One night last winter, in what can only be described as a fit of exhaustion and after a long day of travel, I announced that it was time to remove the mantel.
“What?” The Mister asked. “Now?”
“If not now, when?” I implored.
And so armed with a flat head screwdriver and a hammer, we started prying the trim pieces from around the mantel.
“This will be easy,” I promised The Mister. “The mantel is a hollow box that is mounted on the fireplace. I’m sure it’ll just pop right off.”
Starting with baby steps on the bathroom project is starting to pay off. I’ve gotten most of the woodwork stripped and once it’s sanded and I’ve applied a finish it will be time to move on to the big stuff.
We know that we’ll need to replace the toilet and sink and vanity in the bathroom. While I thought that shopping for a new toilet would be an easy task, I’m finding the choices daunting. We know that we want a toilet with a skirted design that hides that trapway. Not only does this skirt makes the toilet easier to clean, but we also prefer the streamlined look of it. Other than that, I’m finding there to be a lot of options out there. After spending a few days researching, I’ve narrowed it down a bit. These are the seven toilets that are the current leading contenders:
In the opening scenes of the 1981 film Mommie Dearest, Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford goes through her morning routine. You see her plunging her face into a bowl of ice water and steaming herself in a hot shower. I thought of this scene yesterday as I was preparing green beans to freeze. With the blanching and the ice bath it felt like I was Joan Crawfording the beans!
We’ve just returned from a two-day, seven state road trip in a rented U-Haul box truck. While not as torturous as I was anticipating, the drive was certainly no easy feat. There was road construction, bad food and dirty rest stops – not to mention the mind numbing hours watching the white lines zipping down the middle of the highway. I picked up some lessons along our cross country road trip and, since I’m not ready to write about anything else right now, I’m going to share them with you.
After a week of travel, things are about to finally get back to normal at This American House. Over the past week we’ve flown to New York, seen a musical production of Heathers, researched our house at the Avery Library at Columbia University, attended a gallery show and then a memorial for an artist friend who passed away late last year, and, finally, packed up a U-haul truck with art and other precious cargo. We’re now making the long drive from Connecticut back to Iowa. Once we’re safely ensconced back in our usual surroundings, I’ll put together a more detailed post about our adventures. Until then, enjoy this clip from one of the best musicals I’ve seen in a long, long time.
Image: This American House
