The big cabinet update

Before I started this project I had described it to some professional woodworkers. One of them said it wasn't worth the time. But what is time?

Last night it was cold but I wanted to strip the laminate off of SOMETHING. I took the two doors of the cabinet out to the shed and started working on one of them with a heat gun and putty knife. This works, and works well, but it is rather slow going. About an hour and a half later I had all the laminate off of ONE door. There are 3 drawers (not as big as the doors, mind you), 1 door, and the top of the cabinet still to go. And that is just to strip it down. Then it needs to be primed and painted. It took an hour in front of the fireplace to get my feet warm.

I now have a better idea of what that woodworker was talking about. But really, this is a hobby. What WOULD I have been doing...watching TV? On a Tuesday night? Ugh, no way. Besides, I am not particularly good at BUILDING things yet. This cabinet is all built and works fine. The doors and drawers work and fit perfectly. What would you rather do...wash and wax a car to make it look nice, or build a new one from scratch?