And Now...The Greener Version

I finished painting the island cabinet. It is now the same green as our built-in kitchen cabinets around our sink. This project is done now, except for replacing the pulls. Lee Ann really likes it!

Kitchen Island - With Top

We still have some work to do, but this is the general arrangement...

Kitchen Island Top

Our little kitchen at East Main has never had a lot of counter space, and cabinet storage is minimal too. When I started disassembling the 1980s kitchen at the Tower House, I saw that the cabinets were nice solid wood and figured I could use them someplace else. Eventually I hit on the idea of building an island from a couple of the base cabinets.

But I needed a top for the island. Lee Ann and I kicked around several ideas for it. Then I saw a Craigslist ad for a guy that works in butcherblock. I called him and he agreed to build the top I needed - and here is an "in progress" photo he sent me yesterday. Looks pretty good! He uses alternating red oak and poplar, 1.5 inches thick. The base cabinets are already in place in our kitchen, and I hope to have the completed top set in place sometime this weekend. More pictures soon.

Michigan Relatives Blanch In Horror!

It's true - daughter Annie just might become a Buckeye. She received an acceptance letter from Ohio State University yesterday. OSU has good programs in Annie's areas of interest, campus is a moderate distance from home, and a number of her high school friends are planning to enroll there. Also, it has that desirable state-supported college attribute - affordability.

So that makes two acceptance letters (OSU and Roanoke) and five schools she has yet to get a decision from (UCLA, Washington & Lee, Miami U, Earlham College and Kent State).

Snow Falling...

Our corner of Ohio is getting its share of fluffy whiteness this week. Tuesday was the first snowfall of the winter that needed shoveling, and today I have been out twice to clear the sidewalk. We have about four inches on the ground, with another inch or so due to fall tonight. Annie is off sledding with friend Megan - still a kid at seventeen.

We have hit a lull in the college applications process. Annie has been getting letters confirming that various schools have received her application materials, but acceptances won't come until close to February 1. Wish her luck!

Sweet Dreams

Aww, aren't they cute? This is Annie and Danny in the backseat on our way back from Michigan. One is dreaming sushi and plum tea dreams. The other is just thinking about chasing squirrels. Which is which, I wonder?

How's That For Excitement?!

Sure, some folks go jetting off to NYC to guzzle champagne and watch the ball drop in Times Square - but not the McAlpines. We have a more nuanced appreciation of how to celebrate the major calendar milestone. We say, what better way to acknowledge the passage of time than an activity that makes the passage of time completely and painfully apparent?

This might be about the tenth New Year that we brought in with a jigsaw. Originally this was a family activity, but Annie lost interest a while ago and even Lee Ann barely participates anymore. That left me ushering in 2010 by facing a thousand die-cut slices of seething downeast bay - alone. I'll spare you a blow-by-blow, but suffice it to say that after twelve hours and one seriously stiff neck, I had mastered 600 pieces and then caused them and their more inscrutable buddies to slink back into the box from whence they came. A total victory, let's call that. And my neck and vision are pretty much back to normal now, thanks for asking.

At The Roxy

Here we are at the legendary Roxy Cafe in Jackson Thursday morning with Brian, Lorri and the girls. You can see the Roxy's trademark ceiling ads for local businesses in the photo. The tables all were full so our group took up the entire counter for a linear breakfast get-together and, as always, the omelets were super. Thanks for the photo, Lorri - a good shot.

Ordinarily we visit family in Michigan before Christmas. This year Annie and Lee Ann's social schedule made this impossible - but it turns out we have just as much fun if we go a week later.