Disruptions
Nov. 19th, 2004 11:46 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
drscottI haven't posted much lately -- too many disruptions. First, the cold I came down with a week ago was pretty bad; I'm still going for the Kleenex. As usual, the viral infection weakened me -- I've lost a few pounds of muscle in the last week and have difficulty completing my usual weight program. I had to give up doing squats Tuesday, and when I tried again yesterday, I wasn't able to do quite all the reps.
Second, the kitchen renovation started Monday -- we had to move everything out of the cabinets and off the counters, so we've set up a temporary kitchen in the laundry room (microwave on the dryer, etc.) The kitchen is blocked off from the rest of the house by plastic dust-control sheeting, and my usual coffee or snack run now takes me through the atrium, outside, through the garage, and into the laundry room. Nothing is where it's supposed to be, so the simple programs of daily life (like "make a PB&J sandwich"), which I can normally do without thinking, involve six or seven stops to remember where things have gone. It's mentally painful for someone with a touch of autism (well-described in this book) .
They're about halfway done -- the hanging cabinet is gone, the two new cabinets have been installed, the drawer fronts and doors are being put in today, and the cabinet frames and outer surfaces have been covered with maple veneer. The counters go away Monday and return, reincarnated as granite, a week later. The new sink, cooktop, and faucet are in the garage awaiting installation.
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excessor dropped in last night after dinner to finish watching Master And Commander: The Far Side of the World, not an S&M assfest but the big budget Russell Crowe sea epic (based on the novels of Patrick O’Brian). This is a fine example of the new use of special effects to achieve flawless realism -- there was no sign at all of CGI, though it's obvious some of the scenes could never have been filmed in reality. The ship's atmosphere was realistic, and the makers didn't compromise with modern sensibilities by adding a gratuitous female character -- no "Lady Terwilliger" along for the ride, etc. They also didn't drop in any hints of homosexuality, though there was plenty of emotional binding between the men.
At one point my febrile brain dredged up the Steve Martin/Martin Mull sea shanty faintly remembered from Saturday Night Live:
Second, the kitchen renovation started Monday -- we had to move everything out of the cabinets and off the counters, so we've set up a temporary kitchen in the laundry room (microwave on the dryer, etc.) The kitchen is blocked off from the rest of the house by plastic dust-control sheeting, and my usual coffee or snack run now takes me through the atrium, outside, through the garage, and into the laundry room. Nothing is where it's supposed to be, so the simple programs of daily life (like "make a PB&J sandwich"), which I can normally do without thinking, involve six or seven stops to remember where things have gone. It's mentally painful for someone with a touch of autism (well-described in this book) .
They're about halfway done -- the hanging cabinet is gone, the two new cabinets have been installed, the drawer fronts and doors are being put in today, and the cabinet frames and outer surfaces have been covered with maple veneer. The counters go away Monday and return, reincarnated as granite, a week later. The new sink, cooktop, and faucet are in the garage awaiting installation.
excessor dropped in last night after dinner to finish watching Master And Commander: The Far Side of the World, not an S&M assfest but the big budget Russell Crowe sea epic (based on the novels of Patrick O’Brian). This is a fine example of the new use of special effects to achieve flawless realism -- there was no sign at all of CGI, though it's obvious some of the scenes could never have been filmed in reality. The ship's atmosphere was realistic, and the makers didn't compromise with modern sensibilities by adding a gratuitous female character -- no "Lady Terwilliger" along for the ride, etc. They also didn't drop in any hints of homosexuality, though there was plenty of emotional binding between the men.At one point my febrile brain dredged up the Steve Martin/Martin Mull sea shanty faintly remembered from Saturday Night Live:
Men
(Group of men singing in the background)
Men, men, men, men
Men, men, men, men...
It's great to be on a ship with men
and sail across the sea, oh,
We don't know where we'll land or when,
but it's great to be with men.
'Cause men can sweat and men can stink
and no one seems to care, oh,
We'll throw the dishes in the sink
and clog the drain with hair, oh!
(And clog the drain with hair, oh!)
Men, men, men,
We're a ship all filled with men,
So batten down the ladies' room,
there's no one here but men!
Men, men, men, men
Men, men, men, men...
There's men above and men below
and men down in the galley,
There's Butch and Spike and Buzz and Biff
and one guy we call Sally!
(And one guy we call Sally!)
Men, men, men,
We're a ship all filled with men,
You'll never have to lift the seat,
there's no one here but men!
Men, men, men, men
Men, men, men, men...
We're men and friends until the end
and none of us are sissies,
At night we sleep in separate beds
and blow each other kissies!
(And blow each other kissies!)
Men, men, men,
we're a ship all filled with men,
So throw your rubbers overboard,
there's no one here but men!
Amen (pronounced "Ahhhhh, men!")
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no subject
Date: 2004-11-19 12:18 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-11-19 12:38 pm (UTC)Kitchen remodels
Date: 2004-11-19 12:29 pm (UTC)The original kitchen was from 1974, brown, on brown, on brown with poor (and cheap) lighting, crappy drop in range etc. Even the original carpeting in the rest of the upstairs was gold - all very dated to say the least.
when it was all done, new cabinets, sink, counters, appliances and lighting in a white washed finish on the cabines, white counters, blue industrial carpeting and white walls. Much brighter and infinately more cheerful than before.
A major disruption indeed.
Good luck with it and I'm sure it'll look fabulous when done.
no subject
Date: 2004-11-19 04:09 pm (UTC)It was a good movie anyway.