I’ve done all of the grout work but…we had an issue with the faucet. Rob had taken the faucet off to allow me better access to the backsplash. We needed to get a new part for it while it was off so we went up to Home Depot. While we were gone, the water came back on. Mind you it had been off for the hour before we left. Rob had turned it off. We were home. We left. When we came back, the stub of the kitchen sink was trickling across the newly installed tiles and into the open hole where the sink belongs.

So. Two tiles have come off. We are running a fan in the space below the sink and trying to dry things out. Once it’s dry. I’ll place the missing two tiles, grout them and then we can install the sink. Sigh.

Honest. I’ll put a picture up soon. I just haven’t had clean enough hands to use the camera while working on the counter. All the tile is in except for the bits around the faucet. I’ll do those and grout everything tomorrow. I would’ve finished tonight except Rob and I went down to the Celsi’s to watch the Academy Awards.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Our kitchen counter has been decaying around the sink since before I bought the house. In fact, at one point things were actually sprouting in it. I pulled the counter apart, which, since it was rotten, mostly involved vacuuming it away. I’ve got the new frame in place as well as the new plywood underlayment. I’m working on the cement backerboard which will be followed by tile.

Rob went to the winery today, which left me to focus on things like laundry, finishing the last of the baseboards, and sorting out things that have been put into the guest room. I’m sure everyone has a room like this. We call it the guest room, not because that’s where we expect overnight guests to stay, but because that’s where we put all the random things that need to be put away with guests come for dinner. I’m now trying to figure out what to do with the technicolor zebra.

If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s really, really good. Go. Go now.

Rob and I just got back from seeing it at the Kennedy School. We biked over. I’m so out of shape; it’s pathetic.

Sam, Jodi and Krystal (Jodi’s sister) joined us for dinner this evening. We had a grand time chatting and they admired my new floor.

The Menu
Tagine of Cauliflower and Olives
Over a bed of Quinoa
Green Salad with Pomegrante Vinegrette, Apples and Shaved Parmesan
Berry tart

The weather the past two days has been gorgeous. Flowers are blooming, the sun is shining; it’s February and I’m supposed to be in Oregon. The weather makes me suspicious. See my earlier comments about the end of the world…

We’ve been moving furniture back into place today as I finish each section of wall. It has been very satisfying until I hit the section behind the refrigerator. Granted, no one will see this area, but there are not right angles anywhere. Nothing is straight, so a lot of my cuts will have to be enhanced with wood putty. Ah well.

Rob repaired his cellphone today and helped me with fitting a baseboard around an outlet. He’s off playing tennis with Wayne.

The reason I was so anxious to get started on the baseboards may be summed up with this photo.
The contrast between our beautiful new floors and the sheer ugliness of the multiple layers of paint that lay beneath the old vinyl baseboard was more than my sensabilities could stand. At Home Depot (Thank you Pat and Glenn for the HD gift card you gave me for my birthday last year.) I purchased molding with an eye to matching the original baseboards in the rest of the house.

I was not entirely successful, but think that my selection is a close approximation. It wouldn’t do if it were sharing a room with the original, but works nicely in the kitchen. I have a lot of miter cuts to do, but got the easiest sections done today. I did have a very funny moment at HD when I realized that the eighteen foot pieces of molding would trail behind Rob’s truck for a distance as long as the truck itself. Several men stopped to help me, no doubt sure that a damsel such as myself was in sore need of assistance. One of them was bright and came up with the simple, clever solution of tieing the long boards to the side of the truck using the mirror as an attachment. The rest made hemming and hawing noises quite effectively.

We went down to the Celsi’s last night to visit. We watched the Decline of the American Empire, which was good. Sadly, about half-way through it I discovered that I was jet-lagged and falling asleep.

The real highlight was seeing their daughter’s room, which Eve has just redone. It’s beautiful and makes me want to do more updates to our home. Not the best course of action if we are planning on moving. Which isn’t going to stop me from putting the new baseboards in. I’m heading out to buy the lumber today. I’ll just have to unearth the Shopsmith when I get home.

The latest Lazytown rumor is November, December with a break for Christmas, and then back for January, February. As always, I’ll believe it when I have a contract in hand.

With only a minor, voluntary delay, I arrived home last night at 9:30. My flight was oversold, so I volunteered to go on the next one which was only an hour later. They were offering $500 dollar vouchers, and bumped me to first class. Wouldn’t you have volunteered too?

Rob met me at the airport; we came home. Have I mentioned recently how much I love my husband. He’s swell. He had fixed the oven, bought tulips for me, and made brownies. Why do I want to keep travelling when things are so good here?

Oh. The floor looks fantastic. It makes me want to redo all the woodwork in the house. Shh…don’t tell Rob.

I’m sitting in the Newark Airport an my way back to Portland via Dallas. The trip was good, but I will be very, very glad to be home. Rob is picking me up at 8:41 this evening and I’m planning on turning our phone off as soon as we get home. I want to spend a little quality time with my husband before reconnecting with everyone else.

I had a tiny bit of travel issue on the way to the airport, but nothing that has disrupted my plans. The train I was on started creeping instead of racing down the track and stopped frequently without waiting to arrive at a station. I got to the airport an hour later than I had planned, but still with plenty of time to update my weblog.

We closed the workshop and everything went great. Chris is doing a rewrite of the script. Emily and I will begin to design in earnest after that.

Chris Parks took us all out to dinner at Conte’s. Dave and I are going to unload the truck of some items and then meet up with the rest of the cast for an evening of Fisherman, Djinn and Tonics.

We’re done at four o’clock today. I’m in shock. I don’t know what I’ll do, besides return phone calls from all the people I’ve been ignoring for the past month.