I worked a little more on my basement office this weekend. All the sheetrock is up on the inside.

Every time I work on a home improvement project I run into inevitable problems. I solve them in my own way, probably not the most professional way. I always pity the next person who comes along and tries to modify or improve my work only to discover I used 6" inch screws when a sane person might have used 1.5" screws or something of that ilk. It makes me happy to think about the many little mysteries I am leaving for the future.

Today I ran into this blog post entitled, "The letter in the pond", It was a laminated note left under a pond liner that the current owner was digging up and removing. I'm totally inspired, I know that I'm going to have to leave some notes for the next person before I close up the walls completely.

To whom it may concern:

You probably understand by now that building walls and installing sheet rock is not my day job. I really like working with my hands and find it very satisfying. I'm sorry if my hobbyist wanna-be a carpenter antics have caused you an un-due problems.

...

CIMG5808, originally uploaded by timbu.

Both kids hopped on their new bikes last week and instantly knew how to ride. The last few summers haven't been as successful. I would push and push and the kids would go a few feet before wiping out. I tried new methods to teach kids and nothing worked.

This year they just got on the bike and away they went.

I asked Matthew how he learned so quick. He said, "I saw Elise get on her bike and I knew I could do better than her."

Note to self: Start chore competition.

I installed a new sink in our kitchen this weekend. I have to say the project came out looking better than I had hoped.

Let's not forget the "before" picture.

1. If you use a wet/dry vac to pick up something dry and then something wet, then you wait a year, the result is indistinguishable from compost.
2. If your cheap florescent light fixture is crapping out because the ballast is screwed up, it is cheaper and quicker to buy a new fixture instead of trying to find a new ballast of the right size and install it in the light.

Reason #412 why I know I'm old, my friends don't jump at the chance to help do home improvement for pizza & beer.

Alone or not I still like painting, which is what I'm doing today and what I will probably be working on until Wednesday. Painting was my first real job that I stuck with in high school; I did a lot of it in high school & college.

I miss the guys I used to paint with, especially the embarrassingly lewd offers they would shout to women in other cars while we were driving to a job site. Everyone on the crew, except me, smoked pot constantly -- I think it kept the paint fumes down. Coincidentally, our little crew almost never finished a job correctly. At the least we almost always left the circle around one light fixture unpainted -- almost like it was our signature.

The funniest thing that ever happened was the day when our boss went back into a huge apartment complex to touch up something we forgot. He accidentally got off the ladder only to realize that he put his foot into a five gallon bucket of paint. We came looking for him after he had been gone a little too long, only to find him fuming trying to wrap up his foot in a drop cloth so he could walk out to the van. I laughed so hard when I saw what had happened, I felt light headed.

Painting is one of the most satisfying home improvement projects. It doesn't cost much but makes a huge difference in a reasonably short period of time.

I hope I can get my house whipped back into shape for poker on Friday.

Check out this article on Banana Extinction.

I thought bananas taste different now than the ones I remember from my childhood. All this time, I thought that this difference was due to the foggy nostalgia. Now I have a better explanation.

This is exactly why I like diversity in my lawn. If creeping charlie and dandelions go extinct in other parts of the world, I'll have a ready bio-reserve.

I spent a Saturday and Sunday working in my basement. When we purchased the house it had an unfinished basement. We haven't really done much about it, up until now. Now after a long period of multi-lateral negotiations, we finally have agreed on a working floor plan to create an office, bedroom, and bathroom in the basement. I am sure the negotiations would have been smoother if I had invited the North Koreans to the bargaining table. Once we create those rooms, the remaining area will become a de facto family room.

So far, I have gotten a few walls up. It was a lot of fun to use a pneumatic framing nailer and the "stud gun." I am a lousy nailer, and having the nails driven in so neatly and efficiently was a very nice change of pace. It took a while to get the nailer working properly as the regulator on the compressor was set to forty pounds which was half the amount required to drive the tool properly.

This fall I am hoping to finish the walls of the office and hag sheet rock, at least in the inside. We'll see how much energy I have left after that.

The office is being built to be extremely quiet. The walls are extra thick and I plan to insulate them and hang double sheet rock. The office is also structurally isolated from the joists in an effort to keep the booming of little feet down to a bare minimum. I am hoping for a "fortress of solitude" effect. I am considering putting the computer outside the room and using KVM cables to allow the computer(s) to be placed further away.

I enjoy working with wood. It's nice to deal with a medium where a firm smack can actually be a solution to a small problem.

I don't know where I saw this on the web first, but it's call a toilet sink. When the water refills the tank it splashes through a sink built on top on the lid of the toilet. It's a water saving idea as now you are flushing with used or gray water instead of fresh water. Whoever came up with this is an evil genius of the highest order.

I must have one! If I can't find one I am going to make one at home.

SOLD

Like a cabin in the woods, but only minutes from 694 and Silver Lake Road

This beautiful two bedroom, 1 and 1/2 bath "end unit" North Innsbruck townhome is nestled back in a wooded setting, with views of mature trees from every window and from the very private, over-sized patio.

The home also features:

• Spacious foyer
  
• Oversized (20' x 14') master bedroom with sliding glass door leading to private deck (deck new in 1999)
  
• Wood-burning brick fireplace
  
• Main floor laundry room with lots of storage potential; washer and dryer included
  
• Cleverly designed 88" wide nook with desk, file cabinet, electricity, and phone jack keeps computer hidden out of sight but easily accessible
  
• Both bathrooms have marble vanities and full wall mirrors above sinks
  
• Upgraded appliances (refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, garbage disposal) all put in in the last 3 years
  
• Kitchen features oak cabinetry and a nine foot long counter for convenient cooking and baking
  
• Private patio includes built-in gas grill under mature trees
  
• One car detached garage with newer garage door opener
  
• Central air
  
• Pets are allowed
  
• High speed internet access is available
  
• Northwest Athletic Club Moore Lake is only 3 miles away, a short bike ride down quiet, winding residential streets
  

What's New:

• All new floors in kitchen and both bathrooms 1998
  
• New roof 2000
  
• New, no maintenance vinyl siding on both house and garage 2000
  
• New forced-air furnace 2001
  
• New patio privacy fence with built-in two tier planter 2000
  
• New upper deck off of master bedroom 2000
  

WHAT'S INCLUDED: