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Must have been one of those particle board/mdf bookcases. I've destroyed a few before. It looks good Shan!
I've been playing around with Google Sketchup Pro 2020 free trial version and am loving it. I am still trying to figure out how to make a complex shape with curves. I can make the thing from different sides in 2D sort of but am trying to figure out how to get the faces to follow the curves. The "Follow Me" tool doesn't work right for it. I did find that the shape I use for the following also affects the end result-- like, if I want an oval shaped bowl I make an oval and have it follow the face. I'm going to play around with it some more to see if I find a result I like.

Ankle is doing better but I'm sleepy. My brother just got home from work and woke me up (he worked graveyard shift).
 
Built a bookcase bridge over our bed out of some Ikea items. Now it looks like we have one'a'them fancy bedrooms like in the magazines! Wife's happy, I'm happy.
 
Flyover, that sounds awesome!
I ended up doing major cleanup. Cleaned up half the hallway and cleaned up the pantry floor. A lot of stuff had fallen off the shelves (because of cats) and there were some old sodas that had ruptured and spilled. There were unopened cans with no signs of punctures that were empty or half-empty. Oatmeal had gotten soaked in soda and turned in to a hard block. I managed to the junk picked up.. Threw out almost everything that had been on the floor. I found some stuff that expired in 2010. I filled multiple trash bags (well, filled weightwise). I got my brother to take the trash can out to the burn-pile and dump it because the bag started to rip when I tried to lift it and it was too heavy. He had to make a snide remark about how the trash can has wheels and I could haul it out myself-- nevermind it's technically his job to do it & I have a bad back. He also ignored the fact that a lot of the stuff being thrown out was stuff he got & never used AND he had promised to clean the pantry after his cats started using it as a litterbox. I think it was over 50lbs of cat crap in there. I never should have let it get to that point again (I say again bc his cats did it before and he promised to clean it & never did-- when he was unemployed-- and I finally caved and cleaned it up & he promised me I'd never have to do it again and he'd keep it clean). I'm mad at myself for not just working on it sooner.

My friend is coming over later to help me move the metal shelving rack and sort through stuff that needs to be tossed and then help me take anything in bags & cardboard boxes in to plastic bins. I'm going to put a bin under the shelf rack to make it harder for the cats to get in to that area. I also want to figure out how to put something on the shelves that will keep things from falling off the back behind it. There is cheap sheet vinyl on the floor-- remnants from when we had the old stuff put in- and there is a seam along the floor that is coming up and stuff got under it. I'm going to have to pull it back, clean under it thoroughly, and put down some acrylic tape to make it stay down. I need to measure the pantry because I'm thinking when I'm done with putting new sheet vinyl in the bathroom, I might have enough to cover the pantry without seams.

Another thing on the pantry-- the walls are covered in metal window screen in an attempt to keep mice out. At the very top where there are gaps in the ceiling boards there's a collection of mouse crap on top of the screen. It would have worked had it not been for the door being wonky and no longer shutting properly. Tenants broke the original door. Then there's the matter of an electrical wire pierced with a screw from the other side. I need to carefully remove the screw and wrap the wire in electrical tape. I'm trying to figure out if I can plaster over the screen somehow. Maybe pop some nails in to make sure it is tight against the wood. When sodas leaked they sprayed against the wall and got behind the screen. I want to cover it all up and have a surface that is easier to clean. I'll have to get pictures at some point.

I forgot to mention my cleaning method since I couldn't find my mop-- I sprayed Lysol on the floor, let it soak in for a few minutes, then came back and threw a "Magic Eraser" on the floor and pushed it around with my foot. I did the same thing with Lysol wipes. Then I put a paper towel on the floor and moved it around with my foot. The less bending I have to do the better.

Meanwhile, it turns out my toilet supply line is not dripping-- the seal in the middle between the tank and the base is leaking. The tank moved a little when I was trying to remove the old supply line that was stuck on. I don't think there are any cracks (hope not anyway) but it's obviously not seating right anymore. So now I have to figure out if the seal needs to be replaced or if the toilet just has to be re-seated. If it's cracked, I do have another tank to put in & can order a replacement for it later. I'm hoping it won't come to that.
 
@zannej


If this guy knew the trick he wouldn’t need the bucket or the sponge and could swap it with leaving water in the bottom of the tank.



View attachment 23174

This is going to come in extra handy because I believe my fill valve broke. I have a Fluidmaster 404LG kit. The drain part is not the right size, but I hope the fill valve will work. If the fill valve I have has that little nut to twist, it will make things much easier. My friend said to get him at 7am to bring him over to change it out for me bc my brain is about dead after all the cleaning I did today.

I got my friend to see why my toilet tank was leaking-- turned out the rubber washers inside the tank and between the tank and bowl had broken. I got two little washer/bolt/nut kits (just in case). One had smaller rubber washers and the other had larger ones. The one with the smaller washers had wing nuts for the bottom. Before the tank just had the bolt, a rubber washer under it in the tank, then a rubber washer between the tank and toilet bowl. Then a washer and a nut underneath the toilet base. Now it has a washer under the bolt inside the tank, a rubber washer, a metal washer, a nut (that fits inside the hole on the base) between the tank and the base, and a rubber washer, a metal washer, and a wing nut on the bottom. The gasket (spud washer?) between the toilet and tank looked pretty rough but there are no leaks.

My friend also moved the metal rack in my pantry so I could clean the floor. My back really started hating on me and my friend couldn't stand how filthy my brother's room was so he started cleaning it. He had at least 2ft high piles of trash all over the floor-- in some places it was 3ft. He got my brother's new small fridge in his room (it's larger than a mini fridge but considerably smaller than a full size fridge). He'd been borrowing my mini fridge but he gunked it up so badly and broke stuff on it so I didn't really want it anymore. I told my friend he could have it. When we got back to his house I helped him clean the removable shelves (bought him the cleaning supplies for it too). Went to Walmart and got some cat litter for when I mess with the litterboxes-- but my brother put an end table he no longer wanted in his room on top of the litterboxes-- he initially just left it in the hallway blocking the way to my room. I decided that the side of his pantry still looked too plain so I got him a magnetic whiteboard so he can write down things they are low on/out of and take a picture with his phone so he won't forget.

We also worked on hauling trash bags out to the burn pile (they had been piling up bc my brother refused to take them out). He was giving me attitude and refusing to take out the trash can & dump it so my friend tricked him in to putting his shoes on under the pretense of helping with the mini fridge and then told him to take the trash can out & he did it. I need to get him over here more often just so he can get my brother to do stuff.

I'll have to upload some pictures later when internet isn't so damn slow, but I'm absolutely exhausted & need a nap.
 
Turns out my old fill valve didn't have the quick release thing. And the nut got stuck on the bottom of the tank to the point my friend had to break it off before replacing it with the new fill valve (which does have the quick release). The whole damn toilet was moving when he was trying to remove the nut. Definitely need to get the plumber in to replace the flange.

I need to do more cleaning in the pantry, but I did OK scrubbing the floor as much as a could. That seam on the floor gave me trouble as stuff got under it. I discovered that the charging cord for the little handheld vacuum thingy was broken. I mistakenly threw away one end of it because I didn't know what it was & then found the other end (the part that plugs in to the outlet). I snapped a bunch of pictures of the pantry.
Metal shelf moved over so I could clean underneath (it was such a tight squeeze I couldn't fit the dust pan through):
pantry1.jpg pantry2.jpg pantry3.jpg
Spot where we hang the dustbuster (I couldn't remember what it was called before)pantry4.jpg
Floor was absolutely disgusting-- before I cleaned the entire floor looked like this with piles of stuff- cans, boxes, cat crap, etc.
pantry5.jpg
After cleaning (I couldn't clean behind the mesh): pantry6.jpg
Back wall of the pantry covered in mesh screen (it goes up the ceiling and there is a piece of sheet vinyl between the light & the metal): pantry7.jpgpantry9.jpg
Cable going to the outlet for the microwave pierced by a screw up higher (its hard to see but you can see the screw's shadow). pantry8.jpg

Question: If I use short nails to tack the screen down more, can I sort of plaster over it with something to give myself a smoother surface that I can paint so it will be easier to clean?
 
I wonder if I can spread leveling mix over the mesh on the horizontal parts (it's not self-leveling) bc I have some that is intended to go over metal lathe, smooth it out, and then put shelf liner over it. Or just put shelf liner down- the waterproof easy clean kind of shelf liner.

Finished the floor cleaning in the pantry & set up some bins. I still need to figure out what to put in the bins & how to organize them though. Organizing and putting things away is not my strong suit. LOL.
pantry10.jpg pantry11.jpg pantry12.jpg pantrybins1.jpg pantrydoor1.jpg
I had to quickly evict the cat, Bethesda. Unfortunately, the door won't stay shut properly so I may need to get some sort of latch for it to keep cats out. Lady Sylvanas has already moved back in and is sleeping on the short bin under the shelf.
 
6175BC4C-B49B-4F75-B87F-00E17770B39E.jpeg CBCA8134-6731-4DD4-847F-6FCF66D18C7F.jpeg DFF6EF00-62E0-463E-99A1-60E8AB442AD8.jpeg 480F77B0-F1CD-4292-ABE3-1F17B9079EE1.jpeg EA43F173-4347-4FA0-A699-7F1D9F24844B.jpeg EA43F173-4347-4FA0-A699-7F1D9F24844B.jpeg 480F77B0-F1CD-4292-ABE3-1F17B9079EE1.jpeg DFF6EF00-62E0-463E-99A1-60E8AB442AD8.jpeg CBCA8134-6731-4DD4-847F-6FCF66D18C7F.jpeg 6175BC4C-B49B-4F75-B87F-00E17770B39E.jpeg Some update pictures. That’s my grandson painting. Now to finish installing the outlets and finish the trim and paint it. And then on to the floor.opps the pictures turned out sideways.
 
Looks great, Tuffy. I hope your grandson had fun painting.
I've been helping my friend plan changes to his bathroom. He and his fiance want a tub in the bathroom. The fiance has been feeling dizzy during from being pregnant and my friend has back trouble and wants to be able to soak. I did some measurements & determined that the location where he wanted to put the tub was not a good idea because it would leave only a 24" space between the side wall of the tub and the front of the washing machine (since his washer & dryer are in the bathroom-- floor in the old laundry room is not stable enough to hold the appliances anymore & he's turning it in to an office). He considered turning the walk-in pantry in to a laundry room, but they want that to be the new baby's room. I don't know why they won't just use the 7-yr-old daughter's room for the baby since the girl is hardly there, but my friend does want to try to get full custody of her.

Back to the tub, the one he likes is the American Standard Saver (Lowes name) aka Ovation (HomeDepot name). It requires stringers and a mortar bed. I've heard drywall mud can be used-- there are all sorts of conflicting opinions on what to put under it, but the specs say it requires some sort of mortar bed. I lost my train of thought about the location of the tub. LOL. The original plan was to put the new tub where the existing shower is & move the vanity to the wall across from where it currently sits, but after my measurements they agreed that it would be too awkward of a layout. The fiance suggested flipping the tub to the other wall but the ceiling slopes down too far-- it sort of looks like the inside of a rolltop breadbox (small boards that go down in a curve)-- so the ceiling isn't high enough on that edge. I did a bunch of measuring and determined that if he moves the toilet over to across from the vanity and turn the tub sideways across the wall next to the toilet.
Mb-roomcurrent1.png Mb-roomplan1.png

I did some touch-up on his cabinets where some of the stain got scratched off and some spots I missed before. Top of the larger pantry door was scraped & the upper cabinet above the range was missing spots due to poor lighting while I was painting. It looks better now.
mpantrytouchup1.jpg mwallcabtouchup1.jpg

I'm also going to try to help him with his flooring-- he got thin waterproof vinyl plank on clearance for the kitchen. I keep telling him he needs to level the floor before he can put it down- or at least get rid of the valleys, but he thinks he can just put it down over the warped floor. He has a bunch of projects going on that he wants to knock out and I'm going to help him as much as I can. Still need to get the roofing ordered and installed though.

I got more cleaning done in the living room but my back wasn't cooperating so I didn't get a lot done. I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do today because I'm trying to do at least one productive thing per day-- I know, low bar, but with chronic fatigue there are weeks where I really don't get anything done.

Tuesday I'm planning to go help my friend with moving the toilet & fixing the floor. I just got brain freeze.
 
My steri strips came off yesterday. Yay! I'll post a pic... it's still swollen and is gonna be a nasty scar MN.. but I dont have to look at it so, I dont care. Lol, I have been super busy rearranging some of the kitchen cabinets, I emptied out the "office" and am making it a.pantry so that I can see what's there and get to things easier. I turned 2 cabinets around so that I could potentially use them as a seating area with a wider countertop at some point. Once I get it done I will post pics of that.
I went to Menards today..... Oh My Gosh.... I couldnt have stayed all day. They are building one near me. But I had never been in one before.
I hope everyone is doing well!!!
 

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Shan, hopefully it will heal up quickly. I'm looking forward to the pics of your new furniture arrangements/changes.

Teri, I'm sorry to hear about the wisdom tooth & I hope you can get some relief. My wisdom teeth never grew in so I was lucky.

We decided not to tackle the bathroom as my friend didn't feel like it but he wanted to work on the kitchen floor. He decided not to do any leveling but the planks he used are thin and flexible so they just followed the floor contours without a problem. It's now how I would do my floor, but its what he wanted to do. We did clean the floor first at least. I brought over my flooring saw, a quick square, pencil, & my Matrix with various attachments. I forgot to bring my box cutter knife. I also brought a hand saw but it never got used. We weren't worried about the ends because there will be trim/shoe molding going over the expansion gap. The very first row still needs to be pulled a little tighter in the middle, but I didn't have the pull bar thing. Oh, I also brought my bright orange mallet. It got a lot of use. My flooring saw cut that plank like a hot knife through butter. My friend kept commenting on how nice it was and how easy it made the cuts. He was teaching me how to get the planks in the grooves and he mistakenly started with the board oriented incorrectly so it was harder to get things tight, but once he got the first row done he switched to laying out from a different direction & it went a lot smoother. I set up boards for the next row so my friend could just put them in and I marked the boards for cutting. I even got to put a few planks in. My friend needed some breaks in between & we had to wait for my brother to get back from the store to help move the fridge a bit so it took longer than it should have, but we got it done & my friend is extremely happy with the job. I'll upload pictures later. Internet is too slow right now and I need a nap.
 
Photos of my friend's kitchen with the flooring installed. I forgot to get a picture of over by the stove. It looks nice with the stainless steel.
mkitnewflrdone6-jpg.23304
mkitnewflrdone3-jpg.23302
mkitnewflrdone5-jpg.23303
 
That looks great zannej! I have roll vinyl in my kitchen. It looks like wood planks though. 10 years later, I wish I would have gone with a lighter color although I wouldnt have been happy seeing dirty floors better either. Lol
 
I've had kitchens with sheet vinyl before and it was awful. Honestly, if I can find something similar to what my friend got in a much higher mil wear layer, I'd replace the ruined parquet flooring in my kitchen-- but the kitchen and dining room are combined so it is a very large space to cover.
 
Looks great, Tuffy! I especially like the blue color!
You should have seen the look on my cat's face as I was tilting my head sideways to look at the pictures. Cat started tilting his head too. LOL!

Today I did some more cleaning-- cats got into it in the pantry & there was fur & blood so I cleaned it up. I had some major cleanup with dishes after my brother cooked again. I had to clean the cooktop & area around as well as the pans. He ruined my newest induction pan by forgetting to turn the heat off & letting it keep burning something permanently into the pan & the pan warped. I will miss him a bit if he moves out, but I will not miss having to clean up after his messes. I was just thinking that if he moves out, we can consolidate to one refrigerator. Not sure if he would last long on his own though. He has no idea how much food he eats, how much electricity he uses, how much water he uses, etc. If he thinks he could keep a reliable roommate I think he's mistaken. He'd have to find someone who really enjoys cleaning & doesn't mind having to clean up after him, turn off lights, close doors, turn off stoves he forgot to turn off, etc.

Anyway, after cooking dinner & putting leftovers away, I decided to move the coffee table my brother threw out of his room & that has been blocking my bedroom door for a week. I asked him the day he put it out to move it to the front room but he refused. It wasn't as heavy as I thought so I moved it to the front room, then I realized it would fit perfectly next to the counter in the kitchen in a spot where a plastic bin was sticking out in the way. The bin had a laundry basket full of various kitchen items on top so I moved the basket on top of another bin and then hauled the bin to the front room and put the table next to the counter. I admit I just kicked the stuff on the floor out of the way rather than picking it all up, but I will pick it up in awhile (I know, procrastinating again). Stuff keeps getting knocked off the counter and had fallen behind the bin. I'm hoping stuff that falls will just land on the table and be easier to pick up.

I've noticed that the flooringforum is down- something to do with a server change & it says it will be up again "soon".
 
Ok. Flooring forum is up but you have to clear your cache to get it to load. Trying to figure out if Rusty can clear just the cache for that site bc he can't clear his entire cache without messing up stuff on his computer.
 
Since the new year started I've incorporated music back into my life after a too-long hiatus. Today I traded in my knockoff fretless Fender J bass at the Used Musical Instrument Store for a Kramer D-1. Super excited, can barely put the new bass down.

My fretless was beautiful and it has served me well for the past 16 years but I'm just not making a lot of jazzy music anymore; the Kramer will be much more fitting.
 
Maybe 3 or 4 years ago I bought a cheap $99 guitar from China (I think? or maybe South America?) because it had a Floyd Rose (licensed) trem system and a reverse headstock that I liked, and I planned on swapping out all the hardware and repainting it to really make it my own. Basically, the way I saw it I was buying a guitar body. I set it up when I first got it just to see how it played, and the frets were so sharp they stuck out and cut my hands. Then when I used the trem bar most of the strings popped out of the bridge. After that I got annoyed with it and put it on my rack.

Recently the sight of the mostly-stringless guitar sitting there gathering dust was really starting to bug me, so in other music news:

Today I took my time and filed down the frets until they weren't cutting my hands, and then I did a careful re-string. I figure I'll keep this one tuned to drop-D for heavy stuff and my other one in standard for non-heavy stuff.

I can't say it plays perfectly -- the action's a tad loose and high -- but the bridge is very close to level and I have to admit it's fun to play. Plus, I plugged it in (maybe for the first time??) and it sounds really nice, at least given the super-cheap pickups. I think I'll take it over my drummer friend's house tomorrow for a jam session.

0222201358-00.jpg
 
Looks cool, Flyover. I wish I had learned to play a musical instrument. My sister could play piano, violin, and recorder. My brother learned to play the clarinet, but it doesn't work so well with his COPD. I dabbled a little in playing with a little electric organ (toddler sized one) as a kid, but never really learned to fully play. I did take chorus though.

Right now I'm having stuffy nose & mucus crud-- not sure if it's allergies or just a cold. The cold rainy weather made me feel crappy. It's sunny today though.
 

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