Oct 7-8 - ready to roll

Well, the kitchen, living room and guest bathroom are cleaned out and ready for tiling. It took much more time than I expected ... why should that surprise me ?

Yesterday Sandy cleaned out the cupboards, for the most part, and we went out for dinner to the Riverside Grille, celebrating Sandy's and Angelika's birthdays. They even brought some chocolate mousse for each of them with a sparkler. I had swordfish on polenta with spinach; Sandy had duck confit / sweet turnip risotto; Angelika had hmmm what did she have ... oh yes, rainbow trout almondine on yellow rice -- and we each had a glass of wine. Sandy couldn't eat all hers but she had the rest for lunch today. All the meals were excellent.

Today I had planned to do a couple of things and then get in a quick ride -- well, it's 5:20 now and I've just finished up. Right. Sandy has been going all day too.

I started out unhooking the water connection to the fridge, then pulling out the stove -- both simple tasks. I couldn't unhook the dishwasher until the water was turned off to the kitchen faucets, so waited for Sandy to get up -- didn't have to wait long -- but the guys came to start work at 8:15. By that time I had the dishwasher unhooked, the sink faucets partly undone. I finished unhooking the faucets, pulling out the garburetor, etc. as they were working their way around the kitched removing countertops. They were fast, proficient and professional. They were young guys but they knew their stuff. Normally they would be doing the install immediately so this was a bonus for them since they had planned they day for the removal but were gone by late morning. It helps when the homeowner has done part of the work !

Trish Hinton, the lady who keeps an eye on our house, wanted as many of the cabinets as possible for her garage. She arrived about an hour after the men started along with a friend with a truck and trailer and she started loading, taking most of the upper cabinets and a couple of lower cabinets. For the most part the lower cabinets were trash -- particle board absorbs water and just washing the floor gradually breaks them down. The new cabinets will be plywood ... ah yes.

As they were removing we were cleaning, sweeping etc. After finishing the kitchen I turned my attention to the bathroom, removing the vanity that I installed last year and caulked to the wall along with the granite backsplash ... never expecting to see that wall again. Of course I also caulked the mirror to the wall ...and since the new tiles are going to be thicker than the old, nothing will fit where it was before.

I also had to unhook the TV and surround sound and move same into the den, all of which takes time. In the meantime, Sandy cleaned out the buffet and hutch so that the tile men could move it.

Then ... what now ? -- get ready to roll. I changed the oil in the X5, vacuumed the sand from the inside and washed the sand from the outside and did some packing. We will be leaving early tomorrow to head up to Accomac VA. The NAV says it is a 12 hour drive, which probably makes it around 13 with stops. We need to get there at a reasonable time because they will be holding dinner for us.

Needless to say we will be going out for dinner. We have some food in the fridge, but washing dishes in the bathtub is not the greatest. Have you ever seen a two-piece bath consisting of tub and toilet ? We have a sink in our ensuite but ...

Abby does not like all the confusion. She gets agitated when we are changing things. She is used to commotion, working and building, but doesn't like things being pulled apart. Me too -- I hate to see the place empty. When we get back it will be worse -- yes, new tiles, but no baseboard so it will look messy. I can see that being my first priority when we get back in November, getting as much of that done as possible even as they are installing the kitchen so that the place looks like "home" again asap.

That's it for now ... I think.