vanessa.oxygenvalve.com

So if you’ve noticed my flicker stream lately, you’ve seen a lot of strange random items I’ve photographed. The truth is, my garage is overrun with junk — trappings of a former existence, apartment living, and various cast-offs that are too nice to simply throw out. The budding environmentalist in me cringes at the thought of good items languishing in a land fill. Mike and I were toying with the idea of throwing an all-out garage sale, but we’re far too lazy for that. Lose a whole weekend sitting in the driveway watching people peruse our crap and try to nickel-and-dime us for that Bombay Company Jewelry Box that’s easily worth $20 bucks; NEVER!

I LOVE this Weird Al song!!!

So up on Craigslist it goes. And why not?! I’m home all day now, often without much to do. Plus, as sick as it sounds, I enjoy the human interaction; even if they are strangers. Some of the things I’ve sold so far: That jewelry box, a big wad of turquoise tule, vinyl gaming chairs that Mike HAD to have (I got his permission first), old bathroom light fixture, shower curtain and other old bathroom stuff, office chair, new curved shower curtain rod (lost my receipt), among other things. And someone is supposedly coming today to purchase my old kitchen baker’s rack. All in all, we’ve made a pretty good chunk of change. And with that money, I’ve been able to do a little Goodwill shopping. I’m hoping to have the garage cleaned out by the end of the summer. It’s been far too long since I was able to see the floor in there!

I’m embarrassed to say that this is pretty much what our garage looks like right now. This picture was taken last year, but not much has changed. The mess is slightly more organized, and just imagine four big rolls of bamboo fencing since this pic was taken before the fence project, as well as two boxes for a new toilet (for the powder room) and various bathroom project items! Trust me, it all fits in there!

One morning while the contractor was working, he absentmindedly left the door from the kitchen to the garage open. I heard Bella crying, and realized she was in the garage, and since the garage door was open, she could have just taken off. I quickly shooed her back into the house and yelled at the contractor to remember to close the door—which he did from then on.

Ever since that day, Bella has done nothing but scream at the door. Sometimes VERY loudly! I shot this video a little earlier today, just to prove what I have to deal with every day. While she may seem cute, it can get very annoying at times—especially when I’m on the phone with a client: that’s particularly wonderful!