tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30697468254270676392024-03-13T12:20:18.804-07:00Painted By EconomistsA Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-51675774116423918062023-04-05T07:35:00.001-07:002023-04-05T07:35:25.088-07:0011 Years LaterWe're selling the house and moving back to California. I spent way too much time this morning when I should have used the precious time between house showing to get some work done making comparison pictures between the pictures from our house listing and the pictures from when we bought the house in 2012.<div><br /></div><div>The pictures show a combination of ways we have improved the house over time (we put a lot of time and money into it) and having a better photographer/better staging than the previous owners.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'll do a separate post for the garden, because I might want to put together changes over time, rather than 11 years ago to today.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_8NqjlaGX04tA1XJ-l28lxJb-suWoVs4AcVQGYo24jerWJ-53RFrmJxC2_6m55Tun47CdfGbCnsjiLTqyiOoy9fNDKMEcpl6U_aGT-fB_1mYAt_cRaXHjjzoOYgk-QmRbV2EKIuyQWiZoSzugymFBj0Pvlgu8YLV3fdjnkmsONzipgYEAUBnMX-3Gaw/s3195/20230404_222233-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_8NqjlaGX04tA1XJ-l28lxJb-suWoVs4AcVQGYo24jerWJ-53RFrmJxC2_6m55Tun47CdfGbCnsjiLTqyiOoy9fNDKMEcpl6U_aGT-fB_1mYAt_cRaXHjjzoOYgk-QmRbV2EKIuyQWiZoSzugymFBj0Pvlgu8YLV3fdjnkmsONzipgYEAUBnMX-3Gaw/s320/20230404_222233-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The front mostly shows changes to the yard</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij99kqY3X2OGE8tZg1vdHtI9jD16jYIrp_HoacNd2vvP7qJ2AbYEnjZk5J8V3vSKm_vgyV64IKn0apMDxcDJVwlRP2D3aobgePn7DDlUwi5tojVz-TQ-jwpv5BfyHuR839Da2rz2nxGkCH_3_qmQX08JqoWRsNWWHXDURUMSmfOgVF8fpj5_8Rn0G45g/s3195/20230405_073412-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij99kqY3X2OGE8tZg1vdHtI9jD16jYIrp_HoacNd2vvP7qJ2AbYEnjZk5J8V3vSKm_vgyV64IKn0apMDxcDJVwlRP2D3aobgePn7DDlUwi5tojVz-TQ-jwpv5BfyHuR839Da2rz2nxGkCH_3_qmQX08JqoWRsNWWHXDURUMSmfOgVF8fpj5_8Rn0G45g/s320/20230405_073412-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFpqGNjmRUQFE6u6dL0Rcq2uTUHrkZVpA7a35prChfLoQ4xBErKaZOn_ztGFd-Y3O9hi4tx8vHpOibQr5IyPP0zwo0QAAZ-ae7-36dZWhEJ0q9jY6RLrfq9jx3ZxDIpYjILmu-2a1o2GpNbikLkCWiK9NZ1If5f_4Eivf3BCX7z-uLiUPiMjYrHn4aMA/s3195/20230405_073552-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFpqGNjmRUQFE6u6dL0Rcq2uTUHrkZVpA7a35prChfLoQ4xBErKaZOn_ztGFd-Y3O9hi4tx8vHpOibQr5IyPP0zwo0QAAZ-ae7-36dZWhEJ0q9jY6RLrfq9jx3ZxDIpYjILmu-2a1o2GpNbikLkCWiK9NZ1If5f_4Eivf3BCX7z-uLiUPiMjYrHn4aMA/s320/20230405_073552-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Ryan built us a porch swing</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXxXDaRh-5Z181akK6EKEjxP_wro2S-JORiH6lmCtVN7c2no-vmo5_K2QziC_8Wep09I50STgGX3d429M5Uc-P7N0QwxkVJ-EaOpJNJ1ZCJyrmtWW5xSM5SQydsadtL2xpEokwqmCnROcPKn-1jMWdffgBXBUeutlhUBfMeCQkzC-1niYasRrE3KpRZw/s3195/20230405_053523-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXxXDaRh-5Z181akK6EKEjxP_wro2S-JORiH6lmCtVN7c2no-vmo5_K2QziC_8Wep09I50STgGX3d429M5Uc-P7N0QwxkVJ-EaOpJNJ1ZCJyrmtWW5xSM5SQydsadtL2xpEokwqmCnROcPKn-1jMWdffgBXBUeutlhUBfMeCQkzC-1niYasRrE3KpRZw/s320/20230405_053523-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2o-2_JEeUl7rbOqpgsNi8q0cw_K0ZBOwzlTeu7N_fbtPPDkATDSNp6sZkiL9RgCNzPf_K1sb0v7jC43gu0MGeFkbQmza_gQMZdRV5Iu3t0J3nCA_-sNbhB0igRYSrm7kwzpFwPRfzMrNKx_ZENxjZs6pAlPwFTqnaydcCiTlJjtfORDNXtQd-2IuMYA/s3195/20230405_074201-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2o-2_JEeUl7rbOqpgsNi8q0cw_K0ZBOwzlTeu7N_fbtPPDkATDSNp6sZkiL9RgCNzPf_K1sb0v7jC43gu0MGeFkbQmza_gQMZdRV5Iu3t0J3nCA_-sNbhB0igRYSrm7kwzpFwPRfzMrNKx_ZENxjZs6pAlPwFTqnaydcCiTlJjtfORDNXtQd-2IuMYA/s320/20230405_074201-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">You can really appreciate the refinished floors in the entryway</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9yTT7WltaDvXHSyhGIKn8VMZrrJe14aH3BEbSFM8X6M7glPjTMzvyrSrDtq1EPUoRCSwUJ6MA984jxs5fMtbgUbV-JLrwvKC0m0W3KHIEa_f_tCtuJZEyl3QSbtQpKkoP5GUtFVF6PR9h0lnqyQua30h3yDu-f17WB7EHqWdX5DCgf3Xzas4aQ7S5iQ/s3195/20230405_074319-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9yTT7WltaDvXHSyhGIKn8VMZrrJe14aH3BEbSFM8X6M7glPjTMzvyrSrDtq1EPUoRCSwUJ6MA984jxs5fMtbgUbV-JLrwvKC0m0W3KHIEa_f_tCtuJZEyl3QSbtQpKkoP5GUtFVF6PR9h0lnqyQua30h3yDu-f17WB7EHqWdX5DCgf3Xzas4aQ7S5iQ/s320/20230405_074319-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwmFyg2bDVqYH1B4nmRBxTExQOnJ-uy_hTlUMk0e44NBqNpKAEZ2c8sllvgHUktKEYFvzA3Db9G3sCJsH0bl9ObRWid0JZuW39i3HoxS0FIVq-zXdatfma_9T3ZpQN1Utp2LLB0_WlWqbziSU0hqOaIfv8gKLLZ6inZ8DvK09qCLwG682aAN4uzwDlaA/s3195/20230405_054455-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwmFyg2bDVqYH1B4nmRBxTExQOnJ-uy_hTlUMk0e44NBqNpKAEZ2c8sllvgHUktKEYFvzA3Db9G3sCJsH0bl9ObRWid0JZuW39i3HoxS0FIVq-zXdatfma_9T3ZpQN1Utp2LLB0_WlWqbziSU0hqOaIfv8gKLLZ6inZ8DvK09qCLwG682aAN4uzwDlaA/s320/20230405_054455-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn0hzYWO9I_3G1xvOreSMAX9yu-uB6LL9gAQu5xH2TUYJBlJa5AvnHdRiUMlRwI50S5GuxaX_oPmAwmzjZ9n_mwtddlVp9qbt15j4ZUY-La2bho7sXb27QTTjGwRwsDgXRxTVEWoYKbFyFdTqGCqBJlSixETNC8hEh6J4h8bn01yMo-UBXIfFuMs8S9w/s320/20230405_074552-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1r0up6VYcclKhT5uVGbaZTU0YlaUw72JiwhSSwyS9rYvhSAPKVcEw7TWD5hnz2fBUJXG1hp21BpuhxSnAhU-EfsNKQa2bOLmygKhfOGwxXq5UgPUwIcfTN5Tg6duNUPlGSsWtTGsqh1voetBkN2NQBEncARjLqjVri3B8H5kms8Sk1uIs9CQOYtyrhw/s3195/20230405_055755-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1r0up6VYcclKhT5uVGbaZTU0YlaUw72JiwhSSwyS9rYvhSAPKVcEw7TWD5hnz2fBUJXG1hp21BpuhxSnAhU-EfsNKQa2bOLmygKhfOGwxXq5UgPUwIcfTN5Tg6duNUPlGSsWtTGsqh1voetBkN2NQBEncARjLqjVri3B8H5kms8Sk1uIs9CQOYtyrhw/s320/20230405_055755-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The kitchen we made genuine improvements to. It really is a nice kitchen</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhV3lptakCzgHSOM8Pu9wCTLctw62npHPBUGtE_9HYb7T1XBSD_ymbb_N5_r_JzY_d87rLzu2XAVIXkVA1NeqS2eWam0A7KkIvBjTl_DKGwT8g4CQx1lCGAKx8I4LK-Hf5xaazR31K9xJUGZ2pAPTbWSBKJ0f-fz0JZuNXCT5wTG9snWM_I4HCkat-3w/s3195/20230405_073158-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhV3lptakCzgHSOM8Pu9wCTLctw62npHPBUGtE_9HYb7T1XBSD_ymbb_N5_r_JzY_d87rLzu2XAVIXkVA1NeqS2eWam0A7KkIvBjTl_DKGwT8g4CQx1lCGAKx8I4LK-Hf5xaazR31K9xJUGZ2pAPTbWSBKJ0f-fz0JZuNXCT5wTG9snWM_I4HCkat-3w/s320/20230405_073158-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaZlQeROhebJ7S3TG5wDZ5YCSDy-SzVH2AA5aU1FNRwDLp_3ND6j70gg4aLg7sNjSFmPI6gRfgG0HWHgEGVt1Z5TJVJZXsTVNHla59jNw4o5IpwTs1ZexnAtaeRSYyjCYjT7_Gwsk9NkE-u8OnHVrWFJU0_IeT8O-ieUgsx_KQl2lhFUMvi1YeS2O0_w/s3195/20230405_090647-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaZlQeROhebJ7S3TG5wDZ5YCSDy-SzVH2AA5aU1FNRwDLp_3ND6j70gg4aLg7sNjSFmPI6gRfgG0HWHgEGVt1Z5TJVJZXsTVNHla59jNw4o5IpwTs1ZexnAtaeRSYyjCYjT7_Gwsk9NkE-u8OnHVrWFJU0_IeT8O-ieUgsx_KQl2lhFUMvi1YeS2O0_w/s320/20230405_090647-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The dining room is a place where we're mostly benefitting from a better photographer. Our dining room table isn't better than theirs (actually, theirs was probably much higher quality, ours is Ikea), but ours looks quite a bit better.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7yWDMe8pNmSYAAKZEa17tHmLbttYIQRQYFdllkKXq6iZUpsVvjxNz7KvbSFfr2xxbUmdpECRZ4My5M0l-MjUS8uiVz5TB0MwiehXvGkrCgphDwPXlx82Bw3OmFQ1Y2LvYl0XWg0TSlbguvHDuHTs1EEBzJgH7O09YFEKOXt77gQZN8pG4YXLd4lG7YQ/s3195/20230405_091257-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7yWDMe8pNmSYAAKZEa17tHmLbttYIQRQYFdllkKXq6iZUpsVvjxNz7KvbSFfr2xxbUmdpECRZ4My5M0l-MjUS8uiVz5TB0MwiehXvGkrCgphDwPXlx82Bw3OmFQ1Y2LvYl0XWg0TSlbguvHDuHTs1EEBzJgH7O09YFEKOXt77gQZN8pG4YXLd4lG7YQ/s320/20230405_091257-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBIspTUkx_qlZ0r8-quOhsUBgwPogfPAi411Asd_nwAIN0oXBG4NKxrKJxOaYZ7qaTr3XKVpwRIJigS49yX9YbK4guySOnjmgooHaZszG9CzKkkKznb6s-tIJqvTB5z9Ar-yICRFJ09gRPCbpi-cxZqfZrRMYPOicx9rn5wJVu-4LqgrvKoXDyVsZiTw/s3195/20230405_091618-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBIspTUkx_qlZ0r8-quOhsUBgwPogfPAi411Asd_nwAIN0oXBG4NKxrKJxOaYZ7qaTr3XKVpwRIJigS49yX9YbK4guySOnjmgooHaZszG9CzKkkKznb6s-tIJqvTB5z9Ar-yICRFJ09gRPCbpi-cxZqfZrRMYPOicx9rn5wJVu-4LqgrvKoXDyVsZiTw/s320/20230405_091618-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Same with the living room. It just looked so dark in their photos</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmB-Sv_-ygqnoad9uIImrvb5n7b6I4JfLwYkHLUkYB8XQ3YE6erb8vThCxceKOmDoV16gtUWdh-FwgQsGvkSr_ZQQqxDGjyVLa3qXwRjFLE_WLm2WdXqAbTPtwGGQ6GaEhEGSZzQKJQxdXiGEarQ0wrYlD_dDPp3csTateQXKwbmiqhgg5TOmmDlGyzQ/s3195/20230405_092727-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmB-Sv_-ygqnoad9uIImrvb5n7b6I4JfLwYkHLUkYB8XQ3YE6erb8vThCxceKOmDoV16gtUWdh-FwgQsGvkSr_ZQQqxDGjyVLa3qXwRjFLE_WLm2WdXqAbTPtwGGQ6GaEhEGSZzQKJQxdXiGEarQ0wrYlD_dDPp3csTateQXKwbmiqhgg5TOmmDlGyzQ/s320/20230405_092727-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlnBYV5G5v0VfpHpgqSQpck8VrW9sSl-hA8fpJ710h7yy_2GIp_m_-XVz4p8AJ82CosuyYkjVM9TeQwUcLTm_risPehMkgTNN3WVzL7nB0plnnAKrfL05ZB2RWD7yR-S9Yn8nx2UEo5ykUq8RmdV5tJ2CzxxXg3N3PLgf2-O_Obt9NxBVPXDRsRs5ww/s3195/20230405_092642-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlnBYV5G5v0VfpHpgqSQpck8VrW9sSl-hA8fpJ710h7yy_2GIp_m_-XVz4p8AJ82CosuyYkjVM9TeQwUcLTm_risPehMkgTNN3WVzL7nB0plnnAKrfL05ZB2RWD7yR-S9Yn8nx2UEo5ykUq8RmdV5tJ2CzxxXg3N3PLgf2-O_Obt9NxBVPXDRsRs5ww/s320/20230405_092642-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In our room we got rid of the awful, thatch-like wallpaper and got new carpet. Just those things improved things a lot</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXDR4uKHhlcMyjaS2xx2fQNiAwXZ60Qrf_hndqDvuhGl6SZjEmxy7FYOwBrChjbZIQ84UUSTA6_8bKBQtLqbdpS97e6PU0eAkpiRLwUTNL7z96pYUhF6WRAbhoIDgs5ZK8GgFZjKwY1AUpRSz4iQiR-UJu2IIdtfEWUb7pyQBFr-_CvZjm5a2q1w20Q/s3195/20230405_093748-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQXDR4uKHhlcMyjaS2xx2fQNiAwXZ60Qrf_hndqDvuhGl6SZjEmxy7FYOwBrChjbZIQ84UUSTA6_8bKBQtLqbdpS97e6PU0eAkpiRLwUTNL7z96pYUhF6WRAbhoIDgs5ZK8GgFZjKwY1AUpRSz4iQiR-UJu2IIdtfEWUb7pyQBFr-_CvZjm5a2q1w20Q/s320/20230405_093748-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2I29h923ISQ9PBd1Dhpi2AJtqdQdEOPON49KA7yplORCG2nOvb9i4PlafXNEJzJUbA7cFcBn5-O8C3o7xjpJxGCrTEd8J3YAhByfBAG03NKTwcR4xi4KbapN5u46E1JaT0XwsOmwxqvqMYbZxpHC3RKkMGTGugruJLqJuLhSFj-kNyfYIN41T-H5F8g/s3195/20230405_093522-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2I29h923ISQ9PBd1Dhpi2AJtqdQdEOPON49KA7yplORCG2nOvb9i4PlafXNEJzJUbA7cFcBn5-O8C3o7xjpJxGCrTEd8J3YAhByfBAG03NKTwcR4xi4KbapN5u46E1JaT0XwsOmwxqvqMYbZxpHC3RKkMGTGugruJLqJuLhSFj-kNyfYIN41T-H5F8g/s320/20230405_093522-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyqbX1UD_Ft9DxAL6pTU98AM4VDAfhxW85os_bf2AaBZEfGTdJCSzHgUzKfpvMr6N0wzztlD4kROjAVfdWlf4fwW9xDqEhemM6-0_aetQMbPk_VR_TrrSgFZBLkoZcjfo-8nvaRtpovYQk3JZRz8H0d9hprY_F9PcG1bwrqXgx5pKRSL6L3-aD7qDe7g/s3195/20230405_093629-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyqbX1UD_Ft9DxAL6pTU98AM4VDAfhxW85os_bf2AaBZEfGTdJCSzHgUzKfpvMr6N0wzztlD4kROjAVfdWlf4fwW9xDqEhemM6-0_aetQMbPk_VR_TrrSgFZBLkoZcjfo-8nvaRtpovYQk3JZRz8H0d9hprY_F9PcG1bwrqXgx5pKRSL6L3-aD7qDe7g/s320/20230405_093629-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Painting the walls white in the office is a recent improvement, suggested by our realtor. So much better than that faux wood paneling.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjweOBUQGPAScB5gEmIiWZUciRE1aLkSm-AavSYJU6k5tq6QJPjdmoFeYoAWmWYqejoc6i-MwBdCUE4rbv_kWixojpDYxnWeHXoRXdIrhwnIv3QHyRnAvm_t3KMq1SDBPum5InAZsOHHAgHC4f-T7DZ8-ZsYQMRyUPBzJQlGyLSObYYL0L_T1Nz2s38AA/s3195/20230405_093859-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjweOBUQGPAScB5gEmIiWZUciRE1aLkSm-AavSYJU6k5tq6QJPjdmoFeYoAWmWYqejoc6i-MwBdCUE4rbv_kWixojpDYxnWeHXoRXdIrhwnIv3QHyRnAvm_t3KMq1SDBPum5InAZsOHHAgHC4f-T7DZ8-ZsYQMRyUPBzJQlGyLSObYYL0L_T1Nz2s38AA/s320/20230405_093859-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The back deck looks about the same (recently repainted). Our photographer got a better angle, and the sun was shining that day</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie8_L9nM3X2mPWIpI794bA2ldPrReHV7kkA9OrFLb0GrnN7cS2D9OffkWylo5G67186Mu0ECnMrXr364sJvUnm1-lGApLaR4fZ6JwJ7nK0EZinm7Gh_e6JgkRhsS4rfGJiMkgl157Cv-F_vJ3h-z35y8ZWLLhfOuPWSVfKJ19dqR2BWdKPJm7ysmpD0g/s3195/20230405_095313-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie8_L9nM3X2mPWIpI794bA2ldPrReHV7kkA9OrFLb0GrnN7cS2D9OffkWylo5G67186Mu0ECnMrXr364sJvUnm1-lGApLaR4fZ6JwJ7nK0EZinm7Gh_e6JgkRhsS4rfGJiMkgl157Cv-F_vJ3h-z35y8ZWLLhfOuPWSVfKJ19dqR2BWdKPJm7ysmpD0g/s320/20230405_095313-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijJrjQxqDeJDT7j6HzbbKlB-SH6CPOPST0n7l9fkWf-vbs6xMYcYw6fnMP3e8ase7WUKW0NwynflX-PwJSqARwbtO2789lJmDOSwMUZjZFgl4NqRIkBsaB7zWiLZZScd9-IAastYk1lNB9ua2KdW69BFlXzLzyk4JdSRfxwav4FitCpi2a9Loa5HFmJA/s3195/20230405_095442-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijJrjQxqDeJDT7j6HzbbKlB-SH6CPOPST0n7l9fkWf-vbs6xMYcYw6fnMP3e8ase7WUKW0NwynflX-PwJSqARwbtO2789lJmDOSwMUZjZFgl4NqRIkBsaB7zWiLZZScd9-IAastYk1lNB9ua2KdW69BFlXzLzyk4JdSRfxwav4FitCpi2a9Loa5HFmJA/s320/20230405_095442-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The kids rooms are more colorful and less cluttered. And we removed the old carpet and refinished the floors in both rooms.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWCYiAl3YvRO1ymF6FiAHOJbeodhcmFU1DujqcXq-8yBw17H-8dkfpobesKt9bCcZ-G97x-BuqjDWL6-8-uTXnvTTg3Avb045n5AR-UjYM9_2AH-ykV2vDPMX9WiIcpCU-U-gHjElTWWNTtXbY8c2DzK9kYf-fOPXhqmbSivtWJr7mjfrGVX2-FVTEXw/s3195/20230405_095556-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWCYiAl3YvRO1ymF6FiAHOJbeodhcmFU1DujqcXq-8yBw17H-8dkfpobesKt9bCcZ-G97x-BuqjDWL6-8-uTXnvTTg3Avb045n5AR-UjYM9_2AH-ykV2vDPMX9WiIcpCU-U-gHjElTWWNTtXbY8c2DzK9kYf-fOPXhqmbSivtWJr7mjfrGVX2-FVTEXw/s320/20230405_095556-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Didn't really change this bathroom at all, so once again we see the difference in photographer quality. Everything just looks so much brighter in our photos</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5U8IbtwQV3LHZ56gmwxllKGjdHOa4FPs0u-oSpJ4qILtOqk0wW0Di6OEqF7jXcRS1K9XF4SVAe2hJ1Vcwgoz9tluE9yyMFXxQpCj02PLO3RSXsF3HX6PxEV-7YWhq-Ofy48AAH6ToTEJbor4cccL5PyMe_2H_HZnCLFyouMYjnX-ztC3mJ3wAVADzTQ/s3195/20230405_100421-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5U8IbtwQV3LHZ56gmwxllKGjdHOa4FPs0u-oSpJ4qILtOqk0wW0Di6OEqF7jXcRS1K9XF4SVAe2hJ1Vcwgoz9tluE9yyMFXxQpCj02PLO3RSXsF3HX6PxEV-7YWhq-Ofy48AAH6ToTEJbor4cccL5PyMe_2H_HZnCLFyouMYjnX-ztC3mJ3wAVADzTQ/s320/20230405_100421-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlPIP37ycoUhOBsoFfTKrJpLCnJaQw4ZonQUDbBwgQJhbPbGDtZfCaNpI14BtcttkhYt_-Oqa3Y0EpPV8sLTGn9nj3EQJerwOC5CRm10e6-OvwT0e81BjWJC427f6B7fy58lYz3lhqQsvsppQLKyc-KhGEQug4uQqehFTpoDoJ_uKRxL8UJ_4-r0f8ng/s3195/20230405_100658-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlPIP37ycoUhOBsoFfTKrJpLCnJaQw4ZonQUDbBwgQJhbPbGDtZfCaNpI14BtcttkhYt_-Oqa3Y0EpPV8sLTGn9nj3EQJerwOC5CRm10e6-OvwT0e81BjWJC427f6B7fy58lYz3lhqQsvsppQLKyc-KhGEQug4uQqehFTpoDoJ_uKRxL8UJ_4-r0f8ng/s320/20230405_100658-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifY7bPZvAGXdnczDaeTMKVRw2K3ZICOa9pZYyYG4nGxeHWUYbC4ghtLYzQ1b3ANRHYO8lAdo99_E0iV1YCcokw2PpE2ymlLv2ligdpCRy9iNp6MysC0C_7hRti18yfrzCDYeDp1BdV-4X31q8HA8Ek3w8zwjuOgg1ia5-4qzJwc2Q7cVQOmFvV0bh8PQ/s3195/20230405_100800-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifY7bPZvAGXdnczDaeTMKVRw2K3ZICOa9pZYyYG4nGxeHWUYbC4ghtLYzQ1b3ANRHYO8lAdo99_E0iV1YCcokw2PpE2ymlLv2ligdpCRy9iNp6MysC0C_7hRti18yfrzCDYeDp1BdV-4X31q8HA8Ek3w8zwjuOgg1ia5-4qzJwc2Q7cVQOmFvV0bh8PQ/s320/20230405_100800-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">No real changes to the attic. Just different furniture with maybe some better staging.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLN95seer2O50QQtncvXU5xSFvStDZGJgb7cYRz7V7FVSCCcdiMNLsTNh1KqzYscoDTKIjcbnTh_vShxfDKx-9PKgSrXGAlYLltHOPPrOixhzdrfIqNt2wITgepzsiVo2vtughiU64QaRrUUocVpWoxMdI9l58Dp207ezmkXAVd4zP10m_TAhDpBQC5w/s3195/20230405_100858-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLN95seer2O50QQtncvXU5xSFvStDZGJgb7cYRz7V7FVSCCcdiMNLsTNh1KqzYscoDTKIjcbnTh_vShxfDKx-9PKgSrXGAlYLltHOPPrOixhzdrfIqNt2wITgepzsiVo2vtughiU64QaRrUUocVpWoxMdI9l58Dp207ezmkXAVd4zP10m_TAhDpBQC5w/s320/20230405_100858-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha1eIGBlgU5EjdfWaEwEvrdX7Rc-JXlXC3BG_5LcF8EfCtvXp48uZA6SNGnd7c6kd4pfpbtPpDYoxfWPeX-Ne1FApz2Y280x8tzT7UMkkW8rR9FgXiriOGtBfKBUJNErt0aedvflABxuSH6TO0VwktIGMdFQFGgJIO4VzyM9jJo-43lMgBvND_HlXjHg/s3195/20230405_100941-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3195" data-original-width="2400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha1eIGBlgU5EjdfWaEwEvrdX7Rc-JXlXC3BG_5LcF8EfCtvXp48uZA6SNGnd7c6kd4pfpbtPpDYoxfWPeX-Ne1FApz2Y280x8tzT7UMkkW8rR9FgXiriOGtBfKBUJNErt0aedvflABxuSH6TO0VwktIGMdFQFGgJIO4VzyM9jJo-43lMgBvND_HlXjHg/s320/20230405_100941-COLLAGE.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ6DOitLiPPYIK5UPsKuWGe7Ufg3kUpgWKw59Pc_vq2CgcV2zF3wllOs2BIJ_5FCA5lHpHj83W2Me1ehoQB3ZCWZSAWVH5wu8IYO0jikb7Be325n4SnnUX-RLoHldLE_AvzORBi-NMthtYtWYdbIUN7nf_-u3vVK6vKkWeDxK2iZmaURLF0j3DVq_naQ/s3195/20230405_101200-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ6DOitLiPPYIK5UPsKuWGe7Ufg3kUpgWKw59Pc_vq2CgcV2zF3wllOs2BIJ_5FCA5lHpHj83W2Me1ehoQB3ZCWZSAWVH5wu8IYO0jikb7Be325n4SnnUX-RLoHldLE_AvzORBi-NMthtYtWYdbIUN7nf_-u3vVK6vKkWeDxK2iZmaURLF0j3DVq_naQ/s320/20230405_101200-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLjIkShfxSP7ATR_TbjIthCNrVJ_UwVIEX7c_p8xK0EX_UwcQHEdQPyRJ3HHI9yYQZj--03S2YyXbWWnzT154fKlgHIdZ_ImG2HFmdvGEiGOJmZHGgAHiNMua40L4nx9tc9d4xrFUktpvf9lc5m5UAXmg61f2zWjfcKTH3HoMBtA1Q91fZocBcxk88Mg/s3195/20230405_101248-COLLAGE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2400" data-original-width="3195" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLjIkShfxSP7ATR_TbjIthCNrVJ_UwVIEX7c_p8xK0EX_UwcQHEdQPyRJ3HHI9yYQZj--03S2YyXbWWnzT154fKlgHIdZ_ImG2HFmdvGEiGOJmZHGgAHiNMua40L4nx9tc9d4xrFUktpvf9lc5m5UAXmg61f2zWjfcKTH3HoMBtA1Q91fZocBcxk88Mg/s320/20230405_101248-COLLAGE.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Picture of the basement maybe aren't even fair. It was an unfinished basement, now it's a finished basement. But it does look nice now</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div>A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-70670195582692510232014-05-08T18:56:00.001-07:002014-05-08T18:56:10.640-07:00Almost there...There have been some delays, edging on ridiculous. But instead of ranting about those, how about I just post some pictures.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nZXRYKuRgv0/U2w1jzp-NEI/AAAAAAAAL8I/l7_AYBQC27g/s1600/IMG_9070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nZXRYKuRgv0/U2w1jzp-NEI/AAAAAAAAL8I/l7_AYBQC27g/s1600/IMG_9070.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-25405949239774904162014-04-28T18:02:00.002-07:002014-04-28T18:02:45.500-07:00Promised PicturesI think I've been delaying posting pictures in hopes that I would be able to post finished pictures if I just waited a couple of days. No such luck. We are still missing cupboard doors and backsplash, along with a handful of other things.<br />
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Counters</div>
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No doors, but some of our stuff moved in. And appliances!</div>
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Our new faucet and sink</div>
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From the other direction</div>
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So far we have made chicken picatta, pasta, coffee cake, strawberry jam, chocolate cake, and beef stroganoff in the new kitchen. The first two of those were done without a sink or dishwasher. The stove, microwave and refrigerator were installed earlier in the week, but the sink and dishwasher were not installed until Saturday. When the foreman and worker left on Saturday afternoon I immediately filled the dishwasher and started to run it. Then I went down into the basement to get a load a laundry when I heard the sound of rushing water. Water was flowing from the dishwasher into the cupboard under the sink and then down into the basement. There was water all over the cupboard and the kitchen floor. I mopped it all up with bath towels then we called the foreman back. He found that a valve had broken on the dishwasher. He fixed it up for us and it works just fine now.</div>
<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-52471099593751822842014-04-22T18:16:00.001-07:002014-04-22T18:16:50.567-07:00FinishingThe floors are done. The counters were installed today and are wonderful. Just what we wanted. Dark, to contrast against the white cabinets, but with some texture.<br />
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I keep walking into the kitchen and just turn circles looking at it. It took a lot of money and time, but it will be worth it. So much counter space. So bright and clean and fresh.<br />
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Pictures tomorrow. We took some but I haven't uploaded them to the computer yet. Tomorrow will bring appliances, backsplash, and a large number of smaller to dos.A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-80208788621277314442014-04-15T17:50:00.000-07:002014-04-15T17:50:01.046-07:00Another setbackSo, take a look at this picture of the cupboards again:<br />
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And my description from my blog post back in January of our plan for the kitchen: "<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">We're trying to keep an older style appropriate to our 1920s-era house, so will have white painted cabinets, dark soapstone counters, and wood flooring."</span><br />
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Maybe you'll note that something is wrong here. We were so thrilled with having cupboards last night, we convinced ourselves that they had been delivered unfinished and would be painted later. No. The cupboards are finished. They look nice, but really aren't what we want. Our contractor came in person to talk to us about them. He's going to order new doors and they are going to sand and paint the cupboards themselves. We will be able to move back into the kitchen while we wait for the doors to arrive.<br />
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It's going to cost him, but Adem will make it right. And that's a sign of a good contractor. Not that nothing goes wrong, cause sometimes things just do, but that you can have every confidence that things will be made right if and when they do go wrong.A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-16499714195949401782014-04-14T19:57:00.000-07:002014-04-14T19:57:04.618-07:00Cupboards!Just a few pictures, as an antidote to my ranty post about the floor guys. The crew is awesome. They did all this in a single day.<br />
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<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-39630255981052355442014-04-14T19:55:00.001-07:002014-04-14T19:55:29.012-07:00Dishonest or Stupid?Our kitchen was slowed down unnecessarily by the floor guys. We can't decide if they are dishonest or are idiots, but in any case, we would be in our kitchen now if not for them.<div>
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Okay, here's the story. Our crew pulled up the tile floor and several layers of linoleum and found that the floorboards in most of the kitchen were intact. We were pleased we would get to keep the original flooring. The flooring in the addition had to be pulled up, since the whole addition had to be re-structured, but the rest of the kitchen would have the original wood and we'd get something that matched it as well as possible for the replacement wood in the addition.</div>
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So, our contractor had his floor guy come look at it and the floor guy informed us that the matching wood was more expensive and would have to be ordered. Both the extra expense and the extra time seemed worth it in order to keep the original wood, so we said yes. And we waited. The work on the kitchen stopped. </div>
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And then we were told about the stain on the floor. It's not that we didn't see the stain before, but we didn't realize it might be a problem. The floor guy came and sanded to see if he could get it up, but informed us that he couldn't. Would have been nice to know before waiting for the matching flooring to arrive.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Stain- After sanding</div>
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The original floor couldn't be used after all. Then we had a new decision to make. Did we use the more expensive flooring if we couldn't keep the original? We decided that it was still better to use flooring that would match the rest of the house. Plus, our wait was over, so it was just the extra expense, not the extra time.</div>
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The wood arrived and Ryan looked at it, and looked at it again. I was too sick to care about wood, so he fussed over it alone. He had a whole evening to think about it and research and he decided it simply wasn't the matching wood we were promised. The wood in our house is heartwood pine, which is, admittedly, expensive and hard to get since it is only acquired through reclaiming old floors. They had gotten red pine, which is also more expensive than the alternative, red oak, but not nearly so precious as heartwood pine. And it wasn't a perfect match. And we were willing to pay extra for the same wood, not a wood that would be slightly closer to the original than oak.</div>
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When challenged, the floor guys admitted that they knew it wasn't the same wood, but that heartwood pine was even more expensive, so they didn't think we would want it, and they would have had to purchase it in a larger unit than was needed for our floor. We may not have chosen heartwood pine if we knew the full cost, but we should not have been lead to believe that we <i>were</i> purchasing heartwood pine.</div>
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So we made them put in red oak. And it will look lovely. </div>
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The red oak floor</div>
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It's not a perfect match, but it looks good. It's a skinnier cut of floorboard than the red pine boards they purchased, which will fit the style of the house better. We're not quite sure how the thicker boards ever would have worked with the original flooring. The fact that the stain "couldn't be removed" seems a bit suspicious, given the logistical challenges of making the new and old floor boards fit together. Or maybe they hadn't thought that far ahead. Other interactions with them make the latter seem possible. </div>
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One day they spent pretty much the whole day, as far as we can tell, hanging out in their van in our driveway waiting for Ryan to come home to give his opinion on the wood. Didn't bother to try calling to see if he could come by on his lunch break or come home a bit early. Just waited. They chose not to work on Friday, when they would have been out of our hair and could have gotten everything completed in plenty of time, but came on Saturday instead. And when they needed our opinion on the color of finish and we weren't there, they painted several squares on the floor and left instead of calling us first to see when we would be back (we were in the car on the way home). They had only worked for a portion of the day, starting at 10:30 and ending by 3.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Our color choices</div>
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Now, instead of staining the whole floor, they will have to do the stain around the cupboards. And they will probably disrupt our main crew's schedule in the process. The main crew is working incredibly hard and doing a great job. They did an 11 hour day today. I wish I had a completed kitchen so that I could bake them cookies. </div>
A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-54556746403011013432014-04-06T18:10:00.002-07:002014-04-06T18:10:51.695-07:00Pause...The kitchen has been on pause this week as we waited for replacement wood to arrive for the kitchen floor. But the workers did come one day to do some touch up paint, remove their supplies from the kitchen, and install the bathroom fixtures. So, here are some pictures of our essentially finished powder room:<br />
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The floor is going to cost a bit more than quoted because we can use much less of the original wood than anticipated. There was a big black stain in the middle of the floor that did not come out with sanding. If we had known how little was salvageable, we probably would not have waited for the pine that matched the rest of the house. But the wait is over now either way. They will start installing the new floor tomorrow.A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-89653019788710586812014-03-29T12:15:00.000-07:002014-03-29T12:15:10.049-07:00More progressThey have been busy all week in our kitchen. They finished up the drywall and have been painting the last couple days. The plumbing and electrical have been roughed in and they laid the floor tile in the powder room. The replacement wood for the floor will hopefully be in sometime next week.<br />
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Light blue paint in the kitchen, as we had before. (The door is taped, not permanently blue).</div>
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Another view of the kitchen, with pile of supplies</div>
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The bathroom floor and peach walls.</div>
<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-77119773624275910322014-03-22T05:19:00.000-07:002014-03-22T05:19:31.528-07:00Drywall and more doors<div dir="ltr">
After some exciting progress early in the week, the crew mysteriously disappeared for several days. We learned that the foreman had gotten sick. But they were back again yesterday and were hanging drywall.</div>
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We also have our new door into the dining room, along with the outline of the old door.</div>
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A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-16966873654672146092014-03-17T17:21:00.000-07:002014-03-17T17:21:10.288-07:00A door! A floor! A wall!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-46822683446512595122014-03-17T10:55:00.000-07:002014-03-17T10:55:12.923-07:00Garden happenings<div dir="ltr">
Spring may someday come to my garden. We are all looking forward to the spring. It has been a rough winter. Celebrating a white birthday that was not exactly on my wish list today.</div>
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I have some seeds started under a grow light in the attic bathroom. </div>
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I started the first ones about two and a half weeks ago, but have added more as I've found or bought containers for them. My most successful crop has been clover. I was too cheap and had some bad experiences with commercial soil products, so used garden soil instead of a seed starting mix. Thus, I had weed seeds mixed in. But my plants are doing pretty well too. The tomatoes have done the best. I planted sungold and purple Cherokee and they already have true leaves on them. The alpine strawberries took a while to germinate, but seem to be growing well too. The paprika peppers and basil I have had less luck with. I've planted more in hopes that a second planting will successfully germinate. </div>
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Outside, I've planted some spring bulbs that may not flower this year, but will be nice next year, unless the squirrels dig up and eat them all. I saw some tell-tale holes in the ground yesterday. I also dug up the daylilies and gave the bulbs to a neighbor. I didn't care for the plants last year, and they were in the way of where I wanted to put a border on my garden bed. </div>
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In lieu of getting each other gifts, my husband and I buy birthday presents for ourselves. As I did last year, I'm buying plants. So I have ordered 2 honeyberry plants, 2 pawpaw trees, a pesto perpetuo basil, a peach tree, a nectarine tree, and two bush cherries. I may need to order and/or purchase locally a handful of other plants to replace ones that perished in the ridiculous winter we are still in the midst of, and plan to buy some annuals that I'm not growing from seed. But I have ordered most of the big expensive things now.</div>
A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-52759891247063362722014-03-16T18:13:00.004-07:002014-03-17T10:58:01.542-07:00Kitchen remodel - week 2<div dir="ltr">
The kitchen remodel was delayed on Friday of last week and Monday of this week by lack of plumber (until they pulled up the floor they didn't know they needed one this early until they discovered the radiator pipes were in the way), but they seemed to be trying to make up time by working long days and on Saturday.</div>
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The back wall is now framed, but not yet finished and the former back door has been walled over. Here are</div>
a couple pictures of the wall and former door from the back deck:<br />
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You can see where the new door is framed. I assume it will be installed next week.</div>
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They replaced all of the joists in the addition with correctly sized joists. And now I believe they are putting the subfloor in. With insulation this time (something that was notably lacking in that part of the kitchen previously.)</div>
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Hopefully the pictures will show more progress this week, rather than more construction zone. As long as the snow doesn't slow things down too much.</div>
A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-65321087991028852892014-03-06T18:05:00.000-08:002014-03-06T18:07:07.640-08:00Kitchen Remodel- Day 1Our kitchen remodel started today. First some pictures.<br />
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Last night our kitchen looked like this:<br />
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This evening it looked like this: </div>
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This is less complete than expected. They were hoping to put in the new back door today, instead of patching it with a large sheet of plywood, but found that the addition was poorly constructed such that the wall would be structurally unsound if they put in a door as-is. Among other problems, the joists are too small and the plumbing for the radiator is in the way of fixing it, so they need to bring a plumber in to deal with that before they can finish that wall. </div>
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Correcting the problems will probably extend the project an extra week and will increase the cost above the original estimate. We aren't particularly surprised. We weren't sure what the nature of the problems would be, but knew this project would probably run into unexpected difficulties that would increase the cost and/or time. </div>
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On a positive note, the wood floor that was under the tile is salvageable (where it exists -no wood floor in the addition), so it will match the floor in the rest of the house. </div>
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A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-31167554503973944172014-01-28T19:03:00.001-08:002014-01-28T19:03:32.287-08:00Kitchen Remodel - BeforeAfter a break from large, blog-worthy home improvement tasks, we're preparing to have our kitchen remodeled in the early spring. I thought I would post a series of before pictures now as well as the plans for the new kitchen. Some of these pictures are from before we moved in (you can tell by the wall color, we tore the wallpaper down and painted it blue immediately after moving).<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z7ExiUSYXBM/Uuhga7Q0ZNI/AAAAAAAALoA/i6BcvyMBXVc/s1600/20120717_221348.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z7ExiUSYXBM/Uuhga7Q0ZNI/AAAAAAAALoA/i6BcvyMBXVc/s1600/20120717_221348.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Current kitchen</div>
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Current kitchen</div>
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Current powder room</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4N5CjrYVr4E/Uuhf1CyhAkI/AAAAAAAALng/tH0n_wuszs4/s1600/DSC03142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4N5CjrYVr4E/Uuhf1CyhAkI/AAAAAAAALng/tH0n_wuszs4/s1600/DSC03142.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Current back door</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fyUTjCKJJ5w/UuhoJo7wjrI/AAAAAAAALoY/nUj8n9M77yE/s1600/Old+Kitchen+Floorplan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fyUTjCKJJ5w/UuhoJo7wjrI/AAAAAAAALoY/nUj8n9M77yE/s1600/Old+Kitchen+Floorplan.jpg" height="352" width="640" /></a></div>
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Current floorplan </div>
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We're keeping the appliances, but getting rid of everything else. We'll have new floors, new cabinets, new counters, and a new layout. We're having them move doors around to give us a galley-style kitchen with a larger powder room and French doors leading out to the back deck. We're trying to keep an older style appropriate to our 1920s-era house, so will have white painted cabinets, dark soapstone counters, and wood flooring.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wUJ-Cy0_IPk/Uuhu9PL7K4I/AAAAAAAALok/FCrrTKKgEWA/s1600/Floor+Plan+View.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wUJ-Cy0_IPk/Uuhu9PL7K4I/AAAAAAAALok/FCrrTKKgEWA/s1600/Floor+Plan+View.jpg" height="288" width="640" /></a></div>
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New floorplan</div>
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<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-17855824632747569272013-07-23T03:24:00.000-07:002013-07-23T03:24:08.837-07:00It's Summertime in My Garden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
And everything is growing. </div>
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I have tomatoes ripening. Some of them we even get to eat (we have a hungry squirrel taking bites out of many of them).</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Uudg_HANJw/Ue5XZwmKK7I/AAAAAAAALJo/gAJ5JRWySSE/s1600/2013-07-06_08-56-29_312.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Uudg_HANJw/Ue5XZwmKK7I/AAAAAAAALJo/gAJ5JRWySSE/s320/2013-07-06_08-56-29_312.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Tomatoes ripening earlier this month</div>
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And 6 different types of basil</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a6miCF0naiM/Ue5XxiP-2OI/AAAAAAAALJw/i4EmnicNu3A/s1600/2013-06-30_17-26-57_969.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a6miCF0naiM/Ue5XxiP-2OI/AAAAAAAALJw/i4EmnicNu3A/s320/2013-06-30_17-26-57_969.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Genovese</div>
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Purple Opal</div>
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Pesto Perpetuo</div>
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Aristotle (Small-leafed Italian)</div>
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Thai</div>
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Holy</div>
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And my cilantro has bolted, so I pulled up the plant to harvest the coriander seeds. We can add coriander to the list of herbs/spices we rarely, if ever, have to buy again (Along with sage, thyme, rosemary, and oregano).</div>
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Cilantro plant ready for harvest</div>
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My squash and cucumbers are starting to make fruit as well.</div>
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Squash blossom</div>
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I also pulled up the remainder of my carrots</div>
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Colorful carrots</div>
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A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-23880928470809566192013-06-16T03:34:00.000-07:002013-06-16T03:34:00.500-07:00Weeding and blueberriesThree of my four front garden beds are weeded and my plants are starting to fill in.<br />
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And our first little crop of blueberries is ripening<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BC9fxxpW1wk/Ub2Tv62uC_I/AAAAAAAALAY/A6P3dJWp7GI/s1600/2013-06-15_16-58-25_239.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BC9fxxpW1wk/Ub2Tv62uC_I/AAAAAAAALAY/A6P3dJWp7GI/s320/2013-06-15_16-58-25_239.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Those are the most exciting things happening in my garden right now. The tomatoes are developing, but not ripe yet, and all the other plants are growing. I need to put out a plate of beer next to some of my plants to catch some of the many slugs. They got all of the strawberries that developed on the plants in the ground and have chewed up most of my little corn seedlings.</div>
<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-65081542310633461932013-05-26T12:41:00.001-07:002013-05-26T12:41:19.756-07:00First tomatoesMy first tomatoes are forming. Hooray!<div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AJkmVDkH4h0/UaJlMcUP1PI/AAAAAAAAK8A/cKV6ecM3LOI/s1600/2013-05-26_14-52-33_276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AJkmVDkH4h0/UaJlMcUP1PI/AAAAAAAAK8A/cKV6ecM3LOI/s320/2013-05-26_14-52-33_276.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Little green tomatoes on my Sungold tomato plant</div>
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A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-34640759678718628552013-05-26T12:39:00.002-07:002013-05-26T12:39:57.931-07:00Air ConditioningTo all that come visit us in the summer: we cannot promise pleasant weather, but at least you'll have a retreat in our house. We had central air conditioning installed this spring. We have already started using it in fits and starts, but it will be more appreciated soon. And my father in law will not have to sleep on the couch due to the lack of air conditioning in his room (nor will he have to build the couch in order to sleep in it).<br />
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The air conditioning system that we had put in is a high velocity system, which is great for old houses like ours because they use small tubes instead of giant ducts, thus are much less invasive. And the registers look like this:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XpV-Mb-Vkko/UaJicyULh-I/AAAAAAAAK6E/ApDOtpyFsdc/s1600/IMG_7626.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XpV-Mb-Vkko/UaJicyULh-I/AAAAAAAAK6E/ApDOtpyFsdc/s320/IMG_7626.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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There were a couple down-sides. The AC wall unit in the attic was in the way, so had to be removed. The AC system only cools the two main stories, so it's starting to heat up in there. We'll have a new wall until installed eventually. Also, soffits were not included in the AC installation, so we had some exposed silver tubes in both the attic and our bedroom for several weeks until we got a carpenter in. Here are the ones in our bedroom:<br />
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But the carpenter did a great job covering up all of the AC work. Here's some pictures of the attic mid-construction:<br />
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And the finished product:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--CS2r9HKzO4/UaJkwSIBwdI/AAAAAAAAK74/Ab9GLKlUtzw/s1600/2013-05-26_15-35-20_831.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--CS2r9HKzO4/UaJkwSIBwdI/AAAAAAAAK74/Ab9GLKlUtzw/s320/2013-05-26_15-35-20_831.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5TrSrF7HwIs/UaJkwarGDaI/AAAAAAAAK74/2qYDyTk77vY/s1600/2013-05-26_15-36-07_8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5TrSrF7HwIs/UaJkwarGDaI/AAAAAAAAK74/2qYDyTk77vY/s320/2013-05-26_15-36-07_8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We are very happy with the results. Now the only question is: when and how are we going to paint those soffits (especially the very high one over the stairs).</div>
<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-68541838172200672102013-05-19T15:13:00.002-07:002013-05-19T15:16:03.262-07:00PeoniesI've been waiting for these plants to bloom for a while so that I could figure out what they were. After getting several opinions, figured out they are peonies. Aren't they pretty? They seem to ask to be cut and put in a vase, since the flowers are so big they make the plant flop over when they bloom.<br />
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In other news, my tomatoes are blooming and things are sprouting and the herbs are spreading. The weather has warmed up and the plants are loving it.A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-85024450646428577382013-05-17T04:50:00.001-07:002013-05-17T04:50:31.799-07:00The first rose of summer<div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='http://lh6.ggpht.com/-08HTOmeqW5E/UZYZg_NINLI/AAAAAAAAK38/lwuMDEVJvQ0/s1600/2013-05-17_07-25-18_885.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='http://lh6.ggpht.com/-08HTOmeqW5E/UZYZg_NINLI/AAAAAAAAK38/lwuMDEVJvQ0/s640/2013-05-17_07-25-18_885.jpg' /> </a> </div>A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-10587666815017424422013-05-07T03:33:00.001-07:002013-05-07T03:33:31.009-07:00AzaleasJust wanted to celebrate the azalea bushes I inherited from the previous owners. I love having cut flowers on the kitchen table.<br />
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This weekend I turned a big pile of sticks into wood chips that I then mulched my blueberries with<br />
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And finished digging out the second of my three back garden beds. I also made a funny little house out of old windows from the garage. I had kept the windows, thinking I would come up with something to do with them, but I hadn't yet and they were in the way. I had to come up with something fast to save them from the trash. You can see it behind that garden bed. I'm going to grow beans on it this year.</div>
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<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-50825593849024693872013-04-29T08:23:00.001-07:002013-05-03T18:19:09.554-07:00Work WeekendMy parents came for the weekend and we got a bunch of work done in the garden. <br />
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<li>We bought herbs to fill in my front planter beds and I distributed a bunch of additional herb seeds throughout the beds</li>
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Completed front beds- prior to additional plants</div>
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With most of the herb plants.</div>
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And another angle</div>
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Oregano and purple basil</div>
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A cilantro in the middle. Some lettuce seedlings and a tea plant in the right corner.</div>
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A trio of sages and two thyme plants</div>
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<li>My parents turned the soil in the back to make room for tomatoes and peppers in the backyard veggie garden. </li>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zsPMnOa8-g0/UYRgjdXN3AI/AAAAAAAAKiM/pTDghZy_6Ts/s1600/2013-05-01_07-14-43_860.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zsPMnOa8-g0/UYRgjdXN3AI/AAAAAAAAKiM/pTDghZy_6Ts/s320/2013-05-01_07-14-43_860.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The wonderful tomato towers my husband built for me</div>
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Cherry tomato plants</div>
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A close up </div>
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Slicing/cooking tomatoes</div>
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<li>We dug out one of the planter beds that pre-existed us and was full of ivy when we moved in and planted watermelons. </li>
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<li>We were halfway through digging out the second planter bed of them when a rain shower drove us inside. We'll finish that next weekend and plant squash and pumpkins there.</li>
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<li>My dad decided he was part monkey and both cut off some of the dead dogwood branches and removed much of the dead ivy that was still wrapped around the branches</li>
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The dogwood tree last summer</div>
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And in the fall after I killed the ivy</div>
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And now</div>
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<li>We hung our bat box</li>
<li>My mom pulled out more of the ivy near the back fence and tried to make the fence look a little more presentable.</li>
<li>We built a simple fence for cucumbers to grow on and planted cucumber seeds</li>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bRQmjdZWdLY/UYRhsnkAfsI/AAAAAAAAKi0/oDjR6ZqO62c/s1600/2013-05-01_07-15-39_873.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bRQmjdZWdLY/UYRhsnkAfsI/AAAAAAAAKi0/oDjR6ZqO62c/s320/2013-05-01_07-15-39_873.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I am very excited to have a veggie garden again. I had a veggie garden throughout my childhood, but have been living in apartments and other rentals for the last 8 years. I tried to grow in pots, but the results were mediocre. <br />
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<br />A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-56055999719428162942013-04-20T18:31:00.001-07:002013-04-20T18:31:43.430-07:00Garden pestsI've been focused in many ways in trying to combat the mosquitos that descended on us every time we went outdoors last summer. I've been pulling out and trimming back ivy, planting things that mosquitos reportedly don't like, and trying to be generally aware of garden maintenance, including eliminating any standing pools of water. In the meantime I forgot about other potential garden pests.<br />
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I discovered a new one last weekend, after trying to clean the ivy away on the back fence. Early this week I started developing a rash that got slowly worse over the next couple days. I finally went to see a doctor on Friday. Poison ivy. A nasty case of it. I'm on steroids and antihistamines to help with it and now jump at any sight of an unidentified vine. I thought I was pulling out Virginia creeper, which I've considered a nuisance for months. Apparently some of it, and maybe a lot of it, is not Virginia creeper.A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3069746825427067639.post-90887312399595105232013-04-15T07:38:00.002-07:002013-04-20T18:22:22.005-07:00Garden HappeningsI have lots happening in the garden, both of my own doing and of nature's. Bulbs and other perennials have popped up all over the place and I've discovered the identity of a couple additional inherited plants as a result. And my husband and I have been hard at work getting the front yard into shape. I've also planted a handful of plants, with more on the way.<br />
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Let's start with the inherited plants. Daffodils came up a couple weeks ago, and now I have tulips amongst my blueberry bushes.<br />
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I'm not sure I approve of the locations of either of these bulbs, so they are probably going to be transplanted after they finish flowering, but I have enjoyed the unexpected spring display. The roses that I pruned back harshly are coming back nicely. And there are a bunch of grape hyacinth that sprouted at the base of this one.<br />
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I still don't know that I like the rose in that location, but I tried quite hard to dig it up and put it elsewhere and it refuses. Even if I wanted to just get rid of it, I'm not sure how I would get it out of the ground. So it might have won.<br />
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I couple additional inherited plants include a forsythia bush that I tried to kill last fall, not knowing what it was, but knowing that it was a giant unruly bush. I didn't kill it, and may keep it now that I know what it is (a couple uncut branches flowered this year). Luckily, cutting a giant unruly bush to the ground is exactly what I ought to have done to rejuvenate it.<br />
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There is also the trees, the dogwood (which I feared had been killed by ivy, but put out a very nice flower display this spring), the spruce, and the large unknown tree that could possibly be a white willow.<br />
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I planted around 50 strawberry plants, and they seem to be doing well. I was worried about them. They came like this: <br />
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With 25 plants in that plastic bag. And it snowed a couple days after I planted them. And the soil dried out more than I had realized at one point. I was sure they were all doomed. But except for a couple plants that a squirrel pulled up out of the planter, they all seem to be doing great. </div>
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I've also planted rosemary, rhubarb and tea. </div>
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All small right now, but they'll fill out with time. The rhubarb especially. It seems to put out a new leaf every couple of days. The rosemary and tea are slower growing, so will take longer to fill out. I've planted a bunch of lettuce, oregano, and nasturtium seeds in my front planters. Hopefully some of them will sprout. The birds seem to be <em>very</em> interested in that planter, so may be pecking all my seeds/seedlings out of the ground. I need to get some bird netting.<br />
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Both the blueberry and kiwi plants that I planted last fall seem to be doing well this spring, which is great. I was really worried about the kiwi plants, which came as pathetic little sticks. Now they are putting out leaves and growing:<br />
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My lettuces overwintered just fine in my back garden bed and now are growing well and providing tender greens for salads. I'm hoping to build (or have my handy husband build) a cold frame this fall so that maybe next year we can have home grown lettuce all winter long.</div>
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And finally, we poured the arms of the cement paths in the front garden. They look great. I hadn't anticipated out much better they would make the whole thing look. We had gravel paths laid already, but the cement cobblestones give it a much more formal look. We still have to do the middle. That will be next week's task, after my legs forgive me.</div>
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Path in progress: </div>
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A Young Economist's Thoughtshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09840525016694780353noreply@blogger.com0