Forest Through the Trees

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You can’t see the forest through the trees.

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This was an expression heard countless times as a kid. Its meaning was, surely, lost on a mind concerned exclusively on what was in front of it. Now its meaning has clarity: focus on the bigger picture and not so much on the smaller details. Our remodeling project has put that adage to the test.As the ownership of our house reaches the two-month mark, the anxiety of getting things finished is building up. Trying not to do things out of order (too much) so as not having to re-do something has forced us to postpone some work.  The biggest culprit right now are the exterior doors. One set is in and the other two are not expected in until later this month. IMG_2311Now that the old popcorn ceilings have been removed and the fresh,new ceiling is finished, painting prepping the rest of the house is scheduled to begin tomorrow morning. Hopefully we can have the one set of doors (French doors leading to the backyard and, eventually, the sun room) installed before the actual painting commences. In any case, the doors should be installed before the tile floors are lain and, of course, the floors have to be finished before the new kitchen and the updated baths can be installed.  Lots of trees to peek through!  Our self-imposed 75 day time frame to finish our projects and move in may not happen quite on time, but hope springs eternal. We’ve extended our rental lease for another month, “just in case”.

But, the forest – the big picture – is what we keep trying to focus on. It really is the beginning of our new life here in Florida and of being a part of Southern culture. We have gone from being visitors to explorers to residents and, now, we are settled.FullSizeRender (552x428)Some of our friends that have come by during the renovations have, we’re sure, shaken their heads and wondered if we have lost our minds. Who would blame them? We both have said we wouldn’t do a big remodeling project on whichever house we bought. And, here we are! But, our friends and neighbors can’t see what we see. It’s in our minds and hearts.

We see a home filled with light and love and open to friends and family. And to God and whatever work He puts in front of us. For now we’ll concentrate on some of the details and let the Big Picture reveal itself.

Communication

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“What we got here is a failure to communicate”

A memorable line from the classic film, “Cool Hand Luke”, it keeps replaying in my mind as our house makeover proceeds. It seems the more technology enters into our most simple, everyday tasks, the more complicated it becomes. The more we let it replace direct interaction with one another, well, it seems like we end up with just a plain, hot mess. Today was my Waterloo.

20150403_2286Everyone working on our project has been great. From the flooring guys that have tackled a nearly impossible job to the electricians and carpenters, all have proceeded as smoothly as possible while trying to complete a not small project in a specific time frame. It is the coordination that is starting to drive me crazy.

We could have avoided most of this angst by just hiring a “Big Box” store to act as General Contractor. We are buying many of our materials from them. But, the labor costs of them acting as the GC is quadruple what the individual tradespeople charge. So, frugality and sensibility take precedence over ease. Up to now it has been o.k. But, the kitchen project requires the efforts of several tradespeople so the designer/cabinet maker is coordinating, more or less, that part of our project. He says he likes to communicate mostly by email and text and voice mail – as well as some face-to-face, of course. It is here that the bogeyman of technology raises his ugly head. Examples: Wednesday, 8:00 p.m. The Redhead gets an email from the kitchen guy: “Electricians will be at house tomorrow”.  Foolish me asks the Redhead, “what time”? She says, “I don’t know. I’ll email him back”. Hmmm.

Thursday, 7:15 a.m. I’m in the shower singing my third rendition of, “I Left my Heart in San Francisco” (I’ll learn the real words, someday). The Redhead yells into the bathroom, “The electricians are at the house and can’t get in ’cause your not there”.  No kidding. Who needs to rinse off, anyway? And breakfast? Ha!

And so it went all day. Emails to the Redhead from the kitchen guy’s staff: “Plumber’s coming Friday or Monday. Need toilet and valves”. Message duly given. Foolish me asks, “How can the toilet go in when there is no drain yet”?  Or walls? Or floor? Just small details, I suppose.20150402_2276There’s more. But, you get the idea. Technology is fine. To a point. But, can an I Pad really replace a,”My Pad”? All the numbers, names, notes and dates you could possibly want or need – all at a fingers touch!

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Not all is lost or gloomy, though. Far from it. Thanks to the Redhead’s vision, the most beautiful house we could have imagined will soon be our home. 20150402_2277

In the meantime, can somebody just pick up a phone!

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From a Distance

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Often, changes are seen only from a distance.

So it is with our house renovations. Since we signed the closing documents on our soon to be new home a bit over two weeks ago, our lives have been compressed activity. It is not unusual for two or more groups of contractors to be working, or at least inspecting, at the same time. Since Debbie and I decided to act as our own “general contractors” after having been staggered by the labor costs associated with using a well known home center as our main coordinator for our projects, we have interviewed many painters, kitchen cabinet suppliers, flooring installers and builders and roofers. If it sounds like we are doing a lot of work, well, I guess we are! But, changing a house is not nearly so challenging as changing one’s life. And, so far, so good.

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We have learned to really listen to those presenting us with work proposals. It’s often not only what they say, but how they say it, that determines who we will agree to work with. We’ve been blessed to come across some very decent, hard working folks that believe their crafts are the signature of their lives.

Dave is our lead man for the floor demolition and will also take part in the installation of the new tile. He comes to work early and is determined to remove every bit of what was intended to be a “permanent” wood floor. One arm is tattooed with a barbed wire design and the other with the Confederate battle flag and the words, “The South shall rise again”. He smokes too much. But, during his breaks he speaks of his wife and a son afflicted by what sounds to be autism. Dave’s hardness is mainly in his arms and back. We hope he will join us when we have our “new home” celebration party.

There are others we have met during this “extreme makeover” for which we are grateful and fortunate to have met. There are some that we wish we could have worked with but our budgets or schedules were not in sync.

We also have met several of our new neighbors. We are keeping the promise made to ourselves to be outgoing and speak with those we live near and those we meet while walking our neighborhood. Here it is easy. While many of our new neighbors are not originally from Jacksonville (many are from the mid-west) there is something different here in the way neighbors interact. At least in my experience. Debbie has had the good fortune of experiencing Southern graciousness before. There is a book I am nearly finished reading titled, “Southern by the Grace of God”. It gives an interesting insight to Southern thinking, values and custom. I cannot help but think of the similarities between the Southern way of life and that of rural Irish living, from which I am not far removed. Perhaps I am closer to home than I had imagined.

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And, so, yesterday I took The Redhead’s advice and went for a neighborhood walk before returning to our apartment. I had spent much of the day at the house with the workmen. Sidewalks are a neighborhoods best friend – they connect homes and people. It was while speaking with our neighbor, whose home also is on the pond, that I was able to see our house from a distance. She remarked how she noticed already some changes. She was right. Some of the changes could better be seen – from a distance.

A Closing

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Most cliches have some element of truth or wisdom.

“When one door closes, another door opens” is one that is true for us. Tomorrow will be the day we “close” on our new home. We will soon be saying goodbye to the apartment that has been our safe haven during our transition period here in Jacksonville. Living here has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience and a wise decision for us. We explored nearly every area of this city…and beyond. Our feelings and ideas of where we wanted to settle changed several times over the course of the nine months since we arrived here. From the convenient area in which we now live to the funky Riverside area to the Beaches and back, again, over the Inter-coastal Waterway, each area had its draw. But, in the end, we were finally able to zero in on what it was we really wanted in a house and neighborhood. To feel being part of a community, close to the water, has been a constant for us. As far as a particular house – we knew we would know it when we saw it. Or, rather, when we felt it. We spent a lot of time trying to imagine ourselves in a lot of houses. With this house, we did not want to leave the very first time we saw it. It was love at first sight – warts and all. Actually, blemishes and all. It was, too, the house sister Linda saw in her “vision”. Another story and a true one.

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We will have a view of a pond. There will, of course, always be room for family and friends. My initial idea of having a library for our books and music has been replaced with an open floor plan with books and music everywhere – exactly as it should be! Our winding street has sidewalks on which people actually walk – often and at all times of day. It is only a 7 minute drive to the beach and stores and restaurants are within 5 minutes by bike.

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This week we will begin our updates and renovations. We have our list and, hopefully, at least most of it will be completed before we leave our current apartment in June. We have found, rather quickly, that it pays to do a lot of leg work yourself – searching out the best and most reliable tradesmen and suppliers. More about this later, perhaps.

And, so, our new life together begins another chapter. It is a Southern Life Redeux.

Redeux redone

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At times there are thoughts and feelings meant to be kept quietly inside. Just to sort them out, let them percolate and sometimes to let things go. It has been so with me for these past three months.

The previous blogs are done – for various reasons. But, glancing at this blog’s title you will see a similarity and a change.

Southern is what we have chosen to be. Perhaps we have been Southern all along, but misplaced. Our temperament and outlook seem to have much in common with those born here. It has taken these past nine months for our rebirth – for us to know and feel that this is where we belong. We are home.

Followers of my previous blog will be notified of this new site. Perhaps others will find it, too. In any case, a new chapter in what continues to be a “Redeux Life” begins. I hope you all come along.