House in Progress Diary: Too Much Going

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Too Much Going

Category: Restore & Repair

This seems to have become the guilt and handwringing blog, of late. I guess one can only take so much dust, reduced living space and general chaos before it starts to wear you down. ;-)

The real kicker for me? Unfinished projects. It just seems like we've maybe started too many things.

I'm hoping a recap here will bring some sort of moment of clarity in which I can priortize some of this all and figure out what we could actually get some closure on...

Laundry chute - Boxes built, waiting to be mounted in the closet.
Structured wiring - Wire run to all locations on second floor, but still need runs to first floor. Termininating each location should be time consuming, too.
Second floor - The big one. Really this is where we've been focusing because it really is important that we get back to a more sane living space. Alot remains here and the next step is really to get Paul in to prep the bathroom. Drywall should be due up soon, too.
Stripping woodwork - We've got two projects here really...the first floor sunroom and all the second floor trim we'll be re-installing up there.

Given that we've been contemplating even more new projects in our recent entries here, I really want to get closure on one of the open projects soon. I really expect we'll want to move in upstairs before we do the cosmetic kitchen makeover and I even hope we can get several things done before our new front door arrives in 6-8 weeks!

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Posted by aaron on February 3, 2005 at 7:59 PM (8)

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Comments

I've found that it is best to concentrate on 1 or 2 projects at a time. I know it is not always possible for a variety of different reasons. But if you can actually finish 1 or 2 projects, it gives a sense of accomplishment. "Look, I've finished something"!!!! Keep up the good fight! I know you will win in the end!! POPS"30"

Posted by: POPS | February 4, 2005 12:42 PM

Misery loves company: Since September, my wife, our three kids, our dog, and two cats have been living downstairs while the entire upstairs is gutted, new wire, new bathroom, changed floor plan, new fireplace, masonry work, attic work, new insulation, new drywall, yada yada yada.

Our downstairs consists of all kids and cats living in our �dining room� while wife, dog, and I live in our �study.� Our living room houses the entire contents of our collective closets, dressers, and other contents of our bedrooms�We have it set up with serpentine paths so we can access our clothes�It gets old�I know.

One thing always leads to another. And when you are doing this, you are trying to plan on future needs and this further leads to additional projects�that can�t seem to get completed �until you get to the X [fill in the blank].�

When I think of the �big picture,� I go nuts�My only salvation has been to occasionally break down the big projects into smaller ones and count the completion of these small projects as �milestones.�

For example: As part of the upstairs remodel, I am installing an ABS vent line for a �future� kitchen sink�this will allow me to vent through the roof �to a previously installed vent, that I previously installed in anticipation of this vent line�BUT the kitchen sink won�t be in for years!�.Nevertheless, when I can check off my �to-do� list that I installed the partial installation of my ABS vent line, and there is a sense of accomplishment�If I focused on the kitchen sink, I would go bonkers (which I probably have anyhow.) I have decided that the turtle will always beat the hare.

Little mind games like this keep me going�that and the occasional compliment from my neighbors�.so let me say this: You two are to be commended for what you are doing (and sharing with the rehabilitation community). You have been an inspiration for me and I'm sure hundreds (thousands?) more�Keep up the good work--and wear a rabbit's foot for good luck!

Posted by: P | February 4, 2005 12:57 PM

Have we all hit some sort of mid-winter slump? Just about every blog I've hit this week has some type of guilty entry about a lack of progress, including ours. The girls at HouseMade have been crazy busy though!

I'm guilty of starting too many projects at once - in the end, you'll get more done cause you're making use of all your free time and energy, even if it means jumping around alot. But that does leave you staring at LOTS of unfinished stuff. Which can sometimes be really, really exhausting.

Our unfinished projects include:

The wiring. We're done with the basement and most of the first floor. Haven't even started the second floor.

A pane of glass has been sitting on our porch for a full week, waiting to be installed. I took the molding off (the old pane was broken) then was afraid I'd break the new one trying to jam it in, so stopped mid-project.

Another pane of glass has been residing in our kitchen for about 3 weeks. The back door has plexiglass in it - it's going to be replaced one of these days.

Painting trim in the foyer - we got the interior of the front door and the door molding done and then lost ambition.

The living room walls. I patched a bunch of large plaster cracks, but have yet to sand down the plaster I applied. Looks just lovely all slapped up there! There are also massive cracks that need to be patched with drywall chunks.

Feeling better yet? :)

Posted by: mindy | February 4, 2005 3:09 PM

Well, we DID get the bathroom done before New Years. Almost. The Toity is no longer sitting in the tub, but nor is it actually seated properly, so until I get the $ to have a real plumber come and do it... we got no flushage. But it LOOKS nice! That first flush was no fun: should have tested, but I figured I had to go anyway. Dumb.
Anyone climbing the stairs may be sprinkled with a shower of plastr chunks and dust.
There are windows held in their frames at the moment only by wads of insulation, and blankets are filling in for real weatherstripping on some.
I'm sure the neighbors were dismayed that as soon as the sink left the front porch (after 2 months there) it was replaced by sheets of drywall. The last basement window should go in at some point and all three need to get their trim.
And this morning we had a bit of a disagreement about whether to tackle the kitchen ceiling when we do our quick cosmetic gloss in that room. Looks like we're no going to mess witht he ceiling much, short of making sure that flakes of lead paint stop falling in the food we're cooking.

Posted by: Nathan | February 4, 2005 3:55 PM

When we were gutting our upstairs last September, we would take everything out through the windows openings and onto first floor roof. We would then toss the material off the roof and into the back of our truck (or on the ground if it was really big and heavy)�Anyhow, when it came time to take out the bathroom fixtures, we naturally placed the sink, the old 1970�s tub, and the toilet on the roof�until we found time to go to the dump

About this time, our youngest was to start kindergarten�I proudly took her to school and dropped her off with the other parents�While the other parents were all dressed in their GAP finest, I wore my dirty pants, stained shirt, and soiled baseball cap�hey, I was workin�!

During school, each child was asked to introduce themselves and tell the class something unique about them or their family�.Well my little one said:

�My name is Amy and I have a toilet on my roof!�

So when it came time to pick her up, all the teachers said out loud, over the heads of all the other well coifed parents��We hear you have a toilet on your roof!� I didn�t bother to try to explain�One of the joys of rehabing old houses is that later in life, we�ll all have something to laugh about�

Posted by: P | February 4, 2005 5:29 PM

I will one up you...but it's only just a little bit better. While blowing off the old dormers on the front of the house to put in full height ones we watched over the kids like crazy for fear the baby wold get out on the roof... we never even thought about the dogs until we hear tons of commotion on the street in front of our home. Seems our 150pound dear Great Dane got out and was walking along the ridge of the house. This was quite the traffic stoping site and there was a small fender bender in our front street. Well I go out and see where they are pointing and nearly faint... run back in.. up the three stories to try to coax the dog back in. I first had to get his attenion but since he was deaf he had to see me. I knew I could not startle him since the drop off the back was three stories plus Cathedral height .. man..that was I day I will never forget! I came back in to hear the kids telling my husband that mom was running around on the roof after the dog and a police man was here... AH..those were the days.

Posted by: Maddie | February 5, 2005 9:32 PM

For me, I have the desire to complete our winter projects (stripping woodwork and painting), but since I found out I am pregnant, all work has ceased until after the birth in mid-July! The sight of the hallway, with the woodwork 1/4 stripped really annoys me now, but I fear I'll become so used to it that I'll feel no urgency to complete the tasks once it's safe to do so.

Posted by: ML | February 6, 2005 8:37 AM