Tag: thoughts

First World Problems

The kitchen sink is leaky. The tub needs new grout. The bathroom sink is barely a trickle. It’s hard to sleep in the hot bedroom. The floorboards in the dining room are warped. All the cabinets and drawers in the kitchen are dingy, and several of the drawers are hard to pull out and push in. The windows let the outdoor elements make their way into our bedroom. Last week I killed the biggest roach I’ve ever seen.

Yes, everyone has a gripe list about the place they live in, and being a renter it’s not easy to take the initiative to fix these things, although most if not all of them are pretty easy to wrap your mind around.

  • I was just pondering, well, some people have dirt floors in their homes or no home at all.
  • Our AC isn’t great but it’s below 85 in here and it’s 105 outside.
  • The windows may let the wind in but they keep the rain out.
  • I should be thankful to have clean running water at all (this week I had Doug test the water at work for heavy metals).
  • I should be glad I don’t have to turn on a propane tank to provide my bathroom with hot water (my host family did this in Morocco).
  • I may have killed a cockroach, but I don’t have to fear for mosquitoes or flies that transport malaria or yellow fever.
  • The drawers wouldn’t be a problem if I didn’t have any food or medicine to store in them. I’m thankful I have both.

Think about your gripe list and how it may pale in comparison to the extreme alterative, and take a moment to count your blessings.

Have a good weekend, everybody!  

Packing

Who knew that a person could get rusty at packing? When I was going to school in San Diego and spending many weekends in Temecula (where my parents live) I was a pro at packing a weekend bag–I had it down to a 15-to-30 minute science, in fact. My how things have changed.

Last weekend we went on a quick overnight trip to a friend’s wedding. I haven’t really gone anywhere since last Christmas, so I was a bit rusty on the whole “packing” thing. I got all my makeup but forgot my foundation. I brought my favorite dress but forgot the top is a bit… loose… and forgot to bring a camisole to wear underneath (an embarrassing situation was avoided due to the lucky find of a straight pin.) I forgot my straightener and hairspray. Let’s just say that packing in a rush did not pull me through this time. I mean, the trip went OK and despite my complete lack of preparation, I looked passable.

We’re going on a four-day trip soon and I am starting to pack now. Things will be better this time! I’ll have enough completely put-together outfits for the amount of time we’ll be gone and I’ll remember other things like traveling snacks, a variety of shoes, all my makeup and hair essentials, etc.

What is the one thing you cannot travel without? 

Courage

Today’s post about being courageous in your own home is inspired by this post from Under the Sycamore about the floors in her bedroom. I can’t post the picture, but you can see it on my pinterest here, and remember to check out her original post for more eye candy and a how-to!!

Okay, you looked at it? Great. Now we can get to the point.

Get this: she ripped out all the carpet, evened out the plywood that lay underneath, added a few coats of paint, stenciled a design, and sealed the whole thing. I think it looks absolutely incredible, and all the project took was a few days and less than $100. I’d love to do this as an alternative to carpet. I mean, hardwood floors are what I’m totally digging right now (and probably always will–they are timeless, durable, and go with everything) but they can cost a pretty penny. So, in the meantime–Ashley had the right idea–take a risk and the payoff can be huge! I’d love to recreate the look of sealed concrete in this way.

A “risky” thing that has really paid off around here is the yellow paint in the living room that stops a couple feet short from the ceiling. My genius mom came up with the grand idea in order to save our backs (ceilings are approximately 12 feet high?) and to save almost a whole can of paint (taking into account the strip goes all the way around and would require two coats.

I haven’t seen another house with it so I know that I stand out. In fact, painting this way lets the true color of the green show up better, and it’s one of the first things people notice and comment on when they come over. It wasn’t as easy as painting the whole wall–we had to meticulously measure and level our painter’s tape, and I wouldn’t have been able to consider it without my rockstar mom (can you tell I love her?). I definitely think it paid off  and hope the next renters to move in love it as much as I do and decide to keep it this way.

Basically, what all this rambling is trying to say is, even if something seems risky, if you stay true to your design sense, more often than not it will become the think you love the most.

Have you tried anything risky in your home? Did it pay off, or not so much?