Tile Man's Sunday!

As I said, I woke up late on Sunday. But I woke up to a wonderful sound: the sound of rain! Yes, it was raining and yes, it had rained enough that there were puddles in the road. It stopped before noon, so I checked the gauge and it had over 1/4 inch of rain in it. No watering needed this morning!

I had some soft boiled eggs for breakfast and then I ripped up the leftover buns and stale bread for the birds and squirrels. I started a load of laundry (I still haven't done the shirts I bought, though).

I had to grout today and, having never done it, I was a little nervous. So, I used my daughter Melissa's trick and decided that it was probably more important to call Luanne and see how she was doing. They came through the hurricane okay, about 5 inches of rain and wind but no big tree limbs down or anything.

Finally, I got the grout and mixed in the liquid (I didn't use water because now they have a liquid that makes the grout resist mold and mildew. Since I'm sealing it anyway, I'm not sure how important this is, but better safe than sorry.

You have to mix this by hand because a drill-powered paddle would add unwanted air bubbles, so I used a leftover piece of molding. And, you have to mix it 5-10 minutes! So, I sat in a chair in the kitchen and mixed it up.

At first, it was very wet and drippy. I started on the wall behind the stove, figuring I'd make my mistakes (and hopefully learn from them) somewhere you couldn't see. I think more fell on the floor than got in the grooves and I wondered, "How in the hell is this gonna stick to the tiles on the edge of the counter?" I decided to do them last.

It said to use the edge of the rubber float to dig the grout out of the bucket, then put it on. You wait a bit then run the float over it at an angle to the grout line. Next you wait 15-30 minutes while that dries, and then use a sponge and several changes of water, wipe the grout off the tile faces.

I worked in sections on the back splash, then the counter top. I found getting the grout out of the bucket was easier using a drywall taping knife, so I did. And, the grout in the bucket got firmer and firmer as time passed, so by the time it came to do the front of the counter, it was pretty easy (and no big dripping mess.)

I finished up just after 6:30 PM. I took a little time to admire my work (it looks damn good!) I cleaned up the mess on the floor as best I could (I'll wash it Monday night, because I am pretty tired right now). I put my clothes in the washer and myself in the shower.

I warmed up the last two hamburger buns and ate them with steak sauce and some of the pumpernickel bread. I watched my Sunday night shows, but started falling asleep around 10:00. So, I let the last one tape, turned everything off and went to bed.