though i steadfastly maintain that chaos makes me crazy, it stalks me. i recently told my kids "if i ever again even look like i might renovate a house while i live in it, lock me up and take away all my money till the glint of insanity leaves my eye." my daughter, who may have heard this before, just gave me that tight little smile that says, "sure, mum" with more sarcasm than words could ever convey.
after searching for half the weekend for my tiling tools and a tape measure (of which i have, at last count about 496) i gathered every tool i could find in the place (haven't dared approach the garage yet) and sorted them in an empty bookshelf (just to remind the contents of the other bookshelf, alongside, that i haven't abandoned them, and one day soon we'll spend some time together). there must be a lot of them in the garage. i did find one tape measure, which doesn't reliably retract, and some of the tiling tools. so i may have to trot over to the hardware store after all... the garage is a dangerous place till i can get the dining room furniture and the rest of the stuff still unsorted from the move out of there.
on the bright side, i found 6 nail punches.
9 comments:
I can never find tape measures either. and must own several!!
Nicely done - I have fewer tools in my now-smaller home and they're in the dank, cold creepy basement. So I think more about chores than actually do them!
Renovations sure aren't fun!
There never seems an end to organizing cupboards and shelves ... despite one's determination to keep things tidy after a clean up.
As for the Bangers & Mash (yes Mash) recipe ... if you can get sausages called bangers, get them. We have a Scotsman run butcher in our town and he makes his own.
claire - i'm sure there's a secret place where tape measures gather.... along with odd socks and car keys.
gary - the creepy basement is on the list of jobs to tackle... though mine is warm and earthy and dry... far too warm for roots, which will be a challenge. it wants a root cellar. i'm thinking it might be a good place for wine to ferment.... next winter.
cicero - i spent most of sunday tiling the kitchen backsplashes... ran out of tile so couldn't finish. but i'm dreaming of bangers and mash.... soon. it think there's a real butcher in the nearby city who can provide the right sausage.
I can make that much of a mess just starting a painting project - with watercolours! God help me once I pull out the silk painting gear.
Seriously, I'm sure it's going to be all worthwhile once you're done but I hope you get to stay there for a good long while. A friend of my parents in Toronto was a carpenter constantly at work on his own house and every time he finished one he sold it and moved his wife and kids to the next fixer-upper. I think they all eventually left him.
You strike a chord as it sounds like you worked out that buying tools is cheaper than hiring once you have continued use.
I am sure you are one unique "handy women" who also likes to play the fiddle!
Best wishes
susan- it seems to be a common affliction of carpenters, that they can't bear to live in anything that's liveable. gladly, i'm nothing resembling a carpenter. i sold the last place after i finished it, because it was designed for a family, and was too big for me on my own.... but perhaps my need to constantly 'improve' the place explains why all my kids were very eager to get out on their own.
lindsay - i'm fairly handy, but not terribly skilful. and you've brought my tool fetish out of the closet. i'm not much of a gadget lover, but i do appreciate a good tool. the problem is, former spouses and boyfriends have absconded with many of them, thinking they can make better use ofr them than a girl.
susan- it seems to be a common affliction of carpenters, that they can't bear to live in anything that's liveable. gladly, i'm nothing resembling a carpenter. i sold the last place after i finished it, because it was designed for a family, and was too big for me on my own.... but perhaps my need to constantly 'improve' the place explains why all my kids were very eager to get out on their own.
lindsay - i'm fairly handy, but not terribly skilful. and you've brought my tool fetish out of the closet. i'm not much of a gadget lover, but i do appreciate a good tool. the problem is, former spouses and boyfriends have absconded with many of them, thinking they can make better use ofr them than a girl.
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