Random thoughts from the moose cave.

when Villanova gets eliminated I could no longer give a **** about roundball. Gimme a good game of tlatchtli with full requisites afforded the winners and losers , then we can talk about must see TV

Sounds lovely. I love cream cheese. Rally I do.

gonna give this one last attempt.

there are folks worrying about me that cannot deal with the havoc caused by the imbedded videos on the music thread...

hopefully we can all be grownups this time.

anyways, been a rough week. topped by a really tough night. I am very much less than today.

dink is pleased with having lap time, so it's not a total loss...

my pain pill should kick in soon, and Ima go feed the cats and chickens, and then work on unloading my truck.

then I will decide if I'm going to town today or not.

I wanted to take the chainsaw in and take out some trees, but I doubt that we get good enough for that. mebbe tomorrow...

but I would like to make it over to mr vw's. there is one chicken griller left, and I'd really like to have that for dinner. I tried last night, but he had unexpected company arrive right as we were getting ready to start dinner (that dislikes me), so I politely left hungry and came home and mowed until it spit the chain. it was too dark to try and fix it, so I came in and scavenged the fridge.

on hindsight, I prolly shoulda just showered and crashed. oh well...

gonna take some posts to town and a roll of fence and make a temporary attempt at sealing off the alley. after I get the rest of the brush moved away.

and I hope to get clearance to go get my new overhead garage door. the garage is all cleaned out now, and once the doors are hung I can start storing materials and maybe tools in it so my truck is not jam-packed all the time...

interviewing another electrician tomorrow. after I finish a small landscaping job...

just got a call from my stage guy.

after being a rigger for a year now, they would like me to attend a rigging instruction safety class on Saturday.

better nate than lever...

filling up the pond and watering the back garden.

gonna steal some of the plants from there for my little landscaping gig. (for a massage therapy jernt)

the payment is a reasonably nice blue leather recliner. my first piece of furniture for my new house...

got all the trash outta my truck and into the dumpster.

and the giant pot of elephant ears and calla lilies is loaded.

along with 5 fence posts, the fence post banger, the axes and hatchets, and the chain saw with all of it's accompaniments...

there is no way I get it all done, but Ima slowly go see how far I can get.

gonna bring the fish jernt lady (she is right down the block from my landscaping gig) a dozen green eggs and see if she has any fresh gumbo.

I think I need some gumbo...

Whatchoo talkin' 'bout, Willis?

I'll bet that some wheat flour was used as a thickener and coated the raspberries in that cobbler.

Hope your body soon forgives you and gets back on track.

Will your new kitchen have a working oven yet?

no.

or any electricity for the time being.

one step at a time.

I need to call the folks that come out and mark all the underground pipes for you before you dig.

I can't find the water meter or the line into the house...

home.

verra tired.

but I got everything on my list done, albeit slowly and kinda foggy.

cut down a buncha trees at the house, and hauled off a truckload of brush.

my little massage girl was verra pleased with her new plants.

and I even had enough leftover from my pain masking that I got all the rest of the worthless granddaughter's trash put in the dumpster. I have enough room left for one more load of garbage from the house...

got my leftover chicken griller from mr vw's.

after I relax and develop an appetite, I'm going to feast. (got a coupla deviled eggs and some garlic slaw for good measure.)

I hope I sleep through tonight...

much better night...

kinda shaky today, but nothing like yesterday.

gonna go feed my critters and unload my brush.

then we can decide what happens today.

got an appointment at the house about 6 to take down and give away the ugly paneling in the living room. got a buddy building a travel trailer to take to the Winfield bluegrass festival coming up.

the plaster underneath is nice, other than the old dried up panel glue. gonna experiment with ways to remove it.

I want light colored painted plaster walls, with the wood floors and dark trim. I think I prolly start from scratch on the trim. old school style...

chores done.

I hafta go buy some more chicken feed. they are at the bottom of both barrels.

then Ima go stop over to mr vw's for a bit. mebbe for the heat of the day. dunno...

got folks coming to mark the yard so I can find my water line.

and J made gumbo last night, so I know what I'm having for supper when I finish for the day in town.

slow and easy is the order of the day...

home.

long day...

got the trash outta one of the upstairs rooms. (out the window into my truck below)

got to the fish jernt just before closing and got some gumbo. gonna do her landscaping next year. she saw the elephant ears in the truck the other day and wondered what I was doing...

and I met another electrician.

I think this one is the guy. he knows we will hafta pass an inspection or two, and is ready for it on my budget. (he did all of the work on my buddy's shop)

took the yucky paneling (very 70's) off of the living room walls. plaster is mostly good except where the mimosa tree has intruded on the foundation.

and peeled back some more carpet.

I have the most beautiful wood floors...

if you ever wondered about wheat ... no dooot aboooot it nooooow

glad to hear about the panelling coming down (my house still has some that I'm afraid to touch - it may be holding the south wall up) ... and finding good wood flooring

I'm either gonna get real good at plastering (it is in my skillset) or I have a lot of lath to remove and drywall to install.

I'm still leaning toward replastering, but I have some more uncovering to do.(so far the only real bad spot is where the tree grew into the brick wall)

the "header" between the rooms that make up the living room has to go.

someone with no construction ability has done work here.

I will know more after the weekend...

so far, a little murphy's and the floors will be like new.

Your house really does have some great features - sounds as if you've found a wonderful bargain. I envy you your wood floors - how marvellous! Do post some photographs when you get time. I'd love to see the place.

the "header" between the rooms that make up the living room has to go.

My first thought, be sure it isn't load bearing, but I don't really think you would do anything that would collapse half of the house.

it is load bearing.

gonna have to support things while I make one that is correct.

I'll talk to some other construction dudes before I jump in and tackle it...

need a lump day.

don't have one in sight...

mebbe sunday.

If it has yet to come down in what, at first glance, seems to be a good number of years, [how long has it been standing] then maybe the construction ability wasn't so bad after all, Rocky.

Is there any sag thru that portion of the ceiling?

If there's an attic above that portion and you can get large 2x10s or 12s into that space you could put the beam over the ceiling rafters, put lintel/header end bearing down onto the top of the "bearing" wall, then hang your ceiling joists to the new lintel/header with steel strapping. Simpson Strong Tie [TM] probably makes something specifically for that.

That way, you wouldn't have to do much finish/plastering/drywall fixups and it'd be structurally sound, if it isn't already.

Another way would be to add whatever is required as a lintel/header to one or both sides of the existing header as a decorative feature. Attach a 3x10 or 3x12 fir header to the existing header and put decorative 4x6 posts on each side to pass the load down to the basement/ground. Of course, add support below the floor as needed.

I think I am going to go ahead and call in the dumpster.

I found money in the stuff I threw out the window yesterday. aviation magazines from the war. the big one. and lotsa 40's boeing stuff, too...

I will hand sort and bag the rest of it and off it with gram's trash every friday. her cart is always almost empty anyways.

gonna feed my chickens and head to town.

Hottttt today...

over to mr vw's for a bit.

watering my temporary garden whilst I am here.

and I stashed a bowl o' gumbo here yesterday for a nice lunch on the run...

mmmmmmmmmmm.