« June 2007 | Main | August 2007 »
July 27, 2007
Moving and Shaking
10 days ago, the moving truck arrived and barfed our things back into our terribly dusty apartment (with gorgeous new floors). We have been diligent in unpacking boxes, hanging art, and getting settled again with the upcoming visit from extended family members DP & AJ. They arrive Sunday from Toronto. We are SOOOOOO looking forward to seeing them. I going running with hottie AJ, because she looks like a super-model-movie-star, and she'll make me look like a stud. Except for the gay men, who will, of course, know better.
Moving back in was easier than I thought. We knew where everything went. We had been through the musical furniture routine (otherwise known in Canada as the Newfie Shuffle). So everything fell back into place quickly and seamlessly.
The day after we moved back in, I received a call from a business broker asking if I had an interest in buying a yoga studio. Hmmmm. After a bit of work and some light negotiations, today I said no thanks. I was intrigued, but something in the back of my Manitoba brain said "maybe not". The timing was incredible because my brain seems to have switched to business mode very quickly, and very strongly.
Stay tuned. Never a dull moment.
Posted by dave at 07:34 PM | Comments (0)
July 15, 2007
Busy Sunday
In wild anticipation of our move back to the condo on Tuesday, we spent a hot, humid day scrubbing, buffing and wiring. Here is a series of photos of the condo before the Tuesday chaos.
Posted by dave at 07:36 PM | Comments (0)
Master Bedroom
BEFORE
DURING
AFTER
Posted by dave at 06:40 PM | Comments (0)
Living Room
BEFORE
DURING
AFTER
Posted by dave at 05:44 PM | Comments (0)
July 10, 2007
Home Again
Yippee. They have started to paint the walls and trim in the apartment, and once that's finished, they'll put the final coat of sealer on the floors. They expect to finish this week.
So, we're moving back in next Tuesday, July 17. 29 days later.
Yippee!
Posted by dave at 12:15 PM | Comments (0)
July 09, 2007
Water
When you live on a boat, you quickly learn not to take things for granted. You have to. Like water, for example.
We carried 1,000 litres of water in our tank on Platina. We had a water maker, which made about 150 litres of water an hour. We had to be well offshore, in clean water, and needed to run our generator. To make desalinated water, we needed to deplete our diesel stores. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
New York City employs 6,000 people in the Department of Environmental Protection. They are responsible for the water that comes out of our taps, among other things.
New York City's 8-ish million people consume 1.3 to 2 billion gallons (5 to 7.5 billion litres) of water each day. What? 200 gallons (760 litres) of water per person per day? Is that even possible?
We estimate that two of us used about 1,000 litres every 10 days on Platina. That's 50 litres per person per day. To be fair, our toilets used sea water, and we didn't shower every day.
I admit that having returned to living on land, there is a certain mental accounting that does not exist when using water. It just seems to come endlessly from the faucet. Unlimited, infinite supply. I catch myself often, and return to the discipline of conservation. Imagine that you have a tank in your basement with only 1,000 litres of water. It will cost you $1,000 to fill it when it's empty. How will your consumption patterns change?
Here's some ways to conserve water in your home.
Posted by dave at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)
July 07, 2007
La Cucarocha
Dear Mona [Chis' Mama at the office],
The very dead cockroach, which rested peacefully in the lobby of our temporary apartment building, mysteriously disappeared on Independence Day. It had been there long enough to, at least partially, decompose. I hear that you and Chis had a plan to spoil my anthropological study by moving the dead cockroach to make me write about it, which was still there many days after we had moved in. Always there to greet me when I arrived, and always there to say its special "Have a nice day" when I left. While I admire the conspiracy that you and Chis had planned, I know full well that there is no way, not in a million, trillion, zillion years, that Chis would ever, ever, ever touch a dead cockroach. There is no issue. Not even with a tissue.
Not even with hermetically-sealed rubber gloves.
Nice try, dear Mona, but you and Chis will have to try harder next time.
With love and affection,
Keep up the SmartWater,
And the stairs,
Dave
Posted by dave at 07:31 PM | Comments (0)
July 06, 2007
Things that just make you shake your head
I went to check on the progress with our new floors after yoga yesterday, and as I passed three enormous piles of boxed walnut flooring in the hallway outside our door, which they are installing in the apartment two doors down, I rescued the warranty information from an open box. It says, in bold capital letters, "DO NOT GLUE DOWN SOLID RANDOM LENGTH WOOD FLOORING. SOLID WOOD FLOORING MUST BE NAILED OR STAPLED DOWN OVER AN APPROPRIATE WOOD SUB-FLOOR AS PER NWFA GUIDELINES."
I know this. Most anybody who is remotely handy, or has stepped inside a Home Depot, knows this. And I'm not a richly rewarded New York real estate developer like ElAd Properties, who GLUED DOWN OUR FLOORS. Not one single nail. No wood sub-floor.
Why bother with the glue at all, I ask? I mean, just slap it down, fit the tongue in the groove, wedge it together with the baseboards, and then deny any responsibility whatsoever when it buckles, warps, separates, and shifts. And then, after a few people complain to the Attorney General, and threaten to sue, offer to slap down the same floor on top of the buckling, warping, seaparating, shifting floor.
Ridiculous!
Posted by dave at 10:37 AM | Comments (0)
July 04, 2007
Green is the New Black
We were at an event a week ago, hosted by Suka Design. It was a summer solstice party. When we arrived, we were given a nametag, which we were asked to fill in, and complete "I will plant my tree ...". I wrote "in Central Park" (always the pragmatist). Chis wrote "where it counts" (always the thoughtful one).
Today, we planted the trees in the gardens along the Hudson River Trail. We felt like criminals, but it had started to rain, and in our bike helmets, it seemed fitting to be planting a tree. They are very close together, but we will check on them in the fall, and if they have survived, we will transplant one further away. I cycle by the spot at the West Side Highway and 29th Street almost every day, and will sprinkle some water as I go by.
A little bit of green goes a long way.
Posted by dave at 08:37 PM | Comments (0)
Day 14 Master Bedroom
The new floor is down, and partially sanded. This is a photo before the stain goes down, probably tomorrow. We have booked the elevator to move back in on July 17. Yippee. We miss our home.
Posted by dave at 08:35 PM | Comments (0)
July 03, 2007
Raw Talent
Have you discovered this video clip yet? I’m not going to give you his background, or give you any hints about what you are about to see. Just put your ear buds in, click the links and enjoy.
Posted by dave at 09:07 AM | Comments (0)
July 02, 2007
Union Square Greenmarket
The farmer's market in Union Square is one of my favourite places to shop for fresh produce. It's about a 5 minute walk from home. Lucy goes early and provides a preview of what's fresh and what's new. Her site will make my market adventures a little more focused.
Posted by dave at 08:58 AM | Comments (0)
July 01, 2007
Sailing Long Island Sound
I woke early enough to get out for a 5-mile run around Central Park. By the time I returned, we had a little more than 30 minutes to grab some breakfast, have a shower, and throw together our sailing gear in time to get our train to Stamford, Connecticut from Grand Central Station. And then Chis discovered that a presentation that a colleague was supposed to send out on Friday didn’t go, and he had to drop by the office to send it. Yikes, this would be tight. We hopped in a cab and made it to Rockefeller Center in 15 minutes. I walked ahead to the train station to get tickets, find the track, and get lattes. Chis arrived with a few minutes to spare before the train departed.
We pulled into Stamford shortly before noon, and our hosts Julie and Mike arrived with their adorable kids, Hannah (6) and Max (7). It was a quick trip to the marina to meet our other hosts, Steve and Fern, and their son, Jason. Soon Vicky arrived, and we were a crew. The boat was spectacular. A custom-built carbon fibre hull, built completely for racing. Three feet longer, this lightweight racer weighed less than half Platina’s heft.
In 7 knots of wind, the boat moved about 6 knots. To put this in perspective, in 7 knots of wind, Platina would not have left the dock. Platina would have limped along doing a little more than 2 knots. The difference, of course, was that Platina was built for safety, sturdiness and stability for comfortable offshore, long passage cruising.
It was a wonderful sail, we burned our noses, had a picnic on a mooring, and caught the 8pm train back to New York, followed by the usual collection of subway trains to get back to the Upper West Side. It was a long day, full of sun, light breezes, and great company.
We’re going again in two weeks, this time for a sail on Mike and Julie’s boat. Hmmm. This could be addictive.
Posted by dave at 09:13 AM | Comments (0)