wit wisdom & food

connecting with food

Archives for September 2012

Look ma no doors

by Leave a Comment

Yesterday I posted about some annoying little painted hinges that I just couldn’t get removed. Today we celebrate! Let’s start at the beginning. We went to Urban Ore on Tuesday in search of a great piece to make a coffee bar for our new apartment. We got lucky we found an old cabinet and a perfect piece of granite to fit the top.
Can you see the hinges? Can you see the ridiculous layers of paint on that bad boy? No? How about now?
The best part about that picture, the hinges aren’t attached to any doors! I won! I beat the paint. I did have some help. A great product, Zinsser paint & finish remover. As well as a pair of rubber gloves, a magical screwdriver and a standard issue Trader Joe’s cutter.
Okay so the screwdriver isn’t magical but it surely seemed magically as it took out all of those tiny screws! I love this spray bottle right now. I highly recommend it for its ability to loosen the paint and the fact that it is soy based and better for the environment than some of the other chemicals that claim to do the same job but actually don’t.
Look No more doors!
After I accomplished this I jumped around the house and punched the air like I was fighting an opponent in the ring very much like Meg Ryan in You’ve Got Mail when she decides to go to the mattresses. Basically, I was very excited and triumphant. There are a few more steps before this is done and hopefully there are less challenges and more celebrations.

What makes me tick you ask?

by Leave a Comment

I have been told on more than one occasion that I am quiet and people aren’t sure what I am thinking. I tend to think of these as strengths. I spend my day with a lot of people that aren’t quiet and I feel like I know every thought in their head. I often find myself wishing they would have left some of those thoughts right where they found them. You may find yourself wishing the same after you finish reading this post. Enjoy my random thoughts.

When I am going down the street and I see a dog stop to poop I look away because I think it is kind to give them privacy

I think that because I pay my bills with automatic withdrawals instead of being responsible enough to write the check and mail it on time is kind of cheating the system.

I have been taught by watching Peyton Manning to think quarterbacks that have the plays on the wrist are lesser abs (except Andrew Luck cause he is my new QB).

I think that the only people that should be sideline reporters at a football game are people that played the game.

I cry when people win reality TV shows.

I am still never sure how it will end when I watch the AFC Championship game when the Colts beat the Pats in the 2006 season.

I get teary-eyed at end of live theater when the casts takes a bow because I am so proud.

I get giddy the first time I see cherries at the beginning of summer.

I am still amazed that a tiny ball of a flower can become a beautiful peony.

If I can’t figure out how to spell a word I pick a synonym I can spell.

To this day I can’t sit still on Christmas morning before we open presents.

I love the smell of the water at a marina of the east coast. It smells different than the pacific.

I can’t sing on key but singing makes me happy.

The thing I miss most about childhood are the birthday parties.

Fall is my favorite season because it smells the best.

I think charcoal is better than gas because it makes you slow down and wait for the coals.

I battle every day to remember that being myself is more important than being accepted.

I think parents should put their phones down and talk to their kids instead.

If I decide not to buy something I almost always walk across the store to put it back.

I loved the first day of school more than the first day of summer.

What makes you tick?

Challenges in refinishing

by 1 Comment

After a fun trip to Urban Ore we came home with a brand new slightly used cabinet and a nice piece of granite. The drawback is the cabinet also came with hinges that have been painted with multiple layers of paint. So many layers I can’t get the paint out of the screws to try and remove them. The few screws that I could remove some paint from turned out to be stripped and not budging. Normally, I would just paint over the hinges and finish the project quickly so I would have the gratification of completion. For some reason this project is different. I have dug in my feet and become stubborn. I want to put nice hardware on to finish the piece properly. However, in order to do that I have to first find a way to get the current hardware off. I have tried some nasty paint thinner but it just isn’t making an impact. The directions say I should be wait for the paint to bubble and remove when wet. Trouble so far is it never bubbles. More research leads me to believe that the chemical is evaporating before it is able to work. The suggestion is to put the hinges in saran wrap so it doesn’t evaporate. Again trouble is that you can’t put an attached hinge in a bag. Tomorrow I am going to try putting a nice coat of stripper on and then taping saran wrap over the area. If I am lucky that will get the paint off. Then I will only be left with trying to figure out how to get remove stripped screws. I will not be beaten by these hinges. This piece of furniture will turn out exactly as I imagine it in my head.

I am going to put on my ruby slippers and chant
I will not be beaten! I will not be beaten! I will not be beaten!
Hopefully I wake up and find out this is just a dream
(that one was for you mom)
twitter pinterest instagram facebook mail