On remodeling.

Compare and contrast... my sister is doing a live-in remodel, the chronicle of which I have been sharing with you. Here is installment 8 of the series.

I have a new mantra: remodeling is a self-inflicted wound. We chose to do this to ourselves. I believe we may need a therapist. Perhaps a team of them.

The trenching was done with a wet saw. That is good because it reduces, but does not eliminate, the dust. Wet saws spew mud all over everything. The workers cleaned most of it up pretty well. However, I went into the utility room to get some clean laundry and discovered that the drying rack containing my “dainties” had been sprayed as well. It was at least 10 feet from the trench. No one wants to wear a bra covered in concrete mud. It does come out in the wash, however.

There is a fine layer of gritty concrete dust all over everything in the basement. We may get it cleaned up by Labor Day if it does not clog the vacuum cleaner.

Here’s a keen observation for you: a closed door will not deter a cat from entering a room if there is a trench in the floor. Not even a fat cat.

The pipe has been laid in the trench and covered with new concrete. Today they will replace the bathroom floor and relay the carpet in the hallway.

The addition has beautiful new windows installed and they have begun to replace our old windows. They, too, will be wonderful. There are two downsides to window replacement. One is that some windows break when they are removed and we now have broken glass all around the exterior of the house. The other is that gaping hole appears when windows are removed. This allows insects to enter. We are infested with little tiny flies.

Next week they will begin to demolish the kitchen…………

Out at the New Castle, our remodel has begun.

Day One. Destruction. Notes: I drove out and took a picture.

Day Two: Construction. Notes: I drove out and took another picture. And said hello to S'mudge, who BCR refers to as "The Bonsai Smilodon." S'mudge keeps an eye on things for us.

Day Three: Well, that's today. I'll drive out and take a picture. So far the toughest nut to crack has been getting SWWBO to choose some colors for the room. She did choose her laminate flooring, which was $2K more expensive than the high quality carpet the contractor used for his estimate. So, this *is* a government job with cost overruns starting before the first prybar hit the sheetrock...

But I'll take my method over my sister's any day...