All of my spare energies are being spent to finish the kitchen. Our date for maximal completion has moved out to Wed, Aug 28th, as the county appraiser is off this week. This both good and bad. Good, because we have more time to work (or obsess) on the kitchen. Bad, for the same reasons ( Read more... )

I've been less than motivated to type

Last last weekend featured landscaping work - mostly moving dirt and installing sod to repair damage from the flooding.

But there was also door replacement. Usually a trivial exercise - remove old door and (rotten) frame, install, level, shim, and paint.
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And then some. We went from the lowest lake level I can remember, to the highest in less than two months. The water is overtopping the breakwall, which is fairly amazing for our lake. As an added bonus, we received 1/2" in a snow squall during lunchtime, which covered the grass and deck ( Read more... )

I should really be working on the kitchen, so instead, this weekend, I'm working outside doing spring cleanup ( Read more... )

I'm thinking of starting an investment fund. I'll call it the Dale Panic Fund ( Read more... )

My eleven day vacation is coming to an end. Lots of stories ( Read more... )

I finally had a reason to use it. I find something nifty about big fluffy cotton insulation.

It's fairly expensive, about $1/sqft, but it purports to be good sound insulation, so I installed it in an exterior wall exposed to road noise.
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As of Dec 24th, the lake finally froze over. Typically, freeze over is first week of December, but like last year, very late. IIRC, last year was after New Years ( Read more... )

Sunday was cookie baking day, or so I thought ( Read more... )

I understand nearly the entirety of the Michigan tart cherry crop has been lost, in large part to the very warm March which allowed for early flower bud development, followed by a killing frost ( Read more... )