No. 1, the top of the list of Things I Know Now That I Didn't Before is not to start
a second blog when you can't even keep up with the first one. Epic fail. I'm closing it down. It will probably take me months to get around to it, too.
Anyway, so
I've got a new house blahblahblah... Big deal. Actually, yes, it is a big deal. I didn't know how much work it was going to be (that's item
no. 2 of TIKNTIDB).
After 6 months of work (well, okay, more like 3 months of work and 3 months of being lazy) the house is decent enough to live in but there are still all sorts of little details that need to be finished and things to be cleaned and fixed, not to mention future renovations of the kitchen, garage, and fireplace, and all other boring administrative stuff like tax and insurance and mortgage payments. Those makeover shows and DIY blogs are such a scam; they only show "before" and "after" (in an hour, mind you!) and how everything turns out so well and pretty and drool-worthy, but nothing on the painstakingly long "during", which in reality takes weeks or months (
no. 3). They also don't tell you that it can be confidence-crushing when you think you have a knack for interior design but the best thing you could come up with for the wall color is white and all of your furniture is against the wall (
no. 4)! I think they hide those things on purpose to lure and convince naive, innocent wannabes like myself that we can do makeovers ourselves and post the pretty pictures on our blogs in a snap. Pfft - what a lie. It's all Photoshop and good lighting
(no. 5) and even Photoshop takes a long time to learn (
no. 5a - I kind of know it already). I want my money back!
Or... is it taking long because we've been lazying around since it's cold and when it's nice out we didn't want to work on the house because it's pretty comfortable already in its partially-done state and we have low standards like that? I don't know, I'm confused. I know there's a lot of work to do and no money to spend. Maybe I'll just pay my weekly pilgrimage to Ikea to clear my head and get motivated and accidentally buy a few things I don't need. Speaking of, some people look down on Ikea but I seriously love their stuff. The designs are modern, they're cheap and surprisingly long lasting. The house is currently 80% furnished with used Ikea seatings & bookcases (they're suprisingly long-lasting -
no. 6) and a couple of new stuff (I had promised myself to buy only used furniture, but you don't find things like
expandable daybed with storage for $400 any old day. You just don't. Of course after I said that, it shows up on craigslist). More on my love for Ikea on a future post. They should pay me for advertising. Or at least send me some gift cards as a thank-you for keeping them in profitable business.
Anyway, that's just my long and winded way of saying that it's going to be a little while before I put up some good pictures. I want to make you proud... either completely good, or none at all! No half-ass!
(Sorry, little donkey... you're cute and I love you, but you are, literally, a
half-ass, and I didn't know you actually existed -
no. 7)
While waiting for the pictures, enjoy this epic video to fill up your time.
