Hebrew Slave

I worked like a Hebrew slave for four days pulling this out of my yard--brick and concrete. Evidently the previous owner was at war with my neighbor. She built a wall. He sued. She lost. Instead of properly disposing of the trash, she had it dumped in the front and rear corners of the yard. The green herbie curbie was my wheel barrow. In the right frame of mind, you could look at it as a good work out.

Danish Oil vs. Poly for wood floors

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/asktoh/question/0,,1045852,00.html

I tried this and it goes on easy and looks great. Another great thing about Danish Oil is that it is the stain and the protection coat in one step.

Shower

I wanted to replace my shower in the bathroom. The lowest quote I have gotten is $13,000! Yikes. That won't be happening. I am now trying to decide whether to go with Ikea cabinets in my kitchen, or custom made. There is a guy in Monticello, GA, Benny Hart of Hartwood Cabinets, that is actually only a couple thousand dollars more than Ikea.

Attic insulation

I could not decide on whether to use fiberglass or recycled paper. I ultimatley decided on recycled paper because it was half the cost of the bats; provides more seamless coverage; has higher noise reduction, because it is more dense; and is better for the environment. (It is grade 1-A fire retardent.) My only concern is if it gets wet. But someone pointed out that if it gets wet, you have more serious problems. I was also concerned about compression, but I have read that it doesn't compress too much more than fiberglass. Once I had already bought the paper, I noticed that Home Depot sells blow in fiberglass at the same cost as the paper.

My dad helped me blow it in yesterday. I took 7 hours! for 1500 square feet. Much longer than I expected.

One step forward, one step back.

Never use a latex based primer. It peels right off. Only use an oil based primer. I am having to strip off freshly painted walls.

A vital neighborhood.

Revolution in the neighborhood:

Guerilla beltline art: Random folks are putting their artwork up at Beltline focal points.

Off the food grid:

Before photos

New bird house:

Cat perch was a priority.

Went on the internet to find out how to install a "shower pan" in my tile shower stall. Tip is to use toilet bowl wax as the seal between the liner and the bottom flange. Unlike other sealants, wax won't dry out. Never use a sealer between the liner and the top flange. The previous shoddy install didn't even bring the liner over the flange, so water leaked everywhere.

Dad is the paint and stain expert. The puke green paint by the previous owner dripped on the baseboards. I am thinking of doing a lighter stain.

John of Atlanta Chimney Company installed a flu at the top of the chimney. The pull chord to the right is supposed to last forever. $390. John is very cool. His hair is styled like the Heat Misor.

My new bathroom. The flooring had a 3 inch layer of concrete on it. Has anyone else encounterd this on their flooring in the bathroom? I can't figure out why it was there. Anyway, the floor was rotted out. I replaced the whole subfloor with pressure treated wood, 3/4 inch pressure treated plywood over that, and then finally a layer of concrete backer board. I used weather proof decking screws for the wood and backerboard screws for the concrete backer board. Please spend the extra few dollars to use the right materials--pressure treated wood and decking screws---I don't know how many times I have encountered projects where people have wasted their efforts on wood that rots and screws that rust. I am in the process of putting on the tile. I used All City Plumbing of Atlanta. I recommend them.

This house is a rare find in that it hasn't been mucked up---the floor plan is original, no paint on the brick work. The original leaded glass doors on the book cases were stolen the day after I went under contract (the house was left open by the seller). The grotto in the backyard was built by the previous owner as a place to pray. My neighbors are very nice and the street is quiet.

Another American dream realized in Westview neighborhood of Atlanta. I bought this on a short sale--2000 square feet and a double lot. I had bought a house in East Atlanta 11 years ago for very little and I am trying to keep the thing going by buying in this awesome, relatively unknown, in-town Atlanta neighborhood--Westview. (One thing vital to consider when buying a home in-town is the historic retail potential nearby, both East Atlanta and Westview have great "villages".) I got lucky in that previous attempts to buy houses in this neighborhood during the height of the housing craze fell through.

The house was full of junk. Some of which you see on the street below. I must say Atlanta does a good thing by hauling this stuff away for new homeowners.

No, I am not color blind. Does anyone know how to change this green background?