Glamorous Home Project

Our big ticket home improvement project for 2010 (I hope, at least) was almost completed today. A brand new....drum roll....ROOF. Pretty exciting stuff. Although it was hard to pick among all the enticing shades of gray. I finally selected the very distinguished sounding color of "weathered wood" (gray with hints of brown and dark gray). Of course it was hard to give up "granite gray" (gray with hints of dark gray), "pewterwood" (gray with hints of light gray), "georgetown gray" (I swear the same as granite gray with cooler sounding name), and "slate blend" (gray with hints of brick). But, I have persevered.

Truth be told, I was surprised how nervous I was about selecting a roof color. It's tough basing an >$8000 purchase on a picture in a catalog that is exactly 3" x 3". I did drive around to a few local houses to see the roofs installed, which was helpful. But, since our home has gray siding I just didn't want the roof color to clash too badly because there is just no way to pay for this twice.

I must also say that roofers are a tough, tough lot. They worked outside all day on Friday starting at 7:15am when the temperature was 12F (wind chill 4F). I made a pot of coffee for the guys to warm their hands and put it outside with a cup of cream. The cream froze solid by the time I brought it back inside. Not an exaggeration. Completely solid.

1) I am grateful that I am not a roofer.

2) While I am definitely thankful to have a roof that no longer leaks, a roof purchase is just about the least exciting home improvement money I have ever spent -- even less exciting than white ceiling paint and significantly more expensive.