Nearly Dry

A couple of views from the entry to the property. In the second shot you can just see the joists which will form the subfloor for the loft. The loft will actually have nearly double the usable space we originally thought from looking at the drawings, extending over the master bath as well as the master closet. Instead of it just being a place for nieces to 'camp' or for us to quietly read, it will now be able to serve those functions and also be an office for Ellen, if she wants to use it for that. Since it was so large, I suggested to the builder that we make it a public loft by building the stairs from the hallway instead of the master bedroom. He pointed to a significant structural element in the way, proving that's why he does what he does, and I do what I do.

The internal framing for the north end (master bedroom) of the house is done. You can see the footprint of the rooms, from the great room through to our sleeping area. The rooms run from reasonably sized to very small, since most of the square footage is devoted to the open spaces of the living/dining/kitchen area. All in all, I believe it will be a comfortable place for you to visit and for us to live.

With respect to yesterday's post, I caught flak from Ellen over it. "I thought you were joking until I realized you were serious," was one of her remarks. "You're goofy," was another. She claimed Jim's interview was about green building, not us. Not so, grasshopper. I talked to Jim today and he confirmed the interview was about this house specifically, and maybe green building in general. I wished him luck and hoped it would generate a lot of business for him. I then told him not to share the address on the air. "Oh. okay, I'll just say in the Krakow area" was his reply, so perhaps we'll escape the downsides I had feared. Frankly, even if he did air the address, it's unlikely we'd have a visitor. Soetebier Dr does not appear on any map, because it's a private lane. GPS systems, Mapquest and Google Maps are useless too. You'll need directions from us before you visit, but it's really easy to find.

Ellen's leaving for Peoria tomorrow to attend the initiation of the daughter of one her friends into the same sorority at Bradley U. that she had joined. There will be a celebration to follow, and no, I don't wanna know about it. What happens in Peoria stays in Peoria, making it the Vegas of the Midwest. She'll also pick up the window Mom made. I'm extremely busy at work right now, and very thankful for it, so the next update will be sometime on Saturday. Check back this weekend!