How Home Depot Tried to Screw Me - Today

Polly and I went to Home Depot to pick up our Armstrong flooring tiles for the kitchen. At that time we also special ordered 1bx of Armstrong flooring tiles (45) for the bathroom ($124.01).

On the way home, sun fell asleep. We decided to drive to Menard's in SheVegas - mostly because he needed some sleep. We met Mr. and Mrs. Michaels and their lovely in the aisles and, because of a remark they made, we checked the price on the Armstrong tiles at Menard's. We special ordered 1bx of Armstrong flooring tiles (45) for the bathroom ($42.30) and cancelled our order at Home Depot.

FU HD!

But Not Least

So, among the cool stuff and the not so cool stuff, there is this, an actual Speed Queen - not the laundromat or the BBQ...

Not to Toot

Just FYI... This house sold for $10,000 more than we paid for smelly house. Rumor has it, there is no working electric in that fabulous second floor. :)

Great Finds II

I love this steel wool package


I threw out the cushions but I love the shape of the chair


Just fun for a 50's BBQ


Can you have too many wash water basins?


My silverware will be in style!


Check out the fab door handle:


Love these!

Great Finds

Smelly House was not without its great finds. I have included photos of some below:

The kitchen - mostly my way...

As the existing kitchen cabinets were actually made by Polly’s grandfather (sun's great), they stay... and in their current configuration.



I will not lament this decision. I believe it to be a good one. These cabinets are the sort of plain but well built ones that we could not afford to buy in this day and age. Sun could easily hang off one of the shelves with no danger of it collapsing. I don't know if I have ever had such well built shelving.

However, they have also been sorely mistreated. I have had success with a product called “Paso”. Unfortunately, some areas will still need to be sanded. Below are some photos:

Drawer front before:


Drawer front after:



Cabinets Before:


Refinished front piece (on right)

Reflections on Smelly House

Because E4H (my HEART to greater loyalty) recently reflected on his 100 posts, I too, shall reflect on Smelly House:

• The hardest thing to believe is that we have been “in” for only 17 days. The first seven days were spent cleaning and packing RN’s belongings. On the 9th, we closed on Smelly House. That is only 10 days! 10 days to a completely different house.
• So different, in fact, that Sun has decreed that we are no longer allowed to call it Smelly House. He suggested that we name it “Smells Really, Really, Good House”. We compromised with “Little House”, as it is the name of one of his favorite books.
• All of the bedrooms are painted (touch-ups needed in the mint coloured room), the living room and hallway are painted (ceiling touch-ups needed), The bathroom floor is ripped up, and the windows have been cleaned (on the inside).
• Polly is mudding the unfinished closets - yes, in 55 years, no one got around to finishing those.

My thanks go out to:

Mo, Wonderland, and Gandalf – My absolutely unflappable catering/painting/cleaning/demo crew.

Polly Anna – thusly named because he seems to live in "Glad Town" where everything is lollypops and gumdrops - not because he is a little girl.

Below are some recent photos of the newly painted living room.

Before


After

petite ode à une araignée (small ode to a spider)

Displaced spider don’t look at me so,
It’s my home now you’ve got to go.

Disclaimer: The most common side-effects of prolonged exposure to paint fumes can
include eye, throat or lung irritations, headaches, dizziness, visual changes or
mild hallucinations.

Ways your toddler can help you with your remodel

• Close the door every time you leave with a load of garbage,
• Use the shop vac to suck up your piles of dirt,
• Use a rag to clean up paint drops, and
  
• Bring you the sandpaper.
  

Blast off!

We have hot water and a programmable thermostat! Polly Anna is my hero!

The Garbage Pile:

I wanted to take a photo showing the large pile of garbage outside smelly house. Unfortunately, during the time lag between taking loads to the curb, someone took the best (worst) chair and book shelf.

I feel so bad for whoever took that chair and put it in their house; they will wake up to the smell of body odor and illness. Worse than a night at the bar.

On that note, below are photos from each end of our line of garbage:

More Before Photos

Bedroom #3:


Bedroom #2



Bathroom:


Living Room:


Kitchen


Basement:

What the hell does it look like?

It took two weeks to get to view the house but we put in our offer the next day; as did the second person who looked at it. The two offers were accepted with our offer being primary. The secondary offer was for more $ but required a longer closing. We won the race - and still paid below list price!

Below are photos from the street and from google earth. Note: outline shows double lot.

The worst part is, they haven't done anything in 55 years...

So, in my first post you saw the new house when it was new. It is no longer new.

The first owner raised his family in this home and lived out his life in this home. His wife also lived her life in this home - thanks to the assistance of their youngest son: RN.

What follows is reported with no judgment. I encourage readers to reserve judgment as well. From all accounts, RN was an incredibly smart and kind man who faces his challenges in a non-traditional manner.

In the 7 or 8 years that has elapsed since RN's mother passed away, the house has fallen into a state that one may describe as "abandoned, with occupant". RN himself seem to have been bereft of hope. Cleaning and repairs suffered and the smell of the house was compounded by illness. That illness drove him to call 911 and he will not return to his house. RN is convalescing on ole Rocky Top.

Announcement: In case you were unsure, you are hard-down in half empty!

My small sun (the spelling is on purpose - light of my life and junk...) has named our house "Smelly House" and I have adopted the name as well. The dirt and grime are indescribable and probably unbelievable, although I have attached photos.

• To be bleached: Everything!!!!
  
• To be replaced: bathroom floor, bathroom faucets, shower head, tub surround, kitchen floor, counter top, refrigerator, oven, front door, door knobs/deadbolt.
• To be repaired: one light switch, kitchen drain, water heater, wall gouges.
  
• To be moved: all of RN's requested personal belongings and the financial paperwork of roughly a dozen local business and individuals for whom he worked.
• To be disposed of: anything fabric that RN doesn't want - plus so much more...
  
• To be added: water softener, washer, dryer, life, love, hope, commitment, and strength.
  

Kitchen cabinets


Piles of crap


Bathroom sink


Bathroom floor

Little house on a small planet

World's as big as a dime (as my dear friend Margie W. would say) and so is my new house. These are photos from 1953 - the year the house was manufactured/delivered/assembled. The photo on the left is taken from the front of the house and the photo on the right (forgive the quality) was taken as you approach from the east:


The house was built by M. Capp Manufacturing Company in MN. Capp-Homes were delivered in partially finished sections which were assembled on the site to form the roofed and enclosed shell of a house. Prefabricated materials to finish the interior of the house were supplied with the package. In other (hyphenated) words, mid-century, pre-fab.

Capp Homes was one of the largest packaged home businesses in United States. When the housing market became volatile in the early 80’s, Capp Homes left the industry and closed their doors never to reopen.

Below is the final bill for my home.




The Concrete walk, parking pad and drive were poured for an additional $30.00. They did not go "all out" for black top - at the sky-high price of $199.00.

A 1-1/2 car garage of unknown cost was erected (tee-hee) in 1966.