Dozukis and Sunbirds

I should post more often. There. Guilt trip over.

Two words for the day, completely unrelated except in my life.

A Dozuki is a Japanese woodworking saw, intended for cutting the joints that lock two pieces of wood together. Like all Japanese saws, it is frighteningly sharp.


I'm working on my first "real" woodworking project, a Shaker-inspired wall shelf with drawer. (Project plan at: http://www.popularwoodworking.com/article/shapely_shaker_shelf/ )I'm at the point where I need to cut the 1/4"plywood for the drawer bottom and back. My husband, the Mad Engineer, has set up a welding station in front of our bandsaw, the best power tool for the job. I tries the hand held jigsaw, but it has a case of palsy and couldn't settle down long enough to even begin the cut. So, in desperation, I got my dozuki out, expecting the 24" long cut to take an hour of push-pull, arm falling off sweaty hard labor.

In 3 minutes, I had a nice, straight cut, all the way through. Including set-up time, the dozuki was faster than the jigsaw. More fun, too.


Now, the next word of the day: Sunbird.

Sunbird is a calendar program, created by the Mozilla project, and available free for all major platforms.

In order to manage my family's busy schedule, I keep a series of Google calendar files, one for each person. For several years, I've been using GCal, an abandoned single-function browser that let me see my Google Calendar web page. But Google changed its log in page, and GCal no longer can get in to my calendars.

I first looked at software to make my own stand alone web page ... but I run Mac OS X 10.4.11, an old version, by choice, and the software won't run on my OS. I found a connector to let iCal, the built-in calendar program synch with Google calendar, but it is clunky, and I don't much like iCal anyway. Eventually, I found Sunbird.



Sunbird looks a lot like Firefox, which makes sense, since they are both Mozilla projects. Like Firefox, there are add-ons and themes to customize the calendars. I added one item that allows invisible two-way communication with my Google calendars. A little bit of color coding, and I'm all set.

Except I seem to be drawn to abandoned software ... Mozilla is planning to abandon Sunbird, for lack of user interest and a shortage of developers. So if you are intrested, wander over to http://www.mozilla.org/projects/calendar/sunbird/ and download your own copy.

A name is a name?

I've been interviewing various builders and subcontractors, in preparation for our remodel/addition. And I've noticed something interesting.

These guys don't have last names.

They never introduce themselves by last name. They routinely refer to each other by profession. Even our architect (who has been a builder and teacher) falls into this: "Liz, this is Tony the Plumber ... Jeff the Framer ... Paul the Electrician ..."

I feel like I'm living in a medieval English town, where Jeff Framer is hired by Liz Housewife, with Tony Plumber waiting his turn. Paul Electrician certainly wasn't around in 1309, but you get the idea.

We won't even go into why they all have the same middle name as Bullwinkle the Moose.

Avatars

Sometimes a thought comes into your head and you have to follow it, even when it takes you to places you don't need to go.

Last night, I suddenly decided I wanted to make a cartoon style avatar that looks like me. My daughter has a site where she can make cute, chibi-style avatars. (Chibi are the cute, oversized head people populating Japanese anime meant for kids.) But I wanted something a bit more lifelike and less cute.

So I typed "make an avatar" into Google, and found lots of information about rendering objects in 3 dimensions, and the anime series, Avatar. My kids are the anime fans, not me. But patient searching finally led me to a site that made chibi, but gave me plenty of customization options.

Otaku Avatar Maker lets you put together various features and clothing to make an avatar. Here's a sample:
Cute kid, no?

Fun, but not right for me. No middle aged options here.

However, at the bottom of that web page, are links to other avatar makers. The one that worked best for me is Portrait Illustration Maker. This can produce a drawing that, while cartoon-like is definitely recognizable as a real person:


I could play with this for hours ... and I did. You can tell by the mess in my kitchen.

OK, so what does she look like? We have a cute kid, and a man, but where's our blogger. Well, ... it still needs work, but you could use it to find me in an airport.

New Remodeling Post

The best laid plans and all that ...

We didn't break ground last fall. In September, we sent out bids for the work, asking contractors to bid on the basic structure, including rough mechanicals, plaster walls and interior door installation, but no other finish work. The bids came in, with the cheapest one for 30% more than we planned to spend on the entire project! Things came to a crashing halt, and by the time we recovered from the sticker shock, it was too late to build.

We still need the space, so we're doing things differently. First, we're not using a general contractor. Instead, our architect will act as a construction consultant, finding subcontractors for us, preparing bids, and making sure the scheduling flows. This will cost us less than hiring a G.C., as Matt doesn't add an upcharge to material costs, and isn't concerned with tightly scheduling subcontractors. [We have time, so we don't mind if the plumber can't come for a week after the framing is done.] We can also choose the best sub for the job, and not get stuck with the G.C.'s best buddy.

Last week we had a framer (who also does foundations, roofs, and windows / exterior doors) come by, and a plumber who took a good look at our heating system (hot water, so a plumber does the work) and plumbing for the addition. So work is moving along, and we hope to break ground this spring.

Old Remodeling Post #6 — 26 July, 2008

The last of the old remodeling posts.

Plans



This is the house as it is today. It is to scale (well ... almost), so you can see how -- ahem -- compact the kitchen layout is. We added a 6 foot long office table near the benches, it serves as a storage space and extra counter. We have some shelves along the basement stairs, these are our pantry. Extra kitchen equipment is stored in the sunless room (why put a sunroom in the northeast corner?) or packed away in the basement.

I didn't draw in the dining table, with 4 chairs it takes up most of its room.


Enter the Architect

We decided to add 10 feet across the entire back wall of the house. Here's our first pass at how we'd use the space:



The major feature is the central "pod of space", housing some coat/backpack cubbies, a pantry, and a family desk/communication center. I hadn't thought of doing this, but it helps use the new space effectively. We'd be able to have an upright freezer (we don't have one and need it!), too.

We haven't done any designing with the family room or bathroom yet. DH wants a shower in there so we can have guests stay there.

The plan is good, but needs work. There's a lot of empty space in the work part of the kitchen, and no good place for guests to hang out. I want a built-in bench, there is none. So, more planning.

Here's the second concept:



Here, we put in a second rectangular island for the prep area, instead on an L off the cook center. We'll have an overhang on this island, so the kids can sit and do homework, or guests can watch. We added a bench along the back wall, above will be a nice window. [We have woods behind our house, for a great view.]

This is what we have so far. We're still thinking about the exact placement of the appliances, but I think we have the beginnings of our final plan.

[That is, assuming we can afford it. ]

Plans created with Omni Graffle

Old Remodeling Post #5 — 24 July, 2008

This time with pictures!

Drowning in Designs

We're into the thick of it now!

Our timetable, as far as we can make one, has us doing the design work and finding a builder this summer, and building the structure this fall, through to the plaster, but no other finish work. [Here in New England, plaster costs the same as drywall. We have plaster walls in the rest of the house, so it would be silly to get drywall.] We expect to have heated unfinished space by the first snows. Then the builder goes away and DH and I finish the space, with help from friends and pros as needed.

So we've been busily working on kitchen designs (as well as the rest of the addition). We have a space about 20 feet by 15 feet for the kitchen, give or take.

I have to admit, I like working with M ... he brings up things like balance and proportion, and creating clear distinctions between working and non-working space. But he listens to me as I teach him about work centers, string diagrams, and motion-mindedness (not to mention the therblig). We're not paying attention to cost at this stage, but we both know the budget is tight.

I haven't posted any photos yet ... I just taught myself how. Here are some Before photos, of both the kitchen and the laundry dungeon, from the day of the house inspection.


This is the stove and sink corner

the rest of the kitchen


and the Laundry Dungeon
Sorry about the head-tipping ... does anyone know how to rotate photos?

Old Remodeling Post #4 — 16 June, 2008

And another ...

Back on Track


Well, after my surgery, DH's severe work stress, and our architect's personal issues, we're back on track. M (the architect) is coming over this afternoon to pick up the signed contract and the first (of far too many) checks.

In order to save money, we're keeping his involvement lean and mean. M will be our design consultant, helping make sure that what we come up with is sane, buildable, and within budget. He's helped with that already ... did you know that there's very little difference in building out 11 feet or 12 feet? Since most of the cost is labor, we shouldn't let the material cost compromise our space needs.

M will also help us get the shell of the new space up, and will bow out as soon as we have heated unfinished space. We will finish it ourselves: flooring, cabinetry, trimwork, other finish materials. If we need, M will continue to consult on design.

So right now, the timeline is to work on design all summer, while finding a builder, then start work just after the kids go back to school in late August. M thinks we'll have our heated shell before the first snows. I hope he's right.

Also part of the remodel will be adding insulation to the existing house, and replacing the 50 year old oil boiler. With the price of heating oil these days, I'm pushing we do the boiler replacement as soon as we finish the heat calculations.