the ice cream is melting!!
I'm taking a half day today, which means I'm leaving soon. We are going to make the great, hallowed trip to Home Depot today and I suspect that by the time we get home, I will be as withered as my bank account. I find that spending money on anything besides entertainment is very stressful. Even the entertainment spending leaves me with an aftertaste of guilt once the movie is over or the game has been defeated.
We hit Bed, Bath & Beyond and Target yesterday and the little, inconsequential things we stocked up on there put a huge hole in the budget as is.
However, I have to say that brand new outside garbage pails and a new coffee maker go a long, long way towards making one really feel at home in a new place.
My garbage pails. Not the landord's garbage pails. Mine. It sounds stupid, but it feels really good to say.
We made coffee as we took measurements and made lists last night. The aroma made the house feel homey; even with bare walls and floors and no furniture in sight, I felt the first twinges of home sweet home in my stomach. Excitement, nervousness and a bit of pride.
Today, we begin the stripping of some ugly-ass wallpaper and the painting of walls. It's the most pleasurable hard work one can do (that doesn't take place in a bed).
I won't be back until late this evening, if I have the energy.
Comments
"stripping of some ugly-ass wallpaper"
and
"most pleasurable hard work one can do"
do not belong together. The painting I'll grant you - it's wonderful to see the room slowly transform - but I got carpal tunnel in my right arm from trying to strip the God-awful pink, blue, and silver paper off the master bedroom walls. I still have nightmares about it.
Congrats on the home ownership! You'll be so happy once the painting is done.
Posted by: Kimberly | May 28, 2004 12:09 PM
We lived at HD. Hope your CC gets points at minimum - cash back is better.
We put our kitchen a cash back card and paid for our sink and faucet.
Posted by: Sandy P | May 28, 2004 12:11 PM
My tip for the day:paint all of the closets first.
Posted by: mbruce | May 28, 2004 12:12 PM
Spray paint your street number on the new garbage pails and the lids or someone will steal them... Strange, but true!
Posted by: babs | May 28, 2004 12:25 PM
I remember buying my garbage cans and feeling quite silly at the sigh of satisfaction I let out when I put them in their place beside the house. It really is a big deal though.
Posted by: a different Bill | May 28, 2004 12:39 PM
How about a giant mural in one of your rooms?
After all your husband is an artist, is he not?
Now what to do?
Star Wars theme?
Comic Books?
Posted by: Ryan | May 28, 2004 12:42 PM
Congrats on the new digs. We have been in our house for just over 4 years now, but it doesn't feel like it's been that long. We moved from a small townhouse to his one, and it really is a good feeling when you finally own your own piece of real estate. We owned the townhouse, but it is not the same as owning a HOUSE! We're goiong to be in this one for a loooooong time.
Congrats again.
Posted by: Apeman | May 28, 2004 12:45 PM
>My garbage pails. Not the landord's garbage pails. Mine. It sounds stupid, but it feels really good to say.<
Nah... not stupid at all!
Posted by: Charlie On the Pennsylvania Turnpike | May 28, 2004 01:13 PM
garbage pails? people still say that?
i say garbage can, trash bin, trash can... garbage pail, though? hahahah. maybe later, you can print out this entry and xerox me a copy.
but hey. at least they're your own garbage pails. that's all that matters now, right?
Posted by: mikey | May 28, 2004 01:18 PM
Was I right about the coffee thing?
Followup tip: Anywhere BUT Home Depot. Save yourself a potential aneurysim (-5 sp). Just trust me on this one.
Posted by: Wind Rider | May 28, 2004 01:24 PM
And you even named them, very nice!
The Pails
Posted by: Chuck Simmins | May 28, 2004 01:28 PM
Michele,
We once spent 9 hours in home depot. Yes 9. We bought everything from flooring, kitchen cabinets, countertops, to bathroom fixtures.
It.was.hell.
I think that was the single largest check I've ever written, other than when we actually bought our home.
It was ALL worth it.
Houses mean you work your ass off, but the feeling of satisfaction you get when you stand back and look at what you own, and what you've accomplished, well..it's a pretty damn good feeling.
My husband and I have turned into such house geeks it's pitiful. We actually enjoy hanging out at the home centers. We've been known to spend evenings walking around our property checking on how this tree is doing, or how we can change this or add that.
Would you believe he has actually called home one night and asked how the willow we planted fared during a storm? Would you further believe that this question was asked while he was deployed?
OMG, what have we become?..LOL
Anyway, congrats again. Here's to many years of happy home ownership.
Chuck:
Thanks for the best laugh of the morning..
Posted by: Tink | May 28, 2004 02:12 PM
A wallpaper scoring tool is your friend.
Posted by: Kevin Parrott | May 28, 2004 02:43 PM
Call the Monster House people and watch a bunch of professionals turn it into a Ted Rall Fantasyland.
"It's our bedroom... with a Geralissimo Bushitler theme! Cool!"
Posted by: Laurence Simon | May 28, 2004 02:53 PM
Put this on your next shopping list: epsom salt. Added to a hot bath, this stuff does wonders for tired, aching muscles - and after a day spent dealing with old wallpaper and prepping and painting walls & ceilings, you will discover pain in muscles you didn't realize you had.
So what color have the kids requested for their rooms? I remember when one of my sons nagged me incessantly to have his room painted black....lol.
Posted by: Trish | May 28, 2004 04:07 PM
all i know is that i miss the radio. i really do. to be honest, i didn't even read this piece. i just wanted to express my feelings on the radio. i don't know the legalities of it but i think the plaintiffs would be hard pressed to show damages. music on your playlist is now on my "to buy" list. isn't that called revenue? scott
Posted by: scott holmes | May 28, 2004 10:00 PM
We redid a bathroom recently. After perusing Home Depot, the tile shop, Pier 1, Bed Bath&Beyond, and Linens n' Things (which does not contain a single item made of linen) looking for fixtures we liked, we found similar but simpler, less busy items for half to a tenth the price at Ikea. You're close enough to the one on in Hicksville that I'd really think about a walk through.
My beloved spouse says if you can manage, go on a week night, not on a weekend. She works in Amityville so if we need anything guess who gets to go shopping...but there's a lot less customers than on weekends.
Best of luck - we painted our walls Ultra White, and we've been debating what color to go to since then. My only other advice is do at least eggshell, maybe a satin on the walls. It makes them much easier to clean. Never ever ever do flat paint on walls, especially if you have children or enjoy life. Oh, and we went all the way to semi gloss in the kitchen. That made the pasta sauce splatters so much easier to clean.
Enjoy the next few weeks, going to sleep with the gentle buzz you get from freshly painted walls...
Posted by: Dr_Mike | May 30, 2004 08:05 PM