Surprise Visitor!

Last night during dinnner I received a text, and although I know how much Darryl hates it when I use my phone at dinner, I had to answer it. Because, you see, I was expecting this one, but I couldn't tell Darryl about it. His best friend Tim was making a surprise visit down from San Francisco, and he was texting me to tell me he was about 15 minutes away.

Tim had contacted me earlier in the week to see if it would be a good idea to come down and surprise Darryl. I realized that it was perfect timing. Now in the second week of construction, Darryl is going a little crazy dealing with the house, the contractors, the dog, the heat, you name it. So I thought it would be great for Tim to come down and give Darryl a reason to leave it all for a few hours.

Darryl and Tim in the back yard

Sure enough, Darryl couldn't have been happier. His face was a picture - the smile was as broad as the hole in our yard. They stayed up late talking and laughing, then spent today watching a movie and cooking. Definitely exactly what the doctor ordered for Darryl.

 

Trying to get some perspective of the footprint of
the new addition. The wood is the frame for the
new foundation, which will be poured tomorrow.

Meanwhile, this morning, the inspector came to look at the foundation frame and gave us his blessing to pour concrete. So tomorrow morning, the concrete truck will be pulling up outside the Vinyard house and spewing its contents into our back yard. Please cross your fingers that we don't get another freak rain storm. Hopefully tomorrow's blog will have some good photos of the big pour (concrete, not rain).

Buried Treasure

Our friend Cory asked Darryl the other night whether we had found anything interesting in the old structure. I'm pretty sure he was thinking a bag of old coins or some diamond bracelets. The usual things you find when you demolish an old house, right?

Well, there were no valuable finds unfortunately, but we did find this interesting match book which had somehow made its way into the bricks of the chimney.



The front of the match book

My favorite part of this is his little matchstick legs, which, though skinny, must be super strong to hold up such a hefty body. And notice his crown, quite right for a king. The phone number gave us the clue about its age. We figured it was from around the mid-1940s, because the phone number only has 6 digits in it. The "AN" of ANgelus represent the first two digits of the phone number (2 then 6 on an old dial phone). Each neighborhood had its own 2-digit code, and this part of Los Angeles was called Angelus (but, as far as we can tell, only for the phone company).

The other thing we noticed was that the striker part of the matchbook is on the front. That's something you don't see any more. Today's matchbooks have the striker on the other side, so that even stupid people would have to work really hard to burn themselves. But not in the '40s. Presumably people were either more careful then, or just didn't mind when they burned their fingers. That would have been right before they walked uphill both ways in the snow . . .





Safety, who needs that?



Glitch #1

Tonight's post is called Glitch #1, because I have to assume that it will be the first of some (not many, I hope). As of 4pm this afternoon, the foundation trenches had all been dug and the support frames were in place. Then our contractor discovered that one trench is 1/2 inch too deep, which means they now have to remove the frame and add 27 feet worth of half an inch of dirt back into that trench. Sounds pretty tedious to say the least. The worst part is that tomorrow is our first inspection day, and although we asked for the inspection in the afternoon, you never know with LADBS. (In a later post I plan on describing the painful process of dealing with this office. I know, I know, you can't wait!)

So tomorrow morning, as early as possible, they're going to remove that part of the frame and do their best to put dirt back into a beautiful looking trench. What's frustrating is that they thought the frames were perfect, and after the inspection all that would then be needed would be to remove all the dirt and prepare the surface for the concrete pour (which now may have to be moved back a day from Thursday to Friday). I feel for those workmen, I really do. I couldn't imagine how hard it must be to do that digging and dirt removal in the intense sun. It got up to 95 degrees this afternoon. And now they have to go back and redo something they thought was done.

However, I'm happy that our contractor noticed the problem and realizes what needs to be done. After all, when the building is complete, we'll need a foundation that is level from one end to the other. I can just imagine standing in our new hallway looking west and realizing that there's an ever-so-slight slope, one that isn't really noticeable, but nevertheless would drive Darryl and I crazy for eternity.

When it comes to laying foundation, it seems that perfection is required. Kind of like baking, I suppose. Hey, maybe I should make some lemon bars.

[No photos today. Google blogs is mad at me :( ]

It's a Dog's Life

Hello everyone, Laura is a little busy tonight visiting with an old college friend, so I'm taking the opportunity to write tonight's entry. Let me introduce myself. My name is Captain and I'm the owner of this property (don't tell the Vinyards, they think it belongs to them.) So far, this project has been a lot better than I thought it was going to be. Oh sure, I wasn't happy when they took down my back porch. After all, that was my sunning spot and I realized that now I would have to find a new place to take my mid-morning nap and my early-afternoon nap. Not only that, but they removed that lovely screen door that I used to have so much fun with. I'd push it with my paws and make a nice hole to jump through, then Darryl would pretend to get mad at me and I'd push and jump and he'd pretend to make a fuss. Ah, good times.

My playground

Then there was the question of what to do with me during the day. I like to spend my days outside in the yard, watching the sun pass overhead and barking at the birds. This was a potential problem with all the construction going on. They couldn't leave me inside (that would have been bad news for me and bad news for the furniture) but they couldn't just let me roam around in the yard. You see, I have a little, um, problem. Some of you may already have heard about it. I'm what they call a "runner." I see an opening and I'm gone. And with the garage doors wide open for the workmen to pass through, I would have been out of there like a shot. So in the end, Laura decided to put me on the end of a nylon rope (one that I couldn't chew through, even if I tried, which I would never do because I'm really a good dog). The rope is long enough for me to wander around the yard, making sure the workmen are doing their job and the birds are safely chased away. I have access to food, water and shade, and I can still enjoy all of my naps at the appropriate time. The first morning, I'll admit I was a little upset. I cried when Laura and the girls went off to school and then I barked for an hour or so just to prove that I wasn't a crybaby. But every day since then I've taken to it rather well, if I say so myself, and now, well, it's just part of my routine.

Dinner is served

Plus now I can definitely see the benefits to this whole remodeling stuff. Why, I have so much wonderful dirt to play in. Only just this afternoon I was rolling around in a huge mound of the stuff. It was cool and dusty and full of interesting creatures for me to paw at and chew. Bonus: I get to track the dirt into the kitchen so I can keep track of where I've been. Not sure why Laura keeps trying to sweep it up. Doesn't she realize I'm just going to do it again. Silly girl.

And best of all, when the workmen have left for the day, I get to mooch around under their makeshift table and eat all the delicious food they left for me. They really are a most generous crew. Today they left me all the fixings for a tasty taco. I was quite satisfied.

Wait, I missed a spot over here

So all in all, not too bad really. Don't tell Darryl I said this, but I'm quite enjoying my days outside, watching him do all the hard work while I get to bask in the sun. Yep, it's a dog's life for sure.

An Interlude

No photos tonight. In fact, no news about the project tonight. It's a day off for us all :)

Instead, I want to share how nice it was to have time to cook an entire meal from scratch, without the use of microwaves, prepared food or leftovers. If you read the blog a few days ago you'll remember how much we enjoy cooking at our house. So it was really nice today to have the time to plan and prepare something yummy. I usually take a back seat to Darryl when it comes to menu planning, but today I was inspired to cook because there was no one in my house, no dirt to clean up, and no other decisions to make. It's amazing how my brain has shifted, so that 90% of it is now occupied by remodel information, and the other 10% is left to handle the rest. I keep forgetting to make the girls' dentist appointments, yet I remember the exact model name and number of the faucet set we want to buy (Newport Brass Astor #920). Of course, I don't think the girls are too sad about this.

Menu: Marinated chicken breast, pasta with a light sauce, spinach salad.

I marinated boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a combination of olive oil, balsamic, lemon juice, dijon, garlic and herbs from the garden. That sat in the fridge for about 6 hours. This morning I skinned and then pulverized the last of our tomatoes. Tonight we mixed that with some olives (pitting job went to Julia), garlic and basil, then poured it over the incredible home-made pasta that our friend Antonio gave us this afternoon. Talk about fresh! Finally, I made a spinach, mushroom, red onion, kalamata, blue cheese and walnut salad.

I can't wait to invite you all over to see the house when the project is complete and cook something for you. Stay tuned . . .

You Could be Digging Ditches

You can just about make out the outline
of where the new foundation is going

Next time you're driving around town and you see a crew digging up the street to lay cable or sewers, take a moment to thank them and to thank your lucky stars that you're not one of them. There were four people at my house today, from 8 a.m. until 3:30 p.m., and, except for a lunch break, they spent the entire time digging dirt. No machinery, no earth movers, just shovels, sweat and muscle. And all in the 85+ degree heat. I've heard the expression, "Well, at least I'm not digging ditches," and now I have a deeper understanding of the warning behind it. It's hard, hard work and I can't praise those men enough.

The trenches are currently
1 foot wide and
2 feet deep

This is the westernmost part of
the new addition

It's weird to look at a rectangle of dirt and try to imagine a building on it. We stood between the trenches and thought about standing in our bedroom, our closet, our bathroom, our sitting room. I have heard of people who move out of their homes during remodeling because it is difficult to be in the house when so much is happening to it. I think we're lucky that we don't have to move out. Our living quarters aren't really being affected (except for dirt. See: yesterday's blog) so we have the chance to see the day-by-day action. I love the tactile aspect of the stucco, the wood, and the dirt. Darryl told me today that he's looking forward to the framing, because he wants to help the contractor as much as possible. "I want to be able to stand in the room and say, 'I was a part of this, I helped make this,'" he said. I totally get that - I want to be there too.

Excuse me while I go take a crash course in how to hammer a nail into a wall.

Cleanliness is Next to Sanity

I'm the first person to admit that, while I have many diverse talents, housecleaning is not one of them. Sure, it's not a tip in here; it's not like you're going to catch a disease by stepping on my living room rug. But it almost always looks like the day before it's due to be cleaned. Not horribly dirty, but a little dusty on the coffee table, a few scratches in the kitchen sink, some splotches of toothpaste on the bathroom mirror. You know, a house that's lived in.

Now that the demolition is well under way, I realized we had two choices. We could shrug, give up and say, "Well, the dust isn't going anywhere so we'll have to live with it." Or we could fight it every step of the way. We have decided to fight.

Meet bucket and mop, my new best friends (sob)

Not really our house

When I taught 6th grade science, I would spend a couple of days each year discussing the dust bowl. I would show photos of day turned into night, play some Woody Guthrie ballads and read from  "The Grapes of Wrath." I tried to get my 6th graders to sense what it was like having to live in a world covered with endless layers of dust. Who knew that all I really needed to do was walk them through the beginning stages of a home remodel.

So in the interest of sanity - and to avoid constant sneezing - we are doing our best to mop the hardwood floors each night, vacuum the rug and clean the bathroom counter and mirror. While these are not three of my favorite ways to spend a cool summer evening, I have realized that I cannot give in. I must battle the oncoming (dust) devils and I must be triumphant.

OK, I just realized that as soon as Darryl reads this post he's going to question the depth of my desire to keep this house clean. Guess I'd better log off the computer and get to work. Sigh.

A Window into the . . . Soul?

The closet window is top left. Below it is the outline
of an old heater that warmed up the sewing room (we think).

Here's what I learned today about houses built in 1937: there wasn't a lot of air conditioning available so they had to rely on natural currents around the house. When Darryl and Tom (our contractor) pulled the wood paneling off the back wall of the sewing room, they discovered the stucco that covered the back of the original house, and below that the sheet rock that lined the wall. Near the top of the wall was a little window that matches up with the back of our bedroom - our bedroom closet, to be exact. Tom explained that this was a window for the original closet (before it was covered over by plaster when the sewing room was added). He told us that old houses would often have windows in the closets so that people could air out their clothes and avoid mildew. Pretty ingenious, don'tcha think? Tonight Darryl and I examined the inside of our closet and sure enough, we found the outline of the window. We thought it was funny (and possibly a little lazy) that when the room was added, they just threw the wood paneling on top of the old stucco, and on top of the window, instead of pulling it off, sealing up the window, and then plastering.

Darryl has the very important job of sweeping up debris,

By the way, you may have noticed that what we generally called the "ante room" was, in fact, a sewing room. It was put there, presumably, so that the lady of the house would have some place to, well, sew I suppose. Before you ask, no, I did not carry on that tradition in any way, shape or form. When Darryl and I were first married, his mother gave me a sewing machine and suggested I learn to use it so that I could mend clothes and later make my own. Confession time: That machine stayed in its box for about 10 years before I finally gave it away to a friend who actually knew what to do with it. Maybe if I lived in a house where I had to rely on a closet window to make sure my clothes stayed fresh and lasted longer, I'd be the type of person who'd be more inclined to use a sewing machine. Maybe not.

Call Child Services!

The door on the right is the door to the old bathroom.
The black vapor barrier shows the size of the room.

When the girls and I got home from school, we saw a toilet on the front yard. Please don't think we usually live like this. (It's for emergencies only!) The old room had a teeny teeny teeny tiny little bathroom in it. It was so small that we would hit our heads on the opposite wall when we got up from the toilet. In order to wash your hands you had to sort of stand sideways to maneuver between the sink and the door. Whenever people would ask us how many bathrooms our house has we would say just one, because this one didn't really count as a room. Take a look at the photo, you'll see what I mean.

Julia climbing high

The girls were fascinated by the fact that they could see the attic of the house. Julia decided that it would be cool beyond words to have a room up there (she reads a lot of teen-focused novels) until she climbed up the ladder and realized that it wasn't as romantic as she had thought. Still, I was pretty impressed with how brave she was to get all the way up on that ladder. I certainly didn't want to try it.

My little carpenter-in-training

Then Grace wanted to help Daddy out by wielding the sledgehammer (I had to close my eyes at that). She actually did really well. She knocked out a piece of wood and then used the prybar to pull out some nails. Hidden talents. Maybe we'll keep her home from school for the next few days so that she can help Darryl and Tom finish demolishing the ante-room. Heck, if she does a good enough job maybe we can forget about college all together, she can drop out of 6th grade, and then start learning a trade. It's about time she started earning her keep. You want your own bedroom? Work for it!

The Play's the Thing

When I got home today, my neighbor across the street said, "Someone stole the back of your house!" Cute, huh? No more bricks, no more cement slab, no more patio. I never realized how huge our lot was until today. It makes me feel like we're making a really good decision here because I think (hope) it's going to be a good use of the property.

This is the "footprint" of the addition

Darryl had the first reading of his new play tonight. It was weird to shut off the remodeling part of my brain and focus on the play instead. Now I understand why people have talked about the importance of maintaining the momentum for the project. I always assumed they meant that you don't want your contractor taking time off or working on other jobs. But maybe it's also true that for us, we need to stay focused too. While I haven't actually done anything myself yet (besides filling boxes with photos and unloading then reloading the china hutch), I feel like my energy is an integral part of the process. If I knew any meditation chants I'd be doing them right now, just to keep the chi flowing. (Um, is that the right expression?)

The proud author with his generous actors

BTW thanks to the wonderful actors who came to our house tonight. It was so exciting to hear the words come to life. You were all amazing! If anyone out there wants to become a theater mogul, I have the perfect script for you.

Tearing Down the House

And so it begins. This morning when I left for work there was a big room at the back of my house. When I got home, it was gone. Poof! Like magic.

We used to have a room with
a fireplace

Now we have a fireplace without a room

It's amazing how long it takes to build a house and how quickly it all comes down. Sometimes, when the mood overtakes me, I spend hours choosing the perfect recipe, buying the best ingredients and cooking a memorable meal. Then what feels like a few minutes later it's all gone, with only the dirty dishes left as testament to the feast. But the next day, I'll cook something new; and pretty soon my house will have some new rooms. 

Off comes the roof

I have to applaud the demolition crew. Darryl says they were six of the hardest workers he has ever seen, and some of the strongest too. It must be such a difficult job, yet they worked their butts off and took pride in getting so much done in one day. Hopefully this is a good sign of things to come.

The back of the house minus its wall

The Waiting is the Hardest Part

I think I'm a pretty smart person. I've read a lot of books and spent way too many years in school (OK, most of them as a teacher, but still). And yet I have discovered a brand new set of concepts over the last few months that I never even knew existed before. I can discuss the merits of double-paned windows and why you want a "low-e" (but don't ask me to define that please). I can explain what a "green" plan is (but not why the city of Los Angeles keeps it a secret until the day they ask you why isn't it in your original set of plans). I can eyeball a brick wall and tell you how much you could get if you sold the bricks to someone who knows the worth of such things (about $3 per brick for our 1940 editions!).

Go ahead, quiz me!

I always thought I'd be the kind of lady who lets other people do things like demolishing swing sets or unscrewing rusty screws from a bookshelf. But lo and behold I'm not that kind of lady at all! (Please keep all rude comments to yourself.) There is a great satisfaction in looking at an empty room devoid of all doors, hinges, and bookshelves, and knowing you had a hand in it. OK, Darryl did most of it I'll admit, but I was there.

Thanks for the memories

Today we also said goodbye to our old swing set. We acquired it almost 10 years ago when Julia had just turned 4. It has spent the last 9 summers entertaining all the children who have spent time in our backyard. As recently as 2 months ago it played host to a gaggle of soon-to-be 8th graders, who tossed aside their cool factor and played like the little girls they so recently were. It was hard to say goodbye, but it made us all realize that this is actually happening. Tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. (because contractors are always on time, no?) we begin. It feels like we have waited so long for this, and now all of a sudden it's here. Are we ready? I guess we'll have to be!

After 14 years and 6 months in our home, we are finally starting the remodel. We went back and forth for years: Sell and move or remodel; sell and move or remodel; sell and . . . well, you get the picture. But the clincher was really the fact that we couldn't leave our beautiful garden, with its tomato plant "forest," its herb plantation, its fruit orchard (have you experienced the simple joy of craving some homemade lemonade and then drinking it not five minutes later?).

So now it's T minus 2 days and counting. The back of the house is being torn out beginning 7 a.m. Monday morning. We have spent the last week emptying the room of its furniture, office equipment and china cabinet. The local library has been the lucky (?) recipient of about 150 books and the desktop computer has been banished to the garage.

The "Big Room" - tearing it down on Monday

We're doing our best to
save some of this wonderful wood
from 1940

I'm excited, nervous, inspired and exhausted. Hopefully this blog will give me some perspective on the process, although from the horror stories I've heard, nothing will keep me sane over the next four months. Cross your fingers for me - here we go!