That is where all the action is. There we offer help with:

• Free audio lessons via Podcast (and can subscribe via iTunes)
• Video “How-To” lessons on budgeting, checking your credit report, and some humerous bits about how to manage debt
• Real Life Case Studies of REAL Americans with financial challenges

Please bookmark the new site.

And come visit our Facebook page:

www.Facebook.com/MoneyPlanSOS

I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THE SHOW AND WHAT WE HOPE IT WILL DO FOR THE AVERAGE AMERICAN with financial woes!  But what that means for this blog is that all the new content will be at MONEYPLANSOS.com.

I am also releasing tutorials and video commentaries, so check into www.MoneyPlanSOS.com every week.  Subscribe to the show on iTunes, the Zune.net podcast store, or listen for free at the website. THIS IS GOING TO BE FUN!

Thanks for visiting and I look forward to seeing you over at the new site!

.

.

Today I was reminded of the “cheese” being moved as I walked to catch a plane at St. Louis International Airport.  Less than 1,000 feet from the main security checkpoint is an awning for “Cheers”, a restaurant chain that got it’s image from a television sitcom from the 1980′s.  I remember walking by this restaurant in the late 1990′s and every seat or bar stool was taken, sometimes with a line waiting to get in. 

Less than 1,000 feet from the security checkpoint

But the store is closed, boarded up and nearly unidentifiable – except for the “Cheers” logo above a locked door that used to be the main entry way for food and beverages.  They didn’t close because the national economy was bad, or from a salmonella outbreak from the food they served, or because the owner retired - they closed because their cheese was moved. 

The majority of their customers were men, women, and children waiting for friends or family members to get off their plane, or passengers waiting for their plane to board, or people killing time during a layover or delay.  But after 9-11 the nation had to make changes - we could never ever let something like that happen again.  Rental car parking garages were moved off site, security checkpoint restrictions became tighter, and only ticketed passengers were allowed past those checkpoints.  The gate-area restaurant’s businesses waned once non-ticketed passengers were refused entry to the gate area and the additional time it took to go through security further reduced the chances of someone arriving early enough to be able to sit and eat a quick bite. 

The business model for airport restaurants changed in the days following the attacks on 9-11 – the cheese was moved.  I don’t know what happened to this chain, but I hope they were able to open in another location and maintain the same level of success that they had here in the Gate D area.

WOW!   What can I say except look at the pictures:

Thanks to everyone for following this project.  Feel free to leave comments!

Then the new sink and faucet were installed.  Running water YAY!

A few moments later the darkness of the cognac-colored cabinets were illuminated by the installation of puck lighting.

Finally, our stone wall (backsplash tile) was beginning to take form.  All different colors of rock, stone, and sand took their places above the granite countertops, reaching all the way up to the bottom of the cabinets.  Very nice.

It will take another day or two for the grout to “seal the deal”, but we are very happy with how this is all coming together.

First up: The counter by the refrigerator.  This was an easy piece, just a straight rectangular hunk ‘o granite.  Looks good on these nice new cabinets!

Next: Here is the full kitchen view.  You will note the bare spot on the back wall – that is where one of the replacement cabinets will be placed.  We were just rushing to have the base cabinet installed before the granite arrived.  Wow, those are some shiny-new cabinets!

Finally: Nothing goes as perfectly as planned.  The windowsill piece of granite fell as it was setting and cracked in half.  Luckily it did not chip or scratch the sink counter top – that would have stunk!  We have plenty of granite left over from the template and they project the replacement to arrive in 48 hours, just in time for the other cabinets to be installed.  Then it’s on to Stage #3 – BACK-SPLASH.

It’s that time again.  Our city has an ordinance that prohibits individuals from setting of fireworks without a permit, but the bright red-and-white striped tents have opened and folks are flocking to the outskirts of town to buy explosives.  Being an American I can tell you that I thoroughly enjoy a good firework show, I just think spending a couple hundred dollars on my own personal show would be dangerous – to my bank account AND my health.

And that is because fireworks are like bad stocks:  They rapidly accelerate, are incredibly volatile and have explosive returns when they go up, but all you are left with at the end of the day is some bad paper.

The pictures below (sorry for the quality, I used my camera phone because the good camera was left at home) show the slabs ready for us to position the templates over:

Then my wife took the templates and arranged them over the surface of the areas we thought looked the most attractive:

Drawing the templates on slabs

We only had one more piece to select.  It seemed to us like there will be a lot of waste from a huge slab that we will only use a 3′x3′ piece from.  The designer/salesman ensured us that the extra pieces are often used as smaller selection pieces, such as a desktop, and offered in clearance sales.  Sometimes they are even given to charities.  Hey, why not?  It has already been paid for.

Check back in about a week for more updates while we wait for the replacement cabinets to arrive and granite to be cut.

Day #03:  New cabinets are in, old countertops are back.  The majority of the cabinet installation is done (minus the two that are being re-ordered) and the old countertops repositioned temporarily.  The granite company came in the afternoon to template the shape for the new countertops.  We are looking forward to going out to the yard and positioning the cut from the templates, getting the movements of the granite into the best spot of the kitchen.  More about our two slabs of granite will come in future posts.

We are back to a 90% functional kitchen for the next week or two.  I will post more as things develop, but we are in a holding period until the granite has been cut and ready to install.  Then we look forward to the new sink, faucet, above and below cabinet lighting, and backsplash.

End of Day 01

Day #01 – STATUS UPDATE: All old cabinets are gone and wiring has been placed for new outlets that are being placed above the cabinets for lighting.  The kitchen looks bigger.  We had prepared ourselves to be without a kitchen for a few weeks but it is still WEIRD.  I keep walking into the kitchen to wash my hands in the sink or look at the clock on the microwave – not there dude!  We could still make popcorn if we wanted to plug the over-the-stove microwave in, but it’s on the dining room floor.  (That might not be such a great idea ’cause the dog would totally slobber on the glass while the bag is turning and steaming).

Day #01 – WHAT I LEARNED: The old countertop by the kitchen window was recessed into the wall.  That is to say that there was no drywall between the countertop backsplash and the 2×4 studs.  NOW I know why we just could not get rid of the winter drafts that streamed through the house.  20 years of wasted energy.  Let’s see if this makes a difference in January.

Day #01 – SETBACKS:  One of the cabinets was delivered damaged and a replacement is being ordered.  The installers are putting the cabinet up until the replacement has been delivered.  We also discovered that the cabinets against the back wall would be 3″ wider than the distance between the walls (both upper and base cabinet levels).  Those cabinets were taken back and replacement ones ordered.  So there will be a hole for a week or two.  So we have a story to tell our dinner guests.

Day #02 – New drywall has been put up where the wiring was run.  The upper level cabinet boxes have been installed.  We have an angle base cabinet in the corner with a double-layer lazy Susan.  That’s going to be nice.  Also, the 2-door cabinet above the refrigerator is DEEEEP – about twice as deep as the previous cabinet.

End of Day #02