1.04.2015

10 resolutions for 2014: How'd we do?

Ah yes, a new year beginning and a (brief) time to reflect and then plan for the future. Here are some (housey) items on our list 'o resolutions that, depending on money, time, and health, we plan to do this year:

1. Put in a garden. 


"One of the things we missed living up in the sky was having a garden, so we need to put one in before spring. The hope is to put in raised wicking beds using livestock troughs. Need to get green before the spring!"

DONE!!!  And it has worked out fantastic! 

2. Survive the home tour. 


The home tour cometh! With the work we put in over the holidaze, we're ready to tour today if we had to. Nevertheless, we still have a couple dozen little projects to attend to. Nothing like the specter of having several hundred people come over serve as a motivator for getting stuff done!

SURVIVED!!! And showed up in an article!

3. Rent a Schindler.


Discovered last week that the Fitzpatrick-Leland House in Los Angeles, a house we fell in love with when we visited it in 2012, can be rented! It ain't cheap, but after sleeping with Wright, we need to sleep with Schindler. Schindler's Buck House, another fabulous place, is also for rent, but with a substantially longer stay and larger cost.

FAIL... But the reason was due to two trips (trip 1, trip 2) to L.A. in six weeks to gawk at Schindlers.

4. Visit Corbu and Weissenhof in the Old Country.


Amid other reasons to jump the pond, I'd love to stop in and say hello to several modern masterpieces in Paris, particularly Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye. Additionally, I would love to pop into Stuttgart, Germany, to visit the Weissenhof Estate's collection of modern houses (post coming soonish on the amazing Weissenhof...). Time (and bride...) permitting, I'd love to also stop in at the Bauhaus as well as the Reitveld-Schroder house.

FAIL... Had plans, but a medical condition (and subsequent surgery) scuttled the trip.

5. Volunteer to preserve local modern.


With mid-century Modern architecture reaching its 50-year birthday, it's becoming eligible (locally) for historic designation and protection. We've long been members of the Heritage Society of Austin, now known as Preservation Austin, and would like to help them transition into also protecting the modern architecture of Austin.

DONE!!! Testified in support of historic preservation of a Streamline Moderne house in Austin.

6. Two words: Garage nesting.


After moving out of our outside storage facility this past weekend, the garage is a mess. I need to get it all set up and purdy for working on our little cars.

HALF DONE!!! Cabinets 80 percent installed and garage half cleaned.

7. Garage sale.


Related to the previous post, we need to have a garage sale. The hood holds a neighborhood-wide garage sale every year, so we plan to participate. Despite moving from a house half the size of the current one, we seem to have twice as much stuff for the new place (transitioning from maximalists to minimalists and shabby chic to sleek is rather daunting). We need to liberate, as hard as that will be.

FAIL... Thinking donation these days...

8. No more storage.


Somewhat related to the previous item, we need to empty out of the indoor storage facility. Sigh...

FAIL... (file under "Dammit!!!")

9. Continue this blog


I'd like to continue the blog as long as possible, the main drivers probably being architectural tourism and history, with at least a post a week. I still have a lot of reading to do (I'm swimming in unread architectural books...) and a lot to learn. Thanks for reading over the past year. Hopefully the new year will continue to offer useful and interesting stuff.

SUCCESS!!!

10. Enjoy the house.


We always seem to be GO! GO! GO!, so we need to slow down a wee bit (from time to time...) to get mellow and simply enjoy the house.

SUCCESS!!!

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