Basement all dug out.
Flower bed in back before
Gravel added
Cemented over very smoothly (unlike the mess that Mike made). There is also the white vapor lock covering around the edge of the wall too. At this point they had sprayed down the walls because of the dust and all and the walls actually look cleaner than they have in years. COOL! Lots of work still needs to be done. Cleaning walls, and figuring out what to do with the floors. I am thinking peel and stick tiles might work. There are REALLY nice Options out there. They look like real wood or real stone. but a fraction of the cost. Good for a temporary fix (as in 10 years or so).

This is the flower bed after it has been dug up. The rocks and all that stuff has been over turned so it is one big dirty mess right now. The garage is all dusty and dirty, but I have managed to throw away a ton of stuff. I still have some big boards that need to be cut down and pitched. I am thinking I can use my circular saw on some of the tree branches that I have in my hard too and use those for fire wood. I am happy to have my basement done. It feels like a huge relief and weight off of my chest. It has been something that I wanted done forever and I have dreamed about having a nice useable space down there. Now I may have one. Of course, it remains to be seen, the first hard rain that we have. I think a huge relief too has been getting rid of all the *stuff*. I think having too much stuff is stressful. You know it is there requiring attention or at the very least it is taking up space and harbouring memories that may be too painful to remember but too painful to let go at the same time. The best thing to do, I think, is to let it go. It hurts for a moment (comparatively) but in the long run it is better than the prolonged hanging on.

Oh, I did manage to get the guys to pitch the lava rock for me. That was a HUGE relief because it was taking up 4 large trashcans and I didn't know what to do with them as I previously posted.

There is more and more that I want to do. It has been a very productive year with the home improvements so far.