Lessons in Lawn Care

The day I picked up the key to the house, it was apparent that someone had just mowed the lawn either that day or the day before.  It was great, because it meant I could go a little longer before I had to mow it.  Well, the time had finally come... 

My house may not be perfect, but I don't want to be the house in the neighborhood with the crazy overgrown yard, so I went to the Home Depot with my friend Diana in search of a lawn mower.  I knew I wanted a self-propelled (my yard is way to big for a push mower) and that was about it.  The guy at the store helped me pick a mower, but it wasn't quite that simple.  Lawn mowers are big and come in very large boxes.  Unfortunately, I was not able to borrow my dad's truck (I was supposed to pick my parents up from the airport later in the evening and 3 adults won't fit in a small pickup), so all I had was my mom's Camry.  Diana and I went out to our cars and measured the inside of both her car and mine to determine if the box would fit.  I really didn't feel like buying a mower and then finding out I had no way of getting it home from the store.  From the measurements of the cars and the box, we determined that it would probably fit in the back seat of Diana's car.  She was sure it would fit.  The guy at the store and I were less sure.  He even told us to have them call him up when we checked out so that he could be the one to load it into the car.  He said it was because he didn't trust the guys they'd send out, but I think part of it was that he wanted to see if it would actually fit.  Turns out it fit, with only a little bit of effort from the three of us.  Diana and I drove over to the house to get ready for work.  I did have to stop for gas on the way, which turned out to be a bit of an adventure.  In the 2 miles between my house and the freeway we had to pass 2 different gas stations, both of which are completely inaccessible if you are driving from the freeway to my house.  It took a few minutes, but I was able to find a station and fill up my gas can so I could get started. 

We got the mower out of the box, flipped up the handle, added the oil, and were just about ready.

 

The final thing I needed to do was adjust the height of the mower.  You may have seen from my previous posts that there is quite a lot of stuff, crap really, in my yard.  Some of it is just cheap plastic toys, but there are also scraps of 2x4s, large rocks, and even small hand tools.  I didn't want to damage my brand new mower, so I set the blade pretty high.  This took slightly longer than expected since the directions were actually backward, telling my to adjust one way to raise the mower, when that actually lowered it.  It took a few double and triple checks to make sure it was actually raised, but it worked out.

As for the mowing, this would mark the first time I had ever mowed a lawn and I figured there would be a bit of a learning curve.  I didn't feel the need to allow everyone in the neighborhood to experience my learning process, so I decided to start with the back yard.  I put in my headphones, started the mower (with no trouble) and set to it.  The pattern was a bit erratic at times, but I was able to control the self-propel feature and to handle turns without too much trouble.  I was happy with my results.

Before: 

 After:

 The lower part of the yard I just left.

The grass was really tall down there (they hadn't mowed this part before I bought the house) and I didn't know what all might be down there.  I figure I'll try to weed whack some of it down and get a better idea of what is down there.  In all it was a very productive afternoon.

The Lock and the Mailbox

Now that I had the water turned on a toilet, the next project (since the front door lock was out) was to install a mailbox.  I know I'll get over it fast, but I'm excited to get mail at my new address, even if it is just the water or trash bill.  The house already had holes drilled in the wall for where the old box was, and I was hoping the one I picked out would fit.

I brought all the tools I would need with me, just in case.  As it worked out, I had to drill new holes because my mailbox was bigger than the one before.  That was actually much more of a challenge than you might think.  I wanted to make sure the box was level and center, then mark where to drill.  It is hard to mark exactly on a stucco wall.  Drilling the holes was also a bit of a challenge.  The first just took a bit of time, but for the second, I actually had to drill through something metal.  I called my dad, who said the drill bit should make it through if I just keep going, so I did.  I was pushing so hard that when I finally did break through the metal I nearly pushed myself through the wall because it was hollow.  I installed my plastic anchors, temporarily hung the box and marked the position of the lower holes.  With those drilled, I re-hung the box and fastened it securely to the wall.

I think it came out ok.  It has a nice big opening for mail to drop, and locks so no one can get it but me.  It took about 45min, but I'm happy with the result.

After installing the mailbox, I took a bunch of measurements of the holes cut in my door for front door hardware.  I mentioned before how my door is not designed for a standard lock.  I took my little diagram to Home Depot and asked a guy in the door department about it.  After I described my door, he told me that it sounded like it was cut for a special type of lock called a mortise lock, that they don't carry and that are pretty expensive.  Of course they are.  I decided to price out getting a new door entirely.  The fact is, my front door is nice, but it does need to be refinished, it needs expensive hardware and it's not really my style, so it might be worth it to do. 

Another factor is that on my way to the Home Depot, I stopped by a yard sale and struck gold.  The guy's dad used to own a hardware store and he had all sorts of hardware:  door handles, drawer pulls, towel rods, etc.  The handles were all still attached to the sample boards.  I found a front door set I liked and made a deal for $50.  On my way to the atm to get cash (I hadn't been planning on going to a yard sale) I decided to try to make a deal for the whole board, that had 3 other handles on it too.  I was able to do it, and came home with handles for nearly every door in my house.

Only 80 bucks!  There are a couple scratches, but to buy this stuff new in the store would cost over $200!  While my savings on this hardware will be partially (ok, probably completely) negated by the price of a new door, I still think it's pretty awesome.  I'll have to try to find more yard sales in the future.

A Game of Thrones and a Land of Discovery

I knew one of the first things I needed to get done in the house was to install a toilet and get the water turned on.  Grandpa made very sure to remind me that I needed one and to get a good one, not a short one either (he was very concerned about those points).  With a working toilet and running water, I would be able to stay the whole day and work:  wash my hands when they got dirty, go the the bathroom when I needed to, and so on.  I went back and forth on whether to bring in a plumber or try it myself.  I watched how-to videos and read some articles and decided to try it myself.  If anything seemed weird, I would stop and call in a pro.  I bought the toilet, wax ring, water connection, and all that I would need for installation and drove to the house, where my friends Diana and Ashley agreed to come by and help. 

None of us had ever installed a toilet before, and I'm pretty sure their husbands were not sure we could do it.  It took a bit of work getting the thing into the house and out of the box.  I cleaned off the old wax and made sure the flange wasn't cracked. 

Everything looked good, so I screwed in the bolts, laid down the wax and we set the bowl gently in place.  Attaching the tank took two of us, but we got it done.

I was a bit nervous at the end, as we did wind up having extra pieces--another set of tank screws and another tank gasket--but everything appeared to be in order, so we went with it.

Just before we started installation, the water guy had come and turned on the water. Perfect timing, since I wanted to make sure the toilet was installed properly and wasn't leaking.  I hooked the toilet up the water supply and turned it on.  The tank slowly began to fill as we nervously watched, looking everywhere for leaks.  There were none.  Tentatively I pressed the flush button.  It didn't leak.  I tried the second flush button (it's a dual flush).  Still it didn't leak.  At this point, I may have done a bit of a happy dance.  Maybe that could have happened.

After the toilet installation,  I wanted to change the locks on the back doors and add hardware to the front.  While I switched the back locks, Diana and Ashley grabbed some gloves and a trash bag and started collecting things in the yard. 

 There were all sorts of things,

 toys, hand tools, whatever that long handled pan thing is, broken glass, wood scraps, bits of metal and all sorts of other trash.  We even found what I really hope was a child's wooden sword.  I really hope it was a sword, and not the only other alternative we could think of.  See it here sticking out of the trash bag.

 

Still, I don't think I'll be digging around were we found it any time soon.  Just in case.

Diana was particularly excited about a huge collection of barrettes she found in the lower part of the yard.

There were a ton of them.  Cleaning out that yard is really going to be an adventure.  Anyone interested in joining me in the adventure?  I'll provide the gloves and you can keep what you find!

After a bit of fun in the yard, we went to try and install my front door hardware.  After getting all the pieces out of the box (thanks Di) and removing part of the latch for the padlock, we discovered that the holes cut in the door didn't match the hardware I bought.  I was really confused, since there was only one type available at both Home Depot and Lowe's.  I thought that was standard and would fit my door, but I was mistaken.  Frustrated, I boxed up the incorrect hardware, reinstalled the latch for the padlock, and we went out to lunch, leaving the front door for another day.

First Day Planning

My first day off after getting the key (to the padlock on the front door, but the key none the less) I drove down to the house specifically to take photos and measurements of everything.  I wanted to start making a plan of attack.  I asked my dad from work the day before if I could borrow his truck to bring an 8ft ladder so I could take a look in the attic.  He said he wasn't sure since the truck needed to be cleaned out and he wasn't sure he had time.  I told him not to worry about it, I had plenty of things to do to occupy my time, I could just bring a ladder another time.  So naturally, by the time I got home the truck was cleaned out, backed into the garage with two bags of tools and an eight foot ladder and three foot step ladder strapped into the bed.  The video camera was on the front seat (to get before video for the grandparents) and the keys were in the ignition.  That's my dad, when he get's into something, he really get's into it (not a complaint, just a statement).

With the truck all ready, I loaded up a few things into another bag--music, a new front door padlock, water, soda, a clip board, a pencil and lots of paper--and headed to the house.  When I arrived, I set up my music and got to measuring every dimension I could think of for each room, recording it all.

Let me just say, the laser measurement tool is one of the most amazing things ever.  I tried to focus on one thing at a time, but at times I failed.

This is what it looks like trying to do everything at once, measurements, demo, decorating...  I may have gotten slightly ahead of myself.  I did measure out some furniture dimensions, to see how/if my couch would fit.

It appears it will fit (particularly if I get rid of the built in), but there won't be much room for anything else.  The step ladder in the corner is helping to measure out a chair.  At least it shouldn't cost too much to furnish this tiny room.

 I took a look up in the attic (I had the ladder after all) and found a lot of dust, an old hand saw, and some potential design ideas.

 

Martha and Oprah have descended from on high to assist me in my home renovation and design.  And they appear to have either brought some small child's craft projects... or squished a small rooster (my neighbor does keep chickens and that box was really heavy).

Now I tried to resist, but I just couldn't.

I did some demo.  Really I just scraped up a bit of the kitchen linoleum floor.  I peeled up a few chips, just because I could.

 

Then, while I was taking pics of the bathroom, I noticed that the ugly shower doors looked like they were only held up with some easily removable screws, so I went for it.  One side was easy to remove, but the other and the bottom took a bit of prying and several passes with a utility knife before finally yielding.

 

While not really changing what needs to be done in the bathroom, it was still quite satisfying to remove it.  Of course, I managed to get some of the sticky caulking stuck to my shoe, so I had to walk around in socks for the rest of the time I was there or run the risk of tracking the stuff all over my floors.  In all it was a productive visit.  I got most of the measurements I needed, and even came up with a possible layout for my new kitchen.  Now I just need a toilet so I can stay there all day and work.

The House

So I finally did it, I bought a house!!  For those of you that know me, you know I have been looking at houses for a while.  For those of you that know me or my parents really well, you know I have been looking at houses online for years, waiting for the right combination of job status, income and location to finally buy.  That time has finally come!  Here it is:

Pretty not bad, right?  I would have to agree, from this picture it looks like a cute little 750 square ft two bed, one bath.  And it is... or it will be.  As we get closer, you can start to see where work needs to be done.

Ok, so there's no front door hardware.  Different, but an easy fix, right? (turns out not so easy, but more on that later)  At least the door is decent, if not entirely my style.  Inside you can start to see more projects.  The living room.

The built in needs to go, the wall has holes, the outlets are uncovered and the trim around the skylight needs to be finished.  The dining area.

There is a hole in the corner that exposes the back of the bathroom plumbing (that will need work) and the window has to be replaced.  The wall on the left has moisture damage that needs to be addressed and likely that whole wall will go to open up the kitchen...

 Well, there's really no saving the kitchen.  Fortunately it is a tiny kitchen, so I may be able to make it fairly nice without completely breaking my budget.  Note the wire running along the outside of the wall and behind the cabinets.  This is only one of many, many problems with the electrical.  The house must be completely rewired.  The bathroom has all the right places for the pieces I'll need...

 

but doesn't actually have a toilet, sink or any sort of water hookup to the shower.  Also, the window that was once here was covered over (proof later) and the bathroom fan is not only useless--in the wrong place and the wrong size--but also vents to the attic and not outside the house.  I may not know a lot about home construction or renovation, but I know that you're not supposed to add moisture to your attic.  The bedrooms have small closets, but are workable.

The walls in the master are dirty, the paint on the door is pealing, and the floors are damage and unfinished, 

 but the size is ok.  The biggest issue in the extra room

well, besides paint and the fact that the ceiling fan is threatening to come down, is that there is actually a hole behind the outlet leading directly into the garage.  Definitely need to seal that up.  I don't really need my guests asphyxiating on my car exhaust when they stay the night.

If all of this doesn't seem too bad, I would have to agree.  So far you've seen that the floors need to be redone, a bit of work in the bathroom to get it working, a new kitchen, and I've told you about the need 

for new electrical.  Oh, but wait until you get outside.

The yard is a great size, and the fence is new, but the back of the house...

total disaster.  From here you can see the spot where the bathroom window was, since it was filled in but never finished.  You can see the dining room window that has to be replaced and the extra bedroom window that was replaced but the stucco never finished around it.  The double glass doors on the far left lead to the garage (and have to be replaced).  But hey, I have satellite!

So that's my house.  It needs termite fumigation, stucco work, new windows and doors, new electrical, plumbing work, a kitchen, new heating and ac, the floors need to be refinished and the walls need to be patched and painted.  Oh, and there is crap all over the yard--scraps of wood and metal, small tools, kid's toys, all sorts of stuff.  That's a lot of stuff to do before I move in, so naturally I'm dragging my feet getting started.  I'm currently spending each day off planning how I will look for contractors on my next day off.