Monday: Picking up the pieces

This is my basement.  600 sq ft of wasted space.  Yes, it looks dark and dreary.  But I’m about to do something about that.  The plans are at the township planning board right now.  While Ed the Inspector makes sure my contractor has planned for enough fireblocking, it is my job to get this huge, wasted space ready for framing.  That’s what I’ve been doing all weekend.  The room looks pretty empty now, except for a few stray cans of paint and some wood scraps.  But up until Friday, it was full of the same stuff as most everyone’s unfinished basement: boxes of old stuffed animals, saw tables, chairs in need of repair, old clothes, obsolete computer equipment and lots and lots of junk.  I filled the dumpster to overflowing and took 5 boxes of clothing to the bins at the local big box store parking lot. And the fun is just getting started.  In the next week, I have to drylock this whole thing.  Fun, fun.  Any PUMAs who have time on their hands want to learn how to wield a masonry brush?

So, if you don’t find me hanging around here much in the next couple of weeks, it’s not because I don’t care anymore.  It’s because I am trying to pick up the pieces of the life I once had before the blog took over.  I’ve been blogging for 11 straight months and my house is in need of some urgent TLC.  I’m still here and I’m still paying attention.  It’s just that it’s hard to spread drylock when you’re tied to a laptop.

I’ve seen a lot of mischief on the threads and there have been some temper tantrums.  My email box is overflowing with “She hit me! Make her say she’s sorry or I’m taking my ball and going home.”  Seriously, guys, let’s dial it back a notch.  The election is over.  We always knew that we were going to be disappointed no matter who won.  Let’s focus our efforts on constructive things.  Like doing something about the passage of Prop 8 or making sure that Harry Reid knows that we’re still interested in Hillary Clinton’s healthcare proposals.  Or making sure the media understands that we do not identify with Michelle Obama’s Mom-In-Chief role.  We want to be in charge of something.  That’s what we’ve been raised to do.  That’s what we’ve fought all our lives for.  We aren’t interested in taking a subordinate role to any man and we don’t want to hear about Michelle hosting the PTA meetings or having cookies and milk ready for Sasha and Malia when they get home from school while she gives up her career.  She is NOT our role model and we will not be dragged back to powerless domesticity.

Whew!  That article really ticked me off.  We may need another vent thread.  In fact, we may need one each night for 4 years.  In the meantime, let’s get our lives back on track too.  Tell us what Do-it-Yourself or home maintenance problem you’re tackling this fall. By the way, does anyone know how to keep tree volunteers away from the foundation of the house, permanently??