An infestation is about the fastest way to make you evacuate your house for a few days — and that’s exactly what happened to us. In this episode we walk through the whole, itch-inducing saga: why we had to leave the property temporarily, how we handled the problem (it ended up being much less complicated than we feared), and what we learned along the way. We also vent about the sorry state of many front doors these days and share a small idea we borrowed from a luxury hotel to elevate the beach house. To top it off, since this is our 100th episode, we brought in a very special guest to celebrate.
You can download this episode from Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn Radio, and Spotify — or listen using the player below. Use this page to find any links, show notes, or photos we mention. Note: If you’re reading in an RSS reader, you may need to click through to the post to see the player.
What’s New
- That photo shows our temporary “quarantine” setup in the bonus room after we discovered the pest problem. I snapped it after we returned from our short, impromptu trip out of town — by then the scene looked almost peaceful, which was a big contrast to the chaotic rush of shoving everything into that space when we first reacted.
- For background, I referenced a past bed bug experience from my time in New York. If you want the full story of how awful that was, here’s the original post. Below are a couple of photos from that ordeal: clothes stuffed into bags in a closet and my “sleep uniform” (worn even in summer) to try to avoid overnight bites. And yes, Sherry’s sense of humor about my appearance is alive and well — those makeshift curtains were black flat sheets.
Can We Just Talk About
- Front doors. The options at many big box stores right now are, frankly, disappointing. We took this actual footage of Sherry giving the in-stock doors some serious side eye. It’s wild how many over-the-top styles exist, and how few options feel classic, simple, and well-designed.
- During our search for a diamond-paned door we originally thought would be “easy enough to buy for the duplex,” we kept running into doors with extremely intricate and themed carvings — even a family of bears — which was not what we had in mind. Finding a plain, elegant door turned out to be much harder than expected.
- Also, if you missed it on social media a couple of weeks ago, here’s a shot of Amy and Sherry with the door Amy drove from King of Prussia, Pennsylvania — she kindly brought it through Richmond while heading to her daughter’s soccer tournament. You can spot that door in front of the duplex in other posts, too.
We’re Digging
- We added a compact white sound machine to each beach house bedroom — the Big Red Rooster model — and it’s been a small but impactful upgrade. It’s inexpensive, portable, and offers several soothing sounds, which help the rooms feel calmer and more like a relaxing rental.
- On the podcast front, if you’re into true crime, we’ve been listening to Southern Nightmare. That series covers a case that unfolded in Richmond in the 1980s and it made for compelling, locally resonant listening.
If you’re trying to find something we mentioned in a past episode but can’t remember which show notes to open, here’s a master list of everything we’ve been digging from our past episodes.
Finally, a sincere thank you to Grove Collaborative for sponsoring this episode. As a thank-you offer, you can receive a free Mrs. Meyers cleaning set plus a two-month VIP membership when you sign up and spend your first $20 at Grove.co/YHL.
Thanks for listening and for sticking with us through the chaos — we appreciate you.
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