An office in the making

By K.J. Cardinal

While the arrival of Anna back in October was a glorious event in my life, it really threw a wrench in the works for my plans to work from home. It wasn't that watching her and working was something that I didn't want to do, but rather that my office had become Anna's nursery.

Our house is rather cozy, so we weren't left with too many options for where we should put Anna's room or my office. Anna obviously won out with the third bedroom upstairs, so for the past three months I've been working on the coffee table, the kitchen table and the bar. It's a miracle that Angie hasn't killed me as I constantly have electronic equipment strewn all over the house.

Just before Christmas we decided that we are going to turn our unfinished basement into my home office and a play room area for Anna. This way, I'll have a place to get my work done AND watch Anna. Maybe not what Adam and I originally envisioned for Pack Network's headquarters, but I think that it's actually going to work out really great.

Earlier this week, Phase I of our basement renovation project was completed. We hired a local contractor named Colin Gibson of Gibson Home Improvement to execute this phase of framing the walls. He worked quickly and was flexible during the holidays, so he was able to finish it rather quickly.

The coolest part of the plan that we came up with includes one wall that has a built-in desk with cabinets and shelving (pictured above). It's going to be pretty sweet and is actually a really great way to conserve space too. Otherwise, it's pretty simple. There will be two small utility closets that house the water heater and the furnace, two other closets for storage and a laundry room with bi-fold doors. The basement will naturally and conveniently be separated into two rooms. One will be Pack Network Headquarters and the other will be Anna Maria Headquarters.

Phase II is wiring the basement. It seems like a rather simple process to me, but the first quote of $4,700 was, as Gorilla Monsoon would say, quite a blow to the breadbasket. So, we are still in search of an electrician to do the work.

After that we will have to complete the insulation, hang sheet rock, put in a drop ceiling, put in flooring and then have finishing details done to the stairs, doorways, desk area, etc. Stay tuned as I'll add more posts and photos as we progress.