Want to rent a house?

Chris and I are now on month three of renovating our Redford rental house for new tenants. (Know anyone who wants to rent a house?) The joys of home ownership multiply when you have more than one residence, as many of you, I'm sure, can attest. In our rental history, we've had the joy of non-payers, smokers, dirty hippies, screaming families and retirees. If it's not asking too much, we're looking for someone neat and quiet who can pay the rent. I'm tired of our former neighbor Kim bitching about the noise level of the tenants.


In the past, we've been able to go in, clean, touch up the paint and rerent. This time whistled a different, more demanding kind of tune. The house wanted refinished hardwood floors, modern but subdued paint throughout, new curtains, an updated bath and a brand new kitchen. This house must be a woman!

We painted the basement from head to toe to make a great space to hang out, installed brand new kitchen cabinets, countertops, and flooring, put ourselves at risk for lung cancer determined to continue to work and not lose those three days it takes to finish the floors, caulked the top, hung a new medicine cabinet, replaced the toilet, paid a plumber, washed windows, cleaned out the garage, painted the closets, installed new drapery hardware, suspended roman shades, dangled shiny chandeliers...I'm about ready to move in and file for bankruptcy at the same time. It's amazing how easy it is to renovate a house when you're not living in in. We're closing in on five years in our current house and though we've made great strides, we have a rocky, windy, but yellow-bricked road ahead of us.

Before finishing up the kitchen floor, Chris must solve the mystery of the leak under the kitchen sink. This very leak lead to the demise of the former kitchen, and we refuse to let it ruin this one. If he can't figure it out, we're planning just to light the house aflame.