I'm Back!

Today was my daughter's first day of camp, which meant it was time to work on her bedroom.  The weather started out rainy and overcast, but by 11am the sun was shining off and on and I took a chance that it wasn't going to pour all over my power tools and I set up for the day.  I went to T_____L____ and bought yet another load of 2x4's and away I went (more on my discovery at the lumber yard in a sec).  Today it finally looks as though there is progress being made.  I managed to do a couple of loads of bulk cuts rather than having to go up and down the stairs after each and every one.  I also stopped screwing everything down between cuts and just dry fitted as far as I could, which sped things up as well. 

Because I'm somewhat making this up as I go along, I haven't really been sure what the final product was going to look like.  Today I think I've got it mostly figured out.  You can now see where the two recessed bookcases are going to be located on the long side and there is a definite space for the proposed built in drawers on the short side.  Before I started I had thought that there would be two smaller bookcases on the long side and that the drawers would come out by the foot end of the long side as well.  However, once I started building, I realized that the drawers were just going to be much too long in that direction and it would make more sense to use that space for more books (since we don't have a television, we read a lot in our house).  The two things I'm still not 100% on are the ladder or steps to get onto the bed and whether or not I want or need to have side rails on this bed.  In regards to the ladder, I don't want it taking up too much room in an already tiny space and I don't want it to cover or hinder access to the shelves.  After looking at today's photo for a bit I think I may build a flush mounted ladder into the only empty space in the whole thing, on the short side of the bed.  It would be small, but take up next to no room and not block anything.  As for side rails, I don't really want them as it will close the space in quite a bit and putting sheets on the bed would then become a royal pain in the behind.  In one of our old places, my daughter had a metal bunk bed with a futon/double bed on the bottom and a single bed on top.  Trying to shove and smooth sheets on the top bunk drove me nuts!  There's always the option of using store bought temporary style bed rails, but they're really ugly, even if they don't require permanent fixings. 

Another point that has been bothering me is the fact that the top edge is quite thick and the bottom is thin.  The balance is effectively backwards and if I leave it this way it will mean that I won't be able to add baseboard around the bottom of the unit and it will become visually top heavy.  I knew that from the start but was loathe to change it because it would mean building up the bottom to at least equal the thickness of the top edge and this would cut into the amount of usable space for the bookshelves, not by all that much, but enough that it may mean the difference between having three useable shelves per side or only having room for two per side.  Today I convinced my self that there was no other option but to build up the bottom because I'll regret it later if I don't.  The unit will have no hope of looking built in if I can't install baseboard and I'll end up hating it, not a good thing after so much work and money going into it. 

Oh, I also have my "other" drill back which has been incredibly helpful.  Previously I was switching between a drill bit (for pilot holes) and the driver bit (to drive in the screws) for every single piece of wood.  I had blisters on my palm from the friction of the keyless chuck.  Now I can use one drill for pilot holes and one for screwing things together.  Heaven!  Many thanks to my Uncle D___ for diagnosing the problem with my "other drill" and getting it sorted for me. (In the photo below you can see where my daughter has tucked in one of her stuffed toys between the joists of the bed...at least someone is getting to sleep on it)

In other news, my grandparents came over last week and spent the day helping me figure out what were flowers and what were weeds in my garden.  Then they helped me pull out an enormous amount of weeds.  In exchange they got lunch and a swim in the pool.  I got the better end of the deal I'm sure!  I've got to take a photo tomorrow of how bare it is now.  Also, since my grandfather spent the whole day using the Fiskars long handled weeder on the lawn, the grass looks like grass again instead of a dandelion farm.  I can't tell you how thankful I am for the help and they may be attempting another round again next week which would be amazing to say the least.

Lastly, the pool has been great since the weather has been so hot and I haven't put the air conditioning on.  However, end of last week it developed a case of algae.  It cost me $60 in algaecide, shock and Alkadjuster to get rid of it.  I even went in with a scuba mask and scrubbed the sides down two days in a row just to be safe.  It was beautifully clear and clean up until today when I realized the darned algea is back.  I dosed it again with algaecide and I'll have to make sure to vacuum to waste tomorrow and completely backwash the filter to try and get rid of everything.  I can't believe that anything could grow in there with the amount of chemical I dumped in it mere days ago.  I think I'm single handedly killing the environment and it's making me feel rather guilty.  Also, since I had that mask on, I found two more small holes in the liner.  One in the same corner as the other, but at the very bottom edge and the other right at the bottom of the deep end.  I'm going to repair them while wearing latex gloves this time as I believe the glue that got on my fingers after the last repair made the skin peel off and look quite gross for weeks after.

   

Progess and a Bit of Peace

The Room As It Was Before We Moved In

I've patched the drywall which was therapeutic and familiar but having to move around the bed and bookcases was a pain.  There's simply too much "stuff" in this house and seeing my daughter's room stripped down made me consider getting rid of a lot of it.  It would be so nice to be stuff-less.  Also, I had such a hard time maneuvering the bookcases around I had to wonder if I'm starting to get old?  In my early twenties moving stuff like that was commonplace and seemed much easier.  If I get to my forties and find that I can't move a dining table or the sofa or some other such thing, what then?  If the old guy down the street can still look after his lawn and trim his hedge and haul his garbage to the curb every week surely I can move some measly furniture around within the next twenty years or so?  I also realized something, or I guess I remembered it.  Drywall compound is messy.  I didn't cover anything with drop cloths and though I didn't make a huge mess I did drop blobs of compound on various places on the floor, it's on my clothing and on my feet, which I've just had pedicured.  Now, I've seen pros do drywalling and plastering and all the ones I've seen are men and they make almost no mess at all (I suspect there must be women in these professions but I've never seen one).  As I scraped blobs of compound off the floor I wondered if those men are married and I also wondered if their wives complain about them making messes at home and that set me off on a whole tangent of marital relationships that ended with the idea that those men should invite their wives to try a hand at their jobs one day and see who makes a mess then.  Well, that's enough of that.  I've got some pictures of my progress so far, which isn't all that much really.

The top photo shows where the shelves were removed, the one on the bottom left is some of the damage after removing the wallpaper and the one on the bottom right is after my first pass of compound, but before sanding.  There are nail holes everywhere in this room.  I don't get it, some of them are really high up too which makes no sense to me.  Most of the damaged parts seem to be on outside walls, I don't know if that's coincidence or has something to do with the fact that the walls have little to no insulation in them.  I wish I had a wide angle lens to get a better view of the room.

DIY Blues

Morale is at an all time low these past few days. Progress is crawling rather than sprinting forward in leaps and bounds. I just can't get into this project when it has everything in it that I used to love doing. Planning, building, finishing and decorating. Honestly, I feel really alone. Maybe that's the bulk of the problem. I know what I want to do, I know how I should be doing it and yet, as one single person, I can't get it done.

It's raining today and that means no cutting wood outside. I could cut wood in the living room or kitchen but that would cause a huge mess and really, who wants more of a mess if there's a suitable alternative? I could also cut wood in the basement IF I could get the 8' 2x4's down the stairs and around the corners. But, the workshop area is in the laundry room and I'm currently doing laundry. Last time I used power tools down there I was cleaning sawdust out of the washer and dryer forever. I could also just cut the damned things with a hand saw but it now feel as though that would be cheating.

Once I get around to framing the bed, it'll be time for the MDF sheets that I'll need to finish it, along with some wood trim. The trim isn't the problem, the MDF is. Most smaller wood trim I can fit in the car, or walk home if I go across the street for it. MDF is big and flat and heavy. I can't get it in the car, as one person I can't walk it home and I don't want to have it ripped down to a size that will fit in the car. That would mean a ton more seams and extra work for me. I have nothing polite to say about my frustration. I also don't want to try and build a trolley to carry the sheets home either, I don't think that the 1x3's and 1/4" plywood pieces currently sitting at the side of the house waiting for the dump are going to be sturdy enough. You know what I need (aside from a few extra hands, more money and a large vehicle)? A GARAGE. I used to love working in the garage. You can store wood and supplies in there, you can cut and sand and paint and stain and you never have to worry about rain or laundry or making a mess unless there's a hole in your roof and you have a garage/laundry room combo...which I can't really see. You know what really bugs me? I could have the sheets delivered if I was desperate, or I could rent a van for an hour and get them loaded for me, but as a woman, I can't frigging unload them or even if I managed to drag them out of the vehicle I couldn't possibly manipulate them through the table saw. I'm starting to think that a man could do that, if he was strong enough. I guess that logic should also tell me that a woman who was of equal strength could do it as well. Neither scenario makes me any happier. There must be an alternative. Perhaps it is planning out all the cuts, going to the big box store and having them rip it for me at $1.00/cut and using a rental vehicle to get it home. Call me stubborn, but I don't want to do that. My mother was supposed to come here to help and bring her large vehicle with her but that plan is out the window too.

I went out this morning to get paint for the room. I brought along the fabric sample from the curtains so I could get a good match. I haven't painted anything in a long time. I painted one room last year and before that it had been at least five years. I went to C____T___ this morning because it's really close and I used to love their paint. The store nearest me has almost no selection and when I asked if they had any low VOC paint the guy working in the paint department had no idea what I was talking about. Last year I was talked into getting "low VOC" paint to try and help with paint fumes and air quality because I was painting my daughter's room (ironic) and I didn't want her to inhale nasty chemicals, did I? More on that in a sec. Now C____T___ has some paint that's $18 a gallon. That's a good price, but I left and drove all the way to H___D___ because they have a bigger selection and that's where I got that miraculous "low VOC" paint last year. I went to the paint department and asked for low VOC and you know what they told me this year? ALL paint (the base) is low VOC to start with, some are even no VOC. It's the tint that you have added that contains all the VOC's. So the darker the colour of paint, the higher the VOC content. There's nothing you can do about it. I had a great colour match for the fabric and was convinced by the staff that the all-in-one primer + top coat would be perfect for my needs and even though the pink I'm using is extremely dark it's supposed to cover in ONE COAT. It better, a gallon cost me $45.00 and I don't think I've ever paid that much for one can of paint, ever. I just never saw the need, as I said I shopped C___T___ and the paint always looked great. I also bought some semi-gloss white trim paint and that was $20 for a pint so all together, including the environmental charge for me buying the paint itself, it was $85.00. I also bought some ECO friendly recycled paint rollers that come in compostable packaging. That was supposed to make me feel better after having bought paint chock full of VOC's only it really didn't help me feel any better at all.

As I was using the self checkout I managed to get bright pink paint all over my hands and on my jeans. You know when they dab a bit of paint on the lid for you to see what the colour looks like after they've mixed it for you? It didn't dry. Luckily it was still raining and I stood in the parking lot using water from a puddle to clean myself. Yes. I did.

After all that I decided I really needed something to cheer me up and I went to the local Vietnamese restaurant for a lovely bowl of PHO soup. That, of all things, did help. I also got a call from my daughter, who is still in Vancouver. She wants me to wait until she returns to paint the walls because she wants to help. I asked if I could leave just one wall for her to do and she said no, ALL the walls. OK then. She just made my life easier and harder at the same time. Last time she "helped" me paint her room she spilled it on the carpet, twice, and got it all over herself. At least the carpet in her room has been removed and it's hardwood now.

I need to get my butt in gear and go patch the drywall and caulk and the trim...

Also...

the Scandinavian store took back the doors that they told me would fit my bookcase, without a fight. I was so relieved. I now have $150 to spend on something else to finish my daughter's room!

What a Day!

I cannot believe how slowly this project is going. I am having such trouble keeping within my self imposed deadline. I spent most of today stripping wallpaper in my daughter's bedroom and I was sweating like you would not believe. Yes, I have air conditioning. I have no idea if it actually works because I've never turned it on, but, I do have air conditioning. I'm not sure what the temperature was today but yesterday my car said it was 38 degrees outside. That's without the humidex. It also makes working on any kind of project feel like hell. The room is coming along in fits and starts but it's not what I was hoping for. I should be finished the wallpaper by tonight and that means that I have to start framing the built in bed tomorrow. I'll be completely honest here and admit that using the table saw scares the living daylights out of me. I don't want to do it, which seems silly since I shelled out quite a few bucks to buy the darned thing. I'm afraid of power tools....there, I said it. I know it seems weird for someone who proclaims to enjoy DIY to be afraid of power tools but there you have it.

When I was a teen my dad had me work on something (I have no idea what it was) that involved using a circular saw. I'd never used one before. He showed me how it worked, told me what he wanted and then went upstairs and left me to it. I started my first cut, hit a knot in the wood and the saw kicked back barely missing my arm. I can still feel the adrenaline and shock. He failed to inform me about kick back. I was shaking and he brushed it off with a laugh but I don't think I ever trusted a power tool since then. I haven't ever used a circular saw since (that I can think of). I know I need to "get over it". I know that the tools I have aren't going to randomly start cutting off my limbs and yet, I'm still afraid. It's like when I went to a shooting range and shot a 9mm. When the instructor handed me the gun and the ammunition I loaded it per his instructions and then was frozen in fear as though the thing was going to turn around in my hand and shoot me in the face. Totally irrational. Once I realized that the inanimate object in my hand was a tool like any other and would only do what I wanted it to I was fine. Sigh, I can totally see myself attempting to build this thing with a jig saw (something which I've used many times without error) and a drill. That's not who I want to be. I should really read up on things to avoid when using a table saw and just get it over with. If I practice proper diligence and take my time all will be fine.....after all, it's totally irrelevant that my friend's ex husband cut the tip of his finger off on his table saw, right?