I've decided not frame any old anything.

It Got Worse Again

2009-01-05T23:33:00.006-06:00

It keeps getting worse & I feel like we have to move up from here, but I need to stop saying 'it's got to get better from this point.' I'm not saying that things are going badly; I just mean that there is always more demolition. More holes in walls, more floors ripped up, more dirt in the house. Eventually, someone needs to stop tearing down & start building, right?

The guys hadn't been to the house since New Years Eve (not that I could tell, anyway) - but they were definitely back in full force today. They put up boards & strings in the backyard to show where the addition will be. (I'm sure there's a more technical term than "boards and strings" but I don't know what it is).

They also ripped out the built-in cabinet in the old kitchen that I was planning on using for a bar. My parents & I had decided on Sunday (yesterday) that we were going to keep it where it was, but we failed to tell Randy that, so now it's sitting in the hallway. I'm not sure it's usable at all.

They ripped out some other cabinets and such from the right kitchen - they are now stored in what will eventually become my study/guestroom. The plan is to donate all this stuff to the Green Project so that they can resell it & make some money to rebuild New Orleans.

My mother met with an electrician & AC guy today to discuss plans and get some pricing. I think that the prices came down from the original estimate, so that's a good thing.

I took my roommate Becky to see the house tonight - she hadn't seen it at all yet. She agreed that it is a mess right now, but she can see the potential in there. She also let me know that if I make any bad, tacky decisions, that I can blame them on her by telling everyone that "Becky wanted it that way." That's reassuring, because I'm afraid that I'm making bad decisions. Just because I like things doesn't mean they'll all go well together. I need to stop & think about the big picture.

For instance, I found these lamps that I really love at Marshalls (kind of like a TJ Maxx). They are regularly $300ish each, but they are on sale there for $70 each. Sounds like a good deal, but I'm not sure that they'll go with what the living room is becoming... then I'll have $140 worth of clashing lamps. They are beautiful though, huh?

Adrian!

2008-12-31T13:50:00.004-06:00

I went back to the house today to see the progress that had been made. They capped off some pipes where the shed used to be (see "shed the shed" below), and stripped the inside of the addition down to the studs. It was all boarded up, though - so I couldn't get great pictures. This one is taken through a window:

I headed back to my car to get keys so that I could see if they had done anything on the inside of the house. As I was walking to the car, a 9 or 10 year old boy with his hair standing straight up crossed the street, approached me, and asked where Shelley was. (Shelley is one of the tenants who had to move out when I bought the house). I told him that she had moved out. Rather than try to put what happened next into narrative form, here's my recollection of the my conversation with Adrian.

A: Does Shelley still live here?
L: No, she moved out.
A: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She didn't even tell me she was leaving. I thought she was just on a Christmas roadtrip. Do you know where she went?
L: She moved to another apartment. I think it's on the other side of St. Charles.
A: Do you have her phone number?
L: No, I'm sorry - I don't. (I do, but I didn't think she'd appreciate me giving it to a 10 year old kid)
A: Well, you'll just have to be the new Shelley until I can figure out where she is. I live around the corner at 7730 - no, 7720 - no, 7725 Benjamin Street. It's way over there (pointing about 2 blocks away).
L: Do you like the neighborhood?
A: It's ok, but I like things that are more old-fashioned.
L: Well, some of the houses around here are old-fashioned.
A: Not old-fashioned enough for me. I like really old-fashioned things.
L: Oh - like the French Quarter?
A: Yes, but without all the cars. I like old-fashioned things without cars. I mean, I'm really into old-fashioned stuff. I write with a feather and ink & I wish that TV had never been invented. It sucks people away from their lives. Everyone just watches TV all the time. I'm much more old-fashioned than that.
L: Oh, you must read a lot of books, then.
A: No, I watch a lot of TV. I just hate it. I hate that I watch it so much. It sucks me away from old-fashioned things.
L: Well, you could watch less TV and read more books.
A: I have read some books. I read The Wizard of Oz - it was a really big book. And I started to read The Lost Princess of Oz, but it didn't interest me that much. Have you read that book?
L: No, I've never heard of it. Is it a sequel to the Wizard of Oz?
A: I don't know. But it's a really old book. You stay here, and I'll run home and bring it to you so that you can see it.
L: No, that's ok - I'll go check it out at a library or a bookstore.
A: No, they don't have this book at libraries or bookstores. You stay here & I will return with the book.
L: I'll probably be inside when you get back.
A: Ok, I'll just yell your name.
L: Ok.

So, I went into the house, and apparently that kid lives close or runs fast, because I swear it didn't take him more than 30 seconds to come back and yell at me from the front door.

A: HEEEYYYYY!!!
L: Hi. I'm coming - hold on.
A: Is this where Shelley lived?
L: Yes, but she lived on the other side.
A: But you're the same person I was talking to a minute ago, right? About the book?
L: Yes, that was me.
A: Oh, ok - here's the book.

He then hands me a 1st edition copy of The Lost Princess of Oz from 1917. It's probably worth a couple hundred bucks. He also brought a copy of The Wizard of Oz, which he said that he found on the floor of his bedroom. Then I explained to him how the house used to be 2 apartments, but that we took the wall down.

A: So, this is where Shelley lived?
L: Yes, this is where she lived.
A: Well, I wasn't allowed in here then.
L: Well, I'm not sure you should go through now. There are nails everywhere - you need to be careful.
(before I could finish this sentence, he had come into the house and taken off down the hall)

A: This house is SO nice and SO clean. My house is a mess.
(If this deconstructed mess is cleaner than his house, then he's got bigger problems than a crazy hair-do and a missing neighbor)
A: I really like this place. I would like to live here when I'm older. Where did Shelley live?
L: Well, that was her bedroom over there.
A: Yeah, but where did she hang out? I mean, where did she spend most of her time?
L: I'm not sure - probably in the bedroom or the living room.
A: Wow.
(he seemed very much in awe of the living habits of Shelley)

A: So where is your room? Where do you sleep?
L: Well, I don't live here yet - there's no furniture. But my room will be in the kitchen.
(This seemed to confuse him)

A: Well, this is a really really nice house. I would like to live here when I'm older.
L: Well, thank you. Maybe you can buy it from me one day.
A: For how much? 5 million dollars?
L: Oh, I don't think it would be that much.
A: Do you ever turn off all the lights & just use candles?
L: Sometimes, during hurricanes.
A: I'm not talking about hurricanes, I'm just talking about being old-fashioned. I like old-fashioned things. I only watch 2 TV shows: Southpark & FlapJack.

He then explained to me that Flapjack is an old-fashioned cartoon about a Sailor (who, he claims, looks "just like Adrian if he was an old-fashioned cartoon sailor").

He asked me about my job, told me that TV commercials were annoying, asked me if I wrote the Aveeno commercials, the McDonalds commercials, or the Wendy's commercials (the answer was no to all of those). I told him that I had to go. I wish I could tell you all this story in the same nasal voice & precise diction that Adrian used. The kid was a character. Let's hope he keeps his distance.

Shed the Shed

2008-12-30T21:30:00.005-06:00

Monday Afternoon

Tuesday Morning

Tuesday Evening

Wednesday Afternoon

Dumpster Count: 2