Contractors

While somewhat unreliable on estimating when they will get to your job (a bit overly optimistic) when they get here they work their asses off. Sure, there is a bit of juggling but so far things haven't burnt up. That is a score in my book.

: )

Mobile Test

Will it work? Who knows??

Lawns

I mowed my new lawn for the first time. A non-motorized push mower was my weapon of choice. Delightful is all I can say! Easy handling. Cuts pretty close. A little trouble with tall weeds and edges but I had decided that decorative border grasses are the way to go!

On the home front - two months since I moved. Hurray. Still many boxes unboxed, but kitchen is usable, bedroom is done, living room is done, bathroom is done. Everything I need is accessible, available, and clean.

I started making rings, once I get some better tools look for some updated pics.

: )

Summer Creations

I have a conundrum when the warm weather hits. I want to be out and about doing things. Restaurants, plays, concerts, parks, neighborhoods, museums, I want to see it all. But then all the home stuff starts to build up. Laundry, dishes, cleaning, even fun stuff like movies, the animals, beading, that need me home to do. There is also something completely appealing about being home, sitting on the porch, listening to the birds tweet and the bugs buzz.

The answer might seem to be go out some days, stay home others. I still have the problem where my home time is chore time. Keeping up with the work to make the house enjoyable means less time for enjoying, even if that shorter time is better for being cleaner and more organized, still, less of it. The thing I like about being out is that there is always something new - new place, new people, new events, while home feels more predictable, not in a bad way but less energetic and the summer for me is all about high energy.

I think the real solution is to make those home times, even the chore times, more unpredictable. Do my laundry wearing a tiara, see how long I can stand on tiptoes while doing the dishes, play hide and seek with the vacuum, it is all about generating that same feeling even when you are doing something that is antithetical to that feeling.

: )

Wardrobe

We put together my wardrobe last night. Went fine. Had time to have some tasty tomato and avocado salad with bread and olive oil dip. We are holding off on putting the bed together because one of the slats is broken. We will need to buy a new set of slats. Luckily we are hitting Ikea this weekend so we can get everything we ever needed for storage and more. The nice thing is that we have a lot of room in the new house. The bad thing is that room is quickly being filled up with large pieces of furniture because the house has almost zero usable storage. The basement does not count as usable storage just yet. The list of large things we need keeps growing - pantry, dining room table and chairs, coat closet. All three of which go into two rooms. Maybe we just need to ditch some stuff. Luckily it won't last for long. Once we refinish the kitchen the pantry won't be as needed and can go to the basement and find another use. The sideboard will be in another spot in the dining room so we will have more room to maneuver. I am wondering if maybe a smaller wardrobe would be smarter. I know, we just put it together, but is is a monster. While the bedroom is not tiny, it gets shrunk with the wardrobe. Maybe I will find something I love love love at Ikea and can replace what I have. Maybe.

Contractors

A quick note on hiring a contractor - make sure you research the project thoroughly before you talk to a contractor. You want to be able to follow along what they say and be confident they know what they are talking about. Case in point - if a contractor asks about the other estimates you have gotten before giving their own bid, you might want to be a bit hesitant about hiring the person. Their low ball bid may mean inferior or incomplete work. That leads to another point - be sure you can live with a half-finished job. That means if the contractor does try to inflate the cost along the project be ready to walk away, let them know you will be reporting them to the better business bureau and whatever service you found them on, and that you will have someone else finish the job. Always be ready to walk away.

: )

Packing, slightly delayed

Packing has been delayed but for good stuff, not just goofing around stuff (not exclusively anyway). Talked with some floor refinishers. Contacted a cleaning service. Got the rental truck. Sent out the notice to amigos and amigas about the move and that their help was very appreciated if they could stop by. But actual packing, no.

I don't hate the kitchen anymore so that can't be why I don't want to pack. Maybe I just hate manual labor? But that can't be it because I've manualed all over the place. I think the real reason packing is easy to put off is because I know that someone somewhere is working on an electromagnetic beam that will instantly transport my stuff from the place it is to the place I want it to be. In my heart I know it will be ready in 2-weeks and super cheap so why pack! Oh, because it doesn't exist and I will end up having to hand carry my many tiny bottles of spices 11 miles. Stupid lack of electromagnetic beam. I would call it the Beam-Home or if that was taken the SwitchPad. Like a switchblade but it won't kill you.

: )