Getting the kid ready for kindergarten made me realize something: back to school preparations can be similar to getting a home ready for the dark seasons.

With a young human, back to school means buying basics — undies and shoes — as well as the fun things like new sweaters and trendy outfit pieces. It also means taking care of visits to doctors and dentists, organizing school supplies, and getting ready for a completely different way of socializing.

Not so different, it would seem, from what I’ve been doing with the house. In terms of the socializing aspect, the party moves indoors as the weather chills and the light fades. But while there’s still light, you can see things like chips in paint, scuffs on walls, and worn caulk. The weather is perfect right now to do all these pesky fix-ups so that when friends come over they won’t shudder in horror.

Just as a kid needs a physical for sports, a visit to the dentist or shots, the house needs some lovin’ outside too; whether it’s superficial stuff like pretty new fall-hardy flowers or less superficial but more oogie stuff like eradicating spiders’ nests and cobwebs. I found a handy tool for the latter at the place my car makes frequent stops these days, Big Vac.

The thing is an expensive little brush I call “the Terminator” because it gets anything even remotely web-like in its path. While I have to admit to guilt feelings the first couple of times I used it (I kept muttering, “sorry, Charlotte”), I soon got over my remorse when I visualized zillions of baby critters crawling around my home.

And then there are the other doctor’s-visit-like maintenance items such as furnace maintenance and carpet shampooing.

I found a furnace repair professional — and a plethora of other service professionals ranging from roofing to carpet laying to house keeping — through Tacoma.homeconnections.com, who were immediate in their help. I talked to Brian of BTU Direct within five minutes of submitting my service request, and he was available to come out to my home later in the afternoon; within 15 minutes a second company had called me.

Similarly, Hammond Knoll carpet cleaning, Tacoma fixtures since the ’50s, could come out fairly immediately to do my cleaning (or I could bring my area rugs to them) and offered such services as leather cleaning and conditioning, tile and grout cleaning, and even marble polishing.

And then, the same way the kids use binders to keep their academic lives in order, the home has all kinds of groovy new stuff for filing and organizing. My newest organizational addiction is the home-office designed line called MO (go to the Web site www.yourmo.com to see how the line works.) It’s sleek and super customizable to whatever your home office needs are, and it makes me happy to file information for taxes, bills and important documents. That, truly, is a first.

And then — like with shopping for new clothes — there is the fun side of getting the home ready for fall.

Accessories, like those fun and funky art pieces you’ve been finding at all the art festivals you’ve attended this summer, can come out to remind you of your fabulous summer. Or shop the grooviest of local home décor and design shops. For your shopping delight, Dwell will be putting a bunch of goodies on sale — up to 60 percent off.

Or go exotic eclectic with Chinese classics from Dragonfly, North African and Moroccan pieces from Sorella and Moroccan Treasures.

You know how there’s always that cool kid in school who has something going on — whether it’s the scarf from Tibet or how they carry off the latest trends effortlessly. Yeah, that kid’s probably also athletic, smart, and has straight teeth from years of orthodontia — well, your house can be like that cool kid in school, with all working parts in perfect order, lookin’ fly, and smart as heck.

And as the weather gets cold and dark, you can kick back and enjoy the fruits of your labors.



[Big Vac, 2412 6th Ave., 253.272.1485]

[Hammond Knoll, 3320 S. G St., 253. 472.9686]

[Dwell, 2716 N. 21st St., 253.761.1889]

[Dragonfly, 102 Puyallup Ave., 253.383. 3200]

[Sorella at Sanford & Son Middle Floor Merchants, 743 Broadway, 253. 272.0334]

[Moroccan Treasures, 906 Broadway, 253.552.4000]