we're hangin' on muscle relaxants

well, i'm finally feeling better. it's been a while. guess what i really needed was some antibiotics and a week off work.

of course, i have a hard time sitting still so:

before

After! (this is actually just primer, i still have to spray them glossy white once the weather is a bit warmer)

And some other fab finds:

my beautiful new teak buffet which i scored for the unbelievable price of $150!

my George Nelson clock for 12.99! these retail for like 450US! Ok, so it's essentially a George Nelson for Target but still, it is George Nelson and it was $12.99.

my new lamps scored for $5 each. i plan to spray the bottom brass portion teal or turquoise and leave the walnut alone. I'll then finish them off with simple white shades. of course, i'll post pics when i get around to doing it.

And finally, the best and yet most bittersweet mini-makeover is that of the side rail from Mags' crib. Mags graduated to her "big girl" bed last night (thanks in part to the adorable French themed, i.e. poodles and  Eiffel tower, bedding). 

Since drop side cribs are no longer allowed so I wouldn't have felt right about selling it. but, it felt like such a waste to throw the whole thing out. Then, i had a brilliant idea!

And now I have an awesome magazine rack. I may spray it a fun colour as well - we'll see. I do like it white as well.

some things are just not meant to be

well, the dude wants me to deposit money in his paypal account before he delivers the piece - I'm not comfortable with this. so, no China cabinet.

that's ok. Susan and I are planning on hitting some markets in Quebec in the spring so I should hold out until then anyway.

i think this is my favourite Sarah room ever (hgtv.ca)

weird

so, i'm browsing design blogs and i come across this which is apparently from some company called "Present and Correct".

well, i'm quite sure, positive in fact that my mother owned this exact thing.

i'm still angry with no reason to be

So, I've spent today organizing (mostly my closet as I made room for my $342 GAP spree - almost everything including new stuff was 40% off!). I recovered two of the kitchen chairs and two of my project chairs which I've decided that I'm just going to use material i already own and i've decided i'm only going to do two - the other are not in good enough shape.

It's all good - that still makes them only $5 each. I do need to paint them though but i have to wait until spring so i can spray-paint them.

I've also found a China cabinet online that I'm even going to have delivered for $160. I'm not sure whether I'll paint it or not, i mean i do want some wood pieces but i think i'll either paint or put wallpaper on the back panel.

I think that it will tie in well with the pine harvest table and bring another "old" item to mix with the new. Things are starting to come together. 

I absolutely LOVE the new issue of House Beautiful http://www.housebeautiful.com/

I also love this point from an article posted on HGTV.com.

The Five Biggest Reno Mistakes

By: Kelvin Browne, National Post

4. You have no idea why you're renovating. With all the magazines and television shows that teach a person how they should be living, some forget to ask themselves why they need a six-burner stove or a gigantic shower head other than they've seen them and have enough space on their credit card to afford it. When you visit houses untouched from the 1960s and 1970s – nice homes in good neighbourhoods – you realize what we take for granted as necessities today are quite over-the-top. Canadians have clearly become very rich in the past decade, a few would say overly materialistic and status conscious. Think twice before handing that magazine clipping to your contractor and yelling "Do it."

the season rubs me wrong

apparently i used to dabble in poetry:

i miss my spent youth

i miss the wasted days

the never ending summers and

eternal starry skies

fresh cut grass under the rampage of my toes

dirty fingernails

dreams still fresh and possible

not sure when i wrote it - i know i destroyed everything from high school so after that

all of the beautiful girls, the beautiful boys

in their ripped cords and their torn hearts

the dullness of life chipping away

dreams in technicolor of stardom and magazines

spent youth pissed out like last night's binge

co-dependent but don't dare say it

angst is a buzzword no longer descriptive of its meaning

this i apparently wrote in 2002 on the bus on the way home from class (must have been Organizational Behaviour)

i definitely have a theme...

gonna burn what's standing in the way

the new KOL album may be s!#t but I can't stop playing "Pyro". also loving the Decemberists "Down by the Water"

i feel like s!#t. i've had a cold/sinus thing since last Wednesday and i am exhausted. the last few nights i've been going to bed at 8:30. my house is a disaster zone. like seriously, i would actually be embarrassed if someone came by unexpected. it's not just messy, it's kinda gross.

i do not have the energy to care.

i also got some possibly frustrating news. i do best when i have a plan. when i have control. i do not function well when things are up in the air so to speak.

oh well, tomorrow is Friday and then it's a long weekend.

And I still haven't found what I'm looking for

At mom and dad's. Spent most of today going through various storage containers and filing cabinets in search of some papers on Donnie (my long gone half bro).

I didn't find what I was looking for, at least not what I set out to find but I did find a few photos, a letter from his mom to my grandmother shortly after his death. And a painting (meant for him, not painted by him).

I learned he wanted to be an architect. That he was thoughtful, quiet and reserved. He hAd lots of friends. At least it's something.

I also have a phone number but it is ancient and probably a crapshoot. How many people other than my parents live in the same house for 20+ years?
Now I just have to get the courage to call.

Honestly, I'm not even sure what I think I'm going to find out. What I want to find out or why I even want to, what I think it's going to accomplish...I mean I am quite literally chasing a ghost.

our music divides us into tribes

i'm pretty sure that my dishwasher installation would have made a half decent sit-com script today

my biggest failing is that i'm not patient, i don't like to read through instructions, i rush...

problem 1 - hole in side of cupboard is too small to fit new hose through. drill battery is dead. i chip away at the opening with a hacksaw blade.

problem number 2. the water supply hose did not fit and so trip number 1 to Home Hardware to get some kind of adapter.

problem 3. newly purchased adapter too big and so, trip number 2 to Home Hardware. Home Hardware guy says are you sure the threads are on the outside? did you bring the manual...

3.1 go home, discover that threads are indeed on inside, grab manual head back to Home Hardware for elbow joint and various other bits and peices i may or may not need.

problem 4 - no matter how tight i turn the water connections it's still leaking - read instructions again - need Teflon tape and so trip number 4 to Home Hardware. Home Hardware guy says he is going to start charging me rent, apologizes for not thinking about teflon tape.

Finally, after 2 hours of frustration a cut on my thumb from the ground wire (electrical went very smoothly otherwise) i have a wonderful working dishwasher. I've already run a load through. It is sooo quiet!

I don't want to know what you'll be without me

so the repair guy came on Tuesday for the dishwasher. i had suspected it was the motor and yep, suspicion confirmed. what i didn't realize is that fixing the motor would essentially cost the same as a new (base model) dishwasher.

in fact, the repair man recommended that i go and buy a new dishwasher and to stay away from Frigadaire!

so I made my first visit to Lowes. love Lowes! well as much as Home Depot and Rona anyway! I went to the appliance department and said i want the best machine for under $1000. I ended up with the Samsung and might I say it is beautiful! stainless steel inside and out with a hidden element, steam condenser (so it doesn't blow out into your kitchen), garburator etc. multi position top rack (to accommodate tall wine glasses). And, it should be super quiet.

I did spring for the 4 year warranty because i don't want to do this again.

Anyway - tonight I uninstall-ed our existing dishwasher, i'm pretty confident i can install the new one. seems pretty simple, water source, drain and electrical and the electrical doesn't seem any more complicated than changing a light fixture.

We shall see - its being delivered on Friday. I do feel rather empowered. Who needs a man?!

i won't ever be your cornerstone

this game is not going in the direction i had hoped - i should have cheered for Green Bay - truth is, i'm fickle when it comes to the NFL. I tend to cheer for the QB rather than the actual team. Therefore Favre before he was a douche, Ben Rothlesberger before he was a douche. I prefer Michael Vick to both now (not sure what that says about me) and Mark Sanchez is hot both on the field and in looks and well, Payton...

maybe next year...

all told - this is a much better Superbowl Sunday seeing as I'm not barfing taco into Nate's potty. I don't think i'll ever forget that.

not a bad weekend. Saturday was beautiful and the kids and I went sliding and to the park for a bit. Today we went to church and I've been trying to clean the house.

the dishes are never ending! Tuesday (aka, the day the dishwasher gets fixed...hopefully) cannot come soon enough.

the dreams in which i'm dying are the best i've ever had

it's snowing. the neighbour helped me shovel the driveway after the plow dumped 3 feet of muck at the bottom. therefore, i heart the neighbour.

i'm bored.

i may go to bed.