Posts in category 'Home Improvement'

I snuck out of work a couple hours early last Monday. It was just a beautiful day and let's be honest; The writing is on the walls. The mornings are getting cooler and the apples on the trees in our yard are starting to leave their fall droppings for me to hit with the lawn mower. (At least it smells nice!). On my bike ride, I noticed that there were a higher percentage of busses running around through town. That could only mean one thing: The roads are going to be even quieter between 8am and 2pm. And the kids are back in school.

When we were in school, especially during the first half of the year, it was a bit of a crazy time. Soccer, concert band, marching band, jazz band (Yes, I was a band geek!), part-time jobs, friends, skateboarding and generally being a persnickety teenager all seemed to fill my...

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Growing up, my brother and I rarely "gathered any moss" as the saying goes. Between soccer, after-school jobs, marching band, jazz band and, of course, skateboarding till the cows came home, we were very busy and always on the go. From my parents' perspective it was simply a matter of throwing some food our way between trips out the door and trying to maintain their sanity. It wasn't always that hectic, but convenience was certainly at the top of the priority list when it came to feeding time. Enter the eat-in kitchen.

We had a simple Cape Cod style home in a friendly neighborhood in southern Maine. As you walked off the porch and through the side-door (our main entrance) you landed right in the kitchen and at the 4-person bar where we ate nearly every meal. Like many homes today, the "formal" dining roo...

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It was a sunny 4^th of July and another gorgeous summer day. My friend waited for his 2 young daughters to finish up in their upstairs bathroom and the family of four exited the house and walked across the street for a neighborhood barbeque. What better way to spend a holiday than with friends, food and fun. When they returned home, the fun immediately stopped. While they were enjoying the neighbor's Slip-N-Slide in the back yard, they had their very own being created down the main stairs of the house. 

It was a simple little thing. After the toilet flushed, something went askew with the inner workings and something got plugged. The second my friend and his family walked out the door, the water began over-flowing and continued to do so for the entire day while they were a mere 50 y...

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I have been working out of a home office for over 7 years now. These spaces have ranged from an empty alcove on the 2nd floor to a ridiculously expansive half of a basement. In the latter, I literally had to throw down a couple rugs just to din the echoes! In every space, I have tried to make it comfortable. I have to admit they were not always the most professional spaces though. Client meetings were always done "off-site".

Today I'd like to explore a few ways you can make the most of your home office. With family, friends, kids, pets and a whole slew of other distractions thrown in the mix, it is not always easy to create a productive space. And if you are like me you can't just sit at the dining room table or plop down on the couch in order to get some actual work done. The space needs to be conducive...

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O.K. To be completely honest, I just wanted to use that word in an article title. As much as I enjoy droning on about reducing clutter and being more organized, that's not what we're about today. We won't even be talking about all the benefits of a de-cluttered kitchen for sellers and for your own sanity. Today we'll assume that your cabinets are, in fact, a cacophony and we'll cover a few ways to quiet the noise a bit and get you more control.

We have all spent time in a "new-to-us" kitchen. Whether visiting friends or relatives, crashing at an Air BnB or even just that first morning in your new apartment, condo or home. It is challenging to get your bearings, know where to find all the necessary ingredients and utensils and even be confident that you will have everything you need to create your culinary m...

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