Hot Plate & Laundry Mats

The Art of Transitioning

Paleese – “Art” my fanny – we’re just going through the motions of getting by and that is the reason I’ve not written in three weeks.  This morning I attempted pancakes for the first time since settling into the guest house we’ve affectionately named The Acorn. Kitchen accoutrements include a 2 burner hot plate, toaster oven, microwave and a 10cf refrigerator/freezer. The trick is knowing the wattage capacity and the combinations of small appliances that can be turned on simultaneously without overloading a surge protector that most appliances are plugged into. All in all, it’s an adequate temporary setup and will be more than accommodating for future guests.

But many unfinished projects and inconveniences are beginning to weigh a bit heavy on my nerves. The one and only tiny bathroom is still missing a sink, a ceiling, heat/vent/lighting, and two paneled walls. But I must say the shower is phenomenal with just the perfect water pressure. We’ve also yet to replace three old windows (but the new ones are sitting in the middle of the living space), and we have a gaping hole to our attic access covered with taped up thin plastic. But the most offensive and inconvenient project is the disabled washer/dryer hookups. I DETEST GOING TO THE LAUNDRY MAT. Don’t nobody need to be seeing our big ass “drawers” and I’m not too hep on using the same machine someone else’s big ass drawers just came out of.

Our unfinished projects are simply a matter of timing and priorities. Keith is working 14 hours a day, 7 days a week which leaves him absolutely no daylight. He is the GM of a manufacturing facility that processes custom printed everything – so, ’tis the season for LOTS of orders – 20,000 custom orders a day to be exact. And I am fulfilling online Christmas orders with my business as well while I continue to try to get us settled and organized. Most of the holiday madness will end in another week or two so we should be able to refocus and get back to work on the cottages.

As for the main cottage, construction is disappointingly slow. After a candid chat with our initial contractor, we have made plans with some other folks to come in to complete the remaining projects. Basically, we’ve only been a booty call for rainy days for contractor 1. His real love is a large 6-month remodel in Asheville. That’s cool, but we’ve wasted quite a bit of time waiting on nasty weather. The new fellas will begin work the week after Christmas with plans to be 90% completed by mid-February. We’re holding them to it…the timeline is NOT negotiable. But besides a tight timeline are the insane expenses; so far we’ve spent $10k with barely anything to show for it…but we’re looking at a real budget of $110k more to bring the main cottage to completion. This is way more than we anticipated…and a universal utterance of every person who has ever remodeled a home.

Our transition has been tempered by the remarkably mild weather. It has given me the opportunity to get to know the land more intimately. Mr. Willis King, the second owner and the developer of the pond, was a visionary. Keith and I are in awe of the design and manual labor that went into the pond and the surrounding grounds. The minute we stepped onto this property, despite the disrepairs and overgrowth of the grounds, we felt in our bones the pride and the love that built this modest mountain reserve. And we’re not the only ones. Almost every single tradesmen has remarked to us how “this place has the coolest/most tranquil/best vibe”. It’s a comforting confirmation that we’ve made the right decision despite the temporary hot plate and laundry mats.