Photos

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!

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?

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

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?

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 . . .

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

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...