We have a long way to go. While the trailer that we bought isn't trashy... it is quite nasty. I mean, did people really walk through this house barefoot? Ew! First order of business... I made Drew take out the carpet. I mean yank it and burn it, baby. I wouldn't even go into the house before this was done, so poor Drew was on his own. I didn't get pictures, because the smell was so thick, I was afraid that something would jump on me. I don't get grossed out by much... but this did the trick. And to think, in a couple of short months... this would be my home. My word, what did I get myself into? I agreed to this? There is no freaking way!
Drew and I made a trip to Lowe's. I think he realized my need for making this place my own. We purchased new light fixtures and fans, and the next day set about installing them. Remember, we still don't have power. Just power poles. Drew hooked up a generator to run tools and make sure everything worked after it was installed, and also a fan to make a feeble attempt at keeping us cool. Yeah, like that happened. The middle of summer, in Florida's heat and humidity. No fan is THAT good... even with all of the windows open. It is a long process, installing these things. I think it would have gone much more smoothly if one of us had remembered a step ladder, but that would have been too easy. Never a dull moment, you see. Gotta keep things spiced up. Mean while, I am afraid to touch walls and counter tops, frustrating Drew to no end. I think he got a good chuckle out of it a time or two. Now, I know what you are thinking... 'What's the deal? Can't you just wash your hands or the walls or the counters?' Umm, the answer to that would be no, no I can't. I can't wash anything. I can't wash the grunge in the sinks and tubs down the drain. I can't disinfect my hands, I can't flush the nasty leftovers down the toilet. WE HAVE NO WATER YET!!! I did however have a spray bottle of bleach. I sprayed everything at least a hundred times. While not really a permanent fix, it made me feel better. A small bit better, but better none the less.
The smell in the trailer still lingered. Taking the carpet out only helped so much. I started scrubbing walls with Clorox Clean up and hand rags, while Drew went to the tedious task of plucking 1 1/2 inch staples out of the floor that held the old carpet down. He is so lucky that he has a smart wife. After researching online, I was able to suggest that he use a grinder to grind the staples down, as opposed to plucking them one by one. After we had done this for a couple of days, we were ready to try anything! Best thing is... it worked. SO Drew finished that up in record time, while I swept up the nastiness behind him. These staples wouldn't have been a big deal if we would have just put more carpet in, but in my quest to make this the nicest mobile home I could, we decided to put in laminate wood flooring, so it had to be smooth.
Did you know that making progress actually gives one hope to go on? I had heard about it before, but now I was feeling it myself. At this point, I am still filled with dread, still mortified that this... place... would soon be my new home. (OMG, what have I done? What did I allow myself to get talked into?)
There I go again, losing track. Lets go back to discussing walls. They are getting cleaner, but not clean enough for me. Some rooms are so bad, they need to be painted. When I say this, it isn't because they are dirty anymore, but because they are black. Oh yes, you read it correctly. The back room is already painted by the previous tenants black. And hot pink. With names sponged in. And stencils. Pretty! But not going to cut it in my book!!!
Off to pick out a new color that is more... me. Green, I say. Green is my favorite color. All shades. Green, they say, is also the color chosen by geniuses... what can I say (go me!). This room will eventually become the nursery, so I try planning ahead. Green is neutral, and it can be used for a girl or boy. I am set to paint. (surely, my body can recognize my need for a child, right? I mean, I am painting a nursery... come on body!! Get with the program)
I take the nails out, and the blinds down. Drew helps me tape up the wood molding, and since I can't seem to figure out how to make the spackling in the holes work, I ask him to do that too. He is so handy, that guy of mine! I commence painting. Several coats later, I am pleased. It turned out great, don't you think?
We finally get power, and best of all get an electrician to hook up the air conditioner. This means one thing, that it is time to purchase the flooring. So we load up and bring the boxes over to acclimate to the climate of the house. Now this is just silly, if you ask me. We had to set boxes of laminate flooring in each of the rooms. I think it is supposed to make this stuff easier to install. You know, I was raised in a house that if you want something done, you pay a professional to do it. My Dad was in floor covering for 40 some odd years, and after he passed, my sister and her husband took over his business. But did we get help? Nope. Drew wanted to do it himself. Also behind this decision was the fact that this won't be a permanent home, so we wanted to save money to put toward the house when we start building. It took some time, but we got it done. The Lowe's salesman said it would be easy. So did the box. It wasn't... not until we got to the last room. We were so proud of ourselves, and for the first time, I wasn't afraid to be in the house. I even did a barefoot dance!!!
OK, so walls clean, check. Bug sprayed, check. Floors in, check, check, check. I painted the master bath. Hung all of the blinds. We are almost there, baby! Here is the master bath. Of course, it is green too!
Next step... running 1/2 a mile of pipe from the road, to the back of the property so we can get water. We are still waiting for the utilities company to hook up the meter, but the pipe has to be run regardless, so we get to it. It wasn't that bad. Didn't take that long. No big deal. I dreaded that project for nothing. Whew... relief. Now if we can only get the water hooked up. By this point, we know that the utility company made an oops, and had to order a meter, since they were out. Nice of them to tell us. We are on a deadline to be out of the old house, and into the new, and when we applied for service, they told us it would be done in a week. 3 weeks later, the meter is set, and we have water!!! YAY!!! It is coming around. By this time, not much else to do other than clean, so Drew and I make a concentrated effort to get this done. We scrub, and re-scrub every square inch of this place. The dishwasher had nasty stuff growing in it, so it was run... over and over and over.. with my new best friend, Mr Bleach! We scrubbed the kitchen and bathroom floors on our hands and knees with a scrub brush. Bath rooms were made sterile. New toilet seats were put in.
We are officially ready for the move!
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