As far as home-ownership goes, I suck. I mean, I own a home and pay the mortgage on time and all that. But as far as upkeep, I suck. Still, I have put a new roof on it and had the exterior painted in the past couple of years. Oh yeah, and there was the time when I remodeled my kitchen. But this summer, I’m upping the ante a bit. My goal is to do a few improvements. I’m replacing the outdoor carpet on my porch & back stoop (or rather, I’m paying Home Depot to do that). I’m having my driveway repaved (by Patriot Paving). And, while I’m kitty-less for the time being, I’ve decided to uproot my carpet and go back to the original wood floors.

When I first bought the house, the only floors with no carpeting were the kitchen and den. The carpeting in the reading room was so hideous that we pulled it out, only to discover the floor there was as nice as the den floor. I had intended to eventually do the same in my bedroom, where the carpeting was nearly as hideous, but I never got around to it. Well, thanks to a few Leo indiscretions, the main carpeting needs removing too. So I’ve decided to pull it out. All of it bar the bathroom (because the flooring in there is worse, I believe, than the rest of the house).

The carpet & padding both come out easily, but the tack strips are a pain in the ass to remove. They’re the bit the slow me the most. Still, I’ve gotten my hallway pulled up. Yay! Will need to scrape some sticky stuff up and there are still some nails/staples that need removing, but I think I’m making good progress.

So, onto some photos of before & after thus far.

The hallway before.

The hallway after.

The grossest part of all of this, however, are the Carpet Crumblies. Eeewwwww! How gross! They’re everywhere under the carpet. You think you’re doing a good job vacuuming the floor, but no, the Carpet Crumblies get underneath! And I think they breed! I’m very glad that I’m getting rid of my carpet – I think I shall be anti-carpet for quite a while. At least until I forget about Carpet Crumblies.

And now, a photo of Carpet Crumblies to gross you out too…

Beware the Carpet Crumblies!

I’m pretty sure I won’t get the carpet all pulled up by the time judiang arrives on Thursday, but since we’re staying at the Lake (mom & dad’s cottage), that’s OK. Still, if I can, I’ll get her to help me pull some carpet up! Yay Judi! 😉