After Christmas...

After a tumble of 22 ft down the elevator shaft, Lola seems to be OK; we will take her to the vet once we are back in Florida…

As I mentioned before, Spence & Marcia Price, Leah’s Godparents, came to visit us; they arrived on the 25th and left today, the 29th. Mike, Nancy & Jesse Temperelli came on the 26th and will leave tomorrow.

On Saturday we all caravanned to the Fall Creek Falls State Park, with all five dogs; Alex, Leah and the Temperellis hiked down to the bottom of the falls; wiser and older folks (Prices and Rodríguez) did not do the hike… Saturday evening the grown-ups went to a neighborhood party hosted by Mary Newman in the Newman’s log home; met lots of people; heard lots of stories; learnt a thing or two about country living; had a great time!

On one of these past days, while I was working, I looked out one of the office windows and saw what I thought was a coyote on our driveway; Jimmy Hale, our builder, was with me and he said that was no coyote (too big); he thought it was a big dog; it was big indeed, bigger than Pancho and with a collar that looked like a transmitter/research one. Later, at the party, I learnt that the county Sheriff owns some wolves and that even though they are expected to be kept in pens, they are left to roam around; I was told that most likely that was one of the sheriff’s wolves because they had been sighted in the area before…

Yesterday, Temperellis went to their lot near Altmont; they timed the ride and, even though it’s only about 35 miles away, it actually takes about 1 hour door-to-door. They were very excited about what they found and also about spending time there. Meanwhile, the rest of us – except Jan who stayed with the dogs – went to the Jack Daniels distillery. We all had a great time. Also yesterday, Mary Newman went back to Florida...

Today the work re-starts at the house; stone masons are expected; the elevator people come on Wednesday; electricians may be back tomorrow along with plumbers…

GO FINS!

Boxing Day...

Ok. So, it is the day after Christmas (a.k.a. Boxing Day North of the border) and there is a warming trend and we have 50.4 ˚F at noon time. It is wet and cloudy. Oh well…

Here is a recap of the happenings of the last three days:

·         The plumbers hooked up the pipes and the garbage disposal to the main kitchen sink and the ice-maker in the kitchen bar.

·         The glass and mirror people showed up to install the shower glass enclosures in the master bathroom and, I believe, the mirrors in the kitchen bar.

·         Sears showed up and fixed the fridge.

·         Jimmy and his sons set up the mantle on the fire place and then installed a TV above the mantle.

·         The stone people finished the installation of all the granite counter tops (with big help from Jimmy and his people), the veggie sink in the kitchen, and the sinks in the master bathroom. The only setback was that a big mirror for the back of the bar in the kitchen was cut about ½ inch off center; has to be redone; will be redone by the week of January 8^th…

·         Chris went back home today (he had been staying with Jan for the week). He helped and accompanied and provided a great deal of peace of mind to me. I am indebted to him.

·         Jan and the girls went to Sam’s and the damage was so bad that the manager came out to thank them for their business!

·         We set up some of the living room furniture and had our 1^st fire!

·         I hung up mirrors in two of the five bathrooms. Also put up fixtures (towel bars, TP holders, etc.)

·         Cleaned and set up the kitchen

·         Had a small gathering in Christmas Eve

·         Opened presents on Christmas Day; spoke to close friends, my parents and Kiki & Tini.

·         At 3:00 PM Christmas Day, the main pipe that brings water from the filtration systems into the house busted. There was water gushing out like fire hydrants; after 3 hours the plumbers came and fixed it.

·         At about 5:30 PM, Lola was exploring and fell through the elevator shaft onto the top of the elevator; then she bounced and fell to the bottom of the shaft and got wedged between the back of the elevator and the wall; all together about 22 feet. I had to open a whole in the wall to get her out; did it!

·         Uncle Spence and Auntie Marcia Price, Leah’s godparents, arrived at about 6:30 PM.

·         We had a great turkey breast dinner.

·         Today, the Temperellis (Mike, Nancy and Jesse) arrived at about 5:30 PM; we celebrated Nancy’s 39^th J birthday with a great pork dinner…

All is well that ends well!

2nd Day: we are staying!

As we started to get up and active we discovered there was no water in the house; after some research it was apparent some pipes were frozen over night (it went down to around 6 ˚F last night). The pipes were supposed to be insulated and protected but were not…

Plumbers have been here all day long heating the pipes in many areas and have come to the conclusion that one of the pumps, the one from the cistern to the filtration system, burned out; reason unknown yet! As of now, we are waiting for our builder to assess the situation and (a) see if it is indeed a burnt pump; and (b) how long this would take to fix. If it is more than one day, we are packing and going back tomorrow…

As it turned out, there was no damage to any of the pumps; only a great deal of frozen water in the pipes; it took until 5PM to thaw them out; we are staying… YES!

We finished the day with the installation of the main kitchen sink under the counter; tomorrow the plumbers come back to hook it up. Additionally, Jimmy’s sons helped the plumbers install the water line into the freezer’s ice maker. We now have ice; civilized drinks are possible; making more progress!

Sometimes one either forgets or takes for granted little things: we were able to shower today!

Went to bed around 9:00 PM…

Alex, Leah, Lola, Bo, Pancho and I left for ‘the Bluff’ at about 4:15 AM on Sunday, December 21, 2008. The car (the Escalade) was loaded to the hilt, including the top rack and an extra-grill attached to the rear hitch. After a bit of uncertain start with the cargo on the top rack coming loose and Bo being anxious (bothering her sister Leah), we got into a good driving groove and eventually made it here at about 5:15 PM EST (4:15 PM CST – Local).

Jan was very happy to see us and us her; she’s been here the whole week with Chris and tremendous progress has been made; but it has not come easy. Anxiety, uncertainty, last-minute changes have been the daily ‘agenda’…

When we got here it was cold, about 27 ˚F; we unloaded as much as we could and put it all in the garage. Later, as we were trying to find our air mattresses in the garage, Pancho saw and sought the opportunity to escape, and SO HE DID! It was dark already and we were all in inside clothes; by the time we grabbed jackets and shoes, he had take off and disappeared into the wilderness.
Jan, Chris, Lean and I went out to look for him while Alex stayed behind just in case he returned on his own. Leah stayed on foot while Jan Chris and I jumped on the car to see if we could find him and then entice him to come to the car; no avail! As it turns out, after he roamed for a while and satisfied his curiosity he came back on his own! Dirty, cold and wet, but in one piece!

Sleeping was OK; we all used air mattresses: Jan and I each in one, in our bedroom, Alex and Leah upstairs and Chris took the basement (to avoid the early morning stirring) as I am causing right now... It is about 6:50 AM CST and about 6.9 ˚F!

This is clearly work-in-progress, but the key word is ‘progress’…

Will report again tomorrow…

Leah, Dad, Hawk's Bluff, Unique week-end...

So, Leah and I went this past week-end to Hawk's Bluff. We left our house in Sunrise at around 6:30 PM EST. Stopped briefly twice, for refueling and bathroom breaks an got there at 6:oo AM EST (or 5:00 AM CST).

Melissa and Ralph, from the Way Inn, had room 19 open, with a light, and warmed up waiting for us. Although my co-pilot had slept on and off (more on than off) on the way up; we both hit the hay immediately for a nap...

Got up about 7:30 AM, grabbed a couple of biscuits with bacon and egg at the Way Inn little store and header for the house. There has been progress, but I am afraid that not enough for it to be finished for this coming Saturday.

The interior work is progressing aggressively but there is till lots of work to do...

After being in the house for about one hour, Leah and I went to Dee and Phil's house and visited with them, warm and nice, and the Perez (they all had had an ugly battle with Seagram's the night before and were still trying to understand which way was up...)

Later, we went to Cookeville and had lunch at Sam's club; on our way home stopped by the Sparta Wal-Mart (obligatory stop) and got back to our hotel room in tome to watch, in total, the severe and humbling whooping the Gators gave Satan and his Crimson (now black-and-blue) Tide...

We left our house at precisely 10:00 AM EST Sunday morning and pulled into our Sunrise driveway at 9:00 PM EST. We made the 810 miles in 11 hours, an average of 73.6 MPH (including two stops!)

Jan and I are going back this Saturday; we reserved two rooms (one for us and one for Chris) at the Way Inn for Saturday since the floors may still be fresh; I will be coming back on Sunday (flying) and Jan stays... We are having the phones installed on Monday, the alarm on Tuesday and the Satellite TV on Friday.

24-NOV-08

Jan and I went to Tennessee this past week-end. We left home at 6:35 PM EST and drove straight through; stopped twice for fueling and bio-breaks, once in the Okahumpka Plaza in the FL Turnpike and then right south of Atlanta at about 2 AM. Got the Hawk's Bluff at about 5:15 AM (4:15 AM CST). We were tired and took a nap (about 2 hours) at the Way Inn's paring lot (it was too early to check in).

It was 14 degrees F when we got to the house at around 6:30 AM after getting some coffee at the corner convenience store. It was cold! There was no snow but, instead, there was a frost on the ground that made everything white/gray... Surreal!

There is progress being made, in all fronts, and a couple of snags (what would life be without them!) regarding the gas line - not in yet - and the stone for the fireplace: Jimmy does not like the way the current stone looks on it; so he will order a different one (impact on time & money). But, while we were there on Saturday, there were about 10 people working in the house: Jimmy's sons were building the rails; some other people were inserting the cabinets in Alex's and Leah's rooms and the rest were working on laying the stone work outside...

We will be back on the Dec 6 week-end and then, for good on Dec 13th. On Dec 6th we will have a better idea of the level of readiness the house will have for the Holidays. We may have a 'camping' Christmas Season, but we will keep our hopes high...

Nov 18th Update

Jan and I went to Hawk’s Bluff this past week-end; flew early Friday morning into Nashville; rented a Toyota Tundra pick-up truck (what a car!); stayed at the Way Inn for two nights (we were the only non-hunters in the joint!) and flew back home on Sunday night.

Unfortunately this time we forgot to take a camera (one of the – at least – two dozen we have) and, therefore, we have no pictures to show… Otherwise, we would have shown you the latest on the house and the SNOW!

At any rate, there is progress being done; while we were there we met with the plumbers and paid for all the fixtures they ordered. We also met with Sammy who will be the caretaker, like he does for Scott and Mary Newmann; once we ‘move in’, we will come by weekly and flush the toilets, check the windows and doors, etc. We also spent quite a bit of time with Jimmy Hale and finished the paints schema, some decorative infrastructure (like where to hang the TV set and the elk mount above the fire place!), settled the finances to ensure we were all singing from the same page, and got a high level sequence of tasks that would allow the inside to be finished by December 16^th (move-in date!). There will be some tasks going on in the outside (stones, retaining wall, final front door approach, landscaping, garage, etc.) that will continue to go on to be finished as time allows.

Jan and I, meanwhile, need to:

• Buy the hardware for the doors (locks, levels, knobs) for inside & outside;
• Decide on the granite for the basement bar (depending on price);
• Decide on mirrors for the kitchen bar, also depending on price
• Buy vanity mirrors for Alex's, Leah's and our bathroom.
  

We are going back up (driving) this Friday and driving back on Sunday!

Charz volunteered Tom to accompany Jan in a Tennessee adventure, driving up on Nov 2^nd and down on Nov 5^th or the 6^th, depending on how much could be accomplished; the main issue is the appliances being delivered on Nov 4^th and then ensuring they are secured.

On Thursday, Oct 30^th I sent Jimmy Hale (our builder) a simple message asking him to verify Jan would be able to stay at the house – as he had committed to - after driving 12 hours and getting there at night (electricity, running water, toilet and shower were the basic needs). Early Friday AM, I got an e-mail from Beth – his admin – saying that the house would not be inhabitable for Jan on Nov 2^nd and that the new finish date was Nov 30^th. After consultations, and assessing financial impact (the cost of 4 or 5 hotel nights needed to be considered now), Tom decided to still go. Jan wrote Jimmy a rather frank and candid letter sharing her feelings and unmet expectations…

On Sunday Nov 2^nd, Jan left the house at 5:30 AM to go pick up Tom in Boca and keep on going to Tennessee. They made great time and were there in under 12 hours, safe and sound and still on time to have dinner at the Way Inn. Melissa and Ralph, the Way Inn owners, did not like Tom being in the picture…

On Monday, Nov 3^rd Jan and Tom went to the house and immediately came to the conclusion that the appliances could not be delivered; nothing was ready for them; Jan called Sears and re-scheduled for Dec 16^th. Since we were there in early September, when Jimmy came up with the Nov 1^st date, the only progress has been the painting of the inside (wrong colors at that!) and the finishing of the wood trimming (no beams though!). Jan took some pictures…

Jan will be having a conversation with Jimmy today, Nov 4^th in order to gauge his disposition and his commitment. We will be going back on Nov 14^th and assess progress. 

On Saturday, Oct 18^th we spoke to Jimmy Hale; ha had been in Jury duty the whole week. Although he had not been there, he said there had been people working in the house and that he would be there this coming week…

I don’t think the house will be ready on Nov 1^st as he had committed to before; he did say that it would be ready for the appliances delivery on Nov 4^th and that when we go on Nov 14^th we will be able to stay in the house…

Later that day, at around 11, Scotty Newman called; he said he was sitting in his porch and that it was 55 degrees and sunny, crisp, and that the changing colors of the leaves were glorious… He said he would be going by the house to take a look and would report back…

Jimmy suggested I sent Beth an e-mail requesting an updated spread sheet; I did. We are looking forward to all the updates and to our Nov 14^th trip!

Friday, October 3rd, 2008

Spoke to Jimmy Hale, our builder, this morning. He related to me that today is the first day of work for him this week: he was on jury duty. Like me, after one bad experience, he tries to get picked whenever he's called to serve because 'there are some many gullible people out there'...

At any rate, he said all the ceiling work - including beams - is done and all the tile work (all the bathrooms) is done. He told me he had all the e-mails I had sent and he would respond sometime today or tomorrow... My latest e-mail to him was asking for:

1. Progress to date and tasks taking place currently
2. Updated spread sheet
3. Confirm/verify November 1st as the due date
4. Confirm/verify we can have a walk thru and closing procedures as needed on Nov 14th and 15th

... and a couple of reminders:

• Call the Ben Lomand people once you are ready for them to install the phone and Internet
• The appliances and beds are being delivered on November 2nd.

(I was corrected later on regarding the Sears delivery date: Nov 4th, instead of the 2nd).

Will report back here as soon as I hear from him...

Dates...

I called Jimmy Hale to verify with him that November 14th will be a good date for us to go back to TN and do the walk-thru and all the other closing procedures... He had mentioned to me last Labor Day (Sep 1st) that he need another two months to finish the house; that would be Nov 1st.

On another subject, Scotty Newman received the windows measurements I sent him for the wood blinds for the front windows... He'll be up there from Oct 1y7 to Nov 3rd...

Here is another picture...

This is the South-East corner of the house... In the foreground are Alex and Matt Parrish, walking around the ouse when they went, along with Marlin Farnsworth, to visit for Labor Day...

Opening Statements

Well, this is an account of the progress of the house we are buikding in Tennesee... As of now it is about 80-85% done...