SWMBO is doing the painting as we continue to restore our house after
Hurricane Ivan. She has the following questions.

The breakfast room is paneled with knotty pine that has been painted long
before we bought the house, probably to lighten up the room. When the crown
molding was removed, the paint tore in strips down the paneling. How best
to sand this smooth so the edges of the tears don't show through the new
paint?

How best to remove old latex paint from the crown molding and the door and
window trim without damaging the detail?

We've been living in a FEMA trailer in the driveway since December, at a
son's house before that. Five months after the storm, the contractor hadn't
finished the estimate. I fired him and started hiring subs. The
electrician and plumber still have work to finish, and the drywall guy may
start this week. I was lucky to find a plumber who would even talk to me.

My shop had five feet of salt water in it, and it was two weeks before I
could get to the tools. The Jet cabinet saw was just a glob of rust under
the bright orange table. The new Unisaw looks much better.

I look at the vacant lots in this neighborhood where houses used to be, and
see pictures from Katrina's damage west of us, and I know how lucky we are.

Lionel
Pensacola, FL