Today the grouting was done,
and showing the bathtub
You can see a few more washes will be required before the grout can be sealed.
Also the side window was removed,
From the outside,
Here is the old window,
It looks like all that sawdust, grout and paint has become too much for Larry!
Also, the vanity cabinets were installed,
and front view.
the casement window was installed
I went golfing at River Pines golf course on Friday with Glenn, David and Shuo. It turns out that River Pines’ championship course is still a fair bit above my skill level so my game was not what you might call “spectacular”. 🙂
Two items of note, however. Shuo and I were sitting in our cart at the 2nd hole when I happened to look up and saw a badly sliced ball curving gently towards us. I managed to get out a short warning before the ball whizzed between the two of us through the open front window and hit the back of the cart. That definitely gets the adrenaline flowing.
Then later, while hitting on the fairway of the 8th hole I struck the ball with my 3 iron and saw a curious flash while simultaneously feeling the club lighten dramatically.
It turns out that the iron had not simply separated from the shaft but the iron had actually broken off the shaft.
Here’s a closer look at the actual head
These are Prestwick px-7 clubs that I bought as a package a few years ago when I decided to become at least passable at the game. I figured I could invest in some nicer clubs when I had decided what I did and didn’t like with the current set.
Definitely in the “don’t like” column would be “falling apart”. 🙂
David has an eclectic collection of clubs that he’s assembled over the past few years that serve him very well, I’ll need to pick his brain for ideas for some new clubs. After watching his wonder clubs in action and Shuo’s new driver (easily the largest head I’ve ever seen used on a driver) I’m definitely convinced that the right clubs will help make the game that much more enjoyable.
The floor tiles are now laid down. Today turned out to be a short day. Tommy and Larry will be dealing with another job on Friday (VERY pregnant lady who needs to get her coming kid’s room finished off a.s.a.p.) so no more progress until Monday. The folks who are building our vanity counter will be coming on Tuesday to create a template for it. So the next piece is to install the vanity cabinets. Then probably the window and finally the grouting.
Here is the vanity area with the floor down.
Straight view into the water closet
and on an angle to see the coming together of wall, floor and bathtub frame
The wall tiling has finally been completed! It looks just wonderful. Next will be the floor tiling and then grouting the works.
Here is the shower head wall
And here is what the bathtub and back wall (behind the commode) look like,
Tommy was able to finish the far wall in very short order (to your immediate right as you look into the water closet from the door).
Also, good news, the awning-style windows for the master bedroom and the casement window for the bathroom arrived. We bought our windows from Andersen Windows – Doors. For the expansive bedroom window we also opted for their “TruScene” insect screens. Since our bathroom only looks out on some juniper in the side yard I just went with a normal screen on that window.
Here is an exterior before shot of:
Master Bedroom window
Master bathroom window (ignore the fan, it’s there to help keep air circulating as paint and adhesive in the house dry/cure)
Here Tommy is inspecting the new 12′ master bedroom window
And a quick shot of Larry immediately after helping to carry the window up from the truck.
Every now and then Phoebe likes to play “fetch” and she’ll bring me one of her toys.
The other day she strolled through the kitchen carrying her little toy octopus and *all* I could think of was the mustachioed “Jamie” from “The Mythbusters“.
If I were so inclined, and I’m not, I’d put a little beret on her and they could be twins!
What do you think?
I realize that I should actually date the renovation entries as the date of the renovation rather than as of when I post to the blog. Duh!
Anyway, here is what’s new as of the end of 5/8/2007.
This is the inside of the cabinet that we had constructed by Cherokee Cabinet Shop, Inc.
There are 4 adjustable shelves (which are off to the side), that little slider at bottom left is for my laptop so that I can keep it handy in the bedroom without it being visible. Apparently Mich doesn’t think it (the laptop) looks as attractive as I do and would rather it not be a focal point. Go figure.
A little more progress has been made to the bathroom tile. All that’s left now is the top part of the shower area and the wall next to the commode.
It’s a little hard to see, but there are a lot of complex cuts around the soap dishes and in the piping where it intersects with other piping.
The laundry room is pretty much finished. The new utility sink is more solid than I expected for not being anchored to the wall. It’s designed to be bolted into the floor but I didn’t like that idea a whole lot. I discussed the option of attaching it to the wall with Tommy but it’s not going to be easy to do in an attractive manner. However, I’ve tested it and it is very solid as is so I think we’ll just let that be. We’re thrilled to actually have a sink in this room finally.
And here’s a view of the room with the cupboards painted and the knobs attached
Finally, kudos to Larry who shows that this work is part trade part art. We replaced our 3 gang light switch with a 4 gang switch and removed the apparently random switch that had been mounted above the 3 gang. Look closely, that’s a real wood wall that’s had a 2″ by 4″ (at least) hole repaired in it. It’s only because I knew it was there before that I can detect the original hole. Some very nice work went into making that eyesore go away.
I just added a little plugin called “subscribe-to-comments” that gives you the option to receive an email whenever someone leaves a comment to a particular blog post.
Not that there are gobs of comments on this blog, most folks seem to just send me emails directly. But there are the occasional posts that do garner some comments and, if you wish to keep up with them easily, this should help.
Just look for the little checkbox at the bottom of the blog entry page.
OK, a little more tilework completed. Tommy yesterday got from the lower of the two top green stripes up to the ceiling done yesterday.
Here facing the faucet end of the bathtub
and here facing the other end
The work is great, but I suppose we’re starting to get impatient to see the end of this part of the project. Anybody out there have any idea how long tilework should take? I have great faith in Tommy’s craftsmanship. The only prefab portion of this work is the actual green tiles are on a mesh. They actually come as a double-row and must be cut. All the diagonal tiles are, of course, being cut on site.
Oh, and you can clearly see how well the pattern goes through the lower soap dish. That’s pretty impressive!
Judas Unchained by Peter F. Hamilton
The conclusion of Mr. Hamilton’s most recent duology. I deliberately took a long time to read this book as I do so enjoy the universe that he crafts. I was less impressed by this anthology than by his previous offerings. There were many characters (Ozzie and Paula for instance) that I felt were never adequately explored. However in a universe as rich with characters as this, I suppose everybody has their favorites and wants to see them on center stage more than the others.
(***Spoiler Alert***) Don’t read further if you have not yet read this book and do not want any details given away!!
I also felt that the end portion of the book was not fully satisfying. Perhaps it was the intent, but I felt that the ultimate antagonist in this story was never properly realized. Also, the final conflict was somewhat contrived and unsatisfying.
Don’t get me wrong, I fully enjoyed the entire lead up and I do not read these stories solely for the ending. But usually the ending can be counted upon to be as satisfying as the experience of getting there. So I would still recommend the books based on that alone.
A couple of pictures from Keith and Ishwar’s birthday celebration!
