I’ve recently switched to the new 3.0 version of Firefox, among my reasons, I was interested in some of the new security features. Logging into my Google account this morning, I got a first hand demonstration of how well it works.
Taking a closer look, the problem arises because I didn’t include the “www” at the beginning of the address, but Google could have fixed that a couple ways — probably the easiest would be a simple http redirect. (For example, try to visit http://dactylmanor.org/blair/zero/. I don’t have that set up everywhere, but it’s doable.)
Floor Installation – Day 1 Photos
It’s taken a while, but at long last, here’s a few photos of the floors being installed.
After Day One of the Installation, the upstairs hallway, the front bedrooms, and half of the master bedroom had floors. Here’s the sight that greeted me in the living room. Power tools, nails and wood scraps were scattered everywhere.
Here’s the reverse perspective from the dining room.
All of the upstairs carpets had already been removed, ditto for the stairs. But as you start to go up, the flooring in the upstairs hallway becomes visible. I’m probably biased, but I think it looks considerably nicer than the carpets. (The best comment on this photo comes from Mike whose first reaction was, “Nice airhose.”)
The two front bedrooms had their floors entirely installed on Day 1, all that remained was some molding along the baseboards and the closets. (All of the closets were put off until Day 2.) It’s a trick of the lighting that makes these two rooms appear to be different color with different flooring material. Both rooms were painted a week before the installation started and the floors are red oak (though there is an occasional piece of white oak mixed in).
The flooring in the master bedroom looked great too…
…but it wasn’t quite ready for me to put a bed in there.
(To be continued!)
Free to a Good Home
I was up until 1:30 painting last night. The upstairs hallway is now complete and except for some touch-up work, all that remains to be done is half the kitchen. The hallway is a small area, but with four doorways, a closet, an air vent, and a half-flight of stairs, it took a lot longer than I expected.
I was really tired when I went to work this morning, but if anyone had suggested that perhaps it might have been a good idea to have waited until this coming weekend to finish, I was prepared to tell them, “You can have my paintbrush when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.”
But I screwed up last night. I left the paintbrush on top of the ladder and it’s now one solid mass of latex.
If you want my paintbrush, come and get it. It’s yours.
The Book of Disney
So do you think you know the story of Jonah and the Whale? Much to my shame, all I knew about it was that Jonah was swallowed by a whale and then I start comparing it the story of Pinocchio. (I know a little more of that story, though I’m not entirely certain how Pinocchio got out of his whale either.)
Last year, Kate and Luke moved to Lancaster so Luke could attend seminary and lucky for me, on Monday, he posted a transcript of his first sermon, “Eeyore Goes to Tehran.”
Kate once described Luke as being the more “graphic” of their duo. At the time, we all laughed at the possible multiple meanings of “graphic”, but I’ve since come to realize that Luke fits quite a few of those meanings. Given that new knowledge, I was more than a little curious to learn what he was up to.
It turns out that “Eeyore Goes to Tehran” is a retelling of Jonah’s story, starring Eeyore as Jonah. The sermon puts the story of Jonah against a contemporary backdrop, but still manages to be thought-provoking. For that alone, it’s worth the read, the inclusion of Eeyore takes nothing away but instead keeps your interest. As a bonus, I at long last know how it was that Jonah escaped from the pelican whale!
I do wish I’d been able to see the delivery in person; but perhaps I’ll manage that when Luke delivers the story of “Piglet in the Lion’s Den.”
Empty House – Full Basement
The floor installation started on May 30. During the last several days before that, I became a madman moving everything that wasn’t nailed down into the basement. As a result, the night before the installation started, the place was pretty darn empty.
Here’s a few photos to follow up on the progress report from a few weeks back.
As planned, the bed was the only piece of furniture left.
The only other thing left in the entire upstairs was a couple days worth of clothes.
The first floor was equally empty.
And here’s some updates on the basement.
Making Progress Again
I’ve reached a point in the renovation project where I’m tired of the entire thing. Consequently, although I’ve unpacked a few things (I now have a sofa along with the computer, desk and chair), I’ve been finding a number of excuses to put off the rest of painting. About all I’ve accomplished along those lines the past couple weeks is the prep work for the master bedroom.
That’s changed. Today I made a point of finishing the prep work for the bedroom and it is now officially painted. For Sunday, I hope to get the upstairs hallway painted. Then all that will remain is painting half the kitchen and getting things out of the basement again. (And there’s a bit of deadline too, Shore Leave is in two weeks and I’d like to have the project done before then.)
The only catch is, my bedroom now smells like paint. What’s worse though is that the drop cloth was blocking the air vent. Consequently, it’s also about 20 degrees warmer than the rest of the house. So tonight I’m going to sleep on the sofa. Happily, it’s not just a sofa, it a very comfy sofa!
Alternate Sleeping Arrangements
Wylie’s turned out to be rather fond of my bedroom’s closet doors. Sooner or later though, I’m going to put them back in their standard vertical configuration.
Hopefully he’ll be OK with going back to his usual bed.
Fashion by Google
Of the features of Google’s GMail user interface is something called “Web Clips.” It’s near the top of the page and features the headlines from a number of RSS feeds and even offers you the ability to add feeds of your own choosing (I heartily recommend you search for "http://dactylmanor.org/blair/zero/feed/atom" and click the Add button).
Of course, Google being Google, they can’t resist taking a feature like that and doing a little extra with it. For instance, if you go to the Spam folder, the web clip headlines are replaced with links to recipes. More specifically, recipes involving Spam, the alleged meat product.
Visiting the Trash folder, the web clip area is used to display a series of recycling tips. Most are ordinary tips such as “Plastic bags can be reused as bin liners or package stuffing” or “Empty tissue boxes can provide easy and handy storage for plastic grocery bags.”
Today however I spotted a truly unique recycling tip. Not only was it environmentally friendly, this tip also involved such a bold fashion statement that I’m not sure even Green Gal would have suggested it:
You can make a lovely hat out of previously-used aluminum foil.
Water Restrictions
The local water utility had a major water main break late on Sunday evening. Evidently it was one of the primary mains for the Northern half of the county. Consequently, we’ve been advised to boil water before using it for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, etc. Unfortunately, I didn’t hear about the advisory until I was halfway to work yesterday.
In order to conserve water for emergencies (firefighting, etc.), they’ve also imposed water use restrictions. No watering lawns, washing cars, laundry (good thing I did mine Sunday afternoon!), no washing dishes, etc.
Also, because they can’t use the water in food preparation, most of the county’s restaurants have been ordered closed. Likewise, a number of supermarkets have closed their produce departments because they can’t spray water on the vegetables.
This morning, Wylie and I discovered a torrent of water running down the street from up by the elementary school. Apparently the main serving my neighborhood is also broken.
I have to wonder, does this mean I should boil the water twice? 🙂
At the office, they posted signs yesterday asking everyone to limit their use of the restrooms because of the water restrictions. Fortunately, there are bushes planted around the building…
Wylie Pupdate
Wylie’s a little blue this evening.
Fortunately, latex paint is non-toxic, and he didn’t get very much on him.