“without a plan, there’s no attack… without attack, no victory”

I say this movie quote often. You may think it’s from Platoon, or The Dirty Dozen, or maybe Saving Private Ryan, but it’s actually from the 1986 silver screen masterpiece One Crazy Summer, starring John Cusack and Demi Moore.

Bobcat Zilla

If you haven’t seen it, it involves a boat race, this guy who wants to win a radio contest, Bobcat Goldthwait dressing up as Godzilla, and Demi Moore singing. Oscar-worthy stuff.

Our plan of attack for this house hasn’t run on a straight course, which is why it’s been 10 years and we have yet to see victory. But we are definitely in attack mode.  You see, G and I had a plan – or what we thought was a plan – back when we bought the house in 2000. We were going to take down a wall here, re-do a bathroom there, remodel the kitchen, finish the basement, and basically call it a day – or at least call it when we could afford it. We’d save money, do a project. Save more, work on more…

Cut to 2004, when our new neighbors (and now good friends) L and J moved in. L just happens to be an architect. One day over lunch, G and I tell L about our house plans. A few days later, L comes by saying “well, your plans are good and all, but I played around with a few ideas, and made some drawings of what you could do instead.”

They were perfect. Every square inch of the house had a purpose.  The built-in bookshelves. The new Olso-friendly staircase in the center of the house. The master bathroom (how did he fit 2 bathrooms upstairs?) and on and on. We had to do it. However – this put some major brakes on everything. G and I only do as much as we can afford. We’d only be able to work on small sections of the house at a time, and live in the chaos. This was going to take a while.  (and it has.)

Here are L’s before-and-after house plans for the first and second floors (you can click each image to enlarge):

First Floor, BEFORE: (click images for a larger view. You’re looking at a basic Chicago bungalow layout – complete with a narrow, steep set of stairs off the kitchen, 2 bedrooms on the main floor, a living/dining room combo, and a full bathroom.)

First Floor, AFTER: Bedrooms move upstairs. L-shaped, tiled entry leads into open living space, first passing built-in bookcases and desk. Attic/kitchen stairs are gone, replaced with staircase in center of house, with wider treads and center landing. Wall between kitchen and dining room becomes a half-wall, opening up the entire first floor.

Second Floor, BEFORE: The previous owners had added a bath and second bedroom upstairs, but allocated space unwisely.

Second Floor, AFTER: Entire floor is reconfigured. One master bedroom with a small full bathroom and walk-in closet. Two small bedrooms (G and I will use these as offices) and a spare bath with shower.