All in good time...

The other posts never migrated. The other blog got hacked and the account was closed. I still have all the pictures, oh and the memories, they remain. They get sketchier as time goes on and I get used to the house as it is now. Why is that? I upgrade or restore something and afterwards, I'm almost immediately used to it? I got the chimneys fixed! I had deluded myself into thinking I would personally be climbing up to the roof to be rebuilding them, but that didn't really happen. Instead, a nice guy, Josh Cates, of Tennessee Chimney and Home Improvement, came out and tuck pointed and rebuilt them where necessary. They look fabulous. They have new crowns and a new tile at the top and new stainless caps and waterproofing. The best part is that they no longer spit errent bricks, taunting, as if to say, "HEY, I'm up here, SUFFERING, you know, getting sunburned and all that! It hurts and BURNS, not that you'd CARE."

I no longer really see the chimneys. The fanfaire lasted about a week.

I am still painting the house. You may not recall because I may not have told you, that I am using Allback Linseed Oil Paint. It is solvent free, organic, made in Sweden, and if I drink too much of it, I may get a bit of a tummy ache. It will never ever crack or peel and it will last 50 years on the house - or perhaps indefinitely - with periodic maintenance. It has no VOCs, it has a masters degree in history, it's mother won an academy award for best picture, and each flax seed was individually squeezed by hand by virgins wearing hemp skirts under the light of the Harvest Moon. That last part might have been a bit of advertising license... The rest is all true. The hard part is that it can't be sprayed and has to be painted with stiff brush in thin coats, so painting it is taking a very long time and allowing me to get very well acquainted with the house.

Today we have three sides of the body of the house painted. A spruce green color made by mixing two spruce greens with a white (if you purchase the color from solventfreepaint, that is how you would get this color). I'm going to have to take a break from painting green though, to paint soffits to prepare the house for its new roof. Pictures to follow...

Still haven't closed. Thinking about the fireplace.

I'm all ready to close. I have the insurance bought, the title company on standby, my mortgage is all set, etc. Everything on my side is complete. The seller, a bank, is dragging its feet! Very frustrating.

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad have gone back to Florida. Dad laid the tile for the impromptu hall bathroom fiasco-er-project in the current house. It looks great! I know he wasn't happy, but I think he's a bit of a perfectionist. The floor was very uneven and the tile was all seconds, so I didn't give him much to work with. I plan on finishing laying the couple of tiles to finish the job (3 or four maybe - the tile nipper was not cooperating with Dad) and then grouting tonight. With any luck, it will be beautiful and dry by tomorrow and we'll be able to install the toilet and the vanity. It is not quite as much fun working on a house that is not mine. ;) But it's still a little fun fixing anything up at all. I also hope to be able to take pictures of the bus to try to sell it.

Meanwhile, I was thinking about the chimney that is falling down in the bungalow. I could take it down. I could... And I could replace that space with a turbine roof vent. But I like the chimney and it is an important one - it is one for the Kitchen and my bedroom. If I want to use a wood burning stove, then I have to have a chimney. I don't yet know if this is at all practical or doable, but I'm thinking about it. One option seems to be to have the chimney rebuilt partially and relined with a flexible stainless steel liner. A "Flex King" has a warranty even if the home owner installs it... But is that the preferred method? If the bricks are taken down anyway? Hmmm.

I'm making another link category for chimneys and masonry.