There's A Giant Hole Where My Kitchen Used To Be
I can't believe it's been two weeks since my last post. Another birthday has come and gone, with minimal fanfare, which is just how I seem to like it these days. It's not that I have a problem with getting older, but I just don't feel the need to make a big deal of it anymore. 41 feels just like 40, which felt exactly like 39, which felt just like 38. Changes become noticeable over decades now as opposed to years, as I definitely feel differently at 41 than I did at 31. More patient, more forgiving, more accepting, more generous and .... unfortunately ... more fleshy.
Oh well, I guess 4 out of 5 isn't bad.
Anyway.
Michael and I have lived in our condo for 8 years now. Neither one of us really thought we'd stay here this long, but now that we have it's hard to imagine living anywhere else. The location is perfect — quick access to all of the cultural offerings of downtown Portland, easy commutes to both of our jobs, a great view from our front balcony, and a park-like surrounding chock full of great trails for walking and bike riding.
Restaurants, espresso shops, and a New Seasons within walking distance. For a couple of yuppies with no children, it just doesn't get much better than this.
Of course every situation has its negatives and ours is no exception. We only have a one car garage, which means we each have to park outside six months out of the year. The driveway is steep. And the kitchen and bathrooms are really, really, ugly. Not ugly as in the hasn't-been-updated-since-The-Partridge-Family-was-in-its-first-run sense, but in the I'm-a-builder-converting-apartments-to-condos-and-I-want-to-use-the-cheapest-materials-possible-sense. We've made some minor upgrades over the years — paint, new cabinet hardware, new faucets — but it always felt like we were putting lipstick on a pig.
Like an aging movie star, this kitchen doesn't look so bad in certain lighting.
Our beautiful Pergo floor, the one customization we made when we bought our
place. The *only* thing in the kitchen that isn't changing.
That cabinet to the right of the fridge damn near fell of its hinges the night before demolition. Ha!
One ugly stove.
This random little cabinet was above the dishwasher and looked like an afterthought.
For years I have wanted to remodel the kitchen, but it always felt too big, too scary, too much to take on. Not to mention that Michael didn't feel there was anything wrong with the kitchen per se — was I just being picky?
Finally in February, we decided it was time. And since I was the one with the burning desire, I would be responsible for finding a contractor, arranging for a home equity loan, and so on. It took a few months for everything to gel into place (nothing like starting a brand new job and tackling a kitchen remodel all at once!) but last week, we finally started demolition on the kitchen. And now, there's this hole where my kitchen used to be:
The wall where the (ugly) stove used to be.
The wall where the (boring white) sink used to be.
Our kitchen looks a little better than this now, as these pictures were actually taken a few days ago. I'll post more in a few days, because Monday we will be getting our new maple cabinets installed. Yippee!
We've survived the first kitchenless week quite well, with our makeshift "kitchenette" set up in a corner of the living room, and our barbeque grill, and of course, takeout menus and restaurants. Tonight we bought a half flat of local strawberries at Whole Foods and I washed and destemmed the berries in the bathroom sink, which was interesting.
Three more weeks ... three more weeks ... three more weeks ...
More to come!
Oh well, I guess 4 out of 5 isn't bad.
Anyway.
Michael and I have lived in our condo for 8 years now. Neither one of us really thought we'd stay here this long, but now that we have it's hard to imagine living anywhere else. The location is perfect — quick access to all of the cultural offerings of downtown Portland, easy commutes to both of our jobs, a great view from our front balcony, and a park-like surrounding chock full of great trails for walking and bike riding.
Restaurants, espresso shops, and a New Seasons within walking distance. For a couple of yuppies with no children, it just doesn't get much better than this.
Of course every situation has its negatives and ours is no exception. We only have a one car garage, which means we each have to park outside six months out of the year. The driveway is steep. And the kitchen and bathrooms are really, really, ugly. Not ugly as in the hasn't-been-updated-since-The-Partridge-Family-was-in-its-first-run sense, but in the I'm-a-builder-converting-apartments-to-condos-and-I-want-to-use-the-cheapest-materials-possible-sense. We've made some minor upgrades over the years — paint, new cabinet hardware, new faucets — but it always felt like we were putting lipstick on a pig.
Like an aging movie star, this kitchen doesn't look so bad in certain lighting.
Our beautiful Pergo floor, the one customization we made when we bought our
place. The *only* thing in the kitchen that isn't changing.
That cabinet to the right of the fridge damn near fell of its hinges the night before demolition. Ha!
One ugly stove.
This random little cabinet was above the dishwasher and looked like an afterthought.
For years I have wanted to remodel the kitchen, but it always felt too big, too scary, too much to take on. Not to mention that Michael didn't feel there was anything wrong with the kitchen per se — was I just being picky?
Finally in February, we decided it was time. And since I was the one with the burning desire, I would be responsible for finding a contractor, arranging for a home equity loan, and so on. It took a few months for everything to gel into place (nothing like starting a brand new job and tackling a kitchen remodel all at once!) but last week, we finally started demolition on the kitchen. And now, there's this hole where my kitchen used to be:
The wall where the (ugly) stove used to be.
The wall where the (boring white) sink used to be.
Our kitchen looks a little better than this now, as these pictures were actually taken a few days ago. I'll post more in a few days, because Monday we will be getting our new maple cabinets installed. Yippee!
We've survived the first kitchenless week quite well, with our makeshift "kitchenette" set up in a corner of the living room, and our barbeque grill, and of course, takeout menus and restaurants. Tonight we bought a half flat of local strawberries at Whole Foods and I washed and destemmed the berries in the bathroom sink, which was interesting.
Three more weeks ... three more weeks ... three more weeks ...
More to come!
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