Archive for June, 2007

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SomeThing new for the blog

Thursday, June 7th, 2007 by HML

Understandably, “Thing” is a loaded term at GimletBlog, so first we must state that there is no Thing Three on the way. (Thing Two is very relieved.) Today we’re introducing LibraryThing to the blog sidebar! As per their web site description, LibraryThing helps bibliophiles create an on-line catalog of their books. Users can meet and connect with like-minded collectors; read, write, and share reviews; receive reading recommendations, and more.

Click on a book cover to see its Amazon.com page. A random set of book covers from the GimletLibrary is generated each time you visit the blog (or refresh your web browser). Click on the words “my library” to browse through the our library, and scroll waaaay down the sidebar to the pink LibraryThing button to view Team Gimlet’s LibraryThing profile.

Thanks to Linda for introducing us to LibraryThing, and we hope to see you (and your books) there!

Posted in housekeeping, surf | Comments Off

Vancouver in October: how delightful!

Wednesday, June 6th, 2007 by HML

Discovering Emma in VancouverThis year’s JASNA Annual General Meeting will take place early October in Vancouver, British Columbia. The theme is “Discovering Emma in Vancouver.” See JASNA’s web site for registration information, a list of lectures and tours, and more. British Columbia is one of Team Gimlet’s favorite (and easily accessible) getaways: our touristy plans include Granville Island, the UBC Museum of Anthropology, and at least one lunch at Mr. Pickwick’s. This will be my first JASNA AGM: with true newbie enthusiasm, the daily programs look very interesting and enough to stay busy. I’m also eager to meet other Janeites. New York City proved to be a large enough town to handle a pair of rabid Northanger Abbey fans, but will Vancouver be up to the challenge? (more…)

Related posts:

Cleans up nice
We've been invaded
What, no barrel roll?

Posted in jane austen, surf, travel | 1 Comment »

Basement, part eight: Halfway complete

Wednesday, June 6th, 2007 by HML

Painting the west bedroomThe west bedroom, hallway, and workroom are painted and the finish electrical work and duct covers have been installed — that’s nearly half the basement! We’ll share photos once the wood trim, doors, and carpet are in place, but for now there’s a lot of satisfaction to see real rooms where there was nothing before.

After an admiration break, it was time to clean out the family room so it can receive the same treatment. Building supplies were moved into the finished bedroom while tools and other storage items took their proper place in the work room. We had hoped to include the east bedroom in this mudding/taping phase, but all this moving around has proven that we still have a lot of extra stuff we’re not using. Hence, the room looks like a garage sale about to happen: full of items destined for the thrift store. It also took a fair amount of time to clean the dried mud off the floors: the how-to book promised easy and quick removal, but it took a lot of scrubbing.

First coat completeAfter covering the new fireplace and bar cabinets with protective sheeting (the cabinets are too large to be moved or stored elsewhere), The Gimlet donned his now very crusty mudding clothes (not to be confused with his equally crusty painting clothes) and got to work. Thanks to his previous experience, this first coat of mud and tape went up in a little over one day, and he was able to apply the first layer to the staircase as well.

Game on, Kibbles.The basement staircase has been stubbornly grungy since we first moved in. We assumed the walls could be washed and a fresh coat of paint would solve the problem. But as The Gimlet scrubbed, a familiar brown, sticky stain bloomed: the nicotine he remembered and hated from the first floor remodel. So like any good B-movie hero, The Gimlet brought the atomics KILZ back out of retirement the debris pile and he’ll be painting the staircase with that highly effective, but sometimes hallucinogenic, oil-based primer. Should be a treat.

After the family room and staircase are painted and the finish electrical installed, the east bedroom gets its turn next. The laundry room, with all its odd corners and packed floor-to-ceiling with storage, will be the last room to be finished. Then we’ll paint and install the wood trim and doors and lay the carpet. More houseguests are due to arrive in early September; at the risk of jinxing the project, we’re hoping to have a completed basement well before then.

If all this were not enough, while waiting for the paint to dry, The Gimlet installed a new light fixture in the dining room. :D

Related posts:

Plumbing, epilogue: Retrench!
Basement, part ten: Shim and trim
Wrapped in plastic

Posted in projects | Comments Off

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