Storm Cleanup

[drscott]

What we call a "winter storm" here in the Bay Area wouldn't impress anyone from the Midwest or East -- some wind, some rain, big deal. But here at Chez Overman-Scott our lovely backyard, with its bamboo, overhanging Monterey pine, and pool takes a hit in the first storm of the season, since the tree has been collecting dead needles and dirt through the rainless summer and much of that comes down and lands in the pool with the first rain. The water is a dirty brown, the filter is clogging, and I just spent 20 minutes fishing needles and crap off the water's surface with a little net on a pole.

Meanwhile, our second window bidder arrived an hour late, begged off on replacing the major fixed glass areas, and in general seemed like a waste of time.

The kitchen remodel plan is coming along -- the bid is about $13K and we have to get our own sink, faucet, and cooktop. I've ordered the sink and faucet online, since the local big-box stores only sell the cheaper stuff (like 21-gauge stainless steel sinks instead of the much thicker 18-gauge.) Meanwhile, after a full day of research on cooktops, I went back to the plan to reuse the original Thermador stainless steel one when I discovered none of the major manufacturers make one thin enough to be installed in place of the current one without eliminating at least two drawers below it -- typically they are 4" thick as opposed to the current 2.5". BUT THEN I discovered a German manufacturer, Gaggenau, which makes a 2.3" glass-ceran cooktop with cool digital controls, so there is nothing to get in the way of cleaning it. Alas, it is almost $2K. And yesterday's trip to the appliance store that carries it here was a bust -- they were closed on Mondays, damn them.

Just another slice of life here. Sorry to be so boring.

Comments

[dr-scott.livejournal.com]

Our appliances are okay and we're just having the cabinets refaced -- they apply (in this case maple) veneer to the outside surfaces and add new doors and hinges. The biggest expense is two large new granite countertops, and that new cooktop if we decide to get it.

Yours should be lots cheaper -- if you buy cabinets at IKEA (which is fine if you like a modern, white look) you can assemble and install them yourself; I did two for our laundry room and it was easy.

[orange-groves.livejournal.com]

No, those kind of cabinets are just plain too cheap looking. IKEA did have a couple styles that were interesting and not too shabby, but the white ones were just plain scary.

Really won't matter, though, in the long run. If I won't be using them for 20 years, who cares!