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April 13, 2012

It's a never-ending story


If all goes well, I should be done with my current project at my Mom's by mid-May. This is the project I started with my Dad, though there have a been a few changes since he's gone. He was adamantly opposed to redoing the floors, but my Mom was thrilled to at least have the carpets pulled. He had no plan to do the living room, but after seeing the holes left from rewiring he was finally convinced it had to be done. He planned to finish the bathroom himself, but that never happened. Luckily it's only a window and a bit of trim, which is easily added in on a slower day.

Dad decided we would not replace the molding on the 2nd floor, after pulling molding and baseboards for the electrical work. Mom would like that molding replaced, as well as baseboards and molding put in the kitchen. I've agreed to the project, but it's going to have to be done on weekends after I'm working again. I am uncomfortable giving up the time I am right now, when I could be studying to gain marketable skills. I can't leave her with the house in the state it's in, though. I have to finish what I started.

There are other projects in the wings as well. The fireplace in the living room needs work. The basement stairs never got a second coat of paint, and the stairwell never was repaired after the new stairs went in. The paint for the back porch has been in the garage since last summer. There's paint for the main staircase as well. The walls behind the radiators need repairing, which requires the radiators be pulled. The radiator boxes also need attention. Then there's the garden I agreed to help my Mom set up on the 2nd floor porch. There's no way the bunnies and deer will eat her produce up there!

I know when I get these things done, there will always be other things to do. The kitchen and hallway floors should be redone. The thresholds left over from the carpet still need replacing. Neither the door to the back hall, nor the door to the dressing room close all the way. These are all things my Dad planned to get to, at some point. I am not my Dad, though I am willing to take on the handyman role, at least to the extent of my knowledge. He taught me a lot, but he knew more, and I'm not capable of handling everything he managed over the years. I will not paint the outside of the house. I will not waterproof.  I will probably not attempt the utility room floor repair he planned.

Right now I'm focusing on finishing the first floor. And getting a job. And learning at least one programming language. Once those are done, we'll see about the rest.

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