lyndale renovation 2015 & 2016
upheaval

November 22, 2015
Val's Office —
Absoultely every room in our house has been impacted by the downstairs renovation.
Val's offce has absorbed porch and living room plants and has had a kennel set up for our kitty Stephane.

Val's Office —
Kitty is less than thrilled with the disruptions in his habitat.

Peter's Office —
Under my desk, on the left side, is Grandpa Hank's WWII-era military footlocker. It's filled with really precious things like wedding photos and travel journals.
On the right side, a beautiful African tongue drum, made by our old friend David, rests on top of the living room speakers.
These items, and the living room rubber plant, will be stashed here for the duration of the project.

Peter's Office —
A favorite change has been the relocation of the liquor cabinet to a crate on the floor near my desk!

The Bedroom —
This is about the only space that Stephane can still call his own.
His basment hideaways, his sunny spot on the rug in the living room, his kitchen window perch with the view of the bird feeder...all gone.
Still, as you can see, Stepahne takes it all in stride.

The Bedroom, facing north and west —
More plants from downstairs have created a pleasant jungle vibe.

The Bedroom, facing south and east —
A big pile of artwork rests against the east wall and is covered with black towels.
The coat tree, normally kept by the back door, has been tripping me up on late-night bathroom dashes—Stephane is not the only one inconvienced.
Val is shown, engrossed in door-hardware shopping, and Stephane is texting his friends.

The Bedroom, facing south and west —
I may be able to sneak up on Val, but there's no surprising Stephane.

The Bathroom —
Even the bathroom now doubles as a plant-tending station and a spot to wash dishes.

Downstairs Temporary Kitchen, facing north and east —
I've come to like this little room.

Downstairs Temporary Kitchen —
Fifteen such notes are plastered all over the first floor. Along with the architect's plan, they provide details on the new electrical setup.
Also visible here is one of the new cracks in the plaster that we've discovered.
This is to be expected given the house-shaking work that has been going on; eventually everything will get patched and painted.

An Entrance to the Kitchen —
One of the freakier temporary features of our house is the zipper door to the kitchen area.
It's so hazmat-like! Recently, as I passed through this door for a meeting with Val, the architect and the contractor,
I referred to the kitchen as the ebola zone...noboday laughed.

An Entrance to the Kitchen —
I put little "achtung" signs on the hazmat door and other key doors.
Guys are coming and going all the time now and, if Stephane makes a run for it, I want him stopped by closed doors.

The Front Proch facing north —
It's shocking and shamful that we have as much stuff as we do.
Dishes, furniture, rugs, clothes...all sorts of things are packed here.

The Front Proch facing south —
On the clothes rack, under the black plastic, hang work shirts that were previously stored in the basement.
If I forget to pick out a shirt the night before work, I'm in for a chilly wake-up when I come out to my new unheated closet.

The Basement —
The renovation continues into the basement stairwell.
Here, on the basement landing, you can see a demoed wall waiting for insulation.
New flooring will be installed in this area as will a new back screen door.

The Basement facing north and west —
We are still doing laundry down here, and sometimes dishes.
Val prefers washing dishes in the shower and I'd rather do them here on the washing machine.
Either way, it's a pretty wierd change of routine.