Anyway, I've been sitting on these Halloween pictures for a while and decided now would be a good time to post them. This is the annual Haunted House that the Pudge and his buddy Birch do every year. I talked about it here. I had the distinct honor of being in the last group of the season and took a few shots from various sections of the house.
That's the Undead Pudge on the left (I like that he's in a cage). I'm not sure who that is on the right. It's not Birch, though.
That catches me up through October. I might have a Thanksgiving post. We'll see.
Editor's Note: The following rant gives you, my loyal readers, an idea of why I haven't been blogging much and it makes me feel better at the same time.
So back to the addition. The Mrs' reasoning for needing an addition is because we have a relatively small kitchen and when we have people over for dinner or drinks, it gets cramped fast around the kitchen table. I would agree with this. However, is it worth a third of our house value to change it? This is where our opinions differ and my opinion, well you know what that's worth. She's totally out of her mind, of course. We have like 6 mortgage payments left to pay off the house and she now wants to (actually did) take out a HUGE home equity loan to add about 400 square feet to the back of the house. This will expand the kitchen and den areas. And when I tell you HUGE, if you haven't shopped around for general contractors lately, the cost is outrageous - even in this economy. And of course...I said yes. I always say yes. And we agreed that because of the cost, this would be our Christmas present - for the next 15 years.
Even with saying yes, she's pissed at me (at least I think she's pissed at me - because she's not talking to me). And I think it's because I did give her a Christmas present. Several in fact, as she did for me. But I spent way more money one her, including some expensive earrings that she picked out. I think the center of her pissed-atude is a really cool Belgian Waffle Iron with 6 boxes of really good (according to Amazon) waffle mix. The backstory here is that the Mrs loves waffles, always has. We had a very cheap, basic waffle iron that was rarely used because it was a pain in the ass to clean. And I noticed that at the last Marriott we stayed in for vacation, they had the nice, rotate-around waffle iron that she used for almost every free breakfast the two weeks we were there. Great idea right? Wrong. As she very coldly put it, "She's not Suzy Homemaker and why am I giving her kitchen appliances?" To top it off, she gave away 3 of the boxes of waffle mix to members of her family at Christmas dinner. Sigh...
And this was only the tip of the iceberg. This is what I'm up against. There's a whole lot of other things going on that I won't go in to. Don't get me wrong, I love her but this is a tough time for her and we don't have a dog for her to kick when she comes home from work...there's only me. So now that she's not talking to me, I find that I have time to blog. Woohoo! I get the feeling there will be more rants in the future.
Happy New Year to all!
23 comments:
Good afternoon Buzz Kill,
Gee whiz it's good to hear from you, I think. You don't need a general contractor. Finding an honest one in your market is probably next to impossible. Just build it in your spare time. You could do it at night, sleep is highly overrated.
There's an old saying about never giving a woman an appliance as a present. Luckily Aunty Belle reminded me of it, just before Christmas. Saving me from the same situation you're in. Had you been blogging more often, you might have caught the message. Unfortunately your best bet now is to lay low and hope it blows over. Isn't it strange, doing something with the best intentions can come back to bite you.
Anyway glad you're back, hope you can stick around awhile.
Well, if you think a small puppy would help, I would be happy to put one on an Alaska Airline plane for you... just tell me when you can be at the airport. Do you plan on living in the house for the rest of your life? If so, then the addition is only for you two and not an investment. If the wafflemaker was the only gift she received, I can see why she'd be annoyed, but you did toss in the waffle mix along with some bling, right? Mr.Boxer gave me a toaster oven our first Christmas and said it was for my dorm room. I handed it to him and said "oh, I'm sorry I think you said YOUR dorm room." But there was also some jewelry that followed and I was only 18 at the time, so what did I know? Welcome back and blog as often as needed. You were missed
S.B. gave me a Carhartt onesie our first Christmas together, "To make your time out shoveling snow more comfortable." No lie. Did I spend at least a couple minutes searching the pockets for hidden bling? You bet. Did I not find any? You bet. But I accepted it graciously, then spent all the following year leaving jewelry advertisements cut out from Vogue lying all around the house.
Good to see you out and about. You've been missed.
Yeah, Buzz! So glad you're back to the blogosphere. Sorry to hear your travails, though. Looking forward to what you'll come up with for the Smackdown!
Hi Buzzy! Long time no see so glad to hear from you. Love the Halloween pics. Am I reading right that the waffle iron was only one of several gifts? Can I just say, oh come on woman!! Sounds like a nice gift to me. However, I received a french press coffee pot and was thrilled, so what do I know? Noticing that she liked the waffles at the hotel should score points. But of course, being female, I also know that with waffles comes calories and at Christmas that means the NY resolutions are upcoming and that always includes lack of calories. My opinion, for what it is worth, is that a kitchen appliance is fine as a gift as long as it is not the ONLY gift. And the other gift(s) better be special. Like a room addition on the house. I'm on your side on this one, buddy!
All
To be clear, although the waffle iron is her gift to use, it was never my intension (and she knows this) to have her make waffles for the family. Quite the opposite. Those that follow me know I do 95% of the cooking. We've used the iron 3 times where I cooked once and the Pudge cooked twice - with the Mrs getting waffles served to her 3 times.
She also received 2 knit tops, some fancy tea, a shoulder heat pack (that's actually on back-order) and a desk calandar. I got some pajamas and a Phillies shirt.
Karl
There is no way I would ever attempt this addition. For one thing, part of the deck is coming down and the footing will go right where the 30" dia. tree I had growing in the middle is (was - the Mrs already had it cut down).
And good or bad, everything I do comes back to haunt me.
Boxer
Yeah, we're not moving so it's definitely a quality-of-living purchase. It will definitely price us out of the rest of the neighborhood though. I just dread the thought of having to work until I'm 75.
Moi
Carhartt makes good stuff. I have a work jacket that's 10 years old and still in great shape. The Mrs got her $100 earrings and I never ask her to shovel snow. I don't know what else I have to do.
IE
Tofu is a genuine challenge. I still don't know what I'm doing.
Pam
See - you get it. Why doesn't the Mrs? And she's not heavy. And her food tastes are so fickle that I figured I would get the best equipment to make the things she does like - really well. These waffles are excellent, by the way.
Oooooooo....scary on SO many levels! Sorry about the bombed waffle maker gift attempt - I see your side of the story and love that you put that much thought into it. The female psyche can be strange at times - on another day it may have been a FINE gift!! Keep your chin up, know that this too shall pass, and I'm glad this has given you time to blog! Nice to meet you!
Moi - that is a FABULOUS story about the bling infused Carhart onesie! Seriously, that made my day!!
Good afternoon Buzz Kill,
I'm sorry to read about losing the tree. It gave your deck so much character. I'm sure you've already thought about this, but having a footing in the location of an old tree can really be a problem. Even if you grind out the stump, some of the root structure still remains. It can change your soil compaction as the roots rot away. Your contractor could compact the soil properly and a year or two later you start having settlement. You really should plan accordingly.
And working till you're 75 to pay it off. My friend and I can understand your sentiments. Mrs. K has been talking about wanting a piece of land, so she can have chickens along with the bees. You have any idea how many cartons of organic eggs and Whole foods chickens could be bought for the cost of land around here. I really have no interest in getting into a mortgage at this stage of life or in this economy. I guess is no way for you to modify the interior of the house to accommodate for what you need.
Sorry about the typo's. Really should reread comments prior to clicking publish.
Buzz, we haven't corresponded much if at all, but I gather that we could step into each other's shoes and not feel entirely uncomfortable.
Sometimes, there isn't much you can do. I'll echo Scout's sentiments that a woman's brain can be a wee bit bizarre sometimes.
We briefly flirted with adding on to our house, primarily because of the possibility of eventually moving in my elderly step dad. Couldn't believe the cost. In some places out here, you could get a brand new ENTIRE house for what we were quoted.
nooooo not the tree!!
Scout
Congrats on your haiku and I hope to start playing again. As far as the Mrs goes, I'm at the point where I would rather do nothing and be wrong instead of doing something and being wrong. I don't like that place.
Karl
I know and I have had lengthy discussions with the contractor. He assures me that he will get all of the root ball with his backhoe. I think he will also make the footing wider in this area so it bears better on the soil.
I told the Mrs we should look in the 2 developments next to ours because they are nicer (bigger) houses and the addition to ours would put us in the price range. She would have none of that. And I can't imagine what ground on the Chesapeake costs.
Czar
I feel for you dude. And you wouldn't be very comfortable in my size 12s these past couple of weeks.
Moi
See, you know...insane numbers. And I'm thinking we'll be at least 20% over budget by the time it's all said and done.
Boxer
I know, right? I got a sawzall for my birthday (a tool - but I asked for it) so I could cut the deck from around the tree. I needed to do that every few years. I spent a long, hot afternoon this summer trimming the deck - and then she cuts down the tree. I loved that tree. I'll have to post some pictures. I now have a lifetime supply of firewood.
I just came across this story. Now I don't feel so bad.
Buzz: That's my point. I think we are subject to many similar -- uh, challenges. 'Nuff said. Well, that and your tagline: "If you see me . . ."
Buzz, if it would help, feel free to send me the waffle maker. I loves me some waffles.
Czar
We must be in a parallel universe. And my side doesn't look like it will get any better anytime soon.
Shamu
Even if the Mrs is pissed at receiving the waffle iron (and I'm still not 100% sure I didn't do something else), The Pudge and I will take full advantage of it. It makes the best waffles.
I was just gonna suggest . . . why not sell your house and trade up? Surely that would cost less.
My niece recently asked me, "Aunt Moi, when is the right age to get married?"
Aunt Moi: "Never. Boyfriends, honey. The key to happiness in life is a never ending stream of revolving boyfriends. Because you will never, ever, ever, regardless of will, psychotherapy, or shared love of yoga and gardening, see eye-to-eye with a man for the long term. As such, you will forever be either holding your breath or fingering a trigger."
My poor niece . . .
Moi
The Mrs likes the street we're on and doesn't want to pack up a house to move a mile away. The Pudge was OK with it because he would be in the same school district (he has 4 years to go).
The Mrs and I are being bitch slapped by our lifestyle right now. kids, the economy and work (especially work for the Mrs) are really taking their toll.
You gave your niece sage advice. SB does yoga?
No, no, no. No yoga for him. I just meant, regardless of how "crunchy" your guy is.
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