I,Aeove already written about closing day stress. Moving day turned out to be just as stressful.
Technically, my unit should not have closed ,Aei it wasn,Aeot walk-in ready when I received the keys (after the sale had been "officially" recorded). With the exception of a few minor things, everything was supposed to be completed Thursday night (note, closing was Wednesday, but I was kind and let things slide, even though I probably shouldn,Aeot have). Late Thursday afternoon, I let the contractors know that I,Aeod be arriving around 10 the next morning, with movers and my belongings in tow. When I finally arrived around 11, it was apparent that the construction guys were still furiously working. Someone was attaching the door knob, another had a paint brush in hand and the unit had not been thoroughly cleaned.
I completely lost it, and everyone within earshot knew exactly how upset I was after hearing my angry conversation with my real estate agent. It had been two really stressful weeks, I hadn't had a good nights sleep in at least three weeks, and at that point, hit my head hard on the wall of rational and understanding. After some negotiations and many angry phone calls, we decided to move my stuff in and after, a cleaner would come in and the rest of the things (mainly paint patching) would be finished the following week.
One of the best things, in my opinion, about being a homeowner is owning a washing machine and dryer, that is in my unit and doesn't require quarters. About an hour into the move in process, the box labeled ,Aeulinens,Ae? arrived. I ripped it open and threw in sheets. ,AeuSweet,,Ae? I said to the young mover as I pressed start, ,AeuThat is the sound of washing machine that doesn,Aeot require quarters.,Ae? We had a good laugh. Ten minutes later, he said, ,Aeuummm, I think water is leaking out of your washing machine.,Ae? Not only was water leaking out, water had flooded the bathroom, laundry area and entry way, narrowly averting the bedroom carpet.
A hose hadn,Aeot properly been attached, and instead of water running out through the pipes to wherever it goes, it was pouring out of the back of the washing machine, into my unit (and two floors below). The construction guys felt horrible, apologized profusely, cleaned up the mess and reattached the hose. At that moment, I appealed to karma: "I can take anything. The worst has been thrown in my direction, and if I deserve more, well, bring it on. I dare you, bring it on." And then I calmed down...and it hit me...I was finally a homeowner.
That evening, a few friends came over to celebrate my new home. Four very nice bottles of champagne were consumed: a Sofia Coppola blanc de blanc (not bad, with slight floral and wine tastes), Veuve Clicquot Brut (perfect, as only Veuve can be), Moet & Chandon (nicely tasting of toasted almonds) and a 1998 Taittinger (also tasting of toasted almonds, and at the very point where had I waited to drink, it probably would have gone bad). We drank out of plastic cups, of course. As the sun set, we went up to the rooftop deck, talking and drinking champagne, watching the sunset and enjoying the spectacular Seattle city and mountain views.
After so many years thinking that I wasn't going to ever be a homeowner, I now am one. It feels good, very good.
Pictures will be posted later. I'm using my work laptop for this and can't figure out how to reduce the file size in My Pictures or the free version of Adobe Photo Shop and I'm out of patience.
PS - Nilay, thank you for the Taittinger. I know that you wanted me to drink it for a different type of celebration, but that celebration hasn't happened yet, and I decided that becoming a homeowner was worthy of the amazing bottle.
PPS - Pete, thank you for everything. I'm looking forward to accusing you of having too much junk, making fun of your possessions and crashing at your place.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Vertigo Update #4
Announcement: I am now officially a homeowner.
Inspection and closing day started smoothly, but by 10AM, had turned into a high level of stress that only ended when I walked into the title company's office to sign a 2" stack of papers. Because of pain and suffering, BofA ended up waiving my closing costs, a nice surprise that's going to result in a nice monetary return. Hello Crate and Barrel steamer bar cabinet.
I get the keys today. I move Friday. I'll post pictures soon.
Inspection and closing day started smoothly, but by 10AM, had turned into a high level of stress that only ended when I walked into the title company's office to sign a 2" stack of papers. Because of pain and suffering, BofA ended up waiving my closing costs, a nice surprise that's going to result in a nice monetary return. Hello Crate and Barrel steamer bar cabinet.
I get the keys today. I move Friday. I'll post pictures soon.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Vertigo Update #3
Closing is very, very near. Tuesday is a big day: I'm scheduled for a final walkthrough/inspection, followed by paper signing and check writing with the title company. I close on Wednesday, which I think is the day that I get my keys and take possession. The movers arrive at 8AM on Friday. I think I'm ready on my end. Thanks to Pete, I'm about 75% packed. I've transferred all of the utilities and changed my address, with the exception of the broadband service. I've transferred money around, so barring any banking disaster (eTrade makes me nervous), should be set to go with the funds. (A note about the writing process - I have to pause and take a deep breath each time I reread and edit this paragraph).
Construction is almost complete. Considering how fast this has gone, it looks like the various contractors have done a fairly good job and I didn't notice any real problems. We'll see what comes through in the inspection. The one big item to date - the builder hasn't replaced all of the windows. After Jeff explained the mechanics of construction loans to me, it makes sense - the builder is strapped for cash. This was made glaringly apparent when it looked like they weren't going to close on Wednesday, but then promised they would once the realization that they'd have to pay me $1,400 set in.
Some updated pictures. I hope that the next ones are of the completed unit, and then of my new home with my belongings and personality.
The kitchen - yeah!
My bedroom:
The dining area, note tiled with lighting fixture:
And finally, the murphy bed enclosure, sans murphy bed. I like this picture, as it shows off the floor quite nicely.
Construction is almost complete. Considering how fast this has gone, it looks like the various contractors have done a fairly good job and I didn't notice any real problems. We'll see what comes through in the inspection. The one big item to date - the builder hasn't replaced all of the windows. After Jeff explained the mechanics of construction loans to me, it makes sense - the builder is strapped for cash. This was made glaringly apparent when it looked like they weren't going to close on Wednesday, but then promised they would once the realization that they'd have to pay me $1,400 set in.
Some updated pictures. I hope that the next ones are of the completed unit, and then of my new home with my belongings and personality.
The kitchen - yeah!
My bedroom:
The dining area, note tiled with lighting fixture:
And finally, the murphy bed enclosure, sans murphy bed. I like this picture, as it shows off the floor quite nicely.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Vertigo Update #2
They still have a lot to do before closing, but it's very cool to see actual progress.
Color has now been splashed on the wall.
Cabinets are installed in the kitchen:
The flooring has arrived, and is ready to be installed:
And here's the living room. Behind the washing machine (!) is the dining nook.
I am really, really excited. It's all coming together. I am also incredibly stressed - I've only had a good night's sleep once in the past 10 days because I took a sleeping pill. Trouble with sleep is always the first sign that I'm stressed. My teeth are starting to hurt, meaning I'm clenching my jaw while I'm sleeping. The last time I was this stressed about anything was more than a year ago, when in the space of three weeks, I resigned from a job, moved to a new city and started a new job.
I describe this process as akin to spinning six different pieces, four of which are controlled by others and need to stop at the right instant and click into the correct place for this closing and move to happen on time. It needs to - I've given notice, booked movers, started moving money around and arranged for a final cleaning.
I'll be very glad when I'm ordering pizza and opening a champagne battle on July 27.
Color has now been splashed on the wall.
Cabinets are installed in the kitchen:
The flooring has arrived, and is ready to be installed:
And here's the living room. Behind the washing machine (!) is the dining nook.
I am really, really excited. It's all coming together. I am also incredibly stressed - I've only had a good night's sleep once in the past 10 days because I took a sleeping pill. Trouble with sleep is always the first sign that I'm stressed. My teeth are starting to hurt, meaning I'm clenching my jaw while I'm sleeping. The last time I was this stressed about anything was more than a year ago, when in the space of three weeks, I resigned from a job, moved to a new city and started a new job.
I describe this process as akin to spinning six different pieces, four of which are controlled by others and need to stop at the right instant and click into the correct place for this closing and move to happen on time. It needs to - I've given notice, booked movers, started moving money around and arranged for a final cleaning.
I'll be very glad when I'm ordering pizza and opening a champagne battle on July 27.
Sunday, July 08, 2007
the Vertigo Update
My closing has now been delayed by two weeks, to July 25. It looks like things are moving along - dry wall was put up last week, texturing and taping and primer this week. I'm hoping that by next week, I'll see some paint up on the walls, cabinets delivered, appliances appearing, etc.
New pictures:
The kitchen. Imagine cabinets, counter tops and appliances.
The fireplace. The wall above the fireplace has been future proofed for the flat screen TV, with power and cabling for cable, HDMI and the videogame systems run through the walls. Pete and I got to punch a big hole in the wall for the cabling, which was kind of cool. In about 60 years when several owners from now punch through the walls, they are going to wonder who was stupid enough to stuff 25 feet of cable in the walls. Let them wonder, I say, let them wonder. I am also now the proud owner of an electric stud finder.
Finally, the murphy bed enclosure, which is where all of you who come to visit or pass out after the excesses of Cap Hill will be sleeping. Note the big windows from the living and lanai in the background. If light bothers you, you've been warned: bring a sleeping mask.
More pictures as it comes along!
New pictures:
The kitchen. Imagine cabinets, counter tops and appliances.
The fireplace. The wall above the fireplace has been future proofed for the flat screen TV, with power and cabling for cable, HDMI and the videogame systems run through the walls. Pete and I got to punch a big hole in the wall for the cabling, which was kind of cool. In about 60 years when several owners from now punch through the walls, they are going to wonder who was stupid enough to stuff 25 feet of cable in the walls. Let them wonder, I say, let them wonder. I am also now the proud owner of an electric stud finder.
Finally, the murphy bed enclosure, which is where all of you who come to visit or pass out after the excesses of Cap Hill will be sleeping. Note the big windows from the living and lanai in the background. If light bothers you, you've been warned: bring a sleeping mask.
More pictures as it comes along!
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Admitting a Mistake
In my former life as an analyst, I'd often be asked to discuss technology convergence, in essence, mashing together several seemingly separate and unrelated features in one device, a conversation that almost always centered around the cell phone. Convergence rarely works, I would explain, and really, only a handful of consumer electronics products have succeeded with any degree of success: the clock radio, the camera phone, the PC (for all that it's worth).
But, it could work, right? I'd patiently continue my explanation. BOM costs would be fairly high. The device would be the size of a brick. Explaining/marketing the value prop would be fraught with difficulty. And perhaps the biggest problem, the one most difficult to overcome, was the complexity of bringing a product of value to the market, one which in the process of combining disparate features, didn't result in a device in which none of the features worked particularly well because too many concessions had to be made to fit everything together, reduce BOM costs, take advantage of existing manufacturing processes, etc. The history of consumer electronics products bears this out: the N-Gage (crappy phone, crappy game player); PSP movies (proprietary format+small screen+bad audio); combined TV-VCR (I can't even believe a market still exists for that product; one component always breaks); the all-in-one set-top box (a DVD player+DVR+set-top+router+coffee maker sounds great, but...); the ROKR (seriously, how bad was the experience of getting music to that phone?)...and the list continues. And, while the DVD functionality of the PS2/Xbox was good, Sony and Microsoft were smart enough to design the DVD experience as secondary to the gaming experience - they never billed the consoles as DVD players.
Usually, by the end of this rant, I'd like to think I'd convinced the client/colleague/friend/reporter that the reality was, maybe someone, someday could pull off a great converged device, but for the time being, we (consumers) were willing to carry around multiple devices. If I wanted to play great games, I didn't look to my iPod, rather it was all about music. If I wanted to communicate with others, it certainly wasn't with my N-Gage or my Nintendo DS, in the case of the latter, it was only about great game play.
So after all of that...I'm now ready to admit that I was wrong. Completely. Wrong.
The iPhone has changed my mind. It is the perfect example of convergence working, and not only sort of working, but working in a completely seamless and well integrated way. The overall software design is amazing, and the little details are well thought out (the phone automatically locks! the activation experience is easy and simple!) The phone is great - fabulous sound, easy to make calls, a huge leap forward in managing voice mail. Texting takes a little getting used to - but I love the threaded messaging and am getting used to tapping, rather than typing. The iPod works - the design and usability differs from the iPod, but not in a bad way (I like being able to "flip" through my albums). Most importantly, the music experience is well integrated with the voice experience. If I'm listening to music on my headset using the iPhone earbuds, the music automatically stops, and I can talk via the speaker built into the earbuds. Wow. And the web experience. Resizing pages and pictures by "pinching" the screen. All amazing.
That's not to say that it's perfect. I really want to use my own music as a ring tone. I had huge problems initially, mainly because my PC wouldn't recognize the iPhone (I have a feeling that this was more of a PC issue than an iPhone issue). I'm still not able to import my contacts from Outlook into the phone. And, I'm not sure that I'll be able to plug the iPod part of the phone into my car's iPod connector and still be able to use it as a phone (currently, the phone switches into airplane mode, but still plays music in my car). Maybe soon that scenario will work, although I'm certain it will cost me money. No games, but then, it's likely that some casual games (and only casual games) migrate to the device in the future; Bedazzled on a touch screen would be fun. Finally, it is expensive - I could have picked up a Dell Inspiron for the same price; but to be fair, the iPhone price will go down.
The more I've used and played with the iPhone, discovering new features, figuring out how it works, the more impressed and excited I've become. In my history of consumer purchases/acquisitions, I've only felt this way about a few products: my Kitchen-Aid mixer, Lolita (my Mini Cooper), my Nintendo DS, and a certain device that uses electricity rather than batteries.
I'm really excited to see how the iPhone changes my behavior. I know that I'll still use the shuffle for running/the gym. And, I suspect that I'll continue to use my iPod for music in the office and at home. I have 20GB+ of music, and the iPhone only has 8GB of storage, so in it's current form, the iPhone isn't a perfect substitute to carry all of my music in my pocket. I am excited about using the iPhone for on-the-go directions, traffic and weather checks. And, maybe I'll take more phone pictures, since now I can easily send pictures from my phone to the PC.
I was wrong, and I'm not feeling bad admitting the truth. Convergence can work. Sometimes, it feels good to be proven wrong, especially when the end result is so delightfully right.
PS: Pete, thank you for buying me the phone, and to Richard & Melissa, Gavin & Elaine and whoever else waiting at the UVillage Apple Store, thank you for agreeing to help me move so that I could use my mover money for the iPhone. I'll be sending you date/time/place information shortly.
PPS: Just kidding about the moving thing ;) You all know I'm not that cheap. Or crazy.
But, it could work, right? I'd patiently continue my explanation. BOM costs would be fairly high. The device would be the size of a brick. Explaining/marketing the value prop would be fraught with difficulty. And perhaps the biggest problem, the one most difficult to overcome, was the complexity of bringing a product of value to the market, one which in the process of combining disparate features, didn't result in a device in which none of the features worked particularly well because too many concessions had to be made to fit everything together, reduce BOM costs, take advantage of existing manufacturing processes, etc. The history of consumer electronics products bears this out: the N-Gage (crappy phone, crappy game player); PSP movies (proprietary format+small screen+bad audio); combined TV-VCR (I can't even believe a market still exists for that product; one component always breaks); the all-in-one set-top box (a DVD player+DVR+set-top+router+coffee maker sounds great, but...); the ROKR (seriously, how bad was the experience of getting music to that phone?)...and the list continues. And, while the DVD functionality of the PS2/Xbox was good, Sony and Microsoft were smart enough to design the DVD experience as secondary to the gaming experience - they never billed the consoles as DVD players.
Usually, by the end of this rant, I'd like to think I'd convinced the client/colleague/friend/reporter that the reality was, maybe someone, someday could pull off a great converged device, but for the time being, we (consumers) were willing to carry around multiple devices. If I wanted to play great games, I didn't look to my iPod, rather it was all about music. If I wanted to communicate with others, it certainly wasn't with my N-Gage or my Nintendo DS, in the case of the latter, it was only about great game play.
So after all of that...I'm now ready to admit that I was wrong. Completely. Wrong.
The iPhone has changed my mind. It is the perfect example of convergence working, and not only sort of working, but working in a completely seamless and well integrated way. The overall software design is amazing, and the little details are well thought out (the phone automatically locks! the activation experience is easy and simple!) The phone is great - fabulous sound, easy to make calls, a huge leap forward in managing voice mail. Texting takes a little getting used to - but I love the threaded messaging and am getting used to tapping, rather than typing. The iPod works - the design and usability differs from the iPod, but not in a bad way (I like being able to "flip" through my albums). Most importantly, the music experience is well integrated with the voice experience. If I'm listening to music on my headset using the iPhone earbuds, the music automatically stops, and I can talk via the speaker built into the earbuds. Wow. And the web experience. Resizing pages and pictures by "pinching" the screen. All amazing.
That's not to say that it's perfect. I really want to use my own music as a ring tone. I had huge problems initially, mainly because my PC wouldn't recognize the iPhone (I have a feeling that this was more of a PC issue than an iPhone issue). I'm still not able to import my contacts from Outlook into the phone. And, I'm not sure that I'll be able to plug the iPod part of the phone into my car's iPod connector and still be able to use it as a phone (currently, the phone switches into airplane mode, but still plays music in my car). Maybe soon that scenario will work, although I'm certain it will cost me money. No games, but then, it's likely that some casual games (and only casual games) migrate to the device in the future; Bedazzled on a touch screen would be fun. Finally, it is expensive - I could have picked up a Dell Inspiron for the same price; but to be fair, the iPhone price will go down.
The more I've used and played with the iPhone, discovering new features, figuring out how it works, the more impressed and excited I've become. In my history of consumer purchases/acquisitions, I've only felt this way about a few products: my Kitchen-Aid mixer, Lolita (my Mini Cooper), my Nintendo DS, and a certain device that uses electricity rather than batteries.
I'm really excited to see how the iPhone changes my behavior. I know that I'll still use the shuffle for running/the gym. And, I suspect that I'll continue to use my iPod for music in the office and at home. I have 20GB+ of music, and the iPhone only has 8GB of storage, so in it's current form, the iPhone isn't a perfect substitute to carry all of my music in my pocket. I am excited about using the iPhone for on-the-go directions, traffic and weather checks. And, maybe I'll take more phone pictures, since now I can easily send pictures from my phone to the PC.
I was wrong, and I'm not feeling bad admitting the truth. Convergence can work. Sometimes, it feels good to be proven wrong, especially when the end result is so delightfully right.
PS: Pete, thank you for buying me the phone, and to Richard & Melissa, Gavin & Elaine and whoever else waiting at the UVillage Apple Store, thank you for agreeing to help me move so that I could use my mover money for the iPhone. I'll be sending you date/time/place information shortly.
PPS: Just kidding about the moving thing ;) You all know I'm not that cheap. Or crazy.
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