“This house looks familiar – were we here before?”
“Yeah, we did a door. The electrician was here then, but the fence wasn’t”
Actually, that company also did our bathtub overfit, but it was a different crew. Still, I found it amazing that any workman would remember an individual house when he’s probably been to hundreds of them over the last year. Hopefully it’s a compliment – that the house was memorable, and not that its owner was a loony tunes no one could ever forget.
Anyway.
Every window in my house has now been replaced. We did 7 last year, and the final 7 this week. For the second set, we opted to go with Comfort Windows & Doors because we’ve used them a number of times before, at our old house and at our new house, and have always been happy with their work. Plus, their quote came in slightly lower than the last window company we used (who also did an excellent job, but hey, money is money).
It was 90 degrees F that day, but the two-man crew were troopers. They worked diligently, and then called for reinforcements early in the afternoon. Most of the windows were upstairs, requiring that the outside trim be fitted while perched on a ladder. The extra 4 men made the work go so much faster.
Puppy Cody was barricaded into half the living room, while I sat at my computer. Cody is barrier-trained, so we were comfortable with merely leaning baby gates against some dining room chairs to make a “wall”. For extra security, I kept Cody on a long leash for most of the day.
While I knew that extra men had arrived, I really wasn’t paying any attention to who was where. Hubby had been going in and out of the house all day, so when I heard footsteps in the living room, I just figured it was him.
Until Cody growled. And it was a nasty growl. Scared the heck out of me.
I looked up to find one of the new men inspecting the living room window – he had been sent in to do the caulking, but hadn’t been told which windows were new and which had been done last year by the other company. The poor guy was already a bit confused – and the dog didn’t help.
Bless Cody’s little canine heart. She would not go past that barrier, but neither did she want some stranger in her living room while mom was not paying attention. That growl got everyone’s attention!
Other than that, the install went smoothly, and by 4:00 pm, we had all new windows.
I had never heard of “rain” glass before. For the two bathrooms, we had chosen the standard pebbled opaque bottom panel for privacy. When the salesman showed me the other option – rain glass – I just knew it would be perfect for the downstairs bedroom (maybe soon to be the home office/study). The window in that room looks out onto the side porch, and anyone could look in if the glass were clear. Now there’s some privacy. The rain glass is not completely opaque so Cody can still look out and see if anyone is standing on the porch – she just can’t tell who it is. That’s ok, it’s really not her job to identify people – she only needs to let us know that someone is there.
And apparently we can depend on her to do that.
After which, she’s likely to run and hide somewhere, but I’m ok with that, too. I don’t require perfection.
Hope your weekend is peaceful and fun, or productive (whichever you prefer). If you have a pet, give him or her a hug from Cordelia’s Mom.
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I love to hear from my readers. You may comment on this post, comment on my Facebook or Twitter pages, or email me at cordeliasmom2012@yahoo.com
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Images by Cordelia’s Mom
Cordelia's Mom, Still 
I like the looks of that rain glass. Nice pick.
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Thanks, Tippy, I admit I had my doubts, and hubby disagreed with me until it was actually installed.
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I envy your new windows!!
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Thanks, Marilyn. You would not, however, envy the cost. I hope we can recoup that cost whenever we sell, but at least for now we have windows that actually work!
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you have got to love our pets who want to protect us!
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I was surprised. Usually, Cody just runs and hides. I never expected that she would actually try to do her job.
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i guess we never really know how our beloved pets will act unless they are put to the test!
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Good job, CM. Enjoy the new look! We’ve got the rain this Sunday a.m. to go with your porch window …
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We had torrential downpours overnight, too. Now my new windows are not new. 🙂
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I think that’s a nice choice. Light and privacy.
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It worked out well. I’m glad because I sure didn’t want to have them taken out and reinstalled.
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Whew—that was a huge job! I felt for you, crouched behind your computer while all of the work was going on. I’ve been there, and done that, and I vowed never to do any renovations ever again! But you did fine—I’m impressed by your resilience! Now go and enjoy your new windows!
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I think because we’ve done so many renovations, at two different houses in the last 5 years, that I’ve learned how to deal with them. I just sit and play computer games and let the workers do their thing. Usually, it’s easy to simply block Cody in an area where the contractors aren’t working – like upstairs, if they’re working downstairs – but this time, they were all over the house, which made it a little more difficult. It all worked out ok, though.
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I had never heard of rain glass before. That looks nice, it’s a good idea. And I agree that it’s amazing the work crew remembered your house. Maybe they read your blog!
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No, I don’t think they read the blog. They would not have been as nice if they did! I think they probably remembered the un-updated 1939 house and the huge suburban yard.
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Sadly Maggie doesn’t react until after the event now, the doorbell goes and nothing. We go to see who it is and she may deign to follow us. As we lock the gates now, no-one can actually come to the front door, which is good because it means Maggie can’t get out into the road. She’ll bark after they’ve gone (sigh) 🙂
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Cody will bark if someone is at the door or walking past, but I’ve never actually heard her growl at anyone before. It definitely was not a “play” growl.
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Barney growled at a politician canvassing in our road when he approached the back gate. He stank of alcohol and was actually representing a friend, not himself. We told Barney he was a good boy, which made him growl a little deeper in the guy’s direction. He legged it.
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Well done Cody , windows look live 🌹🌹
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Yes, Cody did her job, bless her little canine heart.
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Bless 💜💜
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I have a HUGE picture window (redundant much?) in my living room and I’m cool with it. I enjoy the southern exposure, as do my pets. I close my drapes at night and it’s fine.
The windows on the back of the house, though, NO. I’ve got shutters and peel and stick faux rain glass in the lower master windows, Sassy’s got matchstick blinds under her curtains, Moo’s got 18 layers of sheers (hyperbole) under her curtains, and the kitchen has burlap. All these things mean ya can’t quite see in, but you can totally see out and the light can come in.
i completely support your choice in windows 😀
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I hear you. Our last house had picture windows at the front and back of the living/dining room, and I loved those windows. At this house, I only have privacy glass in the bathrooms and the downstairs bedroom. Everywhere else, it’s clear glass. We have blinds, but no curtains yet (gotta paint first).
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Ah, the pleasure of making a nest 🙂
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Cody is just right, isn’t she?
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She is. She surprised me, for sure.
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