Sunday Mornin', Comin' Down

I slept lousy and so, when I got up for a bathroom break at 4:45 AM, I decided to post all the pictures and the Blog entry. I couldn’t fall back asleep (I guess yesterday was just too exciting, lol). So I refilled my pill box, made some oatmeal and coffee and started my Sunday.

I did stay in bed watching the morning news. Looks like there’s just a slight chance of rain so, sometime this morning, I should water all the container plants. But, before worrying about that, I stripped the bed and threw the bedding in the washer. I shaved, still watching the news, but will have to wait to shower until the washer stops.

So, I made another cup of coffee and switched to a DIY show for today’s inspiration. But, I don’t want you to think I was just goofing off. I was brushing Caley (Scruffy split when he first saw the cat brush).

Jake called to see just how screwed up I was from yesterday. I told him my back didn’t hurt, but I do have a wicked looking bruise on my left knee. I forgot to mention both my shoulders hurt, but I think that was from prying up the molding, not replacing tile. He offered to check out that memory card for my camera if I sent him the make and model. He said I could probably get it at CVS!

I made the bed and then took my shower. The new shower head isn’t bad at all. The only problem was I forgot to open the downstairs window a little, so I fogged the mirror (It’s been like six months since I used that shower, so little things like forgetting the window opening didn’t surprise me).

But, then it was time to get back to the kitchen. My first item today is to install the new transition strips. I was worried all night I might walk out to the kitchen to get a glass of water or something and kick up a tile or, worse, break one.

So, I took my measurements and got my wooden miter box (for a straight cut) and my hacksaw. I got the hallway one installed first. Then I remembered the furnace filters… Damn!

I had to get gas in the car anyway, so I went to CVS and bought that memory card for my camera that Jake recommended. Then I went to Home Depot and bought some furnace filters (I’m three days late replacing them) and the quarter round molding I need to replace the ones I tore off the base cabinets.

I also bought two hot dogs on my way out and ate them in the parking lot for my lunch. I was too busy checking out the young lady that sold them to me to remember to grab some napkins. I put my usual yellow mustard and onions on top so I had to be extra careful eating them or risk washing my pants or, worse yet, my car seat or crip brace. But, I endeavored to preserver and did.

When I got home, I watered all the container plants (while I still had long pants on) and took two full pails of water out to the new peonies. I also filled the bird bath and the bird feeder. It was REALLY windy out there so, of course, there was new trash in the back. But, I picked it up on both my return trips from watering the peonies.

BTW, I don’t know if its legal, but I have been trying to figure out how to add like 6-feet of chicken wire (or something like that) to the top of that wall. Not that it would look attractive (it would probably look like Alcatraz or some of the businesses in Detroit), its just I figure the wind would go through, but not the trash. Then the trash would become “their” problem (like it should be) and not “mine” (like the Township says it is).

Back inside, I changed back into my indoor work clothes (shorts, tee shirt and brace) and got all my preventative maintenance done. I replaced the furnace/air conditioner filters (that’s necessary every three months) and then vacuumed the charcoal filter on the air purifier (a monthly chore).

Finally, I got back to the tile project! I put in the transition from the kitchen to the living room, but there were some problems. There was a shim nailed to the floor that I didn’t notice before (maybe the old transition was wider) but my new one wouldn’t fit flat to the wood floor. So, I had to chisel it out (after I sharpened my chisel) and pull out the one nail that was in the way.

Now that I had the first three rows of tile in, there was a new problem. The fourth row did not touch the toe kick of the cabinet on the fridge side. Since these cabinets were obviously hand-built on site in the 1950’s, they are probably square to the wall (which may or may not be “square,” either) but not necessarily to themselves. So the 11 3/4 inch wide filler tiles I needed (and there were only four of them) ranged from 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch deep, and each had to be hand-fitted and trimmed again and again.

That same problem was repeated when I got to the end of each row (now under the toe kick of the sink cabinet). In fact, the last one I put in at 5:00 PM measured out at 2 inches at the north end and 2 1/2 inches at the south end! And the damn thing fit!!!

Another problem I encountered was that, because these little pieces were not necessarily on top the old “sticky with the last self-stick tile glue" linoleum, but in places where there used to be quarter-round molding and no glue, they weren’t sticking well, if at all. At first, I tried to tap them down using a 1 x 6 and a hammer but since it all was happening under the toe kick, I couldn’t get enough force to make this approach effective.

But then I thought of something brilliant (well, in times of desperation anything that works seems brilliant) and I heated each fill-in piece up with the heat gun. That melted the glue a little and they began to stick when I pressed on them.

I had told Jake that, because I had less than five hours of sleep last night, I fully intended on taking a nice nap today. Obviously, that didn’t happen, But, when I finally got the second row in for today done, I said to hell with it, It took a while to clean up the tools, get the glue off my hands and arms with mineral spirits, put the two lawn bags (filled with old tile and “stuff”) in my trunk (they will go in the Facilities dumpster on Monday as Redford won’t pick up renovation trash refuse), etc., etc., etc.

But, by 6:30 PM, everything was done and I had found something in the freezer to microwave and eat for dinner (silly me, on Friday I planned on making “something” (I didn’t care what) special that I could eat Uncle Ben’s Wild Rice as a side dish with it). Two days later, it was late and I was just trying to make something quick so I didn’t get sick when I took my pills.

But, then I said to hell with it and made some Uncle Ben’s wild rice! I didn’t have a perfect entrée to go with it, (Marie Callender’s Fettuccini with Chicken and Broccoli – tasted good) but I didn’t care. I took off my brace, sprayed the sweaty thing with Fabreeze and took the rest of the night off.