Got an e-mail from “grope” this morning telling me I can add 3 inches in length.
Wonder if grope knows I’m 5’10” and am not interested in adding any length whatsoever? Maybe I should say something...
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There’s a new bathroom floor going in at the Tiny House! With the settling in process nearly done, and the desire to unpack multiple boxes of stuff I have nowhere to unpack TO very nearly at the zero level, it seemed only right to attack a problem area in the house in order to create just a wee tad more chaos in a space that supports very little chaos indeed.
By which I mean that the amount of chaos in the TH can be quite small and still have a large impact. Truly, 1000 square feet of house is prone to displaying its chaos right out loud. The trick, I’ve found, is to keep the kitchen and living room organized and allow the ruckus of life to happen in the bedrooms.
Anyhow.
The bathroom floor in the Tiny House was not terribly well installed, and has bugged me since the day I took possession of the house. The Tiny House deserves better than a floor that is STAPLED down.
You heard me right. Stapled. It appears as though whoever laid down that floor tried at first to TAPE it down, because there was old gummy residue along the seam lines. On top of the old gummy residue, along the seams, were rusted staples, some of which were inexpertly applied and therefore rose up slightly from the floor, creating a hazard to sox and feetsies.
To say that the floor was ugly would be a semi-misnomer, because the vinyl floor itself wasn’t all that bad, but the staples and tape gunk were horribly awful and so VERY redneck.
I am not interested in the least in going so far southern that I end up in rednecktown, y'all. There are limits to my love of the souf.
So, in order to combat the creep of 'neckdom, a handyperson's help was secured, a trial lifting of a loose corner of the vinyl was undetaken, and another vinyl floor was identified underneath. Two layers of floor!
Under that was another vinyl floor. That's three.
Under THAT one was a linoleum floor. Way to change it up, former homerowners!
4 layers of floor. Astounding.
To add to the WTF factor, between each layer of old flooring was what appeared to be several years worth of “bad aim,” still slightly moist and redolent of stale pee. People, I was grossed out to the utter MAX! This stained, discolored, stinky-unto-nauseating high-rise of old bathroom flooring was what I’d been walking on for months. What I’d allowed my guests to walk on! What my KIDS step on.
It absolutely HAD to go.
Oh, it was both a curse and a pleasure to rip that nasty NASTY flooring up. I cursed the smell, the years of neglect, the lazy folk who’d lived in the Tiny House before me and who couldn’t work up enough gumption to take up the old floor before putting down new. I cursed the former inhabitants for their inability to pee IN the toilet. I cursed my stomach for being weak enough to want to empty itself of whatever was in it if I breathed too deeply. I cursed the fact that I didn’t have a respirator or a hazmat suit.
Indeed, I cursed myself a little for ever wanting to begin the whole thing.
But I was pleased as well that it was getting done. In spite of the stink and the overall “yuck” factor, it was good to see the fetid leftovers of other people’s existence eradicated from MY house. Once the final shards of brittle old linoluem were shop-vac’ed up, once the plywood subfloor was bleached and vacuumed dry, once the awful smell was gone, I was pleased.
A coat of primer made it even better.
This morning some new vinyl tile was purchased. It’s going to be gorgeous, if only for a couple of years until the planned addition makes its way into existence. If the bathroom floor works out, the kitchen is next, and damn the chaos factor.
Out with the old, and in with the new. I’m all FOR it now.
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Beth, I’m thinkin’ on the tag, and will probably have something up tomorrow. Thanks for the mental exercise!
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Lastly, I went for a hike at Falls Lake yesterday. A brisk wind accompanied a partial circumnavigation of the lakeshore, the sun was strong enough to pink up the cheeks, and I got me enough fresh air to last a day or so.
This wee foray into the big world outside my office and/or kitchen pressed me into deciding that I’m not outdoors often enough for long enough. So, add THAT to my short list of New Year’s resolutions. “Get Outside.” I think that’s general enough, don’t you?
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That'll do it for today, folks. Enjoy this second day of the New Year, and try to not break any resolutions, mmkay?
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