2 goals today
1) Go to fireworks! We're not up to tackling the giant one that happens in downtown Houston, which is the largest land-based display in the US! Besides the deadly heat (heat index is near 110), and the long walk, and the crowds, there's mainly country music, and Mom decided that we can't go strictly on that basis alone. So we're going to the display in Katy (west of Houston on I-10). It's closer and supposed to be pretty decent.
2) we figured out what to do with the floor in sis's room. (BTW, I'm only capitalizing if it uses the left shift key because using the right one still hurts.) we talked to dan the flooring guy at Lowe's and he helped us decide what to do. He priced out cheap cheap carpet with their $139 installation fee: $400. If we did our own laminate flooring job: $350-400. we tried to ask sis to please PLEASE let us just clean the damn carpet and then put a rug over it. she still said her OCD wouldn't let her do it. the carpet was going to have to come up and something was going to have to be done about the floor. then Mom got a brilliant BRILLIANT idea... pull up the carpet and treat and paint the plywood subfloor. Then put a rug (or two) on top of that. easy for us to do ourselves. so that's what we're doing. Mom and I are going to pull up the carpet tomorrow (or late tonight when it's not so fucking hot out), and then paint whenever. We bought dark brown paint so it looks rather natural, and then sis really really really wanted blue carpet, so we found a remnant of blue carpet that will cover 90% of the floor space, thus rendering it "safe" for her to live on.
Not really a goal, but good news... I found a wrist brace at walgreens that is SO MUCH BETTER OMG than the one I was wearing. This one goes to just past my wrist, instead of most of the way down my forearm. It also has anti-bacterial fabric so it won't get all icky as I sweat in it. third, and most important IMO, is that there is a squishy gel pad that covers the metal plate that sits under my hand, so I don't have to pad it myself (as I had been doing) with gauze squares. Oh! and it also has a large thumb hole, so there's no bruising/chafing/hurting as I type or just grab stuff.
I'm secretly glad mom had her BRILLIANT idea because that means I don't have to try to use a circular saw (or rented compound miter saw) with a brace on. I'm perfectly fine sitting on the floor and using a brush to cut in at the baseboards. I'm just very wary about the carpet removal. It has been proven by blood antigen tests that I'm very allergic to, of all things, cats. and mold. both of which there will be a lot of ripping up that carpet that abby has peed on for a year. SHIT, we forgot to get breathing masks. Must get some later/tomorrow before we start work, because otherwise I'll be unable to breathe after awhile.
Must take some painkillers before during and after the carpet pulling so that I don't want to cut my arm off at the elbow once the pain gets bad.
2) we figured out what to do with the floor in sis's room. (BTW, I'm only capitalizing if it uses the left shift key because using the right one still hurts.) we talked to dan the flooring guy at Lowe's and he helped us decide what to do. He priced out cheap cheap carpet with their $139 installation fee: $400. If we did our own laminate flooring job: $350-400. we tried to ask sis to please PLEASE let us just clean the damn carpet and then put a rug over it. she still said her OCD wouldn't let her do it. the carpet was going to have to come up and something was going to have to be done about the floor. then Mom got a brilliant BRILLIANT idea... pull up the carpet and treat and paint the plywood subfloor. Then put a rug (or two) on top of that. easy for us to do ourselves. so that's what we're doing. Mom and I are going to pull up the carpet tomorrow (or late tonight when it's not so fucking hot out), and then paint whenever. We bought dark brown paint so it looks rather natural, and then sis really really really wanted blue carpet, so we found a remnant of blue carpet that will cover 90% of the floor space, thus rendering it "safe" for her to live on.
Not really a goal, but good news... I found a wrist brace at walgreens that is SO MUCH BETTER OMG than the one I was wearing. This one goes to just past my wrist, instead of most of the way down my forearm. It also has anti-bacterial fabric so it won't get all icky as I sweat in it. third, and most important IMO, is that there is a squishy gel pad that covers the metal plate that sits under my hand, so I don't have to pad it myself (as I had been doing) with gauze squares. Oh! and it also has a large thumb hole, so there's no bruising/chafing/hurting as I type or just grab stuff.
I'm secretly glad mom had her BRILLIANT idea because that means I don't have to try to use a circular saw (or rented compound miter saw) with a brace on. I'm perfectly fine sitting on the floor and using a brush to cut in at the baseboards. I'm just very wary about the carpet removal. It has been proven by blood antigen tests that I'm very allergic to, of all things, cats. and mold. both of which there will be a lot of ripping up that carpet that abby has peed on for a year. SHIT, we forgot to get breathing masks. Must get some later/tomorrow before we start work, because otherwise I'll be unable to breathe after awhile.
Must take some painkillers before during and after the carpet pulling so that I don't want to cut my arm off at the elbow once the pain gets bad.