Thursday, July 20, 2006

Intermission

So it looks like the framing won't begin until next Tuesday. In the meantime, I'm meeting with Robin to select stain and paint colors. If I select the stain today, I might get to spend the weekend dipping shingles! I bet that's a real hoot. (Actually I'm looking forward to it. Ralph Wiggins voice: I'm helping!)

I've had a couple of meetings already with Robin (Schramer, Mark's wife & partner who is an interior designer) to select materials and design stuff for the house. It's pretty fun to pick things out, although it would be totally overwhelming without Robin's help. She knows what stuff costs, which of the 7 million not-quite-but-almost-the-same choices is the best deal, how long it lasts, how well it wears, what it's made from, where it comes from, what it looks good with, and all that important stuff. Which means I show up and she's already got a handful of colors or tiles or carpet swatches set out for me, and I don't have to go through the whole entire universe of options before I make a decision.

Earlier this week we did light fixtures. It's pretty amazing how much the price difference can be between two (or twenty) fixtures that look almost identical. One thing I'm sure of in this life: I will never think to myself "Damn, I sure wish I had a handblown Italian glass shade on the porch light."

Cheapskate that I am, I came in underbudget on light fixtures. Which is good, because we're sure to go overbudget somewhere else.

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