The Slab

Prep for the slab is done (as is the slab but no pic yet). My concrete guy, Lance Graves (is that a cool name or what), brought in a backhoe and scraped the space clean of dirt to a depth of 8 inches, then poured gravel 4 inches deep, and put up the forms for pouring the slab itself. Here's a pic:

This is looking across the one-lane street; the narrow portion is where I park my car. Oops, I see the forms aren't up yet. Well, you get the idea. I'll try to get a pic of the slab itself and put it up -- Lance did a broom finish for traction (one foot will be open as a step) and a 3/4 inch slope from front to back for runoff (left to right in pic); he also put a bullnose edge on the end near parking for smoothness.

I ordered the shed/studio Monday. It's made of pressure-treated wood and will have a red metal gambrel roof with a double barn door on one side (the left in the pic above). I'll only use one side (3ft wide) which will gain me some wall space on the inside. It's under construction right now and will be delivered in about four weeks. Then comes electrical work, which will have to be inspected, and that should be the last I have to deal with the City (yay!).

RIP so sad

Leonard Nimoy, Mr. Spock: a great man who was, yes, the heart of Star Trek but was also a humanitarian with a great sense of humor. The ST movie he directed (with whales) is the one that best stands the test of time. So sad that he's left us.

Also:
Clark Terry, trumpeter
Louis Jourdan, actor
Lesley Gore, singer

General update

I've contracted with a guy to pour a slab for my building to rest on. Now I have to file an amended permit. And, of course, he has to wait for the snow etc to quit and the ground to dry out and the low temps to come up some before he can pour. Then there'll be the electric and the insulating. So it looks like it may be May or so before I can start using the shed.

That means I can't sell the RV at the proper time (March-April) to catch buyers who want to start out in Spring. Ah well.

I'm so looking forward to being able to stretch my arms above my head.

I'm getting a 14x20 side-loft barn style building. Now, that 14ft is eave to eave (6" ea) so it's really 13x20 with 2x4s, so now it's really really 12'4" x 19'4" inside, which is still considerably bigger than the 8x12 I've been living in for seven years.

The peaked-roof shed has a loft on each end, about 6'2" from the floor, so easy to walk under, and about 6ft long, so about 7ft of open space in the middle. I plan to sleep in one loft and use the other for storage. Under one loft will be my office / working area, and under the other will be a cook/eat area. I'm not having a "kitchen," just a Breville Smart Oven, a hotplate, and an elec. kettle. There'll be a sink with a drain to outside (it's just gray water and not much of it). Across the long wall from the door will be shelving/closet/etc, probably closed off with a curtain run on a cable w/turnbuckle. Am thinking about closing the walls off with beadboard paneling

These are the plans so far. We'll see how long they stand up to reality.

New Year

Wishing everyone a wonderful new year.

I came down to Davidson to visit an old friend, Diana B, whom I haven't seen face to face in over three years. It's been fun just to sit and chat and catch up.

Going to head home later today.

New Year's resolution: stop procrastinating and get the studio project done!

Holiday wishes

Here's hoping all is well with all of you. Nothing new with me but nothing bad, either. I'm looking forward to next year and getting my studio set up. See you then.

Update & RIP

Not much is going on. I'm still tussling with the shed company, trying to get the permit app ready, planning on doing the site drawing, etc etc. My brother has run into some legal problems with his boat title, just as he was ready to leave (no, really). Have been plagued with allergies for the last week but all seems to be getting better now (mucho rain helped).

Am going to try to find a haircutter who can do something interesting with my hair.

Geoffrey Holder has died. He was a great dancer & choreographer and also did some acting (such as the villain in the James Bond film "Live and Let Die"). Most people (of a certain age) will remember the Dr. Pepper commercials with the large (6'6") black man in a tropical suit with a sonorous voice and laugh. That was the Holder. Sad

DragonCon last & Personal RIP

Sunday evening, after Quinn's last panel, Amy and I and Quinn met in a large, noisy bar in the Hyatt. I got a plate of charcuterie and some kind of weird martini-like drink (it was green). We had a nice chat for an hour or so and then wheeled Quinn up to her room and said goodbye. I then went on home and Amy went back to panels and whatnot.

Personal apology to Stephanie Moss, whose last name I got wrong in the previous post. So much for my memory.

We left about 1pm on Monday in order not to have to deal with Labor Day traffic. At some point, about an hour from Atlanta, we saw bumper to bumper stalled traffic heading for Atlanta, and congratulated ourselves for going the other way. Stopped at Cupboard Cafe in Dalton GA for lunch -- got the Crabcakes plate with two veges and got a vege plate with four types, so six veges all together, and we shared everything down the middle. Got home about 4:30 or 5:30 ish -- was still light out.

Many thanks to Sharron and Luke for being excellent hosts.

Very sad news: Phyllis Palm died on July 10. She and I met in 2008 at the Madison KOA where we were both workampers. We hit it off immediately and enjoyed each other's company all summer. We stayed in touch and phoned each other about once a month or so. Last fall, when Amy and I took my RV on a trip to NY and PA, we stopped by her house for a few days. I'm so glad we did. She always sent cards for my birthday and xmas etc. so when I didn't get a bday card I began to get concerned. I called and her phones were disconnected, so I began emailing the only addresses I had for her (relatives, she didn't do email herself) but got no response. Yesterday, I googled her name and found her obituary.

Damn. A good one gone.