Harvest Home

It's that time of year again. Mabon falls on this weekend, and the last slice of the year is right behind it. Samhain will be here before we know it, and then the new year. It's exciting and a little daunting to look back over the last year and see what did or didn't get done.

Most of what didn't get done falls under arts & crafts, hobbies and that catch-all "Misc." Some of it is substantial, and the more notable casualties of this busy year have been organizational goals like divesting myself of the extra stuff around the house. I sent one bag of old clothes to Amvets, and I keep sorting bits of technology into the Computer Graveyard (box in the office closet), but it's not enough. Six months in and we're only just today ordering the filing cabinets we need to make heads or tails of the office despite having the desks, computers, networking issues, and peripherals sorted out since April (and extra space to host LAN events). The guest room is half-full, the master closet is full of unpacked items, and the garage room is full, too!

Then there's the list of unexpected things that complicated the year. Two-week trips to North Carolina, each month, for four months running (followed by a two-week stint in Boston the very next month) immediately come to mind. Three bouts of a strange immuno-hysteria and two killer common colds didn't make life any easier, either.

I continue to fail at living up to my mother's capacity to put a gourmet meal on the table each night while being busy all day every day.

On the other side of the same coin, this year has been one of great progress and many successes. I did not plan on meeting M, managing a long-distance courtship while living in the same city (go travel schedules!), moving in together, etc. I did not expect to have another set of family gatherings to work into our holidays (heh), or Big Things to plan. M has been a wonderful boon and unexpected joy, not to mention a huge help. :)

My career has been measurably pushed forward, thanks to this monstrous project. I've identified myself as an asset, not a liability, and it's nice to be recognized for it.

Another huge success... I have a house! And the house, alone, has its list of to-do, want-to-do, completed, and in-progress goals. Having a mortgage payment and fixer-upper improvements to do has not eliminated our capacity to save for a rainy day, future expenses and projects, or special treats. Getting through escrow was a trial in and of itself, thanks to my aggressive travel schedule and a bank-owned property. I definitely stretched my boundaries of what I can/can't handle; I wasn't giving myself enough credit (or enough down-time).

My dad keeps telling me to take pictures and make notes of what we do around the house, because one day I'll catch myself saying "we really haven't done that much around here..." and I'll be crazy if I think that. So, from the start, this is everything I remember doing or having done at the house:

Removed grapes, mirrors, vertical blinds, valences from living, dining, kitchen
Repaired & patched walls
Removed old stove & hood
Vacuumed up super scary giant spider living in utility room all by myself because M was traveling
Removed shelving, primed & painted utility room
Scrubbed floors for utility room & kitchen
Painted kitchen, refinished cabinets in kitchen
Removed "kitty door" and rebuilt screen to keep out mice (utility room)
Rebuilt screen for kitchen exhaust
Filled holes in walls with steel wool (at gas stub to dryer, range, at old water heater drain pipe, etc)
Installed new range hood
Installed new appliances -- fridge, range, washer dryer
Rebuilt hot/cold water hook-ups in utility room
New shut offs under every sink
Rebuilt both toilets
Rebuilt shelf under kitchen sink
New shut off for house water line
Replaced hose bibs at front & back yards
Primed & painted living room
Primed & painted office
Removed vine from office window (was growing in through screen)
Primed & painted 2 walls of master bedroom (equal to one smaller room)
Cleaned carpets (before moving in)
Disabled faulty house alarm system
Stripped wallpaper trim, primed & painted lower half of dining room (red), primed upper half of dining room
Installed new blind in living room
Replaced latches & locks on both gates
Found main cable line, routed to office
New tub spout & shower head in master bath (missing at close of escrow)
Removed trampoline tarp, springs, & pads
Disassembled 1/2 of the the Stone Circle
Cut out plum suckers (thicket)
Waged war with the Dandelion Army Offensive
Installed Pressure Regulator on house water line
Installed RO system, plumbed to ice maker
GFI at kitchen outlet (brings kitchen up to code)
New fan in hall bathroom

We've also acquired:
New office desks & chairs
Dining table & chairs
Hand-me-down patio furniture (from Dad & Pam)
Weber grill
M's rocking chair (from his mom)
Various and sundry yard and power tools

And we've gotten rid of:
The White Cabinet

So if you've wondered where I've been all year... that's what I've been up to. Travel, Work, House, M, Family and Friends when we can work them in, and always looking towards the next big to-do list. Let's see what we can tackle next year!