Alarmed and dangerous.

Let's try this again. 160/365
Originally uploaded by This Year's Love.

I finally got an alarm put in by Brinks. The system is super easy. The house is so small and there are so many windows that it would be ridiculous to arm every window. And cost at least $500. Meanwhile the motion sensor is now in the hallway and you basically have to go through the hallway no matter where you go except for the front part of the front room. If they climbed in a window in any other room, they'd have to come out into the hallway. Bam. The motion sensor gets them.
It was quite interesting to see the different routes they had to take since the house is so wonky and old. They couldn't hardwire the back door because there was no clearance since that part of the house was added on after the front part, so they had to put in a wireless sensor.
Otherwise it's really easy to work. Press ON when you leave, put in the code to turn it off. At night I can set it with motions off so I can get up and walk around and also press the INSTANT button, which means that if someone comes in through the door it'll instantly go off without the 32 second delay.
I'm sure it's all very standard and basic, but I like how simple it is. It still cracks me up that Judah once set off our alarm because she got out of her crate on Sunday morning. I got a call in the middle of church from ADT. Insane.
Oooh, I got stickers! Try breaking in to turn a trick NOW, bitches!

I'm vigilant about locking all the windows and doors and pulling out the little tabs on the windows so you can't open it more than a few inches, as well as keeping the blinds down and closed when I'm gone. I collect the mail and basically make my presence in the house known.

The picture is after I tore down a bunch of drywall that made a very impractical and rather large soffet in the bathroom. It totally choked the space and it was so dark in the shower because it was so low over it. I'm thinking it was about 6 feet high. I'm 5'6" and I couldn't obviously reach my arms over my head. Pretty stupid.

There's still so much left. My parents didn't get anything done except put up one piece of drywall. It was annoying and ridiculous. Hopefully I can enlist Adam to come over and help me finish the rest. I just need it up so I can started taping and mudding!

My parents are leaving for two weeks on vacation. I really, really wish I could go with. Dogs and the job prevent me. Maybe I'll try to go in January or something. When rates are low. Who knows I really need a vacation--but I don't really want to leave my dogs behind. Though a week break from them might be a good thing--except I know I'd miss them like crazy. I left Judah last June for three or four days and on the first day I cried when I saw a dog. Just a regular dog, not even one that looked like her. I know, sad, right? I can't help it! I really love them. But two is a lot of emotional stress sometimes, especially when one is a needy male pit bull. It'll all depend on money and time, of course.

Officially named.

My house is called Ty Bach Twt which is Welsh for "The Sweet Little House".

Come here and cry on my shoulder.

My parents and I went over to my house to work on it. Got a lot done. I tore down the wall in the bedroom. My dad took out the remaining studs in the kitchen that I couldn't do because I'm not a guy. They were nailed into the floor major. My mom pulled up carpet staples. They stapled the crap out of those nasty carpets. At least the padding, that is.
The laundry room scares me. I don't know what it is, maybe it's just the water heater and the hole in the wall. I'm just saying. And then when we pulled the paneling away from the wall to see what was underneath there was red as blood paint. ::chills::
Oh yeah! Since the crack whore busted the laundry room window my dad screwed a piece of wood over it just in case. Then he made the (for once) brilliant suggestion of putting in glass blocks instead. Perfect. And they come in sweet colors, even pink! That's awesome.
(The neighbor next door is Creole from Louisiana and is called Q because he has a very strange name that starts with a Q. So strange I can't remember it! He came out when we showed up and my dad was like "How you doing?" and his reply was, "Oh, blessed!" and my dad's was, "Amen, brother!" ... oh dear. He had a fence put up which means that there are now only two sections for me to buy fencing for. Yeesss. And he was so funny, "We put benches back they-uh, and we'll put in a bah for a bah-bee-cue" with that strange drawl of his that I knew was not from around here and I wasn't at all surprised to find out minutes later he's Creole. AWESOME!)
The floors are going to be a challenge. The house is old. I won't fault it for having really uneven floors in the front part of the house. But !?!? it's going to be fun figuring out wtf to do about it.
I have to have wood-look flooring in the kitchen, which is thankfully level, because my heart is set on it.
The rest of the house is up for grabs.
I punched a hole in the stupid effing homosexual soffit over the shower and bathroom sink. It is the dumbest accessory ever. If I stand in the shower I can't lift my arms over my head. I would bang my hands in the ceiling washing my hair. By the way, I'm going no 'poo. [ananas] mentioned it and I was like "wtf is 'no 'poo'??" and it seemed interesting and now I'm shampoo free for over a week. Neat, right?

Carpeting, padding, paneling. I need to rent a dumpster or something.


This is the kitchen  "before".


The kitchen "after".  No stupid wall!

Here you can actually see the lot next to the house. And the snazzy sewer pipes that serve as very sturdy planters in the front walk. ::rolls eyes:: Those are getting taken out, fo' sho'. I don't know if cypress trees would be overkill, but indulge me....picture a cypress lined walkway leading to a slate colored house with bright white trim and pale colored rose bushes on either side of the porch...oh hell yeah.