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Longer days, projects, and procurement specialist
I realized today that it was still daylight at 5:10 PM. The days are growing noticeably longer. Since the winter solstice on December 21, we have gained 42 minutes of daylight. Today our sunrise occurred at 7:03 AM and sunset at 4:49 PM. Twilight was at 6:33 AM and again at 5:20 PM. I’m loving this extra daylight! I’ve also noticed that the sun is growing stronger and warmer (colorwise, too). The anemic (lack of) color of deep winter seems to be waning. Not a moment too soon. I can’t wait until Daylight Saving time on March 8.
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I have quite a list of projects for the rest of the winter. Some are definitely carry overs from autumn. I need to get busy. One such project is a carpet ripping project. I have lived with carpeting on my stairs for the last 15 years. And I don’t know why. Cleaning stairs with carpeting on them is a time consuming and lousy job. There is no vacuum cleaner on the market that makes the job any easier, I swear. And whoever built my house evidently never gave that job any consideration because there isn’t an electrical outlet anywhere in the stairwell.
For the first 18 years of my life, there was no carpeting on my stairs. And it was my job to clean them every weekend. It was pretty easy, too. A little dust mopping and, twice a month, a swipe with a damp rag. They always looked shiny and clean.
I don’t know why I didn’t dispense with the stair carpeting the day after I moved into this house or why I had them recovered when I had new carpeting put down. What was I thinking?
So...I’m now thinking loving thoughts about ripping out the carpeting on the stairs. That means I’ll have to refinish them, but that’s not a big deal. It’s tacking down the carpeting at the top of the stairs neatly (and professionally) that presents the challenge. If I screw that up, then I’ve just grown my project by magnitudes.
J...help?
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In the last two days, I’ve received two emails asking me for products that I’d never heard of before. One was for a book published by Cider Mill Press. The fellow wondered if I had any spares in my office. Well, no, not even one. But I can understand the error, and, in fact, I helped the fellow find the book he wanted. I located a good price for him, too. But the other email asks if I carry Toter Half Round Lockable Security Containers. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why anyone would think I might. I mean, they both used the mail form on my blog...does this look like a commercial operation to anyone else? Still kind of scratching my head over that. Perhaps people got new computers this Christmas and haven’t learned the finer points of Google yet?
When we bought this house in 1971 it had 1 1/2-inch yellow shag wall-to-wall. There are 7 steps from the dining room down to the living room/master bedroom suite.
When we recarpeted we went to a semi-plush, but still. . .
LOL, let me know when you would like to start. You know I am always up for a new project! If yours are like ours were, then then it shouldn’t be too bad. I know you hate to paint, not my favorite thing to do either, the worst is the ceilings and you had them done but, I can’t wait to get to that part of your list of projects lol. Actually, I would love to convince you that we can refinish the cabinets 
Remember how much nicer and lighter mine looked after I did them? It will look like a whole new kitchen! Lighter and brighter! And it costs next to nothing to do! Unfortunately, that is something we have to wait until spring to do.
Oh, and I too am liking the longer days. It’s not much but I will take it! Now if it would just.stop.snowing. Another 8-10 here. And we will get 10 of that, if not more here. We have received more than the max amount predicted every storm so far. I just hope they have the good sense to cancel school tomorrow! I am thinking my kids are going to have a day off no matter what. I so am not going down that big freaking hill through all those lights in the middle of a snow/sleet storm! As it is GC1 is working from 1-10PM. ???? What the heck is that all about, she never has those hours. E is going to come home from work to bring her lol. Good thing that man loves me! In his car I am petrified beyond belief that I am going to get hit and killed, in my car, I am petrified that I am going to hit and kill someone lol. Sigh.
And like an idiot, I ran GC1 around doing errands she needed to get done and didn’t get mine done. So now I have to go grocery shopping the day before a snow storm. Ugggghhhh!
Yeah, what is with the snow? A couple days ago there wasn’t any snow in the forecast at all. Now they say a foot or more!! I really hope they’re wrong on the low side this time. We still have to get through February and March. And we just know this won’t be the last snow storm. SO sick of shoveling snow!
I’m ready to start ripping carpet on a moment’s notice. Give me a day when you’re free and we’ll start. I want it gone so badly that I’m starting to dream about it. Two heads are better than one and four hands better than two.
I wouldn’t mind doing the cabinets this spring. Wish we could paint them, but I know that doesn’t always turn out well, no matter what Martha says. Just lightening them would be a huge step in the right direction.
The wall painting though....geez I hate painting. I wish I could talk myself into enjoying it!
Linkmeister, I’ve never had the ‘pleasure’ of shag carpeting. I lived with hardwood floors for most of my life. I inherited tacky brown carpeting of indeterminate fiber length when I bought this house. It was so beaten down that I don’t exactly know what it was supposed to be. Now I have a nice berber carpet, but it’s still carpet. I suppose it helps keep the floors warmer in the winter, though. But in the summer, they absorb humidity like a sponge. Bleh. Anything I can do to get rid of more carpeting is a major plus.
Lets see what this weekend brings, if not next weekend. We can rip out carpet while hung over? If I can come this Friday? Your birthday,remember. If you don’t have plans with the OTHER J lol. I have a DR’s appointment sometime that day in Boston, but not much going on for the weekend, I don’t think. E should be home? I will check with him when he gets his butt out of bed. He is usually up before me LOL.
Oh those cabenets just are not the kind you can paint, remember P’s? We did everything, took our time. They just didn’t come out nice. They were ok, but not great. Mine, I thought came out pretty nice. They didn’t look like someone tried to re-finish them.
Well the kids have the day off. At this point they are going to be in school well into July this year! At least I don’t have to be out there right now to get E out for work. Well we will see, a lot can come down in a couple of hours. But with the Suburban he can just plow through the freaking stuff.