Folly Beach

A few weeks ago we took a week long vacation to Folly Beach, SC. I've been too lazy/busy to post about it...so, here we go.
We had to go to a wedding at the beginning of our trip, but the rest of the time was all surfing (I still suck) and seafood (I can still eat shrimp like no body's business). I started to enjoy, and now I kind of miss, the taste of the saltwater and how it burned my eyes...I don't know...makes me feel alive.

This is the view north east off the balcony of the condo we rented for the week. Stay off the dunes!!
My favorite subject in front of a pineapple fountain in Charleston...they are nuts about pineapples down there...nuts I tell ya!!

Giant agave plant. I'm sure this used to look quite spectacular before the house it decorated was turned to rubble. I thought about making my own tequila...but, then I just kept on living my life.

This was my favorite beach house. Modest, simple, teal, beach house.

Fishing boats on the salt marsh. That green one is for sale if anyone is interested in selling everything, moving to folly beach, and becoming fishermen. Seriously, let's go right now.

Buff

Last week's weather was nice...really nice. I spent every day after work preparing the boat for spring riding. Job #1 was buffing away chalky oxidation to reveal the lustre of this classic beauty. I like the way it turned out.

Before

After

Ode to the Microwave

Invented by accident in 1946 by self taught engineer Dr. Percy Spencer of the Raytheon Corporation, the "RadarRange" was initially 6 feet tall, 750lbs, and cost around $5000. The first counter top model arrived in 1965 at a cost of under $500. By 1975, sales of microwave ovens surpassed that of gas ranges and shortly became more common than household dishwashers. 10 years later, radarrange technology arrived at the Augustyn household and lunchtime would never be the same. The 1985 GE space maker model you see below is the first microwave my parents ever bought and it has followed me everywhere I have lived since. 25 years of outstanding service and still works as well as it did when new. Bravo. Retired as a result of my recent kitchen renovation, this little unit arrived at it's final resting place in hillman last weekend. As a reward for 25 years of service, it shall serve the rest of it's days heating sandwiches and popcorn for generations to come.

Melted ham and cheese
Made well for twenty five years
Retire up north

Kitchen (#8)

Basically done. There are a few little things to do still, but kitchen blogging will end with #8. Caulked all the non-grouted tile joints, outlet covers, shelves, trim, yadda, yadda, yadda. I'm taking a break now.

Bingo.
Bingo.

Bingo.

Kitchen (#7)

Read like Astronaut Jones.

Right.

What??

Word.

Dig.

Kitchen (#6)

Just when you think you're almost done, you realize the floor had been cut out around the old cabinets and there are two unsightly holes where sub floor would be visible. Nice. Fortunately the laminate floor is really easy to take up and put back down...and I had an extra box of planks in the garage. Endeavor to persevere.

Floor Up and everything moved. Let the expletives fly.

An hour later everything was back together and the doors were on the cabinets and the microwave was installed. See, I told you laminate floor is really easy to take up and put back down.

Microwave. Boo-Ya!!

Refrigerator side with doors installed.

Kitchen (#5)

Saturday's progress. Old sink base cabinets and dishwasher out, new wall cabinets installed. Albot happened to be in town and came over later in the evening to help me celebrate the Chinese new year. Sunday's progress was excruciatingly slow...

Old Kitchen

FYI, this is what the kitchen used to look like 2 years ago when we moved in.

Kitchen (2,3 & 4)

OK. Made a lot of good progress since the last post. I ran wire for fancy kitchen gizmos, ordered hardware, and started the cabinet install (and in between, ran 10 Ga wire from the basement to the garage for a 220V welder plug...but, I digress...). Running the wire for the under cabinet lights and setting the cabinets in place have been the most arduous tasks to date. I've been following a steady regiment of beer, whiskey, beer, sleep to keep my mind limber.

Wired. I know it doesn't look impressive. Trust me, it is.

Install started. This is from Thursday night. I got the big pantry cabinet set and the over fridge cabinet. I had to compromise a bit on plumb/level since my kitchen walls are neither plumb nor level...discuss...

Mess. The dining room is a mess...that's about all I have to say about that.

Saturday. About halfway done. So far, so good.

Kitchen (1 of Many)

The final room to be remodeled. If you've been to our house, you know the kitchen leaves a few things to be desired (cabinet space, lighting, style...I digress...). For the almost two years we've lived here, we have been planning how to improve. Two weeks ago we started what can only be an exhausting and frustrating challenge. Hopefully the results will be worth the effort.

The starting point. It's not too terrible, but the photo doesn't show all the details that drive me crazy.

Today. Old cabinets are down and now in my garage. Any cracks or holes in the walls have been repaired. The walls have been painted to match the living room (family room??)...every wall and ceiling in the house has now been repainted. Today I'll start running wire for the under cabinet lights and outlets for the microwave and radio...good times.

January Snowboarding

We took a trip up to Hillman last weekend for some snowboarding and relaxation. The weather was warm (relatively speaking) and sunny, the lake was frozen (maybe the beer too), and the Jaque's breakfast was a gastronomic delight as per usual. There are no photos of said snowboarding, so you'll have to take my word for the fact that I shredded my face off and Emily got much better. Below are some non-snowboarding photos.

Carnivorous squirrel. Who knew?? A hawk nailed his noggin on our clean windows and dropped dead on the deck. In the mornings this black squirrel would be slurping the fleshy bits off the hawk's feathers. Again, who knew??
Foam dome. All the beer in the basement fridge would foam over like this when opened (much to my surprise the first couple times). I'm guessing the beer molecules got stir crazy from being cooped up too long and sprang forth at the first sign of daylight. I think this beer needs to drink a beer...
Sunday I took a walk around the lake, on the lake. This is one of my favorite places on the lake. It just has a really good vibe too it and was lit up beautifully that day. You can see that a lot of the snow has melted because of the warm temps, but the ice on the lake was still plenty thick.
My favorite subject adding a splash of color to an otherwise colorless landscape...something she truly excels at.

Christmas Vacation in SC

We took a 10 day holiday road trip down south to visit family, rock & roll all night, and party every day (part of every day??). Here are some highlights of the trip.

Nothing says Christmas vacation like a moose mug full of whiskey. One of my favorite gifts this year courtesy of brotha' Joe.

Moose mug full of whiskey leads to moose mug on head. Not the wave of the future, but good nonetheless.
My favorite subject with her fancy new hat. Ooooohhhh, look how dark and mysterious she looks...

We got to spend a lot of quality time with our darling niece, Riley...Awwww...isn't she soooo cute...
New year's eve party at a hotel in Greenville. Open bar and breakfast buffet at 1 A.M. I wore my tuxedo T-shirt because I wanted to be formal, but I was definitely there to party...so...you know.
FYI the beard is long gone.

Happy new year everybody.

Old Photos

A Couple old photos to warm you up on a cold late fall (yes, not winter quite yet) day.

Smokey (Mookie) : This guy loved Long Lake.

Me contemplating my future.

Christmas Cookies

We (Emily mostly) spent some time this afternoon baking and decorating sugar cookies. There were a few casualties (headless snowmen, one armed Santas, etc.) that ended up in my stomach...mmmm, delicious casualties...

Blinds Installed

If it weren't for blinds, it would be curtains for us all.
- Larry Duane Moran

It's Yellow

It's been almost a month from the last post to this one and I have been working on this room almost every day.
I made a huge dusty mess that blanketed most of the house in a fine white powder, vacuum, repeat, primer.
Next, I spent about 12 hours trimming by hand along the ceiling and doors and windows. It is excruciatingly tedious but the results are worth it. I'm really only trying to impress my mom and sister, who inspire me to such masochistic endeavors. I hope you guys like it.
3 coats of paint, new out lets, new light, new outlet covers, new blinds, new (and repainted trim), filling in nail holes, blah, blah, blah. Still not completely done...but almost.

This is me trying to figure out what to do with the blinds. One of three is too long so I have to take it back to get 1/8" trimmed off.

Mostly done. The yellow looks good, no??

Square light and improved view. It looks better in person so you'll all have to come and check it out sometime.

Turkey Time

We traveled to Marysville last weekend for good ol' Thanksgiving. A few days eating a lot with the family and remembering how lucky we all are. I ate a ton, played with my nephew, dominated on rock band and laughed incredibly hard at my uncles tales of Bub's Daddy gum and fumbled chicken wings.

The spread...maybe 25% of it...there isn't a lens wide enough to capture the entire tempting schmere. Classic American cooking. I made the mashed potatoes and Emily made the mac & chee. Mom made most of everything else...and a lot more...well played!!

My plate. I try to eat a bit of everything. It takes me about and hour and I am in pain afterwards. As I lay on my left side and digest I think about how lucky I am to be able to be so full.

Walking Stick

Northern Walking Stick to be more precise. Diapheromera fermorata. Found on my back deck last weekend sitting perfectly still...which is pretty much this guy's MO. If attacked they can emit a foul smelling odor, if they lose a leg they can grow it back, and they are the only species of stick insect that are legal to sell, buy, and keep in the United States. Pretty sweet.

Dining Room Work in Progress

I've started work on the second to last room remodel. This is the first of two major projects for this winter. The process generally goes like this : I make a really big mess and put more holes in the wall, clean up the mess and fill in the holes, make a bigger dusty mess, clean up that mess, and then paint. This is definitely the worst part of owning a house.

This is in between the first mess and the dusty mess...the white spots will become the dusty mess.

The shop vac cleans up the mess, the radio keeps me sane, the ladder beguiles me to unsafe heights, the light lets me work late, and the view reminds me why I bought this money pit.

The view out our bedroom window this morning.