6/27: Rain and Drain ....

What are the chances of rain in June in San Diego? Pretty slim, but we had quite a thunder and lightning storm pass over our house this morning. It was quick and noisy and left the site quite muddy for awhile.
I came home tonight to find the plumbers making great strides laying new drain pipe from the house to the sewer. Apparently our ground was much harder than they expected so it took longer than they anticipated. They finished the job and turned the water back on right at 8 pm. They had a long, hot, dirty day! Another inspection tomorrow and then we move on!

6/23: Policies and Procedures

The other day I came home early and was resting on my bed with the window open. I could hear the guys working out front and was struck by how professional everyone was. Nobody was swearing, nobody was smoking, and nobody was talking "smack" about anyone. It was hard to believe I had a half dozen guys in my front yard working in the heat of the day. I was quite impressed, knowing that the same thing might not be true if someone was listening to my work group under some circumstances! I thought I'd share that bit and also this sign that is posted on the worksite. Perhaps many of us could use this in our daily lives!
You all know you can click on a picture to enlarge it, right?

6/23: Caption This!

Rob (the real supervisor) and Maddie (who thinks she's in charge) squared off this morning. This photo needs a caption, don't you think? Please join in the fun and help us decipher the body language!

• "I say it's up to code and I'll take no barking from you!"
• "It's going cost how much?"
• "I'm not the one who left the tools out!"
• "You want it finished when?"
  

6/21: Trenches and Water ...

This morning I was able to watch the guys finish digging the trenches and then dump the dirt on to garage floor. They used the bobcat to scoop up the dirt and dump it on the pad. I was wishing Karen was home to see it, remembering her affection for dump trucks. By the time I got home everything was smoothed out, tamped down, and covered with plastic. I believe an inspector is due tomorrow and foundation begins on Friday!
Old pipe + standing water = potential problems
We will have someone out to out to check for leaks. I wonder if he will have a divining rod with him? Keep a good thought for us!

6/20: Footings and Inspections

Oh yeah, look what we came home to today! It's getting more real as each day passes. The plumber and the superintendent were here when I got home and we discussed getting hot water to the garage for the washing machine. I'm still not sure how that will be accomplished but the current plan is to go through the roof from the water heater in the backyard. Stay tuned for more developments!
After the guys left, Maddie did some serious inspection of her own. No bones or tennis balls were in the trenches so she soon lost interest.

6/19: Goodbye Driveway!

7:30 ~The cement guys look over the plans and decide where to begin. It's way too early to make a lot of noise! It was hard for me to leave for work and miss all the fun. I want to drive the bobcat!
12:00 ~ Lunch time and I'm home checking up on the morning's progress. As you can see, a whole lot of digging and drilling has been going on!

The old shed that we inherited from Tim's dad in the late 70's didn't make the cut. It was given a manly farewell, and then it left on the back of the truck to be taken to the final resting place.
4:00 ~ Finished for the day and look how much has been accomplished! The stucco on the house wall is gone, the driveway and the garage pad are gone. For more pictures of today's adventure click here: Goodbye Driveway.

6/14: Goodbye Garage!

Joel got going on the garage wall first thing Wednesday morning. By the time I got dressed and could take a picture, the wall was gone!
About a half hour later, the front of the garage was on its way down. This process didn't take long. I told Joel I was documenting the project for my family and he joked that he hoped I wasn't documenting his last moments for his family! I think he only had to pull on the upright about 3 times before it fell.
It was quick work to finish everything after that. The garage was history by early afternoon. Maddie seems to be a bit confused about all this!
Here's a link to a full set of pictures since the beginning of the garage project. The demolition of the driveway and garage pad is scheduled to begin on Monday. Stay tuned!

6/13: Day one progress...

Here's how things looked at noon today. Daylight was peeking in and Joel was off to the dump with a lot of stuff.

By 2:30, the garage looked like the picture on the right. Even more daylight pouring through, and the garage door hardware almost removed. I am pleased to say that all the mess was all cleaned up before they left . Walls should come down tomorrow!

Nothing says construction ...

Like a Port-a-Potty in your front yard!
Let the construction begin. Today begins the demolition phase and it's already been exciting. Joel came by about 8:30 this morning and talked to me a bit about what he would be doing. He looked at the garage door and said he might just ram into it with his truck. I thought he was kidding ... silly me.
After clearing out all the shelving and the stuff we left for trash, he closed the garage door, got into the truck and backed right into the door! Cr-ash!!
I was only sorry I didn't have the camera in hand when it happened. Here's a shot of the garage without the doors and the shelves. Joel is now taking off the roof. Walls will be coming down this afternoon!

The Garage: 6/11/06 ...

After many hours of work, the garage is cleaned out and ready for destruction. The only things left in there are things to go into the construction trash bin, saving us a trip to the dump! It looks very empty, doesn't it?

We moved the table saw, drill press, and dryer on Sunday. They now have temporary homes on the patio all wrapped up in blue plastic. Tim (ever the space manager) left us enough room to still sit outside under the umbrella and barbeque during the time the new garage is being built.

The project supervisor met with us this afternoon to go over the plans and take a look at the site with us. If all goes well, and it should, a crew will be here tomorrow (Tuesday) by noon to begin the destruction phase. I've arranged to work at home so I'll be able to take pictures. And just in case the word wasn't passed down, Tim tagged the family growth chart!

New Email Feature!

Due to popular demand, I've added new functionality to this blog. You can now sign up to be emailed when the blog has been updated. I'm using a service called FeedBlitz and they promise no spam or other types of annoying email.

If you are interested in trying out the new feature, please sign up using the link on the left side of this page. Just add your email and then follow some simple instructions. That's it! The next time content is updated, you will be notified that evening by email . How cool is that?

Oh, by the way, I will be updating the blog on Wednesday and you won't want to miss that!

Permit In Hand

Yep, that's what Joe called to tell us today. He has the garage permit in hand! Yee-haw! We meet with Joe and his superintendent tomorrow (Friday) afternoon. We'll get a schedule at that point and know when destruction/construction will begin. I think we will see things start up next week!

Yard Sale: Our junk is someone's treasure!

Tim's yard sale was a resounding success! Who knew people would buy a box of screws or a chemistry set from the '60s? And it doesn't matter if electronics work or not ... they sell!

When we opened our door to set up at 6:30 this morning we already had people waiting. Guess they thought there were early-bird specials. We managed to set up around the eager buyers and make deals with my mostly forgotten Spanish. By 8 this morning we had $100 and the crowd was gone. As you can see by the picture, Tim and Rockie made the most of the rest of the day. Due to Tim's "just get rid of it" attitude, we closed up shop with about $150 in our pockets and the leftovers went straight to a local charity.

We will have another yard sale when the remodel is finished. Who knows what we will have to sell by then? I can make you a really good deal on a Beany Baby!