Well Said!

This made me laugh. And cry.

While witnessing, but not participating in, the home real estate frenzy in 2005 and 2006, I kept asking: Who is the idiot buying up all these mortgages issued on inflated home prices to all these people who have neither the capacity nor the intention to repay the loans?

Now I learn it was me.

TED THACKER
Ann Arbor, Mich.

Home Again

I returned from my vacation at Cape May on Friday night. There’s not much to tell about the week, other than that it was wonderfully relaxing. I spent most days relaxing on the beach, reading or listening to music, or browsing around the town, enjoying the quaint shops and unique sights. Sadly, the beaches and many of the parks had “No Dogs Allowed” signs posted, but Ernie and I still enjoyed several long, leisurely walks each day.

Many thanks to my Aunt Judy and Uncle Al for allowing us to stay at their lovely home!

Mission Accomplished

After many hours of work, much more than anticipated, including three hours of sweating, cursing and contorting to put up the new light fixture, my bathroom project is complete.

Before:

After:

Cape May and relaxation, here I come!

Let there be light

Next time I have the bright idea of replacing a light fixture (pun intended), someone please take the drill out of my hand, stick it in my ear and pull the trigger.

On Holiday

I'm officially on vacation. Well, I actually have a bit of work to wrap up today that I didn't get to last week, so I'll take care of that and then be done with work for two weeks. Two weeks!

Work has been complete chaos for the last few weeks, so it's not really registering that I don't have to do things on a strict schedule now. For instance, I just caught myself anxiously thinking, "Okay, I have to put in a load of laundry, then walk Ernie before it gets too hot, then make a list of things I need to get at Lowe's. Oh! Don't forget to call the chiropractor to make an appointment..." Sheesh! I want to smack myself and say, "Settle down!" It may take another day or two to get in vacation mode.

The first half of vacation will be spent re-doing the half bath on my main floor. I've been living with a Pepto-pink and teal bathroom since I bought the house over a year ago and I can't take it anymore:
Gross, ain't it? So far, I've replaced the ridiculous wooden toilet seat and done all of the prep work for painting: took down the ugly cabinet and mirror, removed the hardware from the walls, took down the hideous floral border, puttied the nail holes, etc. Now it's time to prime and paint. My colors are Oregon Coast and Wild Hawk. Geez, I sound like Julia Roberts' character, Shelby, in Steel Magnolias, talking about the color theme for her wedding:

Shelby: My colors are blush and bashful.
Shelby's mama: Her colors are pink and pink.

So, this week, I'll prime, paint, put up a new shelf, mirror and lighting fixture, add a few accents and voila! No more Pepto bathroom.

Then I'll go to PA to spend a few days with my folks, before heading to Cape May with Ernie next week. I'm looking forward to lazy days at the beach, swimming, reading, napping as necessary.

Ah, I'm already feeling more relaxed just thinking about it....