As some of you have gathered, we are getting ready to move shortly — in fact, because of an unprecedented string of good weather (thanks, climate disruption!), the builder finished our new home early and has us scrambling to get our current house packed up, fixed up, and ready for potential rental — and the work has become overwhelming, particularly with my wife traveling often for her job and, soon, Satchel beginning fifth grade.
Fifth grade. Where does the time go?
At any rate, I’ve been trying to balanced parenting — Tanner has hit the terrible twos! — with the heavy work of packing and lifting and logistical planning (our cars have been booted from the garage so that we can store the packed up house until we close, and at the same time get things out of our current living space so we can make the minor dry wall repairs, buff the floors, do the banister refinishing, and rip out and replace the carpeting, in order that we can start showing the house to potential tenants) — while at the same time maintaining the site, keeping up a presence on Twitter (which evidently is something you have to do these days, even if that presence is you getting called a liberal by people so dumb that they almost certainly harm us more than they help us), and fighting off a sickness that has made its way through our family and settled squarely in both my stomach and head.
In short, though I have much to be thankful for, life is a real bitch right now.
Because we’ll be taking possession of the new house earlier than we anticipated, by close to two-months, in fact, our budget was thrown for a bit of a loop. Rather than go through the builder, we decided to do our finishes through a friend whose family owns a flooring / stone /cabinet shop, which means that even once we close, the first few weeks will be spent replacing the builder grade floors, carpet, tiling, and the majority of the counter tops. Additionally, we have to install the garage door openers I purchased separately, along with the laundry sink, the fans, a pair of fireplaces, a second hot water heater, a set of french doors, all the toilet seat lids, four sinks, a new faucet, new shower heads and wands, the exterior security cameras, and a pair of garbage disposers.
Our budget had us finishing up this work in November. But because of the early close, we’re going to have to do get much of it done sooner: the guys putting in the wood flooring, tiles, heated floor elements, etc., are all in the same crew and working under the same labor bid. The guy doing the carpet needs to begin once the wood is laid, or else we’ll be stuck moving in to a house with exposed sub floors on the entire second level (we’re tearing out and selling the builder carpet: 5000 sq ft, roughly, including padding, for $2500, if anyone is interested). I have an electrician friend who will come in and give me a GFI outlet and wire and hang the heated towel rack in the master bath for dinner and beer, which is great. Another friend of mine is a master carpenter, and he’ll be doing some custom built ins and a secret door for us, as well as helping replace the sliders with the french doors and, we hope, finishing the interior roof of the outdoor patio with wood planking.
This doesn’t even take into account the basement pub / entertaining space and in-law suite, which will be back to concrete slab until my wife and I can lay the flooring down there ourselves — a task we’d like to try to complete as the carpet is being finished up, but that we as of now can’t fit into our immediate budget. Furniture? Uh, yeah. Yoga mats and folding chairs.
Which is why these next two-to-three months of fundraising are going to be so crucial to us. This site used to generate more income — it’s no secret that requiring comment registration, coupled with certain actions taken against me that are outside of my control, has reduced revenue, and that fundraising itself is down rather significantly — but it’s not something I’ve worried much about, because on whole we’re doing just fine, thanks, and I’ve started an ancillary business that relaxes me somewhat and brings in a bit of extra revenue.
But that, too, takes time — and capital — to run.
So. If you can manage to contribute over the next few months, that would be, in a word, superb. It wouldn’t be just me who appreciates it. It would be my entire family, which is about to face a rather big life change.
Having said that, I do write a political blog, and I’m aware of the economic situation right now. So if you can’t do it, you can’t do it, and I understand.
Thanks in advance to those who can contribute, and to all of you who have long kept pw afloat. Sincerely.
— Jeff
Tuesday update: Going to spending a lot of time today packing and cleaning the floors; have a guy coming over to measure for new carpets today, and my wife is away on business, so it’s just me and the boys. Not sure how much I’ll be able to get posted, but I have been very active quipping on Twitter. Seems I’m almost as good at pissing people off over there as I am here!
At any rate, thanks to all of you who’ve contributed. Ideally, I’d like to raise another $600 this month. So if you can help me out I — and my family, which benefits by not having to walk around on concrete slabs for the first month of the move — would really appreciate it.
Friday update: Last day of the fundraiser. I’m about $330 short of my goal for the month, which I don’t expect to make. But I wouldn’t mind getting a bit closer. Thanks again to all who’ve contributed!
Thanks to William M and John G, who contributed prior to the beginning of the fundraiser!
Thanks to William P for the fireplace that will be installed in my mother-in-law’s room, right below the flat screen that she’ll be taking from me.
But hey, she deserves it. And William has a standing invitation to visit and stay whenever he wants, his having contributed so much to the finishings in the new house! The rest of you call first. Or you’ll find yourselves pulling stumps out of the bear traps.
Sounds like you have a lot to do, but you should take a few minutes and watch this video. You can thank me later. h/t Instapundit: http://eaglerising.com/7660/comedian-rips-liberals-awesome-stand-routine/#BKiFmsdjVqPelE5l.01
Thanks, Roger H!
Thanks, Geoff B!
Thanks, Bill Q!
Thanks, di!
Thanks, SW!
Thanks, McGehee!
“The rest of you call first. Or you’ll find yourselves pulling stumps out of the bear traps.”
I’m just happy to know that 18% of the time that you drop your keys down a snazzy vent grate it will be sort of my fault.
Heh. Thanks again, palaeomerus!
Thanks, Lee P!
Thanks, cranky-d!
Thanks, Darleen!
You’re welcome, boss. Sorry it couldn’t be more … I just took a 5% cut in pay.
Yes, the economy is SO much better!
Fifth grade. Where does the time go?
– The time will go by faster than you’d ever believe possible and one morning you’ll wake up and he’ll be graduating high school and moving away to college and you’ll have to fight back the tears.
we’re tearing out and selling the builder carpet: 5000 sq ft, roughly, including padding, for $2500, if anyone is interested
Speaking as a retired General Contractor, that’s an awesome deal. Our residential rule-of thumb was $30/sq yd for medium-grade carpeting. Higher grade could go as high as $50…
Thanks, Joe K!
Thanks, Pierre L!
Thanks, Bill S!
Thanks, Fred W!
Thanks, Evan C!
Thanks, Jon E!
Thanks, Patrick C!
Drum — have it up on Craigslist. Haven’t had a single call on it.
Thanks, RI Red!
Thanks, serr8d!
Call the ReStore or better yet take a swatch and photo down to them and see if they’ll take it. Get the tax write off. If they don’t want it, you are likely f***ed.
too bad you have to have all the crap removed rather than getting it bare (i work on homes that are totally individually custom from the ground up)
I tried to sell a built in mahogany bookcase that took $thousands to build on craigslist. Offered free install…. nothing. ReStore said no thanks, it’ll take up too much room and maybe never sell. Gave it to a woman with a remnant fabric store.
I’m not rich so I avoid things like towel warmers because of the cost to replace parts and of course the labor.
Ditto built in the shower coffee maker, toilet seat warmers… yada yada
Still not profitable building that cool stuff, so no money to spare yet… will send $$ when I have some…
Cheers!
“Where does time go?”
Tell me about it. Today would’ve been a 29 yr anniversary thinger. Instead, I’m nursing an incipient hangover.
The government’s hoarding it in Utah, and selling it to Obama’s cronies at half-cost.
Thanks, Brad M!
serr8d —
My thoughts are with you, brother.
SteveG —
What’s the ReStore?
john —
Yeah, I’d seen that. Good stuff!
ReStore is Habitat for Humanity’s secondhand outlet for building and home improvement materials.
Thanks, Terry H!
Thanks for the clarification, McGehee.
Thanks, Scott H!
Thanks, Robin S!
No worries, SteveG!
Thanks, Jonah C!
Thanks, Daniel S!
Thanks, Blitz!
Thanks, James W!
$480 left to meet this month’s goal. A few days left to meet it.
I know I’m in arrears, and I’m sorry. I’ll see what I can do after the 15th.
OT: There are people eligible to run for president today who were not alive yet when the first Star Wars movie came out.
Thanks, SDN!
Next month is gonna be a problem because my computer is slowly going TU and I can’t post pictures on ebay for some arcane computer centric reason known only to my computer and Elon Musk or whoever runs that place.
Thanks again, palaeomerus!
No worries, Mueller. Been there.
Brother, I should take you up on the offer, but I’m a guy that loves drinking, and I’m worried that the 10% of stuff we disagree on would come up when we’re both plastered.
Not that we couldn’t work past it, cause we obviously could, just kinda would hate to add to your troubles?
Seriously, I’m in Texas. And that is my serious/ridiculous concern. We could make this happen.
I can drink with anyone. But I’m also a guy who argues in good faith and doesn’t get butthurt when people disagree with me if I know that they, too, are arguing in good faith. Most people here over the years have fit that description. And I suspect a lot of you know this about me and each other, or you wouldn’t still be hanging around.
I’m a loyal friend and a ferocious enemy. What I’m never going to be is a skilled diplomat. Unless I was being paid for it.
I think once I’m in the new house and we get it all finished, we’ll do an invite weekend for the regulars. Whoever can make it is welcome. The PW pub will be open!
Thanks again, McGehee!
All this I know and believe whole-heartedly. Really? I’m just letting you know why I never asked before.
Sounds good, and I would love to hang out with all the PW regulars. I will, in fact, cash in all of my support to be given a pillow for a comfy corner, and not expected to drive back to a hotel.
Plenty of space for sleeping bags, blankets, etc. Even a guest bedroom in the back of the pub.
Thanks, Steven G!
$330 left to hit my goal!
If you see an armadillo in the guest bedroom, get your butt against the wall.. or bring an old People magazine with photos of Winona Judd cavorting on the beach along with you… it’ll be over in 10 seconds.
Thanks, squid!
I my not have a kitchen to cook in, but I now have major appliances!
Progress. We has it. Now, to figure out the whole internet-access thingy.
*may. Stupid touchpad.
Thanks, Ray C!
Looks like I fell about $275 short. But that’s better than $500 short.
Thanks, all!
Thanks, William F!