Much is happening in our little house. We have walls...WALLS! And not just pink fuzzy insulation, actual drywall is in place and it's being taped. I can walk through the house and see the size and shape of the physical space - the kitchen is going to be fantastic. Now becomes a time of excitement as I visualize what the rooms can be transformed in to.

And our contractor is really working hard to get us home for October...I may just have to remove a few pins from the earlier voodoo doll I created because he also has a client that he wants to try to convince to take over our rental house for a few months.

We're having a lot of problems with the inspector - for the most part it works to our advantage because his demands ensure the work is perfect though potentially delays the job and always seems to cost us more money, but he is also driving John crazy. His last directive is insane. The firebox over Jakob's bedroom window that was approved by the city, the box that was the only way to ensure we could install a window due to fire regulations, is now 1" too big according to the inspector. The firebox has also tripled in price since John installed one on an earlier job only months ago. Rather than $1,400 (the only price that John was able to put down with absolute confidence because he had just installed it) is now $5,000. Fucking manufacturer, fucking inspector. I brainstormed and thought I had found a solution; because we had removed the bathroom window on the same wall, the bedroom would be the equivalent space and therefore grandfathered the new window from any city bylaws. Hopefully the inspector wouldn't realize that the bathroom window was much smaller than the bedroom window. Unfortunately he did notice. I'm not sure if he feels we should remove the window, put the firebox on the inside of the house, tear down the entire side of the house and move it in 1". John's trying to find another manufacturer who might make them an inch smaller in size and also in line with the original quote - he also suggested we just bash the box to the right size, though it wouldn't exactly work anymore. I'd like to say fuck the box, tell the inspector we will install the correct size at the end of the reno and then tell him that it's in the process of being made which will take FOREVER. The inspector didn't even seem receptive to having William (our neighbour) sign an affidavit saying he was fine with the 1 inch - after all, it's on the second floor and barely visible unless your a contortionist. I'm feeling the need to create a new voodoo doll.

Anyway, the plan today is to torture the children and take them to Olympia Tile to choose the tiles we want in the bathroom. They are going to love us, for it was only yesterday that we bundled the darlings in to the car complete with gameboys but no snack and drove through horrible traffic to find that they are closed on Saturdays. And now we get to do it again.

This weekend we also need to choose the style of doors for the room (I don't really like any of the options, but it could be because I will miss the heavy wood doors that we had but could not be salvaged and will be replaced with hollow core masonite), the colour of flashing, the stain colour for the wood floors (we did choose the size of planking). I need to order a kitchen sink - the source of another debate - and faucet and order stone for the bathroom vanity. So many decisions that sometimes I feel like I can't breath.


I experienced my first MRI Friday morning; I can understand why people would opt to be sedated. I had to be at the hospital for 4:30 am and it was actually quite pleasant driving the streets of downtown Toronto at that time. It had rained earlier so the streets were wet and reflected the colours of Honest Ed's and there were very few cars on the road. I was taken in to change almost immediately and then put on the bed. The technician wrapped me in a blanket warm from a dryer, put earplugs in my ears, a weight on my hand, the device on my shoulder and in I went. I opened my eyes briefly, felt like I was in a coffin, thought this is why people freak out, quickly shut my eyes and pretended I was on a noisy beach. I should find out the results in a couple of weeks.

Time to try the brownies that Jakob and I baked this morning. I have to download the insulation pictures and then will include them.