Well, I have been remiss in writing, but that's not to say I've been lazy. On the contrary: I've been busy, busy, busy around here. And I've made some real progress on my To Do list, too!
In the past couple of weeks, I've managed to tidy up my landscaping. I've cut grass, weeded gardens, planted, transplanted, created new footpaths, and, finally, even managed to step back and enjoy the fruits of my labors. I re-purposed the old rabbit run into a more proper compost bin, and cleaned up the old haphazard compost pile that I'd been 'crafting' for five years.
I painted the cabinet doors and reattached them to the kitchen cabinets and the hutch cabinets.
I hung new moulding in the kitchen - at the top of the upper cabinets, and just under the lip of the countertop. (It's a simple moulding, but I think it looks really swell in my kitchen.) I got some pieces of pegboard to hang as a backsplash behind the sink, and as a side panel for the oven. (I still have to do the actual hanging, though.)
I hung new window treatment hardware on most of the windows, and got some nice new curtain panels for them, too. They are white cotton curtains with natural jute horizontal stripes. I love them. They are simple. They let the light shine into the room while still affording privacy. And they are beautiful.
My dad and I cleaned out my garage. (That was a dusty enterprise!)
I boxed up the books from the built-in bookshelf, and decorated the shelves with a few remaining cookbooks and plants and display trinkets that will be staying with me.
I have begun cleaning up the old Frigidaire Flair oven to get it ready to sell. (If you aren't familiar with these vintage ovens, you should do a google image search. They are fantastic ovens with some brilliant design touches!)
I've reorganized the bedrooms, which contain primarily three piles of boxes: Stuff that I am keeping; stuff that I am discarding; and stuff that I need to address again to decide if they are keepers or not.
I removed the nasty old caulking adhesive from the tub. (FYI: The adhesive caulking strips do not work!)
I began going through my kitchen cabinets to purge items that I don't essentially need.
And, finally, I had a scare with Lucy Cluckernutter, one of the chickens. I came home the other night from a very hectic day, and sat on the patio to check out the yard, and watch the chicks a while. I soon after noticed that Lucy's foot was trailing a path of bloody prints. When I looked at her foot, it was covered in blood. I immediately tried to get close enough to her to see if I could find the source of the bleeding, but she isn't used to being handled by humans, and runs anytime anyone gets too close. I called my dad, but he didn't know what to tell me if I couldn't even access the foot. Then I found a vet specializing in avians and exotics in Raleigh. They were willing to see Lucy if I could catch her and bring her in. It would be an emergency visit since they were closing within the hour, and wouldn't possibly make it in before then. I called everyone I could think of who might be willing and able to help me try to catch Lucy, but all I was getting was voice mailboxes. None of my immediate neighbors were home. I was freaking out at this point. Try as I might, I couldn't catch her by myself. Finally I got through to my friend and neighbor, Jenn, and she and her husband came over and helped me catch my wounded hen. (Thanks to Jenn and Jeff for being two of the best friends and neighbors ever!) The vet was great, and gave her a full check up after addressing her wound. Turns out one of the blood feathers on her foot got pulled out somehow, and that will cause bleeding. He dressed the wound, gave her an excellent bill of health, charged me a small fortune for the after hours visit (which was totally worth it!), and sent us on our way.
Whew! I think that's it.
I've been trying to take photos as I go, though, admittedly, sometimes forget to get good before shots. I'm hoping to get the photos downloaded before too long, so you can take a look at some of the progress for yourself.
It's ironic how preparing a house to put it on the market can really endear it to the current owner. As I'm seeing my house and, especially, my yard coming together so nicely, it's really been sprouting some conflicting arguments in my mind. I'm hearing that little voice trying to consider what it might be like to stay here a little longer ... or indefinitely. Then the other voice begins to extol the virtues of mobility and travel and simplicity. Then the two voices start bickering back and forth. When this happens, I just remove myself from the argument. I am sticking to my plan. I don't have to think about those big decisions yet, anyway. I'm just going to keep moving forward and working toward my original goal, and I will deal with the rest later, when it's more relevant. That's the plan. I have a plan. Yes, sir. The plan's the thing.
Okay, so for now, I'm off to re-caulk the bathtub, among other things. I hope you're having a lovely and productive Spring, as well!
Ciao!
No comments:
Post a Comment