Mission Creep

Because there were just the two of us for Thanksgiving, we (meaning I) decided that the half bath on the first floor needed re-painting.  We (meaning my husband) had previously painted it in a semi-gloss paint.  It was too shiny, reminding me of what might be used in a run-down gas station bathroom, a bathroom that might need scrubbing down.  I'm not imagining why that might be necessary.

Anyway, when we were re-doing the bathroom upstairs, a salesperson at Sherwin-Williams told me about the matte finish they sell.  Not quite flat, not quite semi-gloss.  It was just right. So I took everything off the walls, bought the paint and off we (meaning my husband) go.

Painting is finished.  Hmmm... maybe we should get a more modern, low-flow toilet.  Off to Lowes and Home Depot.  Found one, bought it, installed it, and done.

But we needed new faucets to "update" the sink.  Off to the Lowes and Home Depot, bought new stuff, and when my husband tried to un-install the old plumbing stuff (I don't know what that entails) he discovered that the sink had a couple of cracks in it, all the way through.  Apparently that happened because the plumbers, 30 years ago, used something resembling concrete to install the plumbing, and hammering that away broke the sink.

By the way, we are three weeks out from when we started this project.  

Off to Lowe's and Home Depot. Again. Buy a new sink, and maybe later today, everything will be finished.

Cross your fingers, ok?

It Ain't Braggin' if it's True, part 2

OK, so it turns out that my last post wasn't entirely true.  I will pass along to you, dear readers, what I have learned from my experience.

Once you have finished what you consider to be your Christmas shopping, wrapping and shipping, DO NOT, under any circumstances, go into even one more store.  Possibly the grocery store isn't even safe.

Because I went to Lowes, the home improvement store that sells soil, plants, toilets, wiring, and tools I can't even identify, I have this package to mail.

What's inside that could possibly be a gift for my 4-year old granddaughter? That I found at Lowes?

This:

I went to Lowe's looking for a wreath, which I did not get because all of theirs were raining needles and would not last until Christmas, and this ornament jumped out at me.   Elizabeth loves, loves, loves all things Hello Kitty and so of course I thought--- Elizabeth MUST have this. 

Now I am off to the post office to mail it.  

NO MORE STORES.  

My apologies to anyone in this house who might want to eat home-cooked meals between now and Christmas.  Publix and Kroger and especially Fresh Market are now off limits.  Because apparently no place, not even a home-improvement store, is safe.

Pros vs, well, Us

This is the first time I've had professional painters do indoor painting for us. Usually it's DH and me struggling to get some painting done. But dH is too busy, and I'm trying to put off hand surgery as long as possible (never) and holding paintbrushes and roller handles is really painful. I need my hands for knitting.

So here is what professional painters do:

*Show up completely stocked with everything they need.

*Put drop cloths on every single thing that could conceivably get paint on it.

*Sand ALL the surfaces to be painted.

*Sand the areas where they have put putty in holes, over damage.

*Then, as doG is my witness, they VACUUM up all the dust.

*Put all the switchplate/outlet covers back in place the SAME DAY that they paint.

Here is what dH and I do:

*Make at least a half dozen trips to the paint store/Lowes/Home Depot to get the things we forget or run out of.

*Find an old sheet and move it around on the floor as we paint. The sheet will not be large enough to catch all the drips and spatter. Guaranteed.

*Sometimes sand a few of the surfaces to be painted. But usually not.

*Where we do sand, if we do sand, we vacuum up all the dust. Hah, hah, hah....No.

*Eventually, maybe, put all the switchplate/outlet covers in place. If we can find the screws.
*Drink alcohol.

Lesson learned:

Hire the professionals.

(And I love, love, love the turquoise!)