A little less ghetto

I'm very proud to announce that we finally got a new mailbox. As I mentioned awhile back, our original mailbox had no flag and was generally pretty useless. It was an embarrassment, really -- and for $13 it's even more embarrassing that we waited so long to replace it.

This new one looks pretty nice as far as mailboxes go... We will eventually be moving it a few yards down the road, so we kept the same old post for now -- even though it's too low and the wood is so petrified it kept breaking the screws as we installed the new box. (Nothing is ever easy!)

This is just one example of how, one small step at a time, we are slowly de-ghetto-ifiying this place. The bad part is, just behind the mailbox is our front yard...

So... yeah. It's a little tough to revel in the small victory of a new mailbox when this is its backdrop. Hopefully, things will look a lot different by the time winter rolls around again. FYI the kitchen is that gray section with the stilts supporting it. That's our next big house project.

The bulldozer, which we borrowed from a family friend, is there to redirect the driveway. I am excited about this. The old driveway used to cut straight across the front yard, in a deep channel that S's dad has since filled in with his bobcat (hence the lack of grass). The new driveway will start several yards down the road and approach the house from the front instead of the side -- like a driveway should.

When that's done, the mailbox will be moved and placed on a new post. We'll plant grass and trees and other plant life. The landscape will call less negative attention to the porchless, half-finished state of the house.

Thank God we have patient neighbors!