Yikes! Better Get Those Stimulus Checks Out!

. . . and then this afternoon, the main story was this:

99-Cent Store Cooking

Et nobis?

These were the top two news stories on Yahoo! this morning:

When You Should Expect Your Tax Rebate Check

and

Celebs Take A Spill On Dancing With The Stars

Can anyone say “Bread and Circuses?”

Hot Enough?

I’ve heard people say that Los Angeles has no seasons. Those people have never lived in Los Angeles.

We have seasons.

We have Awards Season

We have the Bowl Season

We have Fire Season

and we have the Holiday Shopping Season

And in between each season there are subtle changes in weather.

Or not so subtle.

For example, last Friday was pleasantly perfect. Yesterday it was ridiculously hot, somewhere in the 90’s. And as I type this it is 93 degrees outside.

And it’s only mid-April.

Of course, as soon as we take the comforter off the bed, the nighttime temperature will drop by 20 degrees. It’s a little game we play with the gods every year. They always win.

I’ve started taking more frequent walks in my neighborhood. The problem is that I am not an early riser and by the time I manage to drag my lazy self out onto the pavement it is already up into the high 80’s.

Oooh, but what a pleasure it is to return to my cool, cool house. Way too many trees shade us on our eastern side but they are much appreciated on these days. And all the insulation recently stuffed into the walls and into the attic will really make a difference this summer, otherwise known as Hollywood Bowl Season.

I'm not a Fan of the Turbine Fan

K and I were talking about the whole house fan thing and why we don’t need one of those turbine-like fans on our roof. Apparently, back in 1909, houses were built with attics that were vented on two sides, allowing air to move freely. So air is drawn up into our attic and hot air is moved out through the open attic. Later, homes were made with sealed attics, thus necessitating the installation of the turbine fan.

I am in no way endorsing John McCaine, but sometimes older is better. And sometimes, way older is way better. I was fascinated by an article about sustainability in this month’s Dwell. (yes, I live in a Craftsman but with fantasies of a Modern.)

The article mentioned Windcatchers. I’m a theatre geek, not an engineering geek; I understand nothing about how anything works and I am rarely curious about the mechanics of things.

But I have to say, this Windcatcher thing was fascinating! The Windcatcher is a method of cooling used in ancient Persia. It's basically a ventilation shaft that takes advantage of natural air flow to control interior temperatures.

Wikipedia does a good job of explaining the concept here. But the May issue of Dwell, gives a good explanation without dwelling on the details, in an article on The Lighthouse, a model for sustainable architecture in the London area.

The system doesn't work in all environments. The conditions have to be right for air movement. But it did make me wonder why such simple and low tech temperature control methods would be abandoned in 20th century architecture. Was it all a conspiracy to sell turbine fans and air conditioning units?

Another Window! We're on a Roll!

As you'll recall, when we started, the kitchen window looked like this:

And yes, that is what my cabinets and counter top looked like. But I take responsibility for the color. Just a test.

This afternoon, it looked like this:

With a view like that, why would we even think of ordering opaque glass?

Here's the new Pella, ready and waiting for service

Because the new window is not as wide as the old one, a bit of framing on the side was required (it's because of the cows that we needed a smaller window. It will all make sense later. Trust me.)

The new window goes in . . .

A couple of pieces of plywood cover the new framing until drywall can be applied (oh no! not more dust!)

And the days of louvered windows letting dirt and dust into my kitchen are gone forever!

And in case you're wondering about the kitten, she returned from her bath more beautiful than ever:

But still not willing to stand still and pose for a nice, clear photograph:

A Window! Woo Hoo!

The 3 windows from Lowe's arrived on Thursday. K dragged them up all 17 steps from the street and one of them was put into place on Saturday.

This was the window space in the library back in November when the demolition began. I don't think I have a picture from prior to this. But believe me, it was not a pretty sight. The window was another ratty louvered one, with an a/c unit at the bottom that didn't quite fit - so they made up the difference with a board.

Here's the same space with the new drywall. Contrary to appearances, the ladder is not a permanent fixture.

K installs flashing.

This beauty awaits her debut.

I made a quick trip to Trader Joe's. By the time I returned, it was in!





Ta-da!

Grilles and screens are still in the box. Next up, the side-facing window for the living room and a window for the kitchen. We expect the two special windows that are coming directly from Pella to arrive this week.

Yay!

Kicking Up Dust

I've spent the past 4 days cleaning construction dust off of everything. It's not like it's such a big house but I'm very slow at cleaning and everything needed a wipedown, even the soles of all my shoes. And kitty doesn't know it yet, but she has an appointment for a bath on Sunday.

If you think she looks mad here, just wait until Sunday.

But the good news is that the worst has passed. The walls are all primed and ready for the next step. Several of the new windows have arrived and are waiting to be picked up.

Why were these louvered windows ever invented in the first place?

The glass block is up in the back entryway.

Safe from the prying eyes of the 2nd story tenants next door.

The fireplace is in and just waiting for a new, more curvaceous vent. The original straight one didn't reach the roof.

This pic is without the vent parts in place. The wooden box to the right is where the whole house fan will vent while providing a nice high perch for kitty.

The whole house fan is in. We just need to paint the ugly white vent that came with it.

Fan exposed

Fan with ugly vent

And the bottom step of the stairs no longer extends into the doorway of the bedroom!

The bottom step used to overlap the doorway by about 4 inches.

And, great news, K scored on a pair of beautiful, mahogany pocket doors! He found them at Santa Fe Wrecking Company http://www.santafewrecking.com/ and they're in excellent condition. That means no stripping, staining or sanding (for this project at least.)

Pic is door on it's side.

The doors were salvaged from a Craftsman in Pasadena that was torn down to build condos. Sad. But we're happy we can give them a good home.

And speaking of Pasadena, is anyone going to the Bungalow Heaven Home Tour on April 27th?