Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Upstairs/Downstairs, Indoors/outdoors

This backyard view was taken Sept. 22 and it feels like mid-June all over again. I hope the unseasonably warm temps Whistler is currently experiencing don't go away too soon.

Indoor loveliness... some sunflowers left over from an ongoing series of condo shoots we did late summer. The deck had to be put on hold as we took off now and then to make a living.

A rapid-fire chore I knocked off before the deck project. My roommate/tennant asked me to install floor moulding in what was the guest room, and is now her room. Dave and I put down this oak flooring 8 years ago (we were just boyfriend/girlfriend then... hmm, time flies) and I've procrastinated to do it till now. I ripped 30 feet of 1 x 4 x 8 pine boards to make 60 linear feet of moulding with a 30 degree bevel. Manufacturing, staining and installation together took three days, as opposed to the five weeks and counting for the deck.

Dave is very near where we both accidentally punched our legs (not at the same time tho') through the garage ceiling.

The 'skylight' in the garage just before the new tongue and groove plywood was laid in place.

A sneak preview of the new deck and rail. This was the progress as of 2 days ago. I'm adding some quirky touches to this that will be part of my next blog post.

My eBay collecting has piled up on the desk for more than a month. I've only had time to un-box and give them a quick inspection in between building the deck rail and keeping up with regular chores. Again, more upcoming blog fodder for when the weather turns nasty and I retreat indoors for winter.

Monday, September 11, 2006

That Damn Deck


I've been completely occupied with getting this entire deck replaced before the weather turns for the worse, which by Weather Canada's forecast should happen this wednesday. Aaaaaargh. This is the largest remodelling job I've ever done and it's never ending, what with hauling plywood up and sanding planks down et al. This little bit captured here is interesting for what you can't see. I accidentally punched my leg right through the garage ceiling underneath these beams. Add 'replacing the garage ceiling' to the top of my humongous list of things to do.

BTW, Dave is crazy about his new fisheye lens and uses it all the time now, hence the wonkiness of these photos.

The (literally) rotten old deck lies in a heap on the ground before my roommate Mona and I shovel it into Nibbles the F250 truck for a compactor run later that day. It filled up the entire truck bed and then some.

Fast forward two weeks later to find the deck surface complete and me painting the new deck rail prior to assembly. That henious shade of 'Hello Kitty' pink was randomly picked by some dude in the paint department at Home Depot who asserted the base coat should be a lighter hue than the top coat to ensure a vibrant end result. God, I hate this *&%@! pink.

This photo is only for posterity and to remind me of how retched the stair rail looked for one day. As of tomorrow, it will be a nice deep red colour.

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Beautiful Oregon, Part II of II

I'm checking out the business end of an old fighter jet outside the Oregon Air Museum. They had just closed for the day so we made do with what could be seen from the windows and what was parked all around.

Walking the wrong way down the Oregon scenic route. Lovely isn't it?

This natural configuration is called the Devil's Punchbowl and is near the Sea Lion Caves.

A typical specimen of West Coast beach. The Canadian version is alot more craggy, cold and steep.