Visit the 3rd Floor

This is a panorama of the third floor from taken from the pop-out window seat.  But, I'm not sure it gives you the best view.

I thought it might be fun to  put you in the middle of the room and let you look around.  Click and drag to scan the room.  There's an indicator of direction you're looking at the top left and zoom buttons.


Here's an option that gives you a larger window to view the entire third floor.  Just click on this LINK  to open a larger window to view the floor.

Of course the walls haven't been washed, the floor not sanded and stained, and there are no counters on the cabinets, but I can do another of these as things progress if you like it.

Progress Photos

the laser measure for the countertops

Window delivered and installed!

Window bench in the dinning area.

shelves in the 1/2 bath

Alese's office,  Note the shelf 

Laundry

Ray's office closet

Master closet annex

Textured, Sill-ed, and Cabinet-ed.

 There's the texture, but can't tell much about it from a photo.  Need that 3D viewer or a 3D printer.










Window sills are in place.




The transition from the top floor to the second is taking shape.

Interior doors have been delivered.

The bunk beds are starting to take shape.  We need to meet next week to talk about the ladder/steps to the upper bunks.

And the kitchen is taking shape.  Counter folks will be in next week to measure for the counters

Drywall Taped and Sanded...

Wondering if work stopped.  It did slow just a bit, but the folks should be at the house today (Tuesday, 9/16)  putting texture on the walls.

Nick said people think that with the walls up the rooms look smaller, but they aren't right.  And, our reaction is that the spaces look larger.

There's one thing that's a bit different from our other houses.  We won't have framing all around the windows.  All the drywall corners are rounded.  (Of course that's not true on the 3rd floor where its all wood, and the windows are framed.)  Where in other houses there would be a sharp corner to the drywall, generally established with a corner bead, these corners are rounded.  Windows will have a sill for the cat to sit/lie on, but otherwise it's rounded corners.

Meeting the Neighbors.

We had a great time Sunday meeting our newest neighbors.  This couple just recently bought a lot in Mustang Island Estates. They will be building between our house and the Gulf.  We met up with them to give them a key to the padlock for the boardwalk gate to the beach.

We have a chain with a padlock.  This new one is the 4th since we've had the property.  The salt spray and blowing sand do a good job of rendering the lock unusable rather quickly.

If we're not using the lock every week, it seems to rust quickly.  We tried a brass combination lock and that didn't last very long, either.  I had been using WD-40-type products to keep the lock workable, and then to try to get it working when it rusted.  Talking with the lock person at Lowe's where we got the latest lock, she advised against WD-40, saying it includes a little water, and there's a little adhesion that probably isn't a good rust preventer.  She suggested a graphite spray. We'll see if that makes a difference.

I've not been able to find a padlock that's strong, not extremely expensive, and not made of metal.  (Now we're needing a ~$25 lock every year.) If you've got an idea, let me know.

Back to the new neighbors.  It seems we have a lot of common interests.  They also have grown children.  And I'd put them as younger than we are.  They have a rental property in Port Aransas and a home up in Hill Country. They've been coming to Mustang Island for years, basically RVing until they got the rental property.  Now they come down when the property is available.  But, because they have been in Port A a lot, they know the summer congestion and didn't want to be in it.  Besides that, they wanted more space than they could get in Port A. They need to sell their current home before they start building in the 'hood.  They hope to have the house sold this Fall, but it sounds like they may not start building the house until next year.

It was great to meet and have time to get to know them.  We're looking forward to having them as neighbors.

For everything, there is a season.

For everything, there is a season. 

A time to fret over future internet access. A time to build a future landscape of greenery and life.

Another year's drought has made my pot-bound, ready-for-mother earth, water-loving red Texas star hibiscuses scraggly and cranky.  I feared they had no place in our future sandy world ruled by the overhead Death Star. A kindly master gardener suggested I plant them at the edge of one of our ponds, but I wondered if they might be slightly brackish and wouldn't make a good home.  "Maybe I need to give them away to a good home," I suggested to Ray. He's much too adventurous to give in that easily, so he suggested we plant one now to see how it does. Great idea!  But let's plant two to be surer.

 

Here's where we begin, digging the hole for plant one. Note the tall inductee waiting in the foreground and the happy green things already living there. 

The sand was wet from rain the day before. Yes, rain, because I was out of town, the first since I was in Massachusetts in early July.

In she goes into her new pond's-edge home, where she can watch the ducks and night herons.  

"Thank you for your service, little one... one last hug and you're on your own in your new life. Make me proud."

 

This shot shows a slightly wider range of the area, including the cattails and their reflections.  

I think the ponds may be an even bigger source of entertainment than we've imagined.

Now for hole two, maybe a little too cozy with the first, but what the heck.  I'm hoping they'll eventually bush out into a seemingly single bush.

Here they are, side-by-side, at home with their new neighbors.

Note the yellow partridge pea in the foreground. 

Now for the blessing, asking the great spirit to bless this sacred first-planting site in the name of our dearest little loved ones, Derek, Adam, Evan, Jenny, Meredith, John, Clara, Dave, Kourtney, Liz.  

Now it's the great spirit's turn.

At that moment, it suddenly began to rain.

A perfect ending to a perfectly lovely experience.

High Speed Internet Just Not Available.

This has been an interesting learning situation.

It’s not about downloading movies or playing online games. The reason we’re trying to get Time Warner isn’t because we love TWC, it’s to get high speed internet.  Alese works from home, but is working online all the time.  We need dependable high speed internet access.

Here’s what I’ve learned thus far:

In Texas (I’m not sure about other states) the state is the organization that licenses cable service.  The local government has no say or influence over cable services.

Time Warner Cable (TWC) is the high speed internet provider on Mustang Island.  They have fiber running the length of the island.

The Construction Department of TWC has almost absolute say when it comes to building the infrastructure for their services.  It appears that their first response when asked to provide service in a new area on Mustang Island is to say “it’s not in our franchise.”  They supposedly have been told (via email) that is not an acceptable response, based on a recent conversation with the TWC Director of Governmental Relations in San Antonio. 

The Construction Department has said it would cost $5007 to run fiber the ~380 feet from the fiber running down the island, to our property.  Of course, they would need to bury the fiber, and they’d need to get permission from the City which, according to them would require engineering plans.  Interestingly the Developer has offered then his engineering plans, and we’ve gotten no response, which is what happens.

I was able to get our State Representative Todd Hunter’s office involved.  They contacted the Director of Governmental Relations.  He’s been getting the same story, and defends the Construction Department’s need to get the ROI on investment.  But, the Governmental Relations Director was told that as soon as a neighborhood has a number of houses they put in the infrastructure.  So, I asked what the magic number of houses was.  He said he had the same question, and so did Todd Hunter’s office.  The question was asked, but it’s been a week without a response.

In the meantime, I went online and got addresses for houses in four other Mustang Island developments that have been around for a while and have at least five houses.  I then went online to the TWC website and checked to see if I could get service there.  Guess what?  No service.  The one neighborhood where TWC service was available was a set of houses identified as condominium units. 

Last night, I spoke at the ISAC meeting.  That’s where I learned, from the Deputy City Manager that the city has no power over the cable franchises in the city.  This morning I reported my findings to Representative Hunter’s office.  They are going to explore what it would take to allow local control over this issue.

I don’t think we’ll be able to get high speed internet access in the next two months.  I’m going to now find a DSL provider, but it will not be easy, because thus far every website I have used to try to get service says out address is not in their service area.

ISAC has put the issue on the agenda for next month’s meeting.  Padre Island has issues with cable too, and they have two providers, but apparently there are problems with both.