After a nap.
Chi Town
As its own little world.
Another Small Victory
I got notice today that I passed the course I took in Chicago (“Residential Sales Comparison and Income Approaches”) at the beginning of October!!!
Onward and upward!
Relaxed
Completion
At last!
Now, all I need are taller roses! 😀
The glass work in our front door (below) was the inspiration for the design. The trellises also have iridescent art glass in the triple openings near the top of each panel. In this way I hoped to carry this Neo-Craftsman theme across the side of the home.
Next, I need three more trellises in the back yard for the camellias, and more roses.
Back to the drawing board!
The Trellis
On and off over the last two months, I have been working on a trellis for my roses. Today, I finally mounted the support rails and the first 2 of 4 trellis panels. The pattern was derived from the leaded glass in our front door, which is a neo-craftsman (or faux Frank Lloyd Wright) design.
I’m pretty happy with the way it looks, so far, and I’m eager to get the last 2 panels in place. It will be interesting to see how the whole thing weathers, especially as it has full sun all summer long. I sense a “learning experience” in the making.
Looking at myself here, I am reminded that no one wears shop aprons any more. I know it looks perfectly ridiculous, but I have not found a more convenient way to carry a couple of markers, a 25′ tape measure, extra nails, a few screws, and a couple of shims, in a way that does not interfere with work.
I got that idea, along with a number of other technical skills, from my maternal grandfather, who worked as a machinist for GM.
As I am a newly minted grandfather, I wonder what things Tristan will learn from me and carry forward, even as those things also become anachronistic.
Wow. Who knew Jon Voight was so ignorant?
“Obama really thinks he’s a soft-spoken Julius Caesar who thinks he’s going to conquer the world with his soft-spoken sweet talk and really thinks he’s going to be all the enemies of the world to a little playground where they’ll swing each other back and forth. We and we alone are (of) the right frame of mind to free this nation from this Obama oppression….
“And let’s give thanks to all the great people like Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly, Laura Ingraham, Mark Levin, William Bennett, Glenn Beck, Hugh Hewitt, Dennis Prager, Michael Medved, Dennis Miller, Dick Morris, Ann Coulter, John Kasich, Michael Steele, Karl Rove, Newt Gingrich, Thomas Sowell, Victor Davis Hanson, Shelby Steele, Charles Krauthammer, Michelle Malkin, Fred Barnes and so many others.
“Let’s give thanks to them for not giving up and staying the course, to bring an end to this false prophet Obama.”
And let’s give thanks to Jon for a such a concise list of the most bigoted, vile shit-spreading partisans in America.
Posted in Editorial
Tagged jon voight, politics
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Review: Oliver Stone’s “W”
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Stone portrays dumbya credibly, perhaps even sympathetically, as inept, not evil, and motivated by a deep, frustrated need for approval from his daddy. This reminds me of another historical figure motivated by “family issues” – Douglas MacArthur.
As facts emerge from a review of the reign of the Bush junta, there is little doubt that dumbya was the stupidest person in the room whenever the cabinet met, so you can almost feel sorry for him.
Almost.
He was, after all, just a post turtle.
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One Year Out
Today is the first anniversary of my cancer surgery. I’m glad to still be here.
Boreas Still Tortures Us
The trip back from Wenatchee was nothing less than nightmarish. As soon as we started to ascend the Cascades, the snow started, and quickly obliterated road markings and visibilty.
The trip (normally a three hour drive) took six hours, and the pass closed minutes after we went through it.
This was a reminder for me that you cannot count on getting across the Cascades, and as we had not planned for a longer stay, we were lucky that we got through, even if it was a white-knuckle drive.
Posted in This & That
Tagged Hwy 2, Stevens Pass, Wenatchee
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At Barb’s in Wenatchee
Meow.
Orchid
…A birthday gift for Camille from her friends Judi & Ugo in Buffalo.
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Cake Blindness
Erin and I put together a surprise birthday party for Camille.
More than half of the invitees did not make it, as we had a bad storm with a mix of snow, freezing rain and glazed roads that caused still more accidents in an already banner season for fender benders. And while that was a disappointment, I was glad that no one got hurt or had an accident getting to the party.
Camille was pretty emphatic that she did not want a birthday party, saying she did not want to be the center of attention. But I reasoned that we are now in a different part of the country, with more of her family easily accessible, and she has friends that I was sure she would be happy to see. Erin was a little worried that Camille would be upset by this, and made me promise to protect her! 😀
But I threw the dice high and it was a success! Because Erin held the party at her house, I was able to keep it a complete secret, and Camille’s surprise was complete!
It was really good to see everyone – her dad came up from California, her aunt came from Vancouver, and her sister from Wenatchee. Lots of smiles everywhere!
So, I thought it might be a good opportunity to post an image or two of Camille from the Summer of 1959, with her grandparents:
And while I’m at it, why not post a picture of what Camille was doing when I met her?
Not Good
Throughout the area, there are entire developments, brand new and recently completed, which are bank owned.
As is also true with individual owners, banks often refuse to negotiate new loan terms, and pull the funding from builders without regard to the salability of the development or financial track record of the builder.
Posted in Real Estate
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Rule of Thumb
Posted in This & That
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