Kitchen Update

Here are some photos of the kitchen as of today, Halloween:

Baby Attila

Attila is starting to settle in--everyday he gets more comfortable and snuggly...and he definitely looks comfortable and snuggly here:

When It Rains It Pours

I'm beginning to feel like everything that could go wrong with our house, is going wrong with our house.

Of course, we completely opted in for the kitchen remodel mess (although we hadn't anticipated that James-the-Builder would fall through the floor and on through the ceiling in the finished part of the basement, thus neccessitating additional work to be done in the basement), but after one month it is getting pretty old.

Add to that, though, the sewer issue.  Thankfully, after getting a couple quotes and a referral, we were able to find "Gene's Water & Sewer" which seems like a professional, reasonably priced group.  They were planning on starting work yesterday, trenching up a section of our front yard, but the rainy weather complete with gale force winds, has delayed them and now they won't be able to start until Monday.

As if that wasn't enough, yesterday's gale force winds caused our fence to blow over.  This morning Ian and I were preparing to leave the house and I glanced out the window and said, "Oh look, the wind blew over a couple of the lawn chairs."  It took me a second to realize that the lawn chairs were the least of our problems, that three 5-foot sections of the fence were missing.

Ya gotta laugh...what else can you do?

Photos

Here is the kitche as of early last week.  I would love to say that it looks a lot different now but that just isn't true.  The wall are now painted gray and there is hardwood in about 3/4s of the kitchen area but that is all that's happened.

Here's Attila at the vet's office.  He's trying to hide but there just weren't any good cubby holes to crawl into and at almost 20 pounds, he would need a pretty big cubby to fit him.

Attila, Sewers, Kitchen Update, and Sad News

ATTILA

Attila is settling in and doing well.  He went to the vet the other day and got a clean bill of health although it was a traumatic experience for him.  He did not enjoy the car ride to the vet's (thankfully it is under a mile so I did not have to listen to his keening and moaning too long), then a big black dog charged him in the waiting room.  He was, of course, in his carrier and quite safe but it really scared him (and kind of scared me, too!) and the vet had a hard time calming him down.  The vet was fantastic, though, and in the end was able to check him out pretty thoroughly.  He weighs just under 20 pounds.

Everyday he gets a little more comfortable with us but he doesn't show much interest in leaving the laundry room just yet.  I think he's bored though and wants us to stay in the laundry room with him.  We tried to bring him into the den with us last night but the instant he had the opportunity he darted back down to the laundry room.

SEWERS

It appears that our clay sewer pick which goes from the house to the city line at the street has collapsed in a couple places and the the only way to fix it is to trench the front yard, dig up the old line and replace it with a nice new plastic one.  This whole procedure is going to start at $7,900 and will go up if they have to dig up the city sidewalk.  Criminy!  I probably am more interested in sewer systems than the next guy (I am the person who opted to visit the Paris sewer system over the impressionis art museum), but this is not what I want to spend $8,000 on.  We have been advised not to run the washer or dishwasher until we get it fix.  No problem with the dishwasher since we currently don't have a kitchen, much less a dishwasher, and it looks like we will be using the laundromat this week. 

KITCHEN UPDATE

The hardwood flooring guys are ever-so-slowly installing the flooring and if they ever finish the installation, then they will sand and coat them, then cabinets will go in and things should move along quickly.  This week should be a big week.  The cabinets should go in, the appliances are being delivered, the counter guys will be out to measure, and we should be able to start moving some stuff back.  Once the cabinets are out of the living room, we should be able to regain some semblance of normalcy.

I primed and painted the ceiling yesterday and primed and put on the first coat of color on the walls - it's a lovely color (a blue-ish gray) but I might have to go one shade lighter...we'll see...

SAD NEWS

A friend of mine from high school, Stacey Chase, died last night from Creutzfelt-Jakob Disease (CJD).  It's a horrible, hopeless disease and the only good news is that from the time she first showed symptoms to the time she died was only about 2 months so at least she did not suffer long.  CJD is a prion disease and is basically the human form of Mad Cow Disease.  It is always fatal.  Stacey was a lovely person and while I did not keep in touch with her over the years, we were quite good friends in high school and she was a fun, funny, optimistic, smart, and kind person.  I feel very sorry for her husband, 11-year-old son, and family.

Attila the Honey

As everyone knows, Ian and I have been missing poor, departed Schnuffy, and we've been waiting for some cat that nobody else wanted to find us, and yesterday it happened!  We are now the proud adoptive parents of a MASSIVE cat who we have dubbed Attila.  He had been abandoned almost a year ago when his old owner died and he's been living outside since.  While his living conditions may have been sketchy, clearly his food source has been steady because this is no petite little kitty.  It turns out that several people in the neighborhood had been feeding him but nobody could commit to taking him in.

He seems quite sweet in a demanding, guarded sort of way.

Unfortunately, since the house is in turmoil since the kitchen is under construction he's locked in the laundry room and today, Mr Rooter is here to clear out the roots which have grown into the drains causing out drains to back up (yuck).  It is so loud here today, what with the hardwood flooring guy installing 3/4 inch hardwood up in the kitchen and the rooter-guy snaking the pipes here in the basement...poor Attila is probably thinking it was calmer out in the wild.

This is my boss!

Recently, the University of Minnesota started it's new advertising campaign, "Because", which builds upon the previous campaign, "Driven to Discover" which was my favorite but I digress.

One of the first researchers to be highlighted in the "Because" campaign is my boss, Massoud Amin, and his work in "Smart Grid" technologies. Here's the commercial with Massoud.

As a side note, the building where the commercial is shot is not actually the building which houses our offices - rather, it is the new Science Teaching and Student Services (STSS) building which happens to be where I teach my class.

Waiting for a Revolution

I just found this photo on my phone and I thought I would share.  Here's Ken and Mary Jo on a very hot (~100F) afternoon in historic Williamsburg, waiting for the revolutionary activities to begin.  Mock me if you must but I had a fantastic time in Williamsburg!

Playing with my new video camera - the truly beautiful view from my office

Ok...I've been doing research for a paper I'm writing for a conference and I feel like my brain is supersaturated so I'm taking a short break.  Here's the view from my office in the WBOB.  I've been telling everyone who will listen about what a strange place the WBOB is - I like to describe it as the "Land of Misfit Toys" since it is a random collection of University groups - and despite it's name, "West Bank Office Building," it is not actually on the West Bank--it is not actually on campus at all. 

Despite the general oddness of the building, my office is really quite nice and the view is AMAZING. 

Report on Day 2 of the Barker/Surprenant kitchen remodel

I am obsessed with the kitchen and it is all I have to talk about.  Here's where we were at about noon yesterday:

If you can, you'll need to rotate the film to see it upright - I haven't mastered the camera yet.  Since this was taken James has closed up the window...and of course, whatever he's done today.

At long last...kitchen renovation

To know me is to know that I am very skittish about spending big chunks of money (smaller amounts have never been a problems for me) so for years I have been wanting to renovate our kitchen but I just haven't been able to agree to forking over the money necessary.  Finally, this fall Ian was able to persuade me to go ahead and they started demo yesterday.

I am amazed at how much he was able to do in one day.  Gone is the wall between the kitchen and the dining room, gone are the cabinets, sink, range...everything!  Today he (James) is putting in the patio door in the dining room where there used to be a window.  He's got the opening cut out for it and I think it will be nice - the scale seems to fit the space. 

Everyone who has walked through post demo last night has commented on how small it seems.  I've been trying to remind myself that it will always be a small space - with or without the dining room wall - but, still, I was holding out hope that it would all miraculously expand.  I think it will be fine once things are put in place.  It is a little worrisome to consider how everything will come together.  In my mind, all the different components come together perfectly and the room looks fantastic...but what if, in reality, the different parts don't all fit/match/work together.  I guess we'll find out within the next couple weeks.

Ok...breaks over.  Back to work.

I say Florence, you say Firenze...

Florence is beautiful!  I have been wandering around like a mad woman trying to soak in as much as possible and I have the aching feet to prove it. 

The other day, I climbed the 414 steps to the top of the Bell Tower and was rewarded with stunning views of the city.  When I was here before, the city struck me as being nice but it was not this impressive and, to be honest, I didn't understand what all the fuss was about.  I preferred Verona to the crowds and tourist traps of Florence, but with this trip I finally get what everybody has been raving about.  While there are a lot of tourists here, it seems considerably less than my previous visit, and I think that makes a big difference.  Then, the weather is just a perfect backdrop.

After stumbling upon the most appalling meal imaginable in Milan, I have been extremely lucky in finding fantastic hole-in-the-wall places here in Florence. 

I've been looking for tiny, family-run places on hidden back alleys and so far they have been charming, friendly, and yummy.  I will say, though, that after a quarter-carafe of red wine with lunch, I need a little nap. 

Ciao Tutti!

After all the trials and tribulations of Sunday/Monday's travels, all is going very nicely now!  We arrived in Milan late on Monday and had a really full day yesterday.  In the morning we were at the Bocconi Universita and had a really interesting lecture on luxury brand marketing from one of the Bocconi's faculty members.  After that we took a break for lunch and then had a tour of Milan and saw the Sforza Castle, the Duomo, and the last supper.  All of which was very interesting. 

At the Sforza castle, I found this cat who reminded me of poor, dear, departed Schnuffy---except this one, besides being twice the size of Schnuffy, was probably an infinitely better cat.  Sure...other people travel to Italy and take pictures of the art and architecture, but I take pictures of stray cats...

I was intersted in the architecture of the castle--here at the main entrance of the castle I was curious about the cut-out in the wall just to the left of the entrance and as it turns out, there used to be a drawbridge which covered the entire entrance (where the giant plaque is now) and the mechanism to raise and lower it was housed in the cut-out.

Milan has spent the last three years cleaning the facade of the Duomo and it positively sparkles now--it's beautiful.  We did not go up to the top to walk among the spires yesterday but I am planning to next week when Ian arrives.

Then in the evening we strolled through the fashion district and stopped for "aperitivo" or happy hour at this strange little place called the "Colonial".  All in all a very good day.

This morning we were over at the Bocconi again for a tour of the campus and this afternoon we have off to explore on our own.  Many of the students have gone to Venice for the day and a few have gone up to Lake Como.

Well...I am off to do a little exploring and a little shopping!

This is not Milan

We have not quite gotten to Italy yet due to last night's eruption of the Icelandic volcano and the subsequent ash cloud. We were diverted to Paris (rather than AMS) and now we are waiting for our flight which will take us to Milan. Despite our sleep deprived state and the constant change in plans, our merry little group remains surprisingly merry! We should get into Milan at about 8pm.


Keep your fingers crossed that everything goes well with this next leg of the journey!

Backyard visitors

This morning, as I was drinking my coffee and staring out the window pondering how I was ever going to find the time to get caught up on my papers and readings for my two classes, when these two little guys came sailing over the fence for a bit of breakfast.  They hung around for about 10 minutes and then went in search of greener pastures...or more likely, Minnehaha Creek. 

I hope they come back tomorrow.

Nooooooo

I was walking to meet up with the students this afternoon and noticing that there were all sorts of bird feet tracks set in the concrete and I was wondering if there were wild turkeys in British Columbia because these were BIG bird feet tracks. After running into this guy, I have concluded that the trackster was not a wild turkey but rather a large, very tame peacock...or several of them.

They are beautiful and so tame that you can go right up to them.

I don't know what kind of call peacocks have but there is some bird here that has a very loud call that sounds like a human wailing, "Nooooooo". Quite eerie really.

British Columbia

Greetings from Victoria, BC! I am here this week with a group of students participating in the Royal Roads University Case Competition. Yesterday I flew into Vancouver and drove/ferried down to Victoria....yes, yes...I know I could have flown into Victoria but the ferry ride was beautiful and well worth the two hour extension to my travel plans.

Royal Roads University, which is hosting this case competition is strikingly beautiful. The campus is centered by "Hatley Castle" and is set on beautifully maintained, park-like grounds right on the water.

It must have about 12 students going here though for the campus and facilities are tiny. While I appreciate the quaintness and beauty of the campus, it does make me appreciate the vast resources available to us at the University of Minnesota.



The students are off prepping for their first presentation. I guess the way it works is that they are given a business situation, or case, and then have three hours to put together a plan. They then have 30 minutes to present their plan and they are judged on the qualitative and quantitative analysis, the viability of their proposal and their presentation skills. I have no contact with them while they are prepping but I will sit in on their presentation to provide them with feedback on how they did. There are three rounds of this and then a final round on Saturday. Reminds me of my old declamation days ; however, I certainly am not envious of the for this experience--seems stressful.

So far, my great contribution to this endeavor is that I went out and purchased paper, pens, highlighters, etc. for them this morning.

Thankfully, I am feeling better today. I was thinking that I was suffering from allergies but now I am wondering if it isn't just a good old-fashioned headcold--or at least a combination of the two. I was miserable on Tuesday night and all day yesterday and while I don't feel fully recovered by any means, I definitely feel better.

A Thing of Beauty and a Joy Forever

I'm talking about my laundry room. It still is not completely done but I have painted just about everything, and stored and organized most of it, so I feel it is ready for a virtual unveiling.

Unfortunately, I cannot locate any photos from the laundry room/basement in its original "raw" state but you can probably imagine: dirty white-painted concrete walls, a floor which had once been painted dark brown but most of the paint had worn away, spider webs everywhere, poor lighting, centipedes, and generally kind of dreary and scary.

Here is what it looks like now:


Here is the view as you enter the laundry room from the finished family room. The walls and floor are painted a color which is a shade lighter than the walls in the family room for a bit of brightness and continuity.









The workbench got re-organized, a new surface to the counter, and bins to organize junk.












Behind the bicycle are shelves for storage and everything is contained in a bin to keep bugs and moisture out and to look nice and tidy. Everything is labelled, of course.

















My beloved office. I have spent a lot of time here in the past few years since first starting my MOT program but it is really set up nicely for studying.











My desk with everything I need.


















Ian couldn't understand why I wanted a couch in my office but it's perfect for lounging while reading, or more honestly, for taking a nap when I should be reading. The bookcases behind the couch serve the dual purpose of storing all my school related books, plus forming a divider between my office and the laundry room part of the basement.







Here's the view from my office and back towards the laundry room. Note how nice and bright and non-scary it all looks!

Schnuffy Barker, R.I.P., ~1990 - 2010

Schnuffy died this morning after suffering from kidney failure. She'd been having problems for months but last Wednesday she took a decided turn for the worse. Ian and I spent the weekend with her, and it was sad to see her so changed from her usual self.

I know we said bad things about her at times over the last almost-five years---because there were lots of bad things to say about her---she was a kitty that came to us with "issues". But she had wonderful qualities also---it's hard to believe that a cat could love anyone more than Schnuffy loved me---and as Ian and I were saying on the way home from the vets this morning, she was a good cat for us--she was lucky have found us (because many would not have put up with her lesser qualities) but we were lucky to have found her as well.

I miss her.

Calling for volunteers

Not for a trip to hell as the cartoon might imply but rather to "hot" yoga. This Christmas Ian gave me a gift of 15 sessions at my favorite yoga studio and I am looking for volunteers to go with me in the first month or two until I get back into the routine of going.

I love yoga and I am really looking forward to getting back to it but right now I am pretty out of shape and I fear that I will get lazy and stop going. I am planning on going three times per week and ideally, I would be looking at either a Tuesday or Thursday night (7pm - 8:30pm) and then on Saturday and Sunday mornings (either the 8am or the 10am classes). In return for going with me, I would treat you to a beverage afterwards and the beautiful thing is that there are a ton of great bars and restaurants right by the yoga studio. Right across the parking lot is the Egg & I restaurant - great for brunch on the weekends, and within a block is the Herkimer, the VFW, and the BLB.

And trust me, you'll be thirsty afterwards. This is Bikram Yoga so it is 90 minutes of hard work in a room set at 105 degrees and 60+% humidity.

You can find more information at the website: http://www.bikramyogamn.com/