1. Go to large rental place, wait 15 minutes for help, to be told they don’t rent splitters.
2. Stop at local power equipment retailer to ask if they rent. No, but told where to try.
3. Rent splitter from, fast, friendly place.

On the way back have 20 minute conversation with a man I admire
Meet with my plumbing consultant to create a material list.
10 am SuperHeroHelper© begins a day of splitting wood
Head out to get plumbing supplies
Only one supplier of three in Poughkeepsie has no hub cast iron pipe. Surprisingly, not the two well known suppliers – also get forms for account
stop at Big Box store to get some more plumbing supplies.. which are cheaper less expensive here than anywhere else (I dislike the word cheap)
Check in with SuperHeroHelper© by phone.  SuperHeroHelper© heads home for an hour lunch
stop at McCrapolds and get a burger meal to go. – Note to self – remind me not to do this again
Stop at building dept to file for a permit, and to ask some questions about an upcoming renovation here – result –> come back another time.
gas station again for can fill-up for splitter (okay – this one was bad planning on my part)
Help SuperHeroHelper© for awhile
unload supplies
begin dismantling a part of wall downstairs to get to damaged 3″ drain pipe.
move upstairs and cut out section of 3″ galv pipe
Help SuperHeroHelper© relocate to the 2nd stacked wood pile. (This required moving the splitter with the truck)
SuperHeroHelper© heads out @ 6
7:30 pm – the 2nd most important step today.. make coffee
cut out section of 3″ galv pipe on the ground floor
ditto in the basement, only here I have to grind out the 3″ cast pipe
clean up the mess
shower
9:30pm Have a beer with a friend
Conf call with designer and wife
respond to emails.. chat with wife.. decide to blog
begin to write this post @ 10:49 pm
chat with wife

Left out of this list:
the 27 phone calls I made or received on my cel (included in this list is the one previously mentioned to SuperHeroHelper©)
2 or three greater than 5 minute chats with friends and neighbors (2 or 3 more that were under 5 minutes)
trip to the post office to get mail and packagethe usual day stuff.. checking email.. I actually checked my former job email and forwarded what I needed to the appropriate folks.
randomly write additions to tomorrow’s todo list
get the days receipts in order and in one place

11:59 pm – oh shit! what the heck am I still doing up? nite!

Step 2 > Connect the Droid 2 to your computer using  the microUSB cable that came with it

Step 3 > A window will pop up, choose ‘Open Folder to view files’.

Step 4 > File>New>folder.  Name it ‘ringtones’.  This  must be lowercase

Step 5 > Copy and paste the ringtone into the ‘ringtones’ folder.

Step 6 > Safely unplug the Droid 2

Step 7 > Set the ringtone on the Droid 2 by going to Home> Settings> Sound> Phone ringtone. Select your ringtone.

Step 8 > you are done!

Step 9 > OPTIONAL – Write a scathing letter to Verizon thanking them for 1) as usual crippling a fantastic phone, and 2) screwing up what should be a simple process.

I still remember the excitement, and tremendous sadness that Nov 28th 1998 brought.  That was the day I found out I had been hired at a job I really wanted.  It was also the day that my Great Aunt Mary passed.  This saying will forever come to mind when I recall that day – ‘The Lord  giveth and the Lord taketh away’.

Similarly now, so many years later, it is with much excitement, and yet great sadness, that I leave a job which has to some degree defined who I am, but more correctly, who I have become.  On the eve of my final day, as I packed some of the last bits of my personal belongings up, I had more than a bit of nostalgia and a heavy heart.  I’ve been there for almost 12 years, (actually 11 years, 8 mos and 29 days, but I’m not anal enough to count).  I leave behind so many friends, both new and old.  Friends who have only been there a short time, and friends who have been there far longer than I could ever imagine.  The countless folks who passed through on their own journey and are no longer there.  The people who took the time to get to know me, for all my quirks and sarcasm, and everything else that makes me who I am, know that I will miss them greatly.  And countless others, whom I have never met, but worked with over the phone or via e-mail.  It was a tremendous place to work, to learn and to grow.  On top of that, it does something much greater than just pursue the almighty dollar, or make shareholders wealthy.  During my stint, it helped save the lives of countless homeless kids.  Not many jobs can give you that extra added bonus – knowing that what you are a part of, truly does matter – does make a difference in other’s lives.

Ok.. all that gushy mushy stuff aside, it’s time for me to move on.  I feel I’ve given all the time I can, and believe me, you give your time.  Being a non-profit, your salary is not nearly what it could be in the for-profit world.  It’s a sad time for me, but in a way, I’m happy that I am in this place right now, as I’m motivated.  There are things I want to accomplish in my time on this globe, that if I don’t get off my ass and get busy working on, I’m just not going to get done.  So here I am, moving on, whether by fate, misfortune or choice, only God himself knows, but moving on I am.  I take away innumerable good memories, immeasurable joy in past accomplishments, colleagues and friends I would be so much the poorer without having known, and pride in a job both well done, and worth doing.  (Pride is a sin, isn’t it?  Must be as it feels good.  We know everything that feels good is sinful).

Lastly, it’s another reminder of my Great Aunt, how much I miss her, and wish she were still here.  It’s a reminder, no matter how silly or strange my belief may be to you, it still is my belief – that she was taken away from me, and something else given to me in return.  As I leave here, I grieve for her, and miss her.

A salute to my Great Aunt, and a salute to my colleagues and friends.  A saying I picked up from a colleague, and a wish to all of them that remain – Keep fighting the good fight!

Wish me luck as my wild (ok, not so wild, that’s just not me…) ride continues.

Hmm.. where shall I go next?

Mike

Saturday July 31st, SuperHeroHelper© showed up for another day of dust and debris for very little pay.  Now you know why he has the SHH title!

This is where the window used to overlook the sleeping porch.  Our intentions are to put it back, similar to what was there, but up to the current building code, which might be a challenge, seeing as I can see the structure has not been changed, just enclosed. Even though it’s been there for more than 110 years, it might not pass the modern building code if we try to open it back up, without the addition of some modern hardware.

more lathe and blown in insulation, full of the usual mouse and squirrel passages.  Shh.. dirty little secret of the the current blown in insulation resurgence, there are more holes and gaps than I thought possible.  Seems the stuff got hung up on every nail that pierced the sheathing.  This wall ate a prybar.. dropped down into the first floor wall silently, as it compressed the insulation down there on the way.  Good thing that room has not been done yet.. Means I might reunite with my favorite crowbar sometime in 2014!  Note the neat round hole in the chimney.  A patch from the past, that wasn’t really done very well as it was loose.   That should be fun to fix correctly.  On the other hand it opens up the possibility of a wood stove for the room…  Yay possibilities..  more procrastinating..

As it is now, and probably will be for months..  Look at that light !!! I love this room!

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !

The base has been installed on the garage roof at this point.  We have cut out a section of the roof of the garage, so that this cupola actually does what cupolas are historically for.  It’s not just for good looks.  Cupolas allow hot air that rises to the peak to exit the building, which in turn allows cooler air to be drawn in down below.  A side note – it works quite well.  When it was completed, the hot air rushing out the louvers was like standing next to a running truck exhaust on a hot day.

A photo composed intentionally to show the base on the roof, and the main structure in the foreground.  The pile of sticks and black stuff in the lower right is the insect screening, about to get installed on the now primed and painted louvers.

Stapling on the screen, using a Bostitch stapler.  These narrow crown staplers work great for something like this.  I’ve pretty much used and abused my nailers, and rely on Bostitch as they don’t seem to break.  The seals do wear out, but that is to be expected.

Shingled on the ground.  It took more than twice as long to complete the base up on the roof, which was done later to allow the copper flashings to be correctly installed.  Had I shingled the base before getting it on the roof, the flashings might not have fit correctly under the striated cedar siding.

Going for a ride in the bucket.  hey, that was a heck of a lot easier than trying to hoist or drag it up there.

Finished!  The old weathervane is installed on the new cupola, which is much more aesthetically pleasing, (the old cupola was entirely too small), and North is even reasonably close to true North.
It looks great with the copper roof.  Can’t wait to see it weathered in a few years..  prefer the aged green copper look.

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !

Porch roof framing, being done without the foundation or walls below it, to allow the roofers to complete the installation with no delays.  It was interesting to build on stilts this way..  I kept joking around, asking when we were expecting the helium delivery.

Sheathed and papered

The valley flashings are in and the roofers can keep shingling along now, keeping their lines straight.  Started the copper roof on the porch in this pic too.  It looks great!

Remember the snap shot of a cupola a few posts ago?  It morphed into a bigger beast – bigger is better, right?
I’ll save the finished cupola for another post, but below is a teaser.

basic frame of the replacement cupola for the garage.

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !

Breaking my back…

Stripped, for all the world to see how nice it came out.  Unfortunately it almost all gets buried.  At most about 1 foot will remain above grade.

Footing drains are in place, along with a downspout system that runs to a drywell.  This gets covered with fabric then filled with stone.

Partially full of stone.  In all we used 21 tons of stone, and ran short, needing almost 4-1/2 more tons.
That’s a lot of stones… I lost count after 1/2 million.. Just kidding.  Who had time to count?

Been working on some other projects at the same time.. More pics to come.  Can’t wait to get back to work on OPR though.

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !

Compare that last photo to the first.  See those diagonal cross braces that are noticeably missing from the first photo?  The form against the garage wall had started to buckle when it was about 3/4 full.  I shouted to grab some boards and wedge them in there, all was well.  Perhaps it was only going to bulge and not burst, but who would want to find that out?

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !

Kevin can still smile in 90° heat – kind of…

We got it back together.  I took the window back to the shop and rebuilt it.  Installed it on Monday, and we finished the exterior wall on Tuesday.  The house is getting painted soon, so it should look nice in the near future.

That’s me, fitting some shakes.

Mike, contemplating jumping…

Leaving you with part of our Saturday fun.. we went kayaking and swimming as a family.  In the kayak, wife, during the return voyage.
Good times !!

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !

The finished, temporary steps.  Picked up the P/T lumber for the treads on the way home from work at an orange big box.  I’ll stick to Williams from now on.  A better grade of lumber to be had there.   Convenience, as always, has it’s cost.

Tues July 14th.  I put this up on FaceCrack, as blog was awol, but here it is anyway.  The sky turned this neat color and everything around had this yellowish/greenish tint.  It was really cool.  Photo is un-retouched snapshot – this is what it looked like!

Blurry again!  This seems to be the offspring of Stripe.  Let’s call her stripe2 for now.  smaller, faster, more agile.  Able to surprise me in the dark quicker.  This one does not seem to be afraid of people as it kept coming towards me even as I made noises I thought would make it head the other way.  Nope, skunk2 advances.  Me tripping over the log pile?  skunk2 advances.  Stomping up the front steps, closing the front door with a bang and racing for a camera?  skunk2 advances.  Coming back out, after tripping in the dark inside and howling out in pain as I gouged my shin on our coffee table/chest and running back into the yard while banging the front door closed?  You guessed it, s2 advances…  Shining 1 million candlewatt light on s2 to take pic?  skunk2 pauses!!  then advances..  This is the best pic I got with the point & shoot.  I can’t imagine fiddling with the DSLR while trying to avoid the toxic cloud…

Lastly, this is the start of a cupola for a client’s garage, part of the same job where the curved form was built.  btw, we are shooting for a Monday pour.

Disclaimer: The work above is what I did. I’m not claiming this is the way you should do it in your home. Almost every situation is different, and should be treated accordingly. If you are not sure of what you are doing, or not comfortable doing it, the best advice I could give you is to STOP! Get advice from a Pro that you trust, or at least knowledgeable friends or family. You can make expensive mistakes, or worse – you could get hurt. Be safe !