Lumber Ready for Use

Lumber covered and protected from rain. We're hopeful this lumber will be in action next week. Not much else to report. Ciao.

New Scenery

The lumber arrived!! Came this morning. That's all that happened today, but it's okay. It is nice to come home and see something different everyday. Tomorrow's Friday and we'll see what gets done. Usually, Friday is a half day of work.

Boxer jumped up on the lumber right away. I watched him carefully to make sure he didn't mark it. He's such a sweet boy.

Hard At Work

Stopped by the house at lunch. Could tell lots of work being done as evidenced by the picture of what used to be a tree stump. Couldn't discern any other changes. In my mind I hear Mr. Contractor say, "Find something to keep you busy".

Activity Forecast to Pick Up

The Porto-Potti has arrived! I checked for a dead body and all was clear - it smells real nice right now. Doug advised us that soon there will be multiple crews here and lots of vehicles parked in the street. So, we're alerting our neighbors.

It's so nice to be able to walk out the back door and not have to duck under strings and dodge holes. Boxer and Sydney played around the piers today. They're also relieved things are cleaned up. Of course, with activity picking up we anticipate doggie stress and all that brings - and human stress dealing with the doggie stress. Peace be with you.

We'll post again soon if the good lord's willin' and the creek don't rise.

The Ghost of Vito Lives On

The piers are built - next to fill with cement - all is moving along nicely.

You may notice that in the picture above the nearest pier appears out of alignment. It is. We asked Adam why it was that way. He indicated that when they were digging the first hole they ran into a drum of unknown size and depth. Therefore, with the approval of the engineer, they re-positioned the hole and pier. The make-shift frame and strings are gone. Things are shaping up nicely.

My grandfather, Vito, had a well dug years ago and used this to water the many different fruit and vegetables he grew in his yard. The well has long ago been kaput - we disconnected the electric pump several years ago.

Remember that water heater dug up recently and discussed in a previous post? We learned that it was the very first water heater for this house. That means that there's another water heater buried in the yard. And no, we will not dig for that one - it's buried forever as far as I'm concerned.

Stay tuned.

Cement Poured!

As you can see the cement was poured today - this morning actually. I asked Adam, one of the workers, what the white stick thing was for. He said the top of represented the pour line - the bottles were placed on it to protect our doggies if they happened to fall in a hole. Mr Contractor is a dog lover, too.


Peanut stepped in the hole at lunchtime and left her prints. Mr Contractor assured us it was not a problem - he was there at lunch when she did it. Not sure what if any work will be done tomorrow - I'm reckoning that the concrete needs to dry a little before more is done. But if there is more work done - you know that I'll report it here first.

We're pleased with the progress so far. Booya!

Cement coming soon...

The holes are ready for cement, I think. We had our first inspection so maybe something more will happen this week. Not sure what the plastic bottles are signifying - they're placed over a white stick-like thing. I'm clueless.


Blocks arrived, too. Let's get going, Mr. Contractor. They built a brand new house over there on NE 7th street in just one week! Can you beat that?

Gas Meter Moved and Rebar in Place

GRU moved our gas meter and installed a new line - all in less than a day. Cool!

The rebar has been placed in the holes. Mr. Contractor is hoping to pour cement later this week. Our fingers are crossed.

We're dealing a lot with doggie issues which we think are mostly caused by the stress of this remodel - strangers working in the yard, different sounds and the backyard with holes and new smells. My hair might be totally white by the time this is all over.

Remember When?

We needed to remember when the back yard was green and lovely. When the grass was lush and thick and inviting. Our backyard will once again be that oasis. But we must be patient.

GRU is moving the gas meter tomorrow morning. We're hoping the footers will be poured this week. The notice of commencement has been signed and notarized and ready for Mr. Contractor to file before the first inspection.

We've also determined that the stress from workers and noise has caused all of our dogs to suffer from diarrhea. This is not good. We will be using herbal remedies this week to calm them down. We will also ask Mr. Contractor to please work quietly. Stay tuned.

Another Day in the Remodel

Rebar is being prepared which makes me think that the pouring of the concrete footers is not too far away. More holes have been dug. Boxer has enjoyed running around the holes and playing "king of the mountain". Can you find Peanut in the picture below?

Some siding has been removed and new boards have been installed in preparation to connect the old with the new.

Excavation Has Begun

Several holes were dug today. It does look like an archaeological excavation site. Water and electrical lines were exposed. Not too sure what's going to be done with those - especially since we're considering relocating the washer/dryer to the house if we can find the space.
Boxer enjoyed jumping up into the trailer and sniffing around a bit. You can see here a relic in the background - or what's left of one. My dad likes to tell the story of my grandfather burying an old water heater one day when he grew somewhat impatient at having to wait for someone to haul it away...We knew it was in the yard - we just didn't know where.

This is the tag from inside the lid confirming our suspicions. Dad always thought it was buried on the east side of the yard - because he's pretty sure something is. I have no plans to start digging holes to find what else is out there. It shall remain a family mystery.

My grandfather also had an intricate matrix of hoses buried for use as his own homemade irrigation system. It would have made his forefathers proud. You see my grandfather was from Italy and probably learned a thing or two from his ancestors...builders of some of the worlds first aqueducts system...You can see (below) one of those magnificent yet ultra simplistic matrix exposed below (green hose). You know, there's just no telling what you might find when you start digging in your yard. I was hoping we'd find some buried treasure but nothing so far. We'll keep you posted.

Moving Along

Boxer and Sydney catching some rays and relaxing - their guard duties during the day takes a lot out of them.

The remodel continues to move along - below is a picture of what was prior termite damage. Doug did indicate that there were no moving creatures as they tore the siding off the house.



They also put together a series of framing from which they've started attaching strings. At one point they came into the house to do some kind of elevation work. M was home and said it was "just like HGTV". Mr. Contractor said next week there will be strings everywhere and we'll need to be careful we don't run into them - should be interesting.

Day 3

The cement steps were jack hammered to death by lunch time.


When I got home from work all pieces have been removed.


Mr. Contractor and his support staff, Doug and Adam, started staking out the corners - this is wonderful - so much more space for this little house. Yippee!

On a sad note, the podocarpus we thought we would keep is going to be in the way. We had thought we could just trim it back, but after looking at the stakes it way too close.

Don't worry, I won't be counting the days - just couldn't think of a catchy title. Too tired.

Work Begins!

Work has begun!


In short order the deck we so lovingly built many moons ago is now a distant memory. Sydney seemed sad that it was going away.


You may notice an extra set of steps - these are solid concrete and Mr. Contractor will be getting a jack hammer to break it apart.



Next in the process is to grade the area and prepare for hole digging.

Cheers!