semperfiona | Creative destruction

As is my current habit on Wednesdays, I've been working at the house tonight. The hardwood flooring contractor came to give me an estimate ($490 for the one room most in need of work, about $2200 to do the whole house, varying combinations of rooms costing different things). Anyway, he pointed out that there was almost certainly hardwood floor under the ugly linoleum, and I've spent the subsequent five hours with crowbar and chisel prying up the plywood layer. There was another layer of equally hideous linoleum underneath that, very worn and patched with a similarly colored but different pattern. I tore out about two-thirds of it, I suppose, so far. It's hard work, but actually easier than prying the lino tiles off the plywood, and far more gratifying. Pulling out great big pieces of splintered wood and broken tiles...The only real downside is that it left me covered in splinters, and of course the place looks far worse now than it did when I started. But sometimes you have to break things to fix them, and there is much fun to be had in the breaking. See the mess!

I can't quite decide, though, whether to have the hardwood floor underneath buffed and refinished (there are some places where it will definitely have to be patched) or to continue with my original plan and have ceramic or stone tile laid. I kind of like the idea of hardwood throughout the house, but I've wanted the ceramic tile for so long...

Either way the plywood had to be replaced (ceramic tile needs a different sort of underlayment), so I shall continue with my gleeful destruction on Friday night.

Some friends (hi

neeuqdrazil) have been asking for pictures of my (in)famous red-yellow-blue basement paint job. Here are some.
The stairs from the bottom
The stairs from above
The hallway moldings and doors

Here's a couple pictures of the kitchen cabinets
one
two

And just because I'm proud of her, a picture of Rosa