What did you do today? 2016 version

[Hermit]

DW and I went to a Barry Manilow performance last night. We both enjoyed it. His voice was a bit off in the first 10 minutes or so but then got progressively better. He covered most of his hits from years gone by and one of the cuts off his Dream Duets album that has been nominated for a Grammy (a duet with Judy Garland a la the duet Natalie Cole did with Nat King Cole). Closed out with I Write the Songs and Copacabana. Quite a performance given he is 72 years old.

Loretta Lynn still performs at 84! Who says you have to slow down as you age?

 

[Khan]

Managed to lose my glasses on my morning walk.
Using older not quite as good.
Will buy several new tomorrow.
Don't need for driving.

Sent from my SPH-L720T using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[audreyh1]

I am currently in Costa Rica attending a Spanish immersion program, something I've long wanted to do. Yesterday I walked to school, spent fours in class, then headed to the hills for a hike in a rainforest. Stopped in at a mercado on the way home to grab some items for dinner and enjoyed them al fresco on my little apt balcony before heading indoors to work on my nightly homework assignments.

This is one of those times/experiences where I am more thankful then one could ever imagine to be ER'd.

Nice! Which school did you go to?

 

[MBAustin]

DH and I went out for lunch today and on the way, saw something I'd never ever seen before - when stopped at a traffic light, the driver of the car next to us was brushing his teeth. Seriously! Looked a bit like this image I found on Google, except I don't think he was using an electric toothbrush.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Yesterday we went to a foodie event at restaurants along the waterfront in Sausalito. It was a nice sunny day with pretty views of the bay and the city. The day before we went to a screening of Eddie the Eagle. I thought it was a cute movie. We both enjoyed it. Today we're catching up on chores, I have a Redbox movie reserved for tonight and I'm going to get one or two $5 Friday deals from Safeway for dinner.

 

[NW-Bound]

Finished remodeling the carpeted staircase into oak wood. This last step in removing the last bit of carpet in the home took me 1 week. Prepping the staircase including prying off all the steps to trim them off on a table saw was a heck of a lot of work. And carefully cutting all the pieces for everything to fit perfectly also takes a lot of time (when is the last time you see baseboard molding used on stairsteps?). I had to build myself an adjustable jig to measure each stairstep.

I can rest now, and my hands and fingers will be free of splinters for a while. I threw all the tools and debris out in the garage, and will spend tomorrow cleaning that up. Phew!

 

[Hermit]

Finished remodeling the carpeted staircase into oak wood. This last step in removing the last bit of carpet in the home took me 1 week. Prepping the staircase including prying off all the steps to trim them off on a table saw was a heck of a lot of work. And carefully cutting all the pieces for everything to fit perfectly also takes a lot of time (when is the last time you see baseboard molding used on stairsteps?). I had to build myself an adjustable jig to measure each stairstep.

I can rest now, and my hands and fingers will be free of splinters for a while. I threw all the tools and debris out in the garage, and will spend tomorrow cleaning that up. Phew!

How about a picture?

 

[rodi]

DH and I went out for lunch today and on the way, saw something I'd never ever seen before - when stopped at a traffic light, the driver of the car next to us was brushing his teeth. Seriously! Looked a bit like this image I found on Google, except I don't think he was using an electric toothbrush.

View attachment 23178

I had a crappy commute with lots of traffic. I saw teeth brushing, shaving (electric razer), putting on makeup, eating cereal from a bowl, and my personal fav - doing a crossword puzzle from the morning paper.

The same people every day.

 

[NW-Bound]

How about a picture?

Much obliged.

Just now, I noticed that the moldings on the stair landing that I reused are darker than the new stairsteps which are natural-color oak. In daylight, the moldings which match the rest of the existing stained doors and trims throughout the house did not look so dark. Hmmm... Should I ignore this color mismatch?

 

[HFWR]

I had a crappy commute with lots of traffic. I saw teeth brushing, shaving (electric razer), putting on makeup, eating cereal from a bowl, and my personal fav - doing a crossword puzzle from the morning paper.



The same people every day.

This is why we can't have nice things...

 

[HFWR]

Received confirmation that I'll start getting my non-COLA pension, first check early October. SS checks should start about then as well; I'll be firing on all cylinders!

 

[bbbamI]

Received confirmation that I'll start getting my non-COLA pension, first check early October. SS checks should start about then as well; I'll be firing on all cylinders!

No pun intended....right...?

 

[rodi]

Went to younger son's basketball game tonight. Great Game!!! They won by 20 pts and DS made 4 baskets and had a bunch of rebounds. Woo hoo.

 

[Gumby]

Congratulations to the young hoopster.

 

[outdoorgirl02]

Today, DH and I are helping DD sell Girl Scout cookies at a booth outside of a store. Then DD and I are making Broncos inspired cupcakes for the Super Bowl tomorrow.

 

[sengsational]

Started out, I was just going to get the mail.

Then I noticed the neglected apple trees. I should have been pruning them, but never have. After reviewing University of Youtube, I pruned two apple trees.

The black spray I put on the open cuts also said it seals gutters, so I climbed on the roof and sealed a leaky gutter. I noticed one span of gutter that I hadn't removed this season's leaves, so I cleared leaves from the gutter.

Even though I hadn't gotten the mail yet, I was distracted by some white specs in the gutter that looked like insulation, and sure enough, the tree rats got into the attic again! This time in a new spot. After attending U of Y again, I made and installed a one-way squirrel door.

DW interrupted me before I could put away the ladder and asked me to help with her bathroom project, so I installed two new LED light fixtures. Ladder still outside, I did a quick craigslist post (free-stuff) to get rid of the old fixtures, towel bars, etc.

As I was putting away the ladder, I heard the spigot on the side of the house hissing, and sure enough, the last freeze caused it to leak, so I replaced the valve seat washer on the outdoor spigot. The mailbox, still unchecked, I finally went out there.

I saw the mail truck come and go, but peering in the mailbox? Nothing. So I failed to get the mail.

 

[Gumby]

Went to the movies to watch The Finest Hours, a movie about the 1952 Coast Guard rescue of the crew of the SS Pendleton off Cape Cod. For those who don't know the sea, it is a good introduction to the fact that there is nothing more powerful on Earth. And a good reminder for those who do.

 

[Hermit]

Much obliged.

Just now, I noticed that the moldings on the stair landing that I reused are darker than the new stairsteps which are natural-color oak. In daylight, the moldings which match the rest of the existing stained doors and trims throughout the house did not look so dark. Hmmm... Should I ignore this color mismatch?

The moldings look like they match the hand rails and are supposed to be that way. I'd leave them like they are.

The stairs look great. How did you fasten them? A brad nail gun?

 

[6miths]

Yes they look good to me but I know what you mean. When I know that something is not quite right...

So last night I went to a Junior C hockey playoff game and then went to my son's soccer game. Hockey was good. Soccer game was a bit one sided but son's team won.

Today I bought a new dishwasher off Kijiji (Canada's eBay classifieds) and installed it. Seems to be working well.

Tomorrow I have a room to paint.

 

[M Paquette]

We did one of our One Day Ham Classes today. 7 AM to 6 PM. We had 67 students or test takers, and about 85% passed the license examination. Many of the students were from emergency services providers or Community Emergency Response Teams. I'm tired, but feel pretty good about the day.

 

[NW-Bound]

The moldings look like they match the hand rails and are supposed to be that way. I'd leave them like they are.

The stairs look great. How did you fasten them? A brad nail gun?

Thanks. I will let it be for a while, and if it still bothers me, I will head to Home Depot to get a new length of molding.

Yes, I used a brad nail gun, but also put down some old-fashioned floor adhesive to be safe.

 

[pb4uski]

My Craftsman C3 cordless brad nailer is one of my new favorite tools. Very handy. I can't imaging going back to doing finish nails with a hammer and nail set.... neanderthal ...... I was always poor with the nail set anyway.

 

[NW-Bound]

I have a pneumatic 2-in-1 brad/staple nail gun from Harbor Freight. I bought it on sale quite a few years ago, and could not have paid more than $30.

It served me faithfully for many home projects, and the only drawback is that I have to haul indoors my portable compressor which weighs 50 lbs.

 

[W2R]

Very nice stairs, NW-Bound. I especially like the light that not only provides more safety on the stairs (very important!), but also shows off the wood nicely.

And I agree, the moldings look just fine to me. They are a little darker but I think they look very nice.

 

[Ronstar]

Nice stairs, NW! Are the treads one piece? If so, how did you do the landing? Multiple pieces?


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum