1500 Days to Freedom

Think different and escape the rat race.

Happy Friday: Home remodeling edition

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We just finished this last weekend
What we did last weekend

Hey everyone, Mr. 1500 here with a rare Friday post. Actually, it’s a guest post on Planting our Pennies.

If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you know that I like to complain, especially on Thursdays. I’m not really an angry or unhappy person, but writing about my annoyances is therapeutic. Mrs. 1500 gets tired of hearing my ranting, so I turn my angst into words for your reading displeasure.

Today, I write about my home remodeling project. It has been a long battle. I had to fire one carpenter (“carpenter” used here in the loosest of terms). In the middle of the project, another carpenter discovered that his wife was cheating on him. There was a lot of yelling after that and he quit soon after.

Too much drama.

Despite the wayward contractors, I did much of the work myself, only hiring out the carpentry and drywall. I also have a full time job and two children who greatly enjoy tormenting each other. And then there is this blog. All of these things have consumed me for the past 2 years. Normal bedtime? Nope. Eight hours of sleep. Almost never. Frayed nerves and weight gain caused by a poor diet? Yep!

Lately though, I have a lot to be happy about. After almost two years of spending lots of money and time, I’m just about done. And it feels good. Click over to Planting our Pennies to read all about it.

 

house
Our house, before and after

 

I see that you’re still here. There is nothing more here to see. Please move along now. The Penny Planters are expecting you and they don’t appreciate tardiness. OK, I’ll show you one more picture:

IMG_3819It’s Spendosaurus passed out on the floor after an evening of drinking. He can be a very naughty dinosaur. Who needed to see this? Now please, click over to the Penny Planters. I promise you that they will show you no pictures of drunken dinosaurs.

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  2. Congrats on the renovations! I’ve helped friends & family with projects and know how good it feels to be done!

    • Thanks Kali! I’m still not done, but almost there. The rest of the work is the most fun though, so life is good.

  6. A do-it-yourself remodeling project can really, really take over your life.

    When I first earlier-retired, I made it my mission to get a lot of elements of our house upgraded/remodeled so we could sell it for a good profit and move to a more reasonable cost of living area. Talk about biting off more than one can chew. I spent the first year of my retirement working my tushy off 4 or more hours a day pulling up carpet, putting down parquet flooring, installing siding, and so on and so on… climaxing with the complete conversion of an outdoor deck into an enclosed dining room.

    In the end, everything worked out and we had a successful house sale. But…

    I’m much older and wiser now :O. Next time — if there is one — I’m hiring some professional help.
    Retired To Win Alex recently posted…How I Found Where to Draw The Line on SpendingMy Profile

    • “Next time — if there is one — I’m hiring some professional help.”

      We have hired some stuff out in the past and almost every time, it ends horribly! I’m astounded by just how hard it is to find good help! We started our project in June and I couldn’t find decent carpenter until November. Initially, I made a list and called about 50 different people. Less than five called me back. Two agreed to look at the plans. Neither of them wanted the job.

      I didn’t know how to do plumbing or electricity a year ago. I do now, just because its easier to deal with it myself than to bother with someone. Perhaps it’s a regional issue? Shortage of labor here in Colorado?

      At least I have some sweet skills now! 🙂

      • Hi there! I saw in the pictures that you installed your hardwoods, how easy was that to do? And if you had to do it again, would you pay for someone to have it installed or go the DIY method? Thanks!

        • They go in really easy and I’d never pay anyone for it. We bought a flooring nailer, but you can also rent them. Email me through the Contact page if you want more detail.