Everything is so ugly. Everything is so boring. This is exactly what I was thinking after we spent a couple of hours walking around a big mall, only because it was freezing but I wanted to walk. It might not have pushed me over the edge as much as it did, had I not also been looking at thousands of cabinet knobs and faucets and hinges and every other damn thing you can put in a kitchen. I know you're talking about not being able to find specific things. I have that problem, too. The 1920s faucets that were still almost universal in utility sinks when I was a kid are now special order high priced items. But I also think things in general look repulsive. Crate & Barrel seems to have bet its entire product line on the 587th revival of the 1970s we've had to endure over the past two decades. In each object in the store, ugly fights with boring to see which will emerge as dominant. There is not one single dinner service that you could call elegant without laughing, and more than a few you could lose your lunch on as soon as you ate it. I know some here swear by PB but it is worse than ever, everything dull as death and clunky as an elephant's foot. Things that might've been somewhat interesting when they were novel ten years ago, like "vintage" faucets, have been overdone and dumbed down to idiocy. There never was a real vintage faucet that had those big knobs on top with sheep hook spouts, and all those pull downs look like something you'd be embarrassed to touch in polite company. I guess it's cheaper to shave all the fine edges off everything than to produce items with the slightest character or delicacy, whether they are traditional or modern. The sad part is no one even seems to notice. Consumers are eager to show they will be no trouble to their Chinese manufacturers.

One of the principles guiding the design is to minimize floor/foundation space - I've got TOO much space up on the 2nd if I use the space above the garage. Scratch that, both of my master suites are actually larger than I think is optimum but if I make them smaller, the left over space can't really be consolidated into a central additional room and even if it could, I don't really have a need for another room. There is something odd about my personality - I just can't stand the thought of wasting cheap 2nd floor space when it comes to the 1st versus 2nd floor layout process. Putting more space on the main floor will involve foundation and roof expenses. When I pay for foundation and roof, I want to squeeze 2 floors out of that investment which means that it irks me to only get 1 floor for that roof and foundation. Now what makes this quirk particularly funny is that my roofing is going to be high pitch and metal, which means very expensive, but for some reason the idea of spending money there doesn't bother me. Your idea of first floor flex space with nothing above it or below it, just slab and simple roof, would probably cost me less money than doing what I'm doing which is trying to squeeze maximum use out of space. All I really want on the 2nd are two bedrooms and 2 full baths. I've actually solved the layout problem by rejigging the roof lines- very steep pitches and gables allow me to treat the spacious attic as a complete 2nd floor, almost, while still maintaining the look of a 1.5 story, and because of the high pitches, I'll actually have attic space above the 2nd. My 1st floor is 1,100 sf and my 2nd floor is about 1,000 sf. The 2nd consists of the open stairway, hallways, elevator, 2 masters, 2 master baths, and 2 walk in closets. All pretty spacious and there are some interesting ceiling lines where the roof intersects into the living space. My latest conundrum is whether I should do something with the 600+ sf above the garage. I've laid out the 2nd floor so that a hallway leads to that space, rather than simply incorporating the hallway space into a room, and this is my concession to a.) keeping my options open and b.) thinking about some future buyer - it would be easy to fit 2 more bedrooms into that space with only some modest renovations. The thing is though I really don't know what to do with that space right now. I'm giving serious thought to walling it off but then, as per above, I'm peeved that the garage space is not being used to its highest potential. Oh, the problems of being ME! Not using that space bugs me but I don't know that I need that space so building more livable space than I need or want bugs me too. I don't know which is the lesser evil.

I was on a contractor site the other day and a guy said that "he didn't GAS." I wondered what that meant, but then figured out that he didn't "give a $*!t." He's my age, I'll be 61 in November, and it doesn't surprise me how much I'm like him. I do mostly repairs because there are lots of them, plenty of customers are "previously spanked", there is little competition, but mostly because I can charge a lot. Repairs pay double what new fabrication and installation do. Occasionally I'll get someone wanting new work. I price it at repair rates. If I get it, great, if not, I don't GAS. I've got a new solid surface job coming up in a waterfront foreclosure remodel. The DINK's read my reviews and based their decision to hire me on them and my ability to engineer their stone table top, not on price. I found out this morning my price was too high on another solid surface job. Here in Florida it's common for the sink counter to travel under a sliding glass window and into a lanai. It's going to be a lot of work to make that happen right and I priced it accordingly. I've already done this repair on another job because the original contractor didn't charge enough. Be wary of a contractor with too big a backlog; his rates may be too low. I never have one, but then I don't GAS.

I was reading this earlier and am glad to read now that you have had a talk with your Dad. Sometimes it is best to deal one thing at a time. In this case it might also be best to move your Dad into a temporary situation and wait until the better place has a vacancy. I agree your DD deserves your full attention for getting her settled into college. Having just gone thru this with DD getting her daughter, my DGD, settled 3.5 hours away from home, I know it wasn’t easy. She (DD) is having more separation anxiety than I ever thought she would. We went down this past weekend for bid day and to take a few more items and DD admitted on the way home that she hated not being close enough to see things that were happening in her life. For your Dad, can you take the dogs for a period of time until some other arrangements can be made? I know that must be hard. As for his house, I would probably hire a company to come in and clean, and if you are putting it up for sale, only you can evaluate what might need to be done as far as flooring replacement, etc to remove the dog odors. Mattress toppers....we have procrastinated about a new mattress. Do you have Costco? We bought a topper there, had it shipped to our house and are using it now. About to pull the trigger on a latex. Have used the topper for about a year.