Yes, I know that sounds weird, but right now I am literally living on a construction site. One of my favourite pursuits of happiness is to dabble in renovating. Over the years, Phil and I have tackled many projects and every time we’ve said, “we not doing that again!” Guess what? We are doing that again!
Not only are we renovating but also we’re ramping it up this time. We are subdividing our block, renovating our existing house and building a new house on the property too.
Sound crazy to you? Well, you are not alone in thinking that. Some of our friends have wondered whether we should be certified and institutionalized for our own protection. Others just look at us totally gob smacked, not knowing what to say.
In fact, we’ve been quite surprised at how many builders wouldn’t even consider doing the renovation for us. They all say it’s a money pit and there is no way to accurately budget or estimate the costs. Especially the type of renovation we are doing: adding a top storey with a balcony, building a new double garage, reconfiguring the inside of the house, new roof, replastering, new pool and entertainment area, etc., etc., etc. One builder recommended we bowl the house over and start from fresh.
We’ve decided to go ahead with the renovation despite this advice. Now whether that’s a foolish or a wise decision is yet to be determined. I’ll let you know when we finish it. What I do know is we are having fun! It’s energizing, creative and challenging all at once.
I’m curious as to what you think of renovating and if you have any advice to share with us. Also, is this something you’d want to hear about on happiness of pursuits?