WE'RE BACK!!

Where do we begin? It's been over six weeks since anything has been posted and much has been going on. Let's begin with the most important news...WE'VE MOVED INTO THE HOUSE!! Yes, after being "homeless" for more than 16 months, we finally are back home.

Saturday, April 11th was the date of the blessed event. After getting the necessary CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY locked-in on Friday, we rented a large truck and moved most of the stuff in on Saturday. After a very long and hard day of moving (and once the bed was set-up), we decide to stay the night. Though the gas had not yet been turned on (hence no hot water for those much needed showers), we stayed the night and woke up Easter morning in our very own house...and haven't left since!! We celebrated our first Easter in our new home!!

Yes, the chain-link fence and the green porta-potty are gone!! Aside from that and the behind the scenes activities (city and bank foolishness), you'll note numerous exterior details when you compare the above picture with that from the last posting. How many can you find? Note that we now have a driveway, stairs and walkway to the front door, sod, wrought iron on the second floor deck and last but not least, the ever important house number...so we don't get lost?

Here's the driveway-side of the house. Yes, very soon (once the concrete dries and a sealer is applied), we'll be able to park our cars in the garage.

Though not 100% complete, here's our walkway, stairs, front porch and oh yeah, our grass!! It's appeared like magic. The city said we needed grass before they'd approve our habitating the place and "poof", it mysteriously appeared.

In an attempt to retain the look of the streets we found while in Lucca and Venice (Italy NOT California), we went with this European Fan pattern for the driveway. It turned out very cool and it's quickly become our pride and joy.


Miraculously, the dining room table and chairs that we purchased over a year ago, actually fit in our dining room area. Sometime being lucky is better than being good!!



Here's where most of the eating will be happening. Once we install the gas barbeque, we'll be eating like kings. After more than a year of eating out, home cooked meals of any type sound fantastic!!

Here's a shot of the copper tiles we found for the area around our fireplace. The picture on the right is a shot taken from the outside deck into the kitchen area. Note the Windex. We'll be buying this shit by the 55 gallon drums to keep all these damn windows clean!! We're waiting for the first bird to plow into this big glass door.

Here's our final shot for this session. The cinderblock wall will soon be stuccoed with a finish and color that'll match the house. We also have more landscaping (citrus trees, bushes, etc.) and stone sills for the windows planned. We then need to address the three columns needed outside along with the ones inside the house. Though we're actually living at the house, Gina may still be contemplating jumping. The minutia and contractor crap that she has to put up with, never seems to stop!!

This ain't over yet. Though we're moved in, there's still more construction, endless amounts of detailwork...and postings, to be done. Once some of the wounds have healed, I'll also share with you my opinion about contractors and building your own home...but until then, goodbye and good night to all!!

...just in case you're interested, we now have gas!! We've taken showers, Gina's cooked meals and with the exception of not being able to park our cars in the garage (yet), we have a fully-functional house!!

SO CLOSE, BUT SO FAR!!

In our month absence from the world of blogs, lots of things have been going on. We have the first two comic book shows of the year under our belt, the economy continues to tank, our daughter Sarah has unexpectedly come back to roost....and oh yeah, construction on the house continues!!

So here's the house as it now stands. The most important things to note are: a) they have build the front and side retaining wall and are working on the driveway b)they moved the lovely blue shitter that's become a local landmark and a second home to us, and most important of all, c) there are actually folks working on the house...and it's Saturday!!

Actually most of the work over the last month is evident inside. The flooring is now complete, they installed the appliances last week, we now have toilets and they're applying mahogany staining on anything that moves.

Yup, here it is...our "work-in-progress" kitchen complete with stained-mahogany cabinets, granite countertops and Viking appliances. Who could have imagined that kitchen appliances would cost damn-near to $20,000. In ads we get every Sunday, they're giving-away refridgerators at $500. How we spent the money we did is one of many fiscal mysteries I need to uncover. This is Gina's present for all of the trauma she's been through from living at the office for the last 15 months. Enjoy!!

We're very happy with how all the colors work together. Here's Gina expressing her delight with the prospect of cooking again. We have not had a home-cooked meal for over a year now. Though the thought of eating out every evening sounds great, it isn't!! It gets old and expensive very quickly. We're both looking forwards to a return to cooking and eating at home.

Here's downshot of the medallion that's placed under the stairs. We also set it up so that if we ever get lost, the four points determine true-North, South, East and West. We're calling up the folks at Guiness and telling them we have the world's biggest pocket compass. People will come from all over the world (and pay the big-bucks), to see what we got!!

The master bath is coming along quite nicely. Here's we see for the first time, a shot of our free-standing tub in-place...complete with hardware. To the left of the tub is the entrance to our walk-in shower that has no doors or curtains. The photo on the right is counter-top for the master bath vanity. Once we pick-out our mirrors, this room is done!!

Here's a quick peek into the laundry room. Inside you you see our brand new washer and dryer. Though no one seems appreciative, Gina and I are doing everything we can to stimulate the economy.







...and here we have our newly-stained garage door complete with our big-ass pile of dirt. The opening to the left above the garage, is the deck outside the master bedroom. Once they install the wrought iron the deck will be ready for habitation...by us!!

NEWS FLASH!!
The house was inspected by IndyMac and we were awarded the coveted "95.19% COMPLETE" award. The reason this is soooo important is we are now able to convert our Construction Loan into the final Mortgage.

(PLEASE NOTE that the above is an incomplete entry. My intentions were to finish up this entry and move on to new developments. Well laid plans of getting back to documenting the project within a few days quickly went down in flames. Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months. Here we are five weeks after this entry was begun. Rather than attempting to finish the existing entry, it's time to move on and start fresh. I apologize if I left anyone in a lurch with my abrupt "drama-free" ending. There's new activities and stories to be told...and with that being said, let's go forward into the past!!)

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Before Gina and I hop on the plane to New York tomorrow morning, I figured you deserved some new pics. They removed the scaffolding from the house and like magic, for the first time we actually feel that this project may actually be over soon!!

Look, we also have a roof? It'll be interesting to see what the house looks like once the portapotty is finally removed. Maybe we can keep it and turn it into a playhouse for the local kids?

Aside from some stone sill and apron treatments under the windows,this is pretty much what these front portions of the house will look like...once the chain-link fence disappears!!

Here's cool upshot that I thought looked incredibly artsy-fartsy. Not certain what if any functional descriptive purpose it has, but you have to admit, it's definitely a neat wall!!

As you have probably noticed by now, yes I do have a gutter-fixation. All those years of being told to get my mind out of the gutter, have left their mark. I promise to start by therapy once the house is complete!!

If not for the neighbors houses and the power lines, one might think I snuck a shot from Italy into the photos. The tile roof is almost complete and nicely captures the weathered Tuscan look we were going for.


Here's an interior shot of the stone used on the floor being applied...add a little grout and we'll soon be moving in. This stone and mahogany are all that's used on the floors throughout the house.

The garage door finally got installed. Once stained, is should be incredible!! All we need now is a Porsche Turbo and maybe a stray Ferrarri to wander in and stay for a while.

Graphitti Designs will be exhibiting at the New York Comic Con this weekend in of all places, New York. This is the first show of the year for us. It's been nice not having to travel and do all the prep-work necessary for these shows. It will be very interesting to get a first hand look at the effects of the economy on our market. If folks stop buying shirts, you may see our new house for sale on Ebay sometime this Spring.

While out of town, we have high expectation with regards to the progress that'll be made on the construction. When we return we should see all of the stone flooring installed and the granite countertops in the kitchen. Within two weeks, the kitchen appliances should be installed and all of the cabinets should be completely stained. I've never been known for being an optimist but for once in my life, I hope to God I'm right...this little ray of hope, is all that's keeping Gina and I going at this stage. The rigors of construction have taken their toll and this needs to come to an end very, very soon. Pray for us!!

THE ENDLESS STORY

Though construction is moving at a very fast clip, at this stage IT JUST AIN'T QUICK ENOUGH!! Our Construction Loan expires Jan. 24th and for the first time since construction began, our contractor has given us a completion date...MARCH 2009!! Somehow, those two dates just don't reconcile. There should be no problem getting an extension on the loan but as with everything in life, it comes at a price. We're being told by IndyMac that the extension will cost one half point (.50%), of the amount used to date...PER MONTH!! This is on top of the monthly interest payment we're already making. Plans are to negotiate with IndyMac and see if we can pay some sort of one-time, lump amount for the extension on top of the monthly interest nut.

Before I go further into my rant, here's a new batch of photos updating the status of the house. The exterior finish/paint is complete. They have also begun installing the copper gutters. Inside, there's a flurry of activities. Stone stairs, electrical wall switches and fixtures, bathroom counters and counter tops, shower walls, kitchen cabinets and island, wood floors and much, much more have all been started.

Here's a pic of our retirement account. We're banking that copper will become the new gold. When the price of copper skyrockets, we'll be sitting on the friggen' mother lode!!

This is our incredible Murano glass chandelier that hangs over our dining room. Gina and I purchased this along with six (6) matching wall sconces and two (2) matching ceiling fixtures while visiting the Murano factory in Venice (Italy, not Calif.), two years ago. You may have noticed that one of the glass shades is missing. It's not missing, but was broken. After being shipped from Italy and being in our "protective custody" for years now, it mysteriously broke once it was brought on site to be installed by the electrician. Ain't it's incredible how some people are afraid to fess up to an accident? A very frustrating and disappointing development.

Here's the rough framework for the kitchen island. Once they locate the sink and fixtures, final measurements will be made and the granite countertops will be finished.

Here's an action-packed shot of the master bathroom. On the left is the vanity with the "his" and "hers" sinks. The pic on the right shows you the walls in the shower. Hopefully we'll actually be taking showers in this room within two months? Yeah, I know...that and when pigs fly!!

Here's the in's and out's of our front door. The left interior shot shows one of the large Murano glass fixtures. Outside we see the bare door with considerable work still to do. Natural stone will be used to cover the recessed area flanking the door and the same darker-colored stone we'll be using under the exterior window, will be used to frame the door. It should look very cool!!
The sequence on many of the remaining construction tasks, are now interwoven with each other. Once the bathroom and kitchen cabinets have been placed, the tile floors can finally be installed. They are scheduled to remove all the scaffolding and install the tile roofing. Once this is done, the scaffolding can be removed. It's been so long since we've seen the house without the scaffolding, it will be very momentous seeing the house for the very first time without them. With the scaffolding removed, work can also begin on the grading with the hopes that the retaining walls and pouring of the driveway are not too far behind.

The removal of the scaffolding and installation of the tile roofing this week, should provide some very spectular pictures within a week's time. I'll do my best to squeak out an update before our lives get even crazier!! Gina and I have two shows coming up in February. We'll be in New York during the first weekend and San Francisco two weeks later. We'll get a first-hand look at the effects of the current economy on our customers. Here's to a robust 2009 for all!!