What's cooking?

Brownies.  Actually, they were grilling, but I'll get to that in a moment.

We got the green (purple) board up in the kitchen.

 

 

Seams and screws.  I'm tired of seams and screws.  I know it's an important job. 



 

 

 

I never noticed all of the outlets in the kitchen until I looked at this photo.  

 

Brownies on the grill?  Yes!  The grill is just a big oven. 

I refuse to turn on the oven AND the air conditioner at the same time. I don't keep the air on at all times in the summer.  The Cat Ranch stays cool until about 7:30pm and cools off so quick that we don't need it at all times.  I love the windows open, too.  So do the cats.

Humidity is a different subject.

This past weekend was very warm and humid.   It was wonderful.  We sat out on the patio under the tiki torches in the evening.  But the house was baking after being closed up all day.  Then the evening sun hits just at the right angle in the front window.

Dinner was cooking on the grill, why couldn't dessert, too?  How about S'mores brownies?  I placed a layer of graham crackers on the bottom of the pan, poured the prepared brownie mix on top, and added some marshmallows.  Any size marshmallows will do.  We had extra large ones that I cut into pieces.

I turned on the two outer burners, set the timer and let the pan cook.  Delicious and the house was still cool.

I did forget to grease the pan.  L The brownie baked down around graham crackers so they weren't on the bottom, but in the middle. Forks and plates were required because of the gooey factor.

I've seen other recipes where the marshmallows and graham crackers are on top.  That would help for hand held brownies.

Cleaning Help

I was washing windows the other day.  Every time I turned around I had help.

Pepper loves ladders.  The higher the better.

A Door to the Past

The kitchen door feels as if it's always been there.

It was so bright outside, the inside photos came out dark.  I struggled to get it right, but didn't have the time to correct the settings.

 

 

 

Careful of that first step.

Do remember what the kitchen used to look like?

 

 

I should have taken more photos in the beginning.  Rats.

Drama and Windows

The kitchen window installation was relatively drama free.  This was our third window replacement on the first floor, along with one window removal. 
 

 
The new window was wider, but shorter than the old, so a little adjustment was needed.  Including some siding cutting. 

 

 

 
This replacement required Walt Kowalski on the ladder outside and me holding the window and leveling on the inside. 

 

Tada!  New window.  New header. Easy to open.  Easy to clean. Only one smashed finger.  Sorry, Walt Kowalski.  I didn't do it on purpose. 

 

 

 

Here's Walt Kowalski adjusting the ladder.  'You can't see me.  I'm hiding behind the ladder.' Silliness. 

 

 
During the window installation I noticed the neighbor sitting on his back stoop.  He wasn't just sitting there.  He was brooding.  Unmoving.  A sentinel. 
 

 
Then I looked at the bigger picture, not just the man.
 

 
The row of shrubs between his house and his neighbor's house were trimmed.  About 5 feet of shrub were trimmed off the top and were in a pile in the neighbor's yard.  At this point we didn't know if he was the shrub trimmer or the victim, but we had an idea. He keeps his house in excellent condition down to the manicured lawn.  Her yard and house...it could use a little work.   
 
He continued to sit.  Unmoving.
 
A few minutes later, the neighbor arrived home.  She pulled her car up, she saw the shrubs, yelled 'THANKS A%$#!&#' out the window and drove off in a hurry.  We heard that loud and clear.
 
Walt Kowalski said 'The police are going be in the neighborhood tonight.'
 
5 minutes later... 
 
 

 
You can almost see him thinking "Yup, that's a mess. Glad I don't have to clean it up.'
 
With the way the neighbor pulled up, and then drove off instantly, makes me think these two neighbors have had words about these shrubs in the past. Probably in the past few days.  
 
The neighbor never moved off of the back stoop.  The police officers came around to the back of the house to speak with him and with a flourish arm movements, he explained his side of the story, indicated the property line, and indicated the size of the shrubs.
 
He was very animated.  I never heard a single word he said, but I knew what he was saying.  Eventually, the neighbor and police officers went around to the front of the house and left not long later.  I don't know if anybody was cited, but three days later, the pile of shrubs still remain. 

Never a dull moment in the neighborhood.

Weekend Activities

 

Walt Kowalski and I got lots and lots done this weekend.  We also had lots and lots of fun.  Here's the fun.

 

 

This is Wall-e.  Our pepper plant.  To me, it looks like the plant from the movie.

 

 

 

A little pizza, a few drinks, a quick walk down the trail to see a band and some fireworks.

 

It was a lovely evening with great fireworks.   

 

Weekend Forecast

Doory.  Well, partly doory.  Mostly sunny.  This is the back door out the kitchen.

 
Walt Kowalski is such a trend setter.  He doesn't wear his hat sideways or leave the tag on.  He goes for the double.  Goofy he is. 

 
With everything going on lately, sometimes it takes a chocolate wrapper to remind me:

The chocolate was delicious, too.  Dark chocolate with a salted caramel filling.

Moisture Barriers

We brought some of the green board, the moisture barrier board, into the house in the rain sprinkles.  It works.  We didn't get wet. 

 

The nook is looking very...nooky.

 

 

 

More seams and screws. 

Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws. Seams and screws.

 

Convoy

There was a ruckus coming down the street yesterday.  I couldn't see anything, but I could hear it coming.  It wasn't a logging truck (they are still logging) or a fire engine.  It was moving slowly and it was loud.

Finally, the ruckus came into view.

 

 

 
I know a couple of superheroes that would love to watch.  Heck, I'm not a superhero and I wanted to watch.


Just as fast as they appeared, they disappeared. 

They were grating the berm of the road to help the water run off properly.  But in front of our house, they didn't do anything except make a bigger mess.  They didn't grate enough.  Instead of creating a path for the water to run off into the ditch then to the creek below, they created a dam.  They pushed dirt into the ditch. 

*sigh* We'll see what happens today after the big rain this afternoon. 

Handy Woman Services

I've been helping my sister with a few projects around her house.  It's amazing what we can accomplish with a drill and a level. 

It made me think...hey, this is a good idea for a business.  Handy woman services. Poppins Services was the first name that came to mind.  Walt Kowalski's had an idea for a name, too.  

Bitches That Fix Shit. 

It made me laugh.  Still does every time I say it, but I just don't think we'd get a lot of advertising space in the newspaper

Step by Step

No, not New Kids on the Block or Eddie Rabbitt (I'm showing my age).

It was a beautiful evening, but we also wanted to get a few things done.  Covering the cotton candy is top priority. 

 

 

 

 

There is always waste when hanging drywall.  Pieces that have been cut on both sides and odd shaped pieces.  The stairs created triangle pieces.  Fortunately, the cut off triangles from the stairs to the second floor could be used on the stairs to the basement.  We won't tell anybody about a few extra seams on those steps.

Moving Right Along

The breakfast nook is moving right along.

 
Walt Kowalski insulated and was ready for drywall.

 

 
We were tired.  Tired of drywall and just tired. We weren't going to finish the ceiling.

 
Then we looked at each other and said 'Let's just finish it.  We'll be that farther ahead.'  We are glad we did.  We were no more tired at the end of the last sheet.

Tap, tap tap, tap

This little guy is the most persistent bird I have ever seen.  All day long he flies to the window.  Last weekend I noticed him sitting on the window ledge.  It appeared he was looking inside.  'Hey, you got any seed in there?'

Now, with bird hormones raging,  he is determined to get that bird in the window.  All day long.  Tap tap.  Tappity tap.  Click tap. Click click.  Click Klunk.


Fudge is watching.  The bird isn't even bothered that the window is open and there is a cat sitting in the screen. 

 
I'm going to have to hang something at the window so he will stop. 

Here is another view.

 

 

Meanwhile, back in the kitchen, Walt Kowalski is moving right along with insulation in the breakfast nook.

 

 
I'm still working on seams and screws.

 

This was a slightly larger seam. There are certain places where we have struggled with the unevenness of the house. 

 

 

It's cool how the plaster squished between the drywall. 

 



 

Walt Kowalski is tired of drywall.  He's ready to get back to plumbing.