Do you ever find yourself losing motivation mid-project? Find yourself staring at the window frame you’ve been meaning to sand for six months and just can’t bring yourself to pick up the sandpaper? Do you find yourself stymied by that one little distasteful part of a project and seek out every possible distraction to feel like you have an excuse for not finishing it?

I’m going to call it Rehabber’s Block and I must confess I’ve got a pretty bad case.

I’ve gotten lots done around the house this summer. Planted a rose garden, reclaimed some weed-ridden patches in the back yard, found some great baseboards to replace the ones my bathroom is missing… but the one project I really need to finish sits idle. I just can’t get myself motivated to do it.

If you’ve faced this problem, what got you past it? Send me your stories and suggestions. I’m floundering here and I need to get back to work!

Blocked and bewildered,

Kelli

We had been leaving our cupboards open in the hope that the cats would catch it this past week, but not only had they failed, when we tried to show them the mouse they were too afraid of being on the counter and immediately jumped down. (We’ve apparently trained them too well about staying off the kitchen counter).

By this point I’d gotten a better look at the mouse and felt bad about the idea of one of my cats getting it anyway. So with Kelli’s help we slowly cleared away various objects from the counter and I picked up a small plastic container to try and catch it. After we’d moved nearly everything out of the way, it made a dash out from behind the jar and I had it trapped momentarily with the side of the plastic container. However, it broke free and scurried to the other side of the counter behind the microwave.

So we started clearing everything away from that side of the counter. Then turned the microwave away from the wall a little and it dashed underneath and around to the sink again, but at this point fell into the sink basin and I was able to get the container over it.

Finally I slid the lid under and had it trapped and I took it far out to the shed in our back yard to let it loose.

The whole ordeal was probably 20+ minutes, and I was exasperated by the end of it.

So yeah… my cats apparently have about as much interest in mousing as Garfield. But it was oddly still kind of an enjoyable experience. …now to wash everything.

Oh, that’s Zoot the cat in the foreground.  The top of our coffee table lifts up on arms and leaves these two apparently cat sized boxes.

[tags]cats, random, furniture, photos, living room[/tags]

We had a picnic in the park!

Franco helped Brandon get started building the shed.

The instructions were confusing.

We went to the Farmer’s Market with Christa and Lars. Christa bought leeks and was VERY happy about it.

There were some herbal delights…

Some alien tomatoes…

And Franco found a booth where he really fit in.

At the end of a long hot day we were all very tired.

The end!

 [tags] farmer’s market, photos, des moines, shed [/tags]

My friend Dan the Librarian told me about an entry on the site called, “An Open Letter to the Man Who Installed the Carpet in 1974 for the Previous Owners of the Home We Just Bought.”

I’ve thought of making a Previous Owners Hitlist, composed of the infuriating, confusing, and just plain bad decisions previous owners have made about “improving” their houses.

Have you ever composed an open letter to a previous owner? If you feel so inclined, leave me a comment on this post or send me an email with your open letter to a previous owner of your house. I’d love to hear other people’s thoughts on this.

Thanks for your patience.

Lots of good exciting stuff coming soon, though.  For example, I was surprised with a houseful of furniture!  Also, I get to use spray paint soon.  Oh, and we’ve been drawing graffiti on our bathroom wall.  Lots of good things to look forward to.

So see you next time!  Same Bat time, NEW Bat website!  (That sounded cooler in my head.)

Other than that, look for the same sardonic wit, quixotic optimism, and random drivel you’ve come to expect from the doorstep of 1622 York St. 

The caucus itself was mind-blowing. Nobody expected the huge number of people who showed up, but everybody was super calm and polite. Here I am in line to check in:

And here’s one side of the room voting on something:

It was fun negotiating and cajoling people to come join our group. Counting the number of votes for each candidate was tense, but I was super happy with the results. It was also a great opportunity to meet some people from my neighborhood. A few people in my precinct had been at the first Des Moines Rehabbers Club meeting that we hosted at our house back in November, so it was nice to catch up with them. They all asked how my house was coming along. I was thrilled to meet the lady who lives in a house across the street from mine. My grandparents lived in that house for 15 years or so before they bought a bigger house across the street and that’s where my mom and all her brothers and sisters grew up. The lady who lives there now is excited to show it to me and wants to know about my house too, so it’ll be nice to have another friendly neighbor on this street.

Alle cuisine!

[Announcer's voice from the stands:] The most important thing to remember about making a toasted cheese sandwich is that the butter goes on the OUTSIDE! Let’s see if she remembers this crucial technique.

Beautifully done! You down there on the stadium floor! Ask her what she’s going to put inside the sandwiches! [Voiced over by a translator:] “I’m using a delicate blend of co-jack cheese, sliced extra thin at the local deli counter, and pre-packaged store-brand mozzarella cheese.” Back to you!

It seems she has handed off the bag of cheese to an assistant to cut open, lending credence to the rumor that Kelli-san is not allowed to play with sharp objects in the kitchen. [Kelli-san again voiced over by a translator:] “Tee-hee! I’m hopelessly inept at opening resealable bags without tearing the plastic zipper off. Somebody please invent a power tool for THAT!”

We can see here that she has expertly piled the mozzarella on TOP of the co-jack.

And now she carefully begins heating the cheese using the low setting on the heat gun. 750 degrees should be plenty hot, don’t you think?

With the sandwiches put together now, she starts browning the outside, melting the butter and crisping the crust SIMULTANEOUSLY. I tell you, you don’t see these kinds of old-world skills anymore.

The crowd is now hushed in anticipation of the final unveiling of this culinary masterpiece! The first test: the pull-apart string of melty cheese…

Bravo! Just like in the Kraft Singles commercials! Now, the most important test of all… Judges, what do you think?

It’s unanimous! Kelli-san is the new Iron Chef! Her power tool cuisine reigns supreme!

[Voiced over by a translator:] “Tee hee! I’m burning my tongue! Take the picture!”