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April 1, 2003

Things are moving along quite swiftly on the addition. The cement basement walls have been poured and the carpenter will arrive this week to set the steel main beam. It is all dependant on the weather, as rain is in the forecast for several days this week. The basement floor hasn't been poured yet, and... the cement will most likely be poured for that sometime after the main beam is set in place. In fact, the basement floor may not be poured until after the 1st floor is in place. The cement can be pumped in through the basement window openings before the windows are put in place. No problem.

Wallforms in place!

Workers arrived this morning to complete setting up the perimeter drainage pipe inside and outside of the poured walls. Then, they will be filling the trenches with a layer of stone and soon be ready to back fill around the outside walls of the building. Before they leave today, they'll cut the notches on the cement wall for the main beam to be set

Over the weekend we took another trip to Home Depot and spent another 700 bucks. We purchased 4 brushed-nickle light fixtures, outdoor electrical boxes and covers, enough receptacles for the entire building, wire and more. Of course, there is still more to get. That will be the story for many months to come.

April 2, 2003

The builder came out yesterday and set the main steel beam. I was surprised to arrive home last evening and find that they were finishing up the floor joists.

It's 8 a.m. and they are already here working. The plan is to get the sheeting on the floor and build a wall or two. Of course, the prediction for this afternoon is potential rain, so that could muck up their plans. We shall see.

I'm working from home today. The appraiser from the Credit Union will be here this afternoon. The papers for refinancing should be ready within a week or two. Things are right on target. Plus, we should be getting the new truck this week. It just got back from the repair shop. We would have picked it up yesterday except that there were some minor details the shop forgot to take care of so it will be going back in again before we pick it up.

April 4, 2003

YAY.... Trusses!!!!!

As we figured, work was delayed for a few days this week due to lousy weather. First rain. Then surprise! Ice and tonight and tomorrow a few inches of snow. It's no big deal to us < although we'd still prefer spring > but, Dave the builder is chomping at the bit to get going again. He wants to wrap up the framing portion so he can get paid. Who can blame him? Not us. That's what it's about. Business. He asked if he would mind if he came out on Saturday and, of course we didn't mind. But again, the weather said no.

Yesterday we picked up the new truck! Wooooooohoooooo!

I'll be going to get plates for it on Monday morning. It sure is fun to drive. Much quieter than the Jeep. LOL! I can actually hear the music like a true audiophile and can appreciate the nuances. Imagine that. Not bad for a stock upgrade unit. 100 watts and six speakers with a 6 carousel CD. Controls on the steering wheel. Power everything. Something I am not at all used to.

What do ya know?

I am living the high life. All without being high. Go figure, eh?

I sure am glad though that we have been involved in so much that it has taken my focus off of the war stuff. It's not as if there exists no awareness of it, or.... that I am in some sort of denial, but.... it is easier for me to cope with by having many other things going on around me than it would be if there wasn't. This is a time of nervous energy. I don't like the idea of war at all. I like the realities of it even less. And while I am not dwelling on it, there is a sense of something being seriously wrong in the back of my mind. It stays there. It pops out at me when trying to find quiet time alone. I hate it.

April 9, 2003

I am home again today. Dave and the band of builders have taken out the 8 foot slider on the back of the wing. The 14 foot long corridor connecting the two structures has a ceiling that is 15 feet high. The foundation crew will be here today at 3 p.m. to pour the cement floor and steps within the corridor. That area will be tiled in ceramic to match the existing tile in the wing.

M has pneumonia! She's on an antibiotic to ward off a secondary infection that could be very dangerous for an asthmatic. Damn school. No doubt she got it there. She's had a student who has been sick for a few weeks. Continually wiping snot on his shirt and walking up to her only to cough and spray in her face. Ewwwwww. It's no real surprise she got sick. So, the doctor got her out of school for the remainder of the week. Hopefully, she'll get over this relatively quickly. She will, provided she gets enough rest.... otherwise she could end up in the hospital. Not the preferred alternative.

We bought Dave a DeWalt work site radio that should be here tomorrow. He has been kicking major ass and this is like a little unexpected bonus for him. It's funny because this past week when the weather was bad, this boombox radio he had ceased functioning. I said to him, Dave.... why don't ya get yourself a nice work site radio that'll stand up to the abuse? Before Dave could answer a guy on the crew said, "yeah Dave! Why don't ya get a DeWalt radio? It would beat buying 2-3 of these things a year....." I laughed when Dave said, "well.... I guess I'm cheap because I don't want to spend the money on it." Crew guy said, "but Dave.... every year you DO spend the money on it by buying those damn things." Everyone chuckled. We are sure that Dave will be very happy with his gift. I love my DeWalt Radio. Plus, it feels good to do something nice for someone unexpectedly. Dave deserves it. We got a fair deal on the bid and we really appreciate his effort and integrity.

Today Dave was on the job for 12 hours. His crew left at 5:30 and he stayed on to do some site clean up. I told him that we can burn the scrap wood and he was like, "are ya sure?" Hell yes! We do it all of the time. Plus.... wait until this weekend and we can get the boys to pick up scraps and haul 'em out to the fire pit. Dave said, "wow.... really?" Yeah Dave. Really. The boys would love to do it. Besides, it's good for them to have a job to do. Coupled with the fact I have told the boys that they can pick out the "good" pieces and set them aside to build something and/or pound nails in this summer. Hehehehe. That's motivation, eh? I've already told the boys about it and they are fired up at the prospect of the job.

Whatever gets them moving!

YAY..... connector!!!!

April 16, 2003

The construction crew has been moving along on the project. Damn impressive. Here's the first look inside the main room while standing in the connector.

The fan in the foreground was used to dry the floors after the ice and rain storm.
That's the 8 foot sliding window in the far end that was removed from the existing house.
All of the windows upstairs are in!

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The basement floor was poured on Monday. Tuesday night we walked on it. They did an awesome job. I can't help but to keep saying that.

The foundation crew guys putting the finishing touches on the floor.
The windows aren't in yet. That'll help it to dry because we've got a decent breeze.

Everything has flow. Feng Shui baby. For sure. Up to this point.... no huge obstacles other than a few days of bad weather. A couple of days delay in getting the siding, otherwise no delays due to materials. An odd thing actually. Especially when it comes to a big project like this. Delays are quite common.

Dave is happy that we are happy. AND.... he is still happy about the radio we surprised him with. A guy from the foundation crew was telling me how Dave was showing the radio off to him.... "hey! Look what I have! Isn't this cool?!!" LOL. At least we know it is something he'll use and at least he knows how much we appreciate him.

One thing about Dave and his crew that is unlike many work crews I've seen, nobody is standing around and doing nothing. These guys are right on it from the minute they get here until they leave.

People in the neighborhood are craning their necks as they drive by. Since I have been here, there hasn't been a year that has gone by without something major happening. I could have never guessed that this little house in the field would transform this way. It's so damn cool.

Life is good, eh?

 
 

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