New toys
Purchased at an auction this weekend. Good thing we know some big, strong, manly men that moved them for me. 
Muahaha
Last night it was time to unload the dishwasher, and I put the Paint Your Wagon soundtrack on the iPod speaker thing in the kitchen. Anya immediately started twirling around in happiness until she could barely stand up.
Then 'ol Clint started singing, and she felt the sudden urge to poop. And to think, she hasn't even seen the movie yet!
Then 'ol Clint started singing, and she felt the sudden urge to poop. And to think, she hasn't even seen the movie yet!
Fun for the whole family!
Posted by Andrew
on Tuesday, May 5. 2009
at 07:09
in Country Livin'
I guess we've been watching too much BBC programming. Because for the life of me, I couldn't understand why on the radio yesterday there was an ad for a community class called 'Learn to Shag.'Beginners or Advanced students welcome!
Fun for the whole family!
You don't need to have a partner!
Encyclopedia Brown and the case of the wandering cup
A quick summary of what has been going on since Easter:
- Pumpernickel had one baby, also white.
- The roof was put on the sunroom. Much of the face boards have been installed on the room to make it look a little nicer.
- Cabol's dad and I fixed an old door.
- Cabol's dad was attacked by a ram. He reciprocated by throwing it through the air in a demonstration of top secret military sheep fu.
- Andy learned it is hard to rip a 12' board by yourself.
- Andy learned to refer to himself in the third person.
- Anya has lost both her working cups-with-straws. One at daycare. The other...?
- We bought lots of bright colored paint for Anya's room. And a fan. A groove may have to be cut in the wall so the fan can spin.
Baaaaa
Looks like the Easter Bunny stopped by a few days early...
Oh, so you've been here before
Posted by Andrew
on Wednesday, March 4. 2009
at 22:18
in Country Livin'
This evening on the way down the driveway I got the truck stuck partially in the ditch leading to the creek by the pond when I hit a slick spot on our still-mostly-impassable driveway. Cabol wisely suggested I call our insurance, since we have roadside assistance on our policy. They said they would send someone out. Shortly later the phone rang to inform us of an estimated ETA of 1½ hours.That's right. We live a half hour or so away from the largest city in this part of Virginia (Roanoke). A half hour from Christiansburg. Fifteen minutes from Floyd. But they sent someone from Fort Chiswell, 68.3 miles away. Gosh, you think the bill will be more than the $50 the insurance covers?
I called back, told them to cancel it. The woman on the phone increduously said '70 miles?!?' twice. I asked her if we could use Bell's in Floyd, and she said that was fine and set it up. He was here in a half hour or so. He got stuck in the driveway on the way up. Eventually he made it. I waited for him by the hay shack. He pulled up. He said, 'Oh, I didn't know it was THIS place.' Perhaps there is a reason the insurance company could only find someone 70 miles away.
But he was able to winch the truck back onto the driveway. Now it's stuck on the driveway, but the snow should mostly melt tomorrow. And it's better than in a ditch.
And I was apparently in such a foul mood after getting stuck that when I approached Sydney (who had escaped from his fence), he meekly turned to the side and let me guide him back to his pen with little fighting
Potty
Anya used the potty today!
Huh
Well, I never thought I'd say it, but I agree with Sarah Palin on something.
These damn automated calls from the Republicans every night is getting really, really annoying.
These damn automated calls from the Republicans every night is getting really, really annoying.
Oooh, that smell
Today I saw a post on craigslist for some reclaimed red oak flooring out of a house in town. Approximately 300 square feet for $125. We have talked about putting hardwood down in the living room/kitchen/hallway, and really liked some rustic maple at the hardwood store in Floyd, but it is pricey. And we had red oak at the old house, and it looked nice once I refinished it. So I went to check it out and came home with a truck full of oak (and one piece of bamboo).
Most of the boards are in decent shape. Many will need some trimming, but there is still a lot of usable flooring. And all but 2 nails have been removed or clipped. After stacking it in the workshop and doing some quick calculations, though, I'd say there is somewhere between 255-300 square feet. Depending on the waste, that may not be enough to do the living room like I hoped.
On the plus side, it is 2 1/4 #1 common red oak, so we can probably locate some more easily. The finish is ok, but not geat, so I will probably sand and refinish it all anyways. I could be not so picky when trimming, too, and we could just call it 'utility grade flooring.'
If Cabol looks at it in the light of day and decides she doesnt like it, then I will probably save it for my long term plan of putting a level floor in the workshop. There is a cement slab, but it seems like they made it out of leftover cement and no one bothered to float it and make it nice and smooth, so it is full of dips and high spots.
And I absolutely adore the smell of red oak. Cabol couldn't smell it(!), so I shoved it in her face until she could. I don't think she was as enamored with it.
Most of the boards are in decent shape. Many will need some trimming, but there is still a lot of usable flooring. And all but 2 nails have been removed or clipped. After stacking it in the workshop and doing some quick calculations, though, I'd say there is somewhere between 255-300 square feet. Depending on the waste, that may not be enough to do the living room like I hoped.
On the plus side, it is 2 1/4 #1 common red oak, so we can probably locate some more easily. The finish is ok, but not geat, so I will probably sand and refinish it all anyways. I could be not so picky when trimming, too, and we could just call it 'utility grade flooring.'
If Cabol looks at it in the light of day and decides she doesnt like it, then I will probably save it for my long term plan of putting a level floor in the workshop. There is a cement slab, but it seems like they made it out of leftover cement and no one bothered to float it and make it nice and smooth, so it is full of dips and high spots.
And I absolutely adore the smell of red oak. Cabol couldn't smell it(!), so I shoved it in her face until she could. I don't think she was as enamored with it.
It's ok to be different
Posted by Andrew
on Sunday, July 27. 2008
at 09:57
in Country Livin'
This morning we were sitting on the floor, staring at the newly laid bathroom floor. Cabol pointed out that thinset had filled in between about 3/4 of the spaces between the penny tiles. Everything I read says this isn't really good, since, you know, that's where the grout is supposed to live.So, this morning I guess we take a trip over to Home Depot and see what they recommend to remove it in a timely fashion. I can sit there with a sharpened nutcracker or nail set and scrape it all out by hand, but I read you can use a dremel tool. All our dremel tool attachments, however, are a little too wide, so maybe I can find something smaller at the store. Or I'll have a long week ahead of me.
Cabol was also nice enough to point out that even though I tried to be as anal as possible about putting the sheets down in the right position, I managed to flip one of them 180°. So the little black tiles have a 1' square section where they are all wonky.
In the middle of the floor.
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