Remodeling, Day 1

Dirt brown would be a good color for today. I decided that since I only have until Wednesday of next week to work on the laundry room, I needed to get my backside in gear.

Sounds good, doesn't it? So far I have spent over $1200, just on the washer and dryer. All I have to show for it is a receipt and a new dryer hose for the gas line. Oh, and I bought a new filter for the refrigerator and put that in. I guess that was the first step.

First I had to detrash the laundry room. Stuff that I had brought in the house while cleaning the garage (I haven't finished that yet either) ended up in the laundry room. The kitty litter is in there. Cleaning products, extra rugs, on and on. The room is a collection area, and not in a good way.

I set the timer for 15 minutes. I figure to work in 15 minute increments, and then rest a bit. After 10 minutes, Housework ADD set in and I was ready to do something else. This is why I use the timer - I knew I could make myself stay on task for 15 minutes at a time if I smacked myself around a little.

Once I got the trash out and spread it around the rest of my house, I figured to pull out the washer. It is the dead appliance, after all. The dryer will still work if I have a need for it. I forgot about all the hoses. I started to disconnect a hose, and water leaked out. Hm, water pooled in the washer? I grabbed a bucket and let it drain. And drain. Then it hit me - oh, I guess I need to turn off the water.

No problem, asuming that you remember to keep all the spigots or whatever they are called loose enough to be turnable. All my toilets are loose enough, that is not a mistake I plan to make twice. But the washer has been there over 15 years, and I don't think the water has been turned on and off since it was installed. My bad. Grab the sewing machine oil, squirt some on, and go read email.

Fifteen minutes later, I turned off the water, disconnected the hoses, and looked at the floor under the washer.

Ewwww. I will be considerate and not include pictures of that at this point. I found a sock I haven't seen in years, a glove of Child's, a dried up cat turd (!?!), some unidentifiable items, some dryer sheets, a few rags. I don't think I have moved the washer and dryer in many years. And let's not forget dust. Even my ears are plugged up now.

Molly was very interested in this project. She was right there with me, nose in everything, very curious. Baby hid on the sofa under a blanket. I considered joining Baby.

For once I could scrub the floor with any product I want, since I will be ripping the floor up. I got a scrub brush and some good cleanser and went at it. Three times. It's not easy to scrub a floor with a brush and sponge while standing without bending the knees, but I wasn't going to get any part of my body on that floor that I didn't have to.

Molly gave me a definite look of "Mom, you aren't supposed to do that on the floor!" when I dumped the bucket of water down the laundry room floor drain. Too bad. The laundry tub is full of well, laundry right now, so I used the drain. Sue me. It's my house.

Now my back aches, my hands hurt, and I can't hear anything. But I did start the Laundry Room Debacle.