Piers appeared. Somehow the inspector slipped on and off our property without being seen, as usual. And then one day, the outline of a porch magically appeared. We have floor joists! As my sister said, though, “Don’t go fixing a drink and trying to sit out there.” It was so exciting, but then I got a call from Greg, and he was on his way to see me.
He arrived with news. He was on his way to a seminar in Las Vegas, but fear not, he would be in constant contact. However, while he was gone, “the guys” were going to remove the bay window. What? I reminded him that he had said that they would frame up and seal in the new outer wall before removing the current wall. Well, apparently the county inspector does not approve of that logical way of doing things. Before they can begin to frame up the walls, all of the floor must be approved, and since the bay juts out into the new floor, it has to be removed so that the new floor joists can be installed and inspected before framing begins.
This is what my kitchen looked like with the bay window:
This is what my kitchen looked like without the bay window:
This is what passes as an acceptable temporary back wall:
On Friday morning, this government worker was home for Veteran’s Day, and it was 36 degrees outside. The heat was running and running, and although I had on a flannel nightgown, robe, and thick, wooly socks, I was freezing. David tried to light the fireplace, but of course, we were out of propane. While he worked on borrowing a pickup truck to refill the propane tank, I called Greg and left a message offering the opinion that a thin sheet of plywood is fairly useless when it’s this cold, and why are there no workers here on this bright, sunshiny day? Turns out that he was home from his seminar, and although he was quite jetlagged, he showed up in no time with insulation. David showed up with propane at about the same time, and now we are snug as can be in our startlingly ugly kitchen.
I’ve been told that the termite guy has also treated the two new areas and left his paper in the inspection box. It’s a little unnerving how many people are coming and going without our ever noticing them. David is home most of the time, but he never sees them!
Monday morning, I’ve been promised, will be the start of framing. Thank goodness, since our kitchen table and chairs are in the middle of the living room. In the meantime, the bay window is for sale!
The Reader Writes 