Oh Noes! 'Construction Zone' AGAIN?

Yeah, I guess I had just gotten used to the mess, and all; habituated to the graffiti on the wall, so to speak. Wasn't till I did an impromptu video of Ratchet (my dawg--see video) that it really dawned on me--what a frackin' mess!

Funny how one gets used to such a mess; sawdust and construction materials, tools and cords all over the place--even my stove out away from the wall I was 'working on'...

Geez. I was putting the vid up on YouTube when I became conscious/aware of what an innocent bystander might think of the place <shudder>. Hopefully, I will get to feeling better soon, and get on with the remodeling of the 'West-Wing' (E-Wing turned out sweeet). Shame is a great motivator?

Lol! Am I now a self-imposed victim of 'GC' (aka guilt cleaning)???
I think I am  ;(


Wish me luck...
GT

Allriiigghteeyyy Then...

Woohoo! Seems I have totally slacked on my bloggin, mon. Not like there hasn't been plenty to blog on; just been real busy, and staying away from long sessions cooped up inside &/or staring at my monitor...

Also, I was getting tired of the "under construction zone" permeating the premises (Which now is enveloping the West Wing--though not as intensely.) I attribute my 'blizzard' of activity to losing a bunch of infected teeth, now replaced by partials, and the resultant release from the malaise and fatigue, and chest pains that had previously been plaguing my health. Hope things continue to get better...

Crap I Have Done Since New Year:

I actually remodeled my "East Wing", including a bedroom, bath, and the E-Wing living room back in Jan-Feb. Looks like a whole new place ;)  I plan on moving over there on that side soon, now that its getting HOT! (to save on my A/C, mostly--yes! I am a cheap-ass-bastard)

Added phone and DSL lines to E-wing bdrm/lvg rm, added some network jacks and added/replaced power receptacles/light switches as needed around. Also added a phone out on back deck area. I went totally CFL for all lighting.

Pretty much finished the E-side exterior scraping, priming, and painting (whew!--what a job), though there still remains some 2do around back--including painting some tile red porch & floor out back...

Early spring, I did get around to repairing my 'black hose' watering system in front, and of course, planted chili and tomato plants.

Memorial Day weekend, I finally got to constructing an additional deck space out back, with a gate separating off my now 'no dog zone', for greatly expanded (shady) seating capacity, and a new ramp top (first coat of tile red√) Got almost 250 sf of 

deck out there now...

Though I didn't seem to get much done during much of spring, I did manage to strip off three layers of bullshit rig-a-jig flooring (particle boards over hardwood?--wth?) 

that had bowed and cracked the VA crap tile--in process of leveling and installing 

laminate for my nearly 300 sf kitchen area. Helped Bro Dave do a buncha crap at 

his new diggs too...

Planning on replacing a W-Wing doorway with double french doors, replacing 

flooring in kitchen, and then texture/paint W-Wing lvg room, kitchen, and utility roomand redo the countertop with tile (haven't decided which kind/color) as well as a 

repaint of the kitchen cabinets--much of which can be done out of the heat of 

summer, and without living in a 'construction zone' (since I will be mainly in the 

E-Wing area soon)...

Well, although this entry is unconventionally banal, that's my big "update" for 

my diddlin'--time for a cold one on the back porch! ;) pics to follow, soon, even if 

nobody could care less--Lol!

PS: can't seem to get the word-wrap right on this, so pardon the fuck outta this stupid blog entry... ;(

WORK is a four-letter word

Scientific observations prove that whenever someone mentions something about any type of (or what could be interpreted as) 'work', people in the area undergo certain behavioral changes. The phenomenon usually begins with a grimace, and glazing over of the eyes, often followed by a slight tilting of the head, accompanied by a remarkable camouflage effect, as the person fades from perception (not unlike the effect seen in "Predators" movies?). In group situations, there is some shifting of the eyes towards those who might be seen as being lower down the hill (yes, shit does travel with gravity), or further down the pecking order--This is referred to as the 'shared diffusion of responsibility effect'. Eye movements also tend to go down and to the right, as prospective victims search desperately for any (non-veridical) version of why they simply cannot find the time or spare the effort. It is amazing how busy everyone truly was, given that just seconds before, it was all 'smoke and joke' around the water cooler.  Vocalizations range from a  simple " Well, ummm..." to sighs of desperation.

The respective behavioral manifestations, and outcomes, may be a true measure of intelligence and success; those failing to 'disappear', or whose generated responses are lame or inadequate are often saddled with the task at hand. Avoidance is the desired outcome, and only the most adept can succeed. Unfortunately, it is unclear whether the skill is learned or innate. Often those lacking the gene[s] and/or the experience can be counted on by the masters to fail in serial fashion, thereby assuring very little work actually befalls the best. Regardless, the end result is that only the most foolish and unskilled in the art of dodging 'work' end up doing most of it. It's akin to the Darwinian principles. Everyone knows that those who do the least amount of actual work are the highest-paid (and most respected) individuals, in any given cohort.

Going back to the whole 'nature vs nurture' theme, some individuals appear to have evolved an uncanny ability to disappear, and/or otherwise evade the whole 'work' thing. For example, one of my sons (who shall remain nameless [lol]) showed early, and uncanny, manifestation of the camouflage effect in any given work-related event. However, this was often true in any given situation, so it may not be a byproduct of learning. Nevertheless, saying 'to pull a Patrick' is widely-recognized as a successful work-dodge effect, at least in our familial setting. Good job, son! < I'm so proud of him> On the other hand, a buddy of mine from the military was so good at dodging any kind of duty that he was nicknamed 'Shamost', because, well, he shammed the most (and, coincidentally, it rhymed with his surname). Man, he must've practiced the art for years to be so damn good. I'm not sure the man ever did anything besides sham out--(yeah, leaving the rest of 'us' to do the w-o-r-k...). He had all the moves, man...

Whether the Weather is Good or Not

Daym! All day without the need for A/C--again. Seems I no longer have an excuse to get out there (yes, outside the house) and DO something. For so long now, I have had a horribly hot and humid excuse to stay in and slack off. You see, whether the weather is good or not can depend upon your own motivations (or lack thereof).

There's a heap 'o stuff to do out there, for sure. My nemesis is the remainder of the scraping and painting that never got finished the other day (OK, maybe a couple years back). Of course, its the worst part. A lot of the remaining siding has the stubborn greasy-blackened 'Podunk residue' on top of peeling paint, so it either needs a good  washing or a wash and a sweeping before it can be scraped and primed. What a pain. What is it that they are putting in the air around here? Maybe it will rain...

Anyways, everyone knows that the 'weather' in the 'great indoors' is nearly always great (hence, the saying), so one can never blame not doing shit on the temperature or humidity there (dammit). Its not that I don't have shit to do indoors, too, but it seems easier to dodge when strapped to a LazyBoy, somehow. Plenty 'o work to do in the kitchen, bath, and yes, painting inside, too. Ugh. Come to think of it, its a bit nippy in here; if the temp goes down enough tonight, I can write off all paint-related crap till midday, and by then, I'll likely be way too beat to do any real work. [Yes, work is indeed a four-letter-word!] On second thought, maybe I'll fix on that computer thats been staring at me from the floor for a week--get something done that produces some satisfaction, and the guilt-painting valence will likely rapidly diminish...OOooh, yeah, that's the ticket!