Cool Options

We got to start picking out materials this week!  My son and I met with Jon at the Green Design Center and had the pleasure of meeting, Andy, for the first time.  Andy showed me interior materials for counter tops, floors, paint, and had suggestions for furniture when we get to that point!  When I sold my house 3 years ago, I donated nearly our entire house of furniture and belongings to a local charity that gives items to those in need.  So once we have a house, we’ll need to re-purchase everything (couch, beds, kitchen table)… in time.

Getting back to house materials, my son and I had a great time and found a ton of cool options.  My son wants to tile the entire bathroom in bright turquoise 1x1 tiles.  Errr…. that was not how I pictured our bathroom in my mind.  We have compromised on a turquoise blue (but a bit more toned down) accented bathroom.  Some of the tile styles (say that 10 times fast) have unique designs and are made from recycled glass.  They just might make their way into one of the bathrooms or kitchen. 

So as we were googling over materials, Andy was explaining that he rates each product by “Degree of Green”, a rating that he developed years ago to classify and rate products by one of three categories (1) their impact on the environment – “green”, (2) their impact on human health, how healthy it is for humans, and (3)…. well, to be honest, I stopped listening after #2.  How exciting!  

Decision

I’m not an emotional decision maker.  I take in information, sleep on it, weigh the pros and cons, and then make a decision.  Especially big decisions like this.  So I told Jon that I had a lot of thinking to do (remember that I was only expecting to have a meeting about house drawings) and I’d get back to him in a day or two.

Driving home from our “interview”, I cried.  I actually sobbed.  And I’m not a crier.  As my son put it, I let the tears of joy flow.  I was so relieved that someone finally understood.  I didn’t have to solely rely on my research and experiences, and create a new process.  They had a team that understood, that was ready if I said yes.  They had a process in place and ready to go, if I said yes.  I definitely had to sleep on this.  And call family and friends, and play through the worst case scenarios.  This was a scary and exciting time.  My son and I can’t afford the financial and emotional implications of building a house that isn’t healthy enough for us to live in. We have one shot to get this right. 

The day after I interviewed Jon, I told him he was hired.  This IS our shot.

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