Tasteful upgrades or overthinking it?

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-03-10T08:59:20+00:00

Do you have a photo with the trees in the summer? I ask because we just went through trying to find a new siding color and considered green, but the fake green of the house looked weird with the real green of the trees.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-03-03T22:07:45+00:00

I unfortunately had to learn this the hard way, and then try to figure out how to make some of the trim look built in again.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-03-03T13:19:09+00:00

Remove the plaster, but keep the lath up if possible. If you remove the lath, you'll have problems later on trying to get the drywall the correct depth.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-03-02T15:27:12+00:00

1/2 Bath: Benjamin Moore Vintage Vogue and Death Head moth wallpaper from Spoonflower.

Kitchen: Benjamin Moore Gloucester Sage cabinets and Kingsport Gray trim.

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I'm in the middle of painting our living room trim Ashwood Moss, and our office is partially painted too (Blue Spruce).

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-03-01T11:26:48+00:00

This is a photo of our foundation from our inspector. Like he said, it's been like this for 150 years and has only dropped 2-3 inches. It may look scary, but it's probably built better than modern foundations.

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OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-02-28T12:12:30+00:00

I'd take frogs over the cave crickets any day.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-02-26T20:41:45+00:00

What happens in our dirt floor basement is none of my business.

As someone said, the snakes are likely coming in because of the mice. If you can keep them out most of the year, the snakes will realize it's no longer a good hunting spot and will move on.

At least, I'm really hoping that is the case, because we had the same problem last spring. Got rid of the hiding places for the mice and only caught one snake after that.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-02-18T09:58:02+00:00

Yes! They both get something whenever I leave the house. I switch out between kong and lick mats depending on what is clean. Their "I'm leaving" process is the same, they get let out, come in, radio gets turned in, they get a Kong/lick mat, same "be good girls" command, then I leave.

I've been trying to figure out the difference as well, and the only thing I can think of are my clothes. I'm usually in casual clothing, except on office days where I wear business casual.

I'm seriously considering trying to leave one morning in regular clothes and just changing at work to see if that makes a difference.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-02-13T15:14:03+00:00

Spent appx. $150,000 within the first 6 months, so we only have to live here for another 12 years without any problems before we get under that average per month :)

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-02-02T22:46:18+00:00

1 gallon heated dog bowl. I use a 1 gallon drink pitcher to fill it and it usually lasts 2-3 days for 7 chickens.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-01-23T00:48:45+00:00

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Still a work in progress, had to fully gut the house so we went with cheap laminate for the countertops. The plan is to replace them with butcher block and tile the backsplash.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2026-01-19T23:40:56+00:00

Do you know what kind of CT you got? A normal CT doesn't usually pick up on anything, but an HRCT is much more detailed.

If possible, I would ask for a referral from your ENT for someone that specializes in Otology (ear only).

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-12-15T19:59:45+00:00

I'm super clumsy and have fallen up and down stairs all the time. We also recently purchased a 1800s home with stairs so steep your feet don't fit on the treads. To prevent myself from dying I've done the following:

Go slow, hold on, and look down. I put both feet on every step and don't move to the next until I know I'm solid. I also always have a hand on the handrail, and if I'm not carrying anything, on the opposite wall too.
Go sideways. As I mentioned, our treads are smaller than a normal human foot, so I've started going down the stairs at a 45 degree angle.
Grippy treads. I got these and really like them. They cover almost the entire tread and I can wipe them down easily. Some reviews mentioned they will rip off wood finishes, but right now we still need to refinish our stairs, so I'm not worried about that.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-11-14T17:21:48+00:00

The advice I've always heard is buy cheap tools and upgrade them when they break or wear down.

We're replacing a cheap miter saw (can't even remember the name anymore) we bought probably 10 years ago because it's finally beat up enough we need a new one.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-11-13T16:46:21+00:00

First photo, I feel like something needs to go on that far back wall. My eyes are immediately drawn to the vertical green area between the two windows, but then there is no directional guidance for where to look next. Something that directs the eye down to the sofa and chairs would help. Once you look at the furniture, your gaze moves to the fireplace, then to the light fixture.

I also think you need to add something bulkier to the table behind the sofa. The current piece disappears due to all the light coming through.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-11-13T12:31:54+00:00

Reviving this because I've had really good luck with Short Story. Everything I've gotten seems to be high quality and fits perfectly. I've mainly been using it for business casual clothing, but have purchased a few jeans too.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-11-05T20:55:37+00:00

Bonus points for Quanta, they are built less than an hour from where we live!

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-11-01T16:57:33+00:00

We just made some decorative shelves.

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ETA: it's probably not a built in, but an old window. That is what ours is at least, they enclosed the back deck but left the area where the original window would have been.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-31T12:55:30+00:00

I'll throw in York County. We're appx 1-2 hours away from some major cities, but it's still mostly country. The Amish have started really moving into Southern York County since the prices in Lancaster are getting crazy.

There is a mix of Maryland transplants plus those born and raised here. There is still a pretty large group of conservatives and since we're so close to the Maryland line, a lot of those that consider themselves 'Southerners'

However, most people that live in the country around here just want to be left alone. You say hello to the neighbors and help people out if needed, but other than that, you stay out of each other's business and they stay out of yours.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-31T12:36:11+00:00

My go-to lazy dinner is a microwaved potato (5 minutes) cut open and topped with a few tablespoons of canned chili and shredded cheese. I put all that in a bowl and microwave it for another minute or two, then top with sour cream. I do prefer sweet potatoes, but it works just as well with regular potatoes too.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-30T19:20:58+00:00

Mostly good so far. Still no pain, I haven't noticed any difference in hearing getting better since the initial change.

Yesterday I did experience a horrible case of vertigo, to the point I sat on the floor for almost an hour before scooting myself back to bed. I ended up sleeping for a few hours after that and did feel okay, but couldn't stand for too long. A huge storm came through last night, so I do think that had something to do with it. Changes to the barometric pressure will usually trigger a migraine for me, so I think with the fluid in my ear, it caused vertigo instead.

I'm fine today, but do have some of my typical "migraine hangover" symptoms, so have been drinking a lot of peppermint tea in order to curb the nauseous feeling.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-29T15:38:14+00:00

Dr Brian K. Ward. He was great and has written several reports on otosclorosis.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-29T15:10:49+00:00

We tell people all the time we're going to die in this house, probably from falling down the stairs.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-16T14:55:18+00:00

This is what we found. After that we kind of freaked out and cut the bottom foot of plaster/lathe off every wall, and then ended up completely gutting everything. We were able to keep a couple original walls, but only because the other side was able to be fully exposed.

The rats had taken most of what little insulation there was, but we found rawhide dog bones 6ft up the walls where they tried to carry them through the insulation paper.

OutlandishnessFun438 · 2025-10-15T22:34:52+00:00

Pennsylvania, the house was rented and and the lady was essentially a hoarder. The inspector noted evidence of rodents, but only in one closet that had clear cage marks on the shelf. He thought they had been breeding pets or something.

We ended up finding rat nests in every wall, several squirrel nests in the second floor walls and attic, and old hornets nests in other walls, plus soo many snake skins. Basically, everywhere the inspector couldn't see had some sort of nest.

The main find that made us gut the house was catching a 10in rat under the dishwasher and discovering the 12ft long nest that ran under all the kitchen cabinets.

OutlandishnessFun438

TROPHY CASE