Progress Report

Murphys, Ca --  This blog is back from the dead -- or at least inactive -- for the past six months.
We've been a little busy.
At last report we had bought two 80-year-old houses in Murphys, in need of work and furnishings.
The living room was ripped up as the floors were being worked on. The bathroom had no working sink.
The plumbing was doubtful.
We had few lights, as everything had been stripped.
The smaller house was uninhabitable, and we had to consider demolishing it.
And we had almost no furniture.

Well, that has changed a lot, thanks to the incredible help, work and contributions from a village full of friends.

The Family Room seen from the kitchen. 

The Dining Room is in the background, table covered with Christmas stuff.

From the counter looking at the former breakfast nook, now a spot for dishes and local wines.

                           The Living Room, with restored hardwood floors, places to sit,
                                     and stocking hung by the chimney with care.

 The downstairs bathroom, now including a re-plumbed working sink, mirror, lights etc.

 An office in work. That's a poster of my friend the late Bob Maynard on the wall.

And across our shared drivway, Zack happily working on his Subaru by his new/old home. New fences are in place for the dog, just lacking gates.

Our master bedroom is essentially done, except for pictures on the wall and the guest bedroom is sparse but useable. The spare bedroom has become Pat's exercise and music room.

Some other things have changed since the last report:
The heat works, and we have air conditioning.
The toilets flush, and they actually connect to the sewer.
The asbestos roof is replaced, and gutters installed.
The stucco is repaired, and the one-story house painted inside and out.
We have lights in ever room, and appliances cabinetry in the kitchen, and washer/dryer in the utility room.
The basements in both houses stay dry, most of the time, thanks to brand new sump pumps.
 We have planted five trees and numerous bushes and ornamental plants, and hundreds of bulbs.

Credit for all the contributions of furnishings and labor will come later. We are considering setting up a plaque in bronze to honor the wonderful sharing we have experienced.

And we still are finding some surprises, like circuit breakers that pop regularly, slow drains, still-leaking basements, and places that flood when it rains hard.

But you get the idea.

We are home for Christmas.

Progress Report in Photos

Murphys, Ca -- A quick look at the progress on fixing up our new/old home.

The downstairs bathroom needed tile (done) baseboard (in work) a new sink (bought from a neighbor's yard for $20) towel and toilet paper racks (done) a shower curtain rod (in work) a new mirror (still looking) move the cabinet (still thinking) and maybe a new toilet. And then we will call the plumber back. 

 

The once incomplete kitchen cabinetry, including electrical and installation of the  microwave, fan and new drawers, was finished off by our friend and master cabinet maker Skip Sharp.

 We  have a drainage problem so we installed a new French Drain on top of the new water pipes, using the trench Andy Glessman dug.

 The living room had a large section of ugly tile cemented over the old oak floors, so we tore it out and are having it restored, plus a new stone hearth. We expect to get this part of the house back mid-week.

 The last appliance installed was the in-counter oven which had been sitting in the floor serving as an island for a week or so.  The kitchen is actually complete.

Furnishing a four bedroom house has proved to be a challenge, but we are adept at garage and estate sales. So far we have had a nice sofa and carpet donated by the Grassmeyers, purchased three good carpets from the Catholic Church Rummage sale, bought another sofa from the Humane Society and one from the Masonic lodge, and found a good chair and twin beds for a guest room at a moving sale. We've had lots of other items given to us, or purchased inexpensively, through the kindness of friends and neighbors.

One of my pals from the trail crew at the state park, and his wife, have given us a complete bedroom suite.

We have purchased a new bed and a dining table and chairs from the local furniture store, and are negotiating with folks to buy window coverings for 15 large windows. The first estimate was $12,000, so we decided not to do that!

No matter what the status of the fix-up, we stil take a little time for music.

 Pat on her hammered dulcimer in the in-progress living room.

Me and George Haskel rehearsing for a benefit for Harmony Ranch.