A special THANK YOU to Cello, Bella, and Kathleen Domino of Los Angeles, CA.! While on a playdate, they surprised Justin and I with their contribution to our Mancave. These are magnets AND interlocking gears! We love them! Thanks guys!
*If you are interested in adding a magnet to the Mancave, please email us at jason@genxdaddy.com!
The second magnet has arrived, courtesy of GWE! While on a song workshop in North Carolina, she picked up this magnet (which also has a thermometer!) It’s got a prominent place by the window so we can see how hot it really is! Thanks, GWE!
*If you are interested in adding a magnet to the Mancave, please email us at jason@genxdaddy.com!
The first “guest” magnet has arrived! My parents have given us a Barris Kustum magnet which has been signed by George Barris – the creator of the original Batmobile, The Beverly Hillbillies car, Black Beauty from “The Green Hornet,” and the Munster Koach from “The Munsters.” Very cool addition to the Mancave!
*If you are interested in adding a magnet to the Mancave, please email us at jason@genxdaddy.com!
This is the shed, circa 2005.
This is the inside of the shed, right before the renovation.
(Update from 9/12/12) – I found out last week that our Man Cave was featured on the blog “Shedworking.” Justin and I are so excited to see that our work has been recognized by one of the premiere shed building/reconstruction sites!!! Very very cool!!
Seven years ago, my wife and I bought a house that we really liked. Along with this beautiful house, came the most decrepit shed you’ve ever seen. We used it to store gardening tools, pesticides, weed killers, and the dead bodies of whatever animals “croaked” in there. Eventually, we forgot about it. It was just something that we agreed to never acknowledge existed.
This past July, I found myself standing in the yard while staring at the shed. A light went off in my head and I decided that maybe there was something we could do with this thing after all! After doing some online research, I came up with a plan. I recruited my 5 ½ year old son and together we have spent the past 7 weeks destroying, rebuilding, cleaning, sawing, painting, re-painting, spray painting, staining, nailing, lifting, schlepping, digging, planting, and breaking our backs to turn our “Shit Shed” into a “Man Cave.”
Today, our project is complete! Please take a few moments to enjoy our “before” and “after” photos!
On a side note, we have decided to decorate the inside with metal signs and magnets. If you would like to make a “Magnet Contribution” to our project, we’d love to have it! (We’ll even send you a picture of the magnet in its new home!)
This is the Man Cave on September 4, 2012.
Man Cave Interior
Man Cave Work Bench
Some people have been known to sniff glue. Justin misunderstood and decided to “Sniff Blue.” (Relax, it’s just aerosol from the blue spray paint.)
A few weeks ago, Justin announced that he had been thinking about names for our “Man Cave” (grunt…grunt…grunt). The two leading contenders were:
“Girls Don’t Come In Here. Boys Only. Man Cave.”
And the longer:
“Girls Don’t Come in this Shed Because It’s Only for Boys.”
On our way to school this morning, Justin announced that had been thinking of a new name!
“Daddy? I have a new name for the shed.” Justin said.
“What do you want to call it?” I asked, in anticipation of his great mind at work.
“Okay daddy….how about the ‘Man-Boy Cave?’ I was quiet for a moment.
(Oh, great….the last thing I wanted was to have my 5 ½ year old son telling people that we have a place in the backyard that we built called the “Man-Boy Cave.” It either evokes the imagery of Michael Jackson bringing young boys to “Neverland Ranch” or gives the broad impression that something very weird was going on in there. Neither of which are accurate! And, just to clarify, I only told him to ‘put the lotion in the basket’ once after we applied wood sealant to the desk without wearing gloves!)
“Well, Justin….I like that you’re thinking of names, but that one may be a little inappropriate.” I answered cautiously.
“What does ‘inappropriate’ mean?” he asked.
“Inappropriate means that the name isn’t a good representation of what the shed is becoming. It doesn’t fit.”
“What does ‘representation’ mean?” he inquired.
“Well….representation is…” I gave up. “Justin, I love you, but think of another name.”
He sat quietly for a few moments and I could see him thinking.
Finally, he said, “You’re right daddy. ‘Man-Boy Cave’ doesn’t fit because it’s too long. How about just “Man Cave” (grunt…grunt…grunt!)
Relieved, I said, “I think that’s a great name. Good job!”
Whew!
Justin and I were drenched in sweat while wearing our goggles, face masks, and gloves. Every few moments, we would have to evacuate the shed due to fumes…even with the industrial fan working at high speed. It was either work through the fumes, get high, and then hallucinate that we were watching unicorns talking to leprechauns while pooping pizzas….OR, take more frequent breaks. We chose to take more frequent breaks.
Justin and I were in an 80 square foot, metal shed in the middle of August with four cans of Metallic Blue, Rust-Oleum Professional spray paint, 1 quart of white Behr Premium Elastomeric (Acrylic latex formula) paint, 3 cans of Hilti Caulking Foam, “Golden Pecan” MinWax Wood Finisher and Sealant, 2 cans of Oil Modified, Polyeuthane semi-gloss “Almond” paint, and something called Kilz. Luckily, I also knew that I had access to GWE’s “post-pregnancy” Vicodin and ice cold Grey Goose. I knew I was going to need them to ease the pain in my lower back (yet still be able to see the unicorns talk to the leprechauns while pooping pizzas.)
Some of the paints that we were using were so toxic that Home Depot kept them in locked cages. I had to show ID just to buy paint! Regardless, it was worth it! I just wish I had fully explained to Justin the toxicity level we were dealing with. “Why??” you may ask. Well…Justin’s first act was to spray my arm with Rust-Oleum Spray Paint.
It took a moment for me to realize what had happened. And, it took a little longer to think of how to get it off my arm. Do I wash it with soap and water? Do I need a special chemical to treat it? Will I need radiation therapy? Or, should I just cut my arm off now before it spreads? (The answer: A Brillo Pad, Nail Polish Remover, and a threshold for pain.)
The good news is…the interior painting has been finished. We will continue to move forward with the renovation as soon as we can. (And I will find a way to repay Justin for his “kindness” without turning him into The Toxic Avenger.)
The Interior Painting is Complete!