Weeks Four and Five

Last Monday, April 18, was the start of week four of the house renovation project. I can't believe how much has already been done and how much there still is to do. I was planning to do an update a lot sooner, but we have been without internet a couple of times recently and it always seems to happen when I have a lot of school work to do. Thankfully, the internet is currently back up and operational and I hope it stays that way through the rest of this week as I have five papers and a final to complete by Sunday. It's the last week of the semester and that thrills me to no end! 

The slab was poured on Friday, April 15 and I was able to stop by the Saturday morning after to take a few pictures. They also poured the sidewalk out front at the same time. I really didn't care for the sidewalk at first. I wanted a smaller (in width) sized sidewalk and had talked to Richie about it, but he said it wouldn't look right if we did it they way I wanted. I still think it looks ginormous, but at this point, I'm stuck with it. It'd not terrible, just not what I had in mind and maybe it would have looked goofy if it were not as wide, who knows? My co-worker said it would be a good size for when I'm old and in a wheelchair. I guess he makes a valid point.

I had also wanted a circular patio and it was poured as a square so that's something I will have to get used to because all these months I've wanted and pictured a circular shaped patio. It doesn't look bad, but again, it just wasn't what I had in mind. C'est la vie as they say in France. 

On Tuesday afternoon they started the framing and by Wednesday, they were done. It went up so fast! I feel like the space looks even bigger once it was framed in. It's always good to see the walls go up because you are better able to tell the actual size of rooms. It is jaw dropping to walk through, or at least it is for me. I can't believe how much more space there is. It is going to be incredible when it is all finished. I am just so excited about it! 

Since the framing was completed, the electrical, plumbing, and air ducts have been roughed in and this week the roof should go on the new part and next week (provided we pass inspection) the sheet rock will be hung. I suspect things will move a little slower now, or we will at least not see as many big changes. 

Last Friday (April 22) I met with the cabinet man and designed the layout of the kitchen and picked out where I wanted cabinets and where I wanted drawers and made a few other changes here and there, but still managed to stay within budget. The cabinets will be Shaker style and will be white with black granite countertops. I'm putting in a wall oven also so that I will have two ovens to use during the holidays or when I entertain and I'm beyond excited about that. I went to Lowe's this past Monday and ordered the wall oven and it should come in about two weeks from now. I also bought a ceiling fan and a couple of lights for the back porch. 

Since I started writing this many days ago, the roof was installed as was the fireplace. Next up for the fireplace is the stone and masonry that will go around it. The windows were due in today (April 28), but didn't make it in. So, hopefully they will come in tomorrow because we cannot pass framing inspection until the windows are in. 

This Saturday, I'll be at the house pulling nails out of the wooden panels that were taken off the house and were part of the original house. These will be used as the ceiling outside on the patio and I cannot wait to see it complete. I came up with this brilliant idea driving home from girls retreat a couple of weeks ago. I think it is going to look amazing. I may cry when it is complete. The workers will be installing the ceiling this Saturday as well; so, I'll be over there bright and early to pull out nails so they can get to work. 

It's all coming together so nicely. I absolutely cannot believe how wonderful it all is. It's really even better than I imagined.

Updates from Week Three

Things continue to move along nicely at the house. There are visible changes every day and it's always exciting to stop by and see what has been torn down or put up. In my last post, I showed some photos of the kitchen. The cabinets had been torn out and the wall had been taken down to the original shiplap wooden boards. The boards were salvaged and are currently being stored in the shed which allowed me to really get a better visual of just how large the improved kitchen will be. Y'all, it is going to be wonderful. I was so excited when I saw how large the space was and envisioned how many cabinets I would have. The kitchen is definitely the heart of my home and I am so excited to have a bigger space to utilize. 

The new duct work was put in on Friday and Saturday. I'm replacing the HVAC unit with a bigger and more efficient unit and as a result, new duct work was required. In the process, one of my closets was torn out which was a little surprising as I was given no prior warning. I knew the duct work would have to run up from the existing house into the attic and back down into the new part because of the crawl space vs. slab situation I have, but no one told me that particular closet would be utilized for this and I had stored a lot of items inside that closet. So, I had to box those up and take them across the street to my cousin Anna's house to be stored for the next few months. The duct works will have sheet rock around it and then new shelving so it will still be a great linen closet when all is said and done. 

On Wednesday the gravel that goes under the concrete slab was laid out and some more demo took place. The outline for the new sidewalk in the front of the house was also laid out. They had planned for the slab and sidewalk to be poured on Wednesday, but the inspector didn't sign-off until late in the day and so that was postponed until Thursday; but Thursday when I went by, it still wasn't done. Hopefully, it will take place on Friday and then the slab can dry out over the weekend and then the framing should start next week which will be super exciting as even bigger changes will soon be coming! 

So Long Kitchen and Rotten Sub Floor

Things seems to be moving at a quick pace at the house these days. It's nice to be able to see big changes each afternoon when I stop by the house. Wednesday when I stopped by, the cinder block had been laid in preparation for the slab to be poured. I cleaned up some debris from the yard while I was there. For the life of me I will never understand why construction workers just throw their trash on the ground instead of in the dumpster or the trash bin. I'm sure I'll be cleaning up a lot more in the coming weeks and months. 

Thursday one of the biggest changes occurred. The workers tore out the kitchen cabinets and the wall where my little pantry once was and started tearing down the wall between the kitchen and the back room. Underneath the wall was old shiplap which had once donned the outside of the house. I had forgotten it was there. We had uncovered it in the first renovation, but this time around I was more enamored with it. I asked the contractor to be gentle when taking it down because I wanted to repurpose it. I have given this assignment to my cousin Jan because she is great at making old things look great and coming up with ideas for random things. She suggested just hanging it on the wall or using the wood to build a little cabinet for the bathroom which I need. At any rate, I'm hopeful that the wood can be salvaged and we can do something fabulous with it. 

Some of the cabinets were kept in tack as well as the sink. They were placed in one of the bedrooms and I'm assuming the contractor is going to ask me if I want to keep them or trash them or maybe donate them. My plan would be to donate them, but as I'm typing this I was just thinking that I might could hang a couple of the cabinets in the shed for storage. I'll have to ponder that thought. Otherwise, it's all going to the Habitat for Humanity Restore. The sink is being replaced with a farm house sink so it's no longer needed. 

The plan was to have the utilities turned back on, but the city wouldn't allow it since an addition is being built. So, the contractor had to go to the utilities to order a temporary pole. The contractor's name is Richie, by the way, and so maybe from now on I'll just refer to him by his name. It seems like the right thing to do. Richie also had to have the water transferred to his name for some reason which he told me and I didn't really understand. The new plumbing was also installed on Thursday for where the washing machine will go and miracle of miracles, it will be plumbed to the city sewer line. This makes me super excited! 

Finally, the sub floor that was rotting in the living room was torn out and it looked like they were adding some flooring joists. They either ran out of time or wanted the old joists to dry out some before they laid the new sub floor. It's definitely interesting to look at the inner workings of your home. The sub floor in the back bedroom still has to come up and be replaced and I'm hoping they got to all of that on Friday. 

So, everything is moving along nicely and I'm so excited to see the progress each day brings. This weekend I plan to spend a few hours at the house cleaning up debris and trash and straighten up some closets so I can put a few more things on the shelves. I'm storing a few things on the shelves of the closets because I think I mentioned I ran out of room in the POD. The house is in such shambles, but I know it will be great when it's done. I laugh at the thought that I was actually planning on staying in the house during all of this craziness. What in the world was I thinking? I'm so glad I moved. I cannot imagine trying to live in the house with all that demo being done. 

Week Two Is Underway

Since my last post about the house, there have been quite a few changes. I stopped by on Sunday to get the mail and my Japanese maple tree (so I can try and keep it watered and alive) and walked around to see if there were any new changes. It appears that the phone company finally showed up and disconnected the line from the house. However, instead of doing anything with the line, it seems they just kind of left it dangling in the back alley. I hate to break it to them, but I have no intention of them reconnecting that line so they may as well come on back out and cut it completely. 

Monday afternoon I stopped by and discovered that the new meter box had been installed on the side of the house. It isn't hooked up yet (we have to pass inspection first), but that should happen some time this week I would think. On the inside of the house, a hole had been cut in the inside wall adjacent to where the new meter box was installed in order to run a line from the meter box over to the breaker box and there was a hole in wall where the breaker box was as well. Other than those few things, it didn't appear like much had been done on Monday other than someone getting their muddy footprints in the bathroom which isn't supposed to be used by anyone (that's another post for another day). Thankfully, the port-o-potty should arrive this week. 

Tuesday morning I got a call from the contractor who was concerned about some food that had been left in the fridge. The power had been off for about five days and he was concerned the food would be rotting. But, there were only some sodas and condiments inside so I assured him I could come by and throw them out that afternoon. I stopped by after work and cleaned out the fridge and freezer. There were only condiments and sodas in the fridge as I suspected. The freezer, however, had some ice cream bars and creamed corn which I apparently didn't notice when I dumped some things out last week. There were also a lot of chocolate chips and pecans, all of which I gave to my friend Cindy who will be making desserts for my cousin Tyler's wedding in May. Maybe she will be able to use some of those things. 

The workers had torn out all of the hardwood flooring and taken the dishwasher out and started taking down the trim around the doors and windows in the rooms that are going to be knocked out. The cinder block for the reinforcement of the slab was also delivered and the dumpster finally arrived and was placed in the front yard, not the back, which was not what I was expecting, but hey, less grass to mow. I moved the furniture from the front porch down the street to my cousin Anna's house as well as my ironing board and a couple of bins that were missed in the move to the POD. When moving things down the street, I almost stepped on the skeleton of a possum that was laying in the front yard. So, I sent a text to the contractor and asked him if it had been found under the house. He ended up calling me and saying that yes, it had been found under the house when they disconnected the dishwasher and then proceeded to tell me what a hot mess my plumbing was. 

Y'all, first let me say I was not at all surprised to find out about the plumbing. When my dad, granddad and I renovated the house 11 years ago, we sub-contracted all of the work. One day I came by the house to be introduced to the plumber and about fell off the porch when I discovered that it was a guy I had gone to high school with and immediately knew this was not going to be a good situation. The guy's name was Kevin Sisk and I'm publishing his name only because I want EVERYONE to know it and know he should NEVER be hired for any plumbing work. 

Y'all, first let me say I was not at all surprised to find out about the plumbing. When my dad, granddad and I renovated the house 11 years ago, we sub-contracted all of the work. One day I came by the house to be introduced to the plumber and about fell off the porch when I discovered that it was a guy I had gone to high school with and immediately knew this was not going to be a good situation. The guy's name was Kevin Sisk and I'm publishing his name only because I want everyone to know it and know he should NEVER be hired for any plumbing work. I voiced my concern to my dad and granddad because the guy was a few bulbs short in high school, good looking, but dumb as a rock, and I didn't think he would be capable of putting anything together, let alone plumbing. My granddad, bless his soul, wanted to give Kevin the benefit of the doubt and let me tell you, my dad and I had to show up at his house in the wee hours of the morning just to catch him at home and make him come finish the shoddy work he started. 

The bad plumbing resulted in my having to spend thousands of dollars to have the flooring and sub-flooring replaced in my spare bedroom because the floor had rotted because the washing machine wasn't connected to the sewer line. The flooring in my den has been rotting away for years and I had always thought it was from the HVAC unit condensation, but it now appears it could have been from the dishwasher because apparently it wasn't hooked up to the sewer line either and all the water was just being sent under the house. The contractor went on to say that whoever did the plumbing wasn't a plumber and he has seen some things he has never seen before. How in the name of the Lord that plumbing passed inspection 11 years ago is beyond me. I'm thinking either Kevin paid the inspector or the inspector was too lazy to crawl under the house and actually inspect the plumbing. If I wasn't having to use the inspection department right now, I might sue them. I think it goes without saying that this situation has made me a little hot under the collar. At any rate, if you ever need a plumber, DO NOT HIRE KEVIN SISK! 

So, that's where we are as of Tuesday afternoon. No doubt there is more drama to unfold. 

A Foot and a Half Became Six Inches

In the last post about my house, I made mention of the property line and how the new structure had to be four feet off the property line and how my dad ordered a survey, but then I told him to cancel. Well, apparently we couldn't cancel because after the failed inspection, the city required a survey of the property line. So, the surveyors came out and as it turns out, my fence was not on the property line and I had about one foot more of property than thought. So, instead of the addition being offset by one and a half feet, it will only be offset by six inches which is really not a big deal. 

My dad talked to the zoning commission and I could have gone before them to ask for a variance to keep the new structure in line with the existing house. There was a lot of paperwork and such that would needed to be completed, including getting permission from all neighbors within 500 feet of the property, which wouldn't have been a big deal, but it would have delayed us a few days. We also might run the risk of aggravating the inspector and that could lead to problems down the road. So, we talked about it and decided to just offset by six inches since six inches isn't really a lot of space. We felt it would just be easier in the long run. 

So, on Wednesday, the concrete truck came out and poured the footing for the slab. When I went by the house that afternoon, I discovered the telephone line I mentioned in my last post was still connected to the house when I got there. I also realized some time during the day on Wednesday that the line that the builder needed cut was actually not the telephone line, but instead a cable line which was being used for the internet. So, I called the internet service provider and arranged for them to come out and cut their line off the house as well. Then, I called AT&T again about the ticket I opened on Monday. The lady on the phone told me the ticket had been closed on Monday and the work was completed. I told her that was funny since I opened the ticket on Monday, they were supposed to come Tuesday and here is is Wednesday and the line is still connected to the house. We set up another appointment for the techs to come out on Friday. 

Thursday morning at 7:00 a.m., the utility company called me and wanted to confirm that the line needed to be taken off the house and service disconnected that day. It was pouring down rain and I'm sure they were hoping I would say no. I told them, yes, to please go ahead and disconnect and cut the line. We are transferring the utilities from overhead to underground and so it should be connected back some time next week. Around 8:30 a.m. the internet company called. Apparently the technician was unclear on what exactly needed to be done; so, I explained to him that the line needed to be cut off the house because that particular was was going to be knocked down. I then asked him about transferring from overhead to underground for the cable as well and he said, yes, that could be done, but there was a fee associated with it. There's a fee for everything, y'all. I assured him, the fee was no issue and that I would be in touch about that soon. Thursday afternoon I stopped by the house to pick up the mail and a couple of packages and confirmed both the cable line and the utility line had been cut and the meter was gone from the house. I guess they must take it when they disconnect service. Who knew? Not me. 

Friday they are supposed to lay cinder block if the concrete is dry and next will be gravel and the slab and then framing should start next week. It's all going very well so far and I'm really excited to see the daily progress! 

Days One and Two

Perhaps all it took was a post about nothing being done at my house for something to be done because I'm pleased to announce that work began on my house this Monday, March 28! I'm super excited to see red clay instead of patchy grass in my back yard and soon there will be a concrete slab where the addition will be built. It's all starting and I'm just pleased as punch! 

They started moving dirt a little after 7:00 a.m. and it wasn't long before I got a call about the lines attached to the house. Long story short, we determined that in addition to the utility line (which will be taken care of on Wednesday), there was a phone line coming into the house which also needed to be taken down and I needed to call someone to take care of it. Considering I had a phone line for about three months about nine years ago, I had no idea who to call. I'm pretty sure when I had my landline for a brief shining moment that I set it up through BellSouth and BellSouth doesn't even exist any more. I ended up calling AT&T and miracle of miracles, after I made it through two automated systems and one transfer, I had an appointment for the crew to come out and disconnect the line and it only took about 15 minutes of my life. I was thrilled it went so swimmingly.

Monday the backhoe man came and dug the footing for the slab. They decided to put a base of cinder block and rebar in trenches as a base to make it more stable. I went out Monday afternoon to take some pictures and they were still there working. They finished up about 5:30 p.m., packed up the backhoe and headed out. It was super exciting to see the work that had been done and gave me a better understanding of how big the space would be and how far it would go back. 

On Tuesday morning, the concrete man was supposed to come, but first an inspection of the footing was in order. We failed. Y'all, we failed the first inspection! I feel a long road ahead. The building has to be four feet off the property line and according to the footing and the fence line, it was too close. My dad ordered a survey because there was some thought that my property actually went beyond my fence. The survey was going to cost $500 and if there wasn't another foot and a half on the other side of the fence that was my property, then there was also going to be a charge for the backhoe man to come out and redo the footing on that side. We talked it through and both though that there was some property on the other side of my fence. 

Then after hanging up with my dad I started thinking about it and decided to cancel the survey because I really don't think there is a foot and a half of property on the other side of the fence. Long story short, I had to put that fence up because of a property line dispute with the previous owner of the property next door and I'm sure we put it on the line, if not a few inches off the line which means the footing would have to be moved. So, instead of paying $500 for the survey and whatever extra charge for having the backhoe man come out, I decided to do away with the survey fee and just pay the backhoe man more. This also means the back bedroom will be offset by a foot and a half, which will look a little goofy, but there's really no other way around it. I'll just have to make it work.. You would think we would have known about this four foot from the property line requirement before we starting digging, but you know, those are the breaks. I'm currently just looking at it as having saved myself $500 that I didn't have to spend. I'll adjust, It will be okay. In the end, it will still look great and I'll have the added space I want and need and it will still be beautiful when it's all said and done, just a foot and a half less wide.

It's March, Almost April!

It's been a long time since I've posted anything. I guess I've only posted twice this whole year. I've really enjoyed the break and haven't missed blogging at all. Between work, school, and the insanity of life lately, all I want to do is sleep in the evenings and so blogging and writing haven't been at the forefront of my brain. However, this week I was thinking that I probably should do some writing because I've got a lot going on and I'd hate to look back on 2016 and wonder what I did that year and then not have a record of any of it. So, I'll try to do better about posting because I've actually got some exciting things going on right now. 

I'll start with what I've been up to for the first few months of this year. I won't go into a play by play detail because we would be here all day, but I can probably sum it up so you'll get the gist of what's been going on around these parts. 

In February I celebrated my 39th birthday which I wrote a little about. In addition to the things I wrote about in my birthday post, I also went out to dinner with various groups of friends and family and to a local songwriter's showcase with another set of friends. It was a great month and the celebrations lasted about three weeks which is as it should be. At the end of February I went to the Alabama-Auburn basketball game with friends and we enjoyed a super fun day in Tuscaloosa. The month of February ended with a trip to the Donald Trump political rally with my cousins Lauren and Jon Mark. I went because I thought it would be an interesting day of people watching and you never know what is going to come out of Trump's mouth. We had a good time and left before it was over so we could beat the traffic and we got bored. 

The first day of March was voting day in Alabama and I fulfilled my duty as inspector of my precinct. It was a long, long day and I was exhausted after spending 14 hours at the polls and working my fingers to the bone (as they say). I had a whole new crew working with me that day but they all did great. I had to chase off one news reporter and one campaigner and dealt with so many different bizarre scenarios I couldn't even begin to tell you all about them. As always, it was a rewarding day and I look forward to doing it two more times this year when we have the municipal elections and the general election. 

The first weekend of March I chaperoned a high school spring retreat for church and it was just as I suspected with terrible food and think bunk bed mattresses; but, overall it was a good weekend. I developed a cough the Saturday I was on the retreat and by the time Monday rolled around I had a fever and felt like I had been hit by a freight train. I went to the doctor and had an ear infection and they sent me home with an antibiotic, but I felt like it was something more. On Wednesday when I was still running a fever and not feeling any better, I ventured back to the doctor and had a flu test which came back positive. It was too late for any medications so I had to ride it out. I spent the whole week in bed and missed work every day. It was miserable. That same week my mom was in the hospital with fluid on her lungs and two broken ankles from falling out of her wheelchair. Sometimes we just can't catch a break. 

The Saturday after I had the flu I moved out of my house which is probably news to some of you and not to the rest. After a whirlwind idea during Christmas break that I drew out on a piece of paper which turned into a set of blueprints, I am adding on to my little house and doing some renovations to the inside. I will be adding on about 600 square feet of living space and another 200 of a covered patio with an outdoor fireplace. The living space includes a dining room and an expansion of the back bedroom with built in bookcases and a walk-in closet which will also hold the washer and dryer. On the inside I am tearing down a wall between the kitchen and the room on the back of the house and making that one large kitchen complete with new cabinets and granite counter tops and a second oven which makes my heart so happy. The floor and sub floor in the back bedroom and the den will be torn out because the floors are rotting in both of those rooms. Every room will get a new coat of paint and the entire house will have new hardwood flooring. I'll also have some landscaping done which will include sod in the front yard and crepe myrtles along the back fence. The project is supposed to take three months (I'm counting on four because I know how these things go) and I'm very excited about the outcome. I think it is going to be gorgeous and I can't wait to see the end result of my Christmas break brainstorm. 

As a result of having all the work done, Pippa and I had to vacate the premises. Originally the builder said there would be no electricity for two months, but now that might not be the case. Still, it's probably better that we are not there. So, on Saturday, March 12, some friends and cousins and I moved everything out of the house and into a POD which is being stored in South Huntsville. I moved in with my cousins Benny and Jan which has been great. It is a little weird to come home to real people when you haven't lived with anyone for 10 years, but so far things are going great. Pippa was living with a friend of my brother's for a little while, but it wasn't working out. Thankfully, I found her a great place to stay over the weekend. I found a dog sitter who lives on the Flint River out in north east Huntsville and Pippa moved in there this week. The lady and her husband are so nice and worked with me on a price I could afford. They send pictures and updates in the mornings and are even letting The Pip sleep with them. I will probably pick her up on Saturdays and let her hang out with me while I go work at the house because I don't want her to forget who I am. I think she is going to do really well at this temporary home and I just feel so great about finding these wonderful people. 

So, that's what's been going on this year. It's been insanely busy and crazy, but, really, I wouldn't have it any other way. 

A Much Needed Day In The Sun

This past Friday I took the day off work to get some yard work done around the house. Saturdays are the only day of the week that I really have to get things done (since church is on Sunday) and for the past five or so Saturdays I had been helping my dad do things to get ready for and have the garage sale which left no time for the things I wanted to get done around my own house. So, I decided to take a day off from work so I could maybe get some things accomplished for myself. 

Thursday night my brother and I traded vehicles. He has a truck and I needed to haul gravel and mulch so he dropped his truck at my house and took my car with him. I got up bright and early on Friday morning and was at C.T. Garvin Feed and Seed at 7:00 a.m. when their doors opened. I bought a scoop of gravel and was back home before 7:30 a.m. I parked the truck and went to put the tailgate down and couldn't for the life of me get it to budge. The next thing I knew half of the handle had broken off in my hand. I don't even know my own strength, people. So, I called my brother and asked if there was a trick to getting the tailgate down to which he replied no and then I had to confess I had torn the handle. I then jumped in the bed of the truck and started scooping gravel and tossing it into my "driveway". After 30 minutes or so my neighbor Jeff came out and gave the tailgate a try (you could still lift the part of the handle that didn't break) and he couldn't get it to budge either. Then my cousin Randy drove by and stopped and to make the story a little shorter, Randy had to take the back panel off the tailgate to manual move the gears to get the tailgate down. 

I finished up the gravel and then headed back to Garvin to get a scoop of mulch. Well, actually I made a detour to Advanced Auto Parts first. I inquired about a tailgate handle for my brother's truck. There was one in town that they could have at the Five Points location within a couple of hours. It was $115. I almost had a heart attack; but, since I had broken the handle, I forked over the money. I then got my mulch and in the meantime Randy had looked up online the pricing for the tailgate handle. He found one for $30 (with shipping). So, I went back to Advanced Auto and got a refund and then went home and ordered the part at the lower price. 

I had to put the tailgate up when I got mulch so the mulch wouldn't go flying out the back and once again couldn't get the tailgate down. Randy stopped by again and again took the back panel off to get the tailgate down, but not before breaking the other part of the handle first. 

I spent the rest of the day raking leaves, putting mulch in my four flower beds, trimming shrubs, pulling weeds and mowing grass. When all was said and done, I had worked from 7:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. with a break here and there for food an beverage. I was covered in dirt and dust and surely smelled terrible. The yard, however, looked great. I was so proud of myself and all the hard work I put in. I've always had someone help me do these things (mulch, gravel, shrubs) and this was the first time I had knocked it all out by myself. It was a super proud moment. 

After I was done with all the work, I drove out to the Infiniti dealership where my brother works to trade vehicles with him. I'm sure I was the homeliest looking person to ever step foot in there. When I got home, I showered and got ready for the football game and laid down for a few minutes; but, not for long lest I fall asleep and miss the game. I was beyond tired by the time that evening rolled around; but, it was worth it. I'm so glad to have gotten all the yard work done and to spend some time away from the office and in the sun soaking up some vitamin D from sun rays rather than capsules. Winter is coming, and we are ready at the Parker house. 

Panoply, Pippa, and Privacy Fences

Well, here I am, writing a long overdue post which I'm sure you've all been anticipating. I feel like I'm constantly apologizing for not writing on the blog. I'll blame it on a series of things which are...

1. I haven't felt like writing anything

2. I hate logging on to a computer in the evenings

3. Life hasn't been too interesting

4. I don't think anyone but Erika reads this blog and I can just call or go out to dinner with her

I'm sure there are other reasons too, but I'm sticking with these four for now. I'd like to promise I'll do better because I feel guilty when I don't write anything; but let's be honest it's probably not going to get any better until I get out of this funk. Moving on....

Last weekend wasn't too adventurous. I did manage to venture out to Panoply with my friends Lauren and Margaret Anne. We went to listen to the Indigo Girls. They sounded great and the weather was nice and it was an all around lovely evening until the lesbians in front of us started making out towards the end of the show. It was at this point that we packed up our belongings and decided to head out. As we started leaving, the fireworks began so we stood by the pond and watched the fireworks and then went home. Other than my outing to Panoply, I really didn't do too much. 

Pippa has discovered that the fence is no match for her prowess. When I first got her, she found some holes in the fence between my yard and my neighbor Tina's yard and she would scoot under the fence and run over to Tina's (usually when Tina was outside). Tina sealed up some holes by stacking up bricks and I sealed off others by sticking bamboo in the ground where the holes were so Pip couldn't run through. So, for over a year, she hasn't bothered with trying to escape. 

Well, apparently she must have gotten bored or mad while I was gone on vacation because she discovered a hole in the back of the fence and also a way to open up the back gate. So, I got a lock for the gate so that she can't maneuver it open and my neighbor Mary Beth put some chicken wire and cinder blocks around the hold in the back. That worked for about five minutes until Pippa discovered she could just push the fence and crawl under it. So, I drove some stakes in the ground where there were other holes and loose spots.

Then she discovered more holes in the fence between my house and Tina's and is again escaping through those. I drove stakes in the ground along that side of the fence too and she got out again! So, basically she's either confined to the leash while in the back yard or I sit in the backyard with her and yell out every time she gets close to a weak spot which is basically every 30 seconds. 

All of this to say that I now have two companies coming out to provide estimates for a privacy fence. This is about the last thing I want to spend money on at the moment and I certainly don't have the funds to pay for it at the moment. Both companies have financing options so when the sales guys come out I will be discussing the financing options with them and then will probably cry after they leave because of the enormous expense of a privacy fence and there go my hopes of getting a new couch any time soon. Seriously, what 38 year old has a couch with giant holes in it? Me, that's who! My large chair is heading that way too. So, I'll have to gather my senses and remember that a privacy fence will add value to my home, it will look nice and it will allow me a moment of peace while Pippa runs around in the back yard and I enjoy silence. 

I'll keep you posted on how it all turns out. 

It's The End of Washing As I Know It

The end of an era came this week. My washing machine, a loyal cleaner and friend, washed it's last load of dog hair covered clothes.

A little over 13 years ago, when I moved to North Carolina for my first big girl job, my parents bought me a washer and dryer. I remember what a surprise it was. My dad had helped me move and at some point while I was sleeping or who knows what, he snuck out to Lowe's and bought the set for me and the next thing I knew I was the owner of appliances that could actually wash and dry clothes. No more laundromats or apartment laundry rooms or bumming the use of the washers and dryer at the school. I had my very own!

The set has lasted me all these years. I've washed countless loads of clothes, comforters, quilts, dog blankets, etc. etc. No doubt thousands of loads have been in and out of that Maytag machine. In the past few years, I've had to call a repair man three times to fix something that had gone awry with the washer. The past few months, I couldn't use the largest load setting because the water wouldn't cut off and would come spilling out of the washer. This woke me up from a nap on more than one occasion.

This past week, I put in some clothes to wash and the basket wouldn't spin the load, leaving the clothes soaking wet. The repairman came out and fixed what he thought was the problem, but when I went to do a load after his repair work, I was having the same problem and I think I knew in my heart of hearts that my machine had washed her last load of clothes. The repairman came out again and sure enough, the transmission was shot and it wasn't worth it to repair. Let me also take this moment to say how awesome my neighbor Jeff is - he came over both times to let the repairman in while I was at work. Seriously,  hit the jackpot with Jeff as a neighbor. He is the best.

So, Thursday, after my trip to the doctor, I ventured over to Lowe's to purchase a washing machine. Thankfully, they were offering 18 months interest free financing because otherwise I might be spending the next few months at the laundromat. I purchased anther Maytag, a top loader, basically the same kind I had before but obviously a model that's about 14 years newer than the one I had.

The guys from Lowe's came out on Saturday and took away the old one and installed the new one and I've been feverishly washing clothes ever since. Every waking moment has been spent washing clothes. That new washer is definitely getting a workout. The new one is quite a bit different than the old one. For one, there's no agitator which I guess is the norm these days. Also, the load is weighed when it's placed in the basket and that's how the machine knows how much water to use. It's all very new and fancy.

So, it's the end of a washing era and the beginning of a new one. I'm thankful that I was able to go ahead and buy a new one and very thankful that I once again have some clean clothes.

 The old

And the new

Summer Home Improvement

I mentioned a month or so ago that my neighbor's friend had accidentally backed into the fence between my house and hers. As a result, he contacted his insurance company and they came out to estimate the damage and gave me a nice settlement and because of this, I was able to finally have the fencing in the back of my house repaired as well as the fencing that had been hit by the truck and also have the fencing at the front of the backyard replaced. I'm so happy with the results and I wanted to share them with you.

Here are photos of the fencing at the back of my property before, during, and after the repairs. This fencing was actually damaged when my shed blew away last year and I haven't had a chance to repair it. Rick, who did the repairs, put a gate in at the back and straightened up the bent fencing. I've wanted a gate at the back since I first moved in. This makes it so much easier for mowing the small part of my yard behind the fence in the back alley and allows me to go visit the neighbors back there without having to jump the fence or walk around the block to get to their homes. I am so happy with the way this turned out.

These next set of pictures are of the fencing at gate at the front of my backyard. When we redid the house nine years ago, we put white vinyl fencing in which looked nice at first; but, after years of use and dogs jumping on it and lawnmowers running into it, it looked terrible. There were numerous spokes missing and my friend Pat had her husband Dave put a piece of plywood on the fencing so Pippa wouldn't get out. It was just awful looking. Rick took down the old vinyl fencing and put up some black aluminum fencing that looks similar to wrought iron. The result was great. The fencing looks so great and I'm very pleased with how it turned out.

I also mentioned on the blog a while back how my mailbox had toppled over and I had attempted to repair it. My attempts, however, where not so successful and the mailbox finally met its demise. Rick was kind enough to put up a new mailbox for me as well which is much, much sturdier than its predecessor.

That's it for the summer home repairs. I'm so thankful that Rick had some time to take care of these things for me and get my property looking good again. There's no telling what the next home improvement project will be.