The Great Room-Before and After

After 2 grueling weeks of work(mostly by Jim) the great room is almost complete! It was by far the most complex painting project we ever did because it required major masking,two coats of primer on everything including the beams and the wall peaks which are 16 feet high, 3 kinds of paint: satin on the walls,semi-gloss on the trim, brick and block paint on the fireplace, and then the super meticulous removal of random paint specks on the wooden floor. Now the decorating can begin.Jim refinished the original radiator covers and ceiling sconces which look amazing.Next project is hiding the primitive electric cords with plugs in them which go around the room(because the last owner did not see the need to install proper outlets).Then shelves and decorating, and maybe even a houseplant.Domestic bliss. Next month we will attack the dining room! Until then Jim is continuing to build an amazing wood shop, and I am puttering about upstairs in my studio.Oh yeah,the autumn leaves which are starting to turn are all over our lawn and they are gorgeous.

Autumn update, and its good!

Things have taken a turn towards the positive this fall! Thank Goodness! We have recently completed some major projects which are an investment in our future and we feel good. First of all , as a result of what we thought was a small leak on the front outside wall we did some poking around and discovered our 18 year old roof was in need of replacement, so that's done. Actually we decided to divide that job into two parts so we did the main house this season and will do the roof on the extension next season. So no more leaks that we know of(fingers crossed). The upstairs bathroom is functioning quite well with the new grout and leaks in wall fixed, and the kitchen ceiling above it is fixed and better than new. We also removed the giant tired evergreen shrubs in the front of the house and we plan to create a beautiful new front garden in the spring incorporating Lilacs, forsythia, and peonies, and some other surprises. We decided to take the plunge and get rid of the oil heat system and upgrade to a gas heat and hot water system which we completed this weekend. There is a government incentive and tax break attached which is awesome, so we took advantage of it. Out with the giant stinky oil tank and into the 21st century! There were gas lines in the house already for cooking so it was a no brainer.The process included spray foam insulation sprayed all around the perimeter and into dormers so hopefully that will be reflected in our bills. This weekend I removed the last of the stinky carpet from the bedroom to discover yet another hidden beautiful wood floor. We will refinish it eventually but for now it's cool. Jim's shop is a thing of beauty and he has even been able to make progress in keeping it dry which at the angle of the garage to the driveway is a definite challenge. We are very close to being able to start making furniture and other stuff we need. Next we are going to work on the two coolest projects on the list….the living room and dining room. Jim has scheduled some extra time off so he can concentrate on getting these two rooms painted and some shelving made. From the initial list of 100 essential projects we have completed 47(just updated Sunday Oct 2) in 6 months. We are now creating a tier two list of secondary projects such as radiator covers, additional under shelf lighting,outdoor projects( dare I say water feature?) and stuff like that. There is so much potential here, I love this place, but sometimes we get overwhelmed. It's been rainy for days and the yard is thick and green and smells like a forest. I feel like the giant oak and maple trees are such a gift.I love to lie on the deck and watch them sway in the wind. I just hope a giant branch doesn't break off and hit me in the head.

Shop update

This weekend Jim made major progress in his shop. A few cheap and cheerful cabinets from Home depot, some simple very solid built work tables, a tool box, some waterproof caulking, and some heavy weight casters changed the space from a nasty garage to a nice bright well equipped shop. More stuff to be built and more storage to be created but we are getting there now.Yeah JImbo!

Time for an end of summer update…….. and what a summer it's been

Greeting friends, cult members, nosey neighbors,and people from around the world, It's been appropriately 69 days since my last confession…the heavy humidity, major structural setbacks, general leakages, and a lack of motivation, has caused us to behave poorly,question our judgement, wallow in occasional self pity, and then have a few more cocktails.But now I am ready to accept my penance and move forwards. The update: Instead of crossing tasks off the list this summer, we have had to add quite a few new and expensive ones: On Memorial Day morning we awoke to a droopy soggy ceiling in the kitchen (which is right below the upstairs bathroom) full of water and dripping.Jim(after the cursing stopped) tore down the ceiling which was an incredible mess due to the fact that if nothing else, this house is incredibly solid and all walls are built with old school sheetrock and thick as hell. It was easy to see where the water was leaking(everywhere) but not the start of the problem. We are good at many things but plumbing is not on our list.So with much hesitation as to what kind of "holiday overtime" we would be paying, we called a professional. We found a guy, ready to come over, no extra fees, through this site called Home Advisor or something like that. He did an inspection and found a number of leaks in the old copper piping. The last owner moved downstairs to avoid the stairs and the upstairs bathroom had not been used in a while so when we started using it on a regular basis all hell broke loose. Every time the plumber fixed one spot, another one opened up but he stuck with it for almost 3 hours(and he stuck to his binding estimate).So then we let it dry for a few weeks. Finally we were ready to close the ceiling back up… but wait is that water drops on the floor? Seems in addition to the pluming issues there was water leaking from behind the tub or under the tiles. After much testing and water droplet observations, we concluded the caulking and grout in the bathroom needed to be replaced. So we watched a few move youtube videos, and started scraping and scratching out the old grout, cutting out and dried up silicon caulk, then replacing it. Not really that bad of a job and the master (James) did a perfect job. I was just the sponger. After another few weeks of drying we sealed up the giant hole with new sheetrock, tape, Spackle and paint and both the bathroom and kitchen ceiling are better then new. But wait the plot thickens because on the very same day we discovered the kitchen ceiling problem we also found the front wall behind the dinning room entrance underneath the dormer was also soaked soft and crumbly and there was evidence that this had been an ongoing situation. This was not noted in our house inspection, and we ignored it because we thought it was evidence of something that had been dealt with.As I write that, I just feel stupid. Anyway, we decided to handle one disaster at a time so just last week we got to dealing with the leak. Jim started by tracing the leak to under the dog house dormer which is in my studio, so he cut two holes in my walls and we looked inside.The next morning it was pouring outside and when I shined my flashlight into the eaves, I could see the water dripping in, in two places.We started talking about how we could fix it ourselves, but soon realized we needed to talk to some professionals to learn more about the situation. First roofer arrived with a book of shingle samples, and a full presentation for our new state of the art roof. That put me off just a tad. Second guy was $3,000 cheaper and had done the roof the first time. He gave us different options- fix the leaky dormer, put a new roof on top of the old, remove old roof and do the whole thing.I also called the old handyman the last owner used to use. He came right over and told us he had told the woman for years she needed a new roof.He also told us that old leak only happens when the gutters are clogged. No one knew how old the roof was during the buying process, but he knew.Eighteen years on a fifteen year shingle roof. So Jim bought a very long ladder,and on a 94 degree day with 89%humidity he tried to clean the gutters on the front of the house but the damn huge overgrown pine needle hedges were in the way. So then and there we just cut down all the shrubs in the front. Now we have a blank slate to create a beautiful garden with lilacs, forsythia, and other wonderful stuff. The ladder was easy to safely place, and we have clean gutters.Last roofer was the most reasonable, and Bernice thought he was soooooo handsome, we decided to do half the house, the older part for now and next year do the other half. That should happen this week. Then we can replace the damaged drywall in the dinning room and start painting and putting up shelves. One of my favorite projects, and something I was really looking forward to, was planting my new vegetable and herb garden. The idea that I no longer needed to create raised beds because my soil was so rich and beautiful was thrilling to me and I planted with reckless abandon. I knew I had rabbits and squirrels in the yard that I would need to keep out so put up some posts and attached strong nylon netting all around. I had no idea how vicious and aggressive nature could be and at this point I have lost the battle.There are no tomatoes left on the plants. Herbs have lacy leaves(not in a good way). And for some unknown reason I have giant radish plants with no actual radishes,beet greens and carrot tops with nothing under ground and pac choy and arugula that bolted way too soon. Successful crops- shiso, tall and healthy lemon grass,mint like crazy, and a nice assortment of edible flowers- Nasturciums, and sweet pea. Next year I think I will go back to raised beds because I can put a layer of chicken wire underneath and up the sides and then create a solid fencing system.If that doesn't work I'm thinking electric fencing. And the final update is about Jim's shop. We decided to turn the 2 car garage into a workshop.500 square feet of empty space with two support posts in the middle of the garage.How hard could that be? Here are a list of issues 1. The garage leaks everywhere.The back wall, the side walls, and the driveway is higher than the garage so the run off goes right inside. 2. Nothing is level or square. The process of assembling the table saw and side work tables and extensions and attempting to make everything level was a nightmare 3. The posts in the center make laying out the shop very tricky 3. Every time Jim goes out to work in the garage, he has to put down moving blankets to soak up the water 4. It's been hotter than hell 5. Did I mention the garage leaks? Today Jim bought some cheap cabinets at Home depot and finally got lots of his stuff unpacked and off the floor which is a good thing. Hopefully once it dries out we will address the leaks and see if we can seal some of them up. Happy shop, happy Jim So there you have it,not much progress,but dealing with some big issues.Next big project is our conversion to gas heat instead of oil. We are starting that in September which will also include tightening up the insulation and making the entire house more efficient.And we get a government insentive and a tax rebate From our original list of 100 projects written in March we have completed 43 of them, but as of today I have added 5 more major ones. Here are some photos in no particular order for you to enjoy and say to yourselves, "Sure am glad I don't have an old house."

Bye Bye Nasty Carpet

This weekend I decided to tackle the carpet removal on the staircase and landing because the color, texture, and old person smell was killing me. We did not know what was going to be underneath, but were delighted to find beautiful oak in decent shape. When I lifted the corner of the carpet I discovered the foam matting had disintegrated into an orange dusty mess which stuck to the wood in some places.There was also a creepy layer of netting which looked like old cobwebs. So I used a scraper, mat knife, and green scrubby to remove it all.The landing was easy it was just a little difficult removing the nail strips without hurting myself. The stairs were a bitch! It took all my might to pull off the pieces but I had to be careful not to tumble down the stairs! There were soooo many staples (which I actually am still removing). Next I will sand all the wood and reseal and paint. On a less festive note, the upstairs bathroom continues to torture us. After 2 weeks ago, when we discovered a leek in the pipes which led to ripping out the kitchen ceiling which is below the bathroom and then paying a plumber(ouch) to fix the leak(multiple problems), yesterday we discovered more water on the kitchen floor , this time we think coming from the tub. Seems the last owner lived downstairs and this bathroom had not really been used in quite a while so shit keeps happening.UGGGHH! So at the moment we seem to be going backwards instead of forwards on our to-do list.

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vegetable garden in

This weekend I did nothing but work on my garden. I cleared the grass away, turned the soil, mixed in compost and extra nutrition, planted my herb plants, planted all my seeds, tried to build a center path(NEEDS LOTS OF WORK), and put up a barrier around the perimeter to keep out rabbits and squirrels.I also added marigolds for that purpose as well as bought some Irish Spring soap which I intend to cut up and sprinkle around the garden edges to keep little cute critters away.The soil here on Long Island is fantastic.Rich and dark, full of earthworms and easy to dig. Do I miss trying to garden in New Mexico's sand and clay? No.I also filled some pots for the beautiful side garden I am working on. Columbine and other beautiful dark leafy plants, and a pot of nasturtiums.Now that it's all in, I can go back to leaf removal and finally try out my new super powerful leaf blower.

Garden of delights

Every time I go into our yard I make new discoveries. This weekend I found ferns growing behind the old Rhododendrons in the front yard, a mature poetic rose bush along the fence,and a perfect robin's egg. The Azaleas, though in serous need of major pruning, provide some fantastic color. The layering of colors almost looks like a cheap pastel drawing. I have now completed 2 quadrants of the massive leaf removal, basic shrub pruning, and dead branch removal and I feel both proud of what I have done so far, and overwhelmed by the work that remains. I did purchase a powerful leaf blower(so I can be as annoying as the other neighbors) to help with the leaf situation, but it was too wet yesterday to use it. Then there was my massive outbreak of Poison Sumac which attacked my arms, stomach, neck, and face and made me itchy beyond belief. Drugs have been prescribed and taken. Next week I start my vegetable garden.Very excited, I have made a sketch of my dream garden, but for the first season we are going to keep it basic. I have also decided to join the Long Island Horticultural society which meets at the gorgeous Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay, so I get learn more about local gardening issues. And very fortunately next weekend there is a meeting, a lecture on vegetable gardening, and their annual plant sale. WooWoo! I also downloaded a plant Identification app to help me figure out what's what. Results to be determined. And on a completely different note, I set up my hydroponic herb garden Christmas gift in my studio which makes the whole room look like a scene from a bad si-fi film

Jim builds his shop

This is week #2 for Jim on his shop project. Last weekend we had guests so we took the opportunity to enjoy a model making competition, some local hiking, and relax a little, so that one doesn't count. This was a great weekend full of accomplishments because Jim made some great deals on used equipment via Craigslist. Some of them really old and heavy, some of it barely used.3 weeks ago Jim started pulling power,with the help of an old pal, pulled the wires through from the basement into the garage and all around the walls. Jim has also put up sleepers around the garage so he can hang tools and parts via a "Z" strip system. You know how good this is going to get, so stay tuned. Here come the before photos….