Jim --->

The last two days have been about doors and patio. The guys have worked super hard putting in the door and window casings and fitting the doors in. Some were harder than others, the French doors in the entry being particularly challenging. All of the latches and hinges are shiny brass, which I don't like and which doesn't go very well with all of the brushed nickel and stainless steel fixtures we've picked out. Fortunately, the doors have to be taken off again to be painted and our contractor assures us that switching everything out is no big deal at all.

The concrete guys have been digging, framing and laying rebar in preparation for the path and patio pour. Digging means the water drainage issue is back. Our contractor just insists that our neighbor needs to resolve their problems which result in them dumping so much water on our property. The City threatened to fine our contractor $10,000 because of all of the water and mud spilling onto the street. We still think, however, that the additional drainage we're installing will resolve most of the problem (our contractor estimates 85%) and while it's not fair, it's what it is.

Finally, I picked out paint. We'd wanted a bunch of different colors for different rooms, but since we're out of cash for a decorating overhaul right now, we're going to paint everything a beautiful, rich neutral (Spanish Sand) with Swiss Coffee (white!) trim and ceilings. It'll look great and we can always repaint at a later date.