Bam, Bam on the Chimney

We decided to spend some of the weekend tearing down more of the chimney. We conquered what might have proven to be the most difficult demolition task as we removed the chimney through the finished part of th e house without destroying any of the walls that cased it in.

Doing so required some interesting techniques, like pictured below where I would climb in the wall to demolish the row of cement that I was standing on.


Once we had gotten that as low as we could (until I couldn't bend my knees out through the studs anymore) we had 5 rows of cement (roughly 225 lbs. or so) of blocks still remaining before we reached the opening in the basement.

With one person swinging, one protecting the furnace, and one grimmacing upstairs as we grunted and yelled, we managed to get the 5 rows down with a controlled fall one row at a time.

We were impressed we didn't break apart anything we weren't supposed to, namely our furnace or our bodies, and once we reached the opening in the basement we decided to quit, knowing that the remaining part of the chimney should be relatively easy to remove.

Screwy Names, Correct Directions

Jenny and I set out this afternoon to unload what ended up being 660 pounds worth of bricks and chimney pieces that we have dismantled as we have begun work on the attic.

I looked up directions to the dumpsite in Maple Grove that would take the material and we loaded the truck and set out.

After following the directions we found ourselves miles from where we should have been looking for where we needed to go, just to call and get directions from our brother-in-law to how the internet screwed up our directions.

He gave us the proper directions to the Maple Grove Transfer Center (called that on the signs in their parking lot) where we pulled up and the lady told us they would not accept our bricks. She then gave us a brochure with a list of places that would accept our bricks and recommended that the one that appeared the closest was the Maple Grove Transfer Center. Again, the name of the place we were at, yet also the name of the place we should go, that is different and about a mile away.

The mile away was precisely where the internet directions had lead us, we just looked at the wrong side of the road at some of the coolest machinery when we drove by the first time, instead of for the small area (not the large dump we had pictured) that was across the street.

660 lbs. and a few dollars lighter, we left to go home, after all of the screwy names and numerous sets of correct directions.

5 Hours Later

I sent my father up onto the roof of my house today. He wasn't allowed to come down for 5 hours.

He drank roughly 160 oz. of water while he was up there.

I was in the midst of running things up to him, taking things down from him, and working below him in the attic.

Amazingly, the attic was stuffier, hotter and more uncomfortable than the top of the roof.

There is no longer a chimney sticking out the roof of our house, nor is there a whole where the chimney used to be. One patch and a couple shingles later, the roof is as functional as we ever want it, and we shouldn't have to go back up on it again. Ever.

All that work, and we never had gushing blood, though a large piece of chimney did drop onto my foot after removing it from the chimney with a sledge hammer.

I Need to Go to the Bathroom (a joint blogger edition)

31 Diet Pepsis - $12ish
24 IBC Root Beers - $8ish
2 Gallons of Lemonade - $1ish
36 Packages of Famous Amos Cookies $7ish
24 Gatorades $7ish
6 Meals at Subway $100ish
3 Afternoons at Panera $90ish
2 Trips to Buffalo Wild Wings $160ish
1 Full Jar of Home Depot Receipts $More than I can put on my hands (ish)
Jenny's New Bathroom - Priceless



It wasn't always clear to Nate that we needed a new bathroom, but I think this evidence will suffice, our former shower wall:

And notice the attractive "custom" vanity with shell shaped sink:

There wasn't always a lot of standing room between the counter and tub:

So it became time to tear the place down. We figured that re-using much of anything wouldn't have been worth it, so the room was taken down to the studs. Jenny did not stop smiling with the hammer in her hands:
We even convinced other grunt workers to show up and be our muscle:

Though demo took us longer than we would have hoped, and cut our hands more than we would have thought, we did get to start making it look like a room again (We were especially proud to get all the correct holes in the correct places on this piece with only 1 try):

And after more labor, we had the entire room covered in either backer-board or drywall:

So we put Jenny to work hanging new tile in her new shower:

But she got too bossy, so we made her cut her own pieces:
After finishing the shower, it was time to tile the floor:

Apparently, that is all it takes to make a new bathroom. Random new bathroom pictures below.

The shell wall replacement with new custom recessed inserts:

View from the doorway:
Still the doorway, but a view that shows the new cabinet system better:

The fun diamond pattern on the floor:

And, another shower wall, to compare this time:

We love the new bathroom. We are indebted to all who helped, but most to Dad Kemper who spent tireless weekends and countless evenings giving up his time and energy to come make us happy. We realized the first time we tried working without him, that we would not have created anything worth taking a picture of without his help.

We figured we would honor him the best way we new how in this post, we refrained from posting any of the embarassing pictures we had of him in the bathroom, whether bent over or hung over.

More Bathroom Work

Nearing the end.

Long pictorial post coming soon.

Starting to Take Shape

The bathroom is starting to look like a bathroom again.

Tiles projected to start going on the wall on Sunday.

No energy!

Pictures of process after it is finished.

Away From Home

The Bathroom project has been going strong for the last two days.

We aren't staying at home right now, just going there to work.

Won't have significant blog until I find significant energy!

A Little Like My Father

Jenny and I took apart some of the cabinets in our bathroom tonight. As we did so, we took of all the hinges and put them in a bag. We even saved the screws.

As I laid in the bathtub later, it dawned on me that such an act is something I have inherited from my father. I can't imagine that I will ever use those screws. I can't even think of a reason I would need the hinges. But we have them. In a bag.

The worst part is, if we do ever decide we need them or want to use them, we won't be able to remember where the bag is. We'll buy new screws, or new hinges, use them, and then as we find the old ones at a later date, we may still refuse to throw them away.

Why oh why do we still have these screws and hinges?

The $24 Crack

Jenny and I went to Home Depot tonight looking at materials for a bathroom project we hope to undertake in April.

We found the piece we want our sink to stand on, and the sink itself as a "this item only" price for a display model. It was the last one in the store. We decided we would get it, and then noticed the smallest crack on the corner of the sink. They had one more sink piece in stock (it was the last stand), and that crack ended up costing us an extra $24 as we looked to get the flawless one.

Overall, we were happy. Jenny enjoyed walking out of the store with a smile.

Photo Finish (a guest blogger edition)

Well, the time has finally arrived. Decisions have been made, photos have been printed and the framed product has been hung upon the wall. I must admit that no one was really capable of guessing all three photos that I eventually chose. One photo wasn't quite working the way I had hoped, so I added a new one into the mix. I created another one using a picture I had never shown before. Sorry.

Okay, here are the photos I chose and then a picture of them on the kitchen wall (the mattes I used are square so the signature is where it would show in the bottom right corner):

Some Decisions Take Time (a guest blogger edition)

It's time for all you readers to make your best guesses about what I decided about pictures for the kitchen wall. Did I choose the blue laterns (Nate's anti-favorite)? Or the red garden pot? Or maybe the yellow bucket? Though I have made some decisions, I have not yet hung them on the wall.

A prize will be awarded to the person who can guess what 3 pictures I chose, or get the closest. The winner will receive a copy of one picture of his or her choice. So go ahead, and make your guesses carefully (exclusions apply: anyone who was part of the decision making process and/or who has been informed of the decision is not eligible for contest prizes).

Do you really want a great picture taken by an up and coming artist, but you're not sure you can make a winning guess? Not a problem. Anyone can receive a copy of the photo of your choice simply by making a donation to World Servants (donations can be made online by clicking here, I will contact you about details on receiving your photo).

Click here to see the post with the photos up for discussion and to see others' votes.