RIP

Omar Sharif, actor, bridge expert. Had one of the best entrances in cinema, riding up to Lawrence from far away. He hated camels.

Patrick MacNee, actor, esp. in The Avengers with Diana Rigg

Shed Walls Before & After

Below are some pictures of the interior walls of the shed. Some show the studs with insulation in place. Others show the paneling below and red felt above. There will be trim work on the seams -- yet to come. I bought a fridge yesterday, a 9 cu ft Igloo, that will fit next to the big cabinet.

In Memoriam John J. Robinson

This wonderful man, my surrogate father, died today. I cannot begin to tell you what a hole he will leave in my life. I've known him for fifty years and he was always a great support to me. I loved him and will miss him forever.

He and his wife Hazel had a great love story.  They'd been married for over 50 years. Except when he was in the hospital once, they'd never slept apart. They spoke to each other of their love often. The last thing she said to him was "I love you."

With John's  support, Hazel founded the Montford Park Players in Asheville, now the longest running Shakespeare in the Park series in the country.

John didn't talk much about his past, though he would tell a little if you seemed really interested. He was in the Merchant Marine during WW II and served along the Alaska coast. Later, he became senior account at Beacon Blanket in Swannanoa, from which he retired several years ago. He was 92 at death.

He was a master card-player. Years ago, the group of us who hung out at their house played Hearts (cutthroat), but more recently (i.e. the last 20 years) the house game was Crazy Rummy. Saturday nights found a floating group of us gathering to play for a few hours. Last Saturday (7/4), Joe Young and I were there and played a game with John -- and he won.

We're considering keeping the weekly ritual going in his honor.

I asked how he was going and he said "slow." His son Ken had just been home for two weeks, which he told me he'd really enjoyed. Much family business was discussed and settled, and I think he was ready to let go.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Bon voyage, beloved person.

New flooring in Shed

Just got finished today. There's still some trim work to do, and we'll be putting in insulation and beadboard paneling with 1/4 round at the base. Then I'm having a contractor come in and do closed-cell foam on the ceiling and loft ends. Here's two pics of the new flooring -- stick-down vinyl plank. I think it looks pretty good.

Pretty nice looking armoire, too. I think it's actually an entertainment center as it doesn't having a rod for hanging clothes, but I'll make it work.

RIP

Sir Christopher Lee, actor in more movies than I can recount (or remember), but most especially in Dracula

Ron Moody, actor, most especially as Fagin in "Oliver"

Power in Shed

I have power! That is, the shed has acquired its meter and receptacles and it has power. And the City has done its last inspection. Yay!

Now all I need to do is get some kind of flooring in the shed and I'll be ready to move all my stuff in. So sometime around my birthday in late July, I should be able to sit down, look around, and feel at home.

Then I'll start advertising the RV, even though it's late in the season. Would have been nice for this process to go faster so I could have sold it in March or April. Ah well. I'm willing to negotiate on its price but I do have a bottom line, so it may be next spring before it gets sold.

At the moment, the mobile home is getting new flooring in both bedrooms and the living room, using stick-down vinyl. Much nicer than the nasty carpet which was stained here and there and which the former tenant's dog had scratched up in the small bedrom, down to the OSB subfloor. My new tenants move in next Thursday.

And I've acquired an all-around maintenance guy. His next job is to wash the outside of the mobile home, which is going green what with all the rain and humidity and explosive growth everywhere.

All this stuff going on at once is exhausting but there is an end in sight.

RIP etc

Tanith Lee, writer
---so sad. She was such a good writer, mostly fantasy but some dark fantasy, too. She was a unique voice. Check out her stuff; you'll find something to like. My favorite is "Sabella."

Another sad note is that Omar Sharif has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.