March 7, 2008
Been on the road all week, going to be gone all next week too. Won't be long before we'll be finished with the house and going fishing!
No pictures this week; we'll have some Cooper shots for the next post. However, for your reading entertainment, listed below is a good tax analogy picked up from Jay's political website:

Bar Stool Economics
I’ve heard the following story told many different ways (dinner at a restaurant, etc.), but I thought I would share the latest incarnate with you, for those that have never had the eye-opening experience this story many give you.Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:
The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing.
The fifth would pay $1.
The sixth would pay $3.
The seventh would pay $7.
The eighth would pay $12.
The ninth would pay $18.
The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.
So, that’s what they decided to do. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve.
‘Since you are all such good customers, he said, ‘I’m going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks for the ten now cost just $80.
The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected. They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers?
How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his ‘fair share?’ They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody’s share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man’s bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.
And so now:
The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings)
The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33%savings)
The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28%savings)
The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings)
The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings)
The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings)
Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings.
‘I only got a dollar out of the $20,’declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,’ but he got $10!’
‘Yeah, that’s right,’ exclaimed the fifth man. ‘I only saved a dollar, too. It’s unfair that he got ten times more than I!’
‘That’s true!!’ shouted the seventh man. ‘Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!’
‘Wait a minute,’ yelled the first four men in unison. ‘We didn’t get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!’
The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up.
The next night the tenth man didn’t show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn’t have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill!
And that, boys and girls, journalists, college professors, fellow workers is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction.
Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.
David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics, University of Georgia

Well said son, but don't hold your breath waiting for a major change in the tax code. Sorry,that's how Congress gets its power
John

OK! More house pictures:
And there are a lot of shots to show!
There's a new coat of paint on the outside of the house; I shutter to think of what is missing here..............
And a new coat on the backside, and a new privacy fence for the HVAC outdoor section

The sheetrock was installed and now these mudders are everywhere, need them on the basketball team

New view from the kitchen showing how open the house will now look From the office looking straight back, the living room furniture is covered to help with the dust

And another shot from the kitchen

By the way, none of those wine bottles have been opened since Ash Wednesday, and we're ready! That's it from here, I'm in Austin TX next week and New England the week after that, try to behave yourselves.

Shots from the driver's window at 60 MPH

Went up to NY and NJ this week and decided to take a few scenery shots as I drove along down the highway. You've seen enough house shots anyway; and besides there weren't any dramatic changes in the house this week.

Shot number one: The ski slope at USMA West Point. I got finished working Wednesday afternoon and went by West Point on my way South. Penelope (my British guide who lives inside the GPS) guided me right to two fort posts; they wouldn't let me in. Finally got over to the visitor's center just as they closed up; the museum had been closed for an hour already. Nice place for the cadets to play

Shot number two: I decided to drive down Highway 13 instead of I-95 around DC. I saw this fan's schizophrenic tribute to the Earnhardt family. One half of the Chevette, yes I said Chevette is painted as a number 3, the other half as a number 8. Guess the poor fellow did himself in when Junior decided to drive the number 88.................

OK, this shot was through the passenger window, boy you should have seen those kids at the bus stop scatter! Anyway, in this one you can see the red and black.

And some ships waiting to get into Hampton Roads, while driving across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel. The VA Highway Patrolman recommends that I keep my hands on the wheel while driving across the Bay; I told him I read their driver's manual and didn't see anything about NOT taking pictures while you drive....perhaps I missed a page? Those guys have no sense of humor.

Have a great weekend and week.

February 16, 2008

I've been in Maryland and NJ all week; came home and found the fold-down ladder for the attic on the garage floor (along with a lot of nails and what-not); seems as though the HVAC guys have been on the job. The federally mandated 13 SEER equipment is not some type of new technology magic, only larger; therefore to place the indoor section in the attic they had to remove the stairs.
This shot shows the snake being used for the supply air into the sunroom. We'll have 2 tons with three supply vents in the sunroom, one supply and one return in the eating area.
And hooray! The correct door is now installed. See how much better it is to have the door opening from the middle to the right? We can't believe how much difference it makes.
That's it from the Crystal Coast for this week; off to upstate NY Monday morning. Try to act like somebody!

Week of February 8th, 2008

I was in town this week, for the last time in quite a while it seems. I got to see a lot of work on the new addition. The first shot shows where the semi-column used to be; it had to be ripped out so the arch leading from the kitchen into the new casual dining room would be lined up properly. The electricans were on the job securing loose wires, they sure jump when you use the flash on your camera! Wonder why..................................
This is an interesting shot, sorry that it is so dark, I'm not much of a photographer; many of you know me, probably doesn't come as much of a surprise to hear that; I'm not exactly a bag of undiscovered talent............................anyway I digress. Seems as though the Project Managing Superisor (Terri) picked up an error when the carpenters installed the arch from the kitchen. It was off-center; supposed to line up with an exterior window, not even close. She alerted the general and it was fixed the next day; i.e.; they "moved" the hole over about a foot and a half. This temporary wall was installed in the kitchen while they relocated the support beam; seemed as though they wanted to make sure that part of the house didn't collapse. We were glad they thought of this!The shot below is the entrance from the living room, look hard and you can see the top of the arch

This is the new, and relocated arch leaving the kitchen.

From the new room looking back into the old house; good example of the mess we're dealing with, and will be dealing with for the next couple of months.

Dim shot of the pitched ceiling, have 6 spotlights going up; should be a lot of fun with Project Managing Supervisor Terri on my shoulders changing those lightbulbs.

And this shot below gives you a small example of what we will be inhaling for the next couple of months. With sheetrocking and new wood floor installation and sanding yet to come, it should be
.......ACHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! a lot of fun.

Heather and Kevin are getting married at Fort Macon on Saturday April 12th! Going to be a great time.

On the road the next two weeks, y'all behave now...................

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Febraury 1, 2008
Shots from this week; we had a visit from the electrician who installed some lighting cans for the soffett in front of the windows on the left shown below(this was important since this is where the grill will be re-located!) As you can see there was a lot of exterior work done.

The outside door assembly was installed, although with the door opening the wrong way. No field fix is available, so new doors have been ordered. The windows above the doors look good and open the room up a lot, they bring in a lot of light and show off the height of the room just like the Project Manager Supervisor planned them! She's doing a great job and having a little fun too. I like the picture below, it gives you a good idea of the size of the room. Like the trees in the landscaped island? Don't get too used to them...........

And at lunchtime on Saturday the painters came to start making some plans. We're moving forward; time for me to hit the road.

January 17 2008
This week they busted in! This shot is where our kitchen window used to be. It was taken out and reinstalled in the new exterior wall. The hole was covered in plastic and plywood to keep the cold and critters out. Yes, we know it does look lovely doesn't it? Reminds me a lot of my first apartment.
Here is the outside of the old house.

New window on right, old on the left, no wait a second, is that right? Wait another second....aren't those transoms supposed to match?

New look from the outside
We're getting there, wish us luck.