(1) Like a mal-functioning septic system (I am paying a fortune to have the house waste connected to the city sewer; it will supposedly happen this coming week)
(2) And removal of sad concrete slabs (patio) and junipers seem to be my destiny: I had tons of concrete and loads of ratty junipers hauled away from the lot on Alameda de las Pulgas back in 1998, and the story is repeated here in 2007. I will soon need to reexamine the shape of the driveway: it has this oh-sooo 50s, tired flare form.
(3) The house had an identity problem. Everything was white'ish and bland: inside and outside. It was hard to discover any structure in all the monochrome. As an emergency I decided to paint the outside brown and carbon (not the best choice: too dark), and use a lot of colors inside to emphasize and lift up the ceiling and exposed beams.
(4) Also, the kitchen felt so enclosed and confined - and the plastic/formica countertops and backsplashes seemed an affront attack on my aesthetic sensibilities. I had my friend Tony do a quick makeover of the kitchen, i.e, tear out the formica, remove the raised bar that made the kitchen seem even smaller, thus allowing a more direct/smooth flow from the kitchen towards the gorgious outside. And an Ikea beech butcher block is always a help agains eye-sores ;-)
Finally, the cabinets and walls got a couple of coats of paints to help them out of the bland whiteness of their past.
