10074. wabbit - 6/28/2004 10:10:26 AM Happy birthday, Abs!
And Arky, enjoy your vacation! 10075. arkymalarky - 6/28/2004 10:14:00 AM Thanks Wabbit! I'm already basking in the prospect of it, now that my local obligations have been taken care of. I actually like packing--kind of like Mole in Wind in the Willows, it beats the hell out of unpacking. 10076. alistairConnor - 6/28/2004 7:52:41 PM Spent most of the weekend laying tiles in the stable -- that has been my main pastime all spring, it seems.
When I called the tiler a few months ago, and described the job to him, he said it sounded like ten days' work, and maybe November.
So I realised I had to do it myself. I might have found another tiler, but not one I trusted, and a ten-day job is a big budget. And there's nothing very complicated about it.
So everything else has been on hold, and I've been laying tiles most weekends.
Laying big (33cm square) ceramic tiles on a concrete slab is the easiest thing in the world, or it would be with a rectangular room with no obstacles.... The stable is an interesting room, with an island kitchen, bathroom, ancient stone walls, and seven pillars holding the roof up. These pillars, actually tree trunks, are sitting on river stones which emerge from the concrete slab.
Plenty of work, artistic curves with a diamond disc. 10077. Macnas - 6/28/2004 8:36:13 PM Is the floor level? 10078. alistairConnor - 6/28/2004 9:46:12 PM Pretty much. It's that fancy self-levelling concrete, you just pump it in through a hose and leave it to set. In practice, this gives you a surface of poor quality, compared to a properly screeded, trowelled, etc slab, but it's fine for laying tiles on. Except for a few lumps where the cat nearly drowned in it etc. 10079. Macnas - 6/28/2004 10:31:44 PM I'd bet it took a ton of the stuff.
Are you putting down plain tiles or patterned? I've always liked black and white. 10080. PelleNilsson - 6/29/2004 12:55:11 AM Last year I missed Judith's birthday and I don't want to do it again, so congratulations Judith! I don't remember the exact date, only that you were born a couple of weeks before me. 10081. arkymalarky - 6/29/2004 1:29:45 AM Her birthday's May 4, so I think you missed it again. ;-)
I would love to live in a stable like that, Alistair. Sounds like a really great room. 10082. arkymalarky - 6/29/2004 1:30:34 AM And if it's your birthday, happy birthday! 10083. Macnas - 6/29/2004 1:31:46 AM Y'all have a good time on holiday Arky. 10084. arkymalarky - 6/29/2004 1:33:51 AM Thanks Mac, we're really looking forward to it. 10085. PelleNilsson - 6/29/2004 1:42:29 AM Damn 10086. Absensia - 6/29/2004 2:03:57 AM Late Happy Birthday to Judith and early (?) Happy Birthday to Pelle. 10087. PelleNilsson - 6/29/2004 2:05:46 AM And the same to you PinkyLegs! 10088. judithathome - 6/29/2004 2:08:42 AM Pelle, didn't you get the memo? My birthdays have ceased to exist. By personal edict.
But Happpy Day to you, if it's anywhere near. 10089. iiibbb - 6/29/2004 2:51:32 AM Almost there...
Gave my final edits to my prof's secretary for her to do the final tweaks before submitting it to the grad school. She'll take care of all the annoying stuff for a mere $10/hr so I'm all over that like a fly on stink. She said it'll take 2 to 3 hrs. I'm going to give her $50 if she does it in less than 5. What a godsend. Not every grad student I know has secretaries this nice. 10090. judithathome - 6/29/2004 8:03:04 AM My god, Anderson Cooper is already on and not one post in the Mote since 2:44pm. 10091. Magoseph - 6/29/2004 9:30:12 AM That's terrible, Juds. Where is everybody? I can tell you where I was all afternoon--I was reading "My Life" happily in the sun under a rare deep blue sky (in these parts) sipping a mango-champagne drink. 10092. Absensia - 6/29/2004 1:53:57 PM Sounds lovely Magos. Maybe if I'd been drinking a champagne drink, I would have enjoyed the book more, but I'm not giving up on it. 10093. alistairConnor - 6/29/2004 5:19:50 PM Mango-champagne? Sacrilège!! Kir royal de mes deux!
Speaking of champagne. Actually, we had an office bash on Monday, to celebrate our certification : yes we are stark raving certifiable Quality, here. ISO 9001 version 2000, for whatever it is we're supposed to do.
The petits fours were definitely quality. The champagne, frankly, was not. I would have welcomed some mango juice in it, and believe me I do not say this lightly.
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