Everything but the Kitchen Sink

The kitchen renovation is done. It took almost eight weeks and a lot of effort by many people. The floor, cabinets, counter top, appliances and pretty much everything else is new except, as the saying goes, the kitchen sink. We reused our old white cast iron sink.

It's taking a lot of getting used to having a new kitchen. I still feel like I'm cooking at someone else's house. Gary and I noticed that we can both be working in the kitchen without bumping into each other. Now it's more like dancing around each other.

I've been adding a few personal touches to make the kitchen feel more like ours. Three quick apple studies (delicious), a couple of garage sale vases, and my tea pot wearing a newly knitted tea cozy.

Oh, and I finally got that grilled cheese sandwich that I was craving.

Bow Wow Pizazz

Ginger came to visit. She walked in the front door and made herself at home. She drank water, ate some cat food, chewed up one of Alfie's old toys and a stick from the garden. I called the phone number on her tag and her people promptly fetched her.

Craige installed the gray glass tile backsplash. He had to make quite a few cuts to have it all fit nicely. He was unsure of our choice of white grout. He said it would look 'pizazzy'. That sounded fine to me. When he completed the grouting, he admitted to liking the choice. I love. It does look pizazzy. What do you think?

Rock and Roller

On the July 4th holiday weekend, we painted the studio ceiling and walls. It didn't look right to have the new kitchen stop in mid-room. It was 95 degrees on Friday, so we tried out the new cooling system. It works great for cooling. Hopefully, the heating will be just as efficient.

We finally took a break on Saturday to visit Island Park for the festivities. Local bands Mystery Train and the Hi-Tones played first and second. Last on stage was Peter Noone with Herman's Hermits. Peter sang some of his old songs, but also mimicked other singers including Mick Jagger,whom he claims is his father. His voice is still holding on. He was quite a comedian, even had Gary laughing. The fireworks were short and sweet.

Ready, Set, Cook

The appliances are in and it's starting to feel like a kitchen again. We took the dishwasher for a trial run. It works fine. I baked a Dutch Pancake on Sunday morning and have used the cooktop a couple of times. Today, I officially moved the kitchen out of the bathroom and back to its original site.

The tile is still pending and the vent hood is waiting for me to finish the patch on the wall where it will be located. A misplaced outlet and necessary bracing, both for the fan, led to more holes in the wall.

The guys from Home Comfort Heating are installing the mini-split heat pump system. Even more holes in the walls.

Gallery III

Food and Fun

Sunday, Father's Day, Summer Solstice. Three good reasons to get out of bed at 5:30am and eat at The Original Pancake House. The fresh fruit crepes are delicious.

This weekend, TV provided an escape from the kitchen project. Sometimes my brain needs comic, nonsensical relief. 'Grandma's Boy' is a funny film about a nerdy guy who moves in with his grandmother and her roommates. I had to laugh when he was vacuuming the carpet and lifted the sofa to find three mummified cats underneath. I know my house needs a thorough cleaning. Good thing we don't have any missing pets. 'Beer Fest' was more of Gary's type of dumb movie. It's about German and American beer makers. Lots of drinking games and boobs. It must remind him of his army days in Germany. 'Idiocracy' is the story of a man who travels 500 years into the future where everyone is stupid. They think that this newcomer is a genius and will solve all their problems. The world is not really so different. Everything is based on advertising. They even believe that Gatorade is good for the plants. Lots of fun poked at the corporate world.

Oh, we did manage to get the shelves and paneling up this weekend.

Plumbed

Brothers Aaron and Jeff, from Gary's Rooter and Plumbing Service, installed the new faucet in our sink. They hooked up water to the new dishwasher and refrigerator. They explained how copper pipe connected directly to galvanized pipe creates rust through electrolysis. The rust particles ruin fixtures and appliances attached to the pipe. Hopefully, all the new connections won't cause problems. Seems we had a rusty nipple. Sounds painful. Especially when a sawzall was needed to remove it.

The filtered water tastes wonderful. Finally, I can enjoy a cup of Earl Grey tea without an unpleasant aftertaste. We tested the icemaker. It works fine. The water from the fridge is so cold that we probably won't need too much ice and we'll keep it shut off most of the time.