Operation New Latrine

Progress continues. We are edging toward the finish line. Thank god, cuz look at our current facilties. Yes, the blue tape was removed, but what kind of a low-rent bum would actually enjoy making mud on that throne?!




That which does not destroy me only makes me appreciate a pristine porcelain crapper that much more! Oh sweet American Standard! Sloan, Sloan, wherefore art thou? Toto, why hast thou forsaken me? Crane, come to daddy! Poor Treavor is clearly running out of patience...

Interesting plumbing info of note: did you know that Toto makes a toilet called the Guinevere? What does that say about Arthur, or Lancelot for that matter? The best named sewage facilitator the Japanese comode concern produces is called the "Neorest". "Neorest".

Let it sink in. Calming, isn't it?

Surely a place the Dalai Lama himself could visit to see a man about a mule.


















Anyway, enjoy the progress pictures and thanks for your prayers, tea and sympathy.






For more weird outhouse info see:

http://www.terrylove.com/crtoilet.htm

Guess what drives Karen crazy?

The downside to the bathroom remodeling is all the &*#$@#!:
dust
dirt
grime
soil
clay
duff (hmmm...)
gravel
humus (with pita?)
loam (me=wordsmith)
loess (!)
marl (-thank you roget)
mud
sand
silt, etc.

Karen is chomping at the bit to clean floor one of the compound, but tomorrow is the final day of drywalling which means yet more dust, so why bother? But it's just so hard to let go!

The rest of the compound is basically wallowing in it. Daisy might even be happier in the mess, Carl hardly notices ("He continues to eat inside! Oh my God!", exclaimed Karen.), and of course Treavor "pee bucket" Doherty is anything but fazed. Michael is bugged out, but is maintaining (and left for a long weekend in NYC. lucky). Poor Karen is holding on with all her might. She is hoping to bust out Mr. Clean and the Swiffers tomorrow afternoon. Via con Dios, Karen!

Bathroom series, pt. II

It's taking shape. We've got new PVC in to replace the rotted out cast iron. Did you know that sewer gas in your vent pipe could eat through cast iron? I've seen it and smelled it kids, and it ain't pretty.

The frameout is also done along with the glass block window. The rough plumbing is almost in. This time it's copper instead of galvanized steel. Yes!

Btw, I got to watch the "sewer-cam" the other day. Wow, gross. There's white stuff all along the walls of the sewer. Steven, the plumber, told me it's fat and grease. Some of it comes from food stuff going down the drain and some it comes from people after they've showered off sweat and grease. *Gulp* Imagine caked on crisco. Eww. Anyway, there were a couple of small roots the size of grass and that was it.

I also got to see the old gavlanized steel pipes. They were extremely clogged. It looked like I imagine Dick Cheney's coronary artery did before he had surgery and was put on a strict diet of fresh vegetables, whole grains and fibrous legumes, whose side effects include regular toilet makes. Too bad he wasn't eating better back in spring of '03...

The immediate effect of new pipes is the kitchen sink has a new found water pressure. It fills up water buckets in a flash and even forces of mustard splotches off plates and dried wine out of the bottom of the glass. Yay for progress!

Bathroom series, part I

The crappy crapper is no more. Down to the bones. The above shots are the skeletal look. Notice the old lath and plaster peeking through from the other rooms. I found a newspaper stuffed in the corner and searched high and low to find a date thinking it might have some article about a Bond Drive for the Doughboys or The Humanity of the Hindenburg Disaster or James Dean Dies in Car Crash. The bathroom had clearly been done since that long ago, but I couldn't imagine that given the shoddy, slapped together look of it that they had demo'd it to the studs.

Much to my surprise and disappointment it was a Chicago Tribune from January 20, 1991. The article? the NY Giants QB controversy for the upcoming Superbowl. Would it be Phil Simms or Jeff Hofstetler to face the juggernaut of the Buffalo Bills. It mentioned that the Jim Kelly led force would no doubt be the NFL's dynasty of the 90's. Woops. Not the treasure trove I had hoped for, but kinda funny.

Then it dawned on me that this ugly bathroom with a black faux marble countertop/sink with those make-up room type of lightbulbs across the top of the mirror (there had to be at least 10...) and racing stripes on the tile was finished in 1991. That's not that long ago. I'm not sure what to say. I certainly hope our redesign doesn't look so dated so quickly.

Our plan is to have a pedestal sink with antique looking faucet, medicine cabinet, sconces and one overhead light, simple tub, subway tile with shelf rail and a layout that takes advantage of the width of the room instead of hiding it. We'll see.

Bathroom series, part II shows current progress.

On Deck iii

First and second floors look amazing.

On Deck 2

As you can see, Daisy is most appreciative of the new deck because she has a better and safer vantage point for setting up her squirrel radar and imaging systems. Fluffy tailed rodents beware, the dingus has put you on alert.

Final Deck shots at "On Deck iii"

On Deck

For those who experienced the adventure of walking, sitting and eating on the old deck, the new deck is a welcome addition to the Compound. Instead of casually resting on top of a block of concrete with posts nailed together in an amateur fashion, the new deck is hurricane-ready and country-strong. Anchored in 42" of concrete with braces, brackets, joyces and screws of all sizes and alloys holding it together, we'll happily throw barbecues and invite parents with babies, the aged and infirm without fear of it doing an I-35-esque collapse because Carl added one too many sausages on the grill or Treavor set out one too many empty wine bottles.

Special thanks to Andy of A&M Remodeling and the carpenters extrodinaire Artur and Kamil.


See Posting "On Deck 2" for more improvement shots...

The Color of Insanity

Shades of gray indeed...

Karen likes lots of choices when it comes to paint, though the number often proves overwhelming.

A color was settled on and the ugly orange wall, being primered in this shot, is no more. Thank God!

Changing Rooms...

Guest bedroom had some had some bizarre two-tone pink color with wax and glitter splotched on it. very, very ugly. and just stoopid. After sanding and scraping and loads of primer, it was ready for a transformation.

appetite for destruction.

We demo'd the bathroom over a 4 day span. Down to the studs. Cast Iron stack was rotted through in spots, random pipes were everywhere and one of the radiators was rotted of its post. Dust, gypsum, lath, concrete, masonry, and tile permeated the whole house. Good learning experience, but we would not choose to do it again.

Effects on us included gashes, black lungs, cuts, brown boogers, scrapes, bruises and a laceration requiring stitiches. But now we got a taste of what manual labor and construction are all about and appreciate our desk jobs a bit more.