real estate – Page 9 – The Hermits' Rest

What’s an Office without Doors?

An Open Office

Like my corporate office in Austin that I haven’t seen since early March. And I do not like those one bit. That’s why I was extra happy to see that there were some new office doors hung in the Pope house when I got back to town today. I realize now they are the same style as the ones at Bobcat, my Austin House, only in knotty pine.

The door on the right is the one Chris had to cut down, because the opening is only 7 feet.

They are going to get stained to match the barn doors, to add a bit of contrast to all the white trim. The black hardware looks very nice.

The door to Lee’s office, with the barn door that separates his and Kathleen’s offices behind it. The doors will match.

Chris also got one of the barn doors partially hung, and is working on the other one. It’s no easy feat to get a big, heavy door securely affixed to a brick wall, so there’s lots of prep work and such. Once everything is ready, Chris will crack open the tube of super-duper epoxy that mixes itself in the nozzle and quickly use it to firmly attach all the support bolts and such. It only takes 45 minutes to dry, so you have to glue while the gluing is good, apparently.

You can see above the bathroom door the large bolts that will hold the barn door up. The door is at right.

Other things that are getting attached are the mantel pieces in the front office and my office. We don’t want them falling down, either. I’m getting excited about the area that will surround my faux woodstove in my office. Ooh, it will be a surprise.

New piece of wood to support the hearth. Still bummed that one brick is missing.

The Main Bathroom Shines

All of the furnishings are now in the main bathroom, though none of the plumbing is hooked up. The new shelving unit looks really nice, and the rustic vanity goes well with the lighting. You can actually tell it’s a bathroom now.

The half door opens and does not hit the vanity nor the light fixture
This vanity matches the “barn door” theme of much of our furniture
Here’s the broom closet looking all built-in

While losing a day of work going to Temple to get supplies and help stranded elderly people on the side of the road, Chris picked up the feet for our cast iron bathtub. That practically gave him a hernia, because WHOA these things are WAY bigger than they looked in their picture! They are huge!

I think it weighs 10 pounds. I know it’s 9 inches long. That is one BIG clawfoot.

Everyone thought surely I’d exchange them, but I figure they “make a statement” and we will use them. Most certainly they will hold up the tub, as long as the combined weight of legs and tub don’t collapse the floor! The installation guide just says it’s “extremely heavy.”

This has taken a while, but to me, it’s gone pretty quickly, considering that it’s mostly been done by one person!

Cabinets and Doors at Pope House

And of course, another birdhouse

Things are still happening at the Pope house renovation. Chris has decided to get moving with doors, so today he cut down the door that has to be extra-short in the main bathroom. He’ll stain that next.

The door has had equal amounts cut off the top and bottom.

He already stained both the barn doors, one of which goes in my office bathroom and the other that goes between Lee’s and Kathleen’s offices. That’s the same color the stairs will be, too. Sanding is coming soon!

The two barn doors are in front, and the pieces to the utility closet are in back.

Another project that is near completion is the broom and storage closet for the main bathroom. It’s custom built, and can be moved for access to the water heater enclosure. I suggested the idea of two doors on the front, so that the doors won’t hit the vanity when open. Chris and Lee will pick up the door handle and hinges tomorrow on the Lowe’s run.

The shelf will go next to this well disguised heater, all trimmed out and such. The front panel unscrews.

Also during that trip, he’ll get the feet to the bathtub. He got started on that project by smoothing the area where the porcelain had been chipped off. It’s on its way to being a shiny bathroom showpiece!

The gray is bondo-like stuff that will get a porcelain coating. The outside will get sanded and painted.

Fun was had when Chris made the latest birdhouse. It had to be sort of large, so he made it a duplex. It got nice round perches and a little garden. I think an artistic soul is emerging during this project!

Next time I’m at the Pope house, I’ll share where it gets installed.

Of course the garden goes all the way around the birdhouse. Can’t wait to stick a bird on it!

Birdhouses, Butterflies, Break-time Fun

That Chris, he needs a break from constant caulking, which is the never-ending phase of the Pope renovation he’s on now. Every bit of trim needs some caulk. Ugh. I’m sure glad he does takes some breaks, because that means we get birdhouses!

The bird house will get a perch and a lovely fake bird. I ordered a bunch of potential residents to try out.

Today’s house is at an extremely awkward corner where I guess we could have put some kind of decorative finial or something. But a birdhouse is way more fun and adds quite a bit of whimsy to the project. Chris knows I like birds and Kathleen likes that kind of thing, so we are not complaining a bit.

Classy molding
Basking in that shiny ceiling

I like how today’s house has molding on the bottom, to make it look like it just grew there. Hmm, where will the next house be? (I know, but I’m not telling). I got a vision of little kids visiting and being sent off to find all the birdhouses in the building. That would be fun.

Another project has gotten started, too. The water heater is getting its cabinet in the main bathroom. It’s going to fit quite nicely in the corner, and there will be some storage added, which will be good in a downstairs with no, zero, zilch closets.

Closing in on the water heater
Wait, was there a water heater here?

I believe the plan is that the compartment can be easily unscrewed for access, since it won’t happen too often once it’s hooked up. Ooh, what an exciting day that will be for all of us who wash dishes at Hearts Homes and Hands!

Breaking with Butterflies

I needed a break after finishing yet another slog of a project, so I walked around the block by the Hermit Haus. I turned by the Baptist Church, because I was wondering if the fancy New Gold hybrid lantana that’s planted all around its borders attract as much wildlife as the native ones in my tiny garden.

The answer was a resounding yes. There were skipper butterflies skipping all over the plants, as well as quite a few duskywings. I saw another variegated frittilary, but didn’t get its picture.

Duskywing
Skipper

I also saw a very large wasp, which reminded me of an even bigger one, the cicada killer (they are so cool, but I haven’t seen any this year). This one appeared to be a Guinea paper wasp, judging from its stripe pattern and large antennae. But, I could be wrong and it could be a regular ole yellowjacket, which we have plenty of around here. I’ll find out on iNaturalist, I’m hoping.

It really does me a lot of good to take little walks and outdoor breaks, which are just fine to do in an uncrowded place like here. Since we are getting more and more coronavirus cases here, I’m not going anywhere crowded right now!

Pope House Going to the Birds?

Our Pope House renovation has always had an avian element. There are often many tree ducks perched on top, and for a while we were sure vultures were nesting in the chimney (non-functional). And we have a very loud mockingbird who likes to sing to us.

And now we have a little bird house on the second floor. Chris has been working hard on the stair landing area, which I’ll show you in photos:

When the electricians installed these lamps, they left big holes, because they had to move them over a bit. Chris tried to fill the holes in with beadboard, but it didn’t look good (so I didn’t take a picture).

The stair landing has many interesting angles that had to be filled in, and then the crown molding also took a lot of cutting. Here it’s half done.

You can see that Chris made nice trim features for the lamps. He also finished scraping the old windows and cleaned them. They look great now.

In the previous picture, Chris’s head was blocking a big hunk of metal that was once something important. He decided to cover it up with a bird house!

Another view, showing that all that’s left is finishing off the flooring.

Close-up of the little house. We will get a bird for it.

I am pretty darned sure that there will be at least one more bird house in the building. I can’t wait to show you the next one! We’re almost done in the trim department and will soon be sanding things.

Lighting! Fancy! Happy!

Beltane Greetings to the pagan pals! Labor Day/May Day greetings to the socialist/communist buddies and family! I’m boycotting whatever I’m supposed to boycott, which is easy, since I don’t really buy stuff now.

This is what a maypole looks like when you’re finished with the dance. I miss our old church maypole. Photo by *@comeilmare via Twenty20*.

Ooh, yesterday did not start off at all well. I had a great deal of trouble keeping my cool in a meeting at work. I have a lot of issues with people who “mansplain” and treat me like I’m stupid, and talk right over me. I’m really glad I had witnesses so it won’t be made out that I pitched a hysterical woman fit or something.

Then I broke one of the crystals for my new chandelier. And my foot has not stopped hurting. Oh woe is me, but WAIT. There’s LIGHTING over at the Pope Residence!

Speaking of lighting, Chris painted the giant chandelier in the main office white. It looks like coral to me.

Look Up! Shiny Stuff!

A real highlight of the Pope project is finally getting to install the tin ceiling tiles. They are pretty awe-inspiring, if you ask me, and I guess I matter on this topic!

It should be less shiny when the light fixtures are up.

The main hallway is complete and ready for the light fixtures to get installed tomorrow and the final crowning touch (literally) the crown molding to go up.

This is gonna be one fancy hallway, that’s for sure.

We ended up not having enough tin to do the bathrooms, which was a disappointment. The consensus is that we will order another box of the tiles to finish off the bathroom in my office, while we will to the main bathroom in the beadboard we used in the second-floor ceiling.

The bathroom has all the important parts done, where the light and vent will be. The rest will wait until more in arrives.

I think Chris just secretly wants to put more of that light blue color on surfaces.

This is the real masterpiece of craftsmanship, where the ceiling takes a job at the stairway.

Today Chris went to Temple and bought a LOT of light bulbs, so that when the electricians come tomorrow, all the fancy lighting can get installed and look pretty. That will be another milestone! We’re going to get all-new LED ones for the recycled fixtures going in the stairway, because we think changing them will be a pain.

These fixtures were originally right in the room where they are now, but we’ll have them lighting the stairs. We are going to add covers over the exposed bulb holders, which we will recycle from another fixture. We don’t know where the ones that SHOULD be here went.

Actually, cleaning them was a pain, literally, because as I was cleaning one of them, the rope that was holding it so it would hang from the carport gave way and the big ole hunk of glass and metal whacked into my left hand and right foot.

Before and after. The dirty one is the one that attacked me.

But I saved the fixture! Nothing broke on me, either. I just have some bruising and scratches, to go with my dewberry and dog scratches. I think they make me look tough, and I’m sticking with that story!

Wilson to the Rescue

Chris is at the stage in the Pope renovation that he is putting up trim in high places. He’s also cutting lots of crazy angles.

I’d wondered how he was managing to hold the boards up while he nailed them, especially the long ones. That’s when he introduced me to his rather quiet new helper.

Meet Wilson. He holds the trim just right as Chris nails the other end down. How do I know his name?

He has a name tag. That’s very helpful, since he’s the tall and silent type. Very patient, too.

He looks a lot like Chris, too. I’m really glad that man has a sense of humor. It must make doing all this alone a lot easier.

Rain Delay on Pope, But Good Vibes Aplenty

This is me saying thanks. My goodness, my complexion is good. It looks like I have no wrinkles! Thanks, SnapChat!

Well, hey there, kind readers! And you are kind. My heart is warmed by the kind comments I’ve received on yesterday’s post where I lost it about the consequences of sheltering in place. I felt like I was doing some very personal whining there, but more than one person (totally out of the blue) told me it felt like I was in their head, so I must have struck a chord with a lot of folks. Yep, we aren’t alone. Thanks to all for your supportive words and thoughts!

I’m happy to report that after I spewed forth all my negativity, two or three potentially nasty situations at my jobs turned around into positive and encouraging situations instead. I guess I made room for abundance, or something!

Pope Residence Update?

This fancy trim needed to be finished off, so now it’s ready to be painted. The floor part won’t get done until the floors are refinished.

On to the topic at hand, the work at the Pope Residence has slowed down this week for a couple of reasons. Easton is no longer helping out (he and Nicole went home), we began to run low on needed supplies, and the weather hasn’t cooperated much.

My bathroom is partially trimmed, but we’re out of boards until more get brought in and painted.

Today was supposed to be the day Chris went to pick up important things like doors, more trim material, and the all-important beautiful tin ceiling material. Oooh, ahh! But, we had another big ole rainstorm. It’s cleared up, so tomorrow may be fun!

That perky panel is for access to the air conditioning unit when it needs servicing. The hole is for air intake and will have a vent on it.

In any case, the ceilings are now pale blue in the offices we’re working on now, and a lot of the trim for those rooms is in. We have to wait to finish the trim in there until the floors are sanded and finished. We’ve got to rent the big sander to do that. More excitement to look forward to!

The blue on the ceiling looks fine, and the door trim makes the main office look more finished. Someone broke a tile on the hearth, so we have to figure out a way to deal with that!

Chris remembered to paint under the stairs yesterday, and earlier in the week finished enclosing the stairs. They also need to get sanded so we can stain them a color that goes with our flooring. I foresee a lot of sanding.

The forgotten under-stairs storage area.
Stairs ready to finish and add rails.

We’re ready for another big push, and Kathleen and I are ready to help out over the weekend. We’re gonna get it done, yes we are.

A Pope House Milestone

When you are renovating a large house with a very small team, it can seem like you’re just not making progress. That’s why there was a big smile on Chris’s face this morning when he declared that the first two offices are as done as they can be until the electrical stuff gets hooked up.

This lovely office now stores the wood for the rest of the trim and shims.

Both Kathleen’s office and Lee’s are all trimmed out and all painted. Wow. The hallway is done other than the ceiling, too.

On to the Next Phase

The guys have now moved on to the main office and my office. Everything that was in them has been cleared out and either taken to the ranch for storage or stored in Lee’s office on stacks of cardboard, to protect the flooring. A lot of trash went away yesterday, too.

Already today Chris and Easton got the primer painted on the ceilings in the two offices. When I first looked at them, I thought they’d already painted them the pale blue, but no, that’s gray primer.

They are getting ready to apply some trim, once the ceilings are done, but I think the trim along the floor won’t happen until the floor refinishing project is done. That’s going to be exciting.

They also moved all the bathroom stuff into my little bathroom, other than the bathtub. It’s heavy. At least with the toilet and sink out of it, we could turn it over to get measurements for replacement feet.

Big Bertha has had a hard life, but she gets to stay!

We’re pretty sure that with just a couple simple tools and some paint,we will be able to get that old tub up and running, at least for the limited amount of use we plan to put it to!

Ups, Downs, and In-Betweens

Life is rolling along here in scenically rural Milam County, Texas. And its population is getting sicker. There are only 25,000-ish people in this county, so our ten COVID-19 cases are a lot. It was NOT good news to find out yesterday that one person who got sick worked at the local Dairy Queen. We’ve gotten take-out from there during our confinement.

Oops. This has led Kathleen to declare that we bring lunches from home from now on. No one has disagreed.

Now, an important point to make here is that we have the best Dairy Queen possible here. It’s in a modern, new building. It’s clean. They pay well above minimum wage and have employees who’ve been there many years. The staff have all been briefed on precautions to take. And the owner, Robert Mayfield, immediately closed the store so that they can disinfect it from top to bottom and be sure that it’s safe (and that the workers there have a chance to quarantine and stay safe, themselves).

An example of Judge Young’s weekly newspaper articles.

Our County Judge, Steve Young, has been doing a heroic job going on the radio, doing Facebook Live, and otherwise staying in touch with the people here, urging them to not gather in large groups, wear masks if working with the public or out in public, and to stay the heck home. We’re all really proud of the work he and our Health Department are doing.

But, it takes actual cooperation to prevent the spread of disease. No one at the hardware store, serving the public, was wearing a mask this morning. No one at the gas station where I got fuel this morning was wearing a mask or gloves other than me. I am NOT gonna touch a credit card machine with my hands! I also have a very clean credit card now.

It’s good to have your own company hand sanitizers spread everywhere you go, so you can clean your credit cards and such.

I know Cameron is not alone. There are people everywhere who believe themselves immortal or invulnerable or just don’t give a shit who are wandering around like nothing has changed. Now, I’m not referring to people who have no access to masks or gloves and have to be out so their families don’t starve; I know isolation and protection is a privilege. I’m talking about people who feel perfectly comfortable putting other people’s lives in danger by their choices. Who knows how many innocent folks with underlying conditions that predispose them to having a bad case of the virus these people will kill in the name of their personal freedom?

Happy thoughts, yeah.

I Said There Would Be Some “Ups” in This Post

Yes, I did. I was looking at myself on Zoom yesterday (it’s hard NOT to look at yourself) and realized I looked as bad as I felt. So, last night I re-colored my hair for the first time since early March. It’s now orange with some pink highlights. (My next hair appointment isn’t for another month, at least, so plenty of time to wash out color by then.)

I put on makeup and lipstick today, added my sparkly yellow shoes, and I donned my new Hearts Homes and Hands lab coat. I look all professional and up-beat, and I’m hoping that will spread to my mood and attitude. So far, it’s helped. If I have to take things one step at a time, at least they will be sparkly steps!

Here you can see my lab coat. It reminds me of the one I had in grad school to keep chalk off my clothes, just like my mentor, Georgia, wore.

A Little Pope News That’s In-Between

Chris is really close to getting the first two offices completely done, other than installing the barn door between them. He has been working on trim all week. There is a LOT involved in doing trim, which is sorta sad, since when it’s well done, it blends into the background.

The doorway between the two rooms will NOT blend into the background. It’s darned bright and cheerful, especially on Lee’s side!

Another thing that is taking a while is that they have to make dozens and dozens of shims to go behind the metal to trim windows on the tin walls. And, well, the house isn’t all level, so many shims are needed elsewhere. Easton spent an entire day cutting shims. Now, that sounds fun. Or does it?

Without shims, this trim would stick out from the wall, because the metal has bump-outs.

The plan is to get the remaining two rooms all cleaned up and move the supplies needed to finish the rest of the downstairs over there. We can’t paint the ceilings or refinish the floors if there are wood and tools all over the place!

So…even though we remain sort of dazed and confused, my plan is to dazzle with my shiny hair, shoes, watch band…anything cheerful!