DAY 31...Views from and to windows.

Todd installed a sample LED can light in the bathroom so I could get an idea of the K's and the range of this size. It was a graphic demo, and now I have a better idea of what we are doing with the lighting in there. Looking for a clean clean clean look.
The Shield Brothers are now working out on the area where the greenhouse used to be...opening up the wall into the dog/laundry room for the new windows, and prepping the load bearing walls. Unfortunately, the ceiling inside this room will have to be opened up much more, and as everyone who has ever done a remodel knows, sheet rock should be called shit rock...what a mess. But to fix the electricial lines and have everything ready for the deck lighting, not to mention to remedy the dry rot in the ceiling, it has to be done. The fun part here was to discuss what materials to use to make the counter under those windows...for my ferns and orchids...thinking concrete? Let me hear your ideas!
Dawn through the new window opening...even with the plastic over the opening, I can see that this window will be a wonderful spot every morning...I am sorry I missed the grey squirrel who ran by and inspired this photo. The rust on the plastic is from the new siding. I called Kelseyville Lumber today and the windows will be here tomorrow afternoon, so maybe by Friday the Birthday Window will be in place!

DAY 30...NOW WHAT?

I have to say that this opening has saved the day and will be a great birthday present if they an get the window installed in the next three days. THe light will be amazing, and I will bask in the eastern sun every morning.

The dust will take some time to get rid of, but in the meantime I am not worried about a few little particles.
Oh boy...I came home from a grueling morning to find the window in the process of being framed in. Yikes, what a surprise when I walked into the house. It is really amazing to see the difference even when the plastic was put over for the night until the windows arrive. Hopefully tomorrow. Barb Gleed gave me the perfect gift to hang by this new window...paper cranes...great hopes and thoughts.

But this moment was going to be like the dust that accompanied it...a major annoyance. When Greg arrived and we blocked out more lights and wiring items with Todd, finally we came to the moment of truth that I had been dreading since yesterday.

The tile floor in the dining room must go...hard to preserve the tile which I already knew from my kitchen remodel. So now I have to contemplate a whole new floor in the dining room. Ideas anyone? As I wrote to Trent yesterday, I can't imagine having four tiles in this space...so I am thinking wood but am open to everything. Luke might be saying, Mom, I told you to just demolish that whole room, and he might have been right, but the room will be great I say.

And now a photo of the living room looking in from the window that was never here before.

DAY 29...DRY ROT

This is the extent of the damage...the ceiling in the laundry room has been removed to this point as well. Now the joists and blocks that were damaged will be cut back and sistered in...is that a word? These guys are doing a great job and are cleaning it all up right now. The insulation will be covered over for the night so no cats or squirrels will fall down on top of the dogs. The dogs just will not go for sleeping out in the studio...they are miffed to be there this afternoon as it is. At least tomorrow will be cooler.
Daniel and Jose are painstakingly removing the tile trying to save it to put back after the floor is replaced. Luckily it looks like the damage doesn't extend too far and they got a lot of tile out intact.

Came home at noon to this dry rot. Actually took my appetite away for a while. Really gross though not unexpected given the leaks that had appeared at this juncture of the dining room and the deck. Still I was very disappointed as they began to take up the tile to see how far back it all went.

Day27 & 28...Peacefully at Home

If there was ever any doubt that I needed new decks, they are certainly gone now. Before noticing that someone had circled a very weak spot on the side deck, I happened to step just right and almost went right on thru the deck. Apparently all the heavy traffic, carrying beam, joists, saws and other equipment, like the essential microwave, the deck which was ricketty in the first place is really starting to go. I found a few other spots once I started testing this weekend. I think for this one, we will have to put down some plywood, especially with the windows scheduled to arrive on Wednesday. This particular spot is right where the new window is supposed to be installed so want to make sure it is a safe place!

DAY 26...Progress Report and Samples

New Roof Line meets Old Roof Line...the dining room is really going to be a very neat room with the higher ceiling. I am not sure whether or not I am more excited about the bathroom or the dining room. As to roofing material, we are going to order the speckled blue and copper colored metal roofing. Hope that has been done or will be done on Monday. The Windows are coming on Wednesday or so we have been led to believe, and I want the new one installed for my birthday present! Hope it happens, but if not, then it will go in soon. Wish I could remember the name of the roofing color...Ah it is Vintage Copper and I posted it a day or so ago, calling it Antique Copper. Now isn't that confusing?

These are some of the samples of ECOresin that arrived just before our meeting. We were all really happy with them, and lots of talk and consideration went into how to secure them and what kind of hardware we would use to make them into our sliders into the bathroom and to the top of the stairs. I should have arrived at my final decision by Monday...I am leaning to the dense one above for the bathroom door, and a more open one for the door to the stairs...they are really cool and the possibilites are endless, or nearly so. There is a beautiful one with copper in it, but I think it might have just a bit too much glitz in it for me. I am sure I will be playing with these all weekend long.

While talking to the Direct TV man, a very nice person by the way, about where the lines were going to be buried and accessed, we found more birds in the dining room wall. These didn't appear to be woodpeckers though. Isn't it amazing how much like Dinosaur skeletons these look...notice the claw on the far right!

Today at our meeting we considered a lot of options about what to do with the slab where the greenhouse used to be...the consensus seems to be to put up a wall of the new siding on the west end of the slab for privacy and shade, and then put up a roof probably held up with Cor-ten posts. The roof could be the corrugated material, or the roofing material...I guess I have to decide which. The hopefully the laundry room will have some protection and the dogs will be happy again. It will also make a great space for my citrus plants in the winter...sunny and protected.

DAY 25...Sidelights!

And last but not least on this very long Thursday...the Slynx has braved the noise of Daniel and Jose to come up stairs from his hiding place in the guest room. He won't come up if he thinks there are people in the house, but the roof? A different matter. And now it is time for his Cattail...almost 5 PM.
These are two of the colors that we finally got samples of for the roof. I am certainly leaning toward Antique Copper...or even the Patina Green. Which will get here soonest? That might have something to do with my choice...not to mention the gauge...

Unintended Consequences: Since we tore down the greenhouse, it was necessary to go thru all the non plant material in there and winnow it down so it would fit in the shed. The shed was a bit messy and so for the first time since I bought this lot including the shed, two years ago, Stuart and I cleared it out, tossed stuff, organized and managed to get everything necessary back in, including Luke's Tonka Trucks, Tractors, and D-6 and so on. It is a great feeling to have so much organization in a shed! Now to keep it that way.

DAY 25...Bathroom and Roof!

All of the joists (hope I am using the right terms here) for the dining room part of the roof are in place, and the areas for the skylights have been boxed in. It looks great from the deck...really starting to get a feel for the new roof line. It will be amazing.
NO more holes in the bathroom floor! This is the sloping shower floor with the horizontal drain at the end...the tile will come right up to the top of it once it is all done. Getting closer and closer...

Another load of wood arrives from Kville Lumber...Hopefully the next delivery will be the windows! That will be a huge load, just in time for my birthday. Wonder if any will be installed before Labor Day Weekend? It will be frustrating to just look at them for three days rather than through them!

Although Khorkina is an outside cat, this project has been tough for her. Soon her deck, her refuge will be gone, and I have already been trying to find good places to feed her. And of course all the noise and comings and goings keep her at bay. She stays on the perimeter of the property, seeking shade and protection. She finally comes out when the last workers cars have gone. You can almost see her sigh in relief as she takes up her post under the bird bath to wait for her 5pm Cattail!

DAY 24...framing in the bathroom and the roof!

The bathroom is starting to take shape with the half wall separating the shower from the toilet framed in. It is very hard to photograph walls that are only framed, there isn't much dimension, but the hall walls and headers are in place too. The roof part of the job will be clearer tomorrow. Again, they are really waling on the job, but it is so hard to show the progress in a photo.
Plastic wall to keep all the dust in the bathroom...works pretty well. The couple of days we didn't have it up...well, let's just say that I have been doing a lot of dusting trying to catch up!

DAY 23...Framing in the bathroom walls

One of the benefits of all the saw dust from this job, is now I can see where the cobwebs are before I run into them. And it has to be good for the soil, right? This particular plant, a huge Clematis Armandii, covers the entire deck rail, and it doesn't seem likely that it can be saved when the porch and railing come down to be replaced.
Rick and Mat Shields working together...I doubt my sibs and I could work so peacefully, but maybe. The framing of the bathroom wall is moving right along...I am trying to use the spot where the future door will be to get used to the idea.

Day 22...The Dance Floor and New Plumbing!

Mat and Andres cleaned up the new Dance Floor, leaving just the old tile. The tile will be used in the hall. Amazingly, after all the messes we have found with the wiring and water lines, somehow the previous owners managed to pour a really nice slab! The question is what to do with it. It really opens up the yard, and would be an ideal place to practice tai chi...plants are begging for space here and in the winter it will absorb a lot of heat from the sun. At this time of year, I can see that I might have to plant some fast growing trees on the west end. But since this wasn't part of the original project, it can wait will I ponder.
Once the electrician gets done here, it will be sheet rocked and a fully functional closet instead of the mess it was before with pipes, hoses, wires and insulation all over the place. Very neat job...just one little problem and hopefully that will be sorted out this am. In all the focus on the bathroom, somehow, while the water was off, the lines to the kitchen were capped off. Crazy but true, and I didn't notice until everyone was gone. Called for a glass of wine and a massage, that did, but it worked and my sense of humor remains intact!

The Shower starts to take shape with the installation of the water valve...I call it the thermonuclear option...will control water temps and once it is set all I have to do is choose the rain head in the ceiling, or the handheld wand.

Day 18 thru 21st...

And finally, there might have been bigger islands of dense, thick mats of Lygbya algae floating down the creek, while I was gone, but this was pretty big...at least 4' in length...on it's way to the dam!
The rusted siding arrived while I was gone...it looks very cool. Most of it is covered in plastic but this section was not...wonder why? Or if it was just the wind? Now to pick out the roof color...leaning toward blue...a copper patina shade that caught my eye at Kville Lumber.

This photo shows the south side of the house with Greenhouse completely gone except for the pile of debris which apparently couldn't be load up on Friday before the dump closed, as the trailer was gone. The concrete pad is just huge!

While I was in San Francisco with my brother and sister, taking a break from the work, of course it went on...Here are some of the photos I took on my return.

Tomorrow the work starts again in ernest with the water turned off so the plumbing can be finished and who knows what else will be going on?

Greenhouse DOWN!

All that is left standing after the cleanup, is a bare floor, and the south, east and west walls. The rest will come down tomorrow while I am gone. I am still in shock...basically two big dumpster loads.

Now I have to reorganize what is left of all the stuff I had in there, reallocate it, and put in a couple of new shelves in the shed...I should say that Stuart will be doing most of the latter. And that can wait until next Thursday when I will be here.

The plumbing contractor came this afternoon to look over the tank in the wall and various and sundry other items. He will work on Friday and Monday to spread the pain around. Should be interesting for me and for Shirl who will be here with the dogs and cats.

I will have to get phone reports for Day 18 and 19 I guess until I get back to see what we have wroth!

Once the insulation was off the roof, then the sheetrock came tumbling down...big chunks at a time. Off to the dump it went...
The demo derby of the greenhouse proceed pretty quickly...we saved the windows and skylights. Lots of discussion about what we could do with that space by way of making it an outdoor plant area. I am still in shock.

DAY 16...THE BATHROOM

And all these years we wondered why the tub and shower were so slow to drain..the grey pipe in the center of this photo was completely collapsed and bent. Grrrrrr! The pipe mess is akin to the electric mess so in addition to the electrician coming to figure out the wiring, now a plumbing contractor is going to make it all right, once and for all! Sheeesh!
Rick and Matt checking out the plumbing before beginning the installation of the new water tank apparatus which will be concealed in the wall except for it's access plate. Pretty cool looking. Am glad the tile and sink are finally here...it is fun to look at them again. Very sleek and as I remembered.

Day 15...The Meeting!

The BIG Three: Trent Sommers, Greg Clouse & Rick Shields examine the dining room wall progress.
Greg & Trent discussing the proposed changes to the facade of the house. It will be a dramatic change and I won't get wet trying to go thru the front door!

DAY 14...Peace!

August Morning Glory, a photo by Rexfree_99 on Flickr.

Here is the Sunday Morning Peace Shot...a beautiful volunteer morning glory...I find them in the most unusual places and they always make me smile. This year they are growing up the corn, around my bamboo poles and in the grapevines.

Day 14...SUNDAY...Obsessing with the GreenHouse

This orchid is one of the brightspots in the GreenHouse, but even it was pretty marginal and I had put it outside some time ago to toss, when I noticed that it was sending out a spray of blooms. It finally opened so I brought it back in...it is good company for the other candidate for tossing...any old cyclamen which also decided to bloom at the same time. Now everything will have to adapt to the studio, the dining room or the laundry room if we decide to do the tear down. I am excited for that meeting, but tired of working...so now I get a break.!

Ok...I have just spend two hours trying to consolidate plants, finally shedding plants that weren't thriving and just generally trying to see if I can live without the green house.

I think I can!

Day 13...detail of GreenHouse problem

The photo of the green house problem will have to be added later...It speaks for it's self. In the meantime, we are all enjoying the peace and quiet of the weekend.

Perhaps this doesn't speak for itself...1. Dry-rot 2. Poor attachment to house 3. Sitting in the dirt 4. Wall bulges and be very hard to put the metal siding over...

My idea...Out It COMES!

Day 12...New Roof Line & New Discoveries

The new roof line is progressing, so it is too bad that the crew had to be taken off to finish up a job in Napa...but they will be back. The big question that is now creating quite a stir in my brain stems from a comment that Greg Clouse my general contractor made yesterday about the greenhouse. It really is a mess as it was the last addition and the attachment to the laundry room is really awful. What about just tearing it off? The sad thing about that is the tree could have been left in place, though it would have made the neighbors a bit nervous probably...anyway, I have all weekend to think about the greenhouse. At this moment, I am def. thinking less is more and it should just go! Obviously I do like the destruction part of this process.

We are having a meeting with Greg, Rick Shields and Trent Sommers on Monday, so we will have lots of input.

The other progress is that Rick went down to Santa Rosa to pick up all the bathroom fixtures and the tile. Only thing missing was the shower drain...big long thing that is not in stock so that was ordered and paid for via the phone with Rick's help.

And now to work outside and ponder the greenhouse...having helpful visitors today for more input. Ellen's visit last night has me moving in the right direction I think...YAY for friends!
The bathroom presented new problems today even after the dry rot was finally cut out. Some of the venting is not IN the wall, it actually sticks out into the room...so that huge vent has to be rerouted to take the in the wall toilet tank! And then there are the electrical issues...all the wiring seems to go thru the bathroom...thru the wall, the floor and the beams. We have a specialist Electrician coming on Monday. Hope he can figure out some of these problems. Don't want to get too technical but my refrigerator shouldn't go off when the power is cut to the bathroom!

Day 11...Death and Construction

It is hard to appreciate this photo unless you had to live with a low ceiling and leaky roof, but this is the first step in transforming the old flat roof into something with a pitch! I had to be gone when they started this, probably a good thing from the crew's point of view. But it is an exciting step. This photo is for Trent Sommers of Sommers Consulting...

The Construction part of the job started today...Lifting this header was a very tense job...the whole wall, or what was left of it was wobbly and scary. After a few photos I had to walk away.
The woodpecker skeletons that we found in the dining room wall today were the saddest things I have seen in a long time. I usually like to collect species from the natural world, seed pods, leaves, even skulls, but this time, I just couldn't do it. This whole project has been in part driven by the relentless attack of the woodpeckers on the house, and it was so sad to see that the house had killed them. They flew in a hole that couldn't really be seen and then couldn't get out.

Day 10...Little Detail for Trent!!!

The photo above shows now they just pushed the 2x6 on the right down until it fit rather than recut or correct their error.
This is just some of the interesting work on the dining room that we have been discovering...the gap is where the load bearing wall starts. Just looking, they used a lot of scraps and stuff and if a piece didn't quite fit, well they just pushed or shoved it in anyway, or if it had a gap, well...Who was going to see that?

Fun in the walls I call it.