At last...

I debated on whether to show the before first or after. It's not a shocking difference before and after, so I don't know why this was a stress for me. Anyway, since several people have asked about this, here's my bathroom.

Before:
Notice the carpet flooring, hideous light fixtures, and $20 faucets.

After:

I installed the tile flooring, changed the light fixtures, and changed the faucets. I also added base trim around the perimeter of the floor to give it a proper finished look. See below:

When I first started really contemplating what to do here, I had a grand plan - ceramic tile floor, new counters, tub surround, maybe even some tile work on the shower. After seeing how much that would have cost, I went with the cheap and quick idea. The guys at work gave me a little crap about it, but in the grand scheme of things, I wouldn't have gotten a penny back on it. Not only that, I live in a prefab house. I have discovered that the life of one of these before major fixes start appearing is about 5 years. Or maybe it's just that I'm super picky on a quality house, and notice things need to be fixed before most people would. I am a quality control person for a living after all. I couldn't see myself putting in this super nice, custom bathroom in a house that, according to the banks, isn't even really a house. And I'm at the 5 year mark. I'm looking to ditch it before I have to start fixing it. Anyway, I think it came out pretty nice, it's defintely nicer to walk into.

So, being as I have not a single ounce of interior decorating sense in me, I can't figure out if I should paint at least an accent wall in here. I'm thinking the wall the towel hanger is on, perhaps a light brown. I've got an accent wall in my adjacent bedroom that is a deep red. And that color has carried into the bathroom. I just don't want to over do it. So any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

In the meantime, it's still not quite done. I have to paint the trim, and I want to put a door on that looks better than the el-cheapo that came with the house. I also have to re-do most of the caulking around all the fixtures and countertops (see above: fixes at 5 years). I spent around $450 on the whole thing, and it's taken me 4 weekends so far. I could have done it a little quicker, but after dealing with the floor, I was a little burnt on the whole thing. Now I know what to expect for future reference. Anyway, it's nice to know I accomplished this, I feel a little smarter on home repairs and whatnot.

Part 2 (I didn't know how to switch gears thoughtfully, so we'll go with Part 2)

Friday night I went outside to take out the garbage, and noticed the peacefullness of the evening. It was raining a little, and somewhat cold. But it was beautiful. You could hear the wind blowing through the trees, and nothing else. I live in the boonies, the forest. This is the view from my house:

This is my backyard:

I couldn't help but stand there and enjoy the moment, breathe in the refreshing air. I have been a little nostalgic the last week or so, mostly for three reasons. First, one of the girls I taught as a Mia Maid back in Maine went into the MTC this week. It didn't occur to me till yesterday that meant she is 21, talk about make me feel old. But I took the opportunity to call her family and catch up, which was really fun. They kind of took me in and took care of me while I was on my own back there.

Second, we have a co-worker that takes his job waaaaay too seriously. He's a safety guy, and he knows safety up, down, left, and right. He doesn't, however, know how to apply it and make the guys want to follow it. He's always preaching leadership, then goes out and rips the guys for the littlest things. He cusses so much I sometimes wonder if he knows any other words. He essentially doesn't really know what leadership is. In conversations with my office mates, it has made me think back on the people who helped shape my thoughts and abilities as a leader. It goes back to high school, to working at Lady Foot Locker for a few years, to the several years I worked at Mortenson. And of course my parents. I had great leaders who taught me more than any schooling ever could. I feel grateful that I've had jobs that have afforded me the opportunity to learn and grow, and become a better teammate.

The last thing that got me all nostalgic was, oddly enough, a tv show. I absolutely love the tv show Friday Night Lights. Not the movie, don't confuse the two, they are nothing alike. Okay, sort of alike, there's a lot of the same actors. But the tv show is about more than football. In all reality, football only takes up about 20% of the show. The rest of it is about life. The main characters are the coach and his wife. Some of the speeches the coach gives in this show make me want to get up and go play. But the last episode of the series (which has aired on Directv already, it'll be on NBC this spring) got me thinking about my experiences with sports and life. As they were heading into the stadium for the state championship game, it made me think back to winning the state championship in marching band, and the "secret weapon" Mr. Cornish read to us before we marched in finals. It reminded me of being up with 2 outs, bases loaded, in the bottom of the 6th, a trip to state on the line, and grounding out to the shortstop. We lost that game. It reminded me of the pep talks I gave to the girls at Cal high, and how each year I managed to give one that had even me surprised at what came out of my mouth. I pumped myself up. Mostly, it reminded me of being on a team, and how awesome it is when a group of people comes together for a common goal. Whether you achieve that goal or not, you know deep down you achieved greatness for just trying.

Looking back every now and then is good for the soul, it reminds you of how you got to be where you are today. So thanks to my family, my friends, Amy, Mr. Cornish, Coach Barren, Cal High, my girls, and all you others you have helped make me who I am. I may not be perfect, but it sure has been fun getting to who I am today.