Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Wood Eye! Wood Eye!
Forgive me, dear readers, if I appear incoherrent. I've been breathing paint-stripper fumes for the last two days, so I'm a bit loopy.
In the latest episode of our home reno orgy, I'm stripping paint off of a half-height room divider. It's been an ugly eyesore of thick white (easily stained) latex since the day we got the place. As it turns out, underneath the paint is beautiful, high quality cherry wood.
How often have we all heard stories of 70s decorating horrors? I'm sure I've heard at least a dozen people tell identical stories of yanking up old shag carpet to reveal gleaming, beautiful, perfectly preserved hardwood floors.
So what were those dumb fuckers in the '70s thinking? What sort of perverted aesthetic would lead a person to hide the natural beauty of wood? I suppose the same sort of perverted aesthetic that thought orange and purple plaid looked good as colours on a sport jacket.
Stipping the paint off has turned into a gigantic chore. Whoever committed this atocity had to put 10 coats of white in order to drown out the cherry wood. Further, the divider has a raised grain on the side, so the paint has sunk down into the grooves, requiring detailed toothbrush-type cleaning.
So, last night I sat my sons down and told them to tell their children, and tell them to tell their children's children: Never paint or cover over natural wood!
How about you, dear readers? Have you encountered any atrocities of 70s home decorating? Any home reno anecdotes to share?
posted by Mentok @ 4:11 p.m.,
15 Comments:
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At 4:26 p.m.,
Grumps said...
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Wow. Your frustration has completely silenced the community.
I know your pain, though. Our previous owners weren't decor-challenged but were home improvement idiots. I'm talking do it yourself shortcuts - paint with no primer, screws with no drywall anchors, neglected plumbing problems, and self-installed shingles that led to a major leak this fall.
It took two months for Grumpspouse (because I'm too big to crawl around in the attic) to pull the insulation out and dry it up, replace vapor barrier etc., all because someone thought he could save a nickel or two.
Oh, well, that's the price of ownership. At least it's OURS.
Glad you're doing your best to spruce up the former Grump Manor. Until we bought this house, I really missed yours. -
At 6:07 p.m.,
Bathroom Hippo said...
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Somebody told me that if a Buddhist swears that he comes back as a grasshopper and has to try again.
Good thing grasshopper's can't swear! -
At 6:59 a.m.,
said...
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I have no reno horrors. I'm just sitting here waiting for the 70's decorating to come back in style so I can sell my home, ha,ha..
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At 2:52 p.m.,
FiL said...
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Our place is a monument to 1983, especially in the wallpaper department. Dearest Wife keeps making redecorating noises, but all of our local friends have made us promise to have an eighties party before we do...
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At 3:32 p.m.,
Mentok said...
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Grumps - thanks for the blessing, it means a lot.
FYI, other readers: Grumps is a previous owner of Mentok Manor, but not the one who committed the horrible decorating atrocities.
hippo - actually, swearing is one thing we're allowed to totally get away with in Buddhism, near as I can tell...as long as it isn't directed at anyone.
happy and blue - it is my most fervent prayer that the 70s was an anomaly and shall never be repeated again.
fil - Wow, 1983. That was a year. One of my favourites. I just went and looked at a list of 1983 tunes: Sweet Dreams, Hungry Like the Wolf, Rock the Casbah. So many anthems of my misspent youth. {Sigh!} What I wouldn't give to spend one more day in 1983.
But that's nostalgia, which is bad karma and would actually put me in danger of grasshopper reincarnation ;-) -
At 4:45 p.m.,
Library Mama said...
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Careful there, Mentok.
1983 was the year before you met me. It can't have been that great a year.
;-p -
At 2:05 a.m.,
FiL said...
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Well, I guess I'll just have to invite you and Library Mama over for the party!! ;-)
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At 3:26 a.m.,
Bathroom Hippo said...
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Hahahaha
Mentok was an old boozehound...
dating like 5 women at a time...goin to rock concerts...bein' a hippy and all.
Hair all greased up. Body all greased up....
Yah he was lookin for love in all the right places!
High five their! -
At 12:37 p.m.,
Library Mama said...
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They must have been the right places, Hippo, 'cause he managed to find me!
;-) -
At 1:50 p.m.,
FiL said...
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This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
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At 1:54 p.m.,
FiL said...
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This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
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At 1:55 p.m.,
FiL said...
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Oh Hippo, Mentok with a Flock of Seagulls haircut!! The mind boggles...
(P.S. Could'nt get my stinking HTML to work. Grr...) -
At 2:10 p.m.,
Mentok said...
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Flock of Seagulls haircut?
Something like this you mean?
Yes, it's true. I did indeed. Library Mama will attest to the awful truth. -
At 5:40 p.m.,
FiL said...
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EXACTLY!!
"And I ra-a-an, I ran so far away..."
But, pray tell, what did Library Mama have for coiffure? A Kate Pierson B-52s beehive?? ;) -
At 12:48 a.m.,
Bathroom Hippo said...
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Iran is kinda far...
Good observation there Fil.
