Apathy v. Seussilitis

(Courtesy of quickmeme.com)

Haven't written rhymes in months... I really don't know why.

Possibly because I'm giving apathy a try.

I'm not reading books or e-mails; haven't been on-line.

All my time and energy reserved for me and mine.

Kitchen renovations (now completed) left me stressed.

Nightly news and politics were making me depressed...

Donald Trump was only funny when I thought he'd lose.

I'm not laughing now that he's been beaten by Ted Cruz.

Even football got distressing. It's been hard to cheer

When the scientific evidence has made it clear

Football players hurt their brains on every single hit -

I still watched New England though, 'cause I'm a hypocrite.

But, today, I felt some stirrings - got the urge to rhyme -

And, if you are reading this, I thank you for your time.

Hope that you and yours are well and you'll check back to see

If the rhyming bug can help defeat my apathy.

Kitchen Reno - Day 83. Getting Cranky

 

In the reno process, what I've come to hate the most

Is not knowing, day to day, if you'll be playing host

To someone who says they're coming and - then - doesn't show,

Leaving you to wonder if you should or shouldn't go...

Wouldn't want to miss them if they're only running late;

If you do, who knows how long you're gonna have to wait

'til they get around to you again.  So there you sit

On a perfect Autumn day... But, you are missing it.

You could be out playing golf, or at a country fair,

If they'd only let you know, for sure, you wouldn't care.

Just a call or text to say if they'll be in to work

So you're not left sitting, waiting, feeling like a jerk.

Kitchen Renovation - Day 70

Hallelujah! Thank you God (and Bob)...  I have a sink.

Fridge is making ice and filtered water we can drink.

I've been washing all the dirty dishes we've accrued,

Testing out the under-mounted seal that Top Line glued.

I've used paper plates so much I must've killed a grove.

Next, although it's greedy, I am praying for a stove.

Cooking on an outdoor grill's begun to lose its charm;

 I've now reached the stage where I'm prepared to trade an arm

Just to cook a meal indoors and not out in the rain...

Sorry.  I am also sick of hearing me complain.

I will just be happy that my sink has been installed -

And try to be patient 'til the electrician's called.

Pardon the Rant

 Top Line Granite stocks a lot of very pretty slabs

But, if your decision where to shop is up for grabs,

I'd suggest you find another granite store to use;

They are not the place that I would recommend you choose.

Top Line didn't keep in touch; they don't return your call,

Couldn't get the Ceasarstone they'd promised to install,

Didn't send the templater my builder asked them to...

He was here three weeks ago and these guys still aren't through.

Kitchen Renovation - Day 56

I think I've been patient but my patience just ran out...

Two months now without a sink and I've begun to doubt

That our kitchen renovation's ever getting done.

Trust me when I say this process isn't any fun.

No one but our great designer (God bless Lisa Green)

Seems to care how long it's been or how I'm gonna clean

Pots and pans and cutting boards in my small, bathroom sink...

With no stove, preparing meals is harder than you'd think.

Still, I've tried to make it work with paper cups and plates,

Tripping over boxes and appliances in crates,

Waiting for our countertops... Then, yesterday, I heard

They won't be arriving here until the 23rd.

"Just a couple days," they said.  Yet, that will make 19.

And, although I wanted to, I didn't make a scene...

But I'd recommend you undergo a change of heart

If you've been considering a renovation start.

Kitchen Reno - Day 37

From the tunnel of our reno we can see a light;

We've begun to hope that everything will be alright.

Almost all the floors are laid, the cabinets installed,

Waiting on the counter-tops - the templater's been called.

After that, the new appliances should all arrive.

Kitchen renovation has kicked in to over-drive.

All those months of preparation, now the end's in sight...

Or else it's a train behind that fast approaching light. 

Kitchen Reno - Day 28

Hi...  I know it's been awhile and - no...  I haven't died

Renovations mean that there is no place left inside

That is not a cluttered mess... We need a Sherpa guide

Just to find our way upstairs (Okay.  Perhaps I lied.)

It could be the fumes from all the paint that we've applied

Or that workmen everywhere leave me nowhere to hide.
 Now the rhyming circuits in my brain are all but fried.

It's too loud to concentrate.  I haven't even tried.

If you came here looking for new rhymes and were denied,

Please forgive this interruption. Here, where I reside

Major renovations are a pretty bumpy ride;

There's been so much going on I've let my blogging slide.

The Red Sox & The Bright Side of Reno

I don't plan to watch the Red Sox anymore this year;

It's no fun to see a team I've always held so dear

Flounder through a season - piling loss on top of loss -

Now, with renovations going, I don't give a toss.

Once I'd be depressed that Boston's season's shot to hell,

This year I don't have the time or energy to dwell.

Hopefully, by football season, all of this is done

And sports news is all about the games New England's won.

Kitchen Reno - Day 1

Demolition's started: power saws and bangs and thuds...

In less time than you'd believe they had it down to studs.

We still have a sink and a refrigerator but

My new kitchen's starting with an - almost - total gut

They tore up the front hall tile and found a damaged floor;

Water has been leaking in.  We need a new front-door.

3 more rooms to pack before the hardwood's put in place...

There are boxes everywhere.  I'm running out of space.

Bought the sink and faucet at a place I found on-line.

Fingers crossed that they'll arrive and everything is fine.

I will keep you posted on the process if there's time

And I find uncluttered space to sit and write a rhyme.

Dear HGTV... I'm Not Buying It

Just heard from our builder who's agreed that, late next week,

He'll begin the process of the havoc that he'll wreak

On the kitchen I have used for over 20 years...

Now I find I'm overwhelmed with renovation fears.

Everything's chaotic 'cause the schedule's been changed

As contractors try to get vacation plans arranged.

I still haven't bought a sink or faucet or the tile.

Don't know what I'm doing (and I haven't for a while.)

It's been months and months but we have yet to see the start.

I'm a wreck before they've even torn the place apart.

HGTV makes it look so easy but it's not...

3 days for a kitchen renovation? Not a shot.

Beach Rentals?

The beach house we'd come to love has recently been sold

And the other place we rented in the days of old

Is too small to fit us all now that the kids are grown,

So - this year - our annual vacation plans are blown.

Started the tradition back in 1998;

All of us together at the beach and it was great!

Couldn't find a house to rent this year that's big enough,

Plus we're busy with this kitchen renovation stuff.

My whole clan's in mourning for our weeks spent at the waves;

Whole days at a stretch when everybody's kid behaves...

Does somebody know a place?  Has anybody seen

Somewhere on the beach, that welcomes pets, and sleeps 15?

Kitchen Reno Update - What Were We Thinking?

Kitchen cabinets are coming in in mid-July

But we still have no idea how much the flooring guy

Plans to charge for hardwood we are hoping to install.

Angie's List gives him an A...  I can't agree, at all.

Weeks ago he promised us that he'd submit a quote.

Since then he has disappeared - no phone call... Not a note.

I am losing confidence in my contractor's subs;

Chewed my fingernails so much I've worn them down to nubs.

Nothing else can start until the flooring guy is through.

After him there's still a million things we've got to do.

Kitchen renovations can produce a lot of stress...

Whether it is worth the pain is anybody's guess.

Kitchen Renovation Update

Kitchen renovation isn't moving very fast.

Since the time we started planning (4 months in the past)

Forward progress in the process has slowed to a crawl...

Now the flooring guy we're using won't return my call.

I still need wood samples from him so we can decide

What we want installed but I can't get them (though I've tried.)

I did get some back-splash, sample tiles I found on-line.

Good thing that I did; computer screens (at least on mine)

Make it hard to judge a shade of color that will match.

Always get a sample before buying a whole batch.

Have to make a plan to go and look at slabs of quartz;

"Highly recommended" by the Consumer Reports.

Cabinets are ordered; don't know when they're coming in.

Builder hasn't given me a date when he'll begin.

I am on my mark and set...  But still no starting gun.

It could be the end of summer by the time we're done.