Challenge 11: Tool Time

Some people obsess over cars, others shoes, still others electronics.  I'm not entirely sure when or how it started, but at some point, I fell in love with tools.  I have to consciously avoid "Tool World" at Lowes because I start getting jittery with excitement (something about bandsaws and Channellock pliers gets me all riled up).  I worked construction for 6 years in highschool but haven't had the opportunity to build anything significant since I started college.  I issued challenge 11 because I wanted to see if I still "had the skill."  Yeah. I do.

I've been living at my parents house this summer gearing up for a move to Los Angeles.  Actually, I've technically been living in the basement of my dad's vacant rental property that is adjacent to my parents house.  Instead of a summer job, I offered to remodel the upstairs of this house (3 Bedrooms and a Dining room).  The bedrooms were in pretty sorry shape - the carpeting was stained and smelly, wallpaper was hideously old, and the walls damaged by nail holes, punching fists, two-sided tape, and crayons (regrettably, I neglected to photo-document the "before" stage).  But take a dudes word for it - the place was a wreck.

Here was the process:
Yank out all the old carpeting and baseboard.
Spackle and patch holes in wall.
Paint (I even got to choose the colors).
Install laminate flooring.
Install new baseboard.

Here are pictures of 2 of the bedrooms and the dining room (basically everything you see I remodeled).

 

 The yellow room looked so cheerful I moved my bed in!

There is something incredibly satisfying about sweat-inducing labor that has a visible, tangible product. Plus, I was able to use some awesome tools (chop saw, jigsaw, table saw, sander, nail gun & air compressor, and my very own DeWalt 18V cordless drill).  I'm just upset I didn't get to use my router or rotary saw (I can practically hear your collective sigh of disappointment). 

Anyway, I think this may have been one of the most satisfying challenges I have completed thus far (and with over 200 logged hours, it will probably take the prize for most time consuming!).

Challenge 12: Plan Something Awesome (and do it).

Dude out,

-C.R.