Money…
Money has been the top of my mind lately. I looked at my pool contract and realized I forgot to review it now that it’s close to installation time. And what did I discover? I forgot all about the electrical requirement. Well, it can’t be that big a deal, right? Just get an outlet installed to that side of the house. Run a cord to the pool pump (when it’s set up) and there you have it! Right? Wrong! The electrician came by and looked at the area where the pool will go and the basement for the panel. Thankfully, the house inspector had it correct and my panel is good to go. Unfortunately, I was in the wrong and you don’t just hook up an outlet and run a cord. Sigh…. You need to dig a two foot deep trench to the house! Yikes! Not in a million years did I think that’s what he would say. And when I got the work estimate? Double yikes! We are talking serious money to put the electrical in. Now, except for the tears over my bank account, I’m not going to say I know better than a qualified electrician. What I will say is this is a huge piece of learning for me. I had no idea what code would require or the amount of time or the cost. And the bad part is the estimate does not include the cost of digging the trench. What it does include is a double outlet. I could have a single for less but have decided I would rather be prepared than regretful. With two outlets available on the post I’ll be able to have the pool plugged in and possibly lights or other items during the summer. I could make due with solar lights for summer and that would be fine. I have lovely ones in the dining area. However, for wintertime it would be really nice to have an outlet for Christmas lights and this will give me the opportunity to have as many as I want.
Money part two is having the small stump removed in preparation for the pool. [The stump wasn’t the pricey part.] I was out for a walk in the village and came across a gentleman removing stumps. After a discussion, we arranged for him to come by the house to take care of my small stump for a very reasonable fee. When he got here, he informed me he had worked at this yard last year. There is a very large Manitoba maple with two huge trunks on the edge of the property. Until last year it had four huge trunks. Two came down in a storm and caused quite a problem, apparently. The previous owner decided to not take down the third trunk which will most likely come down on its own. Sigh again… So instead, I’m stuck with it. When this tree comes down, it’s going to take out the pool, if the pool is installed by then. There is no, “if” the tree comes down. As it’s been explained to me, it’s a matter of “when”. So, the electrician and the arborist are bumping up the cost of my pool quite significantly. Enough of a bump for me to consider the importance of the pool. Truth is, I loved my pool at my old house and desperately want one here. I will be in it every day during the summer.
What have I learned? Well, look up for one thing. And ask more questions for a second thing. I thought I’d been doing pretty well with the whole pool plan. Applying for a permit and talking with the pool company, etc. I haven’t thought of everything though and with another review of the contract, where it’s all spelled out, I am reminded that trusting my memory isn’t good enough. We get busy and in my case, I signed the contract months ago. It should have been sitting in front of me every time I did anything to do with planning the installation. That’s on me.
What it has done is made me conscious of all the unknowns that exist when dealing with work, outside of our own scope. Do the research. Ask questions. Then ask more. Read and reread your contracts. At the end of the day as the customer, I am responsible for my behaviour which includes my choice of company, my acceptance of an estimate and the job when it’s complete. Like I’ve mentioned before, find someone that comes with good references and be clear about what you want. If you’re willing to put out all this money, you have to be satisfied with the outcome.
In the meantime, while waiting for work to be done or while trying to find a new contractor, you can still be doing! There are lots of reference materials to look at for ideas. Quite often I see the ideas that won’t work for me and that is good to know. Every once in a while I find something that jumps out at me and I realize - that’s it! For instance, today I saw a picture on social media of a kitchen design. It was nice and certainly had some attractive elements. On the far left of the picture, not fully seen, was a door. It’s an exterior door and I need a new door for my kitchen. I thought I had chosen what I want and was satisfied with my choice. But that door? EXACTLY what I want and I didn’t know until I saw it. It’s perfect for my space and design. I’m so excited! Another element chosen.
And a new contractor? Well, I think I may have found someone. He comes highly recommended AND has a friend who used to own and live in the house! So, he’s been here many times. It will be interesting to see what he has to say this week when I share my kitchen vision and even more interesting to see the estimate he comes up with. Fingers crossed it all works out.
In the meantime, I’ve been doing little things. It keeps me busy, makes the house more my own, and provides some feeling of accomplishment. While I haven’t picked out anything for the living room yet, I spent a lot of time scrubbing, moving furniture and decor items around while unpacking the final boxes. What a difference! It’s not done yet but it’s now closer to mine than it has been. It’s such a contrast. Before it was my house but there were unpacked boxes and I’d only set up the decor partially. I’m choosing to leave that room to the end of my planning and didn’t realize the disorder was actually impacting my ability to enjoy it. Small things like painting my magazine basket and painting a gifted side table have all helped to improve the feel of the room. It’s also making it easier to play with different design ideas - it’s easier to picture them in my mind.
And I’ve been doing some adjustments to pieces outside. It’s really becoming a comfortable space where I love to sit and watch the world go by. Or more often, watch the clouds go by!
If you’re in need of a change and money isn’t available to go big, think of paint, decor, changes to what you already have. I’ve just received an interesting candelabra. I know what I’m going to do with it and the expected cost, other than candles because I have those already, is going to be less than $15. The majority of that price is the spray paint I bought. I’m excited to see the finished product. I also took a very old toy pram and have spray painted it to fit with my outside decor. I’m going to use it as a planter and will be doing the planting this week. I cannot wait to see the transformation. Dollar stores are full of ideas to craft changes to what you own. Don’t be afraid to give it a try!
And when you need a break from transforming, take it! Enjoy all that you’ve done thus far. I’ve had a wonderful weekend because I took the time to sit out on my porch with my cup of tea and a good book. After all, life isn’t just about accomplishments and production. It’s about appreciating what you’ve created, who you are, the nature around you, and the world you are making better by being in it.
Top left: the 50+ year old toy pram - I think it will be amazing with flowers!
Top right: my son’s wooden birdhouse, painted white and sitting on the porch.
Middle left: the new candelabra awaiting transformation.
Middle right: an inexpensive dollar store find, made rustic with tin and burlap and new salt and pepper shakers!
Bottom left: the pieces that will reconstruct an old shutter into a welcoming sign for the porch.
Bottom right: making the most of my living room now, until I’m ready to redesign!