ThE JERICO PROJECT

For the last week or so Golan and I have been working industriously on the Jerico Project. Two walls came tumbling down, but not because of a trumpet; it was a nice big sledge hammer that did it. I'd been thinking and pondrering for the longest time on how to sort the crowded kitchen issue for once and for all. Thing is, when Gimp House was renovated for me, I could still walk and the tiny closed in kitchen was perfect for me. Then, when I couldn't walk any more, an office chair in there was fine. It's not any more. The wheely to chair transfers get harder by the day. A radical solution was needed-The Jerico Project was born! After months of turning it every which way in my head, I suddenly 'saw' the answer. After a brief consultation with Golan about whether or not it could be done, and a short negotiation about cost, I hired Golan as project manager for The Jerico Project! The first day of the project was kind of a yucky day out and I was feeling not too great, so I just stayed in bed and slept through most of the demolition. I did wake up at one point long enough to tell him to stop everything and rebuild the walls because I forget to take a before picture. He almost put me to sleep permanently after that. I did take a couple of pictures that show where the walls were, but are no more. We ran into a minor problem with the washer and drier but came up with the answer quickly. Golan cut a few of the 'pantry' shelves and they slid right in. It might look a little strange, but Gimp House is all about what works for me. On Thursday night I had a vision of a trolley type thing on wheels that I could keep my mixer and crock pot on. On my way to the grocery store I swung through the Home Center store and saw the very thing! I decided that I would go back for it on Sunday as there was no way I could take it and the groceries home on Harley. First thing Sunday morning, I went back and told the guy I want THIS. He went off a few feet to get one in a box and I said, "No, this, not in a box". He went off to get the manager's permission, which, was a no brainer. I paid for it and a guy from paint brought it out and scud taped it to Harley, and I got it home just as Golan was coming over. It's absolutely perfect

Another minor hiccup came a long in the shape of the annual inspection by the housing authority. They come around once a year to make sure the place is still standing and the right number of people are living in it. Every year, the clerk who 'takes care' of the place comes alone. This time he had the district enginner and a boss in tow.

Hmmmm, you think maybe somebody told them I was tearing down walls? Not a doubt in my mind. Thing is we can do what we want to 'our' places, but have to return it to the way it was when we got it. I'm leaving Gimp House feet first, so who cares? There's also the fact that this place will stay on the books as a disabled flat and losing the walls will only make less work when the time comes. I did point out to Moshe the engineer that we left all the support columns and beams in place. All the other flats in this building took them down. All the tattletale had to do was ask me if I had and I would have shown him, but, oh, no, it's much more fun to do it that way. That was a waste of a phone call.