If you own a home in the city of Minneapolis...

you have to check this out. I read on another blog that you could get copies of old permits from the city of Minneapolis. I did a little research and found out that to do that you go to the Minneapolis Development Review department. They are located downtown and they do have free parking, as long as you go in the correct lot. I didn't, I ended up in a lot across the street, and ended up paying like $3. No big deal. So, you go up to their office, and they have some computers set up in the middle, where you can search by address. I will post more details about what I found with my property as soon as I get some of the papers I printed out together. It was very interesting. I hope to post this in the next couple of days!

Merry Christmas!

Front Entry complete!

My new retro kitchen clock

I'm trying to do a red and white retro / cherries theme in the kitchen. I had this space up above the sink with an electrical outlet for an old electric clock. I finally found one that I liked on Ebay, and it's arrived!

Random Act of Violence (against my bike)

Well, it happened. Someone broke into my garage by busting in the side door. They stole my bike and my friend's snow blower. I am so sad about this. My bike was awesome. It was the first bike I'd had since I was a kid. I loved riding it around my neighborhood, singing the first lines of LDN by Lily Allen in my head. And now someone stole that from me. They've also stolen my peace of mind. Now I just worry that they will come back for the things they didn't steal. Maybe next time it'll be the house, instead of the garage. I'm going through a lot of emotions over this. I know it's not personal, but all I can think is why did someone do this to me?

I've got mail.

This house came with an old mail slot built right into the house.

The mail came into the entry way. The problem is that it was basically a 3"x5" or so hole directly into my house, covered by a little door.



Needless to say this wasn't very efficient for the winter months. So, I decided that I'd get a new mailbox to mount on the house. I put it right over the old door, which was caulked over and will be filled with insulation. The new box has a lock so my mail is secure.

Hardwood floors refinished

Here are a couple pics of the floor, how it looked before and how it looks now. I have to say I love it! I didn't know how much of a difference I could expect, and I would have been happy with anything better than they were, but they turned out great!