There’s many a metaphor about life waiting in the backyard, as I ponder the flux of good years for roses, raccoons and tomatoes, bad years for June bugs, lilies and maples, and those things that seem to be fine every year, rain or shine, heat or cold, like ants, violets and squirrels. The ebbs and flows of nature hang in… Read More »Learning Life Balance from Weeds and Bugs
Touring bands, gigging musicians, and mega-stars have rock and roll lifestyles. Can a mere fan, someone who enjoys the culture, style and attitude of everything that is rock music, claim such a thing? Today felt like a rock and roll lifestyle day, as I was out at a show last night, staying up late, getting drunk on the enveloping sound… Read More »A Rock and Roll Lifestyle
Now that the pandemic is far enough away, I’m ready to proclaim that some good came of it. No question, there was much hurt and hardship, which impacted some people severely. But, pulling the silver lining from three solid years of storm clouds reaps some value from the nightmare that was. Even nightmares usually have a purpose or message. Things… Read More »The Good of Three Years House Arrest
Warning: This post may be TMI if you don’t want to hear about gooey bodily fluids, and not in a fun way. I have an infected cyst on my back. I was prescribed antibiotics and other than figuring out how to take a pill every 6 hrs on an empty stomach while eating regularly and getting 8 hrs of sleep… Read More »Antibiotics: The Value of old Innovations
There are five doorways into hall. Five casings to replace, to match the period style of the rest of the (renovated) house. The architrave in these will be interesting – each custom fitted, as the distance to the ceiling varies from door to door, even though the doors are quite close together, and I assume built at the same time. … Read More »Upper Hall Reno. Part 3 – trim.
The renovation of the upper hall floor was part function and part decoration. When I took possession of the house, the floor covering was some vinyl plank stuff, pretending to be wood. Vinyl isn’t in the spirit of era. Considering function, the floor was squishy/flexy-springy in one area1. And it needed to be the right height to match the top… Read More »Upper Hall Reno. Part 2 – The Floor.
When the weather cools, it’s time for indoor projects. Next is the upstairs hall1. Along with the desired redecoration to get into the original period of the house, there’s some ‘wrongs’ to be considered for righting. The attic could use more insulation (this is part of the hall reno because the access to the attic is in the hall). Neutral… Read More »Upper Hall Reno. Part 1 – ceiling and walls.
Another hit of the drug: live music. Time to take a break from all that intellectual analysis and coping with the realities of techno-business revolutions. Slipped into another reality. Live rock1. Tonight’s euphoria: Live music is empowering. Perhaps this is why, wherever I go, there it is. Thirteen years ago, I moved to a music town by accident. I came… Read More »Hooked on… live rock music.
DIY isn’t as sexy and fun when you have to do it. Such is the case with having to replace the steps to my front porch. As these provide access to the front door, it’s a must do, for the sake of all the visitors, delivery people and misc. uninvited others that I don’t want to talk to but still… Read More »New Porch Steps, same as the old Porch Steps.
After rambling on considerably about fixing the backyard deck, I have one final thing to add. For purely cosmetic reasons, I replaced the lattice that runs around the base of the deck. Lattice is there for two reasons: 1. Practical: To keep critters from making their home under the deck, wherefrom they can cause damage to the house, deck, or… Read More »A DIY Quickie.