The last essential system I need to set up before getting down to business in my new shop is dust collection. The dust collector has already been installed in the mechanical room along with ducting into the shop. Now I need to connect the duct work in the shop to the various machines. I decided to make the duct supports out of leftover plywood. A long cable tie will be used to secure the pipe to the support and the support will be anchored to the wall with pocket hole screws. The cable tie will run through a hole bored through the full width of the 3/4 inch thick support. To make that hole I needed to set up my new drill press. It went together without a hitch and has exceeded my expectations for build quality and accuracy. It was a real pleasure to use.
Plaster work on the River House should be completed this week and will be followed by wood flooring installation but not before the indoor humidity reaches an acceptable level. I installed a digital hygrometer on each floor to monitor humidity levels. At this time it is hovering around 85% and the current and forecasted weather is not going to help much. I am going to look at renting an industrial dehumidifier to help speed things along.
My new shop at the River House has a single lally column located in the middle. Initially, I thought this would be highly undesirable. When I laid out my shop equipment, however, it became apparent that this would be the perfect means for dropping power to the machines which will be centrally located. Today, I built a square column around the round one and installed four 120V outlets and four 240V outlets upon it which will be used to power my table saw, bandsaw, jointer/planar, and router table with several spares. The base of the column and floor molding through the basement is built out of a rice hull-based product that is impervious to water. Should the basement ever flood, we can sustain 5-1/2″ of water before the drywall or plywood becomes exposed.
For 15 minutes this afternoon, 3/8″ hail fell in Concord combined with torrential rain. At the time, I was parked under a tree which help minimize the impact of the ice chunks hitting my car. Driving was briefly treacherous on the frozen ball bearings but they melted quickly leaving little more than dismay behind. Hail in June where we live is a pretty good validation of climate change.
All that remains to be done before I can move into my new shop is the painting of the ceiling. This can happen in a few more days when the plaster has completely dried. In the meantime, I am taking care of a few construction details. Pictured above is an “L” shaped box I built to protect the geothermal water lines which run from that foundation wall to the mechanical room. The red light shown dangling in the upper left-hand corner is used to signal when my dust collector bin is full. It will get affixed to the wall or ceiling once the painting has been completed.
The NFCT extends for 740 miles across contiguous rivers, streams, and lakes, following Native American travel routes from Old Forge, New York, through Vermont, Québec, and New Hampshire, to Fort Kent, Maine. In addition to being a paddling route, the Trail celebrates the history of the Northern Forest. The Trail was officially completed in Spring 2006, with thirteen mapped contiguous sections offering campsites, portage routes, trail signs, and access points along the entire route. This photo taken near the western terminus was shared by my nephew, Gabriel, who is paddling a portion of the trail with his girlfriend. I don’t know all the details of the trip but I believe he will be meeting up with my sister-in-law Susan when they reach North Hero, VT which is 170 miles into the journey.
Purple Loosestrife is a hardy, aggressive, non-native wetland invader. This herbaceous, ornamental perennial was first documented in the 19th century and it is likely purple Loosestrife was introduced either accidentally in ship ballast water or intentionally as a colorful garden ornamental. While it may not be a welcomed addition to the native ecosystem, it does make for a very attractive photography subject. I passed this field every day on my work commute for the last 18 years and have watched the Loosestrife continue to expand its footprint.
Concord has its own municipal power and light company, unlike most towns and cities in Massachusetts. Followers of this blog may recall my rants about the abysmally slow and poor service provided by most of the utilities that have served us in the past; Verizon (phone), Comcast (TV and internet), and National Grid (gas). With the Concord Municipal Light Plant, the story could not be more different; they provide the best service of any utility we have ever used by a country mile. Today, they proactively installed a new utility pole having determined the old one was approaching its end of life. In response to a request I made while talking to them a few weeks ago, they relocated the new pole far from the corner of the driveway where the old one obstructed access, especially for larger vehicles. The new pole is pictured at the back of the truck on the right and the old one next to the traffic cone. With the new pole location established, we can now begin the work necessary to bury our electrical, water, and other utilities. The old pole will eventually be removed when the telephone company eventually gets around to moving their wires to the new one. I won’t be holding my breath waiting for this to happen.
It has taken months and months for Jeanine and me to find interior doors for the new house. Door installation is scheduled to start in a few weeks, and the deadline has helped us make a decision. Pictured here are the doors that will be used for the bedrooms and offices. A plain slab version from the same collection will be used for the bathrooms, closets, and in the basement. We have specified concealed hinges and European-style magnetic door latches (no strike plates or protruding latch bolts). Still remaining to be selected is the bypass closet door in one bedroom and the fire-rated door between the house and garage.
Every day, I make the 2-mile commute from the Road House to the River House to check on progress and perform work, often multiple times per day. On each trip, I pass a lovely field where about a dozen cows hang out and graze. These are perhaps the happiest and healthiest cows I have ever seen. I have enjoyed watching them grow over the last two years and will be sad when they are replaced. I stopped by to say hello and grab some photos this afternoon. I needed a break from kitchen cabinet design which I have been working on for the last few days.
Jeanine had a clever idea for creating an indented area on the River House siding in which to display our street number. After looking through the low-quality or ridiculously expensive off-the-shelf options, I decided to design them myself and have asked Maya to print them at Formlabs on one of their large format 3D printers. Each digit is 12″ tall and 1″ thick with an integrated standoff and fastening stud.
I also completed the design of the stair stringers we will be using for our floating staircase. The original plan was to use a custom solution from a company called ViewRail. At $10K per flight (4 flights needed) that was a rather expensive solution. Next, I had the project quoted by a local welder with great reviews for this type of work. His price worked out to $6K per flight. Finally, I decide to use my own design and a local laser cutter service for a solution that will cost $3K per flight. Each flight will use four stringers made from 3/8″ thick steel plate. Two plates will be sandwiched around an LVL 2×4 for each of the two stringers. Laser cutting will provide virtually identical parts with perfect angles and dimensions eliminating the need for any means to level the treads and saving a ton of time during installation. I included features in the stringer to make them easy to hang and also to capture the treads with minimal hardware. The grooves shown on the back of the treads will engage with tongues cut into the stringers. The final execution will use properly placed holes to capture the tongues rather than the long slot for a cleaner look.
In a few weeks, it will be time to excavate our current driveway to bring in a new water line from the street. Concord requires this of any new construction on an existing site where the water main is older than 50 years. With the number of trees on our property, the driveway is the only path that is feasible. As long as we are forced to excavate, we will also have the power, fiber optic, cable, and phone lines buried. Since we have added an attached garage that will replace the existing garage/carport, it will be necessary to reroute the end of the driveway as well. In doing so, we are required to make no net change to the total surface area of the driveway to comply with requirements established by the Natural Resources Commission. I spent several hours today laying out the new driveway (red paint line) which will include a turn around area that also serves as a parking for two cars. I established the contours by driving my car through every scenario to ensure that an easy turnaround would be possible from any parking position. Later I mapped the curves to my computer model of the property so I could calculate the surface area of the new paved surface for comparison to the old. Fortunately, we will be under the limit.
Since I will be building all the kitchen cabinets, vanities, and built-ins for the River House, getting my shop operational is a very high priority. At this time, it looks like the shop will be ready for move-in by mid-June. When we sold our last house, I decided to also sell most of my 25-year-old woodworking machines so I could upgrade to larger capacities for my new shop. Unbelievably, I sold my 8″ Delta jointer for more money than I paid for it new. Today, I ordered its replacement, a unit with 16″ capacity which does double duty as a planer. It is being shipped from Canada and should arrive in 2 weeks. With this purchase, I now have all the basic equipment I will need for proper cabinetmaking except for a router table which I should be able to live without initially.
We have taken to calling Jeanine’s future office the Aviary. Our first architect gave it this name, possibly because he did not like “the Perch”, the name we initially chose for it. Today, it became the last room on the second floor to be finished with plaster as the team works their way through the house. They are roughly 20-25% done with plaster at this point. The drywall board hangers have completed 100% of the house and are about 60% done with the garage.
We have several large trees that are growing near the river just in front of the house we are building. They all lean out over the river so that they do not have to compete for sunshine with the trees further inland. One such tree lost its top many years ago and the 30-foot tall remaining trunk base has turned into a mecca for all manner of birdlife. Sometime during the last week, the rotted roots gave out and the trunk fell towards the river only to become wedged in between two living trees. For the moment, it does not appear to be a danger to anyone on land or water so we will not intervene. It is like having a bird feeder that you never have to put food in.
Kyle hosted the immediate family and Susan at his place for a Memorial Day weekend party. We picked up ribs, brisket, pulled pork, and chicken from Blue Ribbon BBQ on the way which made for a most yummy minimal effort dinner. Kyle picked up a strawberry shortcake and fresh berries for dessert. Joining us were Marissa, pictured below, who has been renting a room from Kyle since December, and her dog Bailey. Kyle’s friend Oly, who has been his guest for the past few weeks joined us as well.
Kyle was proud to show off his renovated basement and we spent a few minutes completing the finishing touches. He has already entered a verbal agreement with a nice couple who will begin renting it in mid-July. While Bailey has been a most welcome guest he did inspire what is now being called the Bailey clause, an addition to the lease agreement that covers excessive barking, something the otherwise very quiet Bailey took part in whenever Marissa left the house.
A former colleague reached out asking me to share product photos I have from our Truevision days. I created an online archive that includes both the products and many of the early prototypes that I built.
After testing five different paint colors on the side of the River House, Jeanine and I have arrived at a final choice. It is a Sherwin Williams color named Peppercorn. We visited the site twice, once while the paint was in shadow and again when it was fully sunlit. It is a dark grey with no undertones, in other words, a true shade of grey. Of the final three candidates we both gravitated to this color. I went back and repainted all the test areas to match. All that remains to be done on the color front is to paint the trim boards surrounding the windows and rust-colored horizontal siding in a matte black. I will do so over the weekend.
During nearly four decades of working, I do not believe there exists a single picture of me doing my job. Certainly, there are some in which I can be seen posing with colleagues or with products or accepting an award. None, however, capture me doing my actual work. Today, while at Formlabs for my regular consulting gig, I decided to capture a picture of Maya at work. She was unaware of me taking this photo. I reached my cell phone over the divider which separates her desk from a hallway for the shot.
In a nice bit of synchronicity, I bumped into her on the stairs at lunchtime and we were able to sit and eat together. I was heading down to invite her for lunch while she was heading up for the sunnier cafeteria on the 3rd floor.
I painted a small section of the house with a provisional color this afternoon. Neither Jeanine nor I think we have the right one yet and I will be doing additional test areas later this week.
Jeanine was feeling well enough to venture out of the house today. First to pick up the mail and again with her sister Susan for a car excursion. Susan arrived on Sunday. Officially, she is here to help Jeanine, but I am the real beneficiary of her visit. Jeanine is getting quite good at maneuvering the knee scooter but her crutch skills leave me holding my breath every time she tries to navigate the stairs. I decided she would be much safer with a ramp to the front door and fashioned one out of remnants from the house project.
Often combined with a supply run to Home Depot, I usually pick up a fast food lunch on days when I am working at the River House. Eating while driving on the return trip is a good way to get back to work 15 minutes sooner. This is not a practice I can recommend to others. On one such lunch run, I managed to spill a cup of Coke into the center console of my Audi. I could have grabbed it immediately preventing most of the spillage but would have done so at the expense of a collision with oncoming traffic. When it was safe, I pulled over and soaked up as much of the Coke as I could. Another day would pass before I broke out the wash cloth to get rid of the stickiness. I thought nothing more of the incident until today when I learned that a small amount of Coke had entered through the USB charging port in the console and pooled at the base of the charging module where it shorted out the components shown above. I am familiar with these components and I estimate their cost to be in the neighborhood of 12 cents. A replacement for the module from Audi is $250. Labor to take apart and reassemble the center console to access the module is $1150. I love my e-Tron but I am no fan of Audi repair prices.
Earlier this week, Nicolai delivered the closing keynote at the 2023 Move United Education Conference held in Louisville, KY. The conference theme was, “Disability Inclusion in Sport: Transforming Intent to Action.” The event was billed as a forum for sports providers, professionals, and athletes to unite over a mutual interest in elevating sports opportunities for athletes with disabilities.
He then traveled to Los Angeles where he conducted an amputee soccer training camp for women and participated in a Teqball tournament. Teqball is a cross between soccer and table tennis. Check out the videos to get a better sense of the sport.
Kyle photographed his newly renovated basement apartment so that he can begin advertising for tenants. The project took the two of us a little over a year working one day a week; Saturdays or Sundays. It included the conversion from a fuel oil furnace to an electric heat pump. This change added air conditioning to the whole home. We replaced the natural gas-fired water heater with an electric heat pump-style unit and replaced the upstairs gas cooktop with an induction range. The home is now all electric. The two-bedroom apartment has a separate entrance, a fully furnished kitchen, a living room, and a laundry area. If you know of anyone looking for something like this in Medford please reach out.
Jeanine has begun the long road to recovery from her bunion surgery yesterday. Pain management has been a big challenge. Thus far she has had very dangerous reactions to the prescribed narcotics. Her release from the hospital was delayed by three hours when her blood pressure dropped precipitously after being given Hydromorphone. They sent her home with Tramadol instead. When she tried this she had the same reaction, this time without the benefit of a half dozen doctors racing to her side. We have switched to a mix of Motrin and Tylenol on an alternating three-hour schedule combined with near-constant icing. We have a recliner set up in the living room and a knee scooter for mobility. Jeanine gets a single peanut M&M for each lap she makes around the kitchen. I slept on the couch so I could be immediately available to provide assistance when needed.
“The Creative” by Simon Donovan and Ben Olmstead is a free-standing, stainless steel sculpture installed in front of Boston Arts Academy. The sculpture is a depiction of a young woman with her eyes closed and head tilted upward. The “head” is composed of dozens of laser-cut stainless-steel shapes. They are held apart to create a skin of perforated stainless steel. Each 5/16” thick plane is welded together in a stacking fashion by small rods that create a 1” distance between sheets. The effect is that of an ever-shifting nature as you move around the piece. You go from perceiving the appearance of clearly defined topographic planes to seeming almost invisible when looking straight-on from the front or back. I had the occasion to photograph the sculpture while waiting to pick up Jeanine from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center after she underwent foot surgery to correct a previously botched bunion surgery.
Our new house will feature remote thermal sensors for temperature control of the various zones. Instead of a traditional thermostat placed on the wall, we will have thermal sensors embedded in the drywall. We have eschewed most wall-mounted controllers and devices in favor of using voice control or phone-based apps to control the home. “Hey Siri, set the temperature to 68 degrees.”
The pictures show the installed 3/4″ diameter sensors. I documented distances to adjacent walls and took the photos should I ever need to locate the devices in the future.
Progress on the siding has been slower than I would have expected but the results have been better than I imagined. The main material is a product called TruExterior. It is made with fly-ash, a by-product recovered from coal combustion. The fly-ash is combined with polymers to create an inorganic material that is resistant to moisture and that offers no food source to carpenter ants, termites, wood-boring bees, and other insects. It is being installed as a rain screen (3/16″ open gaps between boards) which promotes drying of the backside. Five different board widths are being used in a random pattern to mimic the different size tree trunks which surround the house and will be painted a shade of grey. Areas that currently appear black will be sided with a product made from rice hulls using horizontal 4″ boards in a contrasting rust color. In total, about 70% of the siding is made from recycled or rapidly renewable materials. Still to be completed are the north side and riverside facades. These should go a little faster since they are not as high and do not require any board splicing.
This past weekend marked the 18th anniversary of the start of this blog. At times, I have questioned the investment of time needed to keep up with the daily postings. Just when I am about to let go of the routine, one of the kids or a friend, or even a random stranger will send me a note letting me know how much they appreciated something that I shared.
I should also like to apologize that the blog has become very new home construction-focused over the last year and will likely remain so through the completion of the River House. The simple fact is that the project consumes my every waking moment and I have suspended my normal travel adventures which were the source of my most interesting material.
Perhaps the best way to illustrate the age of this blog is to compare pictures of the kids when it started to today. According to the program I use to post with, this is entry number 8,588.
After yesterday’s memorial celebration for my mother, we enjoyed a family reunion at my sister’s house. I was too busy enjoying the event to take a lot of photos and was pleased to find myself in one taken by Maya.
It is hard to be objective, but the memorial service for my mother was a truly special affair. We were joined by family far and near in the UUI church where she was a member for over 50 years. The eulogy by the co-ministers told the story of her life. I shared my experience of the final days of her life and the slideshow above. Alissa recounted the list of things for which she thanked my mother and performed a tango medley in her honor. Mark let us know what he would miss most about her and Mayela delivered a humorous and poignant short story that captured the essence of Angela. Her nephew Edward, delivered a message from her brother-in-law, Bob, and his own touching remembrance about his “wing man.” Her nieces, Anita and Jackie described the profound impact their beloved aunt had on them. Grandson Rory closed the service explained how Angela lives on in those she loved. Profound thoughts from someone so young.
Her grandchildren lit the chalice to start the service and the spouses of her children extinguished it.
A family reunion followed the ceremony at Alissa’s home and I will share those pictures tomorrow.
This website is dedicated to sharing, with family and friends, the day-to-day adventures of the Calabria family.
