Money pit
You know that movie, The Money Pit? The one where Tom Hanks and Shelley Long buy a big old, dillapidated house and hilarity ensues when the thing practically falls down around them? Well, our new house is having a bit of that vibe. This weekend, what started out as a minor project to hang curtains took two days. I had to stand on couch arms and shaky dining chairs. Then I missed the 2x4 by a quarter inch, which sent us off for molly bolts that we didn't have. (The silver lining on that is $300 in curtains we bought the day before were now on sale, so we got $60 back.) I got curtains up on all four windows, but one of them is crooked and needs to be moved. It's not a good idea to measure down from the ceiling when the ceiling is completely unlevel. I also need to hem all of them because of the baseboard heaters along the floor. I'm not sure if I actually finished a single project all weekend long. B tried to replace the ugly medicine cabinet, which exposed the wiring for the fan, which caused him to start a (so far) four day adventure in re-wiring the house. It appears that Billy Jim Bob that used to own the house did some creative home wiring. Thank the goddess B is a handy man. This would cost us a bloody fortune to hire someone for, instead of the small fortune it's costing now. And just for fun, the following are experiencing technical difficulties......... The broiler element on our brand new stove is not working. The washing machine only has hot water running to it. (Shrinky dink sweaters, anyone???) The dryer tumbles, but has no heat. The cable internet has been down since Sunday. B has been told to stay home for two days now because his boss has no work for him. On one hand, he is able to work on the holes in the walls and ceiling of the bathroom and get the live wires sticking out everywhere in a more safe configuration. On the other hand, he is not getting paid and we just mailed our first big mortgage payment. I think I'm getting an ulcer..............
I hope this all works out for you! My hubby is pretty handy as well, but we haven't run into any major problems yet. I try to leave the house when he starts a project, then he can't take out any frustrations on me!
Posted by Pittchick | 3/28/2006 03:05:00 PM
That's a good idea! I may have to try that. Of course, he's been home alone for two days and hasn't seemed to get much done. I might need to be there to crack the proverbial whip!
Posted by Mind Sprite | 3/28/2006 05:09:00 PM
Oy chicken I hope that things turn around.
Posted by Chicken | 3/29/2006 07:18:00 AM
Did you guys get a building inspection done before you closed? The reason I am asking is because they might have caught the wiring thing and been able to help you lower the price to cover the cost of doing all that work...
I hope you get some stuff checked off your list and things shaped up how you want them.
Posted by ... | 3/29/2006 09:31:00 AM
We knew the wiring was bad. The house was a foreclosure short sale and was sold "as is". The home inspector did NOT, however, catch that the cold water feed to the washing machine didn't work.
Posted by Mind Sprite | 3/30/2006 08:57:00 AM
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