Labor Day

It's always labor day whenever there is a holiday off from work.

Like digging holes. I'm trying to put in a few bushes to give us a little privacy from the lane below. But it's hard work diggin' these holes. I don't have the right tools for this. I've only got a few "garden tools" meant for rooting around in a planter box but they arn't serious tools for putting trees into the ground. For example the shovels are about three feet long. By the time I get about a foot down into the hole, the top of the handle touches my shins. These are Ruth's tools. I need a man's shovel. Something that can dig a hole for a tree not put a lilly in a flower box.

The bushes I'm planting are on an incline, about a 45 degree hill. When I jump up on the shovel I risk tumbling down the hill head over hills with the shovel cart-wheeling after me. This is dangerous work here.

I've got a iron bar that works to break up the dirt some. Thing is, this soil is rock. I'm out here digging shale. It's the kind that sparkles in the sun. What is this stuff? These are rocks and boulders I'm unearthing here. You could build another pyramid in Egypt with this stuff. In fact, my backyard is where Pharaoh got his building materials. It's a little known fact.

So here I am using kid's shovels for a man's job. It's early in the day yet. I've got two more holes to dig. I need a rest. I'll hang out by the fire.

I've built a fire to burn up the junk wood from the old workbench drawers in the garage. I can't take the trash to the dump because it's closed on the weekends. So I've chopped it all up and have tossed it into the round fireplace outside. I love staring at fires. It's a lot less work then digging holes.

I can't wait until this holiday is over.

...dave
What if the Hokey Pokey IS what it's all about? -Jimmy Buffett

Dirty Words

Someone is writing the Dirty word on our appliance. What's going on? I can't imagine anyone in our family doing it. How weird is that? I don't think the new dishwasher came that way. I'd remember. It's totally inappropriate. Dirty words are foreign to our family. We try to use better vocabulary. Yet there is was.

But it's true. I opened our dishwasher and discovered the Dirty word written inside. So far I haven't discovered it on the inside of any of our other appliances, just the dishwasher. I haven't a clue who did it. Whoever it is they are not using permanent markers because it comes off in the next wash. Then it's stainless steel glistening clean again. But then, as if at night, the Dirty word appears again and the cycle starts anew.

I've put the locks in the back door so no one can be coming in through that door. I'm going to get one of these Digital Alarm Clock-radio Spy Hidden Color Cameraand try to figure out who's doing this.

...dave
“I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig, you get dirty; and besides, the pig likes it.” - George Bernard Shaw

Housework

Finished the dining room. It feels good to get a room completed.

TODO:

Liights, fans, doors, closets

...dave
A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory. - Stephen Wright

Stuff to do

My recent journal entries have just stuff I have to do. I'm telling you, if I don't get the house done and move Ruth from the basement, she'll put me in the basement and it'll be where I LIVE.

So I make lists, lots of lists. I analyze what I have to do and how to do it. Like this sketch of what I had to do to our bedroom floor. Rip up the 3/4 inch sub-floor, plane the joists, and screw it back down. Putting in the wood flooring was a cake walk. It's all the prep work that kills me.

And my back. This is hard work, bending over, nailing and beating in the boards. Tough stuff for the office worker. Would I do it again? Yeah, 'cause I'm saving big bucks. I figure I'm saving about $4,500 in just the labor of putting the floor in. All the prep work would be extra of course.

Although I'm making great progress (the floor is really complete) my journal still has lots of lists of TODOs. And I haven't even started on the outside!

I'm looking forward to completing the office so that I can move my books into it. There I can just look at the outside and dream of what must be done.

...dave
"A home without books is a body without soul." -Marcus Tullius Cicero

Learning from the Masters

Many of you may know we are still living in our basement. Our main house is not completed yet so while we work away upstairs during the day, we retire downstairs, in the dungeon, at night, just like bats.

And I know it's been sometime since updating all you all. (That's what they say here in the South when you want to include absolutely everyone in your address. "All you all." That way NO one is left behind.) If you really want pictures of the place in all it's beautiful glory, check out CastleLane.

But I've been away for good reason. I've been learning from the Masters. Of course, it takes time to assimilate all their knowledge. And since I'm paying, I want to get my money's worth. Therefore my long time away. So where was I? Oh yeah, learning from the masters.

The Master Plumber came as an extra fee when I ordered the bathroom counters. I figured that even though I know how to install sink drains and water supply lines, it would be good to learn a little something from the experts. Besides, it would be done during the day while I did my day job.

(Lately I come home from work at 5:00, don my jeans and boots, and go to work upstairs. I work until 12:00 a.m., go down to the bat cave, and then at 6:00 a.m. it starts all over again.)

But I digress. So anyway, the plumber comes, takes a brief look at the counters and sends Ruth off to fetch some parts: water supply hoses, drains, plungers. You see, that's what a Master Plumber does. He doesn't concern himself with the mundane things of the job. He focuses on his Work.

She returned with a pile of stuff while he began bending into the cabinets. Of course, all Master Plumbers are built the same. They are rotund and usually there is not enough material to cover their bending motions. It’s an ugly picture for sure. I believe the additional flesh is due to all the compilation they do while others fetch their stuff.

Anyway, as it turns out, Ruth had fetched EXTRA stuff because the night before she went shopping for the plumber the first time. But evidently she didn't get the right stuff. So there was a BIG pile of pipes and hoses and an assortment of all kinds of connectors ready for the craftsman to begin his work. There was lots of extra stuff.

Sometime later he said he was finished and left with his bucket of tools. (Craftsmen are like that, thorough AND fast!) Ruth went inside the bathrooms to gather up all the extra stuff to return it for credit. But alas, nothing was left behind. You see, Masters are not slobs they clean up after themselves. At least, that's what he told Ruth. Of course, he didn't take the empty boxes from the new fixtures. He left those behind because a Master doesn't concern himself with mundane things. I may have mentioned this.

When I got home, I went in to check out his handiwork, because I wanted to see what new things there were to learn about installing water supply lines and such. I was a little surprised to discover that he had left behind some leaks. Now I know this sounds like shoddy workmanship but I’m not sure. It may just be more difficult to turn a wrench than it looks. As he told Ruth: "It's a good thing you folks didn't try to do this yourselves, this ain't easy." I guess not because I don't think water dripping onto the cabinet floor is evidence of completion.

We contacted our friendly Home Improvement Store to ask for a revisit of the Master and to inquire of our missing items. We were told this Master was to supply all the parts and we’d be reimbursed. The plumber said he didn't have any of the missing items.

Being the inquisitive fellow I am, I removed one of the supply lines to examine in more detail his handiwork only to discover that Master Plumbers never use plumber's tape. Or at least this Master doesn't. This was bewildering to say the least but being the amateur I am, I suppose it's inconceivable that I could understand the way of the Master.

There were some discussions around the "Old" missing items that he had tossed into his bucket on the way out. Later I found new tags from those "old" items stuffed into my new toilet box. Don't try to figure out the ways of the Master.

And so I continue to learn from the Masters and be mesmerized by the "Service" arm of modern America.

...dave
It is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didn't.

House update

We've been working at the house these past several weeks. Eric is doing a mural on his wall. He's removed the stomps on his ceiling. Those are the wall mud impressions from a brush stamped on the ceiling. They are evidence of an old house. It's one of the first things we have removed.

There's lots of other stuff going on. Small things, like removing walls and building new ones. We are improving step by step.

Here's a picture in Eric's room. He's doing a few murals. This is one of an astronaut. The room is just the way he likes it he tells me.

Items I've completed:
Basement toilet, sink, cabinets, light, fan/light, switches, tile.

Items the subs have yet to complete:
Sheetrock, lights, plumbing, kitchen cabinets, bath tile, bath cabinets.

I'm acting as my own General Contractor.

There is so much stuff to get done that it makes me tired just thinking about it.

You can check here for more details.

...dave
"We become what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is NOT an act but a habit!" - Aristotle

We Bought a House in East Cobb

We bought a house in East Cobb,
And then we moved our stuff
Into some Pod containers.
It wasn't all that tough.

We asked our friends to help us
And come unload a pod.
They all seemed very willing,
And agreed with just a nod.

They came upon our doorstep
And knocked at 10 o'clock.
The container waited idly
It's size, a city block!

They unloaded rather quickly
The container standing there.
But other work we planned,
They were very unaware.

So when the container emptied
We had them yank a wall
And roll up soiled carpet
Into a mangled ball.

They scraped off old wallpaper
From almost every room.
Then they swept our trash
With my wooden green push broom.

The guys attacked the hearth
And gave those stones a blow.
One pengyou danced a jig
When they tumbled toward his toe.

We told them to stop working
And gave them food to eat.
But we put them back to scraping,
Some walls were incomplete!

We're thankful for those good friends
But since that day we've learned
We need to make some new ones
For they have not returned.

...dave

This Old House

I've been spending my evenings bashing my fireplace. It's got that old rock piled high into the ceiling that had to go. But, of course, as these things go, there was a lot of bad wall behind it. So it'll cost more dollars and more time to fix it.

We've had several contractor types come and view our house. They come and write stuff in their little pads and measure this and that. They take their pencils from their ears and scratch their goatee and say: "Hmmm." Is that bad. What are they "hummming" about? Then they leave and I wait for days to get a phone call. It's like going to the doctor and waiting for the results of a test. "Is it bad?" "Is it terminal?" "Is there any hope for my house?" "It looked good before you tore out my wall!"

It is pretty rough. Carpets torn up, window frames missing, and walls with big holes where a crowbar went through. It's a disaster. Will it ever look normal? Every time I walk through the living room I trip over a piece of concrete from the fireplace. I think it escapes from the wall late at night when I'm not looking. It can't get much worse than this. Can it?

Meanwhile Ruth is busy putting in the tile in the downstairs basement. That way, we don't have to go on a hike upstairs to use the toilet and shower.

They say you should never tear up the whole house but do a measured project in each room. Otherwise it becomes overwhelming. I'm past being overwhelmed. I'm depressed. I'll be in treatment soon. I'm having therapy daily.

It reaches a point when in every direction I look there is a disaster pile: concrete, carpet, boards with nails, it's everywhere. And each project is linked to another. I can't start one without the other being completed before. For example, I can't rock the walls until we get one of the walls moved.

Do I just re-face the cabinets or buy new ones? Should we re-configure the kitchen or leave it as is? And the floors, I can't wait to start the floors but those have to be the last thing I do.

I could just put it on the market as is. I could just move out and leave it to someone else. The pods we used for the move were pretty nice. Punch a few holes in the sides for windows and I could be very happy living in them.

...dave
He who is carried on another's back does not appreciate how far off the town is.  -African proverb

Unconnected

It's weird, after all these years, to be so disconnected from everyone.

I feel like I'm on a distant island, all alone and unreachable. Going online makes me feel as though I've just opened the curtains to look at the horizon. It's like I've peered out from my portal at the world beyond.

Offline and I'm blind. I'm in third class, down in the bowels of the ship without a viewport. I know the ship is moving along, I can sense it's movement, but I don't know the direction or the speed.

What's happening out in the great expanse of the Internet while I type this in the seclusion of my basement? What's up with the storm coming up through Florida? What's it's name? I can't even Google it! I'm lost. What will the weather be like tomorrow? What's happening with the war in Iraq? So many questions and so little access.

So here I type in my cellar. We've just moved to a new location. So it takes awhile to switch all our phone lines and DSL.

Tomorrow Bellsouth promises to deliver DSL and I'll again be connected to the great either beyond. I'll be able to see again. I'll be moved up to first class and will scan the horizon from my balcony. I'll read my daily news and blogs. I'll share my ideas and drawings and photos. I will feel connected again.

...dave (connecting at Panera Bread Company)
If you don't know where you're going, when you get there you'll be lost. -Yogi Berra

Move In

We spent the entire day driving around signing papers to turn over our old house and purchase our new. What a lot of papers. I heard lots of trees cry.

So were here, right here on Castle Lane, but this is no castle. Still, it has potential. (That simply means that we have lots of work ahead of us.) One thing's sure, we'll have lower rent, lower taxes, and not HOA (home owner's association) dues of $500 a year! I feel my wallet getting heaver already.

But it was a shock to our system. Before, we were living in a huge four bedroom brick place, oak floors, immaculately painted interior and exterior with a quarter of an acre of trees in the back. Now? Every room needs work. Wallpaper removal, carpet removal, scraping and painting, and we haven't even replaced the floor! Eric got wild and tore out his carpet and drapes. Now there is a pile of trash in the middle of his room. He plans to paint tomorrow. He's got more energy than I.

But it's the right thing for us. After we "freshen things up" it'll look like our home again.

It will get simple after the complications.

...dave
"Don't go around saying that the world owes you something. It owes you nothing; it was here first." - Mark Twain

The containers are coming, The containers are coming!

(Sketch from work.)

Those big moving containers are to be delivered today. Our plan is to hire some guys to pack and fill them up this weekend and have them delivered to the new place on Monday when we sign the papers. Then we'll call what few friends we have to help us unload them. After that, we may have fewer friends still.

And so ends our four year stay at our current house. It's been a good four years here.

We love this place, except for it's size, it's distance, it's Home Owners Association Fees, it's, well you get the idea.

We are ready to downsize. This place costs us $300 to heat and cool each month. It's simply too big for us.

And we are looking forward to remodeling the new. It needs some windows, flooring, painting, and some attention to the kitchen. Our goal is to finish it all within three months or so. We want to settle in quickly and get on with life.

So it's all been very busy around here lately. Ruth has made many phone calls for repairs to be done to this house. There were not many but lots of phone calls. Meanwhile, Eric and I have been packing when we get in from work or school. Eric is looking forward to painting his own room with a sort of mural. I'm afraid to ask for too many details.

The new place will give us more options since our overhead will be so much lower. Once we finish upstairs and rent the downstairs maybe we can think about a concerted focus on Chinese.

We feel so fortunate that we have these options. When we look out at the world's scene we see that so many have so little for and for so long.

...dave
In war, truth is the first casualty. ~Aeschylus

Selling the House

We've been just a bit busy preparing to sell our house. There are 1001 things to do. Funny thing is though, those side lights I've been working on for two years finally got finished. Just need to paint. When I get done I'll post on the new House-for-Sale blog.

We are selling the house ourselves with the help of Duffy Realty. They are an ala carte realty. You buy what you need. Just $600 to get in for signs, lock box, MLS listing, and pictures on web site. I created my own blog so as to show off more pictures.

The house has been painted within the last year. Our kitchen cabinets have been painted. I've installed the french doors into the office. I've replaced faucets and drains in the master bath. Ruth has painted almost every room in the house within the last year. She's done some landscape both in the front and back. She's read up on how to showcase a house for sale. As a result we've simplified every room to just a few things displayed on shelves and counter tops. It looks clean and inviting.

Duffy left last night after taking $600 dollars and some papers we signed. She gave us some signs. This morning we got a call from a realtor to show the house tomorrow. That was quick!

Eric finished painting his room. I finished trimming and priming the sidelights in the office. I took pictures and posted them to the web site. I think we are done.

Only thing is, if we sell, where do we live? We haven't found a house yet!

It's so easy to become homeless.

...dave
"They Call You Stubborn When You Fail, But Persistent When You Succeed."" -Anonymous

A New Wine Cellar

We had some friends in who do Italian Plaster. They are great. While here they asked if there was a wall they could use to show me what they could do. I turned them loose in my wine cellar. It was just a whitewashed concrete wall. Now it really looks like a wine cellar.

Of course I need to add a few bottles yet but at least you get an idea.

This is not a good reflection of what they do. You should see some of his work. You'd swear you were looking at a marble wall. It's not faux finish mind you, it's Italian Plaster. This stuff is marble dust applied in several stages. The result is durable and dust free. In fact, the finish will absorb moisture and can eliminate allergies.

Check out this site to give you an idea of some of the different textures and applications. (Click on one of the small pictures for a bigger look.)

Wally and Shiroma do awesome work. They've lived and traveled to many countries and have been hired as craftsmen on multi-million projects. Some of the countries they've lived in are: Russia, Africa, and Sri Lanka to name a few.

...dave
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” -Leonardo da Vinci