Rookie Homeowner

All I have to do is seal the countertops once more, clean out the cabinets and install the faces, and it looks like I'll finally have a kitchen.

Last night, I cooked a meal of broiled blue marlin with a sesame-oil mango sauce, along with some steamed kale. This is the first time since February that I've had access to facilities like these. Before the move, I cooked well all the time, but it's been PB&J, bagels, granola and whatever else requires little prep time. Boy, does it ever feel good to be back to "normal," whatever that is.

# posted by Michael Browne @ 1:25 PM

The marble tile has been laid down, and while I really didn't like it at first, it's growing on me now. I think it took getting up close and personal with the grout before I could have any affection for the stone.

But it's all starting to shape up now, and even though the stove isn't in place in this picture, I've cooked my first couple meals already and things are looking good.

I can't tell you what a relief it is to prepare a meal in an actual facility after cooking for eight months on a camp stove in my back yard. Wonderful!

# posted by Michael Browne @ 1:22 PM

So I priced out the stainless, and the hexagonal tiles came in at a third of the cost. A little more grunt work, but tiling is really farily easay as long as you can cut the edge pieces.

Here's the almost-finished work, soon to be covered up by a big ol' stove.

# posted by Michael Browne @ 1:20 PM

Tiling is perhaps one of the easiest jobs I've accomplished. I borrowed a table saw from my former landlord Jeremiah, purchased about $45 worth of hexagonal tile, and spent a few hours on the job. Alright, so it took me longer to prepare since I've never done this before, but once I figured out the edges, it was an easy job.

And sure, it's not technically done yet, but I wanted to grout both the countertop and the backsplash at the same time, to reduce clean-up time.

Anyway, here it is. My very nice, inexpensive backsplash. Yes, Jason, I know it's not the stainless steel you told me to use, but that would have cost an extra $120, and I don't care that much about something that will just be covered up by a large black appliance, like the stove that's waiting for installation.

Marble floor, here I come.

# posted by Michael Browne @ 9:34 PM