New York Renovator

I came to the computer this morning and saw this.

*snort* !!!

Have a great week, friends.

Guest post written by Robin Powers

I love going thrifting and finding all kinds of little things to go in my home that would otherwise cost way too much in a store. That’s how I’ve decorated most of my home and it’s an interior decorating tactic that I’m going to keep using. I recently picked up an ottoman that I knew had all kinds of potential that I couldn’t wait to uncover.

I went online to see if I could find some good ideas for refurbishing the ottoman and saw some HVAC Deals . Spring, or I guess I should say summer, is just around the corner and I think that it’s time to replace our current system. It was definitely on its last leg around August.

I’m so excited to see the final result of my little thrift store ottoman makeover. I bought some great upholstery fabric that matches our living room decor and I think it’s going to be perfect for some extra seating and a little place to put our feet when we’re watching TV.

Have you been seeing an increasing amount of homes for rent in your area? I have been reading news reports of increased Edmonton rentals and other such phenomena (lol) across the board. I think it’s related to the “housing bust,” what say you?

Here, rentals are BIG. I live in a relatively “rural” area close to a big city. I say the area is relatively rural because it sure doesn’t seem very rural. The population is probably under 1,000, but there are no rural gaps between the neighboring townships. Way back when, when settlers were first building around here, they discovered the amazing power of hydropower, and built a ton of mills around the many fast-flowing creeks nearby. The mills brought workers, who needed homes, and so homes were built up and down the creek. After 200 years, you can imagine how crowded the creek areas got…. so it’s often difficult to tell where one town ends and another begins because there is no visual gap between the municipalities. As a matter of fact, some municipalities even share or double up on services— for example, our area gets mail delivered by TWO different post offices. :S It’s confusing.

My area also doesn’t seem very rural because there are a LOT of rental houses here. We see people coming from the big city, finding cheap apartments here. And of course, crime usually follows. Plus, the rental homes here are not anywhere near as attractive and well kept up as. These houses are usually one wind storm away from collapse, and yet landlords seem to make the money. ???

Personally, I greatly dislike the growing switch from home ownership to rental buildings. It’s not good for the country, politically, economically, and morally. I think that a top-heavy renting population generally feels less connected to the country and local events, and has less interest in community pride, voting, etc. America was once the land of dreams, where a person could OWN land and not be enslaved to the feudal system of Old Europe. What’s your opinion?

First house

Contributed by Milford Woods

Well, I just signed my life away on a dotted line….or at least the next 30 years of my life. I just bought a house. My very first house. Am I even grown up enough to do that? I might should have let the bank know that I still sleep with a night light. Oh well. Here I am….a homeowner. Bye-bye annoyingly loud neighbors that live above me. I am so excited to not have to hear you vacuuming your floors at 1 o’clock in the morning. I still have a few things left to buy to decorate my new house but hopefully all the furniture from my apartment will fill the rooms in my house nicely. I just need to transfer all my services to my new house, except my internet provider. I had a friend at work tell me about http://www.wildbluedeals.com/ so I am going to cancel my current account with my internet company and switch to them. Once I get all settled in, I’m going to beg my brother to agree to come cut my grass once a week in the summer for a nice, home-cooked meal.

Strange neighbors

Guest written by our friend Mason Abbott

My wife and I love our neighborhood, but there has recently been some suspicious activity in and around our home. The people in the house three doors down from us keep very odd hours, and they are always having people over at the strangest times of the day. It is not that they are having parties. They will have one or two cars stop by at different times all day, every day. On several occasions I have walked out of my driveway on the way to work to see police cars parked in front of their house. My wife and I decided to buy a home security family plan because of this activity. We love the house we live in and the neighborhood as a whole, but I want to ensure the safety of my children. We are very good friends with our next-door neighbors, and we have had several discussions about this issue. We are all concerned that this activity may bring down the overall quality of the neighborhood. My hope is that these neighbors will move out soon, and we will no longer have to deal with this issue.

Times are tough

Guest written by our friend Mason Abbott

Saving money is tough but my husband and I decided we were going to find a way to make it work. We really cared about being able to put something away for our kids and although things have gotten tight at times it’s crucial for us that we get a college account going for them to use when they get older. We looked into Texas Electricity Providers and Information and actually considered moving into a smaller home to save on the mortgage but the market’s too bad to sell right now. I stopped getting coffee out and we’ve been cooking at home a lot more so all in all it’s been a really downhill battle for us to out away a couple hundred dollars a month. I think I should be getting a raise soon and that’s going to really help when it comes to putting extra away. We decided we’re not even going to touch that money, just store it in the account so it’s there for the kids.

On occasion, I feature a guest post on this blog if it contains information that may be useful.

The Author of this post is Velma Baird

Who would have guessed moving into a new townhome would be so much work! I figured that with a one bedroom I wouldn’t have that much stuff but when I went to pack this place up I realized how many things I’ve accumulated over the last 5 years! I had to do so much work to purge all the junk I didn’t need and in the end I called some movers to help me box the rest up which was the best $1000 I ever spent if you ask me. It took me a long time to get the new place all set up and decorated (thanks for the help, mom!) and I went online to Compare WildBlue and Dialup when I moved in and was deciding on internet. I’m glad I spent so much effort getting it perfect, though, since I really like being there now and I can’t imagine living anywhere else. There’s nothing like being a homeowner and if anyone asked me I would say it’s totally worth every bit of hassle you have to go through!

I’m doing a lot of armchair traveling this year, I tell you.

Exercise, what’s that? Oh yeah, the thing that cures diet pills, uh huh.

Well, the Hubs just assembled, primed and painted two new Adirondack chairs and — let me tell you — they are some of the most comfortable chairs ever. I wrote an article on them last month. The history is fascinating. About a hundred years ago, a wealthy vacationer (to the Adirondacks, you guessed it!) named Thomas Lee suddenly found himself devoid of lawn chairs for his large family, and attempted to build his own. He created many prototypes, asking his 26-member family to try them all out and vote for the best. The family unanimously voted for this type of chair: the back reclines slightly and the knees are elevated above the hips. Wide armrests beg to hold big icy glasses of tea or lemonade. His chair was a hit. Lee gave his design to a local carpenter, Harry Bunnell, who needed some work for the winter. But the carpenter patented the design himself and started a business, building and selling the chairs, flourished with his own signature. Not very nice. Bunnell manufactured Adirondack chairs for 20 years, made from local hemlock and inscribing his name on each. I suppose the chairs, if any exist, are collector’s items, eh?

Mine are made in China from cheapo pine. But they are comfy nonetheless.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a lot of lounging to do. Happy weekend.

It’s almost July. Ya think I should be getting back to the garden and home renovation projects yet?

We purchased an air conditioner. Hurray! It’s the first air conditioner I’ve ever had. It’s the window kind, so we’ve been having *fun* trying to fit it into our old 1855 window frame…. more on that to come. We’re still working on a unique shelf that juts out from the window, upon which will sit the A/C’s bulky butt. Man, those things are bulky. I guess they have to be.

I’m also starting to take more time off from work. I try to get my writing assignments done by the time I have to cook dinner. I don’t always make my goals, and sometimes I wind up staying up much later than I like. But at least I’m not working non-stop anymore.

Gardening is on my mind lately. I bought some hostas and a few blackberry bare roots (all died but one). I have to plug them in sometime.

And of course, I have a lot of loose ends to finish up after last year’s renovation. I still haven’t completed that kitchen bench. And my living room/office needs a lot of decorating help. I have Ethernet and VGA cables strung about everywhere. I dislike cords all over the floor. :-p My intention is to build a very nice modern office with updated equipment (i.e., an i7 core computer with slick video graphics array or DVI cables, and… *sigh* yeah) with nice furniture and orderly shelves! I can see it all in my mind’s eye. Reality is another matter, lol.

All in good time.

How are your summer projects going? Or are you one of those lucky persons that have no projects???

*sigh* To Do Lists....

Sometime in the near future (after we get new windows and fix the front porch and maybe paint the house, lol), we’re going to build a very nice deck in the back of the house. Right now, we currently have no where to sit in the evenings, just the asphalt lot in the backyard (and have I ever mentioned how much I hate asphalt??) and the grass with the ever-encroaching weeds. A deck would be so very nice. I’ll have my grill on there. I’ll build big planters along the perimeter, to hold all my herbs and lettuce for salads. I’ll have a gathering of Adirondack chairs and a nice wooden table. I’ll maybe even splurge and get a few of those cool-looking, South American torch light thingys made from bamboo. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll get something like one of those outdoor patio umbrellas:

Actually, the style does not go with my old house– but then again, old houses didn’t have decks, either. It’s quirky enough for me to like it. Maybe I could even string a few cocoanuts from the thing! Talk about a conversation piece! LOL

It’s actually synthetic thatch. They don’t use *real* thatch for tiki umbrellas anymore, and good thing. The real stuff got moldy, old, and was flammable. This synthetic stuff is water and weather resistant and can be reused. They also have poolside cabanas and a very exotic-looking tiki bar (which would be a great gift for dad for Father’s Day, actually). The umbrella is very unique– it is a DIY kit and you can secure it to a wooden or even concrete deck (how about asphalt? :-p). The canopy span in 11 feet, and the wood is all cedar! It’s pretty high quality. And, of course, it shades the hot sun from scorching your skin.

Seriously, the models are probably more suited for a commercial establishment or a beachside home. But a girl can dream, can’t she?