No, I'm not dead.

I’m just a really bad updater.

But I’ve been busy!

Not only did I have my first (birthday!) party in the house, but I’ve welcomed two new roommates..one of whom is a cat.

A house-warming palm! And my giganto aloe..I told you I was turning this into a greehouse!

The birthday party was really great. 20-25 people..just big enough that we could have a dance party in the living room, and small enough that I got to talk to everyone and thank them for coming J It was also just a really good excuse to see people I haven’t seen in a while. Some of my best friends made the trip from Cedar Rapids or Des Moines just for the night..and I was so glad to have them! Everybody gets so busy that we don’t always take the time to hop in the car and go see one another on the weekends.

Wal-Mart plants on the window ledge in the dining room.

It was also pretty cool because I invited a bunch of people that I like, but didn’t necessarily know all that well outside of work or the occasional run-in. By the end of the night, I think everyone had met somebody new and become closer to people they hadn’t known as well before. Mission: Accomplished.

Lots of compliments on the house – especially the light fixtures. It made me feel like all the work we’ve been doing has really paid off (not that having a roof over my head wasn’t payment enough, but you get the idea).

My new (old) cupboard in the dining room! It's currently holding every dish, cup, fork and spoon I own..in addition to displaying all my moonshinin' stuff on top.
Disclosure: I don't actually make my own booze. I bought this because I thought it looked cool. Though, after watching "Moonshiners" last weekend, I think I might like to try it one day :)

The roommate thing has been in the works for a couple weeks. I didn’t say anything because I have this tendency to say things with regard to the house that don’t materialize.. (i.e. I’m moving in THIS WEEKEND!!  ..three months later). I thought pretty hard about it, and decided that it would probably be alright, even though I really like my alone time.

From the laundry, looking through the kitchen into the dining room (with more pieces of the whiskey still) and the living room beyond.

Granted, it’s only been a little while; but, so far, I think things are going well. The cat is actually providing a valuable service by killing any spiders it sees roaming the floor, and the roommate Swiffers said floor almost every day before I get home from work. It’s apparently a cat-hair-related Swiffering, but it’s a Swiffering nonetheless.

The cat-roommate is entirely against everything I have ever said I would do. Ever. I am not a cat person and don’t know that I ever truly will be. But, this cat comes with my friend who comes with a few hundred dollars a month in rent. Which is nice. Also, the aforementioned spider-killing is reassuring. As long as I stay on his good side, Charlie the cat will patrol the house for movement.

Charlie the Spider Slayer. I caught him between yawns..it's been another rough afternoon.

That said: if he pees outside his litter box, I’m sending him to “the farm” where he can “play with the other cats.”

Progress has slowed slightly since the roommate moved in. Helping her move in and then re-situating everything in the kitchen and bathroom took some time. But, this past weekend we got back after it and finishing routing, sanding, and painting the baseboard.

8 & 10" baseboard routed, sanded, and painted. Boom.

This has been a pretty cool project, actually. I was dreading it because I don’t know how to run the router. I tried two boards: the first was fine; the second looked like cooked bacon…a little wavy. Luckily, the former Roommates spent a good chunk of the weekend over here in the garage and we got it knocked out.

Now to hang it and finish it with quarter round. Then on to a new project!

I saw a version of this on another blog: using a painters canvas dropcloth as a curtain. I'll hang it from the 1/2" conduit and have a custom, made-to-fit system for my baywindow. Total cost: $18. I like the color and texture of this stuff.. More to come!

Tonights dinner: I've had this chicken soaking in a brine overnight (all the onions and carrots have sunk to the bottom)..I'll let you know how it tastes. By the way, those are peppercorns...just so you know! ;)

Shingles, garage doors, and other cool stuff

Since the last installment, we’ve made some pretty noticeable progress, I’d say!

First, the roofers are nearly done! In fact, they should be finishing as I write this..

Before..

That process proved to take a bit longer than anticipated – not only were there several layers to tear off the steep roof in the front of the house, but one of the crew members had a family emergency and the entire crew was unable to work for a couple days. I can’t complain about that..because I have a soul. Luckily for us, the weather has been absolutely terrific and I’m not the slightest bit worried. My mother, on the other hand, seems to think that I will be the coziest little bat hotel in the tri-county area. I had no idea how deathly afraid of bats the women around me are until we started this project, but we’re working through it.

Working away..

Nearly done!

Snazzy recycled garage door.

With the roof nearly complete – and a snazzy new/recycled-from-the-old-garage-garage door in place – our work on the house will really fly from here. We can use the garage space to its fullest potential now – storage, workshop, shelter, etc. My dad is already planning for the workshop he’s putting together out there. The joke is that once the house is finished, I won’t actually be able to park in my own garage because he’ll have it so filled with table saws and planers that I’ll end up in the street. We all make sacrifices. J

Inside the house, we’re building walls! Not only are we stiffening and restructuring some of the existing walls, we’re also tweaking things slightly, making spaces more workable, and improving the wiring, plumbing, and insulation along the way. It shouldn’t be too long before there’s new drywall hanging back here – who knows..maybe one day I’ll get to live here?

Removing the old windows between the laundry and the garage.

...and installing a door!

First batch of carpet coming up. Stay tuned for more!

Update: Floored!

Well gang, the heat subsided long enough to allow my cement contractor the ability to pour a swanky new slab for the garage floor. I can’t tell you how excited things like this make me. We talked about it last night: the work inside - while fantastic and equally as necessary - goes by a little at a time. With projects like building a garage, you can have something hugely new and different at the end of every day! It’s exhilarating….and expensive.. But mostly exhilarating!

Speaking of budgeting.. I think we’re still in good shape. The major expenses were always assumed to be rebuilding the garage and hiring somebody to roof the house. Not only am I hiring the roof done because it’s going to suuuuuuuck to tear all those shingles off, but I also really want that to be done correctly. There is a pretty steep pitch on the front half of the house and there are a lot of intricate angles to deal with there as well. Better left to the professionals!

There is a strong possibility that I may get walls on this new garage this weekend – we’ll see! J