I'm such a tool girl.

As I've written before, I've been remodeling and redecorating my house for almost three years. It all started because I wanted to change out the old 70's tile kitchen counter for a more sleek and sanitary granite. Once I decided to do that, I figured we might as well replace the cabinets. And if we're going to replace the cabinets, we might as well put in a large garden window, and if we're gonna do that, we should raise the ceiling and put in new lighting, which, of course, led to the removal of a wall and some cabinets that separated the kitchen from the dining room. All of which led to the new hardwood floors which led to the powder room, which led to new marble walls and pedestal basin and new toilet...on and on and on.... It's been going on like that for three years. Most of the huge changes were finished two years ago by professionals. The rest, the painting, the moving of furniture, the hanging of new art, the updated knobs on the first floor bathroom cabinets, the hanging of shelves, and drapes and shades and everything else, has been done by moi. The most recent project has tested my skills.

We have a two step landing that leads from the garage into the house, and up a flight of stairs, into the a loft, inside the garage. When we bought this place, twenty-years ago, we had the landing and the stairs carpeted with a dark grey commercial grade carpet. It's lasted amazing well for all the traffic it has put up with. It seems we've always had a family member or two living up the cozy loft over the years. My nephews, nieces, sister, step-daughters, daughter, son-in-law and a rottie have all lived in the loft for months and months at a time over the years. I even had an ex-boyfriend who set up his office in the coveted hideaway. It has been a gym, a guest room, an office, a playroom and a refuge. For a couple of years it was a craft and sewing room. Needless to say, the past few years that carpet on the landing was looking pretty funky. It wasn't grey anymore, it was a matted black and torn mess. Well, as with all projects, once I painted the inside of the garage, and hung up white shades to cover all the shelves, that carpet had become intolerable.

Yesterday I tore it all up. I ripped it out. I ripped out a thousand tiny staples and hammered in all the lose nails. Home Depot, my favorite nighttime hangout, sells all I ever need for my entertaining projects. I found some peel and lay tiles that were perfect. The only problem was that the bottom step was really too narrow. So, I bought some 2 by 4's, got out my drill, screws and brackets and made it bigger. I think I used every tool I own. Even the saw. I've laid down a thin layer of cement and I'm waiting for it to dry. The tile is ready to be laid....and so am I.