August 2026
It’s been a while, so it’s time for an update…
We moved into our home in 2005, purchasing it from a guy who had flipped it (bought it, fixed it up, sold it soon after). The house was built in 1924 and has pretty good bones, but it’s showing its age and the interior trim hadn’t been painted since we moved in. We decided it was time to freshen things up and as long as we were having everything prepped and painted we would have the hardwood floors refinished too. So, we rented a storage container and moved just about everything in the house into it, our covered patio, or the garage (my shop).
It’s a small house, 1066 sf, but it has 26 exterior doors and double-hung windows and nine interior doors. They all have somewhat elaborate trim, typical of the period, and were encased in about seven different layers of paint. Sanding and prepping them was not going to be a trivial task.
We started the process at the end of May. The painters worked from June 9 to July 7, the floor guys worked July 9 to July 13, and I’ve been working the whole time. My jobs included stripping and refitting most of the doors and hardware (nine of them, most of which didn’t quite work correctly after 100+ years of house settling and multiple layers of paint), removing and replacing all the electric fixtures, and rewiring the last couple of electrical circuits that still had 102-year-old wiring (fortunately it’s all in conduit, although some of that had to be re-routed).
During the work we lived in our trailer, which was parked in front of our house. We moved back into the house July 17 and we’re mostly settled in now, but still have a few boxes to unpack. And a couple of doors to hang, and yardwork to catch up on, and…
I also spent six days backpacking in the Sierras, with another backpack scheduled for the week of September 6. And my wife and I will be on the road starting mid-September for about 3-1/2 weeks. All this to say that I haven’t had any shop time or real shop access for a while.
So, when will I be back in the shop and creating my next video? Hopefully late October, but perhaps something short a bit sooner. We’ll see how it goes…
Carl, it all sounds just awesome and glad to see you so involved. Great to have the trailer as a backup. You’re living the dream my friend. Can’t wait to see you back in the shop. I too have been absent from the shop as I have been taking upholstery classes with Glenn to “broaden “ my horizons. Hope to get back at it soon. Stay in touch and wish you safe travels and all the best! For some reason the site is telling me this is a duplicate comment?
Carl, it all sounds just awesome and glad to see you so involved. Great to have the trailer as a backup. You’re living the dream my friend. Can’t wait to see you back in the shop. I too have been absent from the shop as I have been taking upholstery classes with Glenn to “broaden “ my horizons. Hope to get back at it soon. Stay in touch and wish you safe travels and all the best!
Carl, it all sounds just awesome and glad to see you so involved. Great to have the trailer as a backup. You’re living the dream my friend. Can’t wait to see you back in the shop. I too have been absent from the shop as I have been taking upholstery classes with Glenn to “broaden “ my horizons. Hope to get back at it soon. Stay in touch and wish you safe travels and all the best!
Good hearing from you. You’re still a busy guy. Always doing something. I’m still in Idaho. Enjoying the good life. I try to do some woodworking whenever I can. Nothing to spectacular. If you ever get out this way again we can try the White House. My treat. Take care
G_d bless your wife. I think she’s an angel who has now earned her wings for sometime in the distant future.