Happy new year everyone! So far this has been a fantastic year full of lots of fun times and few bad times.  Also, it has not snowed yet this season to any degree that bothers me. Read almost none at all.

I have re-discovered the ability to purchase music after relying on Pandora and XM radio for years. We have since ditched the XM and keep Pandora for catching new stuff here and there.

WITR has come into my listening in a capacity that WBER used to.
Basically combing it’s top 20 for new songs as they pop-in.

Anyway, here are some changes I have made recently for the new year.

1. I phased out more caffeine during my week off from work. I now only drink one diet soda at lunch and I think it helps counteract the asthma drug I take  at lunch too. I used to drink a cup of coffee for breakfast too.

2. I take my pills at Lunch instead of before bed. I find I can wake up better without the drowsiness the pill causes.

3. Vanessa and I started a tea ritual at 10pm most nights. In fact, I’m drinking tea with her as I write this.

4. I’ve resolved to make this the year I start meditating more
regularly. At one point I was doing it every day at lunch and frankly felt like a million bucks due to the micro sleep I would tend to get at the end.

5. I’m going to start working out at work two day a week. Right now I try to get in as many board game with my co-workers as I can. I think I need a little more balance and three days a week is still plenty.

I think that’s all for tonight, see you next Wednesday!

I’ve had some time to think about the circumstances that got me here. I’ve done some mindfulness meditation to calm my brain and I have to say that it has helped — especially in coping with the anxiety/uneasiness that comes with being over-tired. Considering that this whole ordeal fell during the holidays, I’ve also been thinking about the coming new year. I’ve decided that if I make one resolution this year it would be this:

In 2012 I will be kinder to myself

I’m so quick to place blame on myself for things I have no control over. I’m too busy taking care of others (Gabriel, Mike, the house) I often neglect my own personal needs. I feel guilty if I take time away from Gabe to do things that I want. I don’t make time for exercise. I could stand to eat healthier.

So yeah, all this needs to change, but by choosing the simple resolution to be kinder to myself, it pretty much encompasses all that in one statement. And I say 2012 is the year to make it happen! Here’s to the new year and my one and only resolution. :)

I am beyond miserable. I said to Mike that I’m being punished for something I’ve done, because this feels like hell. I fumble through my days just barely able to keep my eyes open. Cruel, cruel irony. I need to be there for Gabe and work, but I’m floundering.

I used to be such a good sleeper. I think a year and half of crappy sleeping cycles is finally catching up to me. Are there any insomniacs out there that can help me out with my new problem?

However, I ran into a small snag. The pre-cut oak panels I used before are 5.5″ high, which was fine on the other stairs because I covered up the open space with 3/4″ shoe molding. Those risers are only 6.5″ high — you do the math. You’d think the builder of our house would have used the same freaking sized rizer, but NO. Silly me; I assumed they were the same. The risers going down were at least 7″!! What the hell?? 5.5 + .75 + .75 = 7 So the boards weren’t going to work the same way as the 6.5″ steps.

Long story short, I created some skinny shims that I could lay the molding on and filled the small gaps with wood putty. It’s certainly not my proudest home improvement moment. I used to complain to high heaven about the weird things the previous homeowner use to do (um 3″ nails??), and now I’m turning into that homeowner. Hey, whatever works, just do it. :) I’m just glad I don’t have to listen to Mike nag me to do it already… and it looks pretty good too!

Living Room (or Den as I continue to call it)

• touch up walls
• paint trim
• cut wood for stairs
• urethane panels for stairs
• nail up panels and trim
• get chair
• attach mantel permanently
• new couch
• get rid of bar armoire
• install some kind of shelving/ cabinets behind bar
• bannister
• accessories
• new fireplace

Dining Room

• break open passthrough to kitchen
• adjust wiring
• finish old electrical project
• get rid of coffee table
• create a room divider
• figure out what to do with that awkward open space (if anything)
• hang artwork
• cut/measure/urethane and hang trim
• bench (Dad is making)
• new curtains
• paint
• possible display shelves for corners

Sitting Room

• new curtains
• create photo montage above piano
• hang other art

I only listed three rooms here that currently relate to House 2.0, so you can imagine how the rest of the list goes on and on. Actually the two longest room lists are the living room and dining room, so it’s not that bad really. Notice the two items with strikethroughs? I just got around to doing that today; so there will be a blog post to follow-up on that little adventure when I’m all done tomorrow. (There is no sarcasm in that comment whatsoever.)

This is my first time doing something like this for my whole house and frankly, I’m surprised it took me so long. I like the idea of keeping all the possible and even impossible projects in one place. That way I can refer back, modify, add, subtract — all the while keeping a perspective on the “someday/maybes” so I can actually make them realities. Do you make crazy all-inclusive lists to keep your ideas organized?

Here’s the picture of my setup. (I worked in the Laundry room, of course.) The dye just barely tinted the shade and I let the thing sit in the tub for about 30 minutes! I didn’t take a picture of the failed dye attempt because I was too busy trying to figure out how to fix the problem.

Remember, I said there was good news? I managed to come up with a solution: I grabbed a bottle of concentrated watercolor ink that I had in my art supply cabinet and applied the color with a paintbrush while the shade was still damp. I painted several layers from light to dark and let gravity pull The color down. It turned out more uneven and runny than my Photoshop mockup, but i think it looks funky this way. The only thing I might do is spray it with some kind of waterproofer since the watercolor ink isn’t 100% permanent. But it will never need to be washed, so I’m not too worried.

Hopefully, this is the last lamp related post for a while. :)

First, I have to announce the arrival of our dining room lamp. It came from the same place as our bedroom lamp and took forever to get to us–8 weeks from ordering to delivery. Sheesh! I thought I’d go old and gray before it came. (Oh wait, I already AM gray!) Given our past experience I knew it would take a while, and I think it was well worth the wait. Behold:

I know our style is a little eclectic and doesn’t appeal to everyone, but I LOVE it.

On to the next item on the agenda in Loftus Lamp Land. I present the lamps in my living room. I got a great deal on them from JCPenny while I was visiting my parents this summer. However, at the time I didn’t realize the color of the shades was nearly identical to the wall color. Cue sad trombone. I still really love the lamps, but wish they were a little more contrasty.

Then I found this article on Design Sponge and I think I’m going to give it a whirl. Plus, I realized I already had packet of unused dye… Which means, this DIY project is totally free as long as I don’t screw it up. Via the magic of Photoshop, here’s what I’m hoping the shades will look like when I’m done. Now I just have to find a tub big enough to hold the dye and the time to do it while Gabriel is asleep. I’ll keep you posted.

And then I bought the “idiot string” (as I lovingly call it). Partly to stop Mike from harping on me, but mostly to protect my lens. I bought it on ebay, but didn’t realize it would be shipping from Hong Kong. Weeks after I ordered it, I wondered why I hadn’t gotten it yet, and jokingly said it was coming the slow boat from China. Slow boat, indeed! Had I only known… By the time it finally arrived, I almost forgot I bought it.

Now that I have it, I can’t imagine life without it. Considering how much I love my camera, I can’t believe it took me that long to do something about my ugly lens-neglecting habit.

What are your annoying habits? Or are you Mary Poppins—practically perfect in every way?

Sometimes, I’m lucky to snap some nice shots (by my standards anyway). When I’m watching Gabriel, and he starts doing cute things, I naturally want to capture the moment… But the second my camera comes out it’s a battle of who gets to play with the camera. He reaches for the lens, smudges the UV filter, I wipe it off, he starts screaming, lather, rinse, repeat. These shots were captured during such an episode.

Also, I’ve sort of been on a Photoshop Actions kick lately. You can see evidence of that here and here. I found some really great free actions on Deviant Art and I’m having a lot of fun with them. Maybe it’s cheating, but I think I’ve already proven that I’m a lazy photographer and this is no exception. I think they give the photos a little more mood, a little pizzaz—like jazz hands for your images. For the set above I used the action Vintage Beach.

Here are some before/after comparisons for your reference:

For the sake of simplicity, safety and my sanity, we didn’t drag out some of the old decorations. But one of my favorite new pieces is the bats in the lamp shade. I got this clever idea from Martha, of course.

We managed to have 7 kids in my house at one time and nothing broke and there were very few tears (not counting the tears of disappointment at having to go home). While I think everyone had a good time, I’m thinking that maybe next year it’ll be a parents’ night out kind of party.

The morning after the party, I caught Gabriel with his fingers in the cupcakes. So much for having Mike bring them to work to get rid of them.

In other Halloween related news, this was Gabriel’s real first time Trick-or-Treating. We stopped at a few of our favorite neighbors’ houses and showed off his cuteness. :) He even enjoyed some of the candy. I can’t wait to do it again next year!

I could say more, but Gabriel is up from his nap and sounding grumpy. So please enjoy the entire photo set on Flickr: