Overwhelmed part deux

Okay, so I didn't sleep last night.  Maybe an hour and then my overactive mind took over.  The mezzuzahs go up today after work and hopefully that will ward off anymore bad news.  The remodel of the bathroom will just mean I will put off landscaping the backyard until next year.  Not a bad trade off.  I have therapy today and then a visit to Sans Souci  which is proving to be somewhat souci.  I will take some in progress pictures and post some tomorrow.  What amazes me is that the lady who owned the house prior to me absolutely let everything go to shit.  The paint on the walls throughout the house is cracked like fried marbles.  The floor in the kitchen has to be reinforced as it was worn down to a dangerous level.  Thus, the kitchen will have a gentle slope into the dining room.  Picked out paint for the various rooms.  Decided to go with the sky blue rug in the dining room and two tones of blue, darker below the chair rail and lighter about.  I am getting a picture in my mind how this will work.  Come to find out the floors are red oak and should refinish beautifully.  Friday I go to approve and/or modify the kitchen design and get the cabinets and counter tops ordered.  Three weeks later there should be a kitchen.  Time to start shopping for appliances, light fixtures.  Fun fun fun.

Overwhelmed

I spent the weekend alternating between being in a tizzy and being out of control.  I am basically feeling overwhelmed.  Having two homes is proving to be a test of character for me.  Did pick out paint for the new house.  But moving stuff from my bedroom to Sans Souci didn't materialize.  The realtor is coming Tuesday night to assess the condo and get the paperwork going for the sale of the condo.  I am going to the new house tomorrow to hang mezzuzahs and take photos of the work in progress.  Friday we go to the kitchen and bath showroom to look at designs for the kitchen.  But basically I am overwhelmed.  I keep going through the process mentally and emotionally and just feel  overwhelmed.  There are times I can't enduring talking to anyone and times when I do feel like talking and not telling the other person to go fux themselves. My aunt called on Saturday with suggestions for the house and I couldn't wait to get off he phone.  She was listing all the things I need to do for the house, things I had already thought of and listed in my book.  I just wanted her to shut up.  Oh God.  So today I slept much of the day away and just took some sleeping pills.  Dan won't be around much of the week and I may need his kick in the ass.

Anyway, homeownership is intense, especially if you have two homes to account for.  Overwhelmed. And I am sure folks are getting tired of me whining about work on the house.  Maybe getting the mezzuzahs on the house will calm me down.  Who knows?  Okay, time to make relax and get geared up for tomorrow.

On second thought

Since the new house was a short sale, a step just before foreclosure, I was feeling rather empathetic towards the seller.  She seemed like a nice, older lady who just couldn't handle the physical upkeep of the house.  Well, fuxers, the empathy is gone once I spoke with Brad, he of the general contractor personage.  He said when they took the sink out the pipes just fell to the floor, clogged and rotted.  Now he tells me we will probably have to redo the whole bathroom as the toilet is shot, the sink is cracked and the tile is cracked in multiple places necessitating a complete remodel if I want my walk in shower.  The toilet has to be replaced.  So, from my beautiful blue tiled bathroom to a more functional and functioning one we are going with white.  I'll have an oak vanity, medicine chest, and an oak cabinet above the toilet.  I can still use my blue towels and shower curtain but now they will be "pops" of color.  I am going to Sans Souci on Monday. To  view the wreckage or rather will see the progress.  The attic insulation. Took an extra eight bags of insulating materials.

What have I learned so far...don't trust older ladies playing on your sympathy bone.  The inspection went well and there was no reason to suspect she would be underhanded,  I guess we all should have looked deeper.  P.S. The cats asked for a countertop by the window that overlooks the deck and subsequently the whole of the backyard.  No reason given but I suspect it is to accommodate the watching of wildlife.  PLUS... Yankel, he who must be obeyed, likes to lay on his own countertop.  Although accessing it at his weight might require some finesse.

Off I go.

Day one redux

Well, I found out yesterday that they had torn out the entire kitchen and had the designer in.  The designer called me at work and we hashed out a few ideas about design.  Today is adding insulation day.  I need to get the painters in this weekend for a price and get the paint.  Percolating.  The process is percolating.

Now, on to Mal, who was humming yesterday and talking and laughing and generally being as, if not more,  annoying than she claims I am.  I am holding on to that moment to use as a bargaining chip in the ongoing battles between us.  I  hope to be as annoying today as I will be on the phone quite a bit.  A lawyer from the Detroit area contacted me about frozen pipes I had last winter as her parents live in the complex and they are in the process of bringing a suit against the condo service agency that handles maintenance for the building.  Last year when I found my pipes frozen I called the condo people and they were less than helpful.  So I called the plumber and since the whole building was in the same situation maintenance and the plumbers worked from the bottom units up to thaw the pipes. I ended up paying the bill as the maintenance company said I jumped the gun. Fux it.  I paid but that was a reason to move, that being the incompetence of LANSING CONDO SERVICES.  I fought with them all summer about poor grounds maintenance.  They don't know a weed from a lily.   I hope this lawsuit is a success.  So that will be an annoyance to Mal today, me speaking with the lawyer.   Also calls to the painter, and the kitchen and bath people.  Fux her.  I am loaded for bear today.

Okay, on to do battle.  Mal beware!

Remodel Day1

Brad the general contractor has re-keyed the new house and is putting more insulation in the attic of Sans Souci, as, hence, the new abide shall be called.  Today I meet again with Dan and we go over finances for the next two months of the remodel. The kitchen and bath designer is going in today and I will have a design to approve by week's end.  The bathroom gets a walk in shower, with a few bells and whistles.  The kitchen is the bigger challenge as it will be a complete tear out.  So I will be curious to see the design they arrive at.  I do want a countertop/storage area by the window overlooking the deck and backyard.  That is, in part, the cat counter.  The bird feeder and bird bath will be out that way but only if the counter is doable.

Of course Sans Souci will be entirely a cat friendly design.  Many windows will facilitate ample bird and squirrel watching.  Tough screens for the front porch so they can sit out there with me.  They are ready to move with their new cat trees and beds.  They will, however, lose the futon but they will be gaining a real bed, big enough for the four of us. Yes, I am going to try sleeping in a real bed.  Yankel likes he couch but we will be getting a new couch and pillows so he will be a happy cat.

Yes, the game is afoot.

The day has arrived

Today is closing.  Then the work begins and I stat fretting about MOVING!!!!  After eighteen years in the condo I have a ton of shit to move.  Hyphen, that fount of wisdom, suggested doing a little every day.  Me. I wanna wait for Bonnie to assess the situation.  Before I move old stuff I need to clear out the bedroom of the new stuff and get the communal hallway cleared.  That we can do this weekend and put stuff in the basement of the new home.  Then the phone calls start, much to the annoyance of Mal I am sure.  Live with it baby!  Then get Michelle the realtor in the condo and get some idea of what to do with the condo to ready it for sale.  I am on mental overdrive,

So, Sophie, is this good enough?

Closing

Finally.  Set for January 20th at 11:00 a.m.

Stay tuned.