In the garden, and RAIN!!!! by SIGNYM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Good to hear you're still making progress Sigs. Always nice to get more trash out.

I didn't even bother putting anything out to the curb this week, after 6 weeks of putting out two full containers and wishing I could do three. Nothing really to throw out when I'm not dehoarding the garage, tearing something down I plan to rebuild or (thankfully) when the springtime weeds and seeds and fallen branches and constant lawn clippings finally give way to a much needed break.

I decided to buy more of the vinyl window film. I'm LOVING the stuff that I put up in the master bedroom and the excess I used on the front door. It looks great, and contrary to some really negative reviews about it not sticking, I think they'll stay up for 10 years since I prepped everything well and followed the directions. Not a single sign of any of them peeling at all.

It just occurred to me today that the windows in the basement are shorter than the ones upstairs and you can buy the same stuff that is twice as long so I can get the entire basement done with only two rolls and have more to spare. One more roll makes 3 and that will be pretty much every window in my house except for the large window in the living room.

In the basement, I'm going to put them on both the top and the bottom pane. Everywhere else, just on the bottom pane.

I love how clean they look upstairs and how I don't need to put holes in the wall or window frames to install any blinds or drapes. They'll look great when I repaint everything that I haven't done yet and make the new frames for the living room, and whenever I sell the house down the road it will be a clean slate for the new owners to decide what they want to do with them.

When my friend saw the windows I did at first glance he thought that I'd bought new windows. The last time he was up there was before I'd done the new sills and framed them out, and the windows had at least 8 years of dirt and grime built up. He actually thought I sprung for brand new windows with privacy panes on the bottom.

That means I get to tear down those old horrible blinds I have up everywhere that are caked with years of dust and crap on them too. Even though the film gives privacy, it lets a whole lot more light in than dingy blinds that are closed most of the time.

I can't wait!

Do Right, Be Right. :)

YEE HA! I have some old blinds, too. I'll give the film a try. Which one did you use?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Friday, June 26, 2020 9:31 PM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Out for a walk in the sunshine in a bit.

YAY SUNSHINE!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Friday, June 26, 2020 10:41 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
YEE HA! I have some old blinds, too. I'll give the film a try. Which one did you use?

The brand is called Gorilla Grip. I got it off Amazon. The price seems to vary a bit depending on which style you want for no reason, but it's reasonable.

They weren't supposed to come until the 2nd week of next month, but a majority of it will be here tomorrow.

I already tore down the 4 blinds on the windows in the basement. I never put one up in the unfinished bathroom since both panes already had privacy glass. Once I did that, I realized that I let the lawn go longer than I should, so I had to change course and do that and some other yardwork before the storms came in.

Surprisingly, I was able to clean two of the windows already. They were beyond gross behind those blinds. The basement is just gross overall since I haven't finished it yet, but I'm so glad I got to that today. I haven't had wasps in my house in years, but always wondered why I'd see one occasionally. I'll be damned, there was a little wasp nest up behind the bracket of one of the blinds. It wasn't able to get big like they tend to because there was no more room for them to build it out, but it sure was hidden. Who knows how many years old that thing was. It was dormant now.

I'll clean the other two windows tomorrow and hopefully get the film up by the end of the day. It's already such a huge improvement. It's been so dark down there for so many years that even with dark clouds out all day long I couldn't believe how much brighter everything was.

And my power went out 3 times during the storm for about 5 to 10 seconds, but thankfully it came back on and stayed on. I believe the storms are over for the night. I figured out where my leak is too. I think I'm going to call around and see if I can get somebody to just go up and patch everything... all the stacks and pipes on the roof and the vent that goes along the peak of the roof. I think I can do it myself if I can't get a decent price from anybody, but I really, really, really don't want to.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Friday, June 26, 2020 11:29 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Out for a walk in the sunshine in a bit.
YAY SUNSHINE!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

For today it was okay but muggy. Then it rained around 4pm. Heading for another rain by the look of the clouds. We shall see.

Decided to buy a copy of "Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker". Since I don't know when my local library will get a copy of it in.

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 1:35 AM

Got the other two windows done.

Decided that I'd rather do it now while it's 72 degrees with 100% humidity than tomorrow when it's 85 and 100% humidity and the A/C is on.

It's like detailing a freakin' car when you let them get that bad.

All ready for vinyl when it comes. I might spray for weeds and bugs again tomorrow while I'm waiting for it.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 5:59 PM

Been out and back for my walk. Can't seem to decide if it wants to rain or shine. Mix of grey clouds and blue sky.

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 6:31 PM

Don't you just hate when grocery stores put stuff you want on the highest shelf. That happened to me twice today. Good thing I had my umbrella with me to get a box of cereal down. The other item was close enough to the edge that standing on my tip-toes I was able to get it.

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 6:37 PM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

I've had to do that too!! Someimes I've had to make them fall and catch them on the way down - fortunately it's usually something like paper towels (100% recycled!) so that if(when) I fail to catch them getting bonked on the head don't hurt.

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 7:01 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Don't you just hate when grocery stores put stuff you want on the highest shelf. That happened to me twice today. Good thing I had my umbrella with me to get a box of cereal down. The other item was close enough to the edge that standing on my tip-toes I was able to get it.

I buy on the bottom shelf. That's where all the real bargains are.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 7:10 PM

Another 3 gallons of weed spray and 4 gallons of bug spray out today.

That should be the last of it for the weeds if we don't get much rain. It's likely this year since by far this is the hottest summer on record in about 6 years around these parts. Not a single day in the forecast until late August even dips below 80 degrees for a high. I could probably count on my fingers and toes the days that were over 80 degrees last year.

Got my vinyl. Going to do a few Windex treatments and get to cutting and fitting all of it.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 10:53 PM

By all of it, I meant only 2 of 8 panes...

Unlike the windows upstairs, it turns out every one of these is just a slightly different measurement, seemingly both dimensions... Another Uncle Bob Job, I'm sure. Nothing you'd ever notice with the naked eye for sure, but it matters when cutting this stuff.

I didn't take account how much more work this new pattern would be either. The one I used before had tiny iridescent squares that do a cool light effect both with the sun and with lights outside at night. This one has larger opaque squares around 2 1/2 inches that are broken up into a grid with about 2-3mm lines that are just clear plastic... no effect. It gives me somewhat of a base to work with when making my marks, but not nearly as easy as it was when I was working with squares that were about 8mm on the other pattern.

That being said, I would highly recommend that you do not purchase a straight opaque vinyl sheet with no squares on it if you want to do this, Sigs. That would probably be extremely difficult to get a good cut, especially if you had to cut both length and width, and without any squares to draw your attention away from any parts that aren't perfectly cut to the end of the window I don't think you'd be happy with the result.

The two that I did look great so far though. Went out with a flashlight and left it out there pointing in and came inside and shut off the lights and it looks awesome. It should be cool to see what these things look like when the sun is out. I shouldn't have any problems getting the other 6 done tomorrow and having time to do some other stuff I need to take care of before tomorrow night.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 11:37 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
I've had to do that too!! Someimes I've had to make them fall and catch them on the way down - fortunately it's usually something like paper towels (100% recycled!) so that if(when) I fail to catch them getting bonked on the head don't hurt.

That is basically I had to do with the cereal. Got it close enough to the edge that I could tip it over and catch it.

Even had it happen on a different occasion in the freezer with the ice cream. Stuff I like always, always on the top shelf. So, I either climb the shelving or use my umbrella handle to edge it over. Though I have been known to knock other boxes of ice cream down.

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Saturday, June 27, 2020 11:39 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Don't you just hate when grocery stores put stuff you want on the highest shelf. That happened to me twice today. Good thing I had my umbrella with me to get a box of cereal down. The other item was close enough to the edge that standing on my tip-toes I was able to get it.

I buy on the bottom shelf. That's where all the real bargains are.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

The cereal was on sale which is why I wanted and I happen to like it as well. Spoon-size shredded wheat.

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 12:17 AM

At just a little after 9pm, I saw part of a rainbow out of my balcony window.

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 3:37 AM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Occasionally I have to hunt up and down the aisles of a grocery store looking for a ladle or chopsticks or anything long enough so that I can slide the item I'm looking for off the shelf and grab it as it falls. That, or find a helpful tall person to get it down for me!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 4:00 AM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Busy, busy, busy. I HOPE it lets up soon, in the famous words of Sam Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) I need a rest

Been walking the dog and KP duty and putting in an hour or more of yardwork every morning (just correcting past neglect) then doing something project-oriented in the afternoon, then making dinner for the family. And today for some reason, everyone wanted pancakes for breakfast whihc kinda set my day back.

Today dd and I finally planted the pollinator garden. It's very late in the season for planting, but we did sow some reliable seeds like cosmos and evening primrose and nastutrium so a least SOMEthing will come up!

Tomorrow I believe rewiring part of the garage is in the works.

Also, in trying to get our tax papers together I discovered something hinky in hubby's retirement investments which I need to correct on Monday. Plus I'm STILL trying to sort out something that they screwed up late last year so there's that.

ONE good thing happened tho: we are innundated with zucchini, so today I made a stir-fry with red pepper, ginger, leftover snow peas, leftover cabbage (shredded) and zoodles (zucchini noodles) which the faily really liked. I made the zoodles with a vegetable peeler that doesn't work well as a peeler because it peels too thick, but I kept it around as a spare and discovered its perfect for zoodles.

So, one more zucchini recipe under my belt!

Anyone want any zucchini??

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 5:12 AM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

No zucchini for me - sadly, they don't freeze well.

But I did create a good recipe from this and that - refried beans with cooked ground meat. The tricks, I discovered are to cook/ brown the meat separately from everything else (beans, onions, tomato juice, jalapeño, cilantro) so it doesn't end up as a tan mush with the beans ... AND ... you need to add lots and lots of fresh cilantro and fresh cut jalapeño at the end (sliced thin with a mandolin) so that it tastes like pico de gallo. All those 'white' beans that I cooked for taste-testing went into it, which I intended.

I've been too lazy to finish my next batch recipe, which is sweet and sour cabbage with onions and apples, and herbed (lots of fresh thyme and parsley, and some fresh rosemary) meatballs.

AND ... after that I need to do another batch of something. Maybe I'll go back to a reliable standby, perhaps my Greek-style frittata, with potatoes, herbs, kale, and feta.

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 12:37 PM

The vinyl looks GREAT in the sun.

It's also up there as if it was a part of the window. I can't imagine that anything is going to make this peel for years to come. The trick is to prep the windows correctly. Not only did I use the dollar store all-purpose cleaner on the panes while I cleaned the rest of the windows and casings, but then I used two applications of Windex. And a little tip I learned from my grandpa years back is to use newspaper to wipe them down after you clean them to make them completely streak free.

Then take time to get the air bubbles out with a credit card. It's hard to explain the best way to do it, but after you've done one or two you will develop a good system to make it as easy and efficient as possible.

Can't wait to get the rest of them up in the basement today. I am going to see what happens about the heat though. The blinds I had didn't black everything out, but it was a lot darker down there. We're having a pretty consistently hot summer around here and with only the single window unit, trying to ask that to cool a now heated basement on top of two above ground floors and an attic is a pretty tall order.

Bezos is on the ball right now. Despite the constant hard sell to get prime whenever you checkout, I'm getting the bulk of my shipped free order today, which is the day I would have gotten it if I had Prime, despite the fact that it was said at checkout I wouldn't get any of this until the 2nd week of July. Only one other item on the list after today's delivery, and that was one that was sent by a third party seller that doesn't take part in any Prime offers anyhow and it wouldn't have gotten here right away.

Side note... I don't know how I lived without A/C all these years. I'd be lying if I said that I'm not enjoying it. I've got to do a bit of work generally later at night using a high powered fan to blow cool dry air up into the attic to get it down to a cool temp and then send it down to the 1st floor for a while before I turn it off and go to bed.

It hasn't been under 73 in my house for days, with the high being around 76, but the key is that it's dry air and feels extremely comfortable. Our summers have been so cool around here for so long I forgot what a hot one felt like. If I didn't have my A/C right now it would be over 90 degrees in my house with a huge amount of humidity and I'd be dripping sweat on the floor even just in my boxers.

That being said, my one negative I'd give the A/C unit is that the evaporator system is all but useless. This thing dumps buckets of water on the side of my house in an 8 hour cycle. I've got a large pan you'd use for baking propped under that just to get it a little further away, but I really need to devise something that will make it drip outside of the barrier to the hasta bed.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 7:23 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Occasionally I have to hunt up and down the aisles of a grocery store looking for a ladle or chopsticks or anything long enough so that I can slide the item I'm looking for off the shelf and grab it as it falls. That, or find a helpful tall person to get it down for me!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Been there and done that too Sig. Once got a broom to get something down off a high shelf. That was when my mom was still alive. It was something she wanted.

I have asked grocery store staff when they are around too to get things down for me.

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 7:24 PM

An actual bright sunny Sunday here.

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 10:19 PM

Jeez... According to the weather report, today was the coolest high temp until the 15th of next month by 5 degrees.

They've been known to be wrong before though. Like when they said no rain today and we got hit with a thunderstorm that dropped an inch of rain in a half hour and flooded the street again, because the city storm sewer systems and/or pumps failed again.

Of course, like last time, it was on a Sunday and there was nobody in the entire freaking city there manning the phones off hours because of muh Covid.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Sunday, June 28, 2020 11:45 PM

Trying to sort out my latest Firefly story. I posted a beginning to it but over the week, I wrote another beginning to it and have 2 different endings to it. I will straighten it out.

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Monday, June 29, 2020 12:19 AM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
An actual bright sunny Sunday here.

I can see how any kind of weather would be unpleasant if you had it day after day ... I happen to like foggy/ rainy/ drizzly cool (but not snowy!) weather, but I imagine even I would get tired of it over time.

So YAY for your bright sunny day!

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Monday, June 29, 2020 12:08 PM

THG

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Jeez... According to the weather report, today was the coolest high temp until the 15th of next month by 5 degrees.

They've been known to be wrong before though. Like when they said no rain today and we got hit with a thunderstorm that dropped an inch of rain in a half hour and flooded the street again, because the city storm sewer systems and/or pumps failed again.

Of course, like last time, it was on a Sunday and there was nobody in the entire freaking city there manning the phones off hours because of muh Covid.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Monday, June 29, 2020 12:16 PM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
An actual bright sunny Sunday here.

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
I can see how any kind of weather would be unpleasant if you had it day after day ... I happen to like foggy/ rainy/ drizzly cool (but not snowy!) weather, but I imagine even I would get tired of it over time.

So YAY for your bright sunny day!

That said, it's actually a bit drizzly* here this AM, and I welcome it!

Ahhh ... a reprieve from heat and relentless sun.

(* Sadly, there isn't enough precipitation to accumulate and water the vegetation, but at least it means there's no fire danger today.)

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Monday, June 29, 2020 1:27 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
An actual bright sunny Sunday here.
I can see how any kind of weather would be unpleasant if you had it day after day ... I happen to like foggy/ rainy/ drizzly cool (but not snowy!) weather, but I imagine even I would get tired of it over time.

So YAY for your bright sunny day!

I don't mind fog because I just let my mind wander while I am walking in it.

Bright and sunny today too. And I am out for a walk in a bit. See if this weather holds for the week.

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Monday, June 29, 2020 9:57 PM

Got the privacy film up on all the windows in the basement and finished doing the windows on the 2nd floor.

I even cleaned the kitchen window, removed the dirty old blinds and got that one up as well. That was especially fun since I had to be an acrobat and do all that work while standing over the sink.

I have enough left over for three more windows, and I have three in the living room that I'd like to do. I think I'm going to remove the large vertical blind system that's in there since it's old and discolored. I don't smoke in my house, but I think the previous owners must have. At least, I can't imagine that anybody would buy those in "pee yellow".

They've got to come down anyway before I break off the old window sill and make a new one so I can properly frame out all the livingroom windows. I'm going to have to buy one more roll though because even though I'll have enough to do the two smaller side windows that open, I won't have any to cover at least the bottom part of the large window in the center that doesn't open. I do most of my living in the living room and I don't just want that wide open to the world without any way of closing it off.

I might try to get my neighbor to babysit me for 10 or 15 minutes and try to scope out the situation on the roof tomorrow, weather permitting. If I don't feel it's safe, I'm going to have to start calling around and get a few people up there to give me their thoughts on what needs to be done and what it might cost.

If it's just a matter of re-sealing the rubber around the stacks and replacing the ridge vents, I think I can handle that on my own. But if the wood under the shingles has been damaged I'm probably going to have to bite the bullet and have some pros do the work.

Fun times.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Monday, June 29, 2020 10:13 PM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Sounds like great work on the vinyl, SIX! I'll bet it makes a HUGE difference in the way your house looks!

I have one question: since the vinyl will inevitably get dirty, just like a window would, can you wash it?

And one comment: Drapes and blinds have a purpose besides privacy, and that is to block light. It may not be an issue for you, but for us it definitely helps to keep the heat out. That's why I have thermally insulative sun-blocking curtains on our bedroom and livingroom windows which get sun. Personally, I like "plantation shutters" which are made with wide slats of wood, but they would be prohibitively expen$ive since they would need to be custom-made. So I would go with both privacy vinyl AND curtains. The vinyl for when I want the curtains open.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Monday, June 29, 2020 10:24 PM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

I HAD to take a break today, my arthritis (or whatever it is) is really catching up with me. But we got the new conduit up for the demand water-heater which runs inside the garage (we did the outdoor work a few weeks ago) and we put that up so hubby could run additional lines and put in an additional breaker to give him outlets at either end of the workbench separate from the heater.

Got the hinky thing straightened out with his portfolio. Also got the RMD thing... if not exactly straightened out, at least I know what happened and can file taxes appropriately. Also, happy that I took a dive into his portfolio because I found that thanks to the CARES Act he does not have to take a RMD this year. WOO HOO!

Yesterday we had bbq pork and "zoodles" with bacon, onion, and potato. Today we're having beef stew (which I'm not eating because allergic to beef) with chunks of ...guess what? Tomorrow, ham and bean soup with beet greens and ... more of "guess what?" After that, maybe back to Asian-style zoodles. I HAVE to pick the zucchini at least every other day otherwise they get ginormous very fast!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Monday, June 29, 2020 10:27 PM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

"I have one question: since the vinyl will inevitably get dirty, just like a window would, can you wash it?"

I started looking into painting my lower windows with acrylic (artists) paint a while ago. And I found out that not only do they have thinners which would allow me to modify the opacity, but they also have mildly to wildly opalescent pigments. So for instance, one might be able to create the appearance of milk glass

or opalescent glass

or iridescent glass (not my style, but it gives you and idea)

or paint any pattern of stripes, etc you might want.

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Monday, June 29, 2020 10:34 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Sounds like great work on the vinyl, SIX! I'll bet it makes a HUGE difference in the way your house looks!

You can't even imagine. Your mileage probably won't be as much as mine since I'm sure you clean your windows more than once every 8 years.

But it looks so neat and clean, and once I repair the holes from the old brackets and get to re-painting walls and such, I already know how much better it will look since I know what it looks like upstairs. So much sunlight in my house now. It's crazy.

I feel like I have some major things that need to be done and I'm messing around doing arts and crafts BS, but this is important. I can't say that it's going to fix my mood everyday, but having 10 times the sunlight or more than I used to have in the house can't hurt.

Quote:
I have one question: since the vinyl will inevitably get dirty, just like a window would, can you wash it?

Yanno... I thought about that yesterday. I had been measuring it and cutting it on the concrete floor in the basement and making a huge mess because of residual sawdust that was still there from the baseboard/trim after I swept it all up. I had to rub both sides on my sweatpants, shake them off and wipe my hands and do it a few times before I could even think of putting those up on my clean windows. (I was smart today and saved a ton of time and got a lot more work done by sweeping and washing my work area first).

But it did make me think about the cleaning question... I mean, it's vinyl. So yes? But I'm not going to be able to let it go now that it's up there. I'm sure if I let a few years of dust and crap get on them that it would be a nightmare to clean. If I got a duster and just hit them every few weeks I probably wouldn't really need to wash them.

Quote:
And one comment: Drapes and blinds have a purpose besides privacy, and that is to block light. It may not be an issue for you, but for us it definitely helps to keep the heat out. That's why I have thermally insulative sun-blocking curtains on our bedroom and livingroom windows which get sun. Personally, I like "plantation shutters" which are made with wide slats of wood, but they would be prohibitively expen$ive since they would need to be custom-made. So I would go with both privacy vinyl AND curtains. The vinyl for when I want the curtains open.

I thought about that yesterday. It is notably hotter in the basement than it ever has been the last two days. My problem is that I have full sun exposure the first half of the day on the back of my house where two of the windows are. Granted, I didn't have them covered until mid-day today, so I'll have to monitor that tomorrow. The ones I used for the basement "diffuse" the light and don't do the luminescent effect that the upstairs windows do, so they might block out the heat better.

It's the same story with the 2nd floor windows which are right above the basement in the tri-level house. Also, where I covered the top and bottom panes in the basement, I only put the film on the bottom pane of the 2nd floor windows. But the A/C is up there and it doesn't seem to be a problem.

I won't have to worry about that on the 1st floor because the 2nd half of the day the sunlight is blocked by all the trees out front (assuming, of course, that I don't have them torn down at some point... but then I'd still have the tall trees across the street blocking a lot of it).

But really, around here I only have to think about that 3 months out of the year, max. If I ever felt it got unbearable I could just tape up a few black trash bags over the basement windows for a few months.

But I probably won't do that. The A/C is amazing. I've play a few games with a big metal fan I've got and have it pointing down stairs at times and around sundown I point it up into the attic which seems to drop the temp up there 15 degrees in only 20-30 minutes or so.

It's 72 on the second floor right now and it was 92 degrees outside today.

Now that I'm 40 and it's the first hot summer we've had in a long time, I don't know how the hell I used to do it. It was absolutely miserable outside today at 90+ with thunderstorms and near 100% humidity. Walking inside after I had been out doing anything felt amazing.

I know my bill isn't going to make me happy, but I've decided that it's worth it a few months out of the year. Not only for my house, but for me too.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Monday, June 29, 2020 11:33 PM

Well, the sun will not hold where I am. It will be a wet Canada day but then with everything cancelled it won't matter too much.

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Monday, June 29, 2020 11:46 PM

Same here, Brenda. Rain until Friday by me.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Tuesday, June 30, 2020 1:08 PM

Yeah, it is absolutely pouring by the looks of it right here and right now Jack. Soggy end to June and it looks like a soggy beginning to July.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 1:30 AM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Hey I think the garage is finished as far as the big stuff. The shelving and countertop/ workbench are up, the lights have been changed out for LEDs, we added two outlets and circuit breakers and did new conduit for that and the demand water heater, so that is done.

And my tomato and peppers are finally developing fruit, I see four baby watermelons the cucumber is ready to pick

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 2:16 AM

Nice work.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 2:31 AM

Great going on the garden SIG.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 2:42 AM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
"I have one question: since the vinyl will inevitably get dirty, just like a window would, can you wash it?"

I started looking into painting my lower windows with acrylic (artists) paint a while ago. And I found out that not only do they have thinners which would allow me to modify the opacity, but they also have mildly to wildly opalescent pigments. So for instance, one might be able to create the appearance of milk glass

or opalescent glass

or iridescent glass (not my style, but it gives you and idea)

or paint any pattern of stripes, etc you might want.

hey that looks pretty!!!

I could do some really fancy stuff with that!!

But is it washable?

What I really want, for two windows anyway, is something really sparkly like grist patterns, or "misty" looking, like looking into a fog.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 3:43 AM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

Quote:
Originally posted by SignyM:
Hey I think the garage is finished as far as the big stuff. The shelving and countertop/ workbench are up, the lights have been changed out for LEDs, we added two outlets and circuit breakers and did new conduit for that and the demand water heater, so that is done.

And my tomato and peppers are finally developing fruit, I see four baby watermelons the cucumber is ready to pick

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

I know it's not YOUR project, Signy, but it seems like a good project, done well, and finally completed!

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 3:52 AM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

Quote:
Originally posted by SignyM:

milk glass

opalescent glass

iridescent glass

patterns of stripes, etc

Quote:
hey that looks pretty!!!

I could do some really fancy stuff with that!!

But is it washable?

What I really want, for two windows anyway, is something really sparkly like grist patterns, or "misty" looking, like looking into a fog.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Well ... I got as far as wondering if it would stick, and if it would be removable later on. And I haven't tried it yet! Stuff like opacity, ease of use, etc are all theoretical!

For sticking, I think all one would need is to clean the glass well. Art stores do have a product for painting on glass, but I think it etches the glass a bit and is supposed to be permanent. So I'd avoid anything that wasn't removable because one might wish to sell the house later on without replacing the windows! As for removal, if you're using regular artists acrylic paint, I think it would take a razor blade, but it could be done.

And then one might need to put a clear topcoat on to give it a glossy effect.

Anyway, it's just an inkling, not yet a real idea. I'm afraid you'd have to carry it further.

https://www.ehow.com/info_12061876_can-acrylic-paint-used-glass-window
s.html

https://homeguides.sfgate.com/paint-art-window-panes-26986.html

https://www.thebeginningartist.com/painting-on-glass-with-acrylic/

https://arthearty.com/tips-to-use-acrylic-paint-on-glass

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 4:32 AM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 6:06 AM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

I did go to Michael's craft store a few times to check out their stuff and talk with the people there. https://www.michaels.com/

They have an acrylic 'thinner' which isn't really a thinner since it's just as thick as regular acrylic paint - it's simply the acrylic resin with no pigments, fillers etc.

So I was going to paint my windows this way:

block off vertical stripes with painters tape

create a 'streaky' semi-opaque and slightly opalescent paint with a combination of white acrylic, thinner, and subtly opalescent pigment

paint across all the window with the 'streaky' paint in curves and swirls so that there's a free-form sets-of-curves pattern of more opaque/less opaque curves in the paint across the window pane, continuing across the painter's tape

remove the tape and paint the stripes a uniform translucent light lemon yellow

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 1:34 PM

HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Though it is a soggy one in BC.

Out for a walk in a bit.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 2:07 PM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Those are pix of real frost patterns, correct? Sadly, I don't see how I can reproduce them excpet by laying glass horizontally and evaporating something like magnesium sulfate on them. Which would be impossible because the glass is not removable, and the dsign would not be durable and definitely couldn't be washed. Maybe use a thin sheet of acrylic and work on THAT?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 10:40 PM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

AFAIK those are real frost patterns, though they're internet-worthy quality.

Yeah, frost patterns are exceptionally detailed at the atomic level and intricate; and even the differences in which way the ice crystals run (because ice crystals are anisotropic, or, not the same in 3 dimensions) might make a difference in refraction, reflection, and other optical qualities. So if you could create a real frost pattern, and if you could capture it without melting it (starting perhaps with hairspray and then spray acrylic to make a mold, and then casting the mold with acrylic resin), it might not have the same visual effect. I think it would look like intricate carvings of bulk acrylic, at best.

Unfortunately, I can't think of a way around that. So I think you're best off trying to find an artistic, human-designed pattern you like.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 10:46 PM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Though it is a soggy one in BC.

Out for a walk in a bit.

Indeed!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

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Wednesday, July 1, 2020 11:33 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Though it is a soggy one in BC.

Out for a walk in a bit.
Indeed!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Yup. Had an odd feeling to the day. I know it is Wednesday but being out for my walk it felt like a Sunday.

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Thursday, July 2, 2020 12:33 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:

It would be great to know more about what he did the US but that means getting to the US and Louisanna specifically to go through civil war records.

I think you might be surprised what you can find out online these days.

Gotta get that computer up and running. ;)

Do Right, Be Right. :)

I did decide to take a quick look at something on line. National Archives which wasn't much help. Course I could just keep trying on line. Different takes.

The monitor works but at the rate things are going. I think I will end up just buying another flaming laptop until I can get a hold of my IT guy.

The monitor works. Good.

Does the desktop work?

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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Thursday, July 2, 2020 3:29 AM