Wives and other assets

Proverbs 18:22
He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD.

Hey, I am just trying to be helpful...like any good "helpmeet" would:)

The back screened door works nicely and I am glad to keep the cats off the back porch... cat hair on the cushions is annoying. It has helped alot to have the tilling done in time for me to plant those broccoli plants before the rains. I realize we had to move the mailbox, but it actually looks better in it's new place. So, all in all, I am happy with the beginning of momentum in knocking out those pesky maintenance jobs (finally).

I hope to take a few pictures of our kitchen to post here and to resume talking about what we both consider to be the highlight of our remodeling career here in the do-it- yourself house. I am still getting satisfaction from having such a nice kitchen. I think my happiness meter has been in the positive for more than seven years on that one.

Now, I am solacing (comforting, rewarding)

Is "refreshing" yourself the word you were looking for?

The Handyman Who Has Everything

I think I should get you this for your desk, Handyman, as a testament to your "My Hero" status. As long as we are talking 'home improvement', your status is safe :)



Somehow, though, I know you would more appreciate a six pack of Guinness... but this would last so much longer! Anyway, I don't know what to get you for Christmas, even though you are usually requesting the same old "socks and underwear" under the tree. I know that a trip to the hardware is your personal weakness, but I can't imagine what more you would want from there... although I know this is like telling a woman she has too many shoes. Well, unless you would like this ironman pencil holder, I need ideas.

One Hardworking Man

When you live through all that there is much that you just take in stride (or suffer through- you pick), but when I read through Handyman's account I started to remember just how hard he worked... and keeps working. We can say we were nuts, that we would not do this again if we had known how much work we had let ourselves in for, but the truth is that the Handyman honed his skills and proved his mettle in the accomplishment of what is probably the work of two men... no, probably more like a team of men. He did get some help from our sons, but the elephant share was his own sweat equity (and blood sometimes... if you count scratches and whatall).

Thanks, Handyman... you have made things nice for us. and that kitchen is a constant pleasure:)
I'll try to get some pictures scanned in if I can find them...
Technorati Tags: Handyman,

New Refrigerator

We finally got our new refrigerator, after much painstaking research and shopping around. We finally opted for the Samsung RF265AA French Door model in the black color. I spent alot of time online doing research into the different brands and models and then my wife and I went to Home Depot, Best Buy, Sears, and Lowes to see what was out there.

My research found that the Samsung has been the JD Power best rated refrigerator for 2 years in a row. It is considered state-of-the-art, and really looks good, too. (I don't know if my wife considers it "sexy" looking or not). I would consider it a top end refrigerator at a middle range price. The regular price was $1498, and they had a Labor Day sale of 10% off of that, on a 12 month/no interest deal. When we asked the salesman "what if we pay cash", he gave us another 10% off. Bottom line: we paid $1213 plus sales tax. Delivery and installation was included (fully rebated back). So: it pays to ask about getting further discount by paying cash, etc. Worst thing that can happen is that they will say no. In our case, we got an additional 10%. They also use their own trained people to deliver/install/set-up for you - which is a plus, additionally they took our old fridge away at no charge. Some of the stores we shopped said they sub-contract out the delivery - leaving you at the mercy of whoever is delivering (does the deliverer care? does he know what he is doing, etc?)

Another great thing about the Samsung is that it is twin-cooled. The freezer compartment has its own cooling unit, as does the refrigerator. That means no exchange of odors, etc, between the freezer/fridge. It is also EnergyStar rated with an average annual electric usage bill 0f $41. And this is a 25 cf unit. You can store up to 8 gallons of milk in the door compartments (which are designed for this). It also has a slide out deli compartment which has its own temp control for deli trays, fruits/veggies, meats, pizza, etc.

Often, when buying high ticket items (and for me that means over $500), I second guess myself wondering whether I made the right choice, should I have chosen B instead of A, etc. Although we have only had our new fridge for 48 hours, I feel assured we made the right choice. I give this unit five stars (out of 5).

Making Work Stations

The Handyman is serious, totally serious, about getting a handle on life. This includes organization around here, and I am on board with him 100%. We are tired of misplacing tools and looking for hours when ready to start the job now. We are tired of wasted money on multiples because we can't find something. We are tired of frustration in trying to find things. And the last straw came when I was mowing with the tractor and Whomp! Loud sound and dead tractor. Turns out someone last season left a shovel...a shovel mind you... in some overgrown grass. And yep, I mowed over it. We went to the Hardware store for some tool hangers that evening.

Furthermore, Handyman has set up his work station in the garage. My father had made his own intricately organized workbench- I remember it from when I was a little girl- and we inherited it. It is now ensconced in the garage with a large pegboard area. There is room to saw and do all the odd jobs that Handymen do; very impressive. He will work more pleasurably knowing where things are, and it makes it better for us to know where to put things - no more shovels in the grass, or in this case, hammers under the couch or whatever ( ok, I'm now exaggerating). HOPEFULLY.

I have the tool hangers and my favorite garden tools hung on the tool rack and there is a piece of pegboard waiting for me- it will go up between the toolracks and hold my handtools etc. I can't tell you how often my slave garden helpers leave my tools all over the place. At least now there is no excuse.

Since we painted that dining room, I am now in the process of setting up everything in more organized manner for the fine dining and hospitality I hope to work into this year. We have had things so wrecked with all the remodeling work we fell out of the habit of having people over. No More Excuses. And much more organization. Yay us!

I am hopeful...very hopeful that we will keep true to our resolve; and with proper work stations in place, and a place for everything, we will accomplish the uncluttered lifestyle with time to enjoy our life plans that we have.

Getting back to that workbench. I wish you could see how nifty it is... oh yes, cameras. I'll try to take a picture or two and post it.




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Nail Gun Injuries Spike for Do-It-Yourselfers

Ok, take warning guys and girls. Time to remember the common sense and cautionary tales according to statistics reported on the latest news about nail gun injuries. I was talking to my husband about getting a nailgun just for me to use in the house for small things like ..I don't know, just small things.

He wasn't real enthused. he has the heavy duty kind for exterior work and really likes it. Them. He has two, I guess.

Maybe he should write up some of the cautions he takes when working with power tools.

The cdc report says

"Trigger locks and other user modifications that keep the trigger constantly depressed or that disable the nose contact switch have been used to make rapid nailing easier, but this counteracts the safety features of the dual-action contact-trip mechanism."

and

"consumers might be unaware of the need to replace older contact-trip triggers with sequential-trip triggers. Therefore, distribution of new nail guns with sequential-trip triggers and availability in home hardware centers of kits to convert contact-trip triggers to sequential-trip triggers might help reduce the use of the more hazardous tools."

I found some advice online from ToolBoxTopics.com:

General Safety Rules for Nail Gun Use:

1. Never use a nail gun with the nose guard safety spring missing.

2. Be sure that when you carry a nail gun out of the work area, you do not carry it connected to the electrical or air power source.

3. When you are moving about the work area - keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire. Make sure you have only placed the nose guard against the material you are going to nail together.

4. Never rest the gun against any part of your body, or try to climb a ladder with the gun cradled against your body.

5. Remember that a nail gun is a labor and time saving tool -- but it cannot save the time lost to an accident. Use it safely!!!

Technorati Tags: nail+gun, safety

Here's A Project to Talk About: The Kitchen Re-do

I think both the Handyman and myself would agree that the most rewarding project was the Kitchen remodeling. It was more than remodeling, really, it was a complete, from the studs, changing doors, totally re-built project. But it turned out to be one that our family has most benefited from and with which we are most satisfied.

I'm happy that the DH (AKA "Handyman"...and I have to explain DH to him here...it stands for "Dear Husband"...that is right "dear" ;)- because he will ask. He isn't really techy online, although he is very techy with the Handyman D-I-Y stuff. Anyway, as I was saying, I am glad He is here on the blog because he can tell you what this involved from his perspective.

From mine, I did the easy part: helped plan it out and did cooking and dishes out back in a storage room for the duration. Remember those days? And the house was open to the outdoors for awhile when the door was removed and the sliding doors in the dining room put in. We made lots of visits to Lowes and to the ceramic tile outlets. Lots of them. The floor choice ended up being tiles that looked liked stone with a terracotta color and glints like granite. I am very happy with it. The drawback is the fact that tile gets cold and everything breakable that drops on it will break. Shatter is more the word..into myriad teeny-tiny pieces. It is death to dishes. But easy to clean, undamaged by the wet conditions of a kitchen, and beautiful.

We used 4x4 tiles on part of the counter and above the stove- it continues as a border across the top of the formica countertop. DH isn't sure he liked the choice of formica, but we had to cut costs somewhere. I am very happy with it- it is in a harmonizing color with the tiles and blends really well. We bought some Italian art tiles to intersperse and create interest above the stove. I love them- they fulfill my desire for something of art in the kitchen.

I'll write more on this topic later.... after I let Handyman know about the topic and give him a chance to tell you more of the nuts and bolts of the project.



Technorati Tags: kitchen,

Kudos and Complaints

I had sort of s semi-complaint about my husband in the Garden Journal today, but immediately after posting I started to think, and realize we all have our negatives and positives. I was grousing a bit about how my children break tools, and my husband doesn't have the disposition to train them to take care of things...in comparison with my father who was obsessive about that, with the result that his tools were always in top notch condition and you always knew exactly where they were. Which was much of the point, really. He was raised that way and was a stickler ( I used to do yard work, etc. for him ) all his life on the point that every tools must go into its proper place. He was good that way.

What happened to me? I wasn't long raised by him- divorce, you see. I'm sort of something in between. My husband is always misplacing everything, and it is never in good condition long... and kids tend to follow their fathers ( sort of, except for ... :0 ) Anyway, I was thinking about that and wrote a bit on it, but then I thought about the fact that my husband is a steady hard driving worker, unlike my father who ( and I am like this ) worked in frenetic spurts after maddeningly long periods of detailed planning and languishment of motivation. He got little actually done in his long life, whereas my husband has done an amazing amount of work, real accomplishments and (mostly) finished jobs. He has a phenomenal patience with the fact that we work year after year in an ever marching line of projects. He also had the high praise from my father that he ( my husband, my dad's d-i-y apprentice) had far surpassed him in excellence of work. Really, the man does a very fine job on what he undertakes. Not perfect, but it compares well with most professionals.
I started to think about that. Not everyone has the same set of qualities and skills, and that is as it should be, but we don't always appreciate that in each other.

Do I tell my husband? I do. It is the one thing I am unabashedly positive about- I practically gush. Like Red Green says "And men, remember, if the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.".

yep. Red Green, the d-i-y unofficial spokesman. What will we do, now that the show has gone the way of "Friends", and "Buffy"? Redo the Re-runs.... and somehow that fits in such an à propos way.

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