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Eek! What have I done?
Nov. 7th, 2007 12:02 pmomighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
Legal's all done, money's all done, just gotta go pick up the keys - I'm meeting the builder at 1 to do so.
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
this panic attack brought to you by omighodijustboughtahouse!
..deep breath...
OMIGHODIJUSTBOUGHTAHOUSE! Yippee!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
Legal's all done, money's all done, just gotta go pick up the keys - I'm meeting the builder at 1 to do so.
omighodijustboughtahouse!
omighodijustboughtahouse!
this panic attack brought to you by omighodijustboughtahouse!
..deep breath...
OMIGHODIJUSTBOUGHTAHOUSE! Yippee!
I went up to the site today, for a walk through of my house with the builder.
It's coming along really fast. Most of the structural work is done, now - HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and wiring are pretty much complete, with the tubs going in later today.
There's blown-in insulation around the windows (good!), and vents in all the bathrooms and the laundry room (also good). Casement windows (now all matching! unlike two weeks ago, when one lone window had a different grid pattern on it) are good, and the bulkhead is already up in the kitchen, so I can measure how deep the bulkhead over the fridge actually is.
They can't start doing the real insulation until the electrical has passed inspection (they're just waiting on the inspector to show up and do it), but there will be blown-in stuff in the attic, and in the garage, with a nice, high R-factor.
They're also expecting to have the lots on the street sodded, and the street itself properly paved (including the first coat on the driveways) before closing. This is a relief - I wasn't particularly looking forward to pups full of mud all winter long. *g*
The only bad news to me is that the laundry never got flipped (I wanted the washer on the left, and it's on the right), but that's really my own fault - it was a last minute, casual call, and not really any kind of documented request.
But there's real progress, and a real house! W00t!
( Pic! )
It's coming along really fast. Most of the structural work is done, now - HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and wiring are pretty much complete, with the tubs going in later today.
There's blown-in insulation around the windows (good!), and vents in all the bathrooms and the laundry room (also good). Casement windows (now all matching! unlike two weeks ago, when one lone window had a different grid pattern on it) are good, and the bulkhead is already up in the kitchen, so I can measure how deep the bulkhead over the fridge actually is.
They can't start doing the real insulation until the electrical has passed inspection (they're just waiting on the inspector to show up and do it), but there will be blown-in stuff in the attic, and in the garage, with a nice, high R-factor.
They're also expecting to have the lots on the street sodded, and the street itself properly paved (including the first coat on the driveways) before closing. This is a relief - I wasn't particularly looking forward to pups full of mud all winter long. *g*
The only bad news to me is that the laundry never got flipped (I wanted the washer on the left, and it's on the right), but that's really my own fault - it was a last minute, casual call, and not really any kind of documented request.
But there's real progress, and a real house! W00t!
( Pic! )
I went up to the site in Stouffville on Friday, since there was a rumour floatin' around that the builders were gonna start on my side of the street late last week. The good news? They have dug the holes (I have a hole in the ground! woo-hoo!).
( Pictures of the beginning )
( Pictures of the beginning )
Debate of the night: Gas or Electric?
Jan. 8th, 2007 10:40 amThere are aspects to this whole "building a new place" thing that are really hard to figure out, y'know? M & I got into quite the discussion, last night, on the Gas or Electric debate. The furnace and fireplace are going to be natural gas, and I'm planning on having a natural gas line run for a BBQ, too, but I balk on doing the same for the stove and the dryer.
A gas stove cooks quicker and hotter, and having a gas stove also means always being able to cook during a blackout (as does the gas BBQ, I guess). Gas prices, are to me, however, a lot more uncertain that electricity prices. Gas is more efficient, and possibly cheaper in the long run - but is it better environmentally? Besides, gas just makes me uneasy. That, I know, is crazy - the gas is there, already, for the furnace, the fireplace, and the BBQ. But gas burners means the possibility of simple carelessness causing a fire, and that doesn't happen - as much, anyway - with electric. I'm seriously waffling on the gas stove, but I'm starting to think it's likely that's the way I'll go.
Then, we got into it about a gas clothes dryer. I really, really don't want to run gas to the second floor of the house. It's bad enough that I'm running it to the first floor. And that comes down to straight fear, I know. A gas dryer would cost a little more, up front, but it seems to be much more efficient.
How unreasonable is that fear? I keep having visions of my nice new house exploding into a fireball because I've made some silly little mistake. CO monitors will be installed, so I'm not really worried about us dying in our sleep because of carbon monoxide poisoning. My real concerns are fire, and long-term costs, both to my pocketbook and to the environment. Anybody know of some good, impartial research on the true efficiency of gas vs. electric for appliances? I found one guy who'd done the math on the difference for dryers, and I've saved a copy of his spreadsheet to fill it in with local utility figures, but I have no idea how good his assumptions are.
A gas stove cooks quicker and hotter, and having a gas stove also means always being able to cook during a blackout (as does the gas BBQ, I guess). Gas prices, are to me, however, a lot more uncertain that electricity prices. Gas is more efficient, and possibly cheaper in the long run - but is it better environmentally? Besides, gas just makes me uneasy. That, I know, is crazy - the gas is there, already, for the furnace, the fireplace, and the BBQ. But gas burners means the possibility of simple carelessness causing a fire, and that doesn't happen - as much, anyway - with electric. I'm seriously waffling on the gas stove, but I'm starting to think it's likely that's the way I'll go.
Then, we got into it about a gas clothes dryer. I really, really don't want to run gas to the second floor of the house. It's bad enough that I'm running it to the first floor. And that comes down to straight fear, I know. A gas dryer would cost a little more, up front, but it seems to be much more efficient.
How unreasonable is that fear? I keep having visions of my nice new house exploding into a fireball because I've made some silly little mistake. CO monitors will be installed, so I'm not really worried about us dying in our sleep because of carbon monoxide poisoning. My real concerns are fire, and long-term costs, both to my pocketbook and to the environment. Anybody know of some good, impartial research on the true efficiency of gas vs. electric for appliances? I found one guy who'd done the math on the difference for dryers, and I've saved a copy of his spreadsheet to fill it in with local utility figures, but I have no idea how good his assumptions are.
The state of me
Dec. 20th, 2006 04:14 pmThis week has been about colour, and music, and a smushed-up car. Doesn't it sound like fun?
Saturday morning, I actually dyed my hair back to a single colour, as close as possible to my natural colour. M's first reaction - "That colour really suits you!". Heh. He's only seen my natural colour once, the night we met. The first time we went out, it was all multi-coloured, with lots of blonde and red in it.
We went to the Mattamy Design Center on Sunday, to start looking around at tiles and paint and carpet and options and... it's more than a little overwhelming. The current plan is to pick the base paint and carpet colours, and then go one room at a time, choosing tiles and cabinetry an all the other stuff I need to choose. Looking at it all at once, it is really, really overwhelming. *g* And scary. So many decisions to make! I can't choose a restaurant when going out for a meal. How am I supposed to pick all this stuff?!??! Could be an interesting few months.
Then on Monday, on my way home from work, I got into a little bit of a smash-up on the 404. I'm fine - everyone involved seemed to be fine, thank God - but my car is a little smushed. There were four cars that had to be towed away, but I was behind them. Kind of a separate accident related to the first, I guess. The woman in front of me had the accident happen right in front of her, and managed to stop in time. My brakes aren't as good as hers, apparently, and I didn't manage to stop before hitting her. Her car has some scratches on the hard case spare tire cover, while my hood is dented and bent from the contact. It's a good thing her tire was so high up - the contact appears to have only affected the hood, the car frame is fine. I'll be getting that fixed in the New Year.![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lordzowy managed to pop his kneecap sidestepping debris, as he was helping another driver out of her car. He's on crutches right now, but hopefully he'll be okay, soon. Everyone else was up and walking around, talking to the cops and each other, so at least it wasn't too bad.
Last night was my final in the C# course I was taking at George Brown. I think it went pretty well, but I guess I'll have to wait and see the marks to be sure. *g*
That was followed up by Yuletide Singing Night at chezmycrazyhair. Now, that was a lot of fun! I had a great time, hamming it up during the The Twelve Days of Christmas and It's beginning to look a lot like Fish-men! 'Twas a lot of fun. *g* I do like singing in a group.
Today, I have approximately 15000000 things to do before heading coming to work in the morning, including: apartment cleaning, getting to the bank, wrapping gifts, finishing the sweater for Chloë and packing for the trip home. Will I get it all done at a reasonable hour? Somehow, I doubt it. Tonight's gonna be another night of very little sleep, I think. Oh well, I can sleep in Friday morning!
Saturday morning, I actually dyed my hair back to a single colour, as close as possible to my natural colour. M's first reaction - "That colour really suits you!". Heh. He's only seen my natural colour once, the night we met. The first time we went out, it was all multi-coloured, with lots of blonde and red in it.
We went to the Mattamy Design Center on Sunday, to start looking around at tiles and paint and carpet and options and... it's more than a little overwhelming. The current plan is to pick the base paint and carpet colours, and then go one room at a time, choosing tiles and cabinetry an all the other stuff I need to choose. Looking at it all at once, it is really, really overwhelming. *g* And scary. So many decisions to make! I can't choose a restaurant when going out for a meal. How am I supposed to pick all this stuff?!??! Could be an interesting few months.
Then on Monday, on my way home from work, I got into a little bit of a smash-up on the 404. I'm fine - everyone involved seemed to be fine, thank God - but my car is a little smushed. There were four cars that had to be towed away, but I was behind them. Kind of a separate accident related to the first, I guess. The woman in front of me had the accident happen right in front of her, and managed to stop in time. My brakes aren't as good as hers, apparently, and I didn't manage to stop before hitting her. Her car has some scratches on the hard case spare tire cover, while my hood is dented and bent from the contact. It's a good thing her tire was so high up - the contact appears to have only affected the hood, the car frame is fine. I'll be getting that fixed in the New Year.
lordzowy managed to pop his kneecap sidestepping debris, as he was helping another driver out of her car. He's on crutches right now, but hopefully he'll be okay, soon. Everyone else was up and walking around, talking to the cops and each other, so at least it wasn't too bad.Last night was my final in the C# course I was taking at George Brown. I think it went pretty well, but I guess I'll have to wait and see the marks to be sure. *g*
That was followed up by Yuletide Singing Night at chez
mycrazyhair. Now, that was a lot of fun! I had a great time, hamming it up during the The Twelve Days of Christmas and It's beginning to look a lot like Fish-men! 'Twas a lot of fun. *g* I do like singing in a group.Today, I have approximately 15000000 things to do before heading coming to work in the morning, including: apartment cleaning, getting to the bank, wrapping gifts, finishing the sweater for Chloë and packing for the trip home. Will I get it all done at a reasonable hour? Somehow, I doubt it. Tonight's gonna be another night of very little sleep, I think. Oh well, I can sleep in Friday morning!
I now am the proud owner of.. a mortgage!
Nov. 25th, 2006 04:44 pmWell, it's done. Yay! I've signed the contract, so I'm committed to lots of years of lots and lots of debt. Heh. I've taken one night to celebrate and laugh and feel great and ... still not sleep, dammit!
I'm still kinda nervous about the whole thing, but I think I'm starting to settle down a bit. Hopefully, sometime in the next 10 months, I'll start getting some sleep. *g* For now, it's all about the debates about upgrades - do I need the roughed-in bathroom in the basement? How about the vaulted ceiling in the family room? Should I get the oak staircase, or not? I have to set a budget going in and not spend more than that, but it's gonna be difficult. *g* At $80 a pop for the phone/cable/network outlets, how many do I want? Is the tiled backsplash in the kitchen necessary? How about potlights over the fireplace? Should I run a cold-water pipe to the fridge for a water dispenser, even though I'm not planning on getting a fridge with that in it right now? All these questions! I have to balance between what I want and what are good touches for resale, and not spend more than x. This is NOT going to be easy.
Have I ever mentioned how much I hate making decisions? The next 6 months should be fun. *g*
I took my camera with me last night, to get some shots of the lot.
( First set of pictures )
I'm still kinda nervous about the whole thing, but I think I'm starting to settle down a bit. Hopefully, sometime in the next 10 months, I'll start getting some sleep. *g* For now, it's all about the debates about upgrades - do I need the roughed-in bathroom in the basement? How about the vaulted ceiling in the family room? Should I get the oak staircase, or not? I have to set a budget going in and not spend more than that, but it's gonna be difficult. *g* At $80 a pop for the phone/cable/network outlets, how many do I want? Is the tiled backsplash in the kitchen necessary? How about potlights over the fireplace? Should I run a cold-water pipe to the fridge for a water dispenser, even though I'm not planning on getting a fridge with that in it right now? All these questions! I have to balance between what I want and what are good touches for resale, and not spend more than x. This is NOT going to be easy.
Have I ever mentioned how much I hate making decisions? The next 6 months should be fun. *g*
I took my camera with me last night, to get some shots of the lot.
( First set of pictures )
Am I nuts?
Nov. 24th, 2006 03:18 pmI'm nauseous.
I'm getting alternating chills and sweats.
My palms are sweating.
I haven't slept in 3 days.
Am I sick?
No, I'm just going to buy a house in, oh, about an hour.
I'm starting to think I might be crazy. Why am I doing this to myself? Oh, that's right - a HOUSE! of my OWN! With a real kitchen, and a fireplace, and a washer and dryer, and a walk-in closet and ensuite in the nice master bedroom and a guest room and an office and a garden and...
A HOME!!!
Whee?
I'm getting alternating chills and sweats.
My palms are sweating.
I haven't slept in 3 days.
Am I sick?
No, I'm just going to buy a house in, oh, about an hour.
I'm starting to think I might be crazy. Why am I doing this to myself? Oh, that's right - a HOUSE! of my OWN! With a real kitchen, and a fireplace, and a washer and dryer, and a walk-in closet and ensuite in the nice master bedroom and a guest room and an office and a garden and...
A HOME!!!
Whee?
