Recessed Lighting

I would love to post some pictures of my kitchen, but there is a big plastic tarp blocking the view. Something about keeping the dust and crap out of the rest of the house. We had asked the contractor to give us a bid on some recessed lighting in the living room, but didn't expect him to have time to do it during this job. Seems he had a job that he was going to work on while the mud was drying in the kitchen, but it fell through and he had time this week. Six new lights on a dimmer in the living room and a regular light over the entry way. Nice and bright. Kitchen should be done in another week and a half. Soon. I'll post more pictures as they become available.

Finished Bathroom: Part 2

Second part of the finished bathroom. It's awfully hard to get a picture of a mirror without a wicked glare, but I tried. The best part about this medicine cabinet is the size (monstrous) and the fact that it has 2 more mirrors inside. Apparently, that's a good thing. The light is also a tricky picture, but I actually like the fixture. We still have 2 other fixtures that we need to take back to Lowe's, but third time's the charm.

Finished Bathroom: Part 1

It's awfully hard to show my finished bathroom because it's so tiny, but here's the first installment. An actual sink and toilet. Water-efficient, single piece toilet. That actually stops flushing without having to jiggle the handle. And a new sink. Not that the old sink wasn't beautiful in it's day, but... Actually, the old sink was ugly going back to the days before sinks. Nasty. And it leaked. It leaked even worse after I "fixed" the clog by running a plumbers snake right through the bottom of the "P" trap. The sink drained great after that. Right onto the bathroom floor. Anyway, today was the first day of showering at home again. Once again, the only fat, naked guy I have to see in the morning is me.

Kitchen Cabinet

I had the contractor pull one of my kitchen cabinets out of the box so I could see what they looked like. Pretty much like they did in the showroom. One day soon, my kitchen cabinets will be in the kitchen and not in the living room. I currently have a kitchen sink, kitchen cabinet, towel rack, bathroom light, medicine cabinet and refrigerator in my living room. And a variety of faucets and accessories. I don't like any of them in the living room. They should all be in the kitchen and/or bathroom. Soon.

Bathroom Floor (grout)

OK, looks much like the "no grout" picture, but this one has grout. Done. Except for the washing and placement of the rest of the fixtures, like the toilet, sink, shower doors, etc. Almost done.

Bathroom Floor (no grout)

Bathroom Floor (no grout)
Originally uploaded by klycolllins.

Since I've been working at home this afternoon, I've got an early post today; the tile's in the bathroom and we're (me and Bo) just waiting for the tile guy to come back this afternoon and grout. That round black spot is the hole where the toilet will go. I guess. I don't think we signed up for the outhouse remodel, but I'd better check the contract. Check back later for the floor (with grout) picture.

Kitchen Lights

Let there be light! After 3 and a half years of complaining about how much the lighting sucks in our house, we finally have just what I wanted. Plenty of light over the general kitchen area and a separate light over the "sink". My understanding is that we will eventually get walls, too. The bathroom's almost done, but it's so small it doesn't photograph well. Tile should go in tomorrow and Rachelle finally found a lighting fixture we can live with. We still have 2 that we need to take back to Lowe's, so we're keeping this one regardless. After almost 2 weeks of remodel, I am about ready to snap. Too much stress and too much crap to pick out. I thought we were finally done with trips to Lowe's and Home Depot when I was reminded that we need to pick out hardware for the cabinets. And I just found out today that we need to pick out a grout for the tile. How many colors of grout could there be?, you might ask. I've got 46 different colors to wade through. I'm thinking grout-colored grout works for me. I'll post pictures of the floor tomorrow.

Bathroom Progress

Week 2 of the bathroom remodel and we now have paint. Cork Bark. I'm not sure how it's going to look when it's all done, but I like it so far. Marble and mirror tomorrow, tile on Friday. Then we're done. It will be nice to shower at home again. I'm sick of the cold showers at the gym.

Kitchen: Day 2

There were some complaints about the quality of the pictures coming from my phone, so I will be sending pictures from an actual digital camera. One that doesn't also make phone calls. Day 2 of the kitchen demolition looks much better than day 1. At least all of the really nasty stuff is gone. We do have some original flooring now exposed under where the breakfast bar once was. Pink and black asphalt tiles. Very pretty. I'm going to try to pry one up once the contractor leaves. Save it for posterity. I haven't posted a bathroom picture for several days because it looks exactly the same as it did last week. I'm sure it is different, but it sure looks the same to me. Something about "mud" and "sanding". Whatever. I have high hopes that I will be able to take a shower sometime within the next week. Hopefully.

Kitchen Demolition, Part I

Man, I live in a crap-hole. I'm saying "I" because Rachelle is still at work and hasn't seen the nastiness behind the original 1958 cabinets, and it's entirely possible Bo and I will be living alone until the re-model is done. We are actually still ahead of schedule. The bathroom is just a couple of days from being completely finished, and the new kitchen cabinets were delivered today. The tough part seems to be the wiring and plumbing, and our contractor is doing a great job. He's already found several problems that he plans on fixing as part of the original plan and estimate. If anybody in the Sacramento area is looking for a contractor, I'd be happy to give you a referral. Sometime after February 23rd. I want my house done first. One of the best parts about getting the kitchen done is I was able to explain to Rachelle why we needed a new stainless steel gas grill with a separate side burner. I wasn't able to justify the $800 one, but I still got a nice new toy. Nothing but meat and beans until the new range is installed. Sweet! Did I mention Bo and I might be living alone until the remodel is done? I hope to have some really good demo pictures tomorrow. Should be a big, empty hole. And I think he has to pull some of the drywall. Looking forward to it.

Walls

I have walls again. Not pretty walls yet, but walls. At least I can't see the plumbing and wiring. Tub is fully operational, as are the light and ceiling vent. Nothing else. Kitchen cabinets were supposed to come today and didn't, but not a problem. Demo isn't starting in the kitchen until Monday. And for all of you looking to join a gym in the Sacramento area, California Family Fitness seems to have a problem with their water heater. Cold shower for the second time in 3 days. I'm beginning to dislike the gym. And my arms hurt. Those weights are heavy. It's sad when you get to a machine after an elderly woman has just finished her workout and you have to lower the weights. Very sad. She looked spry for her age, though. Probably no updates over the weekend unless something non-remodel related happens, but it won't hurt you to check.

Day 3

The tub is in. And operational. Barely. The shower still hasn't been hooked up, but it's nice to know that I can actually bathe without going to the gym and "working out". It's also nice that things are running slightly ahead of schedule and under budget. My personal home-improvement projects never seem to work like that. I usually end up spending twice what I expected because I: a) buy the wrong thing in the first place and don't realize it until I've already installed and/or broken it; or b) buy the right thing and put it in wrong and then break it trying to fix it. As for being ahead of schedule, I still have several projects that I started when we moved in and I just haven't managed to find the time to finish. Any of them. Anyway, from what I understand, the dry-wall is going up in the bathroom tomorrow and the demo is starting on the kitchen. That should be fun. Of course, more pictures to follow.

Medicare Learning

Due to the large number of requests (one) for additional Medicare information, here is a link to a fine, fine, Computer Based Training session. While the content may be somewhat dry, the presentation itself is extremely well written and informative and the narrator has a full-bodied, melodic, some might say hypnotic, voice. Too bad there aren't any Emmy's or anything for this kind of crap. Or maybe it's just as well. Anyway, feel free to try the CBT under the "Provider Education" section. At least give the first slide or two a listen.

http://www.mutualmedicare.com/

Progress

OK, so this is the only noticeable difference in the bathroom; the exhaust vent has been installed. When I told my sister we were putting a fan in the bathroom she couldn't figure out how we were going to fit a ceiling fan in our tiny bathroom. The room's so small I'm pretty sure a fan wouldn't even be able to spin in there. When Rachelle saw it after the demo yesterday, she almost cried. It's just about the size of the walk-in closet she really wants. Of course, I'd rather have a shower than a walk-in closet. Speaking of showers, there was a sign on the gym entrance this morning apologizing to the members for their hot water problems. The main problem is there was no hot water in the showers. Took me back to the days when I would (occasionally) forget to pay the gas bill and my hot water got "interrupted". Bummer. The only big positive thing that happened today was the contractor fixed the garage door opener. We didn't ask him to fix it, but I think he got annoyed at how crap-ass it worked. We've been talking about having somebody out to fix the stupid thing for months and never got around to it. Took the dude 5 minutes to fix it. I feel so pathetic. Bet he doesn't know squat crap about Medicare, though. I hope for better pictures tomorrow. Check back then.

Bathroom Remodel

Stage one of my kitchen/bathroom remodel. Nothing but studs, some drywall and concrete. And pipes. Should be a fun couple of weeks. I've spent so much time at Home Depot I'm almost on the payroll. One trip away from a name tag and an orange apron. I was worried that they were going to demo both the kitchen and the bath the same day, but I still have my 'fridge. All my dishes are packed up, but all I seem to need is a corkscrew and/or a bottle opener. Everything else can be delivered, driven through or carried out. Anyway, I hope everybody enjoys the hot shower they'll be taking at home tomorrow. Fortunately, the gym opens at 5:00am, so I can catch a shower before my 7:25 flight. As long as I don't have to actually work out. I'll keep the pictures coming as the work progresses. Kitchen, too.