Renovating an old house rather than simply shopping for a new one is the environmentally responsible thing to do; doing the reno work yourself is more than responsible – it’s admirable. But sane adults should know their limits. Luckily for us, Ron Tanner seems to have been slightly less than sane when he took on the project he later chronicled in From Animal House to Our House: A Love Story. The book details Tanner’s hasty purchase and basically total overhaul, with his new girlfriend, of a Victorian brownstone mansion – a project that would be difficult enough had it simply been run-down, but this place had been used as a frat house for a decade. Uncovering and restoring the historic architectural details obscured by literal tons of garbage and college-boy crap could have doomed the new relationship, but instead it was the building of a dual love story – home is where the heart is, after all. Tanner reads from his book and answers your This Old House: Extreme Edition-type questions Tuesday evening. – Jessica Bryce Young