09-27-2000

The builder called Friday to let me know that the city has requested some seismic calculations be done on our plans. Having no luck getting the information from the place where I bought the plans, he's now trying to find an engineer who has the time to look at them. He's not sure of how long this will take, and he worriedly quoted a price which was far lower than I'd anticipated. The ciy also had some vague mutterings about the placement of the furnace in the house - although when he told me that, I had to mentally give myself a swift kick in the rear to stop the automatic thoughts running through my head of 'well if the furnace moves, that means we could make the pantry a walk-in-pantry, and...and...and... But the gist of it was that this might result in some delays, and it's starting to look more and more that our whole plan to delay building til November actually was a good idea after all.

Richard and I have both been overwhelmed by this whole house-building thing, but so far (using the scientific method based on exactly two instances), we've managed to not be overwhelmed together. I had a small worry fit in an Orchard Supply Hardware one day while flipping through plumbing catalogs as it hit me just *what* we had signed on for. We walked through the aisles and I stared blankly at doorbells and chandeliers and cabinet handles and pondered the intelligence of building versus buying. Richard's turn came this past weekend. On Saturday, we were given a two-hour break from the presentations, during which we were supposed to talk, or simply do something for our relationship. We did take a short walk, but then we decided to take a drive, and in doing so, we inadvertantly stumbled upon a Home Base, and off we went to pour over square after square of linoleum (hey. Picking out the floor of the house we're building together is definitely something for our relationship!). This time it was he who was overwhelmed, and me who was doing the reassuring.

Despite the occasional 'what the hell were we *thinking*?' that runs through one or the other's brain, we've actually managed to get a lot accomplished so far. It's helped tremendously that we're neither of us truly anal about any of the decorating. (I should probably insert a very big 'yet' in there....) We managed to find the patterns for three of the four rooms which will have linoleum during that brief stint (less than an hour!) at Home Depot this weekend - and still have time to purchase this truly incredible 12-hook plant stand that I saw as we were leaving the store (and then we had to hastily disassemble and figure out how to stuff into the car so we could get back in time for the next presentation). Heck, we've already figured out how all the bathrooms, dining room, and computer room will be decorated, and they're all still squares on a piece of erasable velum; rooms built only of imagination and not yet real.

This weekend we've vowed to get the rest of the floor picked out. Considering we're halfway there, I'm hoping we'll also have time to delve into the murky world of front doors, but I'll be happy if we just accomplish what we'd originally planned. I realize that it's highly likely that a year or three down the road, we'll be staring at that 'perfect' whatever it is that we spent so much time picking out, and wonder why we ever thought it would work, but for now, we've got to start *somewhere*.

And as for the possible delays. I heard from my builder again this afternoon. Despite the fact that it'll take the engineer three weeks to do whatever calculations are required, it looks like we'll still be on time (insert Jennifer heaving a *big* sigh of relief!). At least til the next set back...but I'm gonna be optimistic. The house will be done before the wedding, and we'll have moved in. If I have to go out there with a hammer myself, it'll be done. I hope. All fingers and toes crossed.....