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Yesteryear

Thursday, June 19, 2008

June 19, 2008

           Soon I’ll have my Florida approved hurricane door. It is not as heavy as it looks, hell I carried it in here myself. As I fitted it into place, I could not help but admire the workmanship [that used to be] required when each door was built by hand. This one has a number of safety and security features. The door must be mounted with the hinges outside. A burglar cannot pull this door out of the jamb by removing the hinge pins. This photo before and after, so you’ll get the right idea about the amount of work involved.
           Fred’s electric staple gun is light duty. It won’t bury even a 3/8” staple. It will work for this project. I’ve also notice the Ryobi battery will drain away if left standing long enough, as in overnight. Eric was over for a ‘boo and again says he is impressed by the progress.
           Later, it took me six hours to install the door and I still had to adjust the weather stripping because I could not get it to rest square. It still needs a drip cap, a deadbolt and the casings, but it is fully functional for now. This means a quantum leap in the work by this weekend and maybe some time off. Mila came in and really likes the new door; it changes the character of the place. Her being here, as she understands, is Wallace’s decision, not mine. All I’m doing is taking an uninhabitable Florida room and making it into a third bedroom.
           Rain storms kept the temperature down all day. I’ve rarely done this type of labor in such heat, even in Venezuela. How come I haven’t lost any weight? I required the regulation two quarts of liquid to keep going. As mentioned, the previous framer did a great job. The new floor is exactly eight feet long and four feet wide, adding 32 square feet but turning it into a decent bedroom, just shy of 8x12. Moving one curtain would make it 8x23 if needed. [Author's note: where these measurements do not match other quotations, it is because the liveable space is less due to a new closet.]
           There will still be a congested area near the entrance, but very little can be done about that other than a major rebuild of the structure. This way, the workshop area is just a yard smaller and the bedroom will be an excellent library or TV room or something if things get prosperous.
           Too tired to go jam with Johnny D at Walsh’s tonight, I watched an old movie called “Trespass”, an interesting variation on the lost treasure theme. I noticed it was produced by one of the writers. The plot is two firefighters find a map to gold stolen fifty years earlier and hidden in an abandoned factory. They accidentally walk into the middle of a gang slaying and can’t leave with the gold. Low budget but very well made and worth a look. I wonder how I would do writing mysteries. I have the patience and could make things as complicated as you’d like.
           The Hippie called, he has a paying gig tomorrow which pre-empts the plan for him to stand in a Jimbo’s. He is playing there in a week, a show that is also a party for him and his band made that odd comment I hear from time to time that Jimbo’s is a “dangerous”. When so many people say the same thing, there has to be something to it. Maybe in a former era it was a crusher bar. Right now it is mostly middle-aged divorced blonde women and underemployed men. There have been no incidents in the 13 months I’ve played there. Maybe there was another club called Jimbo’s.