Ground Zero

I keep telling myself that this will get better.  The landscaper ripped out all of the shrubery in the front of the house today.  It was so overgrown it looked more like a jungle, and it was preventing us from getting anywhere near the house to start working on it.  But now the house looks naked.  There is nothing to hide the peeling paint, the cracks, rotting wood, and missing shingles.  The front deck which served as a porch was obviously falling down and had to be removed.  The second floor balcony on the side of the house had to be taken out as well.  None of them had been built with pressure treated wood.  The siding and all the gutters have to be replaced.  Some of them are barely hanging onto the house.  Everything has to be capped.  All the windows need to be replaced.  We will have to build a new front porch and a balcony.  The landscaper told us that the railraod ties that were holding back the dirt on the front lawn are shot.  He has to take them out.  The only salvageable structure seems to be the roof.  So far.  It could start leaking next week.  I'm starting to get scared.  How much is too much money and work?  Will we live long enough to see the house finished?  Would a jury of my peers actually convict me if I burned it down?  I better watch myself.  I'm already under surveilance by the Park Patrol.