We are currently finishing the renovations on our guest bathroom. After waiting three months for a proposed contractor to start our work and make sure it’s done by Oct. 4th, the contractor let us know that they would not be able to complete the job in time. Presumably, other jobs delayed them and at the end of the day, I get it. Contractors need to have jobs lined up to be successful – much like consultants do – but there’s only so much of them to go around. When jobs get delayed, it pushes the timeline back. In the end, something has to give. This time? It was us.
So, we’re finishing the bathroom ourselves, which was the original plan. We’re lucky to have the skills to do this and that it doesn’t need too terribly much. While I would have preferred that someone else do the bathroom so we could focus on the guest ceiling, we got this.
That’s one aspect of keeping calm. There was no sense in getting upset over the contractor’s non-appearance. Getting irritated – though I initially was – isn’t exactly helpful. It’s just wasted energy.
But the big difference in my approach this time? I’m not letting the rest of the house slide while we work on the bathroom.
That’s been my Achilles’ heel, honestly. When we do a project, I get so focused on the project that I tend to let everything else around the house slide. But, as I start work on this Tuesday morning, here’s our deal: the house is clean and since Darryl made a pot of white beans on Sunday, dinner is already prepared. The lawn is mowed and trimmed. I’m getting (nearly) caught up on laundry. I will come close to hitting my target hours for the month AND I have all of the billable hours I need to hit my target for the year.
Finally. The house and our life in general is not in a slide. We can finish this bathroom and not have a massive cleanup effort afterwards. Perhaps more importantly, during the project life won’t seem so out of control. It’s no secret that both Darryl and I function better when life is in control and when home feels calm and safe. By keeping life outside of the bathroom renovations very calm and quiet, we position ourselves for a less stressful reno.
In three weeks, our goal is to be done with the bathroom. That is: mosaic floor grouted and sealed, sink re-installed, shelves up in the closet and restocked, the doors to the closet and bathroom finished and installed and the trim all in place. Then, if we’re lucky, we can still get the ceiling done in the guest bedroom and be completely ready for guests.
But we’ll see. We also need to keep a lid on leaf season, keep the grass mowed, the garden harvested and the house in decent working order with good meals. Just as I preach balance in my personal work/life scoresheet, I need to keep balance in my reno/life scoresheet. That means setting low goals that allow us to achieve success and still have a reasonable homelife. And let’s see if this works. As we’re close to 80% done with renovations, it would be somewhat of an “oops” moment to just learn this now. But still, getting the final 20% done without nearly as much stress and chaos is certainly worth it.
The Yuppie Homesteader 