Progress isn't over-rated

Okay...since last I posted much has been accomplished.

Posts for the gate have been set.

A wedding has been hosted in the back patio area.

An A/C window unit has been wired and installed.

The enclosure for the living quarters access stairs has been framed, sheet-rocked, and a door hung.

The basement wall on the corner has been repointed and sealed. (Thanks Brandon and Malick)

And an access panel was cut in the upstairs ceiling and a cupola built to cover the roof access hatch.

Lots has been done.  Summer is a time when I can really get things done if i stay on task... and I have.

I'll get by with a little help from my friends...

January 2015
Things are moving in the right direction.  My friend, Greg Ellis has been "helping" with the plumbing.  I write helping with, and mean doing.  We had made a boo-boo earlier when placing a toilet drain...too close to the side wall.  While working to correct this, he offered to finish the rough-in plumbing.  What a mensch!

I've decided that instead of finishing the corner of the front fence as planned, I'm going to build a brick pillar for the mailbox instead.  I've readied the forms for the concrete pad, but ran out of daylight before I could do the pour.  I'll try to get it before the rain on Thursday.

I've agreed with the owners of the property behind to split the cost of the fence between us.  I'll buy the materials later and submit a bill.  We'll work on it together.  I've got to get the fences done.  I've had too many things stolen from the yard to leave it open any longer.  It was bad enough before, but no that they have taken the chain-link fence between us down, even more people pass straight through.  That's going to stop.

I've found a floor guy who will do the floors at a reasonable price.  I need to do that before putting in the cabinets.  Need to start the electrical soon (it keeps getting put off for other things).  I also need to get the plumber to run the gas lines.  They are needed for the fireplaces (downstairs and upstairs), the hot water heater, and both HVAC systems.

At an auction a week ago, I bought an English pub sign.  The Brookes Arms closed and was being demolished.  The sign made it to Palestine.  We'll put Nickel Manor on it with possibly our coat of arms or some other graphic.  It should look great out front.

Lots to do, little money to do it with, and not a lotta time to spread around.  Ah well, the life of a landowner.

Just Scraping By

I may not have posted much here lately, but I have not been idle.  No no, not in the least.  I cleaned and cleaned out the main floor and held a Hallowe'en party at the Manor on, of all nights, Hallowe'en.  We had food.  We had fun.  We had guests galore.  One picture included here.

Us in period-appropriate costume

Since then I have been scraping paint off of the 12 foot ceiling in said main hall.  It's been a tough job.  At times I have hired a couple of guys to work on it, but I always end up having to go back and redo their work, so I'm doing it myself.

I've also cleaned and organized the basement and nearly finished the required framing upstairs.  To top it all off we had a few close friends over Thanksgiving evening for "leftovers around the fire".  No pictures were taken as we were just relaxing and didn't care to.  Will keep anybody who cares posted.  Later.

Getting the lead out.

Okay, so the title of this one is a little tricky.  Think lead, pronounced  /led/, the metal.  Then go to its Latin name plumbum from which we get the elemental symbol Pb for it.  Finally morph that into the modern word for the pipes that carry water and waste around our homes and you have it: Plumbing!

So I've been working on the plumbing of the Manor, trying to get it roughly to where it needs to be before finishing.  As I got to the point of putting in the drainpipe for upstairs, I found something surprising and problematic.  In the space between ceiling and floor, running next to the joists, I found the original ceramic drainpipe still in place.  This is, however, when we bought the place, that was not being used as an upstairs drain.  It was sealed off and "alternative plumbing solutions" were employed.  (For that read rubber hoses run behind the walls.)  The problem this creates is that I must now remove this ceramic pipe to make room for the new drains.  That means cutting away a large section of the ceiling to get to it.  My back can't handle that these days.  And that means I have to hire someone, which in turn means less moolah for other things.

Bummer!

On the good side, Kathy and I got the big pile of rubble cleaned up and hauled off.  It was all the broken brick pieces, concrete shards, chunks of plaster, and just plain rocks that had been piled up in the back yard of the Manor for nearly a year.  Of course it kept growing during that year.  The area looks sooo much better.  Step by step-- inch by inch-- task by task--- we approach our goal.

A friend in deed...

Yes, the space was intentional.  My best friend (other than my wife) is Jim Vincill.  Among his many talents is that of an electrician.  He called to tell me he wanted to get started working on the rewiring process in the Nickel Manor.  He found an electrician who was willing to pull the permit and safety check our work (for a reasonable fee, or course).  When the wiring gets really rolling, everything else gets in gear as well.  Thanks, man!

Boxing for Power

More good news of progress:  After rehearsal today (for the musical "Annie"), my best friend Jim and I put in  a new meter box and breaker box down here at the Nickel Manor.  Sound boring to you?  Well not to me.  This will make the place safer, and get it ready for me to start the gradual process of rewiring.  Now whenever I have the cash together, I can call the power company and have them make a new pole drop- aka pigtail- and move my meter over.  I can then patch the old breaker box to the new breaker box to keep my plugs and lights live until I finish rewiring each room.  It's a big step in the right direction.

It's just not fair...

...when I'm getting older, but Patti and Lanelle aren't. In Dallas this past weekend, I met with to dear friends from the past that I haven't seen in a long time. (Always think about, but never see.) When I see them- it's like time has frozen in awe. For me- it's like time has thawed and I'm freezer-burned. :)

We had lunch at which time I put my foot in my mouth so hard that I now have athlete's tongue. But feelings were mended and my behavior was amended. We had a fun night at Sullivan's. Jazz combo, good food, a couple of drinks, and a sweet server named Tia who had just moved in from Philadelphia. All in all a great day with the girls.

After parting on Sunday morning, I hung out long enough to shop in The Great Indoors for fixtures on the building. Some nice stuff and helpful people- prices high, but otherwise not all that special. I think I'll just order from local businesses and support the local economy.