"My mum always said if you copy other people you'll always be second rate. Just be yourself. There will always be people richer, younger, thinner or cleverer. It's a silly trip if you compare yourself with others."
-Susan Greenfield, Oxford-based neuroscientist
Friday, August 13, 2010
Quote: Susan Greenfield
"My mum always said if you copy other people you'll always be second rate. Just be yourself. There will always be people richer, younger, thinner or cleverer. It's a silly trip if you compare yourself with others."
-Susan Greenfield, Oxford-based neuroscientist
Friday, July 02, 2010
Canada Day: Trafalgar Square
There are a lot of Canadians in London
And on Canada Day they put on a big bash.
A big hockey rink and entire tournament with at least 8 teams played until the championships (mixed teams).
Most teams were sponsored by a Canadian company (ie: TD Bank).
The stands.
The Tim Hortons Stand had a long line up.
Buffalo wings, poutine, and bison burgers all for consumption.
First Nations dancing.
Everything was always interspersed with hockey.
Have your picture taken with a Mountie (and fake horse).
More hockey. In fact, hockey dominated the centre stage while I was there.
I realised being in a crowd of Canadians that a lot of them are beer drinking, hockey watching party-ers.
They even brought a skytrain.
One of the only places for shade in the square.
The fake horse gets moved by a group of volunteers. It makes you think a real horse might have been a bit easier.
Totem pole carving.
And of course the main stage. Sarah Harmer was one of the musicians.
The fountains seems to have a mist setting that sprayed over the crowds.
Back to the stage.
And on Canada Day they put on a big bash.
A big hockey rink and entire tournament with at least 8 teams played until the championships (mixed teams).
Most teams were sponsored by a Canadian company (ie: TD Bank).
The stands.
The Tim Hortons Stand had a long line up.
Buffalo wings, poutine, and bison burgers all for consumption.
First Nations dancing.
Everything was always interspersed with hockey.
Have your picture taken with a Mountie (and fake horse).
More hockey. In fact, hockey dominated the centre stage while I was there.
I realised being in a crowd of Canadians that a lot of them are beer drinking, hockey watching party-ers.
They even brought a skytrain.
One of the only places for shade in the square.
The fake horse gets moved by a group of volunteers. It makes you think a real horse might have been a bit easier.
Totem pole carving.
And of course the main stage. Sarah Harmer was one of the musicians.
The fountains seems to have a mist setting that sprayed over the crowds.
Back to the stage.
Thursday, July 01, 2010
The Extension is Now Enclosed
I don't post every day, because not always enough happens in one day. Here are several days accumulated...
The roof was framed and we had ordered natural Spanish slate which will last a life time...or at least 100 years we are told. And what should we do after the 100 years, I ask?
And finally it is finished. The roofers will have to come back to fit a few vents in the roof at some point...for the kitchen extractor and the bathroom fan. The skylights have been put in too...they all open!
A close up of the character slate. The other option was man made slate, which is very plain (and lasts 10 years).
From the inside it looks pretty good. The ends of the walls just have to built up to enclose it.
Our brickie fixed my window sill gaff. Above is the before picture.
And here is the finished cement sill. We love it better than if I had ordered the plastic sill with the window.
Now the wall is built up to the roof line.
And the other side.
The view from the far wall.
And to give you a before and after...Here is the before...
And here is the after. The only thing that will change on the outside is the guttering and a few vents. Yay, we love it!
Next...the plumber and electrician are starting their work and then the whole thing will be plastered.
The roof was framed and we had ordered natural Spanish slate which will last a life time...or at least 100 years we are told. And what should we do after the 100 years, I ask?
And finally it is finished. The roofers will have to come back to fit a few vents in the roof at some point...for the kitchen extractor and the bathroom fan. The skylights have been put in too...they all open!
A close up of the character slate. The other option was man made slate, which is very plain (and lasts 10 years).
From the inside it looks pretty good. The ends of the walls just have to built up to enclose it.
Our brickie fixed my window sill gaff. Above is the before picture.
And here is the finished cement sill. We love it better than if I had ordered the plastic sill with the window.
Now the wall is built up to the roof line.
And the other side.
The view from the far wall.
And to give you a before and after...Here is the before...
And here is the after. The only thing that will change on the outside is the guttering and a few vents. Yay, we love it!
Next...the plumber and electrician are starting their work and then the whole thing will be plastered.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
The Building Carries On
This building thing does get tiring. The excitement is soon replaced by the realisation that no matter how good your builders are they always want to cut corners and you always have to keep on top of things to make sure it is going the way you want it to.
Above the beam is finally in place. You can see the bricks that have been knocked out above the beam to fit the beam in.
Here you see the gaps have been filled with whatever size block fits.
It is bolted at all four corners. (Didn't anyone check the angles with a square?)
The bottom of the beam drops into the floor.
The beam in the floor is surrounded by blue plastic damp proofing and ready for cement.
And here it is all cemented!
Now we have the roof rafters framed and the 3 skylights outlined.
Oh, it is going to be nice. I am really still excited when I look at these things.
The skylights sit waiting.
Tomorrow the roofers arrive to put the Spanish slate roof on.
All was going well until someone connected the bathroom fan with the kitchen extractor fan. Uh, boys? I want to smell pooh when I cook as much as I want to smell curry when I pooh. (That's an original Michal quote if you think I got it from somewhere else. Ha!). I found myself up in the middle of the night brushing up on my ducting. Then I just called my dad to ask him.
They are starting to box in the beam and pipe work too. The panel with all the piping will have a removable panel so that we can access it when we redo the upstairs bathroom. Drainage pipes run along the outside of the brick wall and then down the large grey sewage exterior that you can see above. (notice the kitchen and bathroom hoses have been separated now)
And because I like the builders and do really think they are good (and maybe even softies at heart), here is a picture of the two cement window sills that they got to correct my mistake on the window order.
Above the beam is finally in place. You can see the bricks that have been knocked out above the beam to fit the beam in.
Here you see the gaps have been filled with whatever size block fits.
It is bolted at all four corners. (Didn't anyone check the angles with a square?)
The bottom of the beam drops into the floor.
The beam in the floor is surrounded by blue plastic damp proofing and ready for cement.
And here it is all cemented!
Now we have the roof rafters framed and the 3 skylights outlined.
Oh, it is going to be nice. I am really still excited when I look at these things.
The skylights sit waiting.
Tomorrow the roofers arrive to put the Spanish slate roof on.
All was going well until someone connected the bathroom fan with the kitchen extractor fan. Uh, boys? I want to smell pooh when I cook as much as I want to smell curry when I pooh. (That's an original Michal quote if you think I got it from somewhere else. Ha!). I found myself up in the middle of the night brushing up on my ducting. Then I just called my dad to ask him.
They are starting to box in the beam and pipe work too. The panel with all the piping will have a removable panel so that we can access it when we redo the upstairs bathroom. Drainage pipes run along the outside of the brick wall and then down the large grey sewage exterior that you can see above. (notice the kitchen and bathroom hoses have been separated now)
And because I like the builders and do really think they are good (and maybe even softies at heart), here is a picture of the two cement window sills that they got to correct my mistake on the window order.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Sash Windows, French Doors, and Steel: Sorted!
Today was such a crazy day with different trades coming that I couldn't go into the studio.
The windows installers tiptoed around the builder's all day in order to install our French doors and triple sash kitchen window.
The builders were busy installing the steel box frame and tiptoeing around the window installers, careful not to damage the windows. I was following the builder around asking him constant questions in order to clarify what I wanted, what he was doing, and at what point to call in the other trades.
One mistake I made along the line was in ordering the above window. The window company asked me if they were to include seals or not. I had no idea. I asked the builder who didn't know what I was talking about. I went back to the window company and said I didn't know...but that the builders just gave me the dimensions of the opening and this is what they were.
And this is the resulting mistake. Note the bottom of the window. No SILLS! In the British accent I obviously can't tell if someone is saying "seal" or "sill". It never occurred to me to think "sill" because I have never installed windows before. I guess the window company just decided on no sills on the window on my behalf.
This is the sill that comes with the window if you don't have one on the house.
These are the concrete sills that are original and previously built in. We ended up with no sills on anything. So what happens now? Well, we either get new windows or have the bricklayer painstakingly chip out a layer of bricks and put in a concrete sill. A costly mistake. The builders told me if ever I was unsure again to call them any time to ask a question. "It is better to take a bit more time and make sure to do it right the first time," they told me. Yeah, but I was sure they said "seal".
And here is the box frame steel in white that was finished being installed today. It goes down both side walls through the floor and above to hold up the back brick wall.
A view of the other side of the steel.
All in all, the results are looking pretty good.
To recap, this is how it started...
And this is where we are at so far. This next week going in is a natural black slate roof with 3 skylights that will slant up to under the upper windows. It should look beautiful! Stay tuned...
The windows installers tiptoed around the builder's all day in order to install our French doors and triple sash kitchen window.
The builders were busy installing the steel box frame and tiptoeing around the window installers, careful not to damage the windows. I was following the builder around asking him constant questions in order to clarify what I wanted, what he was doing, and at what point to call in the other trades.
One mistake I made along the line was in ordering the above window. The window company asked me if they were to include seals or not. I had no idea. I asked the builder who didn't know what I was talking about. I went back to the window company and said I didn't know...but that the builders just gave me the dimensions of the opening and this is what they were.
And this is the resulting mistake. Note the bottom of the window. No SILLS! In the British accent I obviously can't tell if someone is saying "seal" or "sill". It never occurred to me to think "sill" because I have never installed windows before. I guess the window company just decided on no sills on the window on my behalf.
This is the sill that comes with the window if you don't have one on the house.
These are the concrete sills that are original and previously built in. We ended up with no sills on anything. So what happens now? Well, we either get new windows or have the bricklayer painstakingly chip out a layer of bricks and put in a concrete sill. A costly mistake. The builders told me if ever I was unsure again to call them any time to ask a question. "It is better to take a bit more time and make sure to do it right the first time," they told me. Yeah, but I was sure they said "seal".
And here is the box frame steel in white that was finished being installed today. It goes down both side walls through the floor and above to hold up the back brick wall.
A view of the other side of the steel.
All in all, the results are looking pretty good.
To recap, this is how it started...
And this is where we are at so far. This next week going in is a natural black slate roof with 3 skylights that will slant up to under the upper windows. It should look beautiful! Stay tuned...
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