We've a lot of trashed trim around the house (the previous owners were wheelchair/walker-bound — so there's lots of road-rash)… and I've discovered that Bondo is the best way to fix it (in this case a mangled window sill).
The second of two homes presently for sale in our neighbor hood is, perhaps, the better of the two, but I can't — for the life of me — understand why someone would buy a dog and try to turn it into a cat… if you want a mission-style or "tuscan" home, buy one.
This home is much cleaner, but some obvious non-Eichler bits stand out. When I go into a house nowadays, I can't look at "potential", I immediately glom onto the things that are "wrong". Perhaps this is a "glass-half-empty" way to look at it, but the Eichler home has such a prescribed aesthetic that it's easier to point out the things that are not right nor original… to that point, some things we noticed:
However, it wasn't a toxic dump and the Realtor was actually quite cordial, which was a stark contrast to the house on Phoenix. And some good things:
However, at $395, it's higher than the other house and it's a flip (someone bought it 90 days ago for much, much less) — so there's some loan restrictions. There's some things here that would be hard to reverse (like removing all that tile and stucco) and you're potentialy paying for someone else's bad decisions… So, as much as it's weird to know that "Jeff sucks dick", the house on Phoenix might be a better buy, methinks…
Anyway, some pictures:
One of the things we like to do is to keep up with the real-estate trades in the neighborhood. It gives us the opportunity to meet other neighbors and check out a house we hadn't seen before. Presently, we have two bank-owned properties for sale in the neighborhood. We were very lucky — in the last bank-sale — to pick up a pair of great, new neighbors, Laura and Chris. We're certainly hoping for the best with these most recent for-sales.
…
Today, we traded in our namesake truck under the Cash for Clunkers program.
As a clarification (and tribute), "Truck" was most certainly not a clunker, but instead a reliable friend for the past few years. I'm literally crying as I type this… yeah, weird.
But the AC was shot, the airbag was questionable, the horn didn't work and it smelled like old men — a few of them. So, it was time to let our faithful companion enjoy a second life as a toaster or a recycled countertop… so, who knows, hopefully we'll get a bit of him back one day in the form of another consumer product.
And, through the program, we got more than twice what we would have in resale (and not felt guilty about selling a potential hazard to someone else)… and combined with current Ford rebates, the new truck was over 25% off of the sticker (closer to half-price, really… but then you add sales tax and fees and…).
So, thanks and goodbye, old friend. You'll be remembered fondly and keep your rightful place in the banner above (and in our hearts)… you started every time (even when we didn't want to start, sometimes), you helped out neighbors and friends (and helped to turn neighbors into friends) and helped us through the most difficult two years of our life… thanks for that.
And, Bret… no, you can't borrow this one for a run to the dump.
Sniff (and Sob)…
The last of the landscaping is finished with the completion of the side yard.
Jaime once again stepped in to help and he and his crew did a much better job than I could have alone — a very wise delegation of tasks. They took the time to level and grade the area when I would have gotten hot and frustrated and given up. It's amazing what a transformation the entire yard has seen over the past two years.
We have some of the 1X1 blocks left (about 100), so let us know if you're interested in picking them up.
We have four sheets of 4X8 Breckenridge 5/8-in Eichler siding for sale plus a smaller sheet 40X80 (a bit cut from the side and top).
$75 each for the full sizes and $50 for the smaller one.
We're in Concord and i have a truck and can help with transport (cost of gas?)… These have been stored flat and are in perfect shape. Let me know via email (link in top corner)
Some folks have been inquiring about LGs Art Cool Minispit Air Conditioners. We installed the Cool/Heat units in the Summer of 2007 and have loved them. Aesthetics are a big part of our admiration as many of these are u.g.l.y. … however, with a sleek metallic-like finish and subtle construction, they don't look at all obtrusive… or not as obtrusive as they could otherwise.
When the work, the front and sides open up… and retract when off, of course.
One of the last items on the exterior is the rehabbing of the garage doors. Previously, we'd considered rebuilding the doors with the siding we'd purchased from Eichler Siding. While this might still be an option, it's a mighty undertaking: (1) they're crazy heavy, (2) they work well and (3) they've been in place for 40 years… and it might be one of those "if it ain't broke" situations… so for now, we're trying to save the existing doors even though the siding isn't a perfect match smoothness-wise. But that's what we're now trying to remedy.
Thanks to Jacob and TJ for scraping a good bit of the paint off of the doors — a much needed first step. Then, re-grooving the lost grooves was in order. The old grooves were more shallow and had already lost a good bit of depth from layers of paint. I tried several methods: scraping, solvent, Dremel…
The Dremel tool wandered too much and caused more damage than otherwise. Had I set up a track to guide it, it'd be ideal (straight, uniform depth, even width), but there are a lot of grooves to be setting up a track for each groove would be too time consuming (might as well rebuild the doors with clean siding).
Nothing has worked quite as well as the Rockwell SoniCrafter which
was a gift from Casie's dad. Similar to a Fein MultiMaster, it vibrates
at a high velocity for cutting, sawing, grinding, etc. and using the
grout removal attachment, I'm able to get into the grooves and clear
them out. It's a slow process, but it seems to be working.
Hopefully by day's end, we'll have matching garage doors.
Oh, and the handle-hardware: who know it was wrought-iron looking? An odd craftsman touch, methinks.
As you can tell from the past couple of posts, I'm a fan of the Phifer Solar Shades from Blinds.com… a few hiccups with the last order, but the staff was wonderful in sorting them out.
So… I just got this and thought I'd share…
Save 20% on Phifer solar shades during the month of July! Solar shades have the ability to cut glare which makes them ideal for media rooms, studies, or any sun-facing room where sun control is desired.
Use code: solar20 at checkout.
I also got a paper-coupon in the mail valid for a bit longer…
20% off of Phifer Solar Shades / code#: PHIF-TRYEG (good thru Aug 10th)
Now that the summer's heating up, it's a good time to get shades on you windows. It helped ours tremendously.
