Look, an Actual Room!

February 8, 2022 This is very exciting stuff for us. Just a few guys can make so much progress so quickly…. but then, you look around and see how much there actually is to do! I was talking to them about it, and asking if it seems overwhelming knowing how much more there is left to do, and their take on it is always “one day at a time, you eat the elephant one day at a time”. And while yes, you have to keep planning what comes next, doing quality work and accomplishing goals each day is what makes the big jobs seem manageable. It is an excellent way to approach a lot of things (I definitely need to take lessons!).

The drywallers are starting on the main floor with the bathroom, entryway and media room, and will be going up from there. They want to get a good amount up quickly, so Dave can start mudding. Dave is here doing some of the drywall today, but he tells me he is actually a “mudder” and is only hanging drywall under duress. He also says he is “retired” and is working this particular job to get his Florida vacation money (the other guys rolled their eyes at this). 🙂

The Media Room takes shape. They hung drywall over the door, then cut out the doorway. I didn’t want to interrupt the flow to ask questions, even though I am continuously curious – how do they know where the door frame was, precisely? Maybe they just measure and snap lines, but however they do this stuff, they just cut, snap and pop, it all happens pretty fast! Meanwhile, the hall closet is now filled with buckets of joint compound, tape and all the things that will soon make our Mudder Dave happy. 🙂

Now for some family pics – Bob’s here for a short trip, so even though he is stressed and tired from work and travel, I am insisting on giving him an authentic NH winter experience. He is not (yet) a snowshoe enthusiast, but there is a good crust under the fresh snow and hiking in the woods is great. I’ve been checking my pocket guide of animal tracks for what wildlife is about, as there have been local sightings of wildcats, but more likely common rabbits and probably a dog in the mix too. It is fascinating and fun trying to decipher the secret lives and struggles of the woodlands. I also thought we should get out a few nights during a long cold winter, and I surprised him with tickets to a UNH Hockey game (Go Wildcats!) and to a Seacoast Repertory production of The Music Man, which was classic non-stop fun, music and laughs. It was our first theater since before the pandemic and we do love musicals. By the end of the weekend, Bob was happy and relaxed, and glad we did it all. And meanwhile, our daughter Hannah was in Dallas for a visit with Josh, Parker and little Scarlett, who is remains 100% cute as ever. 🙂

Meanwhile, we can’t stop thinking about the fireplace and surround. What should it be? Stone, drywall, tile? What about the hearth? Should there be one? What a puzzle. We have no idea…. (About the ceiling, either!) We must be the most indecisive “designers” ever, but we are figuring out what we don’t want, and keep hoping that the right answers will magically reveal themselves in good time (or at least time enough)!