Journey of a Home Office Begins ...

Every Journey starts with that first step.  One of the best benefits of my job is the flexibility to work remotely - e.g., ability to work from home.  Since I average at least 4 out of 5 days from home, I need a dedicated office area to work from.  Our house has an unfinished basement.  This will be the 2nd time I've worked to finish a basement.  Hopefully I will have learned from the last time we finished a basement (in our Harpers Ferry House) and can make this basement even better.

I've chose a corner of our walk-out basement.  I like our basement because it has tall ceilings (9') and it's a walk out, so there are full sized windows !

The soil in this area is supposed to be quite expansive.  The means that the floors may (or may not) heave.  The slab floors here are poured separately from the walls so they can move independently if need be.  When building walls in the basement,  we had to be cognisant of building the walls in a way that would allow that heaving to occur without cracking the walls or damaging the floors above.   There is a cool way that the building walls that enable this.  The wall construction is done by;

1. Measure the height from floor to Ceiling
2. Subtract 3" from that measurement & that's the measurement that I built the wall sections to
3. The wall section was built using normal stud spacing of 16" o.c..
4. Lay the PT sill plate with construction adhesive and powder charged nails.
5. Lift your wall section and secure it to the ceiling using nails (ensuring you remain plumb with the sill plate)
6. Every 2' you will run a 6" spike through the bottom of the wall panel into the sill plate.  I found that it was easier to drill a hole that allows the spike to pass through the bottom plate just barely.  you don't need to pre-drill the sill plate.  The walls were amazingly sturdy and strong for not having a floor to ceiling connection.

Framing begins ...

Finally finished framing - Long way still left to go, but rough framing  - DONE!

Changes...

Since moving out west to Colorado, I've found myself working on a lot of different projects.  I've decided that I'm going to try and start to record these efforts and make an almost how-to kind of approach to some of them.  I may not always have the "right" way, but it may also serve as a how-not-to :)

Balance

There’s a healthy line between celebrating community and information online, and keeping a moment private and personal.  We have an innate desire to be heard, to be included, and to be valued. Social media validates a lot of that, and used in conjunction with your offline life, it can be a healthy measure for finding your voice in a loud, deafening crowd. But when it replaces our three-dimensional life*, we start missing the moment and translating it as a good photo, status update, tweet, or blog post. Instead of it being just what it is—a moment in time that engages our senses and deserves all our attention.

*three dimensional life is a concept I've been reading about that is discussed as there are three dimensions of any complete life to which we can fitly define as: length, breadth, and height.

• Length of life as we shall use it here is the inward concern for one’s own welfare. In other words, it is that inward concern that causes one to push forward, to achieve his own goals and ambitions. 
• Breadth of life as we shall use it here is the outward concern for the welfare of others. 
• Height of life is the upward reach for God. Now you got to have all three of these to have a complete life.

Finding Balance is my toughest struggle & often my largest failure. 

Quote of the Day ...

Don't let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do"

~ John Wooden

Wise Beyond his years...

"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind.
Some come from ahead and some come from behind.
But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see.
Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!"
~ Dr. Seuss

Couple interesting quotes for the day...

I read / found a couple great quotes today & wanted to share them:

1. A fool's lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating. (Prov 18.6)

2. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent. (Prov 17.28)

Surprise! We're Expecting!

A Puppy!... lol

That was a joke that we made over the weekend. Michelle and I both Posted the Surprise line on Facebook this past weekend. We found it quite funny, but people took it a little more seriously than i had thought. Within minutes, I started getting the congrats and such. I had to let the joke out once some co-workers were responding. I didn't want to come into work on Monday to see a bunch of congrats notices and such.



Anyways... We are getting a puppy. A Burnese Mountain Dog. It's been a long process of looking at different breeds - comparing their needs - and then finding a breeder. Right now it looks like she'll be coming to us on Feb. 6th. I am really looking forward to getting her!
Here are some pictures of the puppy at 6wks.

Happy New Year 2012 !

For 2011 I decided to make my resolutions pretty simple. I was going to go back through my "bucket list" that I had started in 2009 and work towards making things happen. That was going to be my theme for 2011 - Make it happen.
Well 2011 was full of changes. Some good, Some Bad. I've begun to see changes just as that - just changes. They are all both good and bad. To every Ying there is a Yang. The trick is to find the positive in things. Why struggle with dragging yourself down with the stress of change? Well for 2012, I am going to set some new goals....

1. I still like my bucket list, I will evaluate that list and begin to work towards it
2. Visit an Art Museum (with the kids - It'll be nice to get them some more exposure to the world)
3. Loose 50 lbs. - My target weight is 190. Definitely think it's obtainable, but it's going to require me to make some life changes. It's time to be more healthy.
4. Make Smores - Not conducive to the previous one, but It's always a good way to spend time with the family
5. Dress Up More - I've gotten lax with the relaxed dress code at work. They say clothes make the man. I am going to strive to take my appearance more seriously.
6. Try Harder - In general. Everything I want to do will require me to try harder.
7. Drink more Water (and less Soda) - A key change to make me healthier
8. Be Happy and Healthy & look for the silver lining in 2012...
   

To all my friends and family, I love you & wish you a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year ! ~

What is a Mason?

Almost 2 years ago I decided that I would explore my interest in freemasonry. After talking with a good friend, I decided to petition a local lodge and began the journey. Earlier this year I was raised to the degree of Master Mason (3rd degree). The most difficult question often posed to members of our Fraternity is – “so what is Freemasonry anyway?”

This is one of the questions I've had the hardest time answering. While doing some reading, I ran across an interesting response... There are so many ways to answer this question: It is a Brotherhood, where we learn about each other and enjoy fellowship. It is an organization that has contributed millions of dollars to Charity. It is a school where we learn self- development and morality. It is a spiritual and philosophical school based upon the Mystery Schools and Traditions of ancient times. It is many of these things and more. Sometimes the answer to “so what is Freemasonry anyway?” is deeply personal because the teachings of the Fraternity can affect each Brother Mason in a different way. This is largely because of the way in which Masonic Teachings are presented.

The Masonic teachings can be best described as “Mysteries.” Our Rituals and Initiations are designed to communicate our teachings in parable, allegory and symbols. The Mysteries are presented in a very subjective way, leaving the Initiate to contemplate their meaning. The more deeply and honestly the Mason studies the Mysteries of his craft, the more profound wisdom he will attain and the more he will develop as a human being. If a man is a true Mason, a Master of his Craft, he not only contemplates the Mysteries, but actively practices the moral and philosophical teachings in all aspects of his life. The Masonic Fraternity is rooted in friendship, morality and Brotherly Love. Tolerance and freedom of religion are some of its main tenets. Belief in God is an important foundation of the rituals within the Fraternity and all Masons must profess a belief in a Higher Power, yet we do not impose any religious doctrine upon our members other than to stress the importance of religious study in general. Any good man is eligible to apply for membership, regardless of race, religion, political affiliation or nationality. As our ritual states, we are interested in the “internal, not the external” aspects of a man. Our modern world is filled with distractions that often keep our focus outside of ourselves – on our job, on the television, etc. Freemasonry provides us with unique opportunities to look within, to develop ourselves and to contribute to the aid of others in need.

How to replace the window regulator in the Trailblazer