Episode 12: No News is NOT Good News

For the past week, progress has ranged from slight to non-existent.  Phil, mostly working alone, put in a couple half days and worked on the porch, as well as a few rows of tile. I was out of town on Wednesday, but had been assured that work would be done all day Wednesday. I left the key for Greg the Builder in a designated spot.  When we returned Thursday evening, nothing had been touched.  I called Greg on Friday and he told me that nothing would be done until Monday, that his crew did not show up on Wednesday. Yes, I can understand that the construction firm is also working on two other jobs that I know of and I am very, very pleased that they have work in this economy.  I can also understand that people want some holiday fun, but my patience is wearing thin. This project is now a month behind schedule. My kitchen is a cluttered mess. The studio is unheated and now that colder weather has set in, our boiler is running non-stop. I am eager to move on and move in!

Episode 11: Where have all the workers gone? (except Phil!)

This is the tale of a studio that is named after a turtle; and like a turtle, it is progressing slowly. Perhaps I should have named it after a cheetah! Nobody came yesterday. I waited until it was quite late, then locked the door. Today Phil came back and worked alone on staining and assembling the window frames. He is creating lovely window surrounds; but the outside siding still isn't done on the south side and the porch and the cement and the paint.... I hope the weather holds out so this project can be finished before it becomes impossible because of snow and ice. A thought just occurred to me:  I am having this work done by Bear Builders and bears are known to estivate in the winter...Oh, dear! (A small consolation: At least bears are not true hibernaters.)

Now, for my friends who like to follow the pictures, here are the latest.

Phil is matching the woodworks to the existing door and is detailing them to match the era of our house.

He has even included a window sill for the placement of plants and sculptures.

This is the view to the south.

This is the western side.

Episode 10: Remember, remember the 5th of November....

While many people remember the 5th of November because it is Guy Fawkes Day, in our family we remember this date because it is the birthday of our grandson Matthew. So on November 4, we designated Phil the Carpenter as "Keeper of the Keys" and took off for Matthew's house, about 200 miles away! (Happy third birthday, Dear Matthew!  May you have many happy moments with Thomas the Tank Train in the coming year!)

The roads were clear; the trip home went smoothly. When we returned today, I rushed into the studio to see what had been done. I was assailed by the pungent odor of wood stain, a necessary evil. After admiring the stained trim boards, the interior windows that had been given their frames and paint, and the expanded back porch, I threw open the doors in spite of the chilly weather and turned on all the fans I could find in a vain attempt to rid the house of fumes. Before night fell, I went out for the ritual of photographing, and I now present the results:


Note the shelves in the pass-through and the completed interior window frame. The drawers on the lower right side of the pass-through (formerly known as our pantry) are part of the original pantry that we could salvage, built by the Irish carpenter for his family in 1892.

Here are the stained woodworks--the source of the pungent odor. In the morning, I'll open a window.

Here is our dachshund Hildegaard standing on the expanded back porch, looking into the studio.

What might she be thinking?

(This back porch was originally built by Mark Lutzenberger from South Milwaukee.  George's hometown is South Milwaukee, too; so he was pleasantly surprised to find out that Phil, the Keeper of the Keys Carpenter, is also from South Milwaukee and also attended Rawson Avenue Grade School--although much later than George.)

Episode 9: A Snowstorm of Drywall, then Walls of Sunshine and Rain

Episode 9: A Snowstorm of Drywall, then Walls of Sunshine and Rain

In this entry, I’ll let the pictures speak. Slowly, progress has been made on the drywall and paint through the diligence of Phil. There is still much to be done, but now that the color is up on the walls, the studio is beginning to take on a character of its own.

Here is Phil, the Drywall Artist.... He's been almost singlehandedly putting up the drywall and sanding it since Monday, although Greg the Builder came to help a couple times. Because it's been so cold out, we decided to run fans until 10:00 P.M. to speed up the drying process. 

Yesterday the walls were dry enough for the base coat and today Phil painted the ceiling and walls. The colors as portrayed here are not a very clear reflection of their actuality. The ceiling is white. The south, west, and north walls are sort of a pale sunshine or cream color.  The east wall, the Lake Michigan side, is sort of a pale blue-green-gray. Sunshine and Solitude. I looked at many paint samples from Sherwin-Williams and consulted with Maria and Mike over the decision. It seems like the choices are going to work very well.

On another note, there was a misunderstanding with Arnold Check, the Overseer, about when we were meeting.  I had to take Geo to PT at 3 today and he thought I said I'd be home by 3. "Check" seems to be the perfect name for someone who comes by to collect money.  He is coming back for another payment tomorrow morning. It's the third installment--he called it the "build-out" payment.