Brilliant!!

I just had a brilliant moment with my son. On my laptop I have the software ExamDiff Pro. It is used to "diff" two files. Meaning, you can use it to compare two pieces of software to find any and all differences in two files. I've never noticed it before, but the icon is an apple and an orange.

Do you get it? It is used to compare files and the icon is an apple and an orange....like the phrases commonly used "we have to make an apples to apples comparison" or "we're comparing apples and oranges here". He just made me realize the significance of the icon and I've been using the software for over 3 years. Brilliant!

stagnation

Holy smokes this thing has gone stagnant!!

Our time out here in California is going to slow our home projects down. One thing we'll be able to do is to take time and decide what we want to update outside. The homes here in our new neighborhood are so beautiful. Nearly 1 out of every 5 can go on the cover of a home renovation magazine, others....need some work.

I think we'll do something out back definitely, and maybe I can convince the wife for a pergola out front.

Missing my wife

I miss my wife and kids. And out of boredom I google "I miss my wife". I end up on you tube watching videos of women who miss their wives. I guess straight guys don't do that.

boot bench is finished

The boot bench is complete. Here are some pictures of the intermediate steps.

Here it is after 3 coats of stain.


X helped me break up the tile for the bottom shelf. He loved helping. Yes, I let my 2 year old swing my biggest hammer.


He also likes to tile. Guess which pieces he put down in the mortar?



Here it is after tiling.


Applying the grout.


Finished product.

boot bench

I've been working on a boot bench since March. At least that's when I printed these plans.
http://www.outdoorlife.com/articles/do-it-yourself/2007/09/boot-bench

I bought the wood in August or September, then did some cutting in October and then the bench got shelved for the previous 2 posts, among other things.

I modified the plans a bit. They tell you to buy a 36" stair tread and then cut off 1/3rd of it. Seems a bit silly to me, so I left it at 36". They also suggested using pine for the sides and base. I didn't like that idea so I went with red oak (because Home Depot offered red oak or pine stair treads) for the top and sides and pine for the base. I left the base pine because I thought it would be cool to use some leftover tile from our master bathroom project and use that instead. I figure that if we are going to put wet, snowy and dirty boots and shoes, why not make it something that a little more durable.


I got the tile idea from an art show we went to in Worthington over the summer. This guy did some awesome mosaics with mirrors and stands so I thought I could apply the mosaic idea here.


The above is where the mosaic will go.

The next step is to install filler plugs over all of the holes.

And I'm not going to paint it either. Red oak is expensive and to put paint on it would be a shame.

away in a manger

We put up our Christmas decorations Thanksgiving weekend. Amanda put up the nativity and said, "Gee, I wish we had a manger".

So last weekend I built this:


I used some leftover plywood for the base and sides and leftover masonite for the back and roof. I routered the base so the wisemen wouldn't cut their feet on the sharp edge.

garage storage solution

We needed to add some storage space to our garage to accomadate camping gear, kid stuff, strollers, tools and so on. I found an article that had some good suggestions and liked the angle bracket idea.
http://www.rd.com/easy-garage-storage-solutions/article17442.html

The angle brackets were the most expensive part. That was probably 85% of the total cost of the project. The hardest part was finding the studs in the walls. 16" on center, right? Sure.

The good news is we can still park both of our cars in the garage....for now.




Yup, that's the helicopter hung upside down in front of my parking spot.