Amusing Observation

WITH so many projects completed or nearing completion, Dad has observed an interesting phenomena. When he paints, replaces, or cleans one thing, like cabinet doors or caulking seems, it is so clean and bright that it makes the old un-redone surfaces look really bad.

Filthy wall.

Adding this cove and caulking this counter top  makes the adjacent wall look really dirty. Dad was going to leave it untouched, but now it is begging to be done.

There is something about an evenness of  filth. If all surfaces are evenly dirty, it looks okay, or at least it is not an eyesore. But clean or repaint one surface and the filth on the other surfaces becomes easy to see.

Furniture

AUNT Laurie and family gave this dresser as a gift to the Twins.

You might recall the post.

It is from Ikea, a retailer that does well in selling inexpensive, assemble it yourself, furniture made of pine and paperboard. That is fine for what it is, but he thinks that with a little effort, these normally disposable furniture pieces can have their lives extended far beyond what most people experience with them.

Hey, Grandma Hanasik always said, take care of your stuff. The difference between high class people and low class people isn't how much stuff they have, it is how well they take care what they do have.

Dad has had a number of products from them over the years and has had the same observation about them. They tend to fall apart because they lack a good backbone. If you place your hand on the top of the top shelf and push, it will readily move a 1/8th of an inch. Pulling it back doubles that sway movement to an 1/4". That amount of play tends to increase over time leading to a point where the whole thing becomes so far out of square that the drawers will not open or if they will, they will not close. Then it becomes less and less useful. Perhaps one day one of the Twins decides to use one of the non-closing drawers to climb up. But the drawer bottom cannot support his weight, he breaks through, there is a big hole, Mom is angry that her little boy is injured, and decides that that piece of excrement has to go.

Before that hypothetical comes to pass, Dad decides to modify the dresser a bit to make it sturdier.

The basic problem is that the dresser is not boxed, it lacks structure to prevent it from moving left and right. Dad can't do anything to add structure to the front of the it, the side in the back ground above, because that is the drawer front side. But the rear is completely open, and when placed against a wall, it doesn't have to be finished and pretty. So he will cut and install something on the rear that will box it in, or add a spine, or add a keel, or provide rigidity - choose your idiom. This will cover the rectangular space in the foreground in the picture above.

Gangsta Buggy

BUGGY found Dad's ball cap and decided to try it on. Despite her serious demeanor, the binky makes her look a little less than threatening.  

Dad is Trendy

THE latest trend in office furniture is the stand up desk.

https://standingupdesk.wordpress.com/tag/stand-up-desk/

Some are even treadmill desks.

http://www.wayfair.com/LifeSpan-Fitness-Treadmill-Computer-Desktop-TR1200-DT-LPS1032.html

There likely are benefits to standing versus sitting for long periods while working. But Dad doesn't have funds to buy one. So the redneck in him improvised.

Where Dad blogs.

Dad and Twins at the Park

DAD loves to take the Twins to the park without Mom. Let's face it, a guy in the park alone with toddlers is an unusual sight. Other parents there sometimes give him a cool reception, which is fine. He lets them keep their distance. He is not there to get into their faces and advocate for social change or some other nonsense. He is there to let the kids have fun and interact with other children. Still he finds it amusing.

Long post, lots of pictures. Click below to continue.

Home Improvement Projects

DAD has been charged with completing a long list of projects ranging from the simple, like cleaning tile grout, to the challenging, like completing the installation of the door he installed 10 years ago.

The goal is to either ready the place for sale, or make it less of an eyesore for the Family if they continue to reside there. More likely it is the former since the Twins are growing up and need space, their own rooms, and a secure yard to play in with a huge tree house.

To see pictures of some of the projects, click below to continue.

What is This?

THE Twins are not allowed on Mom and Dad's bed or bedroom unsupervised though if they have the opportunity, they will sneak in there every opportunity they get.

For example, recently the Boy was supposed to be napping in his room. But shortly after Dad put him down, all too quickly in fact, he stopped fussing. So Dad went to investigate. This is what he found.

He has a pattern and history of this.

So one evening, while preparing for bed, Dad spotted this.

Now, he knows the Twins had no opportunity to be in there with either Mom or Dad that day. So he used his superior powers of deduction to conclude that someone was somewhere they should not have been.

"Hon, make me a cup of coffee!"

DAD needs to work on his communication skills. What he thinks sounds like efficient communication can be interpreted as as a command that Mom does not care for. She doesn't lack for humor though. "Here is is your cup of coffee!"

Dad got the message.

(H/T Lisa W. for the funny idea)

She is so Serious

BUGGY woke from her nap recently and crawled into EJ's crib. Dad went into their room to check on her. She was emphatic.

"Look Dad! Its right there!" Dad doesn't understand her words, but picks up on her demeanor. Whatever it is, it is important. He notes that she is pointing to the area of EJ's crib covered by the collapsible tent.

Apparently it is a book. She might want to read it to him (or him to her, you never know, she might think Dad needs to practice his reading skills.)

She is concerned about his noncompliance to her wishes. Note the non-verbals. Her right hand waves forward and back to make her point.