Maui Wowie

Brian and I just got back from a five-day trip to Maui. It was everything that a Hawaiian vacation is supposed to be--warm weather, cold drinks, cruisin', beaches, and lots of food. Our favorite dining experience was at a sushi bar called Koiso. They had really fresh fish and the best uni I've ever tasted. It may be because I like uni more every time I have it, but I think it's mostly because these little guys were freshly plucked off the nearby ocean floors. Second fave goes to the ahi poke from this little place called Eskimo Candy. What is poke? It's cubes of fresh ahi tuna in a soy sauce-based mixture. This place has a few varieties, including a Wasabi Poke with sesame seeds and green onions, and a Spicy Tuna Poke with tobiko and a creamy sauce. I am already in withdrawl!

Our five days there passed more slowly than I had expected, but I could easily have stayed longer. Some non-culinary highlights: learning how to surf, whale watching, and driving (or rather, being a passenger on) the road to Hana.

Game Plan

Brian and I are both engineers, but we'd both agree that he is more "engineer-y" than I. He likes to have a plan letting him know exactly what's happening now and what's happening next. Since I enlisted his help on this project, I decided to compile a plan for him, broken down in phases, subject to change.

Phase 1 - Throw out/donate unwanted items; organize
Phase 2 - Pack up everything into boxes
Phase 3 - Area B: move boxes to staging area 1; scrape off popcorn ceiling; refinish ceiling; prime and paint walls; install hardwood floors and molding; wash windows
Phase 4 - Area A: move boxes to staging area 2; scrape off popcorn ceiling; refinish ceiling; prime and paint walls; install hardwood floors and molding; wash windows
Phase 5 - Install finishes (lighting, switch plates)
Phase 6 - Purchase and assemble furniture: IKEA PAX closet system, EXPEDIT shelves, and more
Phase 7 - Load up closets and shelves
Phase 8 - Hang decorations

Floor plan of room:

Cleaning...Still

Last night my wonderful boyfriend Brian came over and got me to clean my room some more. I really needed his help because I had reached a point where I threw away the most obviously unnecessary items, but a large pile of old toys had settled in the middle of my room and refused to budge. I sifted through them again and finally mustered up the strength to say goodbye to my McDonald's toys, Sailor Moon cards, and other dusty friends. By the end of the night we had filled a box to the brim with trinkets. And I must say, I won't be missing any of it. I can't even remember half of what went in to that box!

The next step after throwing everything out: packing everything up so I can scrape off the popcorn ceiling...and it will happen sooner than I had thought. Brian suggested working on one part of the room at a time, so that means we just have to move everything to one side of the room (or "staging area") and then scrape and paint the other side. My original plan was to haul everything out and work on a completely empty room, but Brian's plan is much less daunting.

Here are some "before" pictures--I took them a couple weeks ago:





My room looks a lot better than this right now, really! I've gotten rid of several pieces of furniture (thank you Craigslist) and a lot of the clutter is gone. One more round of tossing stuff out and I think it will be on to the ceiling and walls!

That Magic Word...Remodel!

I am a pack rat. I keep toys I haven't touched in years, completed-and-glued-to-cardboard jigsaw puzzles, scraps of materials that "could be used make something later," stationary that I'm "saving" because it's too pretty, boxes of less-than-quarter-filled notebooks, and those cute little things that I've thrown into that all-encompassing category: knickknacks. My bedroom somehow stores nearly all my childhood possessions, one dorm room and two apartments' worth of mystery boxes, a whole lotta shoes, and enough crafting supplies to keep an entire kindergarten class occupied for days.

My room:
- Squeaky twin bed - headboard decorated with Lisa Frank and "Sandra" stickers
- No curtains - just bedsheets I hung up when I threw out the circa-1975 green brocade curtains
- Half-empty toy chest that belonged to my brothers
- Corner desk that I haven't been able to reach in about a year (too many boxes in front of it!)
- Some sort of storage unit with drawers and shelves - the shelves hold bags and purses, the drawers are empty, and the top is covered in a mess of jewelry and accessories
- 4 bookshelves of varying height and color - none are completely filled or organized in any way
- 2 chests of drawers, one from my grandpa, one from IKEA
- 2 closets filled with some clothes but mostly dusty boxes of knickknacks and craft supplies; shaky painted metal sliding doors, also decorated with stickers
- Beige carpet
- Lavender walls with water lily paper border along the top
- Fluorescent lights on one end of the room, and cracked-glass and brass light fixtures on the other
- Popcorn ceiling with glitter - what were they thinking back then...

Give all of this a nice layer of clothes strewn about, and you have my room.

I've come to the point where I just want to throw everything away. But of course once I do, I get nostalgic for that little green pencil and put it back in the "keep" pile. I'm doing my best! So far I've filled about a dozen boxes with clothes and toys to donate.

Prelim plan for my *new* room:
- Hard wood floors
- A fresh coat of paint - color scheme still pending. Possibly: pale yellow, white, and light grey
- REMOVE popcorn ceiling, refinish, and paint
- New furniture
- A work station for sewing and gettin' crafty
- A cozy corner for reading and knitting
- Good shelves for my books
- Effective storage for my supplies
- Closet systems (like Elfa from the Container Store, or Pax from IKEA) - SUPER excited for this
- New light fixtures and curtains

I want to create an open airy space where I can relax, study, and be creative. Hopefully this remodel won't take too long!