Pog Blog

Hidey!

2010-07-12T09:13:00.004-04:00

Thanks Vic for these amazing pics of my cat Hidey! Wow, just in time for an annual post here...

When Life Gives You Zucchini...

2009-07-14T14:42:00.004-04:00

...make vegan brownies!

(...to take to yoga tonight.)

Thanks to Stan for the fabulous organic squash!

This is the recipe that produced the brownies, if you want to give it a go.

Pog visited the New Hope Mills Store in Auburn for some whole wheat flour, cocoa powder and organic sugar. Free wi-fi in the cafe if you visit. (But get there before 4pm, that's when they close!)

PS: These aren't "healthy", but they are vegan! And I used half the oil called for in the recipe. Good for an occasional treat.

Creature Pics

2009-07-04T11:53:00.006-04:00

Enjoy some recent pics taken with the iPhone:

Above is Hidey surveying the birds and squirrels on Charles St....

And Dutch (Maureen and Mike's pooch) chilling by the lake last week. (A tongue montage.)

Like Angioplasty for Your Kitchen Pipes...

2009-07-02T01:25:00.001-04:00

Speedracer's kitchen sink has been draining VERY SLOOOOWWWLY. And creating a mess in the second sink when running the disposal.

Attempts at remedying the situation with an auger/drain snake proved unsuccessful.

Then along came the Clog Buster. (It kicks auger a$$!)

Simply drag the garden hose through the garage into the kitchen, then attach it to the Clog Buster. Remove the P Trap under the kitchen sink, then stick the Clog Buster 6 inches into the main drain. Yell to Sully to turn on the garden hose and be surprised that no flooding seems to be occurring. After 5 minutes turn off the water and experience DIY SUCCESS.

As Sully eloquently stated, "it's like angioplasty for your pipes." I am totally surprised, yet elated that this worked. Highly recommended. It earns 5 plungers. Out of 5!

Now onward to fix the leaking bathroom sink....

Find Yer iPhone

2009-06-27T23:48:00.001-04:00

It's about time I made a commitment to regular postings. Pog now is the recent proud owner of an iPhone (courtesy of my awesome brother after upgrading - thanks, Tim!) so that may help improve the content (photos!) and frequency of posting (wifi!).

I spent the day um, "troubleshooting" my iPhone and the last two days included the following activities: jailbreaking, unlocking, wiping old data, unbricking, re-jailbreaking, re-unlocking, and celebrating SUCCESS by making actual phone calls (on another carrier, no less), browsing my own contacts and playlists. Yay!

DIY is one of my mantras, so I have no doubt learned way too much about this jailbreaking and unlocking stuff. But through all my research over the past 48 hours, the most entertaining read has been this post, an amusing account of using Find My iPhone to successfully recover a missing iPhone.

I begin my #8 growth year today: Adjustment (Balance)! Let's go!

RIP Rex

2008-08-18T12:57:00.004-04:00

This morning I learned that my buddy Rex went to the rainbow bridge. Thank you little guy for all of the joy and love you brought to me and everyone who knew you. You made my heart bigger, but it is a little broken today. Everybody, hug someone you love today and let them know....

Sending each of you my love,

pog

Even if you are a regular person and not an engineer...

2008-04-23T21:44:00.003-04:00

...you will enjoy this!

Genius.

A Monday in Arkansas

2007-11-13T12:43:00.000-05:00

Maddie, Victor and I left the hotel and headed to the Clinton Library on this Veterans' Day 2007. We found the volunteer staff to be outrageously friendly and talkative, to the point of Maddie and Vic possibly missing their flight as they could not get away... Seriously though, I was impressed by the building and contents. Highlights for me included being able to pull out an archival binder containing Bill's daily schedule (every day began with "Jog - TBA", so I've added that to my own schedule), the secret service sunglasses, and the reproduction of the 3.6 billion year old moon rock in the reproduction Oval Office.

Also impressive were the vacuum cleaner marks on the reproduction Oval Office rug which you may be able to see in this photo. Remember that it is in someone's job description to create these vacuum patterns.... hmmm.

Once back in the car, I decided to call a spa in Hot Springs, AR to see if I could schedule a mineral bath and swedish massage. Things seemed pretty slow in town (though not as slow as a Sunday in Arkansas) and I thoroughly enjoyed my 1pm appointment.

I was on the road at 3pm and made it to Austin by 10:15pm. On the way I saw a monster cockroach in a restroom and it kinda freaked me out a little. It is my understanding that they grow them big in Texas. And don' t mess with Texas.

Calcite in the Rough

2007-11-11T21:37:00.000-05:00

Maddie, Victor and I took a road trip to the Crater of Diamonds State Park. I met two diamond finders at the sluicing station, but we decided to find calcite instead.

On the drive home we stopped at Hot Springs, AR and learned that no businesses in Arkansas decide to open on Sunday.

Why I'm in Arkansas

2007-11-10T21:19:00.000-05:00

Congrats to my awesome godson Adam and his lovely bride Erin! Thanks for all of your hospitality. I am so happy for you. True love rules.

Cross Country Adventure Begins

2007-11-08T23:01:00.000-05:00

Today I embarked on a cross-country drive. I am spending my first night in Elizabethtown KY and drove about 11.5 hours today. I also met a mad cute Irish Wolfhound while getting gasoline in Ohio. (Forgot to snap a pic, sorry!) Next stop is Morrilton AR for my cousin's wedding, with the rehearsal dinner at 6:30pm. That is 8 hours drive from here... let's see what time I get on the road.

Also a shout out to Turissa and her cool pooch Rufus... she let me invade her home/garage with all my stuff during the last week after moving out of my house. A million thanks!

I will be sure to have my camera ready on the rest of my trip. Now time to sleep! Zzzzzzz.

Borner-gain

2007-07-26T12:00:00.000-04:00

OK, I am still gushing about gadgetry. This item I literally use EVERY day now - the Borner V-Slicer. It resembles the slicers hawked by Ronco and the like on late night (or early Sunday morning) television. I went with it due to the HUGE number of glowing reviews on Amazon. By the way, I noticed the price went up on Amazon... I got it for about $20 at thegadgetsource.com.

It slices. Not exactly dices (unless you do some pre-cutting). But creates wicked awesome julienne - perfect for my salads and I munch on them daily. Speaking of slices, if you need tomatoes sliced for any reason, this thing is the bomb. Amazing, consistent thin or thick beautiful slices - and fast! I love love love this slicer. Can you tell?

Um, caution: the blade is sharp. (Duh. But sometimes you just have to do a little digit slicing to drive the point home.) My next kitchen purchase will be a cut proof glove to save my finger when I want to julienne that last leetle bit of carrot!

Angel Hair Salon

2007-07-16T10:00:00.000-04:00

Raw foods are yummy and and I love learning about new and creative ways to prepare them. This gadget is called a spiral slicer and will transform zucchini (or another firm vegetable, such as daikon, carrot, beet, etc.) into miles of angel hair goodness. Add a raw marinara, pesto, or my fave - a mock peanut sauce using a raw organic almond butter - and dinner is served!

Mad Dog Mad Dog

2007-07-12T03:32:00.001-04:00

Today I share about a new item in my life... my Sonicare toothbrush. Maddie has raved about hers for years, my dental routine needed a makeover, so I snagged one on ebay. I have been using it for about a month now with only one gripe: serious toothpaste dribblage. The Sonicare has a two-minute timer so I am brushing for all this time without spitting out any toothpaste. It's a little messy. I did finally read the instructions last week and they suggest a gel toothpaste (probably not going to happen unless someone can suggest a healthy gel). And I learned you can turn OFF the toothbrush during the two-minute drill and then restart it without losing the timing feature. Anyhoo, I'd appreciate any suggestions or advice from users of this otherwise bitchin device.

Take Me to the Moon

2007-07-10T22:12:00.000-04:00

Here is Pog in the Moonbeam last Friday at the Green Grand Prix. Thanks to Sully for navigating assistance in the rally!

2007-07-08T10:33:00.000-04:00

Holy bovine! It has been almost a year since I have posted on this blog. Because I am no longer providing sweat equity on home improvement projects, there may be another theme happening here over the coming weeks. Thanks to any readers still hanging in there!

Are you my brother?

2006-07-12T23:06:00.000-04:00

KillingBono
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

"Killing Bono" is a great book. I had it on my dining room table and Sully thought this cover shot of Neil McCormick looked like my brother. What do you think? I highly recommend the book, even without the cover!

2006-05-28T14:45:00.000-04:00

I will play Wil Wheaton.

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!

This Online Poker Tournament is a No Limit Texas Holdem event exclusive to Bloggers.

Registration code: 7330476

French Fry Oil Mini

2006-05-24T09:56:00.000-04:00

mini1.JPG
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

This Mini runs on french fry oil! Or maybe oil from fish and chips is more accurate. This vehicle was an entry in the Tour de Sol and a project of Greasecar Vegetable Fuel Systems and Madhouse Minis. Photo was taken at the Tour de Sol car show in Malta NY on May 11, 2006.

2006-04-19T21:13:00.000-04:00

The standard of perfection. Catch it on PBS.

Why haven't I been to a cat show???

2006-04-07T15:26:00.000-04:00

A-chooo!

There is a sweet cat in my basement

2006-03-19T14:58:00.000-05:00

Cat in my basement - view 1
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

Thought you all might want to have a look. She is super affectionate and could use lots of love and attention in a foster home. The vet says she has Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) so unfortunately she won't be able to come into the house with my other cats (or go back outside). She told me she would like to visit Auburn.

2006-03-14T12:10:00.000-05:00

It's Here!!!

Yay! The Vita Mix was on my porch when I got home from work Monday evening! Hard to believe, as I won the auction late Friday night. It makes an awesome spark when you reverse blade direction (which I am assured is "normal" from the very dated instruction and recipe booklet). I may have to post a few of these choice recipes. I am practicing smoothie-izing everything in site to prepare for Patty's birthday celebration (aka, St. Patty's Day), just in case anyone wants a frozen cocktail. I'll add a little fresh spinach to make it green. I am so excited about this appliance!

Blog is getting a little lame with me going on about the Vita Mix. Not "no post" boring, but I think I need some photos. We'll remedy that soon.

2006-03-13T14:59:00.000-05:00

Vita Mix!

OK, the new exciting event is the purchase of an old(er) school Vita Mix (3600+) on ebay. It should arrive today or tomorrow. Smoothie heaven. Or smoothie experimentation. I hear the old instructional videos show blocks of 2x4's being crushed to sawdust in seconds. I will not be trying this. But they are powerful. It was fun to win an auction. Now my feedback is a whopping 14!

Happy (Chinese) Mew Year!

2006-01-29T22:28:00.001-05:00

Neptune paint by number
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

Ha! Who says it's the Year of the Dog? We're startin' the New Year right. (With thanks to Vic!)

2005-11-11T12:47:00.000-05:00

Back in Beantown...

Sully and I are on a roadtrip to Cambridge to visit Maddie and Vic. Vic is a genius. He created this avatar of Rex for me. Awesome.

It is cool to be back at the condo after a couple of months away. The place looks great. Maddie is a genius too. (She's reading over my shoulder.)

Complaints have been logged about the lack of updates on this blog. I will be better to any remaining faithful readership. Thanks for checking in!

2005-10-19T14:00:00.000-04:00

OK, ok... You deserve an update!

I have accepted a job at a "super" haircutting chain with a store about a mile from my house. Yay. The company offers a great training program and that was the primary reason I applied. After 7 days of training and cutting lots of doll heads and human heads, they let me cut hair! Monday was my first day and I didn't make anyone cry. (Although a woman came back kinda mad and said I didn't cut enough off. The manager said not to worry, it happens to them too.)

I'll be working at least 30 hours per week, usually in 6-hour shifts (9am-3pm or 3pm-9pm). Sundays they are open 12-5. It is weird getting tips (or not getting tips in some cases). But nice to walk out with some cash each day. The manager Trish is great. It is laid back in our salon and she is very supportive and an effective teacher. So after two days, I can say it's going well. If you need a haircut or color, let me know!

2005-10-04T01:24:00.000-04:00

Job search progress!

Sigh, looks like I am not Super Dirt Week material. Good news is that I have an interview on Friday for a marketing assistant position I found on Craig's List. It would be 20 hours/week and the days and times would be flexible, so that would be perfect.

In the evening, Pete, Turissa and I got together to hang out and have a few beverages. We eventually headed to the Blarney for a few more. Turissa's haircut looks great (I didn't cut it, hmm). A fun Monday evening on Tipp Hill.

2005-10-03T01:01:00.000-04:00

I'm a whale

Sully is coaching me in poker. Sunday included a viewing of the DVD "Poker for Dummies". I now know who Chris Moneymaker is. And I learned good tips for bluffing. Sully says bluffing is only a factor in no limit poker, so I guess I'll work on my bluffing later. It was a very basic video, but is helpful to understand the betting process, ranks of hands and some etiquette.

My current reading assignment is "Poker: The Real Deal" by Phil Gordon. I promise I'll get started on it this week.

2005-10-02T01:24:00.000-04:00

Some things I did today:

- Watched 'Harold and Maude'. Classic film, check it out.
- Mowed the lawn.
- Went to the library (got some DVD's including: 'Poker for Dummies'. Review to follow.)
- Listened to Gregg Braden on internet radio.
- Knitted.
- Talked to Maddie and Vic (congrats on winning U2 tickets!!!)
- Had a great conversation with KT (thanks for calling, you made my day!)

Oh, and I installed a counter on my blog so I can check out the traffic. Interesting....

Pruning day

2005-10-01T01:31:00.000-04:00

Jack Pruning
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

Ed and I took a field trip to Elbridge and Auburn. The first stop was Owen's Orchards where we sampled the lastest crop of apples: mcintosh (macintosh!) and honeycrisp. So good. We have inside information that macintosh are peaking over the next two weeks, so get some! We also got some corn stalks and hay and 5 big pumpkins for the Lynch's front porch. I picked up some spaghetti and acorn squash to enjoy this week. Yum.

We finally made it over to Jack's house to help with some pruning in the yard. We were late enough to interrupt his dinner (sorry!), but quickly got to work and soon made the overgown brush into a stump. Then we hit the other side of the house and trimmed down a couple of other untamed shrubs. With Jack's help we were done in good time. He was kind enough to treat us to dinner. Thanks Pops Racer! And thanks Ed!

Kitten!

2005-09-30T12:26:00.000-04:00

Linda and kitten
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

I promise, it's not mine. This is a kitten from the backyard clan of felines. I will provide additional images of something other than cats or flowers. Someday.

2005-09-30T01:20:00.000-04:00

Jack and I had breakfast at Denny's, his first time there. He seemed impressed, especially with the fact that they are open 24 hours. I had an interview at a haircutting chain this afternoon and now have to bring in a model on Tuesday. Any takers?

Oh, I applied for a job on Craig's List working a promotion for Super Dirt Week at the Fairgrounds. I figured that would be a blogworthy experience. Let's see what happens. And if I have the right "look" for Super Dirt Week. (I had to submit a photo. Should I be scared?)

Sully is teaching me his foolproof texas hold em method. Watch out. Sorry, no pics today. Anyway, it has been raining - you don't want to see that, do you?

Flowers

2005-09-27T15:07:00.000-04:00

Sunflowers
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

Did I mention Rex LOVES to eat flowers? And plants in general? The sun and skies have been gorgeous. I am learning more about the digital camera, but it's difficult to take bad pictures with such brilliant light.

2005-09-25T00:25:00.000-04:00

Let's go fly a kite

My friend Pete invited me to attend Art in the Sky at Cazenovia's Stone Quarry Art Park. The day was just gorgeous and the park is a treasure. It was a treat to see all the families playing with kites together. I will get a kite soon!

2005-09-22T11:49:00.000-04:00

It's the first day of fall

Met with Bert's mom and Mabel's dad for dinner at King David's. Yum. Good to see you after my (ahem) 3 weeks away. Thanks for a fun evening! I'd love to hear how you enjoyed your whine tour.

2005-09-22T01:15:00.000-04:00

We are chill.

Today, on the advice of someone wise, I started a knitting project. This is the first time I've knitted with cats in the house. They like yarn. And moving needles. It was a little erie sitting on the couch with Rex and Iris perched nearby, wide-eyed and ready to pounce. Rex jumped on one of the needles mid-stitch. Iris attacked a needle AND munched completely through the yarn (as I discovered in the middle of a row. Pretty amazing considering her lack of teeth). It is cool how something like knitting comes right back to ya, even after years of idleness.

I called a "low-cost haircutting chain" today to see if they would still hire me. I'm also intending to contact a state medical university nearby about administrative and clinical research positions. Oh, and on Friday Sully and I are meeting with his new employer about possible income opportunities for Pog in the eBay consignment universe. There's got to be something else I can consider. Yeah, a real estate license! Linda and I have made a pact to take the course in November.

My plants seem to be doing well. Linda took good care of them. Maddie, here are the sister spider plants to Spidey:

2005-09-19T15:25:00.000-04:00

I'm back...

So I've been back in the city of my birth for several days now. Let's see... There have been a couple of haircuts (and a color for Sully, I mean Rusty). And I can't forget a visit to Katie's favorite hangout and some "Cher hair" for Katie. A lovely visit to Lavender Patch (thanks again for the tools, Stan!). Oh, and three felines seemed not too bummed out when I walked in the door.

Are they mad? Or mad cute?

Fewer cat photos and more job searching perhaps?

2005-09-15T13:12:00.000-04:00

Homeward bound?

I've decided to drive home today and get back to my life. There will be a kitty reunion. If they remember me.

Ugh, but before I leave I am still trying to finish painting the back of the front door. It keeps globbing up and looking yucky. I will sand it down and try one more time before I get in the car. I hate to leave it looking so bad.

See some of you soon! Thanks to Maddie and Vic for an unforgettable two months (!) and for putting up with a lot. (I'll leave it up to you to take the "after" photos....) Ciao and meow for now.

2005-09-14T15:47:00.000-04:00

Nothing left for me to paint?

It looks like the painting is done. (There is still the laundry room. But that is not on the priority list.) Unpacking is. Maddie and Vic deserve to have their life back already.

Speaking of a life, I need to get one. Soon. As I stated earlier, I am interested in being a research subject in a sleep study. I'm waiting to hear from the researchers there. Or I need to go back home to my cats. Any opinions? Words of wisdom? Job offers?

2005-09-12T01:10:00.000-04:00

Starting to settle in

On Sunday, Vic put the hardware on the kitchen cabinets and it's looking good. We all pitched in to wash and put away the dishes, glasses, utensils and pots and pans. We had lunch at an Indian restaurant in Harvard Square, then Vic went into work for several hours. Maddie and I stopped at the hardware store, then visited two open houses on their street (purely for market research purposes). If you have a spare 1.67 million, you could be their neighbor in a nice little historically preserved home on the next block.

I patched some spots on the baseboards and trim in the hallway and put a coat of paint on them. Maddie and Vic began to dismantle the mountain in the middle of the living room and set up the couch for vegetative purposes. I think I got the paint brushes washed before my curfew of 10:30pm.

Maddie has been diligently working on her job search. She has found income opportunities for me as well. I am considering being a research subject in a sleep study here in Boston. I will let you know!

2005-09-11T01:16:00.000-04:00

Saturday at the job site...piece of CAKE!

So Maddie, Vic and I all tackled different jobs today. Vic sucessfully installed the gas stove! Then tackled some trim re-installation. AND attended a party mid-day. He is the man.

Maddie finished installing the Ikea kitchen cabinet doors. Indeed a project. Go Maddie I did some mudding (spackle)on the hallway wall. This is where we moved the door and vic cut 3 or 4 holes in the wall to rewire the bedroom light/fan, so it still needed a bit of work to smooth out the wall a little more. When that dried, I put two more coats of white paint on the walls and it looks great! I also installed outlet covers and painted the radiator in the bathroom.

At 5pm, Maddie and I headed to Government Center in downtown Boston to see the free Cake show. (Bummer, we forgot the camera.) Our presence increased the median age only slightly, as there was a large crowd of college students present. We were shocked at the number of smokers, and saddened that said smoking could affect our enjoyment even in an outdoor venue. The show rocked. It was a good break and a wonderful evening. I crashed upon my return to the job site.

2005-09-10T01:37:00.000-04:00

Fly through the air with the greatest of ease...

Maddie and I had a good day at the job site. Maddie alternated between Ikea cabinet door/shelf installations and job hunting on the computer. I touched up a few boo boos (hard to believe but yes, a few touch-ups were necessary)and painted some more trim.

The crew has deserved a night out! Vic got out of work early and we drove to Peabody, the home of Jordan's Furniture, the IMAX Theatre, Beantown (jelly bean sculptures?), and a trapeze school!

We attended a showing of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" at the IMAX Theater. The film was in 2D, but the staff hands you 3D glasses on your way in to view a couple of previews in 3D. Wow, the previews were quite amazing. (Including one for a 3D NASCAR film, so Pops Racer, next time you are in town you'll have to check it out.)

"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was black and warped and brilliantly done. It was a treat to view it at the IMAX theater. LOVED the musical numbers and dancing, Deep Roy rules.

After the film, we watched a trapeze class! I've got to try this soon. Then caught the "Water Fireworks"...ha! And wandered among the jelly bean sculptures. This is a kid's birthday party paradise. Except for the furniture store. All in all, our Friday evening was a fun, well-deserved break. Thanks homeowners!

2005-09-09T02:06:00.000-04:00

Uh oh.

Maddie was let go from her job today. On the bright side, that means I'll have some help painting. When one door closes... um, we don't need to say that. Timothy appears to be the only employed sibling at this point. Go Tim.

We decided to go have dinner OUT. With real silverware. Yum.

2005-09-08T01:59:00.000-04:00

Slacker

Wednesday was Pog's partial day of slack. I slept in, took a leisurely bath in the new tub, and relaxed. I did finally get to work in the early afternoon - painted another coat on the dining room walls and did some prep on the hallway. Vic and Maddie arrived after work and brought burritos. Maddie finished the kitchen countertops and they look fine! Vic wanted to hook up the stove, but determined he needs to raise the height of the stove with some plywood. And of course we can't do any noisy stuff like SAWING in the evenings due to a neighbor's constant complaining. So Vic helped me in the dining room, taping and painting trim. And took recyling and trash out to the curb. New rule, no brush cleaning after 10:30pm so we retired around then and I cleaned brushes. Boring entry, I know, but this is my life.

Oh, newsflash. The homeowners have hinted that we may go on a field trip to see "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" at the IMAX theater! At Jordan's Furniture? It is rumored there is also a trapeze available and something to do with jelly beans. I will make sure I do the trapeze BEFORE the jelly beans.

2005-09-07T01:16:00.000-04:00

What else can I say

... more PAINTING. Will I ever get to say something else in the blog? Uh, probably not for a couple of days.

It looks like I will stay until at least this weekend. Cake (a cool band) is playing for free on Saturday for all the college kiddies here in Beantown and I want to go! So I keep painting. Vic says I can go if we finish painting. I'm kidding...contrary to popular belief, I am not held here against my will. Really.

Maddie and Vic finally finalized things with their former landlord so they now officially live in only one place. Yay.

I spoke with my roommate Linda (hi Linda!) and assured her I'll be returning. Someday. Rex said hello too.

2005-09-06T01:54:00.000-04:00

Laboring on Labor Day Weekend...

Yes, it's been a while since I've posted. (Attribute that to long days and a need for sleep.) But we are still here working. (Gregg left on August 30. Thanks Gregg!) There is a lot to update and I'll do so retroactively. But for now, there are some new photos on the link to the right. Thanks to Maddie for being the photo goddess and getting those up. I have been painting painting painting. Maddie and Vic have been working on the bamboo countertops and they are looking great. They may even be able to start unpacking soon!

Did you all have a good Labor Day weekend? Glad that we got to talk to a few of you on the phone. We'll get you caught up this week here on the blog. We love your comments if you are reading. Take care!

2005-08-24T01:33:00.000-04:00

More of the same

Tuesday was more painting. And mudding. Vic and Maddie have created Pog's Painting Commandments:

1) Thou shall paint no brick
2) Thou shall paint no skylight windows
3) Thou shall paint no bathroom tile

I have new highlights in my hair courtesy of Behr Ultra Bright White Eggshell Latex.

2005-08-23T01:39:00.000-04:00

Looking Good

The last two days have involved a massive learning curve on painting. And brush cleaning. Gregg was adamant about teaching us the proper patented brush cleaning technique. So now we know. Don’t let paint dry in your brush. Like he did.

The homeowners (that’s what “Trading Spaces” would call Vic and Maddie, although we have far exceeded our two day timeline and $1000 budget) have decided on paint colors for the two bedrooms.

I got one coat on the guest bedroom walls.

We have used up gallons of the bright white eggshell enamel on the ceilings and kitchen walls. Like I said, massive learning curve. And lots of mud. Then more paint. And one additional trip to the Depot. Gotta love those 5 gallon pails of interior eggshell.

Maddie and Vic got some white paint on the ceiling and skylight in the bathroom. It is really coming together! Gregg and I listen to classic rock on the radio because my iPod isn’t quite loud enough without an amplifier. We are waiting to win our Stones tickets and working hard because we are taking Wednesday OFF from the jobsite!!! Yes, a field trip to Concord is in store.

2005-08-21T02:21:00.000-04:00

Mud and Paint
Wowee! Today we finally got to put some paint on the walls! We still have lots to do, but that felt like good progress. Gregg has been very busy applying mud and more mud to the skylights and walls in the kitchen and bathroom. First thing in the morning, Maddie and Vic hit the Depot again for supplies. We prepped the second bedroom for painting… washing walls, taping, dropcloths, etc. Also washed the kitchen walls to prep them for painting. Vic busied himself with finishing work on the electrical outlets in the kitchen. Gregg flies from room to room mudding and sanding.

We tested the water lines today. After a minor cleanup, everything seems to be working. Except maybe the new shower fixture. It doesn’t seem to want to dispense cold water. We’ll get that straightened out.

In the afternoon, after a primer from Gregg on the rudimentary theory of painting, Maddie and I began cutting and rolling with the bright white paint. At this point it looks like we will begin installing kitchen cabinets tomorrow! There is a bit of a question right now on the current placement of the gas line for the stove and the electrical for the range hood. But things are looking good.

Will Maddie and Vic pick any color for any of their walls? Or will it all be bright white for now? Stay tuned to find out. And for some new photos. Maddie is experiencing a few technical difficulties uploading photos to Blogger. We have them for you and will get them up as soon as we can. Thanks for reading. You are reading, aren’t you?

2005-08-18T02:32:00.000-04:00

Phase II Begins?

I shared a wonderful weekend with my women’s group in California. (Thanks to everyone!) After a 3-hour delay in Houston, my flight arrived in Boston on Tuesday evening. Gregg arrived a few hours earlier from Vancouver, so we shared a cab to Maddie and Vic’s apartment in Cambridge. Over a late dinner, we heard about Vic’s trip to Chicago on a private jet. It’s a rock star life for Vic.

On Wednesday morning, Gregg and I headed over to the condo to check out the situation. The tile in the bathroom looked good. Gregg got right to work on the plumbing in the kitchen. I prepped the bathroom for the painting and mudding work ahead protecting all of our tile artistry with cardboard and masking tape. Then I lined the bathroom skylight framing with fiberglass insulation (yuck, not my favorite task). I ran out of masking tape and Gregg ran out of solder for the plumbing work… a quick call to Maddie saved the day (evening) with a supply run from Lowe’s on her way home from work.

Vic and Maddie arrived at the condo after work with burritos and supplies. Maddie and I decided to do some grocery shopping. We left Gregg to finish sweating the copper plumbing joints and roughing some more of the electrical work in the kitchen, while Vic stayed and cut some drywall for the bathroom skylight. I did forget the camera today, so no new photos. As we drifted off to sleep, visions of flushing toilets and sinks with running water in the condo danced in our heads.

2005-08-14T20:54:00.000-04:00

Greetings from California...

Well, I'm checking in from California where I'm spending a long weekend with my women's group in the Bay Area. Maddie and Vic are also in the Bay Area this weekend for a wedding. So work on the condo is at a standstill while we are on the west coast.

I will be returning to Cambridge on Tuesday evening. The plan is to meet Gregg at the airport as he will be arriving from Vancouver at about the same time I do. Then it will be back to work on the condo until the end of the month.

I promise to keep more regular and short updates over the next phase of the project. Remember, we always have lots of photos for your viewing pleasure by clicking on the "Pog Photos" link to the right...

Since Gregg left on August 2, Maddie and Vic and I have been busy. We tiled and grouted the bathroom walls and floor - they turned out to be quite the labor intensive projects, but rewarding. The bathroom is shaping up quite nicely and we are getting excited to pull it all together. (It will be wicked exciting to have a working toilet.) Vic sheetrocked the skylight in the kitchen.

Once Gregg arrives, we look forward to getting the plumbing in the kitchen done so we can install the Ikea cabinets and appliances. And getting the sink and toilet installed in the bathroom! Plus lots of painting to do... Maddie and Vic need to move in by the end of August so there is a lot to do over the next two weeks. We are happy Gregg is returning to help. Thanks for reading!

2005-08-07T08:44:00.000-04:00

Whew... catching up (Weekend of July 30-31)

(Finally, it's Pog here... props to Maddie for the guest blogging.) The last week or so has been quite busy. My absence cannot be attributed to a nasty powertool accident or sibling squabble involving electric staplers and tyvek tape. As Maddie has mentioned, it has been a bit of a challenge for me to stay awake in the evenings! Let's go back in time and review the last week or so....

The bathroom has been the center of progress. (Like at the state fair? Where are the fried oreos and wine slushies?) Last Friday and Saturday (July 29-30) we worked hard to finish applying the backerboard -- Hardibacker, a cement board applied over the drywall that creates a waterproof base for the tile. It takes a lot of strength to screw in the board with the screwgun and well, I wasn't able to help much there. Gregg (strong like ox) had to do most of that work, although with Vic's measuring expertise, Vic and I were able to help cut some of the backerboard pieces to size. It was fun cutting out openings for the plumbing and other things sticking out of the walls.

Around mid-day last Saturday, Gregg finished framing the skylight in the bathroom and exited to the kitchen to finish framing the skylight there. This freed up the casa de peepee for Maddie and Vic to do their thing... TILING!

Uh... as Barbie might say, tiling's hard... let's bake cookies. Seriously, there was a LOT of planning involved. Add the fact that none of the tiling surfaces are square or level or plumb, and we were very happy to have architect Victor involved in planning the layout. This was definitely a learning process. The tile selected for the walls was a glass mosaic tile, each tile 3/4" square, supplied in sheets 12-3/4" square. We had to cut individual tiles in half or even third to fit into the corners of the bathroom. But, glass tiles crack and snap and shatter when you try to size them with nippers. We did our best.... For perspective, the tiles are close to the size of Scrabble tiles, perhaps a little smaller. (Yes, Sully it is an aquagrid, good observation. See, it is a real word!)

Mixing the mortar was a treat. (Well, I like it. It's messy.) Gregg rigged up a mixer tool using my wimpy electric drill and two wire coat hangers. Maddie decided to mix 50 pounds of mortar all at once (not paying heed to Gregg's advice) and we all agreed this would not be a good idea for the future. Maddie, Vic and I got a system down... Maddie applied the mortar to the wall, I prepared the correct number of tiles and delivered them to Vic, who affixed them to the wall and lined them up properly. Unfortunately, the big batch of mortar started to set (solidfy) in the bucket before we could use it all. We retired for the evening, with plans to head to Lowe's in the early morning to buy more mortar and secret liquid solution.

We had high hopes for Sunday (July 31). Gregg had a ticket to Minnesota leaving early Tuesday morning, so we were feeling the crunch to get as much as possible done Sunday and Monday. Maddie made a roadtrip to Lowe's in Woburn for more mortar. Upon her return, Maddie, Vic and I continued with tiling the walls and finished in the early evening. Ever the optimists, we wanted to get the floor tile done too, but realized that was too much. Gregg finished framing the kitchen skylight and made substantial progress on wiring in the kitchen. And he did some framing on the brick wall for the kitchen cabinets.

Wow this entry is getting very long, so I'll end it here. Please take a look at our photo album by clicking on the "Pog's Pictures" link to the right. Stay tuned for the update on the rest of last week. We are off to the condo to work! Thanks for reading.

PS: Oh, for those of you wondering, Gregg was unable to retrieve his Leatherman with the magnet and string fishing pole he rigged up. But I did get him a new one as a gift, because he deserved one.

2005-08-05T09:19:00.000-04:00

Quick Note (from Maddie)

Ok, so we're a little behind. Pog is working on recovering from all of the hard work to blog, but in the mean time, you can check out a few of the new photos. Just click on the "Pog Photos" link over to the right....

It was a tiling weekend, and Vic calculated that our walls now contain over 23,000 small glass mosaic tiles. Eeek.

Oh, and we saw a mouse.

2005-07-28T14:31:00.000-04:00

Rock On

(Maddie here, catching up....)
Pog and Gregg have been working very hard, and it's quite a tiring process! So the updates are not as frequent as we'd like, but here's the latest.

Monday and Tuesday were the skylight installation days - we had an outside contractor (even more outside than Gregg, that is) come to cut the holes in the roof. Gregg did as much prep work as he could with framing and preparing the spaces. David and Mike, the roofers, installed the kitchen skylight on Monday morning, and the bathroom skylight on Tuesday morning. Thank goodness we had water for them, since they didn't come prepared and would have otherwise died of heatstroke! The weather has been awfully hot - it topped out about 97 degrees on Wednesday, and on a black rubber roof it gets probably closer to 2,000 degrees.

Depsite a few struggles with the contractor (let's just say Gregg almost got thrown off the side of the roof by the 300 lb roofer) - success! The kitchen and bathroom both have a new wonderful source of natural light. A little more (ok, a lot more) framing and finishing work remains to be done, however.

The next task was to begin finishing the walls of the bathroom with sheetrock and backerboard, in preparation for the tiling. Pog is an expert "rocker" at this point! All this screwing is fairly strenuous work...

Gregg continues to finish the skylight details (or fight being abducted by aliens, depending on who's conspiracy theory you listen to....), which will then need to be rocked too. Vic and I show up in the evening after work, and try to make some semblance of a contribution, but the weekends are our most productive time. We have high hopes for this coming weekend, and making some major progress on the bathroom and kitchen reassembly.

If you've been reading and enjoying our blog, and living vicariously without sweating as much as us, then let's have some more comments, people! Comments make us happy. Comments keep up going. Help us, or Maddie and Vic may be wall-less and water-less for way too long and Pog may never see her kitties again ...

2005-07-25T01:37:00.000-04:00

Don't Sweat It (plus a tool obituary)

It's Sunday, Sunday, Sunday. All four of us were busy today. Gregg spent the day plumbing the bathroom. I have learned that this requires sweating the pipes. Meaning Gregg has a propane torch in the bathroom and solders the pipe sections together using flame. With a fire extingisher nearby. We
did not need the extinguisher today, thank goddess.

Vic and Gregg then were able to fit the new tub in place (much lighter than cast iron, by the way) . During the process of getting all the new plumbing together Gregg seemed to have lost three items down the plumbing wall two stories below where we are working: the almighty Leatherman, an 8" piece of copper tubing, and a bit holder. Gregg plans to procure a heavy duty magnet and attempt to retrieve the Leatherman by fishing down two floors with the magnet on a string. Stay tuned to see if Gregg and his beloved Leatherman are reunited tomorrow. Or if he purchases a new one during our next visit to the Depot.

Since Gregg lost his Leatherman (along with its trusty file blade) I got to become a plumbing apprentice and sand down the ends of the pipe with sandpaper. Gregg informed me that sanding is the job of plumbing apprentices (especially since he lost the file along with the Leatherman tool).

Maddie, Vic and I took turns wire brushing the newly exposed brick in the dining area. This is a tiring (and dirty) job, but after the cleaning the wall looks great (while we all looked like chimney sweeps). Showers never felt so good. Gregg, Vic and I will be over to the condo early tomorrow (7 am!) to be ready for the skylight installer. I've got to get some sleep.

PS - Addendum by Maddie: "A Shocking Experience"

Pog neglected to mention the most memorable moment of the day - Vic was assigned the enviable task of cutting an old electical conduit with our faithful Sawzall. Gregg said he was about "75% sure" that there was no live current running through the tube (ok, maybe he was just kidding)...so Pog got to hold the metal tube taut while Vic cut into it. Needless to say, she was a bit nervous! Gregg had already fooled her twice with the faux electrocution trick (as seen almost weekly on America's Funniest Home Videos), which she fell for both times. As Vic began to cut, I snapped this photo, and my flash happened to go off - which Pog thought was a spark, and she immediately let go of the conduit and jumped about 3 feet in the air in fear. We all cracked up, and that one kept us lauging for the whole afternoon. But don't worry, no actual siblings were injured in this task....

Oh, and with Gregg's progress on the plumbing, we were able to test the shower fixtures. Look, we got actual RUNNING WATER to come out - how amazing is that??

2005-07-24T01:13:00.000-04:00

GREGG'S COMMENTS:

Wow - talk about teamwork..... it has been amazing being part of a team that is accomplishing what most GC's would take a couple months to do. I never thought I would get to know the inside of Home Depot so well .... amazing staff that is full of advice but a bit short on actual experience with the products they sell. When I arrived and Vic and Maddie bought two small air conditioners for their new condo I thought about telling them that there was no need for them on my account - simply open a few windows and I'd be fine. Talk about hot and humid .... I spent a few days working at or in the ceiling crawlspace and I am sure the temperature was well over 100 degress most days. I am grateful that they had the foresight to get the air conditioners! There is still much to do but today I started sweating the copper and wiring up a few outlet boxes ..... always a sure sign that the project is coming along. Hooray!

There are still some interesting things to accomplish .... framing 71 1/2 degree slopes from the top of the skylights to the bottom of the ceiling, installing a new tub and fixtures, installing IKEA cabinets on a floor that has settled nicely during the past 100 years ..... yes the next week will be an interesting one .... stay tuned!

2005-07-23T21:41:00.000-04:00

Saturday:
(Maddie here yet again, I see a trend….)
Pog got too much sleep, and woke up WAY too early with excess energy (unlike the guys who spent all evening at Home Depot the night before loading many supplies in the middle of a huge thunderstorm). Gregg spent the night at the condo trying to catch up on some quiet work and planning, and trying to recover from a back injury.
In the morning, the delivery of lumber arrived – lots and lots of trips up to the third floor with plywood, 2x4’s, sheet rock, etc. What a fun way to start the morning! Umm, all of those dings were already in the hallway walls before we got there, right?
So Gregg started in on the plumbing in the bathroom (his least favorite part of construction, but we still need pipes...) while Pog and Maddie started to tackle some demo in the living room (Vic joined in later, after single handedly cutting a hole in the kitchen ceiling to prepare for the upcoming skylight installation). We tore off one more wall to expose brick underneath – fortunately, under the many layers of drywall, old wallpaper, plaster and lath, it was in pretty good shape. A big cleanup afterwards, but great progress.
As we sat down to lunch, the appliance delivery people arrived, and fortunately it was THEIR job to bring them to the third floor. They were amazing. One guy carried the dishwasher up the stairs all by himself! Needless to say, we were glad it wasn’t us. So a new fridge, stove and dishwasher now sit in the kitchen ready for the reconstruction.
After finishing up the wall demo, we started cleaning up the brick by scrubbing it with a wire brush. Gregg continued on the plumbing, and got the torch out (along with the fire extinguisher just in case…). At this point we were all really exhausted, so we decided to call it a day. Tomorrow we should be able to get the bathtub installed and start drywalling the bathroom. Back to the rental apartment – you know, the one with running water? Oh, have we not mentioned that the water has been turned off at the condo since last weekend??? We don’t want to get into the details – some of us are "roughing it", while others walk the two blocks to a nearby café to use the facilities. (We’ll let you guess who’s who….) Potstickers and veggie burgers for dinner, with ibuprofen chasers for most of us to avoid the inevitable pain tomorrow. Poor Vic and Gregg headed off to Home Depot YET again for more supplies. They know us by name there now.

Looking back on Thursday and Friday:
Gregg had a bit of a back injury on Thursday, so we tried to slow down a bit. Friday started out with hunting for some plumbing parts, some grocery shopping (at Margaret’s favorite store – Trader Joe’s!), etc. More IKEA assembly by Pog, and generally getting things organized and ready for the big weekend ahead.

To Sum it Up:
This is our 2nd weekend together, and we only have one more weekend to go – we’ve impressed ourselves with how much we accomplished (and thank you, Erin, for appreciating the Sullivan skills above and beyond pie-eating, though that will always be our strength!). But it’s also very nerve-wracking to realize how little time we have overall, and hoping that it all gets done in time. Once the plumbing and framing is completed, we’ll start to see the kitchen and bathroom going back together with tile, cabinets, etc. Check back for more exciting adventures from the crew!

2005-07-21T01:48:00.000-04:00

RUB A DUB DUB

Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday....(still guest blogging by Maddie)

While the extraordinarily heavy cast iron tub sat in the kitchen, Pog tried to find it a home. After being mislead by the Home Depot employees that someone might actually want to PAY us to take it away, we quickly found out that was not the case. No one would take it off our hands, so we tried to figure out a way to saw or drill or smash it into pieces. At one point, the plan involved a strange saw and a fire extinguisher in case sparks set our new condo aflame. (As Maddie hops on a plane to Atlanta for a gift show with much anxiety....) Finally we settled on a sledgehammer and some brute force, which finally happened on Wednesday, and was not nearly as dramatic as it was hyped up to be. But what a relief!

But back to Monday - Pog diligently continued on the IKEA cabinet construction. Progress! And ain't she sexy, too? (Ok, that's the old kitchen in the background, but I love this photo of my sistah.)

That evening was a marathon trip to Home Depot for Pog and Gregg, and Vic got some heavenly Indian food for dinner for all of the tired renovators.

Tuesday - more framing in the bathroom, preparing for an eventual skylight installation. More cabinet assembly - a bit slower progress putting everything back together after it was so quick and easy to tear it all apart!

By Wednesday evening, Maddie arrived back from Atlanta (though it wasn't any less hot and humid in Cambridge!). In the mean time, Vic had been trying to line up a skylight contractor to finally install the skylights - we are planning one in the kitchen and one in the bathroom. However, Cambridge does not make it easy - 'nuff said, just in case the Historical Commission is reading Pog Blog. (Let's just say we might not be following ALL the rules for this project.)

This is our favorite photo of the chaos, as summed up by the dumpster:

And, FINALLY, here are more and more photos of the renovations. We are working on getting them better organized, but pictures are the best way to show all of the fun we've been having. I hope this works....(as Pog is now fully zonked out on the couch, so I am going to have to rename this Maddie Blog, I think)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pogblog/

2005-07-18T00:22:00.000-04:00

Knock Knock.

Who's There?

IKEA.

IKEA Who?

IKEAN'T Figure It Out!!!

(Guest blog by Maddie....)

Pog is a little tired and a lot behind on the blog, so I am filling in with a little catching up (with a little help from Pog, as she dictates from the couch). Let's see, where did we leave off?

Sunday:

Pog and Maddie were the IKEA cabinet assembly team, trying desperately to interpret the cryptic Swedish cartoon instructions. Gregg and Vic were on bathroom duty , which involved trying to get a several hundred pound cast iron tub out of there (no easy feat). They managed to get it out of the bathroom, and rented a heavy duty dolly to try and get it down the stairs. After precariously trying to get it down a few stairs without crushing any innocent humans, everyone agreed to abort the plan and the tub was hauled back up to the kitchen, where it awaited plan B.

Monday was also going to be Gregg's birthday (Happy Birthday!), and who wouldn't want to spend their special day wrestling with a cast iron tub. We got some take out Vietnamese food for dinner, then back to the rental apartment for some early cupcakes, candles and birthday wishes (since Maddie was heading to Atlanta on Monday and didn't want to miss the celebration).

2005-07-17T02:52:00.000-04:00

And the walls came tumbling down...

Today was all about more demo. Hammers and Super Wonder Bars and crow bars and cat's claws (hey, how are my cats doing???) We took down the remaining drywall in the kitchen to expose all the brick.

The bathroom! Just about every wall came down. And the ceiling. As well as the old roof which was stored (discarded?) above the bathroom ceiling. We discovered that the two units below have some creative venting into Maddie and Vic's ceiling and/or wall. There were many more trips to the dumpster. Someone finally took the old kitchen cabinets, what a relief. We are glad someone could use them.

Pictures probably speak better than my words can at this point...

After demolition noise was shut down at 6pm sharp, we were a mess. After returning to Maddie and Vic's apartment to shower, we headed out for burritos (so good) and to a hardware store to pick up a few items. (Has anyone besides Gregg ever seen Tuck tape?) We get to sleep in tomorrow because noisy construction is prohibited on Sundays, although one neighbor said she'd be out after 1:15 pm so we can get some work in.

2005-07-16T02:32:00.000-04:00

Tales of the deconstruction

Friday was demo day. As in demolition! Kitchen cabinets were disassembled and carried to the curb. Drywall was smashed with hammers and crowbars. Bathroom tiles were being chiseled off the floor and walls. The dumpster started to fill with debris.

Maddie is our acting construction manager and placed items for sale or give-away on Craig's List. She updated the postings and fielded the many calls and emails in response to the listings. We quickly learned that people who say they want our stuff don't usually follow through. Maddie is one organized sister.

I spent most of the day at my assigned post in the bathroom chipping off the tile floor. Rewarding work, but note that chards of ceramic tile do lodge in the skin if you wear shorts. Jack will be happy to know safety glasses provided ocular protection for all laborers on the job site.

At 5 pm, I ducked out early to meet Mohammad (a good friend and former co-worker from my Boston biotech days) in Harvard Square for dinner. And several frozen sangrias. Yum. I eventually made it back to the condo, then Gregg and I went back to soak in the local flavor of Harvard Square on a Friday evening. Sorcerers and Harry Potter fans of all ages paraded around in costumes and milled about in front of the Coop in anticipation of the release of the latest installment at midnight.

After treating Gregg to a well-deserved Guinness at Grafton Street, we drove back to Maddie and Vic's apartment to crash... it was a long and rewarding day.

2005-07-15T02:32:00.000-04:00

Preparations begin

I picked up Gregg from the airport in the wee hours of Thursday morning. For those of you worried, he did not pack an axe and after a while, we made it back safely to Cambridge after detours all around East Boston and Cambridge due to late night construction and road closures.

On Thursday morning I helped Gregg install one of Maddie and Vic's new air conditioners, and about 68 boxes containing the kitchen cabinets arrived from Ikea. M&V arrived in the evening with Thai food and met Gregg for the first time. They didn't run away. We ate and got a game plan together for the project. Then we made a trip over to Home Depot for supplies, where Gregg mezmerized and befriended the managerial staff with a very rapid (world record) assembly of a Gorilla ladder.

We returned to the new condo and decided to cut a small hole in the living room closet to check out the brick behind the wall. But it was 11pm and we received a call from the neighbor within minutes. Ixnay on the oisenay. We geared up to start the deconstruction on Friday morning. M&V took the day off from work so we'll all be there to start the deconstruction!

2005-07-14T00:01:00.000-04:00

Plymouth Rocks

I arrived in Cambridge at 8:30pm on Monday. Tuesday morning I drove down to Plymouth to visit Sue, Peter and Jack and to make the L&S delivery. (I do have photos, but due to uh, bandwith issues, I am having a bit of difficulty posting them at the moment. Please check back.)

Upon my arrival, we toured the grounds to view the towering fennel plants and the garden Jack weeded that morning. The four of us piled into the minivan and made our way to Shaw's supermarket to pick out some lunch and dinner items. Sue was kind enough to demonstrate the self-checkout option. After an employee intervened to save us from an "unexpected item in baggage area" we were back home to make lunch. We enjoyed german sausage (or tofu pups), then Jack and I ventured to BJ's, and I gave Sue a haircut. I stayed for dinner, then got on the road to return to Maddie and Vic's apartment for the evening. Thanks, Sue and Peter for a wonderful day of relaxation and good food before the hard labor begins in Cambridge this week!

2005-07-11T02:45:00.000-04:00

Hitting the road

Gearing up to leave for Cambridge on Monday afternoon. Meat products from Liehs and Steigerwald's have been purchased for fans in Plymouth. We all had a great time at Anneke and Chris' groovy shindig on Saturday. Congrats to the happy newlyweds. Sorry, but at the moment I have no photos of their picture perfect event. I will remedy that soon.

I spoke with Maddie today and it sounds like supplies for the renovation are piling up in the new pad. Safety glasses have been purchased. We are ready to smash down some walls. And to update the blog via DSL!

The iPod is charging for the journey. I'm off to Skaneateles in the morning then I'll hit the road. Many thanks to Linda for cat sitting!

Congrats Maddie & Vic!

2005-07-09T01:09:00.000-04:00

Maddie & Vic
Originally uploaded by Pog's Pictures.

Yay, you closed on your new home! Now we can get to work.