More home improvement

I think Matt & I (both of us - but especially him, who's lived here the longest) will celebrate tomorrow, providing the electrician we're hired does something with this monstrosity:


It's a light fixture, built into our kitchen ceiling. The wood (we call it a cheesy '80s honey oak finish) matches the cabinets.






What we don't like about it:

1. The cheesy honey oak finish.
2. The sheer size - it is far larger than the island it sits over.
   
3. The missing panel (the panels are plastic, and are sold at Home Depot, so we could replace them - but every time we try, another panel falls down and breaks).
   
4. The fact that it has fluorescent tubes.
5. The fact that said fluorescent tubes don't actually work. (Believe it or not, the light switch was in the "on" position in this photo.)

We're hired an electrician to install recessed lights in both the kitchen, and in the living room. He's also going to wire the space where the honey oak monstrosity light currently is to work with a pendant or other hanging light.

Hopefully this is just step 1 towards improving our '80s-era kitchen. If only we could magically have more storage space without the expense of remodeling and new cabinetry... :)