ramblings of a dome-estic

RIP Sammy

2011-01-30T06:55:00.000-08:00

Our oldest cat died in the wee hours of the morning. We really don't know how old she was but guess around 16. Sammy was always a difficult cat - a very bizarre creature. In a household of others, she always wanted to be an only cat and, for many years, have only me as her human.

Sammy's life with us began one cold late January eve. Ed had gone out to his school to pick something up over a weekend. As he came out he heard a car door slam, a truck roar out of the parking lot and then a pitiful mew. He tried to catch the little cat but she ran into a locked storage area, snuck under the chain link gate. When he came home, he said - "I probably shouldn't be telling you but..." Within minutes we were out the door with the cat carrier. I was able to bribe the little thing out with treats. She must have been starved. And she sure was shaken.

Sammy. Samuel Clemons - take a look at that mustache and wild hair and you'll realize how she got that name. She was a very unique (read: weird) looking cat. Her hair was so long that when she'd clean it she could never get her head back far enough to get to the ends. Her eyes were the most slanted I've ever seen in a cat. Ed said she looked like a little girl whose pigtails were pulled too tight. And her body - her front legs were quite a bit shorter than the back. We called her Stego-cat.

Sammy was the epitome of a scaredy cat. She must have been horribly abused by a man because she was never comfortable around most men. It took her 9, yes 9, years to finally accept Ed. She never was a lapcat but would curl up on the couch next to me. She never let another cat close to her. She had to have her space. If they came within 2 feet of her she'd spit, snarl, swat, growl.

About a year and a half after we found Sammy, we adopted 2 more cats. So then we had 5 (we lost 1 of the previous 3 that summer for those who are keeping count). One of the 2 new ones was Sasquatch - a huge orange long haired very confident male. He wasn't aggressive, not a mean bone in his body, but had this air of superiority about him. Sammy was petrified of him. We had just remodeled our bathroom and hadn't put the doors on the cabinet yet. Sammy moved in. No coaxing would bring her out. I put the doors on and she'd open them and go right back in. So she lived in the bathroom cabinet for a month. Then all the sudden one day she moved into our office. She'd jump from book shelf to book shelf to desk and would only come down to eat or use her box. After another month she finally came down to live with the rest of us and then she began to stalk Sasquatch. She'd be sure to stay a safe distance behind but it was pretty clear she was stalking him.

During this time the hair on her ears, which had been black, fell out. When it grew back, it was white. She had these long tufts coming out of and on the back of her ears. The weird looking cat got even weirder. Years later after Sasquatch died her ears went bald again and the hair grew back black. I kid you not.

Bizarre, I tell you. Bizarre. But that's why we loved her.

What a long strange trip it's been

2010-12-15T13:43:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is UNCG's graduation. But my graduate won't be there. He doesn't care, really, about the walk. He did that for one of his graduations, but more for his parents than for himself. No, he doesn't care about that stuff. All he cares about right now is being done. It was a long haul. In more ways than one.

You see, even though his first bachelor's degree was in English, Physical Education was where his heart was. So a few years down the line he got a coveted PE degree at San Diego State. He really wanted to go through the graduate program there but San Diego was an expensive city to live in and we had begun to feel closed in with all the freeways and buildings around for miles. It was time for a change.

We decided on a route through the southwest, up to Montana where we would visit my brother, into the Pacific Northwest and back down the coast, and from that trip we would choose our next home. I wanted to go clockwise on that route; Ed wanted to go counter-clockwise. We did what any normal couple would do when deciding where to live next - flipped a coin. Ed won. At the time we were driving his brother's VW bus; we left our Ghia in San Diego. Going across the desert the bus began to have problems. It really faltered in the Arizona mountains. Jerome. Finally we made it to Albuquerque and decided the bus would go no more. That's how we ended up in the Duke City.

The next few years were spent at UNM - Ed getting his teaching credentials and me my BAFA, living in the student ghetto, collecting cats, enjoying the desert. We visited Native American ruins, got hooked on green chile, knew when it was September 1 without looking at a calendar because the chile roasters would be out all over town - on every street corner it seemed - with that unmistakable aroma wafting in the air. We finished at UNM in '91 and then were in search of the next place.

Ed went to the job fairs and applied to I don't know how many school districts, more marketable with 2 degrees, right? But it was a middle school English position that took us to Raton, New Mexico. Not really where we would have thought we'd end up but it was the best of offers. After living in large to super-large cities, Raton was quite an experience. We lived there for 6 months and then moved over the pass to Trinidad, Colorado while Ed taught middle school English in a school system that was still back in the 50s and 60s. He was able to teach one PE class but it wasn't a promising situation. Coaching helped him stay in touch with physical education. Life in Trinidad was better than Raton but the town was still so small and countrified I'm not sure how we lasted there 3 years. There was the time Ed was running by the railroad tracks and was threatened by a dog who charged at him out of the yard. Ed picked up a stick to defend himself and the owner came after Ed, threatening to shoot him. And the time I was running and someone followed me in a truck, then finally drove up beside me to ask what I was doing, why was I running, who was chasing me? But I digress. This blog isn't called "ramblings of a dome-estic" for nothing, you know.

Next stop, Grand Junction. Ed had applied for both Language Arts and PE again but PE is far more competitive - read: fewer jobs - so another Language Arts position was in the cards. Grand Junction, as funky as it is, was good to us. The hiking was fabulous, the scenery way cool. Ed loved the school where he taught and the teachers there but, after years went by with no chance of moving to the PE Department, was just getting burnt out. Again, coaching helped stay in physical education but it just wasn't enough. I loved the job I had but wanted to be closer to family. So after 10 years, the longest we'd ever stayed in one place, we left Colorado for the east.

Raleigh. South Raleigh. Inner city school with lock-downs and warnings to not stay after dark or go there on weekends. Try teaching Language Arts to those kids. Ed's fondest memory there was answering a kid's random question and the kid said, "Mr. Migues, how can you stand to be so smart?" He stuck it out for one year but quit without another job on the horizon. Another round of applications out, to counties to the west. We knew we didn't want to live in Raleigh. (Have I ever told you how glad I am...) Inside joke.

That August we kept with plans to go back to Colorado to climb 14ers for my 50th birthday but hadn't counted on him still looking for a job. We checked email from coffee shops to see if there were any leads. One day, there was. Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, one of the best places to teach in the country. Highly rated, good pay (for a teacher). He got an interview set up for the day after we got home, already into the first work week for teachers. By this time Ed had pretty much given up on a PE job and assumed the interview would be for Language Arts. Not! It was THE job. What a happy camper he was. Shorts and t-shirts all year round, playing like a kid. Dream job. PE.

And, so, one year after he got that dream job, at a time when many folks our age are thinking of retirement, he went back to school for that graduate degree he had his sights set on 20 years before.

End of story? Nope. Not yet - hang on. During all that time - 4 and a half years - he struggled to find classes that he could take while still teaching and coaching, drove to Greensboro sometimes 3 evenings a week, learned how to be a student again (technology sure did change for a college student!), helped me the best he could with remodeling projects I sunk into and then - the dome. Ah, word to the wise, don't mix a grad degree and building an unconventional building in the same family at the same time.

So now, he's done. And all he cares about is that. He can read what he wants, will be able to coach more, sink into his teaching not having to write papers, read a zillion pages of readings assigned, and then plan for classes and grade until midnight. He's done. But he doesn't care about the walk.

He will kill me, of course, for this post. He doesn't want all this stuff spread around. But I'm proud of him so I do.

Congratulations, babe. I have been so impressed with all you've accomplished. You done good. Love.

where did the summer go?

2010-08-31T06:21:00.001-07:00

oh, man. it's the last day of august. school has started back up, evenings are cooling off, vacations are over. how did i lose the summer?

well, i spent it sitting in front of a computer, working on various projects and a traveling exhibit for my paying job. didn't even get to visit much with my sister when she was here. we DID get to go to the beach one day, however. and I DID get - not just one but three - mini-vacations. two to visit aunts (one in little rock, arkansas - one in las vegas) and a working vacation to grand junction.

now i'm home, most pressing projects are done (although there is a pile of dishes and laundry - no, not in the same pile). and i haven't even spread the word here... you'd think i'd be jumping up and down, grabbing your virtual shirts...

the dome IS done!

but wait... there is no power to it yet. maybe that's why it is so anticlimactic. the power company has a waiting list (long story but it's just another wait like we've waited for various segments all the way through). so it doesn't feel done. when i get power and see those lights flipped on, can fire up my kiln and throw my pots, THEN i will be jumping up and down, grabbing your virtual shirts.

Photos

2010-04-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

So you know I was not lying in the last post.
Work IS being done, albeit slowly.

Door overhang 1

One down, one to go

Both done finally... and it snows.

First window in

Door in

More to come...

The dome is done!

2010-04-01T10:38:00.000-07:00

Not. April Fool's.
Just had to do that.

I haven't posted again in ages. Not because the dome is done or work has come to a standstill but because Facebook is easier on which to post photos. Sure, I can write more here but, because of the amount of work to do still, I'd rather spend the time working on the dome than writing about it. Well, ok... I admit, sometimes I would rather be writing about it because it's hard work out there. But today, as crazy as it is because it is a beautiful day outside, I am taking a day off. It's spring break, Ed is golfing and I am beat from yesterday.

So, where was I when I last updated on the dome? Getting a roofer. Roofer obtained but not started yet. The weather was so cold and snowy there was no way to work on it for a while. And besides, the guy had another job to finish up. He was to start this week but looks like he had to go help his son move back to the area after getting out of the army. Glad for him and his son to be out of the army (and Iraq) but disappointed that my roof is still waiting to be shingled. Next week - it will be next week. I hope.

Other updates - in no particular order...

door and windows are in - Windows were not so hard to do but the door? Yowza. Had brother Andy here to help us and it's a damn good thing. I was sick with a sinus infection so Andy had to think for both of us. Sorry Ed, but you don't think construction. You grew up with a chef for a father, not a contractor. Anyway, we almost lost it at one point - the door, not our minds. (Although lots of folks probably think that has been an issue as well, especially regarding yours truly.) Long story short, what was to be an hour or two project turned out to be a 7 hour one. More of the same fudging that we've done all along because the slab is out of square.

got the pre-siding inspection approved - hip-hip-hooray! The county building inspector that we have is a great guy. All the horror stories we'd heard about building inspectors have not come true in our case. This guy has come out for numerous consultations and has just been an incredible help.
overhangs built, wrapped - How I figured those out I will never know, but I did - must have had Dad here guiding me along. Thanks Dad. I love and miss you.
sealed the bottom edge where water was leaking in under the sill plate with the most awful stuff to use in a caulk gun - OHMYGOD. My arms and hands are still sore from working that gun; that stuff was SO hard to do. Industrial stuff that should have been done with a pneumatic caulk gun (did you even know they make such a thing?!). But it worked. No more water leaking in. Yay!
grading - Working on it now. Well, actually that's why I am taking a break today because my arms feel like they would fall off if I came within 10 feet of a shovel. We need to create a slope away from the foundation. Shouldn't be too bad but, remember, this was once a wooded area. Roots. Roots. Carolina clay. And more roots. Tomorrow is another (shoveling) day.
siding - After finding out the price of cedar, I hit the internet for other options. Decided on a cement fiber board stuff that is more "green" than Hardi-plank and with a bit more substance. I had considered LP Smartside but read too many bad reviews on it (yeah, you gotta take personal reviews online with a grain of salt but...). It also needs a BREATHABLE weather resistant barrier behind it and the stuff we used is not. The thought of taking all that wrap off and redoing it - well, that is NOT an option. I also determined along the way that I couldn't use a vertical siding like we have on the house. I like the look of lap siding better but initially wanted to have the siding match the house's. But, because of the problems with the foundation bulging out (remember the cement grinding way back?) - I need to lap the foundation and vertical siding won't do it. So, lap siding it is. It was delivered Tuesday - as soon as we get a bit more grading done, we'll start to install.

That's all for now folks. I promise, I'll update again BEFORE months go by...

dead blog?

2010-01-06T07:13:00.000-08:00

oh my. my last post was in october and it wasn't even about the dome. i begin to doubt anyone is even keeping up with this anymore. and, since i talk to myself enough as it is, why blog?

although it may not seem like it, dome work has continued, albeit very slowly. the weather has not been conducive to construction and mucho schoolwork (ed), injury (mine) and a few other things have also held us back. what should only take a few hours takes a few days. this thing is beating me up.

we still have a couple window overhangs to redo and the main door overhang to build. ed, the perpetual optimist, says the next door overhang will be easy since i have it figured out from the last one. good thing he has confidence in me as i'm not so sure sometimes. windows and door are ordered so with a bit of luck (and good weather) we should be able to install those in a couple of weeks.

the roof? we had hoped to get the help and expertise of my nephew with it but he is unable to make it. given the fact that time and healthy bodies are not on our side, we decided to get professional help. no, not THAT kind - although sometimes i do think i need it. one roofer has asked more about the job and for a photo, another 3 have not returned calls. we'll see. wish us luck.

tp bandit

2009-10-13T04:48:00.000-07:00

i was in the kitchen yesterday and saw lily out of the corner of my eye, trailing something, prancing because she was so proud of her catch. my first thought was the animal spring toy she likes to grab hold of (the end is a tail) and walk away with until the spring can go no further and snaps back into place. but the toy hangs on a doorknob in the hall. couldn't be that. when i saw what it was, i was doubled over with laughter for a good 5 minutes.

but before i go further into it, you gotta know the story of lily - and why this was so hilarious. i found lily for adoption on petfinder in march. she and her mama had been rescued from a high kill shelter. she was slated to be spayed the end of march and then could be adopted. then she got sick, and wouldn't eat. she lost weight - not something she could afford to do since she was so small. her spay would have to be postponed as she needed to weigh 2# and she had gone down to 14 oz. her foster mom said she would give us back the deposit so we could find another cat. we decided to wait and got frequent updates on her health. it didn't look good a few times for lily. when she was well enough, we got to meet her. man, she was TINY! a true lilliputian. she weighed 18 oz. she curled up in my arms and instantly started to purr. then it was ed's turn - she crawled up on his shoulder and nestled in. we were sold - in love. we'd wait.

finally, she did gain enough weight to be spayed- she was 13 weeks and weighed all of 2#. we brought her home just a few days later. she was so so tiny i was afraid i'd step on her or the other cats would beat her up - they were none too pleased with this new addition. then she got sick again. took her to the vet, she got a shot, got better, then sick again - back to the vet. the poor thing had had so many anti-biotics in her short little life the vet was concerned. she would just lay on ed's chair and sleep, with her head back and her mouth open so she could breathe.

in time, she started getting better again and slowly gained a little more weight. then, she had a run-in. with the wall. had a HUGE knot on her forehead. back to the vet. seems she had a kitty concussion, looked like she had broken her nose. this kitten was going through her lives fast.

since the other cats wouldn't play with her and we didn't want her to grow up basically alone with no loving from other cats, we decided to get another kitten. what's one more? enter cato. choosing his name was so easy - he was just too much like his namesake. this guy is rambunctious, never-ending mischief, constantly jumping down on the other cats. the energizer kitty. poor lily wanted to play with him so badly but had gotten sick again. she would just lay around, sleep, watch, wheeze. i wondered if our lilliputian would ever be able to play like a normal kitten - she reminded me of a kid stuck in a wheelchair, wanting so badly to play ball but couldn't. she was feisty, though. when she did play, she played hard. she just tired so very quickly. and slept hard.

by this time, i had found out she probably had feline herpes - an upper respiratory infection (which apparently is common in cats - about 70% of cats have it). so i did what any granola mama-holistic person would do - looked into natural remedies and found that l-lysine was very helpful. easy to do, mix a little in her food. but she'd need it daily and it would take a while to take effect. so she'd get better, she'd relapse. little by little her breathing became easier.

just in the past few weeks has lily really blossomed. it's so fun to see her bounding around, jumping up, getting stronger. she's nearly 9 months old and weighs just over 8# - and is making up for lost time. she's recently found the *cool* stuff in the bathroom! loves to play in the tub after we've showered or in a trickle of water from the tap.

and...

maybe you had to be there. but it was hilarious - believe me. now i wonder if i hadn't been in the kitchen if the whole house would have been toilet papered.

summer? what summer?

2009-09-04T06:49:00.000-07:00

if a picture is worth a thousand words,
maybe i should just post pics.

i've got 3 months to catch up with...

framing up the window openings wasn't nearly as tricky as the doorways.

only one window framed and my studio is already a mess.

the first window framed up and sheathed

our friend mike sealing the top and bob (ed's brother) checking out the view
we sealed all the seams with silicone/caulk. used manymany tubes. nearly 3 dozen.

ed's brother bob - fear of heights doesn't run in the family.

we used the tar paper strips to protect the wrap from the sharp edges of the angled plywood.

mike on top - yours truly at the right
i was standing on the scaffolding inside through a skylight.

mike wrapping the top

mike on the shoulder - bad pic
you can't see if but he is using a climbing rope hooked into a big eyebolt we installed at the apex. guess we could rappel if we wanted.

view from skylight
i was standing on the scaffolding inside. pretty cool surroundings.

almost finished with the wrap

we've got labor day weekend ahead of us now. no worries, ed. i won't make you work all there all 3 days.

and another . . .

2009-06-04T05:01:00.000-07:00

great weather, all of the supplies we needed, bodies co-operating - ready to work! we got another opening framed up and was able to have the tarp off for a few days. it's so cool. i just love looking at it.

this opening was pretty similar to the first one - tricky angles to visualize. i was also able to figure out the angles of the bracing needed to tie the opening framing to the dome itself (not seen in this photo). many recuts - changing the angles just a degree or so - many ladder repeats. i didn't need to workout that day.

i had dad smiling down on me again (although i really do think he is laughing his head off at me sometimes). one time on sunday, when ed was inside the house, i "saw" someone in my peripheral vision range. it was dad, i know it. i recognized the slim body, the slight way he leaned forward, even the plaid of his shirt. maybe i'm making the vision but, since i do see spirits at times, i don't think so. he has been with me all the way on this project.

i'm getting off track here . . . there is heavy rain in the forecast so we tarped the dome back up last night. ed dislocated a finger trying to keep up with guys decades younger on tuesday playing basketball. my knees were sore early in the week from all the ladder repeats. (man, it sucks having these middle-aged bodies.) but with a bit of luck this weekend, we will have more good weather, supplies replenished and body parts working.

getting back to business

2009-05-20T05:54:00.000-07:00

yay! summer is almost here, meaning ed will be out of school and able to work on the dome again. he will be wanting to go back to work after a short time, no doubt, to escape the construction and slave-driver.

we got the 2nd skylight cut out finally last weekend. little by little...

geometry

2009-03-31T15:32:00.000-07:00

i wasn't very good in math when i was a kid. what good would it do, i thought, how could math help me? blech.

in high school i used to ask my dad for help with geometry. he always got the answers but couldn't show me how he got them. it turned out i was the same way. i nearly flunked geometry, not being able to show my work even if i had the answers right.

over the years i found out that, yes, math can be a useful skill. and i also found that i'm not so bad at math - well, some math. being a picture framer helped, so did exhibits construction and then general construction. which brings me to this post.

help/info for framing up a doorway/wall in an odd shape is not easily found. books, brother's advice, most info online were all pretty much geared toward conventional construction. so i turned to the few dome yahoo groups in which i lurk and was able to glean some how-to from photos of other domeheads' projects. thanks eric and sal among others.

because of the odd shape and because of a few problems we ran into and had to fix with the supporting pieces we had already installed, the wall had to be built piecemeal rather than all on the floor and then hoist it up in place like you're "supposed" to do. which meant i had to figure some things out as we went. it actually went smoother than i feared - i just figured it out. don't ask me how. unfortunately, i don't photo document very well so i don't have any shots of the process, just the nearly-finished product.

hmmm . . . there again, got the answer right but can't show my work.

time does fly

2009-03-30T19:24:00.000-07:00

wow - it's been awhile. work does continue but slowly. if anyone out there is still reading, i will be posting photos and more real dome stuff soon. really.

snow

2009-01-26T08:20:00.000-08:00

it snowed last week. schools were closed for a couple days (some districts more). this place comes to a near stand-still in bad weather. we always get a kick out of the southerners and their closing of schools and businesses for a few inches of snow. but, the black ice is nasty.

so, still nothing to report on the dome front. work has all but stalled. decent weather and weekends just haven't coincided and, to be honest, we're fair weather people. the idea of working outside in 40 degree or less weather is not appealing. we do have wood ready for framing up the opening you see in this photo. i've got it planned (for the most part); we're just waiting for a warm sunny day. maybe this weekend.

from our dome to your home...

2008-12-24T12:08:00.000-08:00

merry, merry!

no tree in the cat house

2008-12-19T05:51:00.000-08:00

so this isn't about the dome. i realized with lack of work going on with the dome that i'd need other things to blog about. well, i have no lack of cat stories. in fact, i entertained my niece and nephew with many off-the-wall cat stories while in tulsa a couple weeks ago. and, surprisingly, none were even embellished! i guess off-the-wall cat is an oxymoron, anyway. and since i have no idea how many people even read this thing, who cares if it's not all dome? in fact, i only know of 2 who read it regularly. ReBecca and Anna - this is for you!

this is not our house but could be if we had a tree.

photos

2008-11-23T10:04:00.001-08:00

hmmm... memory is full on the camera - maybe i better upload the photos. what!? haven't done that since august? whoo-boy.
ok, time for a photo post! in no particular order ...

the top "skinned"

yours truly on the scaffolding nailing joist hangers

hiking and cycling went by the wayside this summer but i stayed in shape with "scaffolding repeats"

the first finished skinned pentagon!

the opening (someday to hold a window) between the 2nd and 3rd finished skinned pentagons

note the hi-tech tarp holders in foreground -
the wind can actually lift those in a storm. we had the tarp blown around quite a bit a few weeks ago.

from the front

workspace inside

now, isn't that just too cool? when i finish the inside, i want to show the geometry of the dome with wood. no sheetrock - i want wood, like tongue-in-groove flooring

victory!

other domes

2008-11-01T08:21:00.000-07:00

i'd been looking for information about other domes, the how-to's and the people who built them. at first i had no idea how to find them (internet searches sometimes bring up the weirdest things!) and i was picking al's brain about different ways to frame up the openings, skylights and such. (al is the guy we bought our dome kit from - and in case you're interested, here's a link to his site - www.albatadomes.com) after awhile, he sent me a link to one guy's group, which lead to another, and to another... you get the picture - now i'm joining dome groups like mad. yahoo groups - there's a whole world there!

i've spent the past hour or so looking at photos and reading some posts - my head is spinning from all the info. some of these folks have HUGE domes - 2 floors or more, cupolas, linked together domes and building sections. some have built from kits, some from just figuring out how to do it. these domes are gorgeous. i am in awe.

a funny thing - at first, seeing photos of all these different domes intimidated me. i've seen some photos of guys on ladders that make me feel pretty silly about how i've talked about us on the extension ladder; photos of a dome with radiating floor joists that was - oh wow! - an incredible work of art; ones with custom windows to fit the triangles. but then, that intimidation turned around - seeing what others have done and how the planning and building of their domes have just become a way of life. and the advice they so willingly give along with words of encouragement. domeheads, as i've found out we're called, enjoy a unique way of life - definitely thinking (and living) outside the box. it sure has done wonders for my motivation.

a friend asked me sometime ago what artwork i was creating now and when would i post photos of it. my artwork right now is my dome and i can't wait to get back to working on it.

slowly but surely...

2008-10-26T13:07:00.000-07:00

we're getting there!

working just a day a week on the dome makes for slow going. tooooo slow for this impatient person. it is frustrating but i gotta keep it all in perspective. we are getting it close to the point where i can work on it myself - or at least hope i can.

over the weekend we put up the final 2 hexagon pieces. we had left those and went on to the pentagons since we knew those pieces in particular would be odd sized and we were out of full sheets of plywood from which to cut them. tweaking of the shell this way and that way made that particular hexagon more problematic than others. we were right - they were off in size - but now they are up! yay! ed is especially glad to be done with them - it means no more balancing on the extension ladder. at least until we shingle. we also got the top plywood pieces on the last pentagon. not a bad work day - it is looking more and more like a dome.

again, the forecast held a slim chance of rain so we didn't put all the plastic back up. yesterday it was to be in the upper 50s, partly cloudy, 10% chance of rain. i had been talking of a return to running and yesterday was going to be the day. ed emailed me in the morning and said it was great running weather. i replied and asked him how long it had been since he looked outside (the health room doesn't have any windows) - i told him it was quite windy and looked like it was going to snow. not long after, i stepped outside to ferocious looking skies, rain and HAIL! 10% chance, my ass. the return to running could wait one more day.

30%

2008-10-02T08:08:00.000-07:00

weird post title. i suppose anyone who really knows me won't think much of the weirdness, though.

30%. 30% off would be a good deal - almost 1/3. 30% of the population doesn't sound like so much, although i guess that depends on the issue. 30% wrong on the test wouldn't pass you for a driver's license. 30% black in a color would make it pretty dark. 30% has a great range.

30% chance of rain. in gj, if the forecast was 30% chance of rain, we'd laugh. rain, yeah - bring it on. a friend of mine would always say 4" of rain there would mean 4 raindrops, an inch apart. of course, if we had gotten 4" of rain in gj we would have though the world was going to end! here in the mid-south, it's a whole different story. we've learned that 30% chance of rain means bring anything in you don't want soaked.

one day in the past month the forecast was for a quarter inch of rain - got 4. another time the forecast was for up to a half an inch. got 5. i keep buckets out now to catch the rain just for measurements. forgot to empty one once and found it overflowing - and that was from just 3 or 4 rains. that's more than the annual average rainfall in gj! it's so different here - green and lush and wet. very wet.

the reason i'm rambling on about this? we worked on the dome this past weekend and removed one of the tarps, thinking to replace it with a different piece of plastic. but the chance of rain was so small, i thought it would be great to let the dome air out - the tarps and plastic make it kind of stuffy inside. chance of rain was 20% on monday. was a nice day. chance of rain was 20% on tuesday, then it changed to 30%. ok, no time to put the tarps up before taking the cat to the vet. no problem, it's just 30% chance. the score? 30% = 2".

enough blathering about percentages. except to add that we are more than 30% done with the pentagons!

the pentagon plywood pieces go up so much more quickly than the hexagon pieces for several reasons. one, they are smaller and easier to handle. two, the pentagons got the least amount of tweaking when moving the walls in and out and held their shape more. last, but not least, we are not as high up on the ladders and that is a good thing.

it is going to be so cool. it IS cool now.

labor day

2008-09-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

yes, it was a labor day. labor day weekend, emphasis on labor. in fact, pretty much any day that ed is not working will be a labor day, at least until we get to a spot where i can work by myself. i think he is secretly glad to be back to work and school so i'm not cracking the whip anymore.

we didn't do much of anything that can be seen from the outside, though - at least with the tarps on - so no new photos of the dome. i can't wait until we get the tarps off and can actually SEE the dome. right now it looks like we are having a giant tent sale in the back. plywood scraps, anyone? buy one, get one free? oh, nevermind... i didn't call this blog rambling for no reason, ya know... what we did do is put in more plywood triangles in the hexagons. we have just 6 more to go.

we had hoped to finish the hexagons up this weekend but it seems that the weather has other plans - hanna. at least we are not forecast to get the heavy rains that we got from fay. we must have had close to a foot of rain. this is our front yard. the photo was taken after the first of the storms in those couple of days. there were 3 good sized storms and each time the front filled up like this. you should have seen the back - a sea of buff colored clay all into the woods.

the dirt here is another story. when it's muddy, the clay sucks the shoes right off my feet. when it dries, it takes a pick and a lot of muscle to break up the dirt. it is much better suited for pots than gardening. i threaten to mine our property for the clay.

the skin

2008-08-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

finally - all the struts in.

that took some time because, umm..., i dropped the air gun from the scaffolding and it took a couple weeks to get fixed. during those 2 weeks, we gained a much greater appreciation for people who wield a hammer. wow - no wonder my brother has popeye arms, as did my dad and uncle. i never felt my dad's presence so much as i did in those days of hammering. more often laughing his head off at me for fumbling around.

the next step - putting on the plywood skin. the plywood is all cut in triangles - there are 60 each for the hexagons and pentagons. dave came over to help us out again and we hired another guy to help him on the scaffolding. we knew we would not be able to get up on top to nail the plywood on. as it turned out, there was more than enough for ed and me to do on ground - cutting the wood. we hardly were able to keep up with dave and juan, who turned out to be a fantastic help. not only could he keep up with dave but he had no problem whatsoever climbing around on the gridwork of the dome. we'll most likely hire him again when it's time to shingle. they did the top pentagon and the top halves of the hexagons. ed and i have been plugging away with the bottom halves but, with school started back up now, dome work is relegated to weekends.

now, it this cool, or what?!

git along, li'l doggie!

2008-08-28T07:39:00.000-07:00

the out of square foundation created problems that we didn't foresee. since we had to tweak with angles of the riser walls, move them in or out from the edge of the edge of foundation, the load of the dome shell made the riser walls go out of plumb. oooh - not good. we called a structural engineer who suggested using come-alongs. come-alongs, hmmm... new one to us. after i found out more about a come-along i realized i knew what one is, just didn't know the name. i just kept thinking of the chorus of old cowboy song, "the last round-up." git along, li'l doggie, git along, git along.

why i even know that song is beyond me.

we know come-alongs quite well now. used 4 of them to get our riser walls in plumb. and then used one to pull a hexagon that was needing to get moved a bit, and then also a pentagon that got out of whack. once we realized how they could be used, they turned out to be great tools. my chorus is now "come along, li'l doggie, come along."

keeping the dome dry has proven to be another challenge. how do you put tarps over that, you ask? well, using a trick i saw the arborist use, ed threw a line with weights over the dome, attached a rope to that and then pulled the tarps up, overlapping at the top. it would have been so much easier had we one large tarp but we managed. we are quite anxious to get the shell shingled, though, so we don't have to mess with the tarps. because of one thing or another, we've had to do the tarping at least 4 times.

once was in the middle of the night. i had the (not-so) bright idea to duct tape the two overlapping tarps together and use them as one before we left for vacation. it would have worked out well had the tape held but, alas, it did not, as we found out when we got home from denver at 10:45pm. with heavy rain forecast the next day, we spent a few hours with flashlights in the middle of the night putting the tarps back on.

learning new toys

2008-08-28T07:13:00.000-07:00

the weeks after the dome raising were perhaps even more challenging for us. we found out that the foundation was not only not in square but the opening lengths were not straight - they bowed out. one length was off 2". we needed to grind those down. so, off to camp davito (our pet name for dave's place) for a loaner grinder and lesson. it took us a week to get all the grinding done since it shook us up (literally) so much. my hands still feel the vibration of the grinder at times. and it was really hard on the ol' backs to bend over that much. that was one tool ed said he never wants the opportunity to use again.

since our embedded j-bolts followed the outside of the foundation and with the newly ground down edge were too close to the outside to use, we also had to grind those off and use anchor bolts to secure our sill plates. enter another toy that ed never wants the opportunity to use - a hammer drill. thankfully chris came to our rescue and did most of that. bless him - it was just 2 days before he, sheela and kaya moved (to bangladesh!) and they had tons more packing to do but he still took the time to help out.

a neighbor came by amazed at the progress - all the struts, all the angles, all the work. he was impressed. but i think was impressed him the most is that, with all the blood, sweat and tears we shed, ed and i are still talking to each other. if you want to test the strength of a marriage, build something together.

dome raising day 2

2008-08-28T06:34:00.000-07:00

specs - the shape of the dome is a decagon with 5 sides being 6' wide (the riser walls) and 5 being 12' wide (the openings). the openings in our dome will all have either a window or door. it's approximately 30' across and 15' high. it will have 2 skylights, too.

the next day we continued on up. we tied the pentagons together with struts over the 5 openings and then started adding the lower half hexagon sections. at first it was just dave, ed and myself - and was difficult work. not only are ed and i a bit shorter and not as strong, but neither of us are exactly fond of heights. dave was very glad to see chris arrive. ed and i were then the ground crew - fine by us!

after the lower hexagon halves were up, the rest was put together strut by strut. it was a time-consuming process, but really very simple once we figured it out. think tinkertoys.

dome raising day 1

2008-08-28T06:10:00.000-07:00

what we've all been waiting for...

a nice day, if a tad warm, good company and a buttload of work. what can I say? i'd like to say that it all went off without a hitch but i never was good at lying. we did get it all worked out eventually - actually, we're still getting it worked out but i'm getting ahead of myself.

brothers dave and andy were here as well as our friend chris. all that dog and baby-sitting paid off. i have to mention that all 3 of them are taller and stronger than ed and i are so their help was doubly appreciated. later in the day, nieces, sister-in-law, chris' wife and their little boy were here. that crew also helped.

getting the first riser wall up was a snap - until we realized how out of square our foundation is. we had to move walls, tweak them, mess with angles - in short, there was a lot of ummm... challenge that day.

but we got them all up and tied together with some bracing. then it was time to put pentagons on the risers. yes, it takes 5 people to put a pentagon up, although it looks like i'm not doing anything, doesn't it? by this time... whew. i was wishing i was the type that wants to go to the beach for vacation, not build something.

that's dave on the scaffolding, ed at the left, chris, andy and me. it's mostly dave's stuff - tools and equipment - that we're using. scaffolding, mega-sized drill, air nail gun, grinders, etc. he's got a lot of nifty toys. he calls our framing hammer a girly hammer and brings his own. but then, he could probably use a 10" sledge hammer to drive nails - he's got popeye arms.

the last pentagon up - we lost one helper by this time, gained a few more. sheela (chris' wife) and tessa (my oldest niece) are helping to stabilize that last pentagon. angela (my youngest niece) was our photographer and carolina (my sister-in-law) did kitchen duty. no small task for the hungry crowd.

prep

2008-08-28T05:53:00.000-07:00

it was a kit, of sorts, that we bought from a guy in alabama. we got the plans, connector plates and templates to cut the wood. i opted for that since it was lots cheaper and i figured that, since i had been a picture framer, how hard could cutting wood be? it wasn't - there was just a lot of it. 160 struts, 1/2 dozen different angles/ends - 30 of this one, 35 of that one... i got a cool chop saw with $ saved.

yours truly cutting wood. it was HOT that week so i set the saw up under some trees. not a bad place to work.

after cutting the lengths, i took the wood to my brother's to use his band saw. the struts all need to be notched and using a band saw was the best way to do that. one morning i went out to find another place to stack the wood that was in my truck. right between the back porch steps and our heat pump was a just born fawn - and i mean just born. it was still wet and one eye hadn't opened all the way. i called ed out to take a look and then he called a wildlife place to find out what to do with it. we've got wildlife all around us but what did we know about new baby deer?

they told ed to just leave the fawn alone, that mama would come back for it or it would leave on its own. it was really tiny - smaller than my cats. we continued getting the wood out of my truck - although the stacking place was changed since baby was in it. within 20 minutes it was on its feet. talk about toothpick legs! he was probably about 18" tall. here's baby taking his first steps. and then he just slipped into the woods and was gone.

the foundation

2008-08-27T18:35:00.000-07:00

early april
it took months to get the plans right and the permits (due to some royal screw-ups by people who should be responsible in their jobs - but that's another story). the day after we got the building permit, the concrete guys dug the footers for the foundation. it was kinda tricky since we'd had all those mega-size pine tree stumps and roots and they had to maneuver around a dogwood that we wanted to keep.

all last fall, winter and this early spring, north carolina was in a drought. perfect building time. but the day after the footers were dug, it rained. and rained. and rained some more. then we had a moat, not a footer. i pumped that moat out dozens of times - it took 2 months to get it dry enough by pumping, better weather and redigging it twice more. by the time they finally got down to dry enough subsoil, the footer was at least 3' deep in some places. that had to be backfilled with 20 ton of gravel and 2 dump truck loads of sand.

finally it was ready to pour. this is early june.

the slab - june 13

why a dome?

2008-08-27T13:14:00.000-07:00

they are cool.

my dad built a round house back in the 60s and i always thought it was so cool. no corners - i like that. it gives the illusion of more open space. i'd love to live in one. our dome, however, is going to be a studio/workshop. maybe i can convince ed to do this again someday for a home - a dome home.

when we bought our house, we knew we wanted to build a studio/workshop. the design changed from a separate building to an addition and back to a separate building. and from a traditional rectangular pole-barn type construction to the dome.

the place where it would be built on our property changed, too. we eventually came back around to the same area that i had in my mind originally. the problem? trees - and a buttload of them.

what the back looked like before we started - probably october 2006

the logging operation - april 2007
we had a number of large loblolly pines cut down - they were close to 70' tall. they aren't pretty pines like in colorado - the bottom limbs are probably 25-30' off the ground so they are kind of funny looking. and because the wood is so soft, they are not exactly stable trees. they are the first to go in a bad storm and then they take the hardwoods with them. we still have many of them.

unfortunately we also had to cut some hardwoods when clearing the area. i felt bad about that. but they were pretty scrappy trees - didn't get much light with all the loblolly pines hogging the sunlight.

our friend chris is a tree guy. he doesn't think any tree is "scrappy." i told him that for every tree we cut down, i'd plant another. so far i'm still behind but i've planted a cherry i saved (that looks like charlie brown's christmas tree but is coming around!) and a variety of willows. the twisted willow especially will be very cool when grown. and i have a number of small oak trees in pots on the deck that chris planted. thanks chris.

getting started - with a blog, that is...

2008-08-27T12:16:00.000-07:00

ok - i started. "about time," i imagine you more tech-savvy folk than i might be saying.

since my previous ramblings about our summer project that i sent to friends and family have basically been blogs, why not start one? a real one? well, time, for one. not knowing how, for another. and, last but not least, there was just always something about blogs that kept me from finding out more. i mean, who in their right mind would want to read about my life?

obviously more than i thought, since i had many requests for photos and stories of our dome progress. so, this blog is not exactly about my life - it's about our dome. it just happens to be a focal point in my life right now.