Camping With A Mortgage

Sometimes You Gotta Do It Yourself

2007-11-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

There have been times when I fully intended to find a piece to fill a particular need, but ended up making it myself...Take the simple door for example. Our closet was in need of some doors, but I couldn't find any to fit so, I'm making them myself.

Here's the closet:

and here's the doors in progress:

We're doing the same thing for the medicine cabinets for our upstair's bathroom...eventually, there will be mirrors in the doors, but for now, here's the progress:

Here's the downstairs medicine cabinet (finished) that we made awhile ago. Inside, we cut some extra marble for the shelves.

Millworker Man

2007-10-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

Millwork ain't easy
Millwork ain't hard
Millwork it ain't nothing
But an awful boring job
I'm waiting for a daydream
To take me through the morning
And put me in my coffee break
Where I can have a sandwich
And remember

Then it's me and my machine
For the rest of the morning
For the rest of the afternoon
And the rest of my life

(James Taylor--Millworker)

O.K...My Mojo Did Go--But Only For A Little While

2007-10-12T20:41:00.001-07:00

Again, as previously posted here, and here, we've been working honest...although we did have a great summer visiting family in San Diego (Beach!!!), and then, later, spending time in Boston (Great City!!!) and then Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire (beautiful!!!). So our Mojo did go, but only for a little while...

We have been working our butts off for six years--forgoing outings, and visits with friends and families--this year we took some time off (two months, actually) and didn't do too much on the house...We did manage to get a few things done as shown below, but first the fun.

Our friends Brian and Tami (and family) have invited us out to Lake Winnipasaukee for years--and always we have declined because the house was in such disarry....but this year things were tied down enough that we thought we could go--and I was afraid that we wouldn't be invited again if we blew them off yet one more time.

Our other pals, Paul and Cami, flew out from Seattle, and we flew out from San Francisco...spending a few days first in Boston--our first trip there. What a great city. We loved every minute. We then went up to the lake and had a great time thanks to our generous hosts (If you are reading this--thanks again)

Paul, diving into the lake...

Lake Winnipasaukee

...And Boston

We did manage to get most of the downstairs finished (most, not all) and much of the time was on trim work--wainscotting, baseboards, door surrounds and the like. This took an incredible amount of time...and I'm glad the trimwork is largely done downstairs.

So here are some obligatory "before" and "after" on the house on the entry of our home.

(Before)

(After)

Did My Mojo Go? Part Two

2007-10-12T19:45:00.000-07:00

As I explained in our previous post, we've been busy--too busy to blog much (my bad). But we have been working....

Before we moved downstairs (yet again) to complete the upstairs (trim, floors, bathroom), I wanted to complete as many projects as possible--this included the fireplaces.

As you can tell on the "before" pictures, there wasn't much there...We found some pretty beat up, cast iron fireplace surrounds and had them "powder coated" to prevent further rusting...I then got some salvaged marble (that came off a library) and tried my hand at marble fabrication...Which didn't come out too bad, considering I only had a skill saw, a diamond blade, and a 4-inch grinder to work with...It was surprisingly easy--but I haven't reached Michaelanglo's mad skillz.

Dining room fireplace before:

The dining room after (with fireplace)

The livingroom fireplace (before)

The livingroom (after):

Did My MoJo Go? Hell No!

2007-10-11T19:31:00.000-07:00

I've been busy since my last blog entry. I need to catch up. So periodically I'll add a post and pictures to prove that my mojo didn't go.

We are still camping with a mortgage. We continue to live downstairs as we do all the trim, floors, and finish the upstairs bathroom. But before we could move downstairs, we had to finish a bathroom...and we did!

Here's the Pics...

Before....

After:

Enough About Corn

2006-11-02T19:09:00.000-08:00

I think all the sex talk got me so flustered that I forgot to deliver on my promise to Carol…I had promised to give her info on the materials used in kitchen...So here’s my resource info for Carol (and anyone else who might be interested).

Tile:

The tile is your standard 3x6 subway tile. The manufacturer of the tile is B & W Tile. We purchased the tile from our friend who owns Tile and Stone in San Rafael…(if you ever want to see some lovely eye candy you should check out the show room…)

http://www.bwtile.com/

Cabinets:

The cabinets are somewhat of a long story—because of the limitations in the room (fixed windows, chimney, wall openings, etc.) it became apparent that we would need custom-sized cabinets to make things fit properly. After trying to get bids from local cabinet makers—who failed to return calls and return bids, I decided to go in a different direction…And I'm so glad I did.

Instead of having the cabinets built locally, I decided to purchase “Ready-To-Assemble” cabinets from Scherr’s Cabinets and Doors. Let me just say that working with Leon Scherr was a pleasure—he was extremely helpful in making suggestions in the design—and wasn’t bothered by the fact that I would constantly make changes to the plans and send them back (Note: these changes were because I was changing my mind, not because the plans were wrong). Leon went through about five sets of plans before I ordered…He was extremely patient throughout the process.

Almost every cabinet is a non-standard size—which is no problem for Scherr’s since they built each cabinet to order. You can specify the type of wood and the finish…all the drawers are dovetail construction.

Because the cabinets are ready to assemble, the cost is considerably lower than other cabinets—but the materials are generally better. Putting the cabinets together was relatively easy…and because we saved considerable money on the construction, we opted to upgrade the drawers and inserts with “Blum-Motion” slides—where the door shuts itself at a certain point. If you have some basic construction skills, using a rubber mallet and screw driver, you easily put the cabinets together. The difficult part is hanging the cabinets---get some help with this one…and check out a book on installing cabinets.

http://www.scherrs.com/

Hardware:

The hardware came from House of Antique Hardware (They have great hinges too at reasonable prices).

http://houseofantiquehardware.com/

Sinks and Faucets:

The Sinks are Shaws Fireclay from Rohl and the Faucets are Perrin and Rowe and Country Collection from Rohl.

http://www.rohlhome.com/

Countertops

You can get a complete description of the countertops along with a link here.

So hopefully this helps Carol—and thanks for the nice comments.

Sex and Corn and the Kitchen is Done

2006-11-02T10:30:00.000-08:00

Garrison Keillor once said that “Sex is good, but not as good as fresh, sweet corn.” I’m not sure what they are growing on the prairie, but I’ve never had corn that good before. Maybe my mad culinary skillz are not as proficient as Keillor’s. That being said, living without a real kitchen for the past six years has given us a renewed appreciation for real food—albeit, not to the level of Keillor.

(The Kitchen "Before")
Preparing a thoughtful dinner, some crusty bread, and sharing a bottle (or two) of wine with friends and family, while lingering over dinner and enjoying each other’s company has been something that we have missed terribly as we have gone through the rehabilitation process. We took a step toward getting this back recently by (mostly) finishing the kitchen.

“In cooking you’ve got to have a ‘what-the-hell attitude,’” wrote Julia Child. We took this inspiration to heart when it came to our kitchen—both in the planning and execution. In our previous apartments and homes, we have never had a dishwasher, a garbage disposal, or new appliances. Not this time. Since this is the home in which we will stay, we tried to include our dreams and our wishes, and not feel too guilty about it….So for the first time in our marriage we have a dishwasher, and a new range, and our wishes. And while dreams seldom match the reality that follows—this time it did.

(The Kitchen--After)
There was a time, during the holidays, I would do my best to prepare a “gourmet” Christmas Dinner for our friends—choosing recipes from chefs like Alice Waters or Thomas Keller and try to replicate them—mostly to mediocre results. But that didn’t matter so much. What was nice was to be surrounded by people who mattered to us and us to them…and as the wine was poured and shared, the culinary mistakes became less noticeable.

Slowly as we all had kids, home projects became all encompassing, jobs got more demanding, and time became harder to hold, we stopped having our Christmas Dinners. That may soon change. Our friends, Michelle and Glen, have put us on notice that they have procured some special bottles of wine that are awaiting an attempt at cooking well…

"One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well." Wrote Virginia Woolf. Perhaps it is time to start planning a meal….

Patrick's Folly

2006-10-19T16:02:00.000-07:00

This is the picture of a once-prominent home in my town...The house became known as "Hasting's Folly" as it nearly bankrupt the owner in his obsession to build it.

I may be the reincarnation of Mr. Hastings.

Something happens when you marry yourself to an old home. Common sense flies out the window.

Money becomes irrelevent. The "Costco Rule" of never being able to leave the store without spending at least $100.00 applies ten-fold to that god-forsaken hell hole--Home Depot. Like your last diet, you tell yourself this time you're going to be good and watch the purchases. But your willpower always lessens and instead of looking through the cabinets to find your stash of Oreos, you are instead cruising the pages of Restoration Hardware, Rejuvination, and the black hole of Ebay. You convince yourself that after six years of sleeping with caulk in your hair and paint in your ears that you deserve it...and out comes the cash. Starting Monday, though, you'll be good...sure you will, you lying bastard.

You become hell-bent on getting it done...and you don't know if it is because you love the home and you want her to have everything, or she is some kinda whore that demands your last cent if you have any intention of sleeping with her tonight. It gets to the point where you can't distinquish between the two--You start to feel like the Faye Dunaway character in the movie "Chinatown."

Jack Nicholson: Who is she? And don't give me that crap about your Lover because you don't have a Lover.

You: I'll tell you. I'll tell you the truth.

Jack Nicholson: Good. What's her name?

You: Patrick's Folly.

Jack Nicholson: Who?

You: She's my Whore. (Jack Nicholson slaps you).

Jack Nicholson: I said I want the truth.

You: She's my Lover. (Another slap) She's my Whore. (Another slap) My Lover, my whore. (Two more slaps.)

Jack Nicholson: I said I want the truth!

You: She's my Lover and my Whore!

I understand you, Mr. Hastings. I understand the obsession to finish, to do it right, and to get it done. I hope I can do it without losing everything...including my marbles, which are obviously rolling out of my cranium as a I write....

______________________________________________________________

P.S. In case my wife is reading this--Honey, everything is fine, really. This was a exaggeration of sorts. We're fine--really. Now, if I can just find my Oreos.

P.S.S. Here's the rest of the Hasting's story in case you are interested...quoted verbatim from the Benicia Historical Museum website.

This 3 1/2 story, 40 room mansion cost over $85,000 to build and another $265,000 to furnish. There were 21 bedrooms but only 3 bathrooms, 88 doors and 85 windows all topped by a 15 foot tower. He installed speaking tubes and call bells and the "Harvey Method" hot water radiators for heating. A gas engine pumped water from a 50,000 gallon cistern in the cellar which was fed by a spring 10,000 feet away and a tank on the roof held another 2,000 gallons. The house was insulated by two inches of sand between double flooring and wall laths which made it almost sound proof and draft free. There were marble floors, onyx and marble fireplace mantels. The kitchen tables, counters and drain boards were all marble-topped. The walls of the library, games room and billiard room were beautifully paneled and the staircase alone cost $8,500.

The Hasting's family consisted of only his wife and five children so the real reason for Mr. Hastings to build such a castle was to upstage his rival, Lansing B. Mizner. In the 1870's, he had gotten into an argument with Mr. Mizner and Mr. Goodyear and swore to show them up. Interestingly enough Mr. Mizner never got around to building his mansion. This didn't matter to Mr. Hasting's who was obsessed and ended up spending his entire fortune on the house causing it to be known as "Hasting's Folly".

It was a boys dormitory for a short time for the convent school and finally closed then torn down in 1937.

Fun With Floors

2006-09-15T07:31:00.000-07:00

These are my "lessons learned" from finishing our floor….Sexy stuff, let me tell you.

Our original floor was doug fir. We had nice wide planks of about 5 inches. But when the previous owners added on to the home they merely made their new plywood sub floor match the height of the old floor and then they carpeted in a nice avocado green shag. Ooooh la la.

When we rebuilt the additions and gutted the downstairs, we pulled all of the original floor out and saved it in our garage. Our house looked like this at this point:

Lovely, don't you think?

With the house down to the floor joists, it gave us an opportunity to take care of some HVAC issues, plumbing, electrical wiring, replacing any rotted boards, insulation, as well as cleaning up 125 years worth of people leaving crap in the crawl space. When we were done with this, we laid a plywood sub-floor over the entire house…It was good to have something to walk on—I was tired of slipping, falling, and getting splinters in my butt.

But now, what to do? We didn’t have enough wood to cover the entire house. I checked on some mills and the cost of milling wood to 5 inches was astronomical (about $12.00 sf—unfinished)…so I looked for alternatives.

I came across a company called "Beyond Waste." They recycle old 2X4’s and re-mill them into flooring—they have great character: nail holes, staining, and good graining. And the price was right: $4.00 per sf. The problem was the boards only come in 3 ½ inch widths…hmmmm.

We decided that since our old boards were already up, we would re-lay them with the new 3 ½ inch boards in a random pattern. Problem solved.

We also decided to "flip" our old boards (that way we didn’t have to sand through the various layers of paint and black "mastic" that was on most of the boards). This turned out to be one the best things we could have done, because on the stairs, where we couldn’t flip the boards, sanding/stripping/scrapping off the paint was a real PIA. It would have driven me to poking out my eyes. Glad we flipped em.

After 120 hours, the floor was laid…with rough cut side of the "old boards"facing up and mixed and matched with the newly milled "new boards." At this point, I thought we might have made a mistake…The place looked like the OK Corral…and the color difference between the old and the new—along with the difference in size really was startling. But we moved on….cuz what else were we gonna do?

Although we did our best matching the tongue and grooves, the floor was pretty rough—the rough sawn side of the old boards and the difference in wood meant that we would have a lot of sanding to do….We started by using an edger (four trips around all the walls using 36,60,80 and then 100 grit paper). We then took a drum sander with 24 grit paper and sanded on the diagonal. This did a good job of "leveling" the floor. We then went with the grain with 36,60, and 80 grit paper. Finally, we switched to a vibrating sander (with a big pad) and finished with 80, 100, and 120 grit…The vibrating sander worked great at finishing while the drum sander really helped bring the boards into shape. We then thoroughly swept, sucked, tacked up all the dust. (Dust will kill a floor).

We then applied Zinsser sealer (wax free) which really "popped" the grain. We had planned on re-applying a tinted sealer on the new wood (to help it match the color of the old wood), but after seeing the wood sanded and sealed, we really liked the look and decided to skip this part…

We then started applying Fabulon polyurethane…6 coats in total. In between coats we would sand with a 320-400 grit screen using the vibrating sander and, again, clean in between coats. We did not sand after the final coat—instead we will use Howard’s polishing compound and the vibrating sander to smooth out the floor, and finally use Howard’s Wax n’ Feed to bring out the shine—but that will be done right before we move our furniture back in. Right now, even in all of it's filthy glory, it looks pretty good:

Pulling A Greg Out Of My Hat

2006-09-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

Awhile back Greg had a nice blog entry on his marble countertop fabrication. Inspired by his work, we decided to fabricate our own soapstone countertops for our kitchen.

Soapstone is much softer than marble, so the job was likely easier than Greg's, but nonetheless it was nerve racking making the cuts.

Unfortunately I don't have any "action" shots, but the process went something like this:

First I made a template of each counter top out of MDF--thinking it would be better to screw up a $20.00 piece of wood than the relatively expensive stone.
Once assured the template fit the counter top and all the sinks, I took the template to the stone and clamped it down.
I traced the template onto the stone and then removed the template.
I then took a worm-drive skil-saw with a diamond blade and cut the stone--leaving about 1/8 inch of the line exposed. Care was take to assure the counter top piece and the piece being cut off were well supported, so it wouldn't crack as the cut was completed.
I then re-clamped the template back to the stone and took a router with a carbide tipped pattern cutting bit and traced the template-taking off a little at a time. The soapstone was soft enough that the router tip held up quite well (I bought a Rockler "cheapy" bit for this). The cuts came out extremely smooth, and the template method helped create very accurate cuts (except for inside corners).
The template was then removed again, and I switched to a 1/4 carbide round over bit to soften all the exposed edges...We could have use an ogee, or some other bit quite easily, I believe, but we wanted a relatively simple edge and the round over worked great.
With a tungsten encrusted hole saw, we drilled the holes for the faucets and air pressure switch for the garbage disposal.
Finally, a friend loaned me his wet polisher--which had a series of diamond pads that I used to buff out the sides and tops. Although it was nice to have the polisher, with soapstone you could have used a series of regular sand paper and a random orbital sander to get to the same smoothness.

Both the diamond blade for the skil saw and the tungsten hole saw were purchased at my favorite, ahem, store, ahem, Home-Depot.

Honestly, the hardest part of the job was moving the stone--you'll know who your friends are when you have to move this stuff. The "pennisula stone" weighed over 500 lbs before I cut the sink out...And the whole time you are sweating bullets that the stone might crack--but luckily that didn't happen.

Here are some of the money shots:

We chose soapstone for a number of reasons:

We felt we could do a reasonably good job of fabricating it ourselves--saving some money in the process.
The stone is impervious to staining--so it is a very functional stone for the kitchen--(you may have remembered soapstone from you high-school chemistry class--you can spill anything on it and not worry)
No chemicals are needed to seal it--you use mineral oil which darkens the stone considerably and really makes the veining pop and gives the stone great depth...The stones in the pictures have not yet been oiled. One nice discovery since oiling the stone is that the stone continually seems to change in between oiling--It's almost like a different kitchen each day.
Soapstone is used to make fireplaces--so you can set a red-hot pan on it without worrying.
While we want the stone to "patina," most scratches will disappear with oiling--and deeper scratches can be "buffed" out with 150 grit sandpaper and oil.
Soapstone is naturally anti-bacterial in nature.
We didn't want a "high sheen" stone to show the water marks.

We purchased the soapstone from http://www.soapstones.com/ . We dealt with Philip who was quite helpful.

For anyone thats got a lot of friends to help you move the stone, and has some experience with a router, I think this is within the realm of the average do it yourselfer--and when you price stone fabrication, you will be happy with the savings as well.

Preservation--What's it Worth?

2006-09-07T08:21:00.000-07:00

Historic homes and historic districts all around us are being destroyed. And once gone, they are gone forever.

When we lose these homes or commercial buildings we have lost more than a building—we lose our connection to our past, our since of community, our individuality, our history.

The good news is that smart communities are embracing historic preservation—not because they want to save “old buildings” (although for many of us, this is reason enough), but because it makes economic sense to do so.

In my town, I have fought hard, along with others, to help the City understand that historic preservation is good for the pocket book—both the City’s coffers and those who don’t own a historic home. Accordingly, we should be encouraging historic preservation through all available incentive programs (like the Mills Act).

As part of 5 year struggle to get our City to implement the Mills Act, I prepared numerous letters and presentations to both the City Council and the Historic Preservation Review Commission. One such document is below. I am including this on my blog because I thought someone else may be able to use it…

If it encourage one other person to help save a historic home or a historic district in THEIR town, then it will….well you know the rest….I hope this is useful for others.

For those people in California, the Mills Act is state-sponsered tax incentive program (implemented at the local level) which provides for some property tax relief provided that the homeowner "preserve, maintain, and when necessary, rehabilitate a property pursuant to the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation." You can find more information on the Mills Act here.

One caveat about what is written below--Much of the information is dated. I tried to provide links to the resources and areas that I got quotes and statistics. I hope they work. If you are to use this information, I would double check all hyperlinks and information (I'm not the computer geek I'd like to be...)

THE ECONOMICS OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION

PREPARED FOR THE

HISTORIC PRESERVATION REVIEW COMMISSION

INTRODUCTION

"Historic preservation has often been portrayed as the alternative to economic development—‘either we have historic preservation OR we have economic growth.’ This is an absolutely false choice. Increasingly...historic preservation is becoming a uniquely effective vehicle for economic growth. [1] " As outlined below, historic preservation and economic vitality are really one in the same.

INVESTING IN PRESERVATION MAKES ECONOMIC SENSE:

Preservation and economic viability are not mutually exclusive. In fact, investments into preservation have shown to have a greater economic return than many other industries. Consider the following from Forging A Future With A Past: A Comprehensive Statewide Historic Preservation Plan For California: [2]

A key factor in the allocation of public funds in any program is the measurement of how many jobs will be created by the outlay. In a dollar for dollar comparison between job generation for $1 million in investment in new construction vs. $1 million in investment in rehabilitation for historic buildings, historic preservation is one of the highest job generating economic developments available.

In California, $1 million in rehabilitation creates 5 more jobs than $1 million dollars spent on manufacturing electric equipment. (The Economics of Historic Preservation, Donovan Rypkema)

In each of the ways that the U.S. Department of Commerce measures the impact of production in an industry-- the number of jobs created, the increase in local household incomes, and the impact on all other industries "rehabilitation outperforms new construction every time."

A case study of a comparison of expenditure of $1 million dollars spent on rehabilitation vs. new construction would produce the following results in a community (The Economics of Historic Preservation, Donovan Rypkema):

$120,000 more dollars will initially stay in the community with rehabilitation vs. new construction.
5-9 new jobs will be created with rehabilitation than with new construction.
4.7 more new jobs will be created elsewhere in the community with rehabilitation than with new construction.
Household incomes in the community will increase $107,000 more with rehabilitation than with new construction.
Retail sales in the community will increase $142,000, that is $34,000 with a million dollar expenditure on new construction
Real estate companies, lending institutions, personal service vendors, and eating and drinking establishments will all receive more monetary benefit from $1 million in rehabilitation than $1 million in new construction.

Accordingly, preservation of historic resources not only help preserve our history, it helps foster a sound economic program for the entire community without the corresponding cost of increased infrastructure associated with new development (police and fire, sewage, water needs, street repair/maintenance, utilities, etc.). By investing into preservation and rehabilitation of historic resources rather than bulldozing and building new, the City can see a greater return on investment.

SPECIFIC ECONOMIC BENEFITS UNDER THE MILLS ACT:

Well maintained historic homes increases values of surrounding homes, thus have a net gain in property taxes.

By voluntarily participating in the Mills Act, a property owner effectively removes a property from the battlefield of historic preservation vs. property rights arguments. This means less City Staff time preparing for and attending Design Review, Planning Commission, and appeals to City Council.

Long time owners will not apply for the Mills Act because they will not see a reduction. However, in most cases a subsequent owner, who applies for a Mills Act contract, will most likely STILL pay more taxes than the previous owner. Thus, the City still has a net gain.

Increased opportunity for fund raising for charitable causes. For example, the Benicia Historical Society raised $4,000 in their Historic Home Tour that was donated to the City for their own restoration efforts.

Property taxes STILL increase under the Mills Act as "income" method may dictate that taxes should increase.

In the City's own poll, Historic Preservation was ranked as one of the most pressing concerns of citizens. Under the Mills Act, the City can utilize a tax incentive program to promote and encourage preservation.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT THROUGH HISTORIC PRESERVATION

Given that investments into historic preservation have shown a greater return than investments into new constructions, many progressive Cities have made preservation of historic resources a major component of their economic development strategy: "Historic preservation has moved from being an end in itself (save the old buildings in order to save old buildings) to being a vehicle of broader ends "center city revitalization, job creation, small business incubation, housing tourism, and others." [3] Such a City philosophy has the following economic development benefits: [4] (quoted verbatim):

JOB CREATION: The labor intensity of building rehabilitation generally means that there is a greater local economic impact in jobs and income that with the same amount of new construction.

JOB TRAINING AND SKILLS PASSING: The local craftsmanship of the building process can often be nearly lost in a generation but instead can be passed on through historic preservation, creating jobs and skills simultaneously.

IMPORT SUBSTITUTION: A central strategy in building a sustainable local economy is import substitution "creating locally what otherwise would have to be purchased elsewhere." Almost by definition historic preservation is locally based, using expertise, labor, and materials from the local market. Often new construction is the opposite, requiring the importation of expertise, materials, and often labor from elsewhere.

REFLECTS PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION: In economics it is the differentiated product that commands a monetary premium. If in the long run a community wants to attract capital, to attract investment, it must differentiate itself from anywhere else. It is the built environment that expresses, perhaps better than anything else, a community's diversity, identity, individuality, in short its differentiation. [Benicia, by virtue of its historic buildings and connection to the history of our state and nation, has many unique resources that make it special. This asset needs to be protected because it attracts money to our area.]

MOST EFFECTIVE VENUE FOR CULTURAL GOODS AND SERVICES: For communities that have cultural assets and crafts products that represent economic opportunity, historic buildings often constitute the most appropriate physical locations for the sale and display of goods and the presentation of productions. The physical context of the historic building adds to the sense of authenticity, originality, and indigenousness of the art. [In Benicia, the artist community attracts a tremendous amount of visitors to our area that spend their money on local art adding to the sales tax revenue. In addition, other businesses benefit from this attraction--dining establishments, hotels, gasoline vendors, and others.

NATURAL INCUBATOR FOR SMALL ENTERPRISES: Regardless of a nation's overall economic or social system, entrepreneurship nearly always begins on a small scale--a one or two person operation. The size, location, character, and often pricing of historic buildings means that they frequently serve as natural incubators of emerging enterprises.

HERITAGE TOURISM: "California tourism is also an industry that depends for much of its strength and vitality on the existence of heritage resources." [quoting the publication Heritage and Tourism in California]..."Because not every county in California has a Disneyland, a Yosemite, or coastal beaches, heritage tourism represents and important attraction for many rural counties...." [5]

Tourism is big business. In 1998, travel and tourism contributed $502.4 billion to the U.S. economy. Travel and tourism is the third largest retail industry in the U.S. behind automotive dealers and food stores. Travel and tourism supported more than 7 million jobs and indirectly supports another 9.2 million jobs, creating a total of 16.2 million jobs- including more than 650,000 executive level positions (Source: 1998 Travel Industry Association "Tourism Works for America Report").
In addition to creating new jobs, new business and higher property values, well-managed tourism improves the quality of life and builds community pride. According to a 1997 Report on Cultural and Historic Tourism, visitors to historic sites stay longer and spend more money than other kinds of tourists. Visitors to historic and cultural attractions spend, on average, $615 per trip compared to $425 for all U.S. travelers, and they spend an average of 4.7 nights away from home as compared to 3.3 nights for all other travelers. (Source: Travel Industry Association of America).
PUBLIC POLICY REASONS FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION AS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
In the City of Benicia General Plan, there are many Policies, Goals, and Programs listed that amount to public policy as the desires and wishes of the citizens of Benicia. "Historic preservation also has numerous attributes which warrant using preservation as an economic development tool from a public policy perspective." [6]
TARGETED AREAS: Historic buildings are usually located in areas that are otherwise determined as appropriate targets for public intervention--center cities, close in residential neighborhoods, rural villages.

[Locally, the City of Benicia has "targeted" the historic downtown and the Arsenal area as deserving attention by specifically mentioning the need to protect these areas. From The City of Benicia General Plan, 1999:

GOAL 3.1: Maintain and enhance Benicia's historic character.
POLICY 3.1.4: Promote the preservation and enhancement of historic neighborhoods, commercial areas, and government districts.
NOT A ZERO-SUM GAME: Many approaches to economic development are essentially zero-sum games. That is to say, for community "A "to succeed community "B" has to lose (a factory recruited from place "A" to relocate to place "B," for example). Because nearly every community has its own historic resources that can be used to house a variety of activities, for one community to benefit from the adaptive reuse of its historic structures in no way precludes another community from doing so as well. [Clearly, Cities like Calistoga and Mendecino have benefitted tremendously from their public policy to not engage in this zero-sum game and instead concentrate on their historic resources to bring in funds].
RANGE OF PROJECT SCALES: A variety of factors will affect the public sector's ability to implement plans on a large scale. Financial constraints, political factors, environmental concerns are all reasons that the "big project" is often delayed or shelved. Historic preservation, however, can be done at virtually every scale, from the smallest shop building to the massive revitalization of areas in large metropolitan regions. The smaller projects can proceed while larger ones are still on the drawing board.
COUNTER-CYCLICAL: Even non-market economics are not immune to the ups and downs of world wide economic cycles. Because of their scale, cost and labor intensity, historic preservation projects are often possible even in down cycle periods, providing a measure of job and income stability to a local community
INCREMENTAL CHANGE: It isn't inherently change that seriously adversely affects a local economy and its culture; it is change that is rapid, massive, and beyond local control. Historic preservation by definition is an incremental strategy within the framework of an existing community, not an immediate and overwhelming type of change which often leads to feelings of powerlessness locally and a decline in the sense of community. [Anyone who has escaped Southern California can relate to this.]
CONCLUSION:

Simply put, historic preservation makes the cash registers ring. It is part of a sound economic, plan that is good for the local economy, local labor, and the community as a whole. The Mills Act incentives for preservation and rehabilitation means that the City need not bare much of the costs of implementation.

"For the 21st Century only the foolish community will make the choice between historic preservation and economic development. The wise community will effectively utilize its historic built environment to meet the economic, social and cultural needs of its citizens well into the future. " [7]

House Hunting Bug Continued...

2006-08-17T07:06:00.000-07:00

Mindy and Jeannie have both posted about homes in their neighborhood that got their attention...and the prices of each of these homes have sparked some interesting discussions.

The price of homes in this area have gone crazy--and while we don't plan on going anywhere, I have often daydreamed of selling, buying a home with cash, and slowing down. But when it comes down to it we ain't goin' nowhere.

However, that doesn't stop me from cruising the pages of Historic Properties and dreaming... Lo and behold, what did I find while cruising the pages the other day??? The house across the street from me is for sale...

It is one of the nicest houses in our town--a landmark home with a small cottage on the property. The home and yard are spectacular.

You could be my neighbor for $2,499,000.

I honestly don't know how anyone is able to buy a home anymore...I worry about my children and their ability to live in California. Perhaps there will be a major correction to the real estate market--but that, in itself, could be devasting to many. In the past, California real estate has remained relatively "flat" during down times--only to go crazy when it spikes again...I don't know how long this can continue.

At some point, the slogan may be: "Move East, young man, move East."

Extreme Painting

2006-08-01T21:17:00.000-07:00

INTRODUCTION

Peter, over at Restoration on 7th, had some issues regarding nails bleeding through his primer. I promised a complete disertation on house painting (not colors, but technique)...With the caveat that I know I tend to go completely overboard when it comes to house painting...but I got this way after talking with a high-end painter of San Francisco Victorians (who charges upward of 50K for some of his jobs). And things have turned out pretty well. You may not want to go to such extremes, but perhaps you will find the information useful.

"Who knows more about wood, water, and weather than wooden boat owners?" my friend asked. "Treat her like a wooden boat and you can't go wrong." And that is what I have done with my home. So much of technique and many of the products come from the wooden boat industry.

These products are not cheap, nor are they readily available, but, if you are like me and don't want to paint your house more than you have to, they are worth the cost and trouble to procure.

Below, is a step by step process that I used in painting our home. Use it as you will.

PLANNING ACCESS TO ALL PARTS OF THE HOUSE:

The hardest part of painting isn't the painting part. It is the prep work. And to do it right, you need easy access to all parts of the house. You need to be able to stand comfortably and feel safe....Heck, you need to be safe.

Scaffolding allows you access to every nook and cranny of your house. It allows you to walk to the areas that you need to get to (instead of rrreeeachinggg because you don't want to get down and move the ladder.) You can stand, sit, or kneel comfortably for hours. Try that with a latter. And it far safer than a ladder.

Our scaffolding was a combination used metal scaffolding (purchased from a rental place) and home-constructed scaffolding made from 2X4s. Planking was made from 2X4's and OSB. I made enough to go all the way around the house...and wide enough to feel comfortable. This way, I could circle the entire place without having to move planks around.

Once you have access to the house, you can begin thinking about getting the house ready for paint. But first, it is important to keep a few guidelines in mind before you jump into the lovely job of stripping….

GUIDELINES FOR A GOOD JOB:

Don't leave wood exposed for more than a couple of days
Don't power wash (no need to introduce water into the wood)
Once you have primed, plan on painting asap.
Realize that the actual painting is the easy part (and the most fun)The old addage that painting is 90% prep is WRONG--It's more like 98%.If you do it right the first time, the paint will last longer, and the next time you do paint, it will be easier.

ATTACKING THE HOUSE:

REPAIR/MOLDING REMOVAL: Where possible, I like to take down any molding that is loose, in poor shape, and which can be done easily. Doing this allows you to:

Have easier access for complete paint removal (see below)
Allows you to repair, epoxy (see below), prime (and back prime), and paint the molding while safely on the ground—this is especially helpful when the molding is different color than other areas…This allows a nice clean line when re-installed, and only requires some touch up when done.
This also allows you to repair, epoxy, prime and paint BEHIND the molding (before it is re-installed).
NOTE: Molding removal and repair can be done PRIOR to painting (kind of like making your dessert a couple of days in advance of the dinner party)…and then placed on the house at a latter date.

This would also be the time to make any necessary repairs to the building itself (For us, we had to replace the 1970’s aluminum windows with wood…we also had to replace siding and repair other areas…Our house was covered in Stucco and Asphalt—but that is another story).

It also became apparent that many of the old square cut nails in the siding just wasn’t cutting the mustard any more…The nails were rusting, popping through the siding, and the wood was “rotting” around the nails…I suspect this was happening in Peter’s case too. This is a recipe for disaster for a newly painted house…So now is the time to deal with it….

We took 8,000 stainless steel screws and counter sunk them into the siding….While doing this, the siding was strengthened and pulled back toward the studs, thus making the old nails “pop” out. Now we could go around and pull most of the old nails out…

While, the siding didn’t look too good with all the counter sunk holes in it, the siding was strengthened and the holes would be dealt with later (see below).

STRIPPING: Paint is like roofing--while you can add more layers, at some point it all has to come off. And, like that other form of stripping, watching someone strip might be enjoyable, but when you have to do it yourself, you feel dirty, tired, and degraded. Stripping is ugly business...something that I like to get over as soon as possible...That's why I used one of these...

The Metabo Paint Remover does a good job of taking the paint down to bare wood. It gets right up to the edge of materials and most nooks and crannies. It can do some serious damage to your wood, if you aren’t careful…so watch it. But the Metabo does a great (and fast) job of removing paint over large areas. Be forewarned…you are in for a workout.

You can also hook it up to a vacuum hose and keep the dust down—but dust will be a fact of life….soooo, make sure you use a good respirator, goggles, and other safety equipment. Take all the necessary precautions when dealing with lead paint.
Although the Metabo does a good job of removing paint, it doesn’t like nails, so be on the lookout for any nails you may have missed earlier.

I suggest stripping only one side of the building at a time…This way the wood isn’t exposed any longer than necessary.

Use a heat gun for those areas that the Metabo cannot get to (we used the heat gun on the corbels, some trim etc.)

DIGGING OUT THE ROTTED/PUNKY WOOD: After taking off the paint, it is time to remove any wood that is rotted or “punky.” We took a Dremel tool and removed the soft/rotted wood where all the old nail holes existed…as well as any other areas that needed it. Soft/rotted wood is going to make your paint fail, so it is better to deal with it now.

CONGRATULATIONS—YOU’VE HIT BOTTOM: At this point, your home will look about as bad as it ever will—you’ve got missing molding, holes in your siding, rotten wood removed, etc. It will look bad—real bad, but from this point forward, it should start to get better.

The first step is to sand everything using one of a ROS and handsanding (or use a Fein multi sander to reach other areas). I used 60 grit to take out the marks left by the Metabo, and finished with 100 grit to make the siding as smooth as a baby’s butt.

Once everything has been sanded, it is time to start applying the liquid….But first, blow off all the dust and/or wipe down the area with tack cloths—do not introduce water into the wood or use a power washer…big mistake.

SEALING/PRIMING STAGE--PENETRATING EPOXY: Penetrating epoxy is a product used extensively in the wooden boat industry. It is a two-part mixture, that is extremely thin, very smelly, and ridiculously expensive—costing about $50.00 to $60.00 per gallon…BUT, boy does it do what it is supposed to do…Which is to soak deep into the wood, bind the wood fibers, protect against water, and provide an excellent substrate for filling in all those holes in your siding, as well as a “grippy” surface for your primer (which will come in time). One other benefit, for those of us on the west coast, is that the CPES will help stop the tannins in the wood from bleeding through—a common problem for redwood siding.

I used Smith and Company’s Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer (CPES). This stuff is sooo thin, that it is hard to deal with… Make sure you have everything below covered, because it will drip. But it is this very thinness that allows the liquid to soak into the wood.

I used a roller (where possible) and a brush…Keep feeding the liquid into the wood until it won’t take any more…especially on end grain. You will be amazed how it soaks into the wood. This product will do wonders in protecting your wood, solidifying it, and keeping future rot at bay. If you want more information you can get it here.

For the molding that you have taken off, you can completely submerge in the CPES, or at the very least, soak the ends in the product and “paint” on the rest.

I used CPES on all wood on the house—including any “new” wood that I added back on to the house (many missing details were milled and added back onto the home).

FILLING IN THE HOLES: Once the penetrating epoxy has dried (usually the next day) It is time to fill in the holes and re-shape any damaged wood with an epoxy filler. I used Smith and Company’s Fill-it Epoxy.

This is a two part mixture that has the consistency of peanut butter when mixed together. I made a mixing paddle out of ¼ inch plywood (with a hole for my thumb) and used a small putty knife to mix together and apply to the wood.

The great thing about the filler epoxy is that it doesn’t shrink or sag, stays where you put it (like over your head), grips to the wood (CPES) like crazy, sands like a dream, and takes paint well. Wood putty and spackle are so inferior to this product…Beware—again it is expensive and harder to work with, But, it will far outlast any other product, and you can shape and mold any missing features that have been rotted out or fallen off your home.

You apply this product slightly “proud” of the wood surface, let it dry (usually overnight), and then sand down smooth. For those areas that need a lot of filler, you can apply in several coats (after drying in between) until you get it to the thickness you need.

After sanding down the filler, dust everything off again, and get ready for the primer.….

HEY, IT’S FINALLY TIME TO START APPLYING PAINT—SORT OF: Now that the siding has been prepped, it is time to start applying paint—well actually primer. We used Zinnser Cover-All Oil based primer. One coat over the CPES was sufficient. It is important to do this once the CPES has dried, but don’t wait days—try to do this as soon as possible, because the primer will grip to the CPES best when it is fresh….Also, the CPES, like all epoxies will start degrading in the sun…so get it covered asap…

Once the primer has dried, you can apply a good polyurethane caulk where needed. (Note, caulk is not a method for repair—and should be used sparingly). I like Sika-Flex or PL Polyurethane caulk—again harder to work with than water based caulks, but they stick and hold better too.

AHHHHH, PAINT! Now you can start painting—again do it as soon as the caulk dries. Read the fine print on most primers and it suggests topping with paint within 48 hours. I like to do the next day after applying caulk.

After the oil based primer, you can use latex—but use a high quality paint. I used Pratt and Lambert Accolade….and highly recommend it. But I’ve also heard good things about Benjamin Moore and California Paints, but don’t have any experience with them. P&L has done well for me in the past.

Apply the paint with good quality brushes (I like Purdy) and create your masterpiece. This is the fun part—instant gratification with each stroke…After all the work prepping, you will enjoy this part—and the neighbors will start to notice.

After the first coat of latex reinstall the molding (already CPES’d, primed, and painted) and come back and do a second coat of latex and touch up any nail holes etc in the molding.
Then sit back and enjoy your work for the next few years…And the next time you paint, you won’t have to go to this level of prep, because the surface with be in much, much better shape (with the CPES and Filler)….In all likelihood, it will be a matter of some sanding, perhaps some priming, and painting. But don’t think of that now…you’ve got a freshly painted house that you can be proud of…enjoy.

Poll: Why In the World Are You Doing This?

2006-07-12T12:51:00.000-07:00

Out of curiosity, how many of you plan on living in your current home for the rest of your life?

Are the restoration/rehab efforts you are making now done with the idea of making your house more profitable for a future sale? Or are you going through this hell because you are turning your home into your dream home?

For our part, we plan on croaking in this home—or at least live in until we can’t take care of it anymore. With that in mind, we have tried not to cut corners (sometimes we make tight turns, though), and done things because we "want it that way."

For example we eliminated a bedroom to expand our master bedroom…Now our home is "technically" a three bedroom rather than a four bedroom. We didn’t add a master bath (when we had the opportunity) because we aren’t "bathroom" people. This sometimes drives my real estate friends crazy…and they mention our actions are not maximizing the home’s value…My retort is: What does it matter when we don’t plan on selling?

What’s your take? Just curious why you are going through this—to make money, or to build a home for the rest of your life?

Fun with Floors

2006-07-12T10:05:00.000-07:00

These are my "lessons learned" from finishing our floor….Sexy stuff, let me tell you.

Our original floor was doug fir. We had nice wide planks of about 5 inches. But when the previous owners added on to the home they merely made their new plywood sub floor match the height of the old floor and then they carpeted in a nice avocado green shag. Ooooh la la.
When we rebuilt the additions and gutted the downstairs, we pulled all of the original floor out and saved it in our garage. Our house looked like this at this point:

Lovely, don't you think?

With the house down to the floor joists, it gave us an opportunity to take care of some HVAC issues, plumbing, electrical wiring, replacing any rotted boards, insulation, as well as cleaning up 125 years worth of people leaving crap in the crawl space. When we were done with this, we laid a plywood sub-floor over the entire house…It was good to have something to walk on—I was tired of slipping, falling, and getting splinters in my butt.

But now, what to do? We didn’t have enough wood to cover the entire house. I checked on some mills and the cost of milling wood to 5 inches was astronomical (about $12.00 sf—unfinished)…so I looked for alternatives.

I came across a company called "Beyond Waste." They recycle old 2X4’s and re-mill them into flooring—they have great character: nail holes, staining, and good graining. And the price was right: $4.00 per sf. The problem was the boards only come in 3 ½ inch widths…hmmmm.

We decided that since our old boards were already up, we would re-lay them with the new 3 ½ inch boards in a random pattern. Problem solved.

We also decided to "flip" our old boards (that way we didn’t have to sand through the various layers of paint and black "mastic" that was on most of the boards). This turned out to be one the best things we could have done, because on the stairs, where we couldn’t flip the boards, sanding/stripping/scrapping off the paint was a real PIA. It would have driven me to poking out my eyes. Glad we flipped em.

After 120 hours, the floor was laid…with rough cut side of the "old boards"facing up and mixed and matched with the newly milled "new boards." At this point, I thought we might have made a mistake…The place looked like the OK Corral…and the color difference between the old and the new—along with the difference in size really was startling. But we moved on….cuz what else were we gonna do?

Although we did our best matching the tongue and grooves, the floor was pretty rough—the rough sawn side of the old boards and the difference in wood meant that we would have a lot of sanding to do….

We started by using an edger (four trips around all the walls using 36,60,80 and then 100 grit paper). We then took a drum sander with 24 grit paper and sanded on the diagonal. This did a good job of "leveling" the floor. We then went with the grain with 36,60, and 80 grit paper. Finally, we switched to a vibrating sander (with a big pad) and finished with 80, 100, and 120 grit…The vibrating sander worked great at finishing while the drum sander really helped bring the boards into shape. We then thoroughly swept, sucked, tacked up all the dust. (Dust will kill a floor).

We then applied Zinsser sealer (wax free) which really "popped" the grain. We had planned on re-applying a tinted sealer on the new wood (to help it match the color of the old wood), but after seeing the wood sanded and sealed, we really liked the look and decided to skip this part…
We then started applying Fabulon polyurethane…6 coats in total. In between coats we would sand with a 320-400 grit screen using the vibrating sander and, again, clean in between coats. We did not sand after the final coat—instead we will use Howard’s polishing compound and the vibrating sander to smooth out the floor, and finally use Howard’s Wax n’ Feed to bring out the shine—but that will be done right before we move our furniture back in. Right now, even in all of it's filthy glory, it looks pretty good:

Home Depoop Beyotch Session

2006-06-30T08:08:00.000-07:00

I hate Home Depot. Just saying it makes me feel better.

Yesterday, I wanted to return some items that I had purchased (for the floor refinishing)—which were not used, nor opened. Home Depot’s stated policy is that if you don’t have a receipt, they will give you store credit, I haven’t bothered bringing in receipts because, like many DIY’ers I’m in that stinkin’ store twice a day picking up items, and I’d use the credit anyway. But yesterday I learned that even their store policy is subject to interpretation. When I went to return my items, my name came up as "suspended" since I had previously returned items without a receipt.

A young "manager" came over a lectured me about not having a receipt—I reminded him about the store policy and said I’ve got no problem with store credit as I needed to do more shopping right away anyhow. I also reminded him that as a manager, he could override the "suspend" if he felt I was a valuable customer and let me go on to purchase other items. He started to go on again about how the "system" showed that I had a "habit" of returning items without a receipt and that I could be ripping off the store. It was then that I lost my cool a little.

"First of all," I said, "they don’t pay you enough to give me this grief."

"But sir, the ‘system’…."

"And second," I continued, "if your ‘system’ shows that I have returned items before without a receipt, it should also show that I have also spent tens of thousands of dollars in a store that provides no customer service, no floor help, and a whole lot of attitude. I’m attempting to follow your store policy and you are giving me crap about returning $100.00 worth of merchandise when I have purchased tens of thousands worth…."

After a protracted discussion, he returned the items and I said next time I’ll bring in my receipts (which I have a million stuffed in a brown paper bag—I’ll let them sort through them).

After going through the check out line with my most recent $600.00 purchase, I couldn’t help myself so I took the $600.00 receipt, tracked down the young manager, and said "If it makes you feel any better, I just spent $600.00 after returning $100.00." And walked out.

I’d like to take my business elsewhere, but for all intents and purposes, I am limited in my ability to shop the competition because the competition has been steam-rolled by this big box behemoth.

Home Depot have become the Walmarts of the home improvement industry—driving out the smaller mom and pop stores, and even becoming so large that they have successfully closed down other "big box" stores like Home Base and Yard Birds (which they purchased and promptly closed). For all intents and purposes, I don’t have many opportunities to "take my business elsewhere" any more because there just aren’t many alternatives. And with this monopolistic stranglehold comes poor service, customer anonymity, and big hassles.

Whenever possible, I shop the "Cheers" kind of home improvement stores—you know, where everybody knows your name…I don’t care if it costs more. I get better service, better ideas, and better instruction (which often saves me money in the long run). I like talking to Margaret at my local Ace store, or Eric at Kayney Paints (who has given me incredible help and suggestions when it comes to painting), or Andy at Dolan's Lumber (who worked with this novice and came out to my house to suggest ways of installing our windows). These people/businesses deserve our support.

For the sake of the "home improvement world" and our future "home improvement generation" I implore you to shop the smaller stores—whenever possible. It’s our only hope.

Good night. And good luck. And feel free to share your Home Depot horror stories here.

In Need of a 12 Step Program

2006-06-14T14:39:00.000-07:00

{Queue musical theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey}

I am slowly facing the fact that returning to civilization is inevitable. We have walls and electricity and flooring and, well, before you know it, we will have a kitchen, and laundry, and refrigeration and be able to cook with fire and clean with running water. My children will be able to take a turd in our downstairs bathroom. My God, I’m not sure I can take it. My greatest fear is that I will fail at becoming human again.

I fear that I will not remember what it was like to wear clean clothes for an entire day and for some inexplicable reason I may regress to the point where I slap some paint on my person just because "that is what I have known" for the last six years. Maybe I’ll jam some splinters in my legs, step on a few nails, drop some acidic liquid in my eyes, or partially cut my thumb off with my table saw just for "old time sake." Maybe I’ll have my children whack me in the shins with a two-by just to feel that pain again.…Or perhaps I’ll find myself driven to cruising the aisles of Home Depot, like some sadistic "John" trying to get my S&M fix by, first, looking for help, and then, second, actually asking the moronic sales person a question…I’m not sure if I can live a normal life again.

I may have become like one of those prisoners who "can’t take it on the outside." What if I become like the Christopher Walken character in The Deer Hunter, and I find myself in the garage with a partially loaded nail gun pointed at my head yelling "Di-di mao!"

What about friends??? I don’t remember what it was like to have friends come over to my home and not be like "Jeebus, you live here?" Will I actually be able to sit down, have a beer, and watch a game? Will I still be able to remember how to cast a fly rod? Will my children want me hanging around them (more than I already do)? What if I’ve become addicted to the trans-fatty acid of McDonalds? Once you have sunk to these depths, is it possible to make that long, arduous, crawl back to civilization?

Friends, I need help. Is there a 12 Step Program for people who are coming down from a six-year house binger? If not, do you have some practical advice that will bring me back to civilization….?

The Best Paint Stripping Tool In The World

2006-06-02T08:57:00.000-07:00

Without this I would go insane...But with my Ipod and heat gun stripping paint is not so bad...just want to make sure I don't fry my pod...

I need to finish stripping the stairs...I've got some good tunes lined up, but I'd be interested in hearing your suggestions as to some good "paint-strippin'" tunes...

Reality Paid Me a Visit

2006-05-31T12:14:00.000-07:00

We knew this renovation would be a time and money suck. But fools rush in where angels fear to tread—and visions of grandeur and pools, and columns, and gold and diamond encrusted walkways leading to our door, filled our heads. And we plunked down our money and bought the home. Idiots.

Reality was no where in sight when we first purchased this dump. We had dreams. You, know, your basic "lets-not-really-address-the- "money- issue"- until- we- have-to- sort-of-dreams" that seems to be some sort of sick, mind twisted, mentality that is innate in people dumb enough to take on a project that most normal people passed on.

In the beginning of your project your dreams remain big and vibrant and you actually think you can do it all. Yeah, and someday monkeys will fly out of my butt.

Flush with cash from a previous house sale, you throw caution to the wind…On this house, you tell yourself, you will do everything and get everything your heart throbs for. And in the beginning it is true: You purchase the upgrades, you buy things that aren’t really necessary (or could be purchased later)—because "this house is worth it." But as you start to finish your house, and that pot-o-cash that you had in the beginning starts to look more like a pot to piss in, you know Reality is right around the corner—like a hooker in the Tenderloin. Pretty soon you need to deal with her.

Reality always gets in the way. She met me at the front door as I came home from work and got my latest Visa bill in the mail. Damn you Reality.

Many of the "luxury" items that we had on our "Wish List" are being eliminated or put on the "We'll-Try-To-Do-That-Later" list (AKA, "The Black Hole List.")

Despite the fact that we need to make some tough choices, our house will be lovely when we are out of cash—it will be livable and comfortable and we will have all the "little things" that make a house nice—you know, like a toilet, washer and dryer, and a kitchen. However, we will not get everything we had hoped for…greedy bastards that we are.

All because Reality paid me a visit. Bee-yotch.

So Long To All Our Hard Work....

2006-05-11T12:32:00.000-07:00

...It is about to get covered up by sheetrock.

About an hour ago, the inspector came by and gave us the "thumbs up" to our wish to cover up months and months of blood and money with relatively cheap sheet rock...All of our stud re-inforcement, our siesmic retrofitting, the oversized headers, the masonry patching and reinforcement, the lovely foam insulation, the sound attenuation, the smurf tubing, the new electrical, the new plumbing, and our oversized gas lines are no longer going to be visible for our daily enjoyment. So sad.

We are about to enjoy walls...something we haven't had in about two years--Kind of like when we transitioned from 3 years worth of scaffolding to a finished (nearly) exterior. It will take some getting used to, but we'll manage.

Wish us luck in the transition.

A Journey of a Thousand Miles Gets You Very Tired

2006-05-08T15:01:00.000-07:00

I remember about a year ago, I pronounced to my wife that we have hit the bottom--and this was a good thing. "Bottom," in our case, was the point where we no longer had to destroy something first before things got better. But the days leading up to "bottom" were some of the most taxing days of our renovation experience.

As part of our renovation plan, we had decided to tear down the numerous (and poorly built) "additions" that had been added to this house over the course of years and re-build them. This project was going to allow us to lower and unify the roofline (thus exposing more of the original house) while at the same time allow us to raise the ceilings back to the original 11 foot height...You see in the 1970's the downstairs ceilings were lowered to 8 feet, and we wanted them back to the original height, where possible.

Six 30 yard dumpsters were ordered and the demolition began. Despite my attempts to isolate our "living" portion of the house, the demolition process created holy hell--dust, no dirt, was everywhere--holes in the walls and wind whistling dixie through the house. I had sent my wife and kids away for the day and when they came back, I could see that my wife was not, how shall we say, enjoying the "progress."

"Honey," I said, "Why don't you and the kids stay at a hotel--get room service and enjoy the pool--for the next couple of nights while I get things torn down." I stayed behind because the house was open for the world to enjoy. But about a week later, everything was torn down and packed away...and that was "bottom."

Five years into the project, and the destruction had finally ended. From that point on, things were going to get better...and they have. But that didn't mean things were easy--it just meant that the house was unwalled, unpainted, unheated, unplumbed, unelectrified, and undignified. But the destruction had ended--and reconstruction was beginning.

Since that time we have been slowly bringing this house back...adding many of the elements that were lost or destroyed and restoring those that remained. Since that time, we have crested the hill and could occasionally "see" the finished product. Since that time, the house has "teased" us with glimmers of hope that it will finally end and that we can get on with the other aspects of our lives. Yet at other times, when your skin is encrusted with fiberglass insulation and your nostrils are filled with crusty boogies, you wonder if you will ever finish.

It is easy to forget the progress you have made when you are still living in a "gutted" space. Occassionally (well, alright, daily) I feel as if we are not "getting anywhere." Yet when I see pictures of our progress, I realize that we have, indeed, traveled a long way....A journey of a thousand miles started years ago. We are close to finishing it. One more mile....

All Wrapped Up in a Warm FOAMY Blanket

2006-04-11T19:25:00.000-07:00

Today we finished the installation of the closed-cell polyurethane insulation...Now we are completely wrapped up in a warm foamy blanket... We can already tell the difference in warmth and the downstairs is now much, much more quiet. This is going to make the downstairs incredibly comfortable...and should keep those energy costs down.

Foam Alone

2006-04-07T19:57:00.000-07:00

Today we made a big step forward--we started the installation of our sprayed in place, close-cell, polyurethane spray foam in our gutted downstairs space. This is not our first experience with foam--About a year and half ago we installed it upstairs as well.

The upstairs installation was a trial of sorts--Closed cell foam is not inexpensive, and, quite frankly, I wasn't sure it was worth the expense...As you can tell by the picture, we felt the foam was more than worth the extra cost and decided to use it downstairs as well...

All through this renovation, we have taken steps to create a more energy efficient home and the foam has certainly lowered our gas and electric bills...before foam we were running extremely high PG&E bills during the winter months and still freezing our pa-tooties off. After foam (and some other energy efficient items) we have seen a decrease of 50%-even with the downstairs gutted. Granted this was a mild winter (although tons of rain), it nevertheless is a significant savings since energy prices are also higher than last year.

But it is not the savings alone that made us go back to foam...the house is incredibly comfortable--at least the upstairs portion--and we expect nothing less of the downstairs when it is finished. Closed cell foam also creates its own vapor barrier, provides structural rigidity to the old walls, doesn't absorb moisture (like rodent piss) like fiberglass, provides no nutritional value to insects, provides good sound protection, and is considered a "green" product to boot.

We have also been quite happy with our installer (American Services in Dublin CA --ask for James) and the product itself--which is Insulstar from North Carolina Foam Industries (NCFI) http://www.insulstar.com/ . Both of these companies have been top notch--with the NCFI rep (Jim Francisco) keeping in touch with us regarding our process, answering our questions, and providing invaluable information. James Morsehead, from American Services was also fantastic--providing thoughtful suggestions and ideas--while at the same time not trying to sell me things that were not needed. I recommend both to anyone interested.

A Movable Feast

2006-03-30T19:38:00.000-08:00

When we started to gut the interior of our home, we originally thought we’d do it one room at a time. But we soon learned that it was nearly impossible to contain all the dirt and dust so we decided to get it over with and do it all at once and be done with it. Despite the conditions, this was the right thing to do…It was better to get the demolition past us and live with the “rustic” walls as we took care of all the plumbing, wiring, etc. We have become quite intimate with every aspect of this home…including the lovely studs and floor joists.

For the most part we are living primarily upstairs with the exception of the kitchen…you know, the heart of the home (in this case a black malignant heart with barely a beat). But do to the wiring, plumbing, and all the structural needs, we periodically need to move camp to another location.

We are now on our third (and hopefully final) location of our temporary kitchen. First we had this:

Yes observant people, that is daylight you can see through the walls. We lived with this kitchen for about 9 months until we moved to our next location…but at least there was running water, a sink, and a range…until we made our next move.

Lovely isn’t it? Yes this is Camp Yosemite. Here we had no water, no range, no sink. All appliances ran off one circuit so you had to time things so they wouldn’t blow the circuit breaker.

We have now lost most of the furniture and moved to our latest location (in our future T.V. room). We are down to a real “minimalist” movement—so we can easily pack things up when it comes time for insulation/drywall. We do, however, have that wonderful new-fangled thing, which if I remember correctly, is called an electrical outlet (We still use extension cords, but at least they don’t come from the garage, but from the house itself! Wooohooo!)

The good news is that we have ordered our kitchen cabinets, we are about to order our appliances, the inspection prior to insulation and drywall is right around the corner, and we should have a “real” kitchen by the end of July (but you know how time frames seem to get extended)…I can’t wait…I don’t think I’ll ever eat take-out food again.

10,000 Mechanicals

2006-03-28T18:47:00.000-08:00

This is our second house renovation. On our first home, we couldn't wait to do the "cute" stuff first--you know, the yard, the floors, painting and the like. Then we would later discover that we had some "mechanical" (and also electrical and plumbing) issues that needed to be resolved--only to tear up the "cute" work that we had done previously.

We have learned our lesson...On this house, we have lived without paint, without new furniture, without walls, for god's sake, while we concentrated on making sure all of the mechanicals were done before we we did the fun stuff.

We have installed new heaters upstairs and down. We ran new gas lines (and oversized them considerably), new electrical, we ran new plumbing, and insulation. We installed "smurf" tubing all over the place so we could easily run T.V., phone, computer, and speaker wire where ever we wanted. We ran "chases" (the 2" grey conduit) so we could run structured media wires from the crawl space to the attic (where the Structured Media Center is located).

Although much of this is "overkill" and some will not be used for quite some time (some, perhaps, not at all), it is much easier and cheaper to do it now....And, hopefully, will keep us from tearing up some of the "cute" stuff that is sooooooo soon to come.

It is hard to resist the temptation to get the fun stuff now...and it is also hard to pour money into stuff you won't even see when the walls are done, but in the long run, I think it will be worth it.

Tankless Water Heater

2006-03-09T15:17:00.000-08:00

As we have gone through the process of rehabilitating this house, we have tried to live by the motto:

"Do it right. Do it once. And never do it again!"

So as we have added mechanicals, we have tried to pick items that would last, be energy efficient, and, hopefully, pay for themselves over time. With a number of items, I was afraid I might have "buyers remorse," but so far I'm glad we chose quality items (even though it took more out of the pocket book than we hoped).

A prime example is spending about 2 times the amount of money for a normal (higher end) conventional water heater and splurging on a tankless model.

We chose the Noritz 84DV (direct vent) and so far it has exceeded my expectations...endless hot water, a nice small package (in the picture below, the water heater will be enclosed in a closet), quality construction (my plumber friends say this will be the last water heater we'll buy...we'll see), and our energy bills have already seen a decrease...I'm glad we purchased it.

If you are thinking of replacing your water heater, you might consider one of these...but you will need to make sure you have enough gas going to the appliance, a place for venting, and a few extra bucks in the wallet...But if you are like me, you won't have buyer's remorse after your purchase.

Progress Pictures--Upstairs Insulation

2006-02-06T07:38:00.000-08:00

Here are more progress pictures during our upstairs remodel. Again, most of this is done (sans little things like doors, trim, medicine cabinets, etc.), and we are now living in this area.

We have included pictures of the spray-in-place poly foam insulation and insulation in between interior walls (which help with sound and compartmentalizes the heat). Enjoy.

Progress Pictures--Inside Upstairs Framing

2006-02-03T22:11:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of our upstairs-in progress. We were framing for the master bedroom "sitting room" and closet. On the other side of the framing is our soon to be bath. When we bought the home, most of the original features had already been stripped--the floor and and the stairs were the few remaining original items...These will stay.

We are currently living upstairs in this area (now that it is mostly complete).

Up next: Lovely pictures of our insulation. Wooohooo!

I've Got Pictures--In Progress/Outside

2006-02-03T21:28:00.000-08:00

Here are couple of pictures of the house in progress...At this point we had already put a new foundation under the house, re-built the roof, put on new roofing, installed custom gutters, repaired the eaves, installed the second story windows, and removed both the asphalt siding and the stucco that covered that. We were apperently in the process of removing the paint on the siding, moving our way down from the top.

Around the back, we were in the process of tearing off the additions that were added on to the house over the course of years...Only to be rebuilt later.

Up next...Interior "during" pictures.

Walk The Plank

2006-01-23T08:55:00.000-08:00

...The fun continues as we walk the plank:

Turning our attention inward, we now have a completely gutted downstairs--including no floor (but oh you should see our lovely floor joists!) Which means that we have "planks" that get us from our front door to our stairs (so we can live upstairs) as well as a plank to our make shift kitchen.

The kitchen is a thing of beauty--no plumbing, no range, no sink, no electricity, no problem. We have extension cords and bottled water. We've got an environmental nightmare taking place in our house everyday with loads of paper cups, plates, bowls, and plastic utensils being disposed of every single day. We need to coordinate our electrical appliances and our "lighting" (which consists of a light bulb being dangled over some framing)--because we tend to trip the circuit breaker a lot when everything is being run off of one circuit (but oh you should see the lovely color of extension cords! It looks like a rainbow in our "living room."). We are having the time of our lives--not!

While the floor was up we cleaned out the crawl space--removing 125 years worth of repair items, rocks, and wood that was left on the ground. We shored up a the last remaining foundation issues. We have sistered a new floor joist next to every old one. We have also sistered a new wall stud next to every old one. This will also help support the second story floor joists--since the second story was basically being held up by a 1X4 let into the balloon framing. Now there is a stud under each second story floor joists. We've put in a ton of "blocking"--between the floor joists and in between each stud (which will also act as a backer for the future wainscotting). The house is now incredibly "stiff." We've framed for the bathrooom and the laundry room...And now we are getting ready to hang the tankless water heater. Stuff is happening, but this is a tough time in our rehab process. It is not easy to live this way.

Not too much longer and we will at least have a subfloor--we are running electrical, plumbing, and HVAC ducting while the floor is up. We will also insulate the floor before putting down the subfloor--but I digress. We still have to walk the plank for a while...Calgon--take me away.

Un-Knocking On Wood....

2006-01-04T07:29:00.000-08:00

...Or, Mother &#%$!!.

I've got a question: For those of you who occasionally bring in others to do work, have you ever acquiesced to the "pros" recommendations and regretted it?

Awhile back I mentioned that this would be the first winter in five years without leaks--WRONG. Unknock the wood.

On the side and back of the house we had a later addition that had a low pitched roof that butted up against the old part of the house. These additions were in poor shape and need to be torn down and rebuilt to better suit our needs...You know, like, not falling down. When it came time for the rebuild, I wanted (and was willing to pay) to have the low-pitched roof covered in Bituthene rather than the typical 30 lb. felt and traditional flashing. I wanted to run the stuff up under the existing siding on the main part of the house (along with the traditional flashing). The roofers laughed and laughed at that one...saying I was crazy for such "overkill."

After much consideration and ignoring that little voice in my head to the contrary, I thought I'd go with the "pros" with this one and save the money. Big mistake. LEAKS near the flashing and some of the water is getting underneath the felt. Mother @#$$!!. Let me say this: the bay windows that I flashed and all of the windows that I flashed are dry as a bone.

I know how to fix this, but it won't be pretty...and it will be time spent doing something that I had checked off my "to-do list" some time ago. One step forward. One step back. But before I install the sheetrock, new counters, and little things like, oh say, furniture, I need to get this fixed.

Governmentium

2005-12-12T10:25:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to get my crud together in order to pull my last set of permits...Sometimes this process can be more frustrating than doing the actual work...So when I got an email from a friend about "Governmentium," I could relate...I also thought I should share with others who have to wade through the morass (incase you have not already seen it). Lest anyone think I'm pounding my local government people, you would be mistaken...The people I have been dealing with have been GREAT.....

A major research institution has recently announced the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science. The new element has been named "Governmentium". Governmentium (Gv) has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, gving it an atomic mass of 312. These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton like particles called peons.

Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert. However, it can be detected, because it impedes every reacton with which it comes into contact. A minute amount of Governmentium causes one reaction to take over four days to complete, when it would normally take less than a second.

Governmentium has a normal half-life of 4 years; it does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganisation in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Governmentium's mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a certain quantitiy in concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as Critical Morass.

When catalysed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium - an element which radiates just as much energy as Governmentium since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons.

"Pop--Somebody Needs to Pimp Your Ride"

2005-11-30T10:06:00.000-08:00

I love my truck...It is a beat up Toyota Tacoma with 270K miles on it. It has been a true partner in the home rehabilitation process--carrying everything I ask it to:

40-20 foot long 5/8 inch rebar? No problem...First, take the car seat for the kid and place it on the top of the cab. Then lay the rebar on the seat and have it overhang the front and back bumpers. Next tie rebar to the front and back bumpers. Finally, take rope and tie the seat an rebar through the cab...Oh yeah, make sure you tie the doors "shut" so you have to crawl through a window. Don't bother with the red-flag thingy--it'll just fall off anyway. And viola! You are on your way...Who needs a lumber rack?

When you have a truck like this, you don't have to worry about keeping it nice and clean...And little things like missing hubcaps, broken windshields, scratches, and compressed cabs (from the rebar), only add character...at least I think so. My 9 year old son, however, thinks differently.

A few weeks back, I picked up the kids from school in the ol' beast--filled with a load for a trip to the dump. I had a soda with me too. After finishing the soda, I tossed it between my son's legs on the floor in the passenger section--a perfectly natural thing to do. My son looks up at me and says, "That's digusting. Somebody really needs to pimp your ride!"

Kids. They can't really appreciate some of the finer things in life--like a truck that does everything you ask of it, that requires no upkeep, that starts everytime I turn the key. When he gets older, he'll learn...that there is nothing finer than a beat up old truck.

Love and Hate. But Mostly Love

2005-11-14T13:48:00.000-08:00

I recently posted this on another site, but since this is my blog and I’m trying to chronicle the highs and lows of our rehabilitation process, I thought I’d re-post this here…you know, for honesty sake. But for the record, I’m feeling much better about our situation today….really. No, I mean it. I really feel better. Truly…..

File this one under pissin' & moanin':

We just passed our 5 year mark (after 8 years on a previous restoration) on the ol' ball and chain. The outside is almost complete (sans landscaping), but the inside is gutted downstairs and we have miles to go before we sleep...comfortably upstairs.

I'm tired. I don't like my house right now. I want my friends back. I want my wife back . I want to go flyfishing again. I want to know what it is like to not spend every penny on the house. I want a vacation. I want to know it will be worth it. I want to entertain and have people over. I want to know what it feels like to "not have anything to do." I want to go to work on a Monday and not have paint on my person. I want to have clothes that don't have some reminder of the house on them. I want people to ask me other things besides "how's the house coming?"

I want to know who these three little children are running around the gutted spot that used to be our kitchen...and for god's sake who took my small babies that we had when we first moved into this place? I want to go to their soccer games and not look like a poor/ragged/homeless person (because I wear my work clothes all weekend). I want to remember what it felt like to get up on a weekend and take a shower (rather than saying "why bother, your going to be filthy within an hour") and stay clean all day. Most of all, I want to remember what it was like not to have crusty boogies all the time.

Getting All High and Mighty

2005-11-09T16:21:00.000-08:00

"Therefore when we build, let us think that we build forever. Let us not be for present delight, nor for present use alone, let it be for such work as our descendants will thank us for, and let us think, as we lay stone on stone, that a time is to come when those stones will be held sacred because our hands have touched them, and that men will say as they look upon the labor and wrought substance of them, "See! this our fathers did for us."

John Ruskin

I was given a set of old books that belonged to my father-in-law that covered the basics of home construction (from a 1920’s point of view). The books are great and as I skimmed through them I read the preface which had the above quote…It put in perspective why the many hours, too much money, and all the cuts and bruises are being expended on this project…. I hope, in a small way, I am giving thanks to those who built, with hands unknown, what once was (and will be again) a gift to the street.

Laying Down The Corner Stone

2005-11-07T06:36:00.000-08:00

Some people have such a profound impact on your life that they change the course of your life. My father-in-law, Jim, opened my eyes to many aspects of life, one being an appreciation for old homes and learning the craft it takes to bring one back to life.

When we purchased our first house, it was a run-down piece o crap. But it was a house we could afford--and Jim said he would help me "fix it up." Jim's home was a spectacular Victorian that he completely restored on his own, so how could I go wrong?

Jim and I spent the next five or six years restoring this home. And over the course of those years, we got to know each other on a more personal level. I began to not only appreciate his skill as a person who could do anything he put his mind to, but also as a patient teacher and mentor--who seemed willing to put up with this novice's lack of skill so long as I gave it a good effort.

When we outgrew our home, and we looked for another to fix up, I recall sitting with Jim in the living room of what would become our next home--an 1881 Italianate--and asking him if he thought we could bring this home back to life. Nothing was impossible for Jim. "Sure," I recall him saying..."we can do it." And so we took the plunge.

The home was a disaster--in the beginning: Stripped of most of its architectural details, and covered over in layers of asphalt siding and stucco, it was a home that needed a tremendous amount of work to bring it back.

One defining element of Italianates are quoins--faux cornerstones, often made of wood. And sure enough, when the asphalt and stucco were removed, one could see the faint outline of the missing quoins...One day, I thought, these will be replaced.

As a retired Colonel in the Marine Corp (serving as a pilot in WWII, Korea, andVietnam), it became easy to see why so many who served under Jim said he was a man of conviction, a man of honor, a man of integrity. But I never new Jim as a Colonel. I new Jim as a man I admired as being "true" in every sense of the word. Some may think it odd, but my father-in-law, became my best friend. I would have followed him anywhere.

We lost Jim this past July to cancer, but it is odd how I catch myself thinking of him while working away on the house. This past weekend, it was time to replace the last quoin. I again thought of Jim and how he brought me to this point. I started to place the quoin on the home and then pulled it back--and took it into the shop.

On the quoin I carved the following:

Dedicated To:
James W. Dillon
1881-2005 PW-PD

...And placed the cornerstone on our home.

Turn, Turn, Turn

2005-11-02T07:30:00.000-08:00

To Everything
There is a season
And a time for every purpose, under Heaven

A time to build up, a time to break down
A time to dance, a time to mourn
A time to cast away stones, a time to gather stones together

To Everything
There is a season
And a time for every purpose, under Heaven

Daylight savings, and I am now driving to work in the dark and coming home in the same. There are little opportunities to work on the outside of the house when I get home from my “real job.” I am reluctant to start tearing up the inside (more than it is already) without finishing up the outside first. And so I wait…for a weekend or a day off to finish the few remaining projects “that must get done” before I can change seasons.

That being said, this year will mark a turning point:

This rainy season will be the first year when our home has not leaked (knock on wood) in the five years we have lived under its roof. This will be our first year we won’t have pots and pans catching the rain water when the winds blow from the south. The first year without exposed wood, and leaky windows. The first year when we completed more construction than destruction. The seasons are changing indeed.

2005-11-01T11:01:00.000-08:00

Money For Nothin'

The Wife and I had the talk...You know, the one where you try to squeeze blood from a turnip...The one where you try to figure out how to get money out of thin air. Do you know that talk? Although our government can somehow defy basic economic logic of money in should equal money out, I still have not figure out how "they" can get money from nothin. I'm trying to be responsible with our money... you know, not go bankrupt--stuff like that.

While going through the restoration process, I have heard (and know) of couples that have not survived the experince and ending up in a divorce. While we are extremely lucky that we are in this together and have both been on the same page throughout this entire ordeal, one can easily see how the issue of money (and the way it seems to disappear out of your pocket at astonishing speed during a restoration) could cause problems. I am lucky. Through thick and thin--we are in it together.

Money is a deceptively seductive temptress...what she gives to you for one thing, she takes away an equal amount from something else. When I buy a window, I can't afford food...That's just wrong. Money is evil that way...Some say yin/yang. I say yada yada yada.

In the meantime, I'm still trying to figure out how to get money for nothin'.

2005-10-31T08:27:00.000-08:00

I Can See Clearly Now

Sing along if you wish, cuz I just put in the LAST of our 47 widows!

We used Marvin Ultimate Wooden Double Hungs and a few Marvin Wooden Casement and Awning-type windows as well. They are sweet...and look much more appropriate than the 1970's aluminum windows that were present in the home when we purchased it.

In our town, windows are a big bone of contention for historic houses--it is perhaps the single most discussed building material discussed during our town's "Historic Preservation Review Commission" meetings And for good reason--windows are such a character defining element that bad window replacement can really take a toll on the historic integrity of a home...While, not authentic, the Marvins are much more appropriate regarding dimensions and materials.

My preference, of course, would have to been able to keep the original windows, but like so much on this home, they were removed long ago. Too bad. I think original windows look best, and with some upkeep, I don't think one loses much in energy costs. That being said, I'm doing the best I can to bring back the look and style of the home...Is it perfect? No. But it's not bad either. And now I can see.

2005-10-28T11:12:00.000-07:00

A Million and One Small Details

I'm in the process of wrapping up the outside of our house--after 5 freakin' years. It has been a long an ardouous process and it nice to know that we are near the end of wrapping up the outside of the home...but it is the process of wrapping up that take a frustratingly long period of time...A little bit of this a little bit of that, and each doesn't have the huge impact that installing a window or painting the side of the building.

Details. They make all the difference, I know. But they seem to take forever, making the process slow to a crawl. I can see unfinished examples all over town of people giving up on the details...it is not easy to finish things up. I need to focus. Focus on the details, now, and not on the entire house. Shift my view from big to small, rough to fine. In the end it will make all the difference.

2005-10-25T12:46:00.000-07:00

Why My Blog Is So Boring

I want get some pretty pictures. I want spunky graphics. I want to have more posts...Why can't I, you ask? Because our home is gutted. Gutted I tell you. Down to the studs.

No electricity down stairs. Very little plumbing. No computers. No internet connection. Most of all of our belongings are in a metal storage container on our property. I can't access much at this point and so it is hard to get to my digital camera (in storage container), my computer (in the storage container), my "before" pictures (in the storage container), yada, yada, yada.

One thing we STILL have is T.V. cable--Hey! we aren't completely stuck in the dark ages...we will overcome...and someday, I'll have a nifty blog with some great before and after pics. Not now, however. Right now I have studs. Lots and lots of studs.

2005-10-24T10:44:00.000-07:00

I'm Alive!

After reading so many great blogs on home rehabilitation, I've decided to start my own...Although I'm a little late in that I'm into year 5 of my home restoration. In the near future, I'll try to play catch up and provide a narration of all the work that we have done to date. For now, let's just say "I'm Alive!"

One thing, before I begin in earnest: I stole the title of my blog from Aaron and Jeannie over at House In Progress...As all home renovators know, misery loves company...and I began searching for blogs of others who are in the same boat as I am and I stumbled across HIP. It was great to read their blog. In one entry, Jeannie, I believe, described the whole renovation process as "Camping With A Mortgage." That, I felt, described it perfectly.

In the future, if I can figure this stuff out, I'll post pictures and provide some more background...but for now, this will suffice as my "first post."