Finished shelves/new wall where the refrigerator was.
My trip with my brothers was LITERALLY, NOT FIGURATIVELY, the very best time I have ever had in my entire existence on earth.
We did absolutely nothing except hang out, eat our combined weight in dried mango, and dread the arrival of the “real adults”… their pesky attempts to organize the day in a way that does not involve sloth; so misguided.
Sloth>activities.
While I’ve been off, living my extraordinary and glamorous lifestyle of carting dirty laundry around New Mexico, Paul has been DOING HIS THING.
Paul flew in with my parents, so he had a whole week to go full-speed without my interference.
Paul is magic-ing the handrail white, he painted the basement stairwell, (the yellow that the rest of the house is,) caulked cracks, put a finish coat on the shelves… and forgot to bring me pictures.
THAT IS A LOT OF STORAGE!
I seriously LOVE shallow shelves. I love being able to SEE EVERYTHING.
The intermittent differences in shelf-spacing are based on the sort of stuff we normally have floating around near our front door.
Ok. That’s all.
I have get to go for a 12 mile hike now… so just say to yourself: this post was not fulfilling, but AT LEAST I DO NOT HAVE TO HIKE TWELVE MILES.
Paul does not even remotely understand the concept of sloth.
Now for the most important part of this post: there is a cat here, where we are staying… his name is Pico. He is tuxedo. He is giant. He loves to lick you and then bite you unexpectedly.
I love him.
We were best friends, but then I violated his trust by holding him like a baby and smothering him with love while shoving him inside my sweatshirt to “show him” how warm and snuggly we could be.
Thank you so much to everyone who had suggestions for must-do things near Santa Fe! This area is so fun, and BEAUTIFUL!!
Paul and I are going to work our way through your endorsements; we are staying on, just the two of us, so that I can practice denying Self’s desire to scream: TAKE ME HOME IMMEDIATELY.
We went to La Fonda last night (at your suggestion) and they had THE MOST AMAZING BAND! (see my Instagram stories.)
They played WONDERFUL covers of super old country, folk, bluegrass… there is no genre of music that makes me HAPPIER than old two-step… it’s so swingy and irresistible! Full of misogyny, casual violence, alcoholism, and other American traditions!
My ALL TIME FAVORITE being Hank Penny’s version of “Catch ‘Em Young, Treat ‘Em Rough, Never Tell ‘Em Nothin”… (’cause that’s what gets results!) YES, REALLY THAT IS THE SONG. Listen for yourself! It’s from The Girl in the Spotlight, (a 1920 Broadway production, music and lyrics Victor Herbert, and Richard Bruce.)
p.s.– I’m still getting quite a few kitchen/fridge questions that are answered in recent posts, so you may have missed one of these updates!
1. Researching refrigerator options, panel-ready, cubic-feet, etc.
2. We are planning to move the refrigerator to a recessed alcove… has NOT happened yet.
3. We started repurposing this area shown below… to see the first half of the project, read this post.
November 15, 2017 @ 11:07 am
My exorbitant kudos to Paul. Wow. I love the shelves and the storage space and it looks extremely well-managed. (And look! Nothing Big or Fancy! I know, it’s killing you, right? ;-))
Glad you are having a great time in NM. It’s gorgeous. 🙂 I am very eager to know how you resist antiquing in Albuquerque.
November 15, 2017 @ 11:08 am
I do not understand how you do not freak out daily with all that construction stuff going on around your beautiful and sticky-outy piano legs. I would have moved it or wrapped them in bubble wrap and soft fluffy blankets.
November 15, 2017 @ 11:15 am
I had never doubted your sanity until you revealed your taste in “happy” music!
November 15, 2017 @ 11:23 am
Does Paul have a single older brother? An uncle, maybe?
November 15, 2017 @ 11:25 am
I love turntables on shelving. I even have them in my fridge.
November 15, 2017 @ 11:40 am
Yea! Love when family gets together…..it is my happiest time ever!!
November 15, 2017 @ 12:00 pm
Two howl-out-loud moments in this post: Country music lyrics description, and the photo of how Paul handled the handrail on the stairs. FABULOUS!!! Thank you SO much!
November 15, 2017 @ 12:14 pm
Dying over the cat cuddles. ‘We were best friends until I violated his trust…’ . hahahaha
November 15, 2017 @ 12:35 pm
What I saw – shoes in the doorway. I typically live with two women – wife and whichever daughter is home at the moment, for whatever duration. I am constantly tripping over someone’s shoes (not mine). If my stride is quick they sometimes get lofted into the air. Ours is a big(ish) house, and yet there they are – on things, under things, beside things. I was raised by a lovely but compulsively OCD mother. She scrubs the inside of the toilet tank. She de-veins lettuce when making a salad. You know, because…….. Growing up if shoes weren’t on your feet they were on a shelf, in a closet, with the door closed. My wife insists she has helped me overcome some of that. Maybe.
November 15, 2017 @ 1:20 pm
So wait, there’s a stairway leading up to these shelves? That’s the handrail I’m seeing? That makes the Home Inspector in me itch. But otherwise, I freaking love your blog and projects and things. Very much fun to read! Thank you for sharing your world!
November 15, 2017 @ 3:37 pm
Hi Erica, not challenging you but just for my own information because I am in the middle of ripping apart my own house. What is the issue with shelves at the top of the stairwell? Is it because of the size of the landing or is it the way the handrail terminates into the shelving? Or, is it something else. If I want to do something like this in my house, I’d like to do it correctly.
Thanks, Charlotte
November 15, 2017 @ 1:33 pm
This is totally unrelated to your post but where did you get your shirt in your story?!?! The one that says extra fancy?!
November 15, 2017 @ 2:10 pm
Love your posts!! Shallow shelves Yay!!! We had a fluffy tuxedo cat for years. I often felt as though he was marinating us before he bit.
November 15, 2017 @ 2:26 pm
Ah yes, the brilliant insight of country music. My personal favorite? “You’re the reason our kids are ugly” by the Holy Men.
November 15, 2017 @ 8:11 pm
Great storage!! He’s so good 🙂 – if you’ve not tried The Shed (Mexican food) for a meal, it’s a true Santa Fe treat. It’s located near the plaza. Enjoy!!
November 16, 2017 @ 11:28 am
love your blog and as for kitties that refuse to be held like babies and tucked inside sweatshirts . . . all I can ask is, whyyyyyy? Let us love you – this is how we show love =^.^=
November 19, 2017 @ 2:21 pm
Did you see my son and gf when you were in Santa Fe? He was the blond Midwesterner with the pony tail and wire-rims, also on vacation there.
November 20, 2017 @ 12:12 pm
Love the shelves and how everything look! Especially the cat picture is amazing!! there always needs to be a stress reliever during renovation and I bet its the cat!! HAHA! Amazing blog!!!