—- Benjamin Franklin
.
“Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.”—- Bill Bradley
So, our house passed the attorney review stage. All that’s left is the Inspection, and then the Appraisal. Neither will be any problem whatsoever.
However, the Buyer asked for a concession. We have hardwood floors throughout the house, but only the dining room is exposed. All the rest has been under a carpet for 30+ years. It seems every friggin buyer in America wants hardwood floors. I was tired of answering the damned question — “Do you have hardwood floors?“. So, with our new awesome realtor I made a suggestion —- “Hey, Richard. How about for the open house I pull up a few square feet of carpet in the living room? That way they can see for themselves that we have a nice hardwood floor, just like in the dining room.” He thought that was a marvelous idea.
So, I pulled up about a 4′ x 4′ section of carpet right by the front door. Being that we had never actually seen the flooring in the living room, I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it looked. It looked like it just needed a thorough cleaning, polish, and wax job.
And that was the only concession ….. pull up the carpet, and clean and polish the floor. No problem! Except, there was a problem when I removed all the carpet. About half of the floor looked like SHIT. Here ya go;
So, a few days go by and I get a call from our attorney. He asked, “Did you pull up the carpet and polish the floor?“. Yes, but the floor looks like shit, I told him. His response? Basically this; “Don’t worry about it. I will reword the concession as follows; ‘Seller will remove carpet and clean and polish floor. Seller will not be responsible for the condition of the floor.“. Wow. Sneaky bastard, eh?
We agree to the new wording …. and so does the buyer. But, that’s only because the buyers don’t know the actual condition of the floor. They are, of course, under the impression that the entire floor will look like the pretty nice 4×4 section they saw in the corner.
I told Ms. Freud that we can’t give them the floor in this condition. Sure, going by the letter of the law, we’d be in the clear. But, what about the spirit of the law??
We got quotes in the $3,000 range to redo the floor. She didn’t want to budge an inch. And, I don’t blame her. We already dropped the price for these buyers by $5k … not to mention the many thousands of dollars we’ve poured into this Money Pit over the last few years. Enough is enough … and she had enough! “Take it, or leave it!”
Of course, I didn’t want to tell her that an inspection is coming up … or that the buyer would almost certainly want to do one final walk-through … and that we could lose the deal over a shit floor. Why add worry and stress to her life?
I had an idea. I have an orbital sander!! Is there some kind of rule or law that says you can’t refinish a floor with a handheld sander? No! Did George Washington finish his Mt. Vernon mansion floors with a mechanical device? Of course, not. I figured if George could do it, so could I.
So, I did. Hours and hours and hours of sanding for about a week. Mixing and matching and combining various stains to give the floor the same aged look as in the dining room. Alternating between cursing — “Fuck this motherfucking shit!!” — and listening to Christmas music, Joy To The World! And, after 100+ sheets of 5″ sandpaper, you get this;
From this;
To this;
I don’t know what the big deal is about finishing wood floors. You sand a lot (60, 120, and 220 grit), and mop on the finish. Is it a professional finish? Nope. But, it’s good enough. I must give a huge shout-out to my Dewald orbital sander. That little sucker got really HOT a few times but, it kept on running and running. Best $60 I ever spent on a tool.
Persistence, my friends. It’s simply a matter of keeping on keeping on. Mind over matter. Train you brain to never, never give up … and you will accomplish great and mighty things.
===============================================
We are strongly considering renting part of this 1896 mansion. It’s about 15,000 sq ft and has 13 bedrooms. No, we are not rich! Almost unbelievably, the rent payment would be about HALF of what we currently pay.
But, it’s in a less than desirable town with many Dindus. The millionaires back then built their mansions IN town … not the outskirts. So, if the shit hits the fan, we’d be right in the thick of things. Also, the place comes completely furnished with correct period pieces, including original furniture from 1896 … in pristine condition. That means we would literally have to sell almost everything we currently own …. and Ms Freud is quite attached to her belongings. Me? I think it would be totally liberating.
Four other families live in the house. All professionals. No kids. No smoking and no pets, either. We’d have the largest apartment, the entire length of the west wing, both floors … below.
If we decide to get it, I can post pictures of the freaking amazing interior, …. but only if people are interested.
My mom goes into surgery today at 3PM. Things will be extremely hectic for the next 45 days … my posting time will be severely limited …. so, in case I can’t get to it in the next few days — MERRY CHRISTMAS to all you STMs!!!
..
I’ll say this for ya. You are one stubborn mofo.
I have a friend who is really, really anal about perfection in the things he does. He bought a 1.5 storey log house (kit built – all the logs are the same with and thickness) and decided that the exterior needed to be refinished. So he sanded the exterior of the ENTIRE HOUSE before re-staining it. Burnt out three orbital sanders in the process.
All I can say is…that is awesome. You are True Grit my friend.
Yes, I want to see pictures of the new place.
ah yes, the final walk through. This is the step I missed on my house.
I enjoy the pursuits of this mad person known as Stucky, named after a famous chain of fast food diners in the south eastern states.
Kudos on the floor, looks great.
I would not rent a house with 3 other families, after living in a single home setting. All the little things will wind up driving you insane, like the sounds of the lady next door, slamming her cabinets shut just when you are dozing off to sleep, or the smell of the over fried food, from the folks who want to try cooking kung pow chicken at home, instead of going for take out.
if you want to live in a community, buy a condo, where you have the rights of a property owner, and they build them sound proof, and stink proof.
I appreciate your comments, my friend. I really do.
Again, there are no kids in those other families …. “family” being loosely defined, as two of those families are single men, both doctors. Also, those walls aren’t thin sheet-rock … they’re about a foot thick of plaster, and brick.
Hats off, sir! Excellent job! Dewalt tools are top-flight, as is evidenced in the photos. You’re also to be commended on your “de facto” instead of “de jure” approach to the deal. Persistence with honor, way to go!
Best wishes for a successful outcome to your mom’s health problems and for finding a new residence that suits you. The subdivided mansion looks good (yes, please show photos of the interior), but one can’t help wondering if a cantankerous individual such as yourself really wants to share digs, although the other digs-sharers sound acceptable. Is it completely impossible for you to say bye-bye to NJ? I imagine so, or I suspect you’d be on the midnight train to Georgia or wherever.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours!
Hi, Monty. Gotta stay in NJ until my parents pass. I’m really their only help. Once they are gone, we’re definitely moving ….. probably right next door to YOU! 🙂
Ah, the parents! Yes, understand that and wish you the best with it.
As for moving here, well, there’s a nice 2 1/2 acre lot nearly right next door and I can get it for you wholesale! Yes, that’s right, a special price for you my friend, very good, very nice!
Beautiful work, nice fix and you are absolutely correct, anything you want done you can do if you simply apply equal measures of determination and persistence.
I have the poster below hung in my sugarhouse.
[img
[/img]
Nice. And you are one who said “get a professional to do it, you’ll mess it up.”
Goes to show ya everyone has an opinion, and like the saying goes, most of them are worth shit.
Not singling you out, HSF, mostly the “trained perfeshinuls” like James who said anyone short of a woodworking god with a bazillion years of experience would make everything look like a bag of smashed assholes. And the rest of the namby-pamby girly-boys that couldn’t pour piss out of a boot without a ten-page instruction manual with full-color pictures.
Just winging it works with more than cooking and vacation plans…
You are fucking gluten for punishment.
I’ll warn you about the big home – besides costing a lot to heat and cool – unless it’s completely up to snuff – it will be a maintenance nightmare.
We’re renting. ALL utilities, except the cable bill, is included in the rent. We are not responsible for any maintenance whatsoever …. including gardening, or even having the driveway plowed.
Stucky,
Beautiful job on those floors. You are quite correct about persistence. Well done. As for the new place, coming from the other side of the continent where older, more interesting architecture is somewhat scarce, please, by all means, post away.
Well done Stucky. I had no doubt about your resolve to do this although I’m a little disappointed you didn’t beat the shit out of it with chains and crowbars. The would have certainly helped to reduce the expletive part of the process. But it looks great none the less. Merry Christmas. I wish your Mom a speedy recovery.
Merry Christmas Stuck! Good job on the floor too! Before long you’ll be a professional house flipper and a millionaire! I’m headed home through a monster snow storm on Christmas Eve. Unless they close the freeway again I’ll poke along as slow as I have to to get there but I’m prepared to camp out on the side of the road if I have to.
I’m not sure what’s going on with momma Stucky but I wish the best possible outcome for her. The next 30-90 days will likely be my father’s last and mom likely won’t be far behind. 2017 is going to be an interesting a busy time.
Merry Christmas to all the feces flinging simians.
Stucky
Those floors are beautiful! The new owners are going to be ecstatic.
I join with others in wishing you a peaceful Christmas despite Mom’s troubles. She is fortunate to have your care and concern, probably a factor in her imminent speedy recovery.
Thanks for all the effort you put into your posts for TBP.
P.S. FWIW I would think twice about that rental property. I recall the old maxim, “If something looks too good to be true, it probably is.”
Nice job with the back-breaking work. Hopefully the buyer doesn’t complain about the finish. Some people just can’t be pleased. Good luck with your Mom’s surgery.
Incredible job on the floor. Very beautiful.
Great Job Stucky .Hope your mom’s OK.Have a Merry Christmas and remember to pray for ….me!! I need all the help I can get .
Stucky- I can’t believe I am posting this AGAIN but I don’t think a pro could have done a better job….looks fantastic.
I would talk to the other people renting in the mansion to see if there are a lot of problems with the heat, plumbing, breakins etc. That house is so impressive it would tempt anybody to set aside the dindu problem. Also, will the landlord allow Ms. Freud to conduct her practice there as there are other tenants to consider? There have been some hairy situations at your current location and the popo’s tend to show up frequently.
Anywho, you never cease to amaze me with all of your varied talents. Have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS with the family Stuck! Bea
Stucky, you would really like my husband, Nick, who never met a contractor who wasn’t trying to rip him off.
Good work…I’ll recommend you to my Mennonite log home builder.
Great job on the floor. Don’t know what the rent would be on mansion apartment, but if it’s halfway reasonable, I think you should rent rather than buy a condo. Remember, you’d be buying a condo in NJ. Interest rates going up could suppress property values. Not wishing bad for your mom, but if you bought a condo and sold it in 3 years or less, paying a commission + a drop in values could mean an overall loss. It took you forever to sell the house. What if it took you forever to sell the condo?
Hey Stucky,
Congrats on the floor, absolutely amazing change. You must see now why people love the look of wood. Makes the place look rich and warm.
Not that it matters now, but most hardware stores have a 20″ stand up floor sander that u follow around. Probably would’ve needed it for a day.
I know, fuck me, right. Lol. Still awesome.
Best to u and the family thru the season and beyond.
My husband was too enraged at how much they wanted for one day he refused to rent the sander. He hand sanded our floor as well.
“So, our house passed the attorney review stage. All that’s left is the Inspection, and then the Appraisal. Neither will be any problem whatsoever.”
LOL.
Alter Girlz; Typical. You add absolutely nothing to the discussion at hand except your perceived aire of superiority. Go suck a bag of dicks.
Stuck, the floors look amazing, man! For a temporary move before you move permanantly to KenStucky, fuckin’ awesome! Just remember to never take your eyes off the dindus. They will be wathing you for that crime of opportunity to pop up some day.
LOLZ @ mom telling your to shut up!
I have newfound respect for you because we both unfortunately share a common thread; A libtard cunt sister.
Good job Stucky. Prayers for your mom.
It’s 82* here,consider us when you make your permanent move.
Merry Xmas to everyone.
Hey Tampa I have a question for you.
Where do you get your drinking water? From the gypsum stack sink hole, errrr, I mean the floridian aquifer or is it from the corexit aquifer just to the north of that?
Stuck, Those pictures are great! Seems like a sweet abode until the permanant bug out. Keep on keepin’ on and Merry Christmas my friend.
You should consider buying a farm next to HSF.
Stuck, you are an inspiration. Your giving those fuckers more house than they paid for, more effort than they deserve. For the amount of work you do for that low hourly rate, I shall have to call you Pedro. Bravo, compadre!
And what a cock it is. Unless you have an inch on his foot-long you have no hope of getting a handjob from the Stuckmeister. You’d have to blow him instead.
Necessity is the mother of invention. Balls and grit can make up for a lot. Cool. ,Stuckey,cool.
Prayers for your Mom.
Looks really, really nice, Stuck. What an upgrade. Moral of the story. You can do any home repair or upgrade. Buy something with upside. Make it count. Rent the crazy place. Have fun. Hope your mom feels better. You too, IS. We’re all at that age. Merry Christmas to all
Living room. Dining room behind it. (Kitchen behind that.) Stairs go to bedrooms and library.
[img
[/img]
Library. 15 foot high bookshelves on other two walls.
[img
[/img]
Thankfully, the kitchen is modernized.
[img
[/img]
View from the back porch, attached to kitchen.
[img
[/img]
Well, first I want to thank you for all the nice compliments. One nice thing about phone cameras …. they don’t show a lot of detail.
Secondly, mom came out of the anesthesia without a hitch. We won’t know if the surgery was successful for at least a week. (She has a large ulcerated open wound on her right calf which simply hasn’t healed …. so they scraped the flesh and laid on a layer of collagen. Hopefully, it “takes”.)
So, this time she was actually scared about it all. Also, although she didn’t show it, I know she was sad that her fucken libtard daughter wasn’t there. In fact, the libtard cunt didn’t even take the time to call. So, I’m with her in the pre-op waiting room and at one point the conversation goes something like this.
Mom: Why isn’t your sister here?
Me: I don’t know, mom. Maybe she’s busy with her bunnies and cockatoo. But, don’t worry about it. I’m here. And I have friends all over the country praying and/or thinking about you.
Mom: Oh, shut up. (Really, she said that.) You don’t have to lie to make me feel better.
Me: Mom, I’m not lying! You know that internet place I often tell you about? Well, I tell them about you also from time to time. And I swear to God people from California and Florida and Kentucky and all over America and even Canada said they’d be praying for you today!!
Mom: Really?
Me: Yes, mom. Really.
And I swear on my grandchildren’s lives … a huge smile broke out on her face. And, for that, I REALLY THANK YOU GOOD PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Merry Christmas Stucky. Best of luck to your Mom for a successful outcome.
I would think renting right now would be a great idea. Rent until the next housing bubble, then you can pick up something real cheap.
Stucky- Hoping your mom is doing well and you all had a nice Christmas together. That rental is some nice digs and looks very roomy for just the two of you. Would be hard for me to pass that up.
Happy New Year!
That place looks very nice, but you should really think about getting out of NJ. At least come up for a visit first and see what it’s like up here- it’s NJ circa 1965.
Merry Christmas to you and yours Stucky. Will keep your Mother in our prayers. Thank You for the years of excellent writing and incites that only you are able to produce. The content is greatly appreciated.
Stucky….contact a home moving company and find out what it would cost to move that mansion to a piece of land that you will buy.
That mansion would cost many millions to build.
Friend of the family has been building two homes for fifty years. He is a master carpenter/cabinetmaker. One is his residence, the other a holiday home on the sea. Neither is near finished. In fact, both are unfit for habitation, truth be told. He is now 80. He believes if he ever finishes, he will die.
He uses no power tools whatsoever, and accepts zero help – none, nada. At all. Ever.
The craftmanship is beyond superb. Ever tiny detail is painstakingly done. But they are unfinished, and I suspect will never be finished.
He does not finish one room and move on. No. He does all the cornices. Then all the architraves. Then the door jams. Then the cabinetry. Loose electric wires hang out everywhere. An inspector would condemn the places.
But they are both wondrous to behold. You cannot see a join anywhere on anything. Tongue and groove made by hand cabinets, etc. – stunning stuff. Truly a master at work.