Well, the new refrigerator is causing all kinds of trouble.

I don�t mean to denigrate the refrigerator itself in any way. It�s beautiful, functional, a perfect fit. It classes up the kitchen. It even arrived on time. My only complaint about the process of acquiring the refrigerator is that the installer wouldn�t believe me when I told him the shut-off valve for the water line to the ice maker was under the sink. Instead, he spent 20 minutes removing ceiling tiles from my basement office, leaving everything dust covered, before he realized, �Oh, it looks like it�s under the sink.� Sometimes I hate being a girl.

But other than that, things were fine. In the end, he took $80 off the bill for the water hookup and told me how to do it myself. His heart was in the right place. AJ was in awe of the delivery truck, in particular the elevator on the back that lowered the new refrigerator to the driveway and raised the old one back up into the truck to be hauled away. He also loves the water dispenser and has been providing water to one and all for several days. Now if only I can teach him to make a martini.

No, the problem with the refrigerator is that it makes us want to fix up the rest of the place. And so this afternoon we found ourselves wandering a flooring warehouse trying to figure out how much it would cost us to put in some hardwood floors. It turns out our dream project is probably over $10,000. Nope. But now my brain, which should be involved in more high-falutin� academic type thought is engaged in a series of decorating what ifs. What if we just did the living room and not the kitchen? What if we did the kitchen and living room but not the stairs? What if we did the living room and family room and not the kitchen? What if we just got new carpet instead? What if we regrouted the kitchen tile? What if we sold the house and started over? What if you just shot me now?

Even I am having trouble paying attention to the decisions that are taking my attention these days. Really, I am in need of some adventures. I�ve been taking out my creative urges on a castle that AJ and I have been building out of a small shipping box and two oatmeal boxes. Like our house, it is also in a perpetual state of renovation. Today I added foam battlements to the tops of the towers and finished covering the doors with diamond-patterned origami paper. The roof and walls are covered in popsicle sticks that make a nice clattering noise when AJ�s plastic people dance on them. His kingdom appears to have been taken over by the bourgeoisie � it is being ruled by a bus driver and two auto mechanics, one of which is mysteriously carrying a frog. Perhaps it is a princess in disguise.

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