The Latest...

So far, things are coming along smoothly with the new house. There's still tons of stuff to do, but the items completed since last entry are:

• Upstairs painting is 90% done, leaving only the two bathrooms still left to do.
• Upstairs carpet is 100% done.
• Porcelain tile in kitchen is done.
• Bamboo flooring is done, though I need to get new baseboard molding (long story).
• Powder Room From Hell ™ is finally done. More on that later.
• Home office is pretty much set up.
• Master bedroom and guest bedroom are furnished. The other two are a disaster.
• New range hood over stove.

Priority items on the agenda:

• Fix the plugged drain in the basement, so we can finally do some laundry.
• Baseboard molding on 1st floor.
• Unboxing all the crap and putting it where it belongs.
• Sort the crossed-up phone lines.

So far the most annoying project was the 1st floor powder room. We had stripped it bare to lay the floor tile, and took that opportunity to paint it. Since we hated the old vanity that was in there, we decided to toss it and install a pedestal sink. This decision facilitated the need for a new toilet, because the old almond-colored one did not match the new sinks we liked. Plus, it was a 5-gallon model, and we wanted to save water.

Installing the new toilet was a cinch, and it I was flushing in no time. The sink however was a different story (and I've installed many in my time). The new drain was 2" farther away from the wall than the original one, and I simply could not come up with a combination of parts to get the dang thing lined up. After 6 trips to the hardware store, and having at least 3 people look at it, I was finally let in on a town secret - a plumbing shop is one block over.

So I hop over to the plumber's shop and explained my plight. He immediately walked to a box he had on a shelf, and it had EXACTLY what I needed. $10 and 30 seconds later, the drain was all fixed up. So I finished up the sink, and turned the tap on and watched the water flow.

Then I turned the tap off, and watched the water... flow. Bad faucet.

Finally by 10pm last night, I had a new faucet in, and was able to call the job done. Complete list of changes:

• New floor
• New paint
• New faucet and sink
• New toilet
• New mirror
• New light fixture
• New towel rack and TP holder.

I call that a complete overhaul. Now it's just about my favorite room in the house. And since it's the only bathroom on the first floor, I'll have many opportunities to admire my handiwork.

Can't wait to get the rest of the house done, so I can relax and get back to riding my bike.