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| Day 131 |
| We are now well into our 4th month of remodeling from a leak that started back in April. I don't think my wife or I initially expected repairs to last this long. What's worse there seems to be new problems almost daily as I attempt to do work around the downstairs. I had planned on removing and replacing all the decorative molding on the base of the walls, downstairs. So with my hammer and small crowbar I started removing the old molding yesterday in the living room in anticipation for prep and paint work. What did I find? More mold on the lower few inches behind the molding. Today, I decided to dig a bit deeper and removed a 30 inch section under the window in the living room. Not only was the wall mold infested on the wood, insulation and wood, but there was also dry rot on some of the beams in the wall. All this under one window from years of moisture (above 20% from what I have read). It could be a leak, considering we have moisture in between the window panes. So now, we have a decision to make. We cannot keep the window "as is" so that means we turn our attention to removing and replacing at least two windows, possibly three windows depending on what I find when I remove the remaining drywall from under the other windows. On a high note, the kitchen is coming along nicely. We have the walls textured now and should be ready to paint tomorrow, which is wonderful. It is almost to my schedule I drew up at the end of last month. Unfortunately, there will be delays in prepping and painting the rest of the downstairs, as well as replacing the carpet. I am going to try and get new tile laid by the end of the month. The inspector, on behalf of the mortgage company was out yesterday to take some photos and have me sign a paper saying the work is being completed and to release the remainder of the insurance money. Not sure what sort of time frame is involved, I am guessing two weeks, but will give B of A on Monday to see where we stand. So I am evaluating what I am going to do from here on out. The cabinets should arrive next week if I am lucky, but lost my help who I had enlisted to assist me in putting them up. So there could be a 5-7 day delay in getting the cabinets in, which will delay everything else behind it. |
| W6ONV on Thursday 12 August 2010 - 21:39:38 | Read/Post Comment: 0 |
| Demolition Continues |
| I was finally able to get down to some actual work on the downstairs remodel this past week. I took an extra day off (Monday) in order to spend three days working on removing all our kitchen cabinets, as well as all the wood flooring and drywall in preparation for new Shenendoah cabinets we purchased at Lowe's. To this point, work had been rather slow. I had knocked down some drywall in the dining area, as well as the bathroom and torn up a portion of the wood floor. Needless to say, the wife was less than thrilled. I then purchased materials and started working on putting things back together. At one point we even had a temporary toilet in the downstairs bathroom, but it was taken out the other day. So with a portion of our downstairs in some disarray I decided to take it all the way. With the blessing (I believe) from my wife, I started swinging the hammer and pulling off the cabinets. It was a great feeling to be getting rid of this old cabinets, as well as taking the kitchen all the way down to studs. This is really the only way it could have been done. It has not been done without our fair share of problems. The first and most important problem, the lack of every day essentials we use. I was able to keep the microwave and stove close enough to their outlets IF we need them. I had intended on keeping the sink until our new one showed up, but that became impossible. I say impossible because black mold was found (again) behind and next to the sink basin (on the lower walls). My wife had me stop demolition and call the insurance company, which I did. The adjuster was out there the next day, taking pictures and asking questions. It looks like we will get yet another pay out for the remodel. I can't say for sure the water came from the original leak, but I can't say it didn't. I hired a plumber to fix a broken pipe between the floors. Thankfully he was worth every penny, as he found two more leaks that, if not addressed would have resulted in even more damage if went unfixed. There was a crack found in the base of the pipe for the kitchen sink, as well as a crack in a pipe in my son's bathroom, upstairs. Thankfully my procrastination didn't cause more damage, as I had not hooked the sink up. So here we are after three days with a 16 cubic yard dumpster...full, no cabinets in the kitchen and all the wood floor gone. I have started to hang new drywall and the tape/texture guy has started on areas I had already completed. Now I got word our cabinets are running late...the saga continues. |
| W6ONV on Thursday 05 August 2010 - 20:26:44 | Read/Post Comment: 0 |
| You and Volunteering |
| I am not much into Emcomm of storm chasing or some of the other areas that amateur radio has to offer. There has been quite a stir around FCC Part 97.111 as it relates to employees using amateur radio on behalf of their employer in emergency preparation drills. Out of curiosity I went searching through our company web site and safety materials and found that our EOC uses "ham radios" to what extent, I don't know and the question has not been answered for me. I did send an inquiry to the local utilities district about the Mosley PRO-96 used by their club station for radio activities including participation in the California State HF Emergency Net. Amateurs need no prodding when it comes to voicing their opinions on certain topics, such as licensing, CW and Emcomm just to name a few. There was a good article written on eHam titled, "Practical Reasons for Ham Radio Volunteering and Management. It's a rather long read, but the author is spot on when it comes to managing and volunteering. Of course it doesn't take long for some outspoken individual to chime with irrelevant information. Advice to Hams: If you are married, employed and have children you have no business in Ham radio beyond the most occasional use. Show me an "active" Ham who is employed, married and has kids and I'll show you: 1) A non-professional 2) An unhappy spouse. 3) A neglectful parent. 4) A meaningless sex life between said husband and spouse. [Generalizations you say? Yes. But with a very few exceptions, I'm comfortable with the accuracy of the assertion] Now if this piece was written for the many retired hams who have little of substance in their lives as they are waiting to die, then drive on. What the hell kind of reply is this? Let me run down this list. First, I am a professional with a 40-hour a week job, which I have been at for 4 years and I am paid very well for my work. My spouse is not unhappy, she might not like my current shift at work, but my salary allows us some comforts and we are not struggling to make ends meet. My 4 year old son means the world to my wife and I. He loves us both and a day does not go by my wife does not say, "He idolizes you." I spend time with my son doing all sorts of activities, a far cry from being "neglectful." Finally a meaningless sex life? Huh? How do you incorporate sex into amateur radio? I dunno, but this...is a stretch and none of his damn business Now I am quite active on the HF bands, participating in contests, operating on the bands when I have free time during my days off. I am able to balance my hobby with my personal and professional life. Volunteering is not for me. I am quite happy to a loving husband and a great father to a wonderful kid. Thankfully he has taken an interest in my hobby and my wife does not mind my operating habits. It could be this individual is speaking from experience, a bad one at that and feels that not all active, family oriented amateurs can balance so many activities and make ends meet. I still feel comments like these are ill advised and whats wrong with our hobby at times. |
| W6ONV on Friday 30 July 2010 - 12:40:42 | Read/Post Comment: 0 |
| Website Work Continues |
| Work is slow and sometimes tedious as I continue to move content from the current 6th Floor to the new management system I will be using. I had hoped to have the move complete last week, but that has not been the case. I am sure I will have further work after the move is complete because I will be changing the file directory structure for additional content, such as images. I guess I should have done that now, as I work on bringing the new site on line. I am still looking at layouts and color schemes, as well as some of the current style graphics I use. Not sure what the end result will be at this point, but some of the look and feel for the new site will be retained. |
| W6ONV on Monday 26 July 2010 - 19:02:17 | Read/Post Comment: 0 |
| IOTA Challenge |
| So I took Saturday off from work, initially it was for the second monthly NCCC meeting out in Stockton with the MLDXCC. Unfortunately, the 2007 Ford Ranger I bought last September seems to be having some starter/solenoid problems. I had planned on changing the parts, but found out both are covered under my warranty. So I will be taking the truck in on Thursday. Instead I decided to participate in the RSGB IOTA Contest. While I was not going to active any island, it was still an enjoyable contest to participate in. I figured I participated about 10 total hours and made 65 QSOs. I was not making anything resembling a serious effort. It was a change to work some DX and log some new IOTA. I did record 23 DXCC entities on CW and SSB. Conditions were not ideal, obviously. I found quite a bit of noise on 20M when I started working that band from 40M at the start of the contest at 1200z. I think this contest coupled with the NAQP a few weeks back just reinforced what I already know. I need to get the hex higher. Still it was a good time, working to make a contact. Some of the stations in the Pacific I worked were a definite challenge. Oddly enough I did not work one KH6 station on 15/20/40M. I did see a spot for K6NA on 15M, but when I got there the frequency was quiet, then again 15M was not great. Next up, NAQP CW on August 7! Followed two weeks later by the SSB edition of the contest, which I might need to pass on or work at N6RO because I will be finishing (hopefully) up our kitchen remodel. |
| W6ONV on Sunday 25 July 2010 - 19:54:12 | Read/Post Comment: 0 |
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