Mishmash

Posted on October 16, 2007 by admin

The siding guys are about 94% done with the siding. They took some time off from siding to build the partition walls on the inside for the plumbers.
Lucas is doing a great job on the roof. He is doing little bits at a time. He has probably done 15% of the roof so far. I think though, that he is anxious to get this done. Once we get the vents cut into the roof (my job) he says he can blow through the remainder of the roofing and be done.
Ginger ate a hole in a dog food bag that was stored in the garage and proceeded to gorge herself. I put some stuff in front of the bag to block access, but she was able to get into the bag a second time. I bet all our dieting efforts are now nil because of these 2 binges. After the first incident, Toby said that Ginger could barely walk and just laid in the house all day. Her belly was hot and distended. She perked up the next morning and was ready to eat again.
Max has lost his second front tooth. He now officially has the gapped tooth grin. Lucy checks her teeth frequently to see if any of hers are ready to come out. She is convinced that a top tooth is loose.
Some stinking jerk stole 3 of my orange barricade cones out from in front of our house on Saturday night of the Avocado Festival.
I am very happy with the plumbers (Joey Steffan and Larry Hasbrouck) that are working here this week. They are able to take the initiative and to make decisions on their own within the parameters that I have defined. Their work looks good and is not sloppy (as far as I can tell). Even at the end of the day, they still have a good attitude. They are from Colorado, but I would be happy to refer them to anyone for any plumbing project.
We will be running 1″ copper trunk lines for the water under the house.
Trench digging is no fun. The plumbers determined that with all the appliances that we are putting in (2 furnaces, 2 water heaters, 2 washer / dryers, an oven, a stove, etc.) the BTU requirements were for 660,000 BTUs. That means that diameter of the natural gas line coming into my house had to be increased from 3/4″ to 1 1/4″. So dig, dig, dig for me this weekend. I dug out a new trench across the front of my yard to accomodate the new gas line. The plumbers were able to use a plastic tubing for the gas line instead of cast iron so it makes the job a bit easier.
Second worst question about the house project : Aren’t you / you must be so excited?
Worst question about the house project : What is the estimated completion date?

North Panorama

Posted on October 9, 2007 by admin

Here is a panorama shot of the North face. I took these pictures while standing on the roof of the van. You can see the top of the hedge at the very bottom. I’m trying to figure out how to make a picture of the whole front. Maybe on a ladder inside the hedge.

North panorama – click for fullsize

Siding – next in the series

Posted on October 6, 2007 by admin

I haven’t posted any pictures in a while, but today’s are worth the wait.

North with first Fish Scales

South With Roof shingles

West with Fishscales and roof shingles

West – closeup

The fish scales will be painted a complimentary color, to make them stand out more from the siding. What colors are we going with? Ask Toby.

Imagination

Posted on September 19, 2007 by admin

Lucy loves this small fuzzy giraffe that Ya-ya got her at the SB Zoo. She told me tenderly, “I love my giraffe. He’s my daughter.” This morning after some cuddles, she said, “I’m going to eat you up!” She then made gobbling motions with her mouth. I said, “Do I taste good?” She said, “You taste gwoss.” I said, “What do I taste like?” She said, “Chicken.” I said, “What do you taste like?” She said, “Fruits and vegetables.” “How about brother?” “He taste like flowers.” “And Dad?” “He taste like books.”

Weekend update

Posted on September 17, 2007 by admin

We have had the siding crew on site all week, but these pictures don’t show their progress, that will come later. Here is what Pop spent Saturday and Sunday (yes, he came back) working on.