Yoyoyoyoyoyoyoyoyoyo
YO
Fat Jack here. Just giving you all an update, to tell you what's new, what's not, etc. Talking with the neighborhood ass'n. to find out exactly what can be built on the lot, and what hoops we need to jump through. Already, we find ourselves at cross purposes with the government, (the association really), who have a "no tents" and "no trailers" rule. Hmmmm... What's next, no dogs? Problematic for us gypsy folk. Found this out AFTER buying the thing, which by the way
IS COMPLETE AND FINAL. It'll take 6 months or so for all records to process and be mailed, but really, IT'S A DONE DEAL. You have a crib-er, a SPOT there now for sure.
So anyway, talking about rules, etc. Also trying to navigate with the shipping people, the customs officers to get the stuff over, and storage of these things in the meantime, and our latest thing to worry about storing:
A BOAT. Yup! We bought a 1985 fiberglass Bonito 17' speedboat. Pretty beat up, needs a gear box, some cables, and what not. We have the engine already, we brought the Mercury 25 outboard 2 stroke from this blog's patron saint Fiberglass Vengeance. Just our speed. $500 bucks for the boat and the trailer. We had it negotiated for $560, but the guy selling it was so cool- his name's Yunior, that he just told me to just give him the $500 when I was handing him the money. And he left the battery, and then gave us a tow chain. Really nice guy. I love hispanic people, man. We were there at their home, and they're clearly not rich, but he hooked us up. Everybody at his home was super nice and polite, and there were three brothers working together fixing up these boats to sell 'em. Imagine that. And I use their bathroom, and their place is immaculate. They didn't have much, but they took care of what they had. Totally clean yard out front, etc. They had a bottle of Andre champagne in this display case, if that gives an indication of monetary status, yet this guy was generous. Like the Bahamians. Give you the shirt off their back, man. For real. Funny thing about his name: he's named after his father, he said. So his dad called him Yunior, like Junior, in Spanish with the J pronounced like a Y. And it actually says Yunior on his license, not Junior. I thought that was pretty good.
The boat has a water shield on the transom made out of a highway sign that he ran over. My kinda boat. If only we could find a way to work some Liquid Nails in there, it'll be complete. I'll include some pictures for ya soon. But this way, now you'll have a way to get to Alan's Cay to see the lizards, or a way to shoot over to snorkel some wrecks when you come. Or something to fish with. And we bought tackle for fishing, and pretty much tried to stock up on everything since it's all cheaper here (like 1/2 the price). I got a bunch of big hooks to catch a shark with, and some heavy wire and all that. Believe I'm gonna stick some pictures of that shark up there when I get it. And then ya know what? It's gonna be like a Spinal Tap record:
Shark Sandwich.
We're driving over to visit Milt and Carol with my pore ol' mudder and Burt, and then we'll go to New Orleans to fix the roof, and then back to ship the stuff over and split. I'm so excited, man I could explode. We'll be going over around March 3 or so, after my Mom and Burt split.
That's it for now.
Jack out.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Sunday, Feb 15th - A word from Rutherton
Sunday, Feb 15th
Was it a grueling trip down here? Yes. Was it insanely draining, hypnotically exhausting and at times anxiety-ridden? Yes. Were my sleep deprived nerves wracked with hallucinatory wreckage? Yes. Was it worth it? Uhhhh...does Mrs. Butterworth pack a gooey, syrupy, messy, yet oh so tasty, punch?
(um, that's an obvious "yes ma'am, Mrs. Butterworth")
So okay then. Let's talk about the facts.
Chapter 1:
It took us three days to drive down here. We spent one night in Atlanta at Pat & Claire's (and their cuties Liberty and Cyress). We arrived at 8 in the morning on Thursday after being on the road for 16 hours, caught breakfast with Phyllis and Burt and subsequently spent the day at the beach! We've already begun planning our many 'next steps' in this Bahamas house-building process. We spent the entire day Saturday repacking the trailer so that we could make room for a refrigerator, grill, wheel barrow, hot tub, and other such oldies but goodies. We slept in the bed of our truck last night. Now we are in the hotel for almost a week! Cash and Mickey are not only allowed to stay in our hotel room, but to roam around the hotel, ride in the shuttle to the beach club, hang out at the club's pool, and roam around the beach! The hotel staff, guests, and neighborhood peeps love them, as is expected.
Chapter 2:
We have a phone in our hotel bathroom. We've spent the majority of our time with Burt and Phyllis. Every day but Saturday we've gone to the beach with them after breakfast. Everyday we have breakfast together at 9AM. It's the hotel's buffet breakfast, which is super substantial. Everyday we've had lunch at the hotel beach club. Twice we've gotten takeout for dinner - once from Rotelli's pasta and once from Bru's Room sports bar. On Valentine's day we ate at a different outdoor sports bar and got ice cream at Foxy's around the corner from the hotel. Thursday through Saturday the hotel provided musical acts on the porch where all the guests drink and socialize. Today we played Dominos at the beach. Tonight we ate at an English pub called The Anchor. We are having a grand of a grand old time! It's been four days so far and it feels like we have been here for AT LEASt two weeks!
Chapter 3:
Today I rolled out of the truck and went straight for a run. Get this: I started out on Atlantic Blvd and ran the majority of the jog on Ocean Blvd where I tripped over the most fitting road-kill - a flattened fish! I passed Nassau St. (the capitol of the Bahamas), the address 1107 (where I grew up), and Brooks St (my mom's maiden name). I ran all the way to the beach club and back: a healthy four miles! Man, that felt sooo good...It's been about a month since I've ran anywhere. Yippee ki yay, right?
The ocean breeze gives me such a thrill! The beautiful weather gives me SO much energy! I put 193,000% more effort into repacking the big ol' trailer the other day than I would have done in the cold. The plants, the trees, the sun, the water, the friendly peeps - mmm mmm good is all I'm talkin' about!
This afternoon at the beach I went snorkeling by my lonesome and it was incredible! The ocean was flat as a pancake and clear as a trophy case (haha what?) ... I swam and free dove for about 20 minutes. On my way back in I suddenly noticed a fluorescent pink jelly blob right next to me on the right! It didn't have tentacles but it was definitely a jelly blob, just bobbing along under water, but close to the surface. I was NOT about to get any nearer! It was very fascinating though - it appeared to be made of rings that got smaller and smaller, just like a fingerprint. I mean, imagine a pink fluorescent fingerprint about the size of a miniature cereal box floating through the water! So just as I was trying to avoid it I looked nervously ahead and to my left there was another one!! I swam a straight line IN BETWEEN the two glowing fingerprint jelly blobs! I was concerned there may be more so I looked all around me but I did not see anything. I continued making my way to shore, a bit faster than before...
I attempted a google and wikipedia search for what I had seen in the water today, but I did not come up with anything quite like I had seen. The closest match I could find are a type called Jelly Combs. I will post a drawing I made of what I had seen in the water as well as some google images that are the closest I could find to what I had seen...
This week holds many errands, planning, preparing, and hanging out in between!
True love is in the air!
Peace outie for nowie,
Ruth
P.S. Today I met a girl my age named Ruth...Bringin' it back baby! Bringin' it back!
Was it a grueling trip down here? Yes. Was it insanely draining, hypnotically exhausting and at times anxiety-ridden? Yes. Were my sleep deprived nerves wracked with hallucinatory wreckage? Yes. Was it worth it? Uhhhh...does Mrs. Butterworth pack a gooey, syrupy, messy, yet oh so tasty, punch?
(um, that's an obvious "yes ma'am, Mrs. Butterworth")
So okay then. Let's talk about the facts.
Chapter 1:
It took us three days to drive down here. We spent one night in Atlanta at Pat & Claire's (and their cuties Liberty and Cyress). We arrived at 8 in the morning on Thursday after being on the road for 16 hours, caught breakfast with Phyllis and Burt and subsequently spent the day at the beach! We've already begun planning our many 'next steps' in this Bahamas house-building process. We spent the entire day Saturday repacking the trailer so that we could make room for a refrigerator, grill, wheel barrow, hot tub, and other such oldies but goodies. We slept in the bed of our truck last night. Now we are in the hotel for almost a week! Cash and Mickey are not only allowed to stay in our hotel room, but to roam around the hotel, ride in the shuttle to the beach club, hang out at the club's pool, and roam around the beach! The hotel staff, guests, and neighborhood peeps love them, as is expected.
Chapter 2:
We have a phone in our hotel bathroom. We've spent the majority of our time with Burt and Phyllis. Every day but Saturday we've gone to the beach with them after breakfast. Everyday we have breakfast together at 9AM. It's the hotel's buffet breakfast, which is super substantial. Everyday we've had lunch at the hotel beach club. Twice we've gotten takeout for dinner - once from Rotelli's pasta and once from Bru's Room sports bar. On Valentine's day we ate at a different outdoor sports bar and got ice cream at Foxy's around the corner from the hotel. Thursday through Saturday the hotel provided musical acts on the porch where all the guests drink and socialize. Today we played Dominos at the beach. Tonight we ate at an English pub called The Anchor. We are having a grand of a grand old time! It's been four days so far and it feels like we have been here for AT LEASt two weeks!
Chapter 3:
Today I rolled out of the truck and went straight for a run. Get this: I started out on Atlantic Blvd and ran the majority of the jog on Ocean Blvd where I tripped over the most fitting road-kill - a flattened fish! I passed Nassau St. (the capitol of the Bahamas), the address 1107 (where I grew up), and Brooks St (my mom's maiden name). I ran all the way to the beach club and back: a healthy four miles! Man, that felt sooo good...It's been about a month since I've ran anywhere. Yippee ki yay, right?
The ocean breeze gives me such a thrill! The beautiful weather gives me SO much energy! I put 193,000% more effort into repacking the big ol' trailer the other day than I would have done in the cold. The plants, the trees, the sun, the water, the friendly peeps - mmm mmm good is all I'm talkin' about!
This afternoon at the beach I went snorkeling by my lonesome and it was incredible! The ocean was flat as a pancake and clear as a trophy case (haha what?) ... I swam and free dove for about 20 minutes. On my way back in I suddenly noticed a fluorescent pink jelly blob right next to me on the right! It didn't have tentacles but it was definitely a jelly blob, just bobbing along under water, but close to the surface. I was NOT about to get any nearer! It was very fascinating though - it appeared to be made of rings that got smaller and smaller, just like a fingerprint. I mean, imagine a pink fluorescent fingerprint about the size of a miniature cereal box floating through the water! So just as I was trying to avoid it I looked nervously ahead and to my left there was another one!! I swam a straight line IN BETWEEN the two glowing fingerprint jelly blobs! I was concerned there may be more so I looked all around me but I did not see anything. I continued making my way to shore, a bit faster than before...
I attempted a google and wikipedia search for what I had seen in the water today, but I did not come up with anything quite like I had seen. The closest match I could find are a type called Jelly Combs. I will post a drawing I made of what I had seen in the water as well as some google images that are the closest I could find to what I had seen...
This week holds many errands, planning, preparing, and hanging out in between!
True love is in the air!
Peace outie for nowie,
Ruth
P.S. Today I met a girl my age named Ruth...Bringin' it back baby! Bringin' it back!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Travel troubel
Jack here.
Okay, a few problems. First, the truck radiator (yeah, the new one. yeah, the THIRD ONE) is leaking. I talked to a cat that knew what he was talking about, and he said that after we replaced #1 in New Orleans, the person doing it probably didnt take the little rubber feet off of the old one, and put them on the second one before putting it in. That's true, because when that one started to leak, I replaced it myself with a third one, and there were no rubber feet on #2 when I took it out, so I didn't think to put them on #3 before putting it in. I think it's stopped leaking (put some stop-leak crap type in there), but I'm going to take it out and put some rubber under it when we get to Farmington. I would have done it up north, but I've been working outside pretty much all day every day, and I'm getting pretty bloody sick of snow, cold things, and working without gloves on because It's tough to handle small things with 'em on. It's been between 0 and 10 most days, and colder at night. We decided to take the hot tub after all, so breaking that down was a pain, since the cover over it had leaked, and it had filled partially with what used to be water, and now was very stiff water. We broke all the ice up with a mallet and log splitting wedge, and emptied it by hand. Ah, soaking wet again, and freezing ass. Yikes.
But those aren't even the BIG problem. Just as I was driving south tonight, and texting Ruth that "all is swell," I crossed some railroad tracks and felt a clunk and looked in the rearview to see the trailer separate from the truck. The clamp that bites down on the ball had given up. Luckily, I was turning a corner, going slow, and on a side road. The trailer just went to the side, and nothing broken, except the tow chains, the lock holding them on, and the coupling. The wiring disconnected itself luckily. So now, we're in Kalkaska at the Econolodge, just after getting busted for sneaking the dogs in, and after going out to find some griznub. We got the suspicious looks from the locals, the ominous silence when we went in the pub, the wordless pointing when we asked where we could get food. Everything but tumbleweed blowing by and and some old codger saying "we don't take KINDly to strangers in these parts. SPECially YANKees!"
But we're making progress. It's snowed about 4 inches tonight, but we're warm, the dogs are back in the truck with a space heater running inside, our bellies full of Italian foodage, and a couple of Netflixes to kill the time tonight. Could be worse.
In case anybody doesn't know the agenda, it's from here to Farmington, then Kalamazoo, then New Orleans to fix the roof, pick up tools, barbeques, all that rot, and then on to Florida to chill with my Mom and Burt for a month or so before sending the new pickup and trailer fulla tools across by boat to get started clearing the lot, hooking up utilities, pouring footings, etc. We'll come back when it's warm. In the meantime, feel free to come visit us. We'll be on the vacant lot in a huge tent, drinking water out of jerry jugs, but we'll be happy.
Come join us.
Jack
We're on our way...
Okay, a few problems. First, the truck radiator (yeah, the new one. yeah, the THIRD ONE) is leaking. I talked to a cat that knew what he was talking about, and he said that after we replaced #1 in New Orleans, the person doing it probably didnt take the little rubber feet off of the old one, and put them on the second one before putting it in. That's true, because when that one started to leak, I replaced it myself with a third one, and there were no rubber feet on #2 when I took it out, so I didn't think to put them on #3 before putting it in. I think it's stopped leaking (put some stop-leak crap type in there), but I'm going to take it out and put some rubber under it when we get to Farmington. I would have done it up north, but I've been working outside pretty much all day every day, and I'm getting pretty bloody sick of snow, cold things, and working without gloves on because It's tough to handle small things with 'em on. It's been between 0 and 10 most days, and colder at night. We decided to take the hot tub after all, so breaking that down was a pain, since the cover over it had leaked, and it had filled partially with what used to be water, and now was very stiff water. We broke all the ice up with a mallet and log splitting wedge, and emptied it by hand. Ah, soaking wet again, and freezing ass. Yikes.
But those aren't even the BIG problem. Just as I was driving south tonight, and texting Ruth that "all is swell," I crossed some railroad tracks and felt a clunk and looked in the rearview to see the trailer separate from the truck. The clamp that bites down on the ball had given up. Luckily, I was turning a corner, going slow, and on a side road. The trailer just went to the side, and nothing broken, except the tow chains, the lock holding them on, and the coupling. The wiring disconnected itself luckily. So now, we're in Kalkaska at the Econolodge, just after getting busted for sneaking the dogs in, and after going out to find some griznub. We got the suspicious looks from the locals, the ominous silence when we went in the pub, the wordless pointing when we asked where we could get food. Everything but tumbleweed blowing by and and some old codger saying "we don't take KINDly to strangers in these parts. SPECially YANKees!"
But we're making progress. It's snowed about 4 inches tonight, but we're warm, the dogs are back in the truck with a space heater running inside, our bellies full of Italian foodage, and a couple of Netflixes to kill the time tonight. Could be worse.
In case anybody doesn't know the agenda, it's from here to Farmington, then Kalamazoo, then New Orleans to fix the roof, pick up tools, barbeques, all that rot, and then on to Florida to chill with my Mom and Burt for a month or so before sending the new pickup and trailer fulla tools across by boat to get started clearing the lot, hooking up utilities, pouring footings, etc. We'll come back when it's warm. In the meantime, feel free to come visit us. We'll be on the vacant lot in a huge tent, drinking water out of jerry jugs, but we'll be happy.
Come join us.
Jack
We're on our way...
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Bad news
Okay, I just ripped the back off of the aluminum boat. Yup, I just went over to it, hooked a tie down to it, and tied the other end to the truck and eased it out from under the snow. That all worked fine, but apparently it snagged on something and then RIIIIIIP. Yup, the back of the boat came right off. At least it wasn't the Mary L., my grandmother's boat that my Dad got for her. I did have them mixed up in my head, which was under which snow mound, but I dragged that one free first, and I guess it was of better quality. Good purchase, Pop. The other one was the much despised one that my Aunt gave my Mom, that had a totally rounded bottom, and had a tendency to be unpredictable (what's up with the rounded bottoms? I'm catching a trend here...)
Now my wife on the other hand, has a rounded bottom that has certainly been remarked upon, but she's pretty consistent. In fact, she's right as rain. Hat's off to you, Ruthie. And to your behind. And to Jean and Curtis: Nice work. Unlike me and my bony arsed English relatives, my kids will have a place to sit down, thanks to you.
I took what I thought were two claritin, and I think they were xanax, because I had them in a pepper jar because I lost the container. I can't remember, I've had them for years. My claritin were way out in the truck (yes, WAY out there- it's farther when it's cold out) and I took the wrong two and wasted a good hunk of the day laying there staring at what I think was a moth.
The rest of the day was spent outside, working on the trailer, or other out-type stuff, in the snow and the cold. It was pretty much just like the Shining, except for the nice, warm, cozy indoor parts.
Now my wife on the other hand, has a rounded bottom that has certainly been remarked upon, but she's pretty consistent. In fact, she's right as rain. Hat's off to you, Ruthie. And to your behind. And to Jean and Curtis: Nice work. Unlike me and my bony arsed English relatives, my kids will have a place to sit down, thanks to you.
I took what I thought were two claritin, and I think they were xanax, because I had them in a pepper jar because I lost the container. I can't remember, I've had them for years. My claritin were way out in the truck (yes, WAY out there- it's farther when it's cold out) and I took the wrong two and wasted a good hunk of the day laying there staring at what I think was a moth.
The rest of the day was spent outside, working on the trailer, or other out-type stuff, in the snow and the cold. It was pretty much just like the Shining, except for the nice, warm, cozy indoor parts.
Howdy, Dudies.
Jackl here.
Well, another day shot. What did we do today? Bought wood to build out the trailer we bought to make it enclosed. Cleaned in the garage, organized and sorted some stuff to go to the Bahamas. What did we do yesterday? Drove here, unpacked, plowed, tried to keep warm. What are we doing tomorrow? Same shit. Trying to get the garage to warm up, if I'm going to be in there for lengths of time. Trying to get vehicles dug out after getting them stuck. Hauling water from the grocery store. Trying not to freeze your butt off literally when you go crap out in the snow.
It's fun though, in a way. There's a lot to do, and no real deadline exactly, but we're trying to be ready to go to Florida/New Orleans the same time Phyllis and Burt go. We want to make sure we're thorough, and don't miss anything, because once we get down there and things are REALLY hard to get, and we're working we'll be saying "man, I should have brought earplugs for when I'm working around these tools" or
an extra tape measure
a trowel
should have packed the bearings on the trailer again
brought a better dog line
a boat
more nails
a jack to lift something heavy
a whatever
etc. etc. etc.
I like to plan though, and anticipate. I think I'm pretty decent at it. (By the way, know anybody else who announced Barack Obama's winning presidential bid in 2004? Yup, I said that, the first time I heard him speak, before he was done. I'm very proud of that. I said I've never heard of him before, but that man WILL be president, mark my words. I don't make predictions often, but I did say that- it seemed inevitable, inevitable because of how he is, and inevitable based on what George Bush was doing wrong- kind of a "game-theory" concept, I guess. Anyway, enough bragging. I was proud of that though, like I said...)
But getting ready is a lot like preparing for the trip in the boat, trying to anticipate needs you won't have for several months, and trying to imagine every eventuality, but at least with this, we know somewhat what we're getting into.
The main unknowns at this point are things like how expensive concrete will be to pour there, and if we should switch to a wood story. So that affects what tools we can bring. And should we bring the hot tub? Is there room? Well, that depends on how high the trailer is allowed to be for shipping. And what about those tools? Everything new toolwise is taxed at 45%, so what are they going to tax me on an old tool? One that looks new but isn't? Should I spray paint all my stuff to make it look old? Scratch it up a bit? It's a big issue, because we're taking a few grand worth of tools. We're going to try to snag this extra rowboat outta here. It was given to my Mom by my Aunt, and it's incredibly unstable as a rowboat, due to a round bottom. (correlation with round bottoms indicating instability? This should be explored...) I figure if we throw the mercury 25 on it, it won't tip anywhere, sideways anyway. I just hope that's not too much weight for the thing on the back end. I had a dream about that last night. Am I the most boring guy in the world or what? Wow, how dull. Not as good as the one I had the other day when I woke up talking about "Jawbone Concentrate."
So we have to fix the truck again. The NEW radiator leaks now (this is #3), and so the "bought a bad radiator" theory for #2 is out, and leaves "the dumb mechanic that put in the second one took out the rubber footing that it sits on, and the metal ends up making a hole in the radiators" as a second theory. I just got done putting in the third one. That sucks, but I'll do it when we come back.
I have two more windows to put in the pumphouse before we go. One is glass block, so that will be some doing, especially in this weather. Maybe I'll do that when we come back too. Like the bank in front of the boathouse. There's some thought that maybe I should fly back in the spring and work on that. We'll see.
Before we leave though, I have to winterize the pumphouse, build the trailer into an enclosed trailer, figure out what to do about the bumper on the new truck (the trailer stuck in the snow and then the tongue pulled the ball around 90 degrees until it broke free. Hmmmm...
Then winterize the truck, put it up on blocks, cover the boat, and get a bunch of stuff ready.
Anyway, boring blog, I know. Sorry about that. It's just what's on the old brain these days. Planning for landing at the new crib, and getting started.
Clearing the lot
Pitching the tent
Building a tool shed (where all good construction projects start, a la Shady Rest)
Getting the water and electric hooked up
Digging a septic field
Grading the lot
Pouring a foundation
Building concrete walls on top of that, or wood?
We'll see how far we get.
So bored people, this is the latest. Trying to plan to pack for a place where bringing stuff in is really difficult.
Stay tuned
Jack
Well, another day shot. What did we do today? Bought wood to build out the trailer we bought to make it enclosed. Cleaned in the garage, organized and sorted some stuff to go to the Bahamas. What did we do yesterday? Drove here, unpacked, plowed, tried to keep warm. What are we doing tomorrow? Same shit. Trying to get the garage to warm up, if I'm going to be in there for lengths of time. Trying to get vehicles dug out after getting them stuck. Hauling water from the grocery store. Trying not to freeze your butt off literally when you go crap out in the snow.
It's fun though, in a way. There's a lot to do, and no real deadline exactly, but we're trying to be ready to go to Florida/New Orleans the same time Phyllis and Burt go. We want to make sure we're thorough, and don't miss anything, because once we get down there and things are REALLY hard to get, and we're working we'll be saying "man, I should have brought earplugs for when I'm working around these tools" or
an extra tape measure
a trowel
should have packed the bearings on the trailer again
brought a better dog line
a boat
more nails
a jack to lift something heavy
a whatever
etc. etc. etc.
I like to plan though, and anticipate. I think I'm pretty decent at it. (By the way, know anybody else who announced Barack Obama's winning presidential bid in 2004? Yup, I said that, the first time I heard him speak, before he was done. I'm very proud of that. I said I've never heard of him before, but that man WILL be president, mark my words. I don't make predictions often, but I did say that- it seemed inevitable, inevitable because of how he is, and inevitable based on what George Bush was doing wrong- kind of a "game-theory" concept, I guess. Anyway, enough bragging. I was proud of that though, like I said...)
But getting ready is a lot like preparing for the trip in the boat, trying to anticipate needs you won't have for several months, and trying to imagine every eventuality, but at least with this, we know somewhat what we're getting into.
The main unknowns at this point are things like how expensive concrete will be to pour there, and if we should switch to a wood story. So that affects what tools we can bring. And should we bring the hot tub? Is there room? Well, that depends on how high the trailer is allowed to be for shipping. And what about those tools? Everything new toolwise is taxed at 45%, so what are they going to tax me on an old tool? One that looks new but isn't? Should I spray paint all my stuff to make it look old? Scratch it up a bit? It's a big issue, because we're taking a few grand worth of tools. We're going to try to snag this extra rowboat outta here. It was given to my Mom by my Aunt, and it's incredibly unstable as a rowboat, due to a round bottom. (correlation with round bottoms indicating instability? This should be explored...) I figure if we throw the mercury 25 on it, it won't tip anywhere, sideways anyway. I just hope that's not too much weight for the thing on the back end. I had a dream about that last night. Am I the most boring guy in the world or what? Wow, how dull. Not as good as the one I had the other day when I woke up talking about "Jawbone Concentrate."
So we have to fix the truck again. The NEW radiator leaks now (this is #3), and so the "bought a bad radiator" theory for #2 is out, and leaves "the dumb mechanic that put in the second one took out the rubber footing that it sits on, and the metal ends up making a hole in the radiators" as a second theory. I just got done putting in the third one. That sucks, but I'll do it when we come back.
I have two more windows to put in the pumphouse before we go. One is glass block, so that will be some doing, especially in this weather. Maybe I'll do that when we come back too. Like the bank in front of the boathouse. There's some thought that maybe I should fly back in the spring and work on that. We'll see.
Before we leave though, I have to winterize the pumphouse, build the trailer into an enclosed trailer, figure out what to do about the bumper on the new truck (the trailer stuck in the snow and then the tongue pulled the ball around 90 degrees until it broke free. Hmmmm...
Then winterize the truck, put it up on blocks, cover the boat, and get a bunch of stuff ready.
Anyway, boring blog, I know. Sorry about that. It's just what's on the old brain these days. Planning for landing at the new crib, and getting started.
Clearing the lot
Pitching the tent
Building a tool shed (where all good construction projects start, a la Shady Rest)
Getting the water and electric hooked up
Digging a septic field
Grading the lot
Pouring a foundation
Building concrete walls on top of that, or wood?
We'll see how far we get.
So bored people, this is the latest. Trying to plan to pack for a place where bringing stuff in is really difficult.
Stay tuned
Jack
Friday, January 23, 2009
Ruthhhhhhh 1/23/2009
It's so crazy being here up north amidst the freezing cold, howling winds, and beautiful bright white snow - only to be sitting at the computer looking for places to stay while we hang out in Florida next month. I'm staring at pictures of the ocean, beaches, and the bright sun, all while the icy cold winds whip around outside...ahh this is exciting!
It's really nice up here though! Jack and I both wish we were able to stay up here a bit longer. The pumphouse is nice and cozy. It's spacious, warm, and incredibly comfortable! After a long day of enduring the harsh cold, trudging through snow that comes up to my knees, or driving through the slippery slush, it's sooooo nice to come back to this warm little hut, melt into the soft couch with a DVD and some homemade toaster-oven style pizza!
Jack really pimped this place up with the entertainment center and pantry shelves he made, the baseboard heater, and the phat ladder he built that stands sturdy, just like a staircase, leading up to the loft. (Ohhh the loft is soooo comfortable! I love sleeping up there! I love reading with the little lamps that cast a soothing glow about the room!) There's an endless list of incredible things Jack did to make this place so awesome! From the beautiful Brazilian Cherry wood floors he installed to the big ceiling fan that churns the warm air around the room; from the soft, dramatic lighting (including rope lights on dimmers!) to the new plumbing, insulation, and windows that make the place more fuctional. He is the man! I am so lucky to be able to enjoy such a nice place! I'm so grateful to Phyllis as well for letting us enjoy it! I can't wait until she sees the finished product!
Well now that I've got all that off my chest I can go back to looking for campgrounds and rentals in Florida. Happy January!
It's really nice up here though! Jack and I both wish we were able to stay up here a bit longer. The pumphouse is nice and cozy. It's spacious, warm, and incredibly comfortable! After a long day of enduring the harsh cold, trudging through snow that comes up to my knees, or driving through the slippery slush, it's sooooo nice to come back to this warm little hut, melt into the soft couch with a DVD and some homemade toaster-oven style pizza!
Jack really pimped this place up with the entertainment center and pantry shelves he made, the baseboard heater, and the phat ladder he built that stands sturdy, just like a staircase, leading up to the loft. (Ohhh the loft is soooo comfortable! I love sleeping up there! I love reading with the little lamps that cast a soothing glow about the room!) There's an endless list of incredible things Jack did to make this place so awesome! From the beautiful Brazilian Cherry wood floors he installed to the big ceiling fan that churns the warm air around the room; from the soft, dramatic lighting (including rope lights on dimmers!) to the new plumbing, insulation, and windows that make the place more fuctional. He is the man! I am so lucky to be able to enjoy such a nice place! I'm so grateful to Phyllis as well for letting us enjoy it! I can't wait until she sees the finished product!
Well now that I've got all that off my chest I can go back to looking for campgrounds and rentals in Florida. Happy January!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Takin' ideas for the Bahamian Crizzle
Jack here.
Yo:
Feel free to email me some ideas y'all. I got some great ones from Jean, Michele, Curtis, Shannon, Madeline, Phyllis, David, and a few from a few other folks. We're going to work 'em in there the best we can, and in the meantime, keep 'em coming.
I've been busy designing stuff, a solar water heater, reusable concrete forms, and basically methodology and tools to get from a-z. Some of this is just to plan ahead, some of it needs to be understood/known now so that we can proceed and know what materials we'll be using so we know what tools to bring, etc. As I get further into the nuts and bolts of design, I've come up with the following:
Regular windows with wooden borders, in the even of a hurricane, precut plywood squares can be screwed to 'em.
Probably going to go with concrete walls, though I have been investigating block walls and wood walls (screwed and glued) as well. Though all three would be hurricane wind-proof if constructed right (triangulating corners, screws not nails, glue at all contact points, heavy sheathing, bolting wood structure to rafters as well as foundation, etc.) I'm checking into import taxes, shipping charges, how many blocks would be needed (2631), how many 80 pound bags of concrete needed (2928), how many linear feet of 2x6 needed (I forget), and after all that, I'm thinking at this point that it should be made of poured concrete, with rebar inside.
The design I have so far is a ten foot high first basement (30x40), and a fifteen foot high second floor of the same size. Well, maybe the main floor will extend ten or twenty feet further to allow for a patio walkout on the main floor. The roof will be flat, built from wooden trusses with a rubberoid coating painted white to accomodate the hot tub on the roof. The basement will be split down the middle by a main I-beam on posts to allow for 2x10 joists between the basement and first floor, and the roof will be made from trusses, 24" thick, 16" on center, that I'll make on site. The plumbing and electrical will be run through the walls before they're poured. The main floor would have no interior walls, except maybe a bathroom/shower. Thus the huge trusses on the roof- to have the strength for 40 pounds per square foot without interior supporting walls. Just one huge room with a kitchen on one end, a patio on the other end, basically wider than it is longer, to take advangage of the predominant north winds through the many windows to the north, and to blow through to the many windows and doorwalls facing south to the view of the water.
The big epiphany I had for today was this: when we make the concrete forms, if I coat them in something sticky like tar and lay them flat, I can sprinkle leaves on them, and then when the concrete is poured there will be leaf imprints all over them. That would be pretty cool in itself, but I was thinking that I could paint the leaves green and then roll the wall white, and if I do it lightly, then we would end up with green leaves all over a white wall.
The other one was that we put a gutter all around the house, we can have it feed a cistern that slowly drains into a perforated tube that runs through a garden for permanent irrigation with little ongoing work.
I've been pricing labor, rebar, and concrete down there, and minimum concrete trip charges, etc., so I can know how much of it we need to form at a time. I've also been getting ahold of utility companies so that we can have the utilities on soon after we get there.
I think we'll be getting a satellite for internet. We'll also have city water, propane we buy by the tank, electric stove, washing machine, clothesline for a dryer, a septic field for sewer, a bar on the roof, 4 garage bays in the basement to hold a fishing boat, weight room, music room, whatever, plus storage.
Things we have include a lot of tools, a fishing boat to fish with, the outboard for our fishing boat, cement mixer, welders, chainsaws, etc.
Things we need include: a boat with a deep vee design (longer is better for waves) for running between islands, scaffolding 20 feet high, 2 way radios, pruners, a bicycle, a ladder, a mop, an electric fence for the dogs, seeds for fruit trees and vegetables you want us to plant so they'll be ready when you get there, and who knows what else. If you have some scaffolding laying around, or if you see a hot deal on one of those items, let us know.
Yo:
Feel free to email me some ideas y'all. I got some great ones from Jean, Michele, Curtis, Shannon, Madeline, Phyllis, David, and a few from a few other folks. We're going to work 'em in there the best we can, and in the meantime, keep 'em coming.
I've been busy designing stuff, a solar water heater, reusable concrete forms, and basically methodology and tools to get from a-z. Some of this is just to plan ahead, some of it needs to be understood/known now so that we can proceed and know what materials we'll be using so we know what tools to bring, etc. As I get further into the nuts and bolts of design, I've come up with the following:
Regular windows with wooden borders, in the even of a hurricane, precut plywood squares can be screwed to 'em.
Probably going to go with concrete walls, though I have been investigating block walls and wood walls (screwed and glued) as well. Though all three would be hurricane wind-proof if constructed right (triangulating corners, screws not nails, glue at all contact points, heavy sheathing, bolting wood structure to rafters as well as foundation, etc.) I'm checking into import taxes, shipping charges, how many blocks would be needed (2631), how many 80 pound bags of concrete needed (2928), how many linear feet of 2x6 needed (I forget), and after all that, I'm thinking at this point that it should be made of poured concrete, with rebar inside.
The design I have so far is a ten foot high first basement (30x40), and a fifteen foot high second floor of the same size. Well, maybe the main floor will extend ten or twenty feet further to allow for a patio walkout on the main floor. The roof will be flat, built from wooden trusses with a rubberoid coating painted white to accomodate the hot tub on the roof. The basement will be split down the middle by a main I-beam on posts to allow for 2x10 joists between the basement and first floor, and the roof will be made from trusses, 24" thick, 16" on center, that I'll make on site. The plumbing and electrical will be run through the walls before they're poured. The main floor would have no interior walls, except maybe a bathroom/shower. Thus the huge trusses on the roof- to have the strength for 40 pounds per square foot without interior supporting walls. Just one huge room with a kitchen on one end, a patio on the other end, basically wider than it is longer, to take advangage of the predominant north winds through the many windows to the north, and to blow through to the many windows and doorwalls facing south to the view of the water.
The big epiphany I had for today was this: when we make the concrete forms, if I coat them in something sticky like tar and lay them flat, I can sprinkle leaves on them, and then when the concrete is poured there will be leaf imprints all over them. That would be pretty cool in itself, but I was thinking that I could paint the leaves green and then roll the wall white, and if I do it lightly, then we would end up with green leaves all over a white wall.
The other one was that we put a gutter all around the house, we can have it feed a cistern that slowly drains into a perforated tube that runs through a garden for permanent irrigation with little ongoing work.
I've been pricing labor, rebar, and concrete down there, and minimum concrete trip charges, etc., so I can know how much of it we need to form at a time. I've also been getting ahold of utility companies so that we can have the utilities on soon after we get there.
I think we'll be getting a satellite for internet. We'll also have city water, propane we buy by the tank, electric stove, washing machine, clothesline for a dryer, a septic field for sewer, a bar on the roof, 4 garage bays in the basement to hold a fishing boat, weight room, music room, whatever, plus storage.
Things we have include a lot of tools, a fishing boat to fish with, the outboard for our fishing boat, cement mixer, welders, chainsaws, etc.
Things we need include: a boat with a deep vee design (longer is better for waves) for running between islands, scaffolding 20 feet high, 2 way radios, pruners, a bicycle, a ladder, a mop, an electric fence for the dogs, seeds for fruit trees and vegetables you want us to plant so they'll be ready when you get there, and who knows what else. If you have some scaffolding laying around, or if you see a hot deal on one of those items, let us know.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Back for the attack
Wow. Ruth and I stopped the truck/camper driving to Hammond where we're supposed to start work, and stopped for a sign that said "Louisiana Mud Painting." We figured that had to be something sweet. We had no idea it would be this- a guy that gets a few different colors of mud from around the state (in the next photo) and makes these incredible paintings. When we get paid, we're buying this one, or a print anyway. It comes in a frame, and I HIGHLY recommend you check him out. Really nice stuff, basically beautiful watercolors, but made all from Louisiana mud.
Gorgeous cedar near hammond.
These cops came in to where we watched the third presidential debate, where of course, McCain, when not outright lying, looked like a grimacing psychopath. Wow, talk about a poor performance. I can't wait until he loses so I can send him a video of me saying in my thickest New Orleans accent "Sorry bout cher luck!" Anyway, the significance of this photo is this:
These cops came in, apparently on duty, (four or five cars of them, as opposed to being out doing their job- like, if all the cops are at Zippy's Burrito, how can they be anywhere else, keeping everyone "safe" or hassling them to generate revenue to justify their own existence, or whatever their supposed reason for drawing breath is...) one appeared to me to be either drunk or someone who just acts drunk all the time, they hit on Ruth despite her ring while she ordered something, and continued despite her clear disinterest, and this one drunkish one made all these cracks that she's obviously drunk, etc., teasing her, like he's going to take her in, or whatever, etc. On the way out, he yells to her, as she sits with me "I'll see YOU later!" I yell back "Uh, No, you WON'T." Prick. Ruth yells "Go Obama," because he was obviously backward enough to be a McCain fan. Somehow, you could just tell that someone like Obama would be the bane of this guy's existence. He yells "you MUST be drunk!" (all very unprofessional, oddly aggressive, inappropriate, etc.) I said "you must be uneducated," but to Ruth only, to her approving chuckle. The cop gets in his car, and then over his P.A., the one that he uses to supposedly do his job, with our tax money he starts yelling "GO MCCAIN!" to which Ruth and I both immediately thrust both hands in the air, middle fingers extended. It was a reflex, instantaneous. He was suddenly silent, apparently livid. We could not have been more pleased that we had made the right decision to let this asshole know that he was not appreciated. Hurrah for us.
His friend came and stalked us for the rest of the time we were there, waiting, apparently, to see if we got in a vehicle, since we each had a beer while watching the debate. Just sitting there waiting to cherry pick us. ASSHOLES. Wow. It was not only edifying to find out that not only CAN you give a cop the finger with impunity, but it was incredibly gratifying to actually do it. There's been so many... If only he could pass it along to all the ones that got away... Oink. Like the SEVEN times I got pulled over one night, while on a date. Had my car searched like four times that night. For what reason, I'm not sure. Or the cops that gave us a ticket going to our honeymoon for going five over or whatever it was, or the ones that gave us a ticket that they refused to let us pay in Kalamazoo for being in the park after dark, doing nothing wrong. Oink, oink. Ah, that really felt good though. Th th th th th that's all, folks!
This is the shop of this cat I met named Daniel. An old dude who fixes tires for a living. He welded these walls out of old wheels. He helped me out twice, and each time tried to undercharge me hardcore. Nice guy. I told him I couldn't play ball with that.
Hey everybody. We're back. Back in New Orleans, more or less, back on the ol' bloggy. We have a ton to say, to chronicle some of our recent journeys- to Houston, to Mexico, to Louisiana.
We just saw "W," which was HORRIBLE. Oliver Stone apparently forgot to include how George Bush is considered the bin Laden's "other son," Dick Cheney's massive earnings from the Iraq war, the conniving it took to lie to the American people to get us there in the first place, basically pretending that his biggest fault is that he's a silverspoon drunk. Not bloody likely, Oliver. Faux concessions to appear "balanced," that this is a "warts 'n' all" portrayal, etc., which couldn't be farther from reality. I was thinking yesterday when I was in bookstore that probably had 1500 magazines and a ton of books, how most of those books and magazines were there not to make anyone any more educated, but rather to help reinforce and galvanize people's opinions that they already had, so that they don't have to consider the unpleasant possibility that they might be mistaken on some of their positions. Basically like Rush Limbaugh. Someone close to me attempted to rub my nose in the fact that Air America wasn't on any more, which it actually is, by saying that it's off because no one liked it. I counterppoint that by saying unlike the people that listen to Rush Limbaugh, the listeners of Air America don't have to constantly have it on to be told what they think, to be told daily that the Emperor is wearing clothes. Funny how we try to be deliberately misinformed. In any event, this movie totally fucking sucks. Sorry, but that had to be said. There's no way to say this with the necessary emphasis without swearing. It was as bad as Indiana Jones. Frilla.
I start work tomorrow,and have to get up in like 4 hours or something, so I'll be short tonight, and just say we'll be blogging again, so keep your eyeballs peeled.
Big love from me and Ruth. We'll be in touch, and we miss you.
We expect to be here between another week and a month, maybe two, tops. In the meantime, we'll blog, speak up about what we think, and flick off cops who get drunk and hit on married women while on duty.
XOX,
Jack
Friday, May 23, 2008
home sweet home
sneaky ruthie
spanish moss tastes nothing like spanish rice
the sign above the hamburger factory next to the orphanage
the joke's on the publisher of this magazine- it turns out she was exactly what I thought she was
this was supposed to be an amazing museum, but what with the whittling we had planned and the shelf organizing we were already halfway done with, we just couldn't fit it in
Saturday, March 17 2008, by Mr. J (what Bomber calls me)
What’s up y’all? We miss you a bunch. Just checking in with the old bloggity blog to tell the world our latest, and silliest. As you must know, we had to get back to New Orleans by the 10th, since Lindsey was leaving, to take care of los perros magnificos. So, we took the bus back, and since then, have been to the dog park every day we had a working car, which is three days, I think. Today we hit the park in the French Quarter for a switch up, and the beasts appreciated that. They had a wild old time. About 20 dogs there, which means basically that there’s about 20 butts to sniff, which is, from my understanding, like the dog version of heaven.
Since we’ve been back we’ve had a bit of a rough time getting stuff sorted out. Lindsey said we could crash in our old place since she’s on vacation, so that was lucky break, but other than that, we’ve mostly been running into setbacks. First and foremost is the truck. Benjamin had written that the radiator was trashed, since it sprung a leak, and he tried to get it stopped but couldn’t. I tried to take it to get looked at, but never made it past the first place to get an estimate from, since there was a trail of pink fluid from our house to the shop- literally. The mechanic thought the trans had been filled with pink paint, but it was actually transmission fluid mixed with the water from the radiator. Anyway, since that was the case, we had to get the trans flushed too. We got an estimate, $250-$300, but we went back to get the car, and they had a bill waiting for us. It was $796. Ouch. Yikes.
Well, we fought the garage on that, and thought about just driving it out without paying, but they put it in the garage for the night once they realized we weren’t crazy about the bill. We ended up settling for $650 cash. That was the best I could do.
We left there with it, and decided to hook up the trailer and drive to Pensacola to pick up the boat, about 300 miles or less. 10 minutes out of New Orleans, we started feeling like we were going over a rumble strip, yet, there wasn’t one. We pulled over, thinking it was a flat, and couldn’t find any problem. We then tried to start up again, only to hear the most hideous of noises, kind of like if Loverboy teamed up with a chorus of squeaking chalkboards inside a garbage can being thrown down the stairs of the Washington Monument. Ruth pointed out that the drive shaft was laying on the ground underneath the truck. That made me think the trans had failed, so I checked the fluid, which looked like pink paint. We had just gotten our cell phones, as luck would have it, so we called and fought with the garage again. They offered to change the trans fluid again, as I yelled at them about the fact that they never did it the first time, and that now our trans was ruined, and the driveshaft as a cherry on top. I told this guy John (who has a name like that anyway? It sounds like a toilet!) that what we expected was that they would pick us up, tow the truck, fix our problems, and we wouldn’t lower the boom on them, and wouldn’t bring up to the IRS that they take cash on jobs to avoid paying taxes.
It didn’t work, they just blamed the person who had tried to fix the leak in the first place for letting the water get in the trans, and so I tried plan B, which was to say we’d buy the parts, and they fix their mistake and all resultant mistakes. They said they’d do their best if we got it towed there.
They offered a number of a towtruck, so we got that for $200, and waited. In the meantime, we disconnected the boat trailer, and realized we had been standing on an anthill. And not just any anthill, but fire ants. Nice.
Long story kinda short, Toyota wanted $1300 for the driveshaft, and who knows what they would want for the trans, but for now, we called about 25 places (no, not an exaggeration) before we located a junkyard that could order one for $225. So, we ordered one and hope to see it next week. They only take cash, so we had to drive to New Orleans East with the Honda, which has no plates (not good) and no insurance (really, really not good here) to put a payment on it, so we can pick it up next week. The upshot is that Benjamin is buying the car for most of what we paid for it, so that will buy us most of a new transmission if we end up needing one. In the meantime, we wait for the driveshaft to come in, and then I’ll install it, get the trans flushed again for free, and hope that it’s not trashed. If it is, that’s another $2000 or so. Yikes again.
So in the meantime, we’re working on the house, installing a driveway, a new gate, and a lot of odds and ends. It was fun trying to put a bunch of 2x4s, 4x4x8s, and fence slats into this tiny car, but we made do and now have the materials in order to keep working on the house while we wait. We’re sorry for the delay. We can’t wait to see you all. Tonight I ripped down our old rotting fence, and tomorrow I’ll put up the new gate. Ruth is making spaghetti, and right now, I’m drinking some beers, listening to Ace of Bass, and writing to you.
Because you’re loved. Cash and Mickey said so.
XOX
Mister J
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
hawks and umm.... "pelicans"
crazy wizard dude that was hanging out
I hereby declare cypress trees to be "awesome"
Does this look like a sculpture of a pelican to you?
Folks here in Appalachicola drink beer mostly, and leave the whine to the yuppies.
Hawk that was chilling on a marker in the channel in Florida
stuff to look at
awesome chair carved from teak in florida
big sun
what you feel like when you read blogs that are too verbose and talk about politics
florida bridge at night
Appalacicola lady painting. Pretty cool and stuff.
more pictures of things and stuff
the lord
thought this was a cousin of bird of paradise, but I was dead wrong
"Ruth's hat-" the hat, not the band
sunset on the waterway
sunset sliver
SNAPALAP
A face only a hungry mother could love
John Fogerty's Dream house
Shawn Brants's dream house
Ruth and our pet catfish "Fishstickdinner"
Cow of rare distinction on the Okeechobee
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