Things that keep doors closed

So here's a funny thing: all of our doors, with the exception of one, are stacked in a pile just around the corner from me. The only door that's been hung is this one to the basement (where all of the scary things are, it's true). It's so the cats don't wander down there and never come back.

I had been looking for the perfect door knobs for months. I wanted an old-fashioned looking set that would go with our whole modern meets farmhouse deal. Finally, I came across the the New York set from Nostalgic Warehouse that fit the bill -- but the price was better here, so don't be throwing your money away. If you're like me, you need all of your little pennies at the moment.

The barn in the winter

Way back in August of 2009 we were left with a small landfill in this field after the previous owners did a hoarding blowout with all of their 'stuff' in the barn. They literally went inside of it and threw bits and pieces out of it that were in their way, or in my view, did a lot of dumping just out of spite.

This is what the barn (and surrounding area) looked like when we came to do a house inspection.

And here's what was left for us less than 2 months later.

Strange that the urge to run away from this place has never really hit me -- maybe it's denial or I have a super power?

Our next door neighbour wants us to tear the barn down, but it's simply not in the budget at the moment. Besides, it seems like it's doing a good job of self-imploding in areas, so give it five years and it will just knock itself down.

It has a few pretty areas to it, like the neat little square windows where there are horse stations (if that's what you call them, I'm not a horsey person, so I have no clue). Mainly the barn just holds a bunch of junk still, the odd raccoon family and bird nests.

What a walk to the mailbox looks like

A roundtrip wander to my mailbox (we have one of those group-style boxes) is around 1 kilometer from my front door and back. Lovely when the sun is out, not so great when it's raining like mad, which is seems to do a lot here lately. 

This day, it was sunny. Sometimes you need to take a photo of the sun to remind you that it exists.

Corn field! Much more exciting when it's growing, but in a few months the seeds for this year will be planted.

Horses. Always nice to visit.

Shelby, the neighbour's dog. Very friendly and never barks. She loves to try and eat the cat food we put out on the porch (sometimes she's successful, I think that's why she keeps coming back).

And speaking of cat food, here's outdoor Kitty waiting for a refill on the porch. 

The treehouse

No, this isn't from my yard (I wish), it's down the road from me. It's the quirkiest little treehouse that kind of looks like it was built years ago, but the tree has grown around it and just lifted it up. It comes complete with a little window (sad photo I know, I'm thinking I might look a bit dorky standing on the road with the big camera instead of the iPhone one).

The mudroom light

Well, there was one light I was able to make a decision on (and Trevor managed to like it as well -- miracle!): it's the Barn Light Flush Mount Warehouse Pendant. I've liked it for a while, and that right there passes my test.*

It's going to be in black, even though most of the fixtures I've got in the works are oil-rubbed bronze. Living dangerously here. (Plus it comes in every colour under the sun other than oil-rubbed bronze.)

* It's the 3-day test. After I see something I like, if I still like it after 3 days, we're onto something.

Bringing the planks to a bedroom ceiling

Here we are, back on plank duty again. This time, we're starting on the ceiling in one of the bedrooms. I'd like to say that this is my favourite of the two spare bedrooms, with it's slanted walls and dormer window -- but I'm torn. The other bedroom has a larger window that looks straight across the ravine, where you see nothing but trees galore. I like to call it my treehouse room, because that's what it feels like, plus that one will be my future office.

But this room...it has a good feel to it. Warm, friendly, inviting. It used to house two cats that peed up a storm in the closet (and other places), but those days -- and smells -- are long gone. We reworked the walls of this room so where you walk in is actually where the old closet used to be. Confused? Stop by sometime and I'll give you the guided tour.

Stairwell lighting

Just in case any super-spies had noticed the odd ankle-height loops going up the stairs, I can explain: we're going to get all crazy up in here and have lights shining down on every other stair tread.

They're little LED mini lights that are hardwired in to switches, and will look groovy-doovy when it gets dark around here.