Why I Oughta...

The plumber was waiting on the arrival of our shower base because he wanted to do all of the rough work with pvc and copper in one visit.   Because of the size/shape of our bathroom, the shower is an odd shape and therefore this shower base was a special order unit from Menards.  I picked it up in the store recently and (thankfully!) it fit perfectly.  The carpenters hit the marks perfectly. That means the plumber can get started and bang out all the plumbing asap. But...there's always *something*, right?  Well...when I opened the box for the shower, there isn't a drain.  So, I'm guessing the plumber will have a problem with getting this done.  He's set to be finished by the weekend and the drywall guys are starting on Monday.

We went out to Chili's recently and were greeted with a neat piece of technology on our table.  Or at least, on the surface it seemed neat.  Promising to eliminate the ' worst part of dining out - the inability to pay your bill and leave when you are ready ', these Ziosk displays are supposed to allow you to order, pay your bill and even entertain you while you eat/wait. Unfortunately, when we arrived, our device was frozen.  Then, it went through the boot process and we were stuck with this screen for 10 minutes. When it finally started up, The Babe enjoyed the Puss-n-Boots movie trailer.  So, I guess you could say that it was a success.  Though, we didn't get to pay with it.  Maybe next time.

If there is one truism during construction it has to be:  "There's always something." Things pop up and slow you down (and cost you more money) all the time and this basement job is no different.  This specific instance is this odd configuration of gas pipes.  The plumber tells me that this rig was in place because (back in the day) gas meters were once hung in the basement.  Inside. This is the remains of that configuration and the plumber who installed our fireplaces upstairs took a bit of a shortcut and never took this out. It is going this week, but not before costing me a few days.  The plan was to get the drywall hung this week, but that is looking less and less likely.  Still have to plumb the bathroom/fireplace, insulate and have the carpenters come back to build one more soffit.

Before we got on a plane to come back home this weekend, the entire Moran Clan wandered into In-N-Out Burger for a quick meal.  Of course, I couldn't help myself and geeked out with a series of "Secret Menu" items .  In fact, the only thing that I ordered that is *on* the menu is the Diet Coke. We had 2 Grilled Cheeses, a Double-Double "Animal-Style", our french fries "Well Done", a Diet Coke, and a Root Beer Float.   If you know where the Babe's blog is located, you can head over there to see some photos of her enjoying her first In-N-Out experience!

Late last week, before it went off sale, I went over the Menards (my favorite place!) and picked us up a new toilet for the basement bathroom.  With my dad's help, I settled on the Titan 4 from Eljer - which I think is a Menards exclusive.  I'm a little embarrassed to say that I got the "Tall Elongated" version - because my dad bought the two toilets for our house when we were in the midst of construction and they happened to be "Tall Elongated".  I grew up with "Elongated" - which gives you a bit more room than the tradtional "Round", but we certainly didn't have "Tall" toilets back in the day.  As you can see from above, the "Tall" version is ADA approved - and it has a bit of a throne feeling.  I kinda like it! But...the real reason for the Titan?  It is a 10 out of 10 in "Flush Power".  Nice.

2 of my nephews won their "Super Bowl" games in their Pop Warner leagues last week and to celebrate, I took them out for a meal.  I think the straws were the biggest hit. Hopefully, one of them will develop into a kicker soon.

Well...actually this picture is of a return, but you get the point.  The ductwork for heating and cooling the basement is *mostly* in the new furnace is helping heat the space up nicely. Down to 3 things to do before the drywall:  plumbing, insulation, and cable tv wires.