Can You Dig It?

The Builders are back, after deciding that the disconnected orange co-axial cable was not a danger to anyone, and have begun the excavation. Katie is enjoying the show- they have a little front end shovel thing-ie that digs the dirt. It's almost 70 degrees out and sunny. Welcome Spring!!

The Dumpster...

has arrived. It's huge.

Dangerous Web Research

I'm freaking out my husband by looking at and falling in love with bathroom fixtures way out of our price range. Everyone needs a hobby!

Tear it up!

Demolition on the deck is happening this very second. Asheville looks a little concerned but isn't too freaked out. I'm really surprised how quickly it's coming down! Will have photos soon. I need to get some client work done and not be so distracted.

Photos: "Before" taken yesterday morning at 7:00 am, and "During" taken today at noon.

We will have to wait until tomorrow to get the dumpster. The guy who drives the truck has a sick kid. I offered to drive it but was turned down. *sigh*

Jelly bean check: new bag of "Sweet Tart" jelly beans. They're tasty but have a soft covering that breaks off as soon as you bite into them. Kinda creepy, like found candy that might have been around for a while (under a cushion at a grandparent's house). Kinda like that. Yeah. That said, they will get eaten.

Day 1

The construction permit is displayed as required by law. The deck, which will be demo'd first is completely free of belongings, the azaleas have been moved, and many of the worms have been relocated to Katie and Andrew's safe house, erected over the weekend. I stood on the deck this morning and remembered all of the parties we have had. In the warm weather we'd sit out there for hours, either by ourselves or with friends, enjoying some wine and the bats. In the cold, dark we'd let the kids go outside right before bed to check out the moon and the stars. By myself I stand on the deck, play my guitar and sometimes write songs. I feel stupid feeling this way, because it's not that we're moving, and the new kitchen is going to be magnificent. But still, THE deck. Once we get to the "new normal" I'm always great with it, but the moment before the transition, I'm a mess. And the dumpster's going to be late. Is that a bad omen? Maybe I'll use the time to play a few more songs.



Photos: Andrew on the deck October, 2001; Katie's Birthday, June, 2006; and a summer photo of the deck.

Of Course

Moments, and I seriously mean moments after we gave 2 extremely large checks to our contractor to start the payroll going before the loan money kicks in (a 203 loan is not a standard re-fi and has a bizarre-o structure) the transmission on Mike's Honda kicks the bucket.

Dude.

Not too huge of a problem, but the tight budget just got a little tighter for the near future. Still, looking forward to Donna coming over for dinner tonight- a great friend from high school (Go SpiFfy!). I plan to grill a steak marinated in garlic, red wine vinegar, soy, and dried spices from last year's garden, roasted white and sweet potatoes, salad and a tomato, caramelized onion and asiago tart.

The jelly beans are gone. Need to get more today...

Be Still My Beating Heart

This is what I want; an Arts & Crafts style booth-type breakfast nook with a hidden liquor shelf/drawer.
Yes, please.
I mean it.

Clickie

A New Blog

We start demolition for the addition on Monday, so I thought I'd document it all with a shiny new blog.

Guess what we just learned? You have to submit a separate design form (which needs approval from the HOA) for the DUMPSTER. When were they going to tell us? Our contractor asked last night whether the dumpster could go in the street or if we needed to keep it in the driveway. Good question. I called the HOA this morning and found out that not only does it need a separate approval, but it's only good for 2 weeks! We're going to be filling out these forms (all of which need 4 signatures from surrounding neighbors) FOR.EVER. By the way, the dumpster measures 8 ft wide by 22 ft long by 6 ft high...I learned that today.

Gracious.

After dumpster-gate, we'll have POD-gate to contemplate. Can we fit a dumpster and a POD in the same little driveway? Will the inside of the POD resemble the inside of the dumpster? Excellent questions.

New bag of Starburst jellybeans are in the Jeep. They won't last long.