Our Next House

7 weeks in, a house is becoming a home

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 18:25:00 +0000

Dateline August 25th 2009, 1126 East 9th is feeling a lot like home.

Life is slowly returning to pre-build state. I have starting riding the Tues/Thursday training ride, I actually went to church this week. We all went to the State Fair last week where Eliza caught a couple of Blue Gill on a cane pole. Kelly and I got about 25 miles in on the tandem while chasing the hot air balloons up the Monon.

Last Saturday Eliza and I decided to make doughnuts from the mix we bought from the New Hebron, IL Amish salvage grocery store. Huh?

Well the mix makes approximately 6 dozen doughnuts. We needed friends to help eat. And if friends are coming to eat sweets we better feed them dinner first. So doughnuts turned into a backyard feast with many friends and neighbors.

Eliza and I mix kneaded the batter, then let it rise. I wanted to fry the doughnuts in a dutch oven on an open fire. So while I started the grill and cooked the food, we called on our Order of Arrow neighbor, Dan, to start a camp fire (he never made Fire Crafter - we accept him for the man he became) to get the oil going.

They turned out pretty good. I am not sure why frying food is so much fun, but it is, and so when we ran out of doughnut batter, Martin started cutting up potatos and tossing them in the vat.

What else can we fry?

There is plenty to do around the house. The front yard is slowly taking shape, I have some grass growing and planted some hand-me-down hostas and irises.

The living roof is a long way off but I have managed to get some seating moved up and out. Last night friends Martin, Dan, and Brian stopped by with something called a growler of beer which we promptly drank - on the roof. One unforeseen problem socializing on the roof - we have to go through the second floor where Eliza sleeps. The electric hoist might come in useful again as a means of external roof top personnel access.

We have never had "real" curtains so we are struggling to understand how they are intended to be installed and used.

2009 contiunes to fly by, summer is winding down, the fair is over and I have realized that I have a lot of work left to do on both the old house and new, and, that work will will be there when I get around to it.

Water Leak!

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:10:00 +0000

Last night at 11:30, Dana woke me up because he needed towels to mop up a leak. Coming out of a fog, it took me a minute to realize the leak was still leaking down all three levels of the house. He had the heater exposed, where the pipes are, on the second floor. Water was spraying everywhere, leaking down to the kitchen & the basement, and down the stairway wall. In all the commotion, I called and woke Brian up because I thought he would be able to help more than Beth and I. For some reason, I thought Dana was frustrated with our inability to see leaks and unscrew bolts. Maybe it was all the frantic running up and down the stairs and profanity? By the time Brian arrived, Dana had finally located the leak - in layman's terms, some sort of cap to the hot water came off. (Sorry, Brian!) Dana shut off the water, while Aunt Beth and I mopped up water coming from everywhere. Fans are being used to dry the carpet and Dana doesn't think there is any real permanent damage. The plumber just arrived.

We continue to make slow progress unpacking and getting settled. My aunt & cousins have been staying with us since last Wednesday, so I have been on vacation, so to speak. In other news, we have decided to rent the old house instead of selling it right away. If you know any good (meaning quiet and low-maintenance) renters, send them our way.

We Have Moved!

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 00:44:00 +0000

This post is a little late as we moved on July 4th. We had invited a bunch of people to help the day of the 4th. Carolyn & Terry (Dana's parents), Julie & Kyle, Melissa & Brian, Daniel, Martin, Joe, Karen, Roy, James, Patrick & Valerie. Bobby, Melissa's 11 year old nephew was also there to help as did other neighbors, James, & Jeroen. Between all of those people, everything was moved by 1:30 Saturday afternoon. It only took 6 hours. And, the kitchen was even unpacked & put away!

Furthermore, Jessica babysat Ansel & Ollie the day of the move. My parents took Eliza for the day. Sarah made a wonderful lunch for all of us on Saturday. Melissa & Brian provided pizza on Saturday night. And, Julie & Kyle brought us dinner on Sunday night. Suzanne brought us flowers. Jennifer helped me take the paper off of the stairs & brought us dinner on Thursday night. Tim & Maribeth left us flowers for our garden. I am probably leaving somebody out, but the point is that we have had lots of help & support throughout the whole process & beyond.

This week we have been unpacking, unpacking, and unpacking. Dana installed our new induction cooktop. (He did forget to tell me that only cast iron pots & pans would work with it so I am currently in the market for these before I start cooking again.) He is trying to finish up the master bathroom. Currently, he is installing 4 gates on our stairs because after a week off, I am babysitting Ollie again.

There is a "For Sale" sign in the yard of our "old" house. However, Dana has a list of things to do before we are able to show it. And, I need to do some serious cleaning! Of course, the work isn't over, yet.

We have felt very strange since the move. Sometimes we have felt like it is odd to be living in something so big & it somehow doesn't seem "right." Other times we have had moments where we realize that we aren't going "home" because it doesn't quite feel like home yet. And, we have felt sadness because we have left our first house, where our baby was born. But, we are still excited and know that things won't come all at once.

The dog, Willy, adjusted right away & began barking immediately. Lucy, our indoor cat, seems to be absolutely fine. And, Cirrus, our annoying outdoor cat, also took to the house without a problem. Nimbus & Gilligan, our sweet outdoor cats need a little bit more time, but now they come into the house. They still live in our former yard, for the most part.

I still haven't found my cord that will allow me to download pictures from my camera, so this shot from moving day is from Uncle Roy.

Stay with us. . . there will be more to come!

Just 2 more days

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:40:00 +0000

I should be packing right now because I still have a lot left to pack! It has been a long, exhausting week so far. We've been too busy for photography or even to see the light at the end of the tunnel. With so many things going on, it has been difficult to feel excited. We are mostly just exhausted all of the time!

The carpet upstairs was installed last week & we think it looks really good. Dana added a plexiglass-type of material to make our stairs safer. He's been working on installing bathroom sinks and cabinets. His mom & dad have been at the new house every evening cleaning & installing odds & ends. My dad has been working on lighting & miscellaneous stuff and has also been here to sit with Eliza while she supposedly sleeps and I clean at the new house. Glass tile has proved to take longer to install & our "tile guy" that we had to find at the last minute has been working all week. After he is finished, Dana needs to install all of the fixtures & cabinets in the master bathroom. Finally, Dave, the plumber, heating & air guy does work at his own pace. But, the bank & city inspectors seem to be satisfied so far.

So, July 4th & 5th really seem to be moving days! I have been extremely nervous & haven't been able to plan for this weekend until tonight when it took me a half an hour to send an email to all of our helpers.

Will post pictures soon. Wish us luck!

Happy Birthday, Dana & What We Do For Air Conditioning

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 03:01:00 +0000

Dana turns 34 today! In this video he celebrates by using his prized hoist to pull the air conditioner up the side of the house. This is the second attempt. Eliza & I witnessed Brian S, Dana, & Dan finally pulling the box through the opening after about 30 minutes of readjusting, & pulling. It is officially on the roof!

Dana isn't a birthday person, but he does enjoy a homemade cherry pie. Eliza and I made a not-too-bad one using the cherries from the tree at our current house. Also, enjoyed a little bit of time with Grandma Rains & Aunt Pat.

T minus 24 Days - And yeah, those are Kitchen Cabinets

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:18:00 +0000

Holy shit, it has been a whole year since we dug the hole for the foundation. With 24 days till we move in - ok we are flexible - it is hard to digest all that has happened in what has been the fastest year of my life.

Brian the painter is wrapping up the final touches upstairs, Keith will be in the house next week to finish the last bit of tile in our bathroom, Dave the plumber-heating and air-cabinet maker-flooring contractor is coming to hook up the AC and turn on the hot water heater, and I have almost finished installing the ktichen cabinets.

Thanks to Ed for assembling the IKEA ktichen and bath cabinets. I think he is considering contracting himself out to do IKEA builds fulltime.

So, barring famine, flood, or fire, in about 4 weeks we will be done with the house. I am looking for a new project if you think of anything I can work on?

The Real Truth

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 30 May 2009 13:14:00 +0000

Most of this blog focuses on the positive and exciting aspects of building a house. We are incredibly lucky and grateful to be able to take on this challenge, BUT . . . it hasn't come without huge sacrifice and has been difficult. For those of you thinking about building a house and doing work yourselves, know what you are getting into. We had a pretty good idea, but at times we have felt like our eyes have been bigger than our stomachs.

A typical day for Dana includes going to work and then coming home to work on the hosue. He stops by for dinner and then back to work until late at night. When he comes home, Eliza is asleep and if we are lucky we get to sit and watch tv, too tired for talking, for a few minutes. On other nights, we discuss choices of tile, paint, carpeting, et, (fight about) finances, make to do lists, or plans for the next day. All weekends are reserved for work on the house. Eliza and I usually continue to do our thing, visiting city sights, playdates with friends, going to church. One thing we hadn't planned on is how much we would really miss little weekend trips to Cincinnati and Robinson.

And, I have been going a little nuts (sometimes a lot nuts) practicing at the single-parenting. While we have had lots of help from friends and family in taking care of Eliza, it's just not the same as a dad who comes home every evening. Lately, Eliza has been hanging on Dana when he stops by and begging him not to leave again. Seriously hard to pry her away!

So, the perpetual question is, "When will it be ready?" The bank says that we have a year from when we started which is July 9th. Honestly, I haven't researched the penalties involved in being a little late . . . yet. Our goal for moving is July 4th. However, with set-backs like the floor fiasco this week, it is going to be close.

Once we move, the immediate concern will be getting our current house ready to put on the market. Then, we hope for a miracle in today's economy, that is sells quickly so we can be finished with double mortgages!

Deep breaths . . . Five weeks and counting!

Serious Floor!

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 28 May 2009 02:09:00 +0000

Here is a picture of the ash floor that Dana has worked around the clock to lay & sand. He has also sacrificed the feeling in his thumb due to the vibration of the sander. Unfortunately, he didn't do something correctly with the first coat of sealer that he used, so he's currently trying to figure out what to do to correct his mistake. It will probably involve an even more massive sander.
Also, here is the wooden frame for the master bathtub that he built.

Another Isolated Incident?

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Thu, 21 May 2009 19:11:00 +0000

Many readers may have already caught wind of a police encounter we had here at the new house a few weeks back. I wasn't sure if the house blog was the place to write about my experience, but it did happen at the new house and I thought it was time to get the word out, both to inform and to clarify some misinformation that is already circulating. For a more even keeled summary check out our friend Ruth Hollady's Blog. I think she hit the nail on the head.

The following incident occurred Saturday, the 18^th of April, 2009 between my neighbor, a police officer, and myself. Sometime mid-morning I had a friend comb the dirt pile behind the house at 1126 East 9^th Street to remove bricks in preparation for grading the yard. I had the bricks stacked just on the west side of the north/south ally connecting 9^th to Stillwell street. They were on the grass next to the city alley. They were not blocking traffic and were to be picked up later that day by another neighbor.

That afternoon, my elderly neighbor to the west, whom I have known for years, emerged from her house to yell at me for dumping the bricks on her yard. She was obviously upset as I tried unsuccessfully to explain the situation to her. As further attempts at explanation were useless, I returned to work on my house.

About 20 minutes later, the neighbor's daughter and son-in-law arrived. Uninvited and unannounced, the son-in-law entered my house and proceeded to yell at me without allowing me to explain the situation. A few minutes later a police officer arrived. The son-in-law left and the police officer entered without asking permission and without introducing himself. He said I needed to move the bricks. If he (or the son-in-law) had bothered to ask or allow me to speak, he would have known this was not a point of contention. I tried to explain these events to the officer, and he quickly escalated the situation and became very aggressive.

He then accused me of choosing the wrong person to have an attitude with. Now if by attitude he meant I was frustrated and annoyed, then he was right. In a short period of time, I had an elderly woman yelling at me, a man twice my size enter my house to yell at me, and a policeman enter my house and accuse me of having an attitude. In spite of this, I was not aggressive or threatening to him in any way. Fortunately, two of my friends were present to witness both the officer’s and my actions.

This officer simply could not let the situation settle. It was as if he had to prove to me that he was superior and had complete control over anyone he chose. He continued escalating the situation by telling me to step out of the house and demanding some ID. I asked him if I needed ID in my own house. He said I did. When I turned to go into the house to retrieve my wallet, he pushed me against the door and handcuffed me. He proceeded to intimidate my friends and me and claimed that by trying to reenter my house I was resisting. When one friend tried to read his badge number and asked him to calm down, the officer ordered him to go inside the house or he would be arrested too. My friend did mange to read his badge. It was 2126. We now know he is J. Walters and is a regular east district officer on the middle shift.

By this time, several neighbors were there. Some neighbors quickly moved the bricks and tried to reason with the officer. After enough neighbors were there speaking on my behalf, he decided to release me, but not before lecturing me on the need to be a good neighbor to the lady across the alley. This is a woman I have known for years and have gone out of my way to help on multiple occasions.

I later learned that two of the indicators of inappropriate behavior by a police officer are the use of threats or profanity. I cannot recall him using profanity, but I felt threatened. He threatened to arrest me. I have heard many firsthand accounts of the conditions and violence that take place routinely in lockup. So, repeatedly threatening to take me to lockup because he did not like my attitude was in fact threatening me with violence. After one neighbor defended my actions, I remember the officer saying her account would probably “save me.” I am still not sure what he was arresting me for because he never said. If he had a real reason to arrest me, I am sure he would have. Instead, he used the threat of arrest as a verbal club.

At no time did this officer introduce himself or tell us his name even though he was asked. He did not give us his badge number. He never stopped to talk to the son-in-law about entering my house and yelling. In fact, the daughter and son-in-law never stopped fanning the flames from across the fence where they retreated when the policeman arrived. Their behavior was acceptable to him. He would not allow me to speak without accusing me having an attitude. When I stopped trying to talk to him and simply retrieve my identification from my house, he handcuffed me accusing me of ignoring him. I was stuck not being allowed to talk but not being allowed to ignore this man. He allowed communication to completely breakdown.

This could have been avoided. The officer had a chance to help us resolve what was essentially a misunderstanding by an elderly woman and an over reaction by her children. He could have acted as a mature mediator and a calming force to help resolve the issue in a respectful manner to all of us. Instead, he revealed himself to be a bully. He was only interested in proving he was better than someone else.

Monday, the 27^th of April, I filed a compliant with the Citizens Police Complaint Office. They took my statement and told me it would be processed in 4 to 6 weeks. Thursday, the 21^st of May, Sargent Baker stopped at our house. He is Officer Walter's Sargent. Baker received the complaint from CPCO and was following up by interviewing the witnesses. He was not unsympathetic and was very polite, but basically told Kelly and I that while officer Walters could have gone slower and gathered more information, he basically didn't do anything against departmental procedures. He didn't feel there was enough misconduct to warrant any sort of formal discipline. He has spoken to Officer Walters and said he would again to reiterate the need to take time to understand the situation and respond more appropriately - more proportionally. Baker also said he would bring this up at role call with the other officers he supervises.

He went on to explain that because I had probably never had any interaction with the Police where I was the center of attention I probably didn't know how to respond. In essence he was saying that because I had never been mistreated by the police in the past I couldn't be expected to know how and when to say “yes sir” and “no sir”, and “is that all sir”. So having been through it once, the next time I experience this sort of abuse of power I will know better how to take a beating.

I suspect this is the end of any remedy that might come from the police department. What remains now is to disseminate the message that not only is this behavior common it is OK.

For more isolated incidents around the country go here, here, here, here, here, ...

Oh yeah, and J Walters is still patrolling our community, he is armed, and he has a history of losing control – please be careful.

Doors, Floors, & More

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sun, 10 May 2009 22:49:00 +0000

A new sound in the recent weeks . . . standing outside, we heard some loud rain when it was completely sunny. Turns out that helicopters were falling from the tree onto the metal roof. Melissa said that she had heard it inside of her house, as well.
Dana has been hard at work, especially since we put together a timeline to finish the house. I am the enforcer & Dana tries to keep up with the schedule that he set. If everything goes as planned (and we all know that usually happens) we will be set to finish construction by the bank deadline, which is July 9th.
Trim is almost finished upstairs. Pocket doors have been installed. And, even a door to the master bathroom, which is extremely exciting as our current house does not even include that! Courtney & Courtland Jones came to help again on Saturday. They began installing the beautiful ash flooring downstairs.

Another Bobcat Day

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 14:24:00 +0000

Eliza and I are in Colorado visiting family. We've been having lots of fun playing with my cousins and Eliza's "removed cousins" as she tells every stranger that we pass.

While we are away, Dana plans to have another bobcat day today. The back of the lot has a mountain of dirt (that Eliza looooves to climb) and parts of the house still need to be backfilled. So, since the weather is dry and since Dana dislikes running trim, today is the day.

The faithful blog followers may remember the last time Dana used the bobcat, back in August. The bobcat ended up in the hole between the foundation and the dirt wall & a tow truck had to be called to lift it out. A fun fact that Dana discovered last week is that if you Google "bobcat accident," our blog is #7 on the list. If you Google "bob cat accident," we are #3.

Plugging Along

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 00:16:00 +0000

We have been seriously lazy bloggers lately. But, that doesn't mean we haven't been busy. Last weekend, Dana's grandfather came for a visit & was excited to finally see the upstairs!

This week, Dana has been installing a lot of interior trim around all of our windows. Next stop, trim around the doors.

Also, we have hired Keith to do all of the tile in the bathrooms. Two of the bathrooms are completed. We finally ordered green apple glass tile for the master bathroom. That was a seriously agonizing decision. We have never seen it up close & personal but only online. So, hopefully we'll like it!

Also, our friends & neighbors came to help this weekend. Martin got his first experience with painting. Melissa has been dying to do something, so she got to paint too. We painted the master bedroom (green) and Eliza's bathroom (orange). Courtney and Brian assisted with trim while Courtney's son, Courtland, got to sweep, fill nail holes, and paint.

Brian S. has been hired to finish the painting and some other details this week. So, even though are not blogging a lot, things are still plugging along.

Asphalt Shingles are so Pass'e

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 13:18:00 +0000

Many of the so called 'Green' products are what one architect calls vitamin enriched cigarettes - They are very expensive with little benefit or very long payback periods. Solar cells are the most obvious example. Silicon wafers are expensive and are not particularly efficient at converting radiation in the visible spectrum to electricity. They have gotten cheaper and better over the years, but they are I think a long way from being practical. So we need a big advance in technology to make them cheaper or better at converting energy, or both.

Another example I have seen is the green (living) roof. They are expensive as compared to conventional residential roofs, and we can get a similar benifits from good insulation, proper house orientation, good landscaping, etc. But in this case I believe the added cost is not a result of a technology limit. Instead it is lack of knowledge, or fear of the unknown. There is nothing inherit to a flat membrane roof that makes it more expensive than a pitched shingle roof. But the pitched roof is what the framers know, shingles are what the roofers know, and flat roofs scare owners and code enforcement officials.

It's true, a flat roof requires more design and there is less room for error. But we can make a shift by education instead of a leap in technology. And I think the green roofs are going to be worth the effort. So I am looking forward to finishing the house and getting on to some fun things like implementing our living roof. Check out the local classes going on if your interested in building your own living roof system - GreenRoofs.org

Spraying Continues

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 12:56:00 +0000

Spraying of the stairs continues today. There has to be at least 3 coats sprayed, with sanding in between so it has been going on since Wednesday. Our plumber (and new friend), Dave, has been helping. Dana has been working late and early hours. But, wouldn't you agree they are the most beautiful stairs in all the world? I think I'll be afraid to walk on them for the rest of my life!

Here is a picture of the BA fan that Dave brought. Now you can smell the chemicals next door & across the street. Wait a second, those neighbors went out of town for the weekend! Both of the other pictures were taken from the first floor since there is no unnecessary walking until spraying is finished.

"Banisters"

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:32:00 +0000

I'm not supposed to have taken any pictures or posted anything until after this coming weekend. Dana is still hard at work tonight getting the finishing touches on the stairs before they get sprayed this weekend. After the stairs are totally finished, I am told that the rest of the work moves very fast. (We'll see.) Even though I'm breaking the rules, to prevent blog-boredom, here are a few pics of the "banisters," as my mom likes to call them. She refused to walk all the way up until we got these railings.

Up on the Rooftop

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 00:29:00 +0000

On Saturday, Dana & Greg got up really early to drive to Batesville to pick up the ash flooring. They also finished putting the stairs together. There are no handrails yet, but you CAN walk all the way up to the roof now, which means the most beautiful staircase I have ever seen is almost finished! The railings are made (thanks, Courtney Jones) and ready to be installed. I've always said that I would start to get excited when the stairs were finished and now I am ready to move in!

Firing On All Cylinders, With An Occasional Miss

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 17:30:00 +0000

Last Saturday friends Courtney and Greg were in the house - literally.

Courtney spent his time in the shop, calling on his expertise from the organ shop, machining the handrails. He saved me a lot of time and did a better job than I could have. Here's to hoping he will retun next Saturday to finish cutting and installing the rails.

I finished the last landing early in the morning then starting cutting the last stringers. Turns out Greg is the only person who knows how to insert and assemble the treads into the stringers. This is an artifact of the process we have been following on the way up. I have been cutting the stringers, a painstaking process, while Greg follows behind me assembling the units, an equally painful process.

What I am trying to say is, I had a lot of good help, and we got a lot done. So where is the miss. While cutting the last stringer to get to the third floor, I screwed the pooch and cut it incorrectly. So we almost had the stairs complete - so close but so far.

Well you can't purchase 8/4 rough Ash at the local hardware store. And it was late Saturday afternoon, so we knocked off and I took a break Sunday. My dad drove to Brookville Monday to get a new piece of Ash, and with any luck I will be back on track about 8:35 tonight when I complete the last stringer - ready for Greg to come show me how the treads get assembled.

P.S. Eric is almost done painting and Keith has started laying tile.

Do Not Adjust Your Computer

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 01:53:00 +0000

You don't need to tune in the color settings on your computer. Yellow & pink are the colors that Eliza chose for her bedroom, which she got to help paint today. Dana called to say that Eric was painting Eliza's room so we needed to hurry down. Eliza said, "Why do we need to hurry? Does Eric think he is the only painter? I am a painter too!" She said the pink was her most favorite part of the room. We don't all agree. Dana is worried that it will bring the appraisal down. Eliza was also very proud of the face with rosy cheeks on her belly.

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 11:56:00 +0000

Numerous people have complained there are few pictures of Kelly on our house site. So here she is - on the beach in Destin Florida - February 2007.

We made it to the 2nd floor!

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0000

With MORE help from Greg last weekend, we can now walk to the 2nd floor. Of course, we have to take off our shoes so we don't get the stairs muddy. We've got a serious mud problem in the alley to take care of eventually. It was fun to stand on the landing and wave to Ollie & Brian, who were eating in their kitchen.

Eliza walks from the 1st floor to the basement - 1st time

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 01:45:00 +0000

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 01:59:00 +0000

Operation Stairway erection began 3 weeks ago and we can finally walk from the basement to the first floor - 2 more flights to go! We are targeting the end of February for stair way completion.

We will get better pictures up soon, hopefully with more progress to show.

We have started picking colors and our friend Eric has started painting some of the walls.

A Change Even I Can See

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:50:00 +0000

Dana has been working on the stairs for a couple of weeks. My question when he comes home is always, "Did you make any progress that I can see yet?" Last weekend, the answer was finally, "yes." Greg, a REALLY good friend, has been helping the past couple of weekends. After he leaves, Dana always says, "It's a good thing Greg was here today." So, thanks for your help, Greg!

Here is a picture of the current "landing." I hear that once we get to this point, everything should go up pretty fast, so I'll keep you posted.

Pause for station identification

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:42:00 +0000

Those that know me well know I am a tool junkie. And after years of buying tools I have settled on Makita power tools as the best value. So all the new power tools I have purchased to build the house are Makita.

With stair erection well under way I have been using all the new tools constantly and I thought it was a good time to give a shout out to my favorite new tool - The 18volt Lithium Ion impact driver.

LI-ION batteries are light years ahead of their predecessors. They charge incredibly fast and last much longer. The impact driver is tiny and light but drives screws and bolts literally better than a 1/2" corded drill. Makita worked some crazy voodoo engineering to get this little impact driver to ratchet up the torque as the load increases. And to top it off, the impact nature, whether by design or luck, tends to reduce spin out of the driver bit.

So if you are in the market for a new cordless drill driver setup check out one of the many Makita LI-ION kits. Maybe I should see if I can get sponsored by Makita?

And Stair photos are coming soon.

Overwhelmed

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 17:34:00 +0000

I am not going to lie, I am overwhelmed. I think I should have bitten off a little less for my first house build, maybe an old bus conversion - A skoolie!