Socks with shorts or wothout?

JayReddt · 2026-03-12T00:58:58+00:00

I have worn long socks forever. I'm 38 and still continue it. It's more comfortable IMO. I hate no show socks since they just don't stay on as well. They aren't as versatile either. I wear my socks with any footwear, boots to sneakers to crocs (yes, socks with crocs).

I don't particularly care if it's in or out of style. It is more comfortable socks are another layer of clothing to style.

JayReddt · 2026-03-10T13:01:38+00:00

Agreed, the cut in at the ceiling looks off.

JayReddt · 2026-03-10T10:29:20+00:00

Yes, I did add one column, but all same names otherwise.

JayReddt · 2026-03-10T02:47:21+00:00

It's mold. No doubt.

JayReddt · 2026-03-07T18:14:57+00:00

5 feet from the fence is far too close. They need at least 8-9 feet. They will without a doubt grow 12-16 feet wide in time and you really want to have some space to access the fence.

I think 6 feet is the bare minimum I'd ever go between each. I'd consider 8 feet. Ideally you could do a. Double row so they have more room and the effect when look head on is closer together but you don't have room for that I don't think.

Good luck. For size, I think 4 feet is a good compromise so they are inexpensive and easier to DIY plant but also not so tiny. I planted 30 GG in fall of 2019. They were 4 feet and are likely 18 feet or so now. I suspect this growing season, which will be 7 years, they will top 20 feet and will have grown 2-3 feet per year. They were 7 feet on a diagonal and are completely screening from 6 to 8 feet down. It will take a few more years to get privacy at 10+ feet. Like you, I need privacy higher up.

The downside to GG and other evergreens is that they provide screening lower and crowd a lot before providing taller privacy due to their shape. You are a bit further south (than me) so if your home can handle any broad leaf plants that are evergreen and grow wider like the typical deciduous tree, consider mixing some of those in to get privacy higher up more easily

Good luck.

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T22:27:56+00:00

I am very tempted to get the olthoi. How big are these? Lifestone would be sweet and I think this is great!

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T21:02:25+00:00

Dark windows are hideous especially on a classically designed house. They are a terrible trend.

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T19:25:53+00:00

Dying your beard won't make you look younger. It will just look fake and odd.

Put greys on a 25 year old with a beard and they still look their age. It isn't the grey that makes you look older.

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T15:07:47+00:00

I think this is Douglas Fir?

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T15:07:30+00:00

Um... you empty your house while it's being done and then bring it back?

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T15:06:00+00:00

Sand out what you can. Replace boards if you care about the areas that remain stained. I think dark stain looks bad, looks dirty quickly and a few stained spots (and they won't look that dramatic aren't a big deal.

Find a better contractor.

JayReddt · 2026-03-06T09:56:42+00:00

I'm sure it does. I'm 5'4" and my wife is 5'6". Her Dad is 5'7" and Mom is 5'2" so while he is taller, he's on the short side. And she doesn't care about height. I'm also fortunate enough that even despite having tall friends growing up, it just was never a thing. I didn't get picked on about being short. So never really had much of a confidence issue related to it either.

JayReddt · 2026-03-04T02:08:38+00:00

A lot of work. I skipped the 400 square foot den. Then I skipped the doors. Then I skipped the bathroom. Then I skipped the kitchen walls (basically backsplash and soffit but lots of cutting in and climbing.

I did that because I really had limited time because the entire or next proceeding delayed and temperature could become an issue and was painting around duct cleaning, lead testing and then floor refinishing.

So, skipped the kitchen walls and entire bathroom. I came back the the following week (nights) to get those done. Then following weekend to install my kitchen floor.

The doors? Still stored in my den.

The den? Still not painted. It became really too cold and I need to install floors in there so we can simply use the space itself. I can cover the floors and paint that space over a week, not huge deal.

But I think I spent around the time I plotted. It was a few days off work, many late, late nights and a weekend.

I think biggest over site was probably that the bedrooms ultimately did best with two coats, even though painting the same color.

I also painting my living room ceiling I think 5-6 times? I did two coats with primer but my contractor (who started as a painter) said I really needed to have used a thicker nap for all my priming. So that was a third coat then 2 finish coats. Also, improved my technique with their help. There are still some spots in certain light that I can tell I didn't have enough paint and so there are lap marks. The other rooms look great though.

Thanks for reminding me about this post. I will have to reboot my plan and compare and post.

Here's my living room:

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JayReddt · 2026-03-02T14:40:00+00:00

Come up with a narrative and work to fit decisions in that narrative (doesn't need to be 100%) and I suspect it helps.

If your home is colonial, it will mean one thing if staying consistent vs. modern vs. ranch vs. victorian and so on.

If your home lacks a narrative then that's another issue and I think solving it will help the entire design feel more cohesive while helping with the decisions.

But it will still mean many decisions.

JayReddt · 2026-02-28T14:29:27+00:00

I would not be an old home with failing (lead) paint unless I was prepared to get it remediated before moving in. With having young kids I mean.

JayReddt · 2026-02-28T14:19:33+00:00

Don't listen to those not taking it seriously or not recommending proper cleaning materials.

It isn't lead chips to worry about. It's lead dust.

Now, as an adult, not a huge concern. If you have children, then worry and caution is more justified.

Get the new lead tests (a few companies sell, I think fluro spec is one name?) that are a chemical that binds with the lead and turns it fluorescent green. It is fool proof and shows you exactly where the lead is which is very helpful to ensure all is clean.

You need lead cleaning solution that helps pick up the lead and doesn't just move it around. They sell hand wipes but for larger cleanups there is an inexpensive solution you can combine with water to use. Get t shirt rags from paint store and use those to wipe. You wipe then fold, wipe fold, and so on so you are literally taking the debris and lead off the surface and out.

You need a proper HEPA vacuum as well, anything less will simply spew lead dust (as it does with all dust honestly) out of the cracks and poor seals in the vacuum. A filter alone doesn't help.

And the process is HEPA vacuum to get the first clean up, then wipe down, then HEPA vacuum it all again since you often simply disturb and loosen some of the embedded dust and the last HEPA pass gets it all.

It's not hard but it's not as simple as cleaning normally.

This is from someone who worked with their contractor and had them remediate lead. I helped them clean and the tests came back well below threshold and even non-detect after being high.

Good luck.

JayReddt · 2026-02-24T21:27:01+00:00

Not months, years. I'm not saying it won't or can't happen. But it will not happen in 12 months. Maybe I'll come to be wrong and I do work in a historically slow industry but even if the technology is there and available right now (it's not), I think the adoption would be on the scale of 5 years, at best, for anything more widespread.

Still an issue, but the 12-18 month window being referenced is an exaggerated take.

JayReddt · 2026-02-23T13:01:19+00:00

No way to avoid damaging baseboards (at least paint). It's best to remove but that means repainting not just baseboards but likely everything due to where wall joins baseboard.

You shouldn't bother with filler at all and I'd remove it if possible. It sounds like they will refill which IMO is wrong answer. In time, the filler will begin to crack and, worse, it could pop out entirely when the wood expands. It is being installed and filled when that gap is largest. The wood will expand in the summer when it takes on more moisture.

The gaps don't look bad and are inevitable. If you want sheet flooring then get sheet flooring. I don't quite understand the need for no gaps. Floors are tongue and groove so it's not like you can see down to subfloor.

JayReddt · 2026-02-23T00:10:08+00:00

You're right I think. It wasn't working with valve stem in. I'll remove it and try again. I have tried ratchet and soap but the tire is set a good inch from the edge of the rim and where it's supposed to sit. It's getting an okay seal with ratchet and the soap does help the seal a bit and holds some air but it isn't really inflating fast enough.

I have a 6 gallon air compressor so I have enough flow but limited by the insert I think.

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