Meta tags:

Headings (most frequently used words):

2011, the, february, 2012, thursday, april, of, wednesday, 22, sunday, 19, october, 20, 28, saturday, 16, contributors, favorites, search, chicago, flat, blog, archive, followers, year, squirrel, reclaiming, space, simple, things, halloween, around, house, aspirations, missing, an, old, friend, out, closet, when, good, projects, go, bad,

Text of the page (most frequently used words):
the (154), and (141), that (60), have (45), for (39), this (34), you (33), with (33), are (28), our (27), but (26), was (26), steve (21), they (20), not (19), about (18), from (18), all (17), like (17), year (16), can (16), things (15), some (15), #squirrel (14), there (14), blog (13), after (13), one (13), don (13), really (13), just (13), their (13), more (13), now (12), years (12), how (12), house (11), posted (11), out (11), would (11), which (11), remember (11), life (11), time (11), because (10), when (10), think (10), door (10), april (9), jocelyn (9), much (9), always (9), such (9), had (9), something (9), little (9), february (8), flat (8), home (8), know (8), what (8), who (8), been (8), get (8), say (8), city (8), around (8), november (7), myself (7), work (7), working (7), very (7), happy (7), spring (7), okay (7), than (7), maybe (7), feeling (7), will (7), them (7), basement (7), here (7), off (7), august (6), october (6), labels (6), anyway (6), over (6), oak (6), make (6), then (6), got (6), projects (6), people (6), too (6), did (6), well (6), those (6), back (6), project (6), trim (6), few (6), these (6), quite (6), down (6), being (6), many (6), room (6), small (6), simple (5), march (5), may (5), september (5), 2011 (5), old (5), diy (5), good (5), actually (5), season (5), another (5), course (5), find (5), bad (5), other (5), said (5), past (5), has (5), own (5), living (5), him (5), lawn (5), day (5), laundry (5), june (4), july (4), december (4), 2006 (4), space (4), chicago (4), posts (4), comment (4), doesn (4), doing (4), only (4), way (4), post (4), real (4), want (4), sometimes (4), right (4), everyone (4), into (4), without (4), certain (4), before (4), seemed (4), put (4), through (4), live (4), new (4), rather (4), still (4), last (4), long (4), pretty (4), comments (4), world (4), experience (4), moment (4), hands (4), board (4), should (4), days (4), your (4), away (4), yard (4), dogs (4), halloween (4), see (4), animals (4), squirrels (4), animal (4), cat (4), blogger (3), 2005 (3), january (3), 2007 (3), 2012 (3), first (3), houseblog (3), posting (3), least (3), furniture (3), hard (3), thought (3), decided (3), finish (3), even (3), almost (3), does (3), winter (3), started (3), didn (3), until (3), outside (3), backyard (3), missing (3), weather (3), etc (3), managed (3), gone (3), paint (3), two (3), yet (3), never (3), enough (3), while (3), read (3), love (3), beloved (3), spouse (3), seen (3), far (3), waiting (3), passed (3), together (3), where (3), admire (3), lives (3), among (3), need (3), extremely (3), green (3), plan (3), book (3), often (3), housebloggers (3), enjoy (3), creatures (3), anything (3), dog (3), billie (3), she (3), sat (3), rats (3), bird (3), feeder (3), big (3), class (2), 2010 (2), reclaiming (2), crack (2), ear (2), devil (2), improvement (2), progress (2), hall (2), doors (2), fit (2), feet (2), builds (2), cough (2), self (2), haven (2), going (2), previous (2), thing (2), look (2), yes (2), happens (2), hear (2), contractors (2), professionals (2), late (2), were (2), pieces (2), garage (2), point (2), cold (2), painted (2), needed (2), coat (2), primer (2), red (2), bleeding (2), getting (2), framing (2), times (2), felt (2), nice (2), turning (2), kind (2), hike (2), option (2), till (2), next (2), better (2), learn (2), 100 (2), wait (2), mind (2), dinner (2), bake (2), end (2), took (2), ending (2), white (2), wood (2), either (2), several (2), places (2), couldn (2), stand (2), happen (2), important (2), lesson (2), activities (2), finished (2), god (2), workers (2), family (2), bit (2), strangers (2), reading (2), friends (2), blogs (2), neighborhood (2), closet (2), husband (2), anyone (2), else (2), drive (2), except (2), cry (2), experienced (2), exhaustion (2), consumed (2), its (2), dinners (2), pizza (2), slices (2), salad (2), likely (2), making (2), believe (2), truly (2), side (2), contentment (2), connection (2), fondly (2), looking (2), sanding (2), straight (2), satisfying (2), ones (2), same (2), married (2), sounds (2), summer (2), build (2), supply (2), ideas (2), wish (2), morning (2), lately (2), found (2), once (2), done (2), take (2), character (2), feel (2), writing (2), albertos (2), friend (2), repair (2), grass (2), fall (2), perhaps (2), beautiful (2), lawns (2), perfectly (2), perfect (2), using (2), aspire (2), forward (2), chore (2), garden (2), sit (2), grow (2), thursday (2), holidays (2), best (2), neck (2), seeing (2), funny (2), lair (2), glamorous (2), floor (2), soy (2), gel (2), washing (2), try (2), housing (2), nostalgic (2), labor (2), tangible (2), facebook (2), email (2), easy (2), homes (2), start (2), busy (2), crazy (2), watching (2), matter (2), purpose (2), saw (2), entry (2), humble (2), hooks (2), probably (2), ever (2), grain (2), match (2), brass (2), aged (2), ammonia (2), used (2), nature (2), across (2), road (2), impressed (2), between (2), pigeons (2), dad (2), hate (2), birds (2), kale (2), food (2), also (2), identify (2), fortitude (2), resourcefulness (2), died (2), witnessed (2), glory (2), theme, powered, followers, 149, 154, 2008, 2009, archive, search, sow, petch, queen, box, kensington, bungalow, houseblogs, net, community, enthusiasts, made, enon, lancaster, county, virginia, web, longest, running, 1902victorian, com, favorites, contributors, subscribe, atom, older, problems, hesitated, image, seasoned, diyers, perfectionists, takes, singlehandedly, refinished, 1000, dozen, hand, craftsman, mistakes, choosey, aren, supposed, keeping, isn, hgtv, show, mean, share, recent, disappointment, homework, decade, disgruntled, wrong, dirt, exact, worried, splinter, leaving, disaster, relatively, speaking, sooner, behind, mid, race, stripped, job, usual, dye, colder, fast, perservered, continued, painting, replaced, glass, panes, fabricated, muntins, concentrated, turns, replacing, leave, experiences, recommend, starting, though, recall, choice, words, uttered, frustration, wasn, carpentry, warning, errant, redoing, great, loud, dumb, behaved, along, lines, tonght, grocery, shopping, cookies, honey, reply, grrrr, painfully, christmas, punishing, deserved, break, exactly, stain, effect, bonding, temperatures, caused, fail, scraped, hasn, redone, fish, fry, healing, revisit, annoying, write, detatchment, diyer, planned, fully, actualized, fits, caulked, heat, gun, strypeeze, combo, replacement, dilapidated, again, sake, kept, low, profile, mention, acquaintances, upon, drop, line, otherwise, mostly, become, forced, upgrade, merged, secret, identity, mainly, due, haranguing, issues, information, publicly, debate, houseblogging, household, insane, spend, inordinate, amount, country, crappy, vacation, policy, digress, dear, changing, altering, needs, focus, blogging, dwindle, peak, created, 156, entries, both, joys, manwiches, tacos, could, manage, observed, cooking, delicious, beef, burgundy, week, night, lying, backs, aches, pains, subside, weekend, hanging, drywall, known, cupcakes, heck, turned, waking, dream, team, brings, passes, longing, true, realized, immensely, relate, tradesman, lot, seriously, idea, moved, gradually, towards, normal, extracurricular, theater, volunteer, block, clubs, gardening, vacations, barely, building, maintain, urges, left, planning, fence, plant, large, evergreens, endless, lists, hope, someday, convert, bring, online, oodles, thick, renovate, gives, similar, putting, yourself, college, dime, effort, inside, yours, design, help, graphic, artist, offered, compromise, wants, edit, keep, offline, therapeutic, whole, brethren, eve, zoo, lights, pile, silver, palate, art, institute, staircase, saturday, list, greening, rest, inevitably, turn, brown, patches, adorable, crocus, sprouting, clumps, pass, moving, mow, prettylittleflowers, alas, diabolical, ejem, potty, free, manicured, high, maintenance, environmentally, friendly, continue, dutifully, repairing, sad, every, eliminate, push, mower, bed, permanently, create, patio, center, surrounded, beds, full, perennials, vegatables, pergola, tucked, seating, area, quietly, shade, oasis, privacy, staycation, although, reclining, convinced, comfortable, outdoor, recline, tell, rain, helps, faster, raining, sailboat, comes, aspirations, holiday, decorating, laid, plans, fellow, trick, treaters, woods, macabre, decor, walk, viewing, pleasure, spider, smile, clean, cobwebs, front, fake, humans, nothing, cleaning, visualize, removing, 1930, tile, black, mastic, power, stone, foundation, walls, stripping, crumbling, concrete, repairs, various, sundry, category, visiting, serial, killer, counts, built, lifetime, warrantied, tenant, storage, locker, table, photos, pottery, barn, philosophy, bubble, ecomomy, waxing, finite, goals, gutting, renovating, bathroom, example, rewards, written, visceral, discovery, present, connected, spiritual, must, computer, talk, constant, newsfeeds, draining, ironically, talking, common, craft, release, compulsion, lament, state, suppose, worlds, boom, wonder, lost, changed, different, told, itching, biggie, distant, horizon, require, dig, steel, beam, ways, drastic, buy, kids, becomes, route, hesitation, kid, dice, sweet, niece, nephew, auntie, glad, documented, seldom, wow, laying, sofa, forensic, files, totally, zonked, dishes, sitting, desk, monday, mild, traction, lay, drilling, sawing, grew, construction, abound, remains, completely, unphased, noises, recapture, wrestle, occasionally, cannot, wax, midnight, paris, stop, happiest, honestly, suffering, unemployment, hardship, despite, horrific, nightmare, misfortune, guess, doom, gloom, feels, oblivious, happening, fortunate, hang, jobs, woodworking, tossed, foyer, perfectionism, led, procrastinate, tree, estate, sales, finally, add, top, artwork, easiest, pulled, instant, fix, coats, chairs, intended, quarter, sawn, original, growth, bolstered, success, able, usable, anywhere, purchased, polished, rejuvenation, hydroxide, fuming, traditional, arts, crafts, exposed, minutes, switch, plates, details, sunday, pets, driving, light, change, run, crossed, standing, cars, dangers, reminds, reflecting, wildlife, unless, include, feed, violation, ordinance, despise, wings, card, carrying, member, club, father, come, brunch, obvious, pigeon, lover, throwing, breadcrumbs, walked, feeding, notice, kinds, hawks, rabbits, raccoons, deer, myriad, including, monk, parakeets, waterfowl, possums, round, eye, craned, woodpecker, hawk, hummingbird, unusual, insect, devoted, grey, furred, pondered, bemusement, vexed, raid, maim, pumpkins, gotta, eat, joked, tend, thrifty, waste, especially, edible, smallest, leftovers, toss, call, meal, stale, bread, goes, compost, excess, tarts, freezing, bags, tomatoes, ripen, gobs, sauce, freezer, fact, picture, storing, difficult, short, average, parts, freeze, butts, why, creature, worldly, elephant, tiger, useful, horse, loves, gray, crosses, path, daily, basis, gotten, any, others, mentioned, wonderful, cushy, existence, thus, trade, adoring, gazes, ultimately, moochers, obviously, given, critters, stories, hid, unfortunately, cairn, terrier, hunted, cornered, grabbed, shook, dead, fulfilled, her, destiny, satisfied, grave, unlucky, critter, nope, cycles, stuff, underneath, gorging, his, pie, hole, sunflower, seeds, looked, unworried, ecstasy, predatory, chasing, alley, microcosm, predator, prey, playing, itself, under, hilarious, besides, overall, brave, existing, dangerous, beyond, reason, imagine, dealing, hazards, brain, size, walnut, organized, store, thousand, caches, each, most, part, tenacious, persevering, pomp, circumstance, overlooked, maligned, tails, business, affinity, mischief, ness, tuned, watership, wednesday,

Text of the page (random words):
exed me with their mischief they raid my bird feeder and maim my pumpkins at halloween but i really don t mind squirrels gotta eat i ve often joked that squirrels are my affinity animal or i was a squirrel in a previous life i tend to be thrifty and i hate to waste anything especially anything edible i will take the smallest bit of leftovers toss it in a salad and call it a meal all our stale bread goes to the birds i compost as much as i can if i grow an excess of say kale in my garden i start making kale tarts and such and freezing them i wait for big bags green tomatoes to ripen at the end of the season and make gobs of sauce still have some in my freezer from last fall as a matter of fact so you get the picture i am squirrel like in my storing of food i think like a squirrel but the squirrel is such a humble animal and it has such a difficult and short life an average of 6 years around these parts they also freeze their little squirrel butts off in winter why identify with such a creature i really should identify with a more glamorous or worldly animal one that lives a long time like an elephant or maybe a tiger or at least a more useful animal that is also beautiful like a horse or maybe a dog everyone loves dogs but no it s this little gray squirrel that crosses my path on a daily basis i ve gotten to know its character far better than any of those others i mentioned except for the dog i have 2 wonderful dogs and i know them pretty well but they have a cushy existence and thus far have not impressed me with their fortitude or resourcefulness i would not trade their adoring gazes for the world but they are ultimately big time moochers obviously i ve given these little critters some thought over the years i have quite a few stories too i don t think i ever posted about this but once a squirrel got into our basement and hid there unfortunately billie our cairn terrier hunted him down cornered him grabbed him by the neck and shook him till he was dead that was a big day here at the 2 flat after that steve and i were certain that billie had fulfilled her destiny and that if she had died right then she would have died satisfied and did i cry over the grave of this unlucky critter nope cycles of life and stuff ya know just this year i witnessed a stand off between a cat and a squirrel the squirrel sat underneath my bird feeder gorging his pie hole with sunflower seeds and about 3 feet away sat a house cat just watching and waiting the squirrel looked unworried the cat in an ecstasy of predatory glory another day i witnessed the same cat chasing a squirrel across the alley just think here in the city we have a microcosm of predator and prey playing itself our under a bird feeder hilarious so what is it i admire about these creatures besides their overall resourcefulness they are brave little creatures existing in a world that is dangerous beyond reason imagine dealing with the hazards of city living when you have a brain the size of a walnut they are very organized and store several thousand caches of food supply each season and for the most part they remember where they put it they are simple little animals but they are extremely tenacious and persevering and they live their little lives without pomp and circumstance they never get the glory they are overlooked and maligned as rats with tails but they just go on about their business i admire their fortitude posted by jocelyn at 6 55 pm 4 comments labels animals nature nature in the city pets sunday february 19 2012 reclaiming space for years we tossed around ideas for our small foyer entry this was one of those things that we have really needed as we do not have a coat closet in our humble 2 flat floor plan perfectionism led us to procrastinate for quite a while maybe steve should build a hall tree maybe we should find one at an estate sales etc finally we decided to just trim it out and add hooks top it off with some artwork and this was probably one of the easiest projects we have ever pulled off and it was an instant fix for getting coats off chairs and now that space is actually good for something probably it s intended purpose steve got quarter sawn white oak so that the grain would match the original straight grain of old growth oak trim which is what we have in our home we purchased polished brass hooks from rejuvenation and steve aged them using ammonia he used 28 ammonia hydroxide which is what is used for fuming in traditional arts and crafts furniture he exposed it for about 5 minutes which pretty much aged them 6 years so they match the other brass switch plates in our home devil is in the details bolstered by the success of this small project i am now looking at what else i can do around here until we are able to go crazy and make the basement into usable living space that is we re not going anywhere posted by jocelyn at 5 03 pm 1 comment labels entry small projects woodworking simple things lately i have been waxing nostalgic for our days of hard labor life seemed so simple back then such finite goals gutting and renovating a bathroom for example and the rewards of the labor are so very tangible i find that i like tangible things i ve written on this blog about my visceral discovery of being so present in the moment seeing my hands after sanding oak board after oak board one day and feeling truly connected it was almost a spiritual experience for me and i must say i don t get that feeling from working with my hands on say a computer talk about not being in the moment facebook constant newsfeeds email that is never finished no those things are not satisfying to me i find them actually extremely draining yet ironically enough i sit here posting on of all things a blog but i m here talking to you who have perhaps had a common experience working on your own home and projects and writing is my other craft so it is a release not a chore email or a compulsion facebook it s easy to lament the state of things now anyway i suppose we re worlds away from the housing boom these days i wonder how many housebloggers lost their beloved homes the past few years so yes things have changed and it does feel different i told steve that i am itching for a project we do have a biggie that is on the distant horizon and that will be our basement which will require a dig out and a steel i beam that s the 5 year plan which is a ways off at this point there are some among us who do something drastic like buy another house and start over i don t see myself doing this i ve seen many housebloggers have kids and of course then life becomes so busy who has time to blog or diy as much anyway we haven t gone that route always a hesitation about the kid thing here so no dice it s okay i have a really sweet niece and nephew and i enjoy being an auntie i am really so glad i documented all the work we did on this blog it s really quite something to go back over it which i seldom do and think wow we actually did all that how crazy is that i remember the very long days the exhaustion laying on the sofa watching forensic files together totally zonked slices of pizza from jb albertos for dinner washing dishes in the basement sitting at my desk on monday in mild traction i remember how our dog billie would lay down next to steve no matter that he was drilling or sawing she grew up with construction abound and remains completely unphased by such noises how to recapture that feeling of purpose is something i wrestle with occasionally but of course we cannot go back only forward and it s always easy to wax nostalgic about the past i saw midnight in paris i get it but it doesn t stop me from doing it maybe there are certain times of one s life that are the happiest i honestly don t think these past few years with so many people suffering unemployment and hardship have been so very happy it s more make the best of it in my book try to enjoy despite the horrific nightmare moment in time we have the misfortune of living in i guess that sounds pretty doom and gloom but sometimes it feels that way to me how can anyone be oblivious to what is happening around us even if we have been fortunate enough to hang on to our jobs or homes posted by jocelyn at 4 46 pm no comments labels ecomomy housing bubble philosophy thursday october 20 2011 halloween around the house the best laid plans my last post was april well i did think of you my fellow housebloggers i always do when we do house work we like holidays around here we don t get many trick or treaters in our neck of the woods but i always enjoy seeing macabre or funny halloween decor as i drive or walk around a neighborhood so for your viewing pleasure our spider s lair i always smile to myself as i clean off the real cobwebs on the front door and then put up the fake ones we humans are such funny creatures really what have we been up to around the 2 flat this year well nothing more glamorous than cleaning up our basement laundry room visualize removing 1930 s tile and black mastic from the floor with soy gel and steve power washing the stone foundation walls after stripping crumbling paint with more soy gel concrete repairs and various and sundry in this category small progress but now i can go into the laundry room without feeling like i am visiting a serial killer s lair that counts for something actually steve built a lifetime warrantied tenant storage locker and a nice laundry room table too i will try to post some after photos but it s not a pottery barn laundry room or anything okay so i managed a post now i need to see what you all have been up to happy halloween everyone posted by jocelyn at 4 40 pm 4 comments labels basement holiday decorating holidays laundry room thursday april 28 2011 aspirations in spring the sailboat comes out so it s spring in chicago and we know this how because it s raining and because the grass is turning green in places i don t know about the rest of you but for us living in a city with dogs and a small backyard we inevitably turn to lawn repair in the spring and fall year after year after year perhaps there are some among you who have beautiful lawns that green up perfectly in the spring with no brown patches you have adorable little crocus sprouting in perfect clumps that pass on just before the first moving of the year so you don t have to mow the prettylittleflowers but alas with two diabolical little dogs using our small yard as an ejem potty all winter that is not to be at the 2 flat so rather than aspire to the perfect lawn we aspire to be lawn free for perfectly manicured lawns are not only high maintenance as we all know they are not very environmentally friendly for now we continue dutifully repairing our sad little lawn every spring but we look forward to the day when we can eliminate this chore and put the push mower to bed permanently at least the rain helps the grass grow faster our plan is to create a patio in the center of the yard surrounded by garden beds full of perennials and vegatables maybe a pergola and a tucked away seating area where we can sit quietly and read a book in the shade an oasis of privacy in the city a staycation if you will although more often than not i can be found working in my yard rather than reclining i m convinced if i had more comfortable outdoor furniture i would be more likely to recline time will tell posted by jocelyn at 7 55 pm 1 comment labels greening the 2 flat lawn repair wish list yard saturday april 16 2011 missing an old friend art institute staircase march 2011 i took my blog down for a while mainly due to a haranguing husband who has some issues with certain information being posted publicly does anyone else have this debate in their houseblogging household i d love to hear from you there is no one in the world that can drive me insane more than my beloved spouse except maybe my co workers who i spend an inordinate amount of time with because we live in a country with such a crappy vacation policy but i digress anyway because of my dear and beloved spouse and life just changing and altering my needs and focus i have seen my blogging dwindle down to 2 posts last year a far cry from the peak of posting in 2006 when i created 156 entries how did i do it i have the say that the years 2005 2006 had a life of their own and i experienced both the joys and exhaustion of being consumed by our home and its projects i remember many dinners of pizza slices from jb albertos and salad manwiches and tacos because that was about all we could manage now we are more likely to be observed cooking something delicious from the silver palate or making beef burgundy on a week night rather than lying flat on our backs waiting for the aches and pains to subside from a long weekend of hanging drywall and i have been known to bake cupcakes just for the heck of it in 2007 i turned 40 and i remember feeling as if i was waking up from a dream i couldn t believe the years that had passed with steve and i consumed by our home and working together i truly love working side by side with my husband as a team it brings me a real feeling of contentment and connection and if too much time passes without that i find myself longing for the experience i will always fondly remember the summer of the wood pile where i experienced a moment of true connection looking down at my hands sanding board after board of straight oak trim i realized how immensely satisfying it was to work with ones hands because of this experience i relate to contractors and tradesman quite a lot i admire them new year s eve 2010 at zoo lights that same year i said to steve oh my god can you believe how much time has passed we ve been together 7 years i think we should get married this year seriously and steve said okay sounds like a good idea and we got married and that felt right and our lives moved gradually towards more normal time for extracurricular activities like the theater dinners out and friends volunteer work block clubs gardening vacations family etc all of which we barely had time for in 2005 2006 of course living in a 100 year old building we are still working to maintain it and the diy urges have not left us this summer we are planning to build a new fence in the backyard and plant some large evergreens among other things we have an endless supply of improvement ideas and wish lists i hope someday to convert the basement and have a room of my own which i think would do much for my contentment this morning and lately i found myself missing my old houseblog and decided to bring it back online i know there are oodles of you out there in the thick of things i remember those days well and fondly once you ve done something like renovate your own home no one can take that away from you it gives one a similar feeling to putting yourself through college on your own dime and effort it s hard but builds character something inside that is yours that s how i feel about it anyway i may re design this blog with steve s help as...