Nemesis

what shall we do with the bbq support?
Originally uploaded by modernemama

The old built-in barbeque is refusing to lie down and accept defeat. So far three of us have had a go at removing it. Verity took out most of it with the sledgehammer, Steven decided to save the bricks and chipped the mortar off the whole ones, I took the sledgehammer to the bottom course and chiseled out the cement between the patio and the bbq base.
But the base itself is a surround of bricks with poured concrete in the middle and right in the centre is the old support for the bbq and gas line, which was cemented into the ground. This obviously went in first, then the brick surround and them the concrete was poured in. The base is 5' long, 2' deep and 6" deep. And it won't budge.
I think the only thing to do is to rent a jackhammer and reduce it to rubble but until then I've lent this Japanese Knotweed seedling that was growing behind the barbecue in front of the pipe. I think it disguises it quite nicely, don't you?

The Unimal

It's a crazy, scary concept but I kind of want one in my kitchen to remind me to keep only real food in there. The Unimal toy was created by H.E. Babcock, professor of farm marketing at Cornell University in the 1920s.

The clip is from Farmboy, a documentary about his son John Babcock. It is directed by Jake Gorst, grandson of Andrew Geller and lead mover to save the modern icon The Pearlroth House, a beach house on the east end of Long Island.

Ready for the summer visitors?

High cabinets
Originally uploaded by modernemama

We all know it's true, S**t or as D. Rumsfeld, would have it, "Stuff" happens.
So the day before the first visitor arrives, the old barbecue has been demolished and a new one has been ordered, and all the bathrooms (except for the master shower, but who cares about that apart form ME?) are functioning. The house has been cleaned from top to bottom and the yard is looking good. We are all set for a relaxing summer, just in the nick of time. When...........
Many months ago, while we were deciding on a timetable for the remaining projects, the far left kitchen cupboard door came off two of its hinges. We managed to get it back in place and agreed not to use that cupboard again. We didn't really need it as we have plenty more space and it was an odd corner cupboard anyway (we used to keep dog food in it but we found another place for that).
In the frenzy to make this place look gorgeous I (it was me, mea culpa) opened the lower door instead of the upper where the vases are kept and the door fell completely off, twisting the remaining hinge in the process. Impossible to re-attach, the hinges have already been re-positioned at least once, impossible to fix into place, and exposing the nasty, old cabinet interior.
Luckily we were just about to leave for a well-earned martini in Huntington, and I couldn't do anything other than laugh about it but today we are now faced with another dilemma. Do we take the door away completely leaving the old dirty white laminate for all to see (think rotten tooth) or leave the door leaning against the cabinet and risk someone (probably me) walking into numerous times each day?
Is there any way we can get the kitchen remodel done by this evening? I mean if Extreme Home Makeover can rebuild an entire house in five days how long would it take to do a kitchen? Seriously, we need help here.

More demo

This time in the yard. The old built-in barbecue finally expired when Steven was slow grilling a pork butt just before we went to Tennessee (we were craving bbq and couldn't wait).
We could have re-pointed the bricks, got new stainless steel doors made and installed a new barbecue unit, but it would have cost $$$$ more than buying a new gas grill so we went the demolition route.
As we believe in making our kids work for their supper, Verity gave a few whacks of the trusty sledgehammer and this is all that was left.

Now all we have to do is choose a new grill.

Downstairs bathroom done

downstairs bathroom
Originally uploaded by modernemama

We're all plumbed in and good to go, only three weeks after the final deadline but importantly two days before the visitors arrive. It's a temporary makeover but it's a big improvement over the 60s suite that was there before.
I do wonder, though, how long it will be before vessel sinks and pillar faucets are considered passé?

Hermes and Maya

Hermes and Maya
Originally uploaded by modernemama

Don't get too used to that hiding place, kitties. It's coming out later today.
These are the latest additions to the household. Maya is the tiny tabby and Hermes el bandito is the Burmese cross with the raccoon eyes.

Quick bathroom makeover

new vanity, backsplash
Originally uploaded by modernemama

Well not really quick, but at least not the six months the other two baths took. We got back from Tennessee to find the tiler had been as good as his word and he'd tiled grouted the backsplash for the new floating vanity.
This is a temporary fix, I'm still sold on the beadboard paneling idea for this room when we completely remodel it in a few years' time. Or maybe glass subway tiles, if they've come up with a better solution to fixing them to the walls by then.
With the mosaic backsplash in place, we noticed one thing immediately about the bathroom wall. If you get up close you can see how the wall is off by about .5" under the window, luckily by placing the vessel sink on the countertop the eye gets distracted and it's no longer obvious. However, when we looked closely above the window to the ceiling, we could see that the wall slopes badly to the left (more like 1"). This wasn't noticeable when the old roller blind was up, so I hope when we put up the new wood blind we'll camouflage this problem as well.

Downstairs Bathroom

The vanity is in, the ceiling has been patched, the old blind is gone. These are the positive things. Yippee.
On the less positive side, the shower has yet to be caulked, the new wood blind won't be here for "two weeks" and the tiling has hit a bit of a snageroo.
Although the tile showroom assured us we could build up the specially modified thinset to make it flush with the existing tiles, they didn't tell us it would take a few attempts, many hours to allow the thinset to set up and the patience of several saints to arrange the glass mosaic, watch it slide off, catch it, wash the thinset off, re-attach it, watch it slide off again and repeat these steps until you just want to rip off all the tiles and replace them with beadboard that you just staple to the walls.
The handy tiler guy says we are not defeated yet and he will attempt to fix it while we are vacationing in Tennessee. If he's successful he'll then grout it and finish the caulking. He didn't say what would happen if he wasn't........

We are buying up all the caulk in Huntington

Well, on Saturday we found out why the foyer ceiling has water damage. Steven managed to clean out all the old grout and there was an inch gap between the tiles and the bath tub. Even worse, as far as we could see that there was no backer board behind the tiles. I guess it must end somewhere up that last course of tiles but WTH were the tilers thinking?
Steven was just working out how best to caulk this again so we can use the tub for the next few months when we got a call from our handyman to say he could start back on Tuesday and finish up all those jobs he had to leave when he damaged his knee. We were so thankful to get this call, but I'm not sure the handyman felt the same when we regaled him with the list of extra things that had gone wrong while he was away and now needed to be fixed.
He was pretty appalled at the mess they'd made of the tiling, especially as the actual tiles are in good condition and were obviously expensive. He had two thoughts - a border of tile edging around the tub or ripping the whole lot out and doing the job properly. We are obviously going with option 2 but not until after the house-guests leave, so for now he is building up the caulk, one layer each day until we are leak free.

More ivy

But this time it was the poisonous kind. I must have brushed against it while I was clearing the border. I thought I'd cleared it all away but judging by the red itchy rash on my leg I missed a bit. Luckily we had some Zanfel in the house so it wasn't as irritating as it might have been.
On a more positive note we got the tempered glass for the back door a week early. So now we are up to code and we can see out to the backyard again. This pane is much clearer than the old one, in fact we didn't think the guy had installed it until we touched it. I hope the dogs don't think there's a big hole there and try to jump through!

Ivy irony

cassis and jefke
Originally uploaded by modernemama

I have spent every spare moment this week clearing ivy from the borders on Vineyard Rd. I've filled trash bag after trash bag and this morning I finally declared it done. All the ivy under the rhododendrons? Gone. All that ivy chocking the tiny azalea bushes? Gone.
Then I bought some more flowers to fill a planter. And what did I use to trail down the sides? Variegated ivy, that's what.
Oh, the irony.

Exposed plumbing - a trendy new look?

We are now a week passed the "absolutely has to be finished by" deadline and we still have this charming hole in the laundry room and its mate, the lovely new wastepipe in the downstairs bathroom.



Still no word from our lovely handyman on his poor knee so no chance of repairs to the drywall, or tiles for that matter but apparently we will have an installed vanity in the bathroom by Tuesday morning. Then, if I'm smartish, we may get the bathroom plumbed before we leave for a week of music and mayhem in Tennessee at the end of next week.
May. Might. With a lot of luck.

Peonies

I have been suffering from peony envy for about five weeks. My neighbour's front yard has the most beautiful, large, continuously flowering peonies. They start early, in the beginning of May and are still blooming now.
Mine, on the other hand have taken all this time to reach flowering stage. I put this down to the fact that these are ones I transplanted from the shady rear yard, where I never ever saw them bloom. This year, though, I noticed big buds on them and I've been anxiously waiting to see what colour they would be.
They turned out to be a glorious shade of cream with a pink center and a pink tinge to the outer petals. But the strange thing is that this year more peonies sprung up in the back garden. I obviously didn't transplant them all, although where they've been for the last two years is a mystery.

pink peony
Originally uploaded by modernemama

A bigger mystery is why these peonies are a dusky pink.
Any thoughts?

Revenge of The Cool House

back door
Originally uploaded by modernemama

It is a truism in house renovation: fix one problem and another is thrown your way.

In this case not many hours after I was dancing a jig of glee at having replaced the decades old laundry appliances Steven walked past the back hall and bang went the pane of glass in the door.

Apart from the damage to his nerves nobody was hurt but we can't work out what happened. The dogs were in the other part of the house, no birds have flown into the door, it just cracked across blowing a huge hole out of the middle. Of course it was 8 pm so apart from a temporary keep the elements out job with duct tape, cardboard and contractor bags on the outside there wasn't much we could do.

I'm waiting for the glazier to open at 10 am to find out what the damage will be to replace the door light with tempered glass. Until then it's kind of dark down this end of the house.

What's small and cute and sounds like a jet?

new laundry appliances
Originally uploaded by modernemama

A Bosch Axxis washing machine, that's what.
They arrived at lunchtime and they have already done one load of washing. It came out of the washer practically dry, and CLEAN too. So nice. I'd forgotten, though, what 1200 RPM sounds like, it whirrs and whines like a jet taking off. And it has more controls than the average airplane, and I'm sure the only one I'll ever use is standard wash. This model also beeps when it starts and when it finishes and possibly if something goes wrong too (I'm hoping not to find out).
Weirdly enough although the dryer is an American model the washer comes from Canada and speaks both English and French. Chouette. Did they run out of American Axxis washers, do you think?
The installers were nice enough to wait after they'd hauled out then old machines so I could attempt to clean yards of fabric softener off the floor. That stuff is just nasty: a gooey, black mess that I had to scrape off before I could give it a quick go over with the mop. I haven't used the stuff in my washing in a decade so I can honestly say that it wasn't my muck under there.
OK, I'm going to do another load of washing now, yippee. This is just the boost I needed to get me to tackle another project, I can't wait until I can put the wall cabinets up and get back to having a usable laundry.

Goodbye old friends

Old washer and dryer
Originally uploaded by modernemama

It's time to say goodbye to the old washer and dryer.They have laundered their last load. Tomorrow I will have new efficient, more environmentally friendly models that'll take up less space, too. I am so excited.

The other tax season

pink rhododendron
Originally uploaded by modernemama

I had to go and pay the half-yearly property taxes today and as usual it was a totally painless experience (well apart from parting with an obscene amount of money, that always hurts). I still haven't got used to the difference in the Town of Huntington and the Town of Hades where we used to reside.
There I used to stand on line for hours because there were never more than two people serving at any one time and the officials always had something better to do (order lunch, partake of free donuts, count the trolls on their desk) than serve the people who elected them. And when I finally handed over my check I was usually greeted with a snarl for my pains.
Here I have never queued, there are plenty of staff to serve you and they are polite and smiling. It just makes tax paying more efficient and pleasant. I think it must be something to do with this Town. I had to renew my driving license in person last month. When I did that in the other town it took four hours. Here I was in and out in 10 minutes and I had fun too. A fun time at the DMV? Maybe I'm living in an alternative universe.

Cleaning and waiting

White Rhododendron
Originally uploaded by modernemama

We now have a moss-free brick path and patio at the rear of the house.The magic algae removing formula was: a bucket of extremely hot water, Palmolive dishwashing soap and baking soda mixed with a healthy dose of Clorox Garden bleach. Pour it on, let it sit, scrub it in, then keep adding more hot water and scrubbing until the red brick emerges. Finish off by hosing it down with cold. It would be easier to cut back all the greenery but not half as pretty so we'll be going through this performance again when it gets humid.
If you look out from the downstairs bath window towards the newly clean brick path this is what you see, a 6' rhododendron that starts to blossom with the palest pink buds and opens to this bright white. Gorgeous.
If only the bathroom were that pretty. It's past Memorial Day and we still have no floating vanity, no sink, no faucet and no tiles. I did get the maple toilet seat for the new Toto but obviously we don't have the Toto yet either. Hey ho.

What could possibly go wrong?

White Rhododendron
Originally uploaded by modernemama

I asked myself at the start of this long weekend. These were the outside chores we had to complete:
1) Get moss off patios and paths
2) Control Carpenter Bees
3) Weed borders
4) Bring out and wash garden furniture
5) Wash windows
And after the purchase of the new washer/dryer we added
6) Paint the laundry room
Not an impossibly long or complicated list, is it?
By the end of yesterday afternoon we were congratulating ourselves, numbers 1-4 had been done and we 'd planted the rest of the pots with flowers and herbs and even added some annuals along the brick path.
We were so ahead of things Steven thought he'd nip to the Mall for a couple of items, get back, wash the windows at the back of the house (he'd already done the others) and then see to the laundry. But before he went he decided to skim the pool.
He'd dressed for the Mall so he was smart, even wearing his new brown loafers. And he was just about finished when...
I didn't see what happened because I'd turned round to talk to the dog but I heard the splash. He'd lost his footing and fallen into the shallow end of the pool, catching his knee on the side on the way in. He emerged dripping, blood pouring from a scraped knuckle but impressively he was still wearing his glasses. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me so you'll have to imagine the scene, but apart from a sore knee, a couple of scrapes and the skinned knuckle he's fine. But he won't be tackling the laundry this week.

Addendum: I almost forgot the irony of the situation. One of the things Steve did yesterday that wasn't even on the list, was to re-lay the brick path where the roots had pushed up a couple of bricks. He did an excellent job, and all to prevent us from tripping and damaging ourselves!

Carpenter bee control

carpenter bee control
Originally uploaded by modernemama

Saturday was spent cleaning up the yard.
Steve devoted the morning to scrubbing the brick patio and the afternoon to powerwashing it. Normally I hit it hard with the powerwasher but as it proved impossible to wield the high pressure hose while balancing on one foot using a cane to avoid falling over, Steven had to take over.
By late afternoon the moss was still clinging to the bricks and a green sheen was in evidence. We've tried a solution of bleach, baking soda, Dawn and hot water but nothing seems to be shifting the green stuff this year. He had to abandon that chore eventually for the more pressing bee control project.
I honestly thought that when we had the house stained and all the bee holes filled that would be the end of our carpenter bee problem. Not so. Every year they come back, find another spot and start drilling. This year they've favoured over the kitchen window and the dining room overhang. Steve got a baker's dozen this time and went off to shower the insecticide away. When he was clearing up for the night he was buzzed by a huge bee that flew into a hole he hadn't noticed, not in the redwood siding but on the underside of the new Marvin window in the boy's bath. Grr.
We'll be back tomorrow, carpenter bee, with spray, wood and paint, so you'd do well to leave now while you get the chance.