Sunday, December 30, 2007

Plans for 2008

I was over at a friend's house today. She and her fiance are new homeowners, so we've been sharing lots of advice. On her fridge, they had posted a list of things they wanted to do or buy for their home in the next year, along with estimated costs. Such a simple, smart idea!

I've made similar lists - on the back of napkin, on the back of a receipt - but tended to view them as more daydreamy.

But now that I think about it, here's my to-do for 2008:

Replace the back door. I dawdled on this all damn summer, and now that it's cold, I'm reminded WHY this was so high on my list. Plus, then I might actually be able to have a screen door that fits, enabling fresh air in the back half of the house without aiding the cat's escape.

Install a utility sink in the basement. Once I shut off the water to the hose for the winter, I have to clean the cat's litter box in the bathtub, since it's the only sink big enough.

Fix the two broken panes of glass on the porch.

Remove the wall AC unit in the living room - a remnant of the days before central air - and replace it with a window. I cannot wait to have a lighter, brighter living room.

Replace some windows. The priorities are the upstairs bathroom and living room. Depending on funding, I'd love to do the guest room and upstairs hall, too, since then the entire upstairs would be done. Bonus: They're all the same size.

The big, ultimate project for next year would be remodeling my bathroom. To do what I want to it, I'd have to remove a wall, the tub and toilet - and might as well do the sink while I'm at it. My current tub is miniature - only 4 feet long - so I want to replace it with a corner unit and remove the pesky wall so I can actually have a functioning tub. However, since it's my only full bath, time is of the essence. This is all pending the money to do so, though.

There are another dozen little projects I could throw on here, but these are the priorities. If I keep it short and sweet, I'll crank through them, right? There are also bigger projects looming - like rebuilding the garage - that will have to wait until more funding becomes available.

This only reiterates my belief that I should never have a reason to complain of boredom.

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