The past two weekends my husband has been gone - he's working in Panama - yeah he sucks... we're freezing in Georgia and he's in a toasty place with water views... sigh... Alas, I've been on reserve both weekends. Miracle of miracles, I haven't really been called. Unless you can say two round trips in 13 days is working... but I digress...Last Saturday, I took Bill down to The Farm so that we'd both be closer to the airport. Me if called, and him for his 5am flight on Sunday. We went junkin with the red head when we got there Saturday, killing a few of my hours of waiting. When we came back I needed to feel like I wasn't wasting time. Reserve can do that to your mind... So I quietly walked away, grabbed Cherie's pruners and sneaked onto our property to start chopping down a massive cedar that had fallen months ago.
You'd think Bill would look for me when I disappear... Like a kid or a puppy, it always means I'm getting into something. After I got a nice pile started I sent a text to Cherie and told her to send Bill over with her chipper shredder... I could hear him grumbling about the 300 pounds of metal he was pushing all the way to where I was working... but he did it... and after a rough start... he actually kind of... wait for it... ENJOYED it... We worked for two hours probably and got a good amount chipped up for Cherie's dog kennel... waste not want not in the country... All that work was oddly satisfying.
Easter Sunday I drove Bill off to work and fully expected to be called to work also... and wasn't. After a wonderfully yummy brunch with neighbors we came back to the house. I looked at Cherie... and grabbed the pruners again. We worked on that cedar for three more hours until there was nothing we could prune without a chainsaw. There are HUGE piles of branches waiting for Bill's return to throw into the chipper shredder... neither the red head nor I are certified for THAT kind of power tool. For the record, our neighbor across the street offered his chain saw but I'm smart enough to know we aren't qualified for THAT kind of power tool either... I like us having all our limbs and fingers...
Yesterday, after working an overnight to Mississippi, I went back to the red heads to show my other bestie our new property. Then spent the night because it made more sense to stay close to the airport again, as I knew I would be called today (I was wrong- mark today in the history books folks). By 11 am we were both bored sitting in her living room. I looked at her and asked if she felt like taking down some wall paper. Can I tell you how much I love this woman? She is happy to jump into any project that needs to be tackled. We are Thelma and Louise... without killing men or driving off canyon cliffs...
We spent 4 hours removing wall paper... when we were done with wall paper we went to trim... when we were done with trim we went to shelving... and when we were done with shelving we went to the spare bathroom and attacked it with a feverish gusto. We both agreed that we understood why Chip Gaines loves Demo Day... it's oddly satisfying to destroy and demolish. I kept sending texts to Bill to tease him with each part of the house we started to attack. I know he sat there in Panama second guessing his brilliance in leaving tools where Cherie and I could find and use them. I'm pretty sure we saved him lots of time in our fervor today, and I'm also confident that we didn't destroy anything that we shouldn't have. Really.
By the end of the day we had the wall paper removed from the dining room, kitchen and master bedroom. I can officially tell you which rooms have plaster and which have sheet rocked walls. The kitchen no longer has baseboards or crown molding, neither of which are a loss. They were put on horridly. I guess at this point I should mention that I think Bill and I have finally come to a design plan for the kitchen. It's been a struggle to figure out how to lay it out and get everything we want in it. After Alex left yesterday, I took her input to heart and started re-configuring the design on paper. I'm pretty excited with the current plan. First step... get the pull off dumpster and toss everything that is piled in the middle of the kitchen floor lol...
The spare bath we gutted as much as we could without Bill's help. The cheap wood wall paneling was smacked off piece by piece. I love Bill's mallet and crow bar... but I think my right wrist and arm are going to hate me tomorrow. That shizzle is HEAVY. We're still working on the configuration of that room. I think I have a "new" plan for that. Bill is trying to keep up with changes I make daily. He needs to blame the company for not calling me. The more time I spend laying around looking through This Old House magazines the more ideas I get for our house... As Bill put it today, when we are done we will have a nice NEW old house. What I DO know is the things that were done half assed will be fixed to stand the test of time. I'm all about do it right the first time, which is half of our conversations... "We can do x..." "How much would it just cost to replace?" "A couple hundred and be easier to do"... "Well duh, lets do it right"... I guess in this respect, I AM my mothers daughter.
While we were attacking each room, Roger, Cherie's "feral' barn cat followed and watched us. The noises didn't scare that cat. We've decided he's the project mascot and overseer. He's going to be very sad when a very large Tank moves in. Roger has already claimed our property as his too. You can see how helpful Roger was today. Criticizing over our shoulders. He's quite a hands on manager.
Roger agreed with us that the wall paper we uncovered today was not something that we needed to recreate to bring the house back to what it was originally. Some things just need to be left in the past. Green checked paper was found in the spare bathroom. Looks like there was tile on the bottom half of the wall before they decided to take a Folk Victorian and try to make the interior look like a cabin in the northern Georgia mountains. We also found a yellow paisley? paper in the dining room. Apparently that room has been a green floral and yellow paisley. With the orange and green patterned paper we found in the living room I can see the 50's-70's and I'm having flash backs that no one should have to experience.
It's time to end this blog and this week. I'll leave you all with some pictures from our demo of the master bedroom and spare bedroom... and because people noticed my little gold shoes when I posted pictures on Facebook last week of our pruning job... I thought I'd post a picture of the flip flops I wore today. Yes, I agree... neither were appropriate for the jobs I was doing... but I really thought I'd be called to work. I've made a mental note to leave a pair of old jeans, t shirt and tennis shoes at Cherie's so I don't have to worry about my feet or clothes lol...Happy April y'all... may Spring really come to your house... and may the weather stay ABOVE 60 from here on out...
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