Jacked

A pick and ax proved no match for a canal of 2 feet thick concrete snaking around the mexican lime trees. So a jack hammer was rented and both Louis and WL took turns chopping up the garbage concrete.

What If.....

I love this ad for Nextel. It's answers the question.... What If Film Crews Ran The World.
Watch it here

Blood and Concrete

The first film I worked in Los Angeles was Blood and Concrete with Billy Zane and Jennifer Beals. Yesterday, the concrete sans blood was taken up by Louis and WL. True to form with the rest of the house, the previous owner used garbage instead of gravel to line his form. We are expecting to find Hoffa on the property!
The lane will be returned to grass. And the other pad will be poured later in the week.

Doggie Neighbors

There are a pair of gorgeous Huskies next door, Sheba and Rex. This is the more vocal of the two, Sheba. Rex just whines a little when he wants to play. Seven is not losing any sleep over the competition.

Bathroom Demo

The workers demo-ed the bathroom earlier this week with a great effect. I love the standing shower now. WL says the bathroom seems a lot bigger without the walls! This is also the only part of the house with water damage. The boards underneath the shower will need to be replaced.

One Man's Garbage......

I am back in Brooklyn and was cleaning out the apartment today. I took some stuff to the recycle bins and found some great old pottery. Very 1950's looking. Most of it was broken but this piece is almost complete. And there appears to be a signature on it's butt.
It looks fine up on the self with the Rubartelli/Verushka pic.

Away We Go

The trailer for the film we did last summer is out. Watch it here

Katie's Canvass

Talented niece KN will be painting some of your walls this summer in her inimitable expressionist style. The retaining walls will get a skim coat of concrete and then plater to make ready for whatever she desires. The wall behind the garage will highlight our second patio. We will be pouring a new concrete floor there and build a pergola overhead. The perfect place for late afternoon margaritas.

The Reuse People

Wilton and I got out to Pacoima the other day to collect our french doors. The company, The Reuse People, take apart old houses and resell the contents. Lots of doors, sinks and cabinets to be had. Great prices and definitely belonging on anyone's speed dial when looking for a specific item. Get on their mailing list and when a window or door arrives in the dimensions you wish, an email is dispatched post haste.
They currently have two homes from Santa Monica which yielded the gorgeous front door above.

The Floor

These are the remnants of the tile floor. I trimmed the lime tree and a few of the tulip trees as well. We are currently researching SoCal friendly plants to replace the english ivy scourge of our steep back hill.

The Rabbit's Back

We were out on a dusk walk the other night and spotted a familiar sight on the top of a small hill on Stratford St. The Bunny was back. He was a frequent sight last year after a nearby house went into foreclosure. He was fat! Snowy white and always hung out under the same bush. Seven's interest was naturally piqued. But we had not seen him all winter and assumed someone took him to the pound or worse (coyotes). He reappeared a little skinnier after the long winter. But still lounging under the same bush. Good to see he's okay.

Windows

I've spent the last 4 days stripping the paint off the windows in the bedrooms. The previous owner put a sloppy bead of caulk around each pane. It's a long a tedious process but I think they are ready for a final steel wool scrubbing.

Important

We were locking up the house the other day and a lick of light shot through the kitchen to the bathroom.... highlighting the one piece of equipment no home can exist without.

Green Door

I painted the front door a hunter green. At least now it is one color instead of a mish mash of browns and primer.

Kitchen

WL carved away the mildewed plaster board and the guts of the house do not seem to have suffered. We also traced out his "improved" design to divert the waste water outside instead on down the pipe. Our next question will be is that pipe blocked? Does a new watse pipe need to be run?
As an aside, it's always amazing how little insulation there is in LA homes. I was expecting alot of rotting pink stuff behind the wall but only found some tar paper. The joys of living in the desert.

Sleepy Dog

With us gone for so much of the day now, Seven has been catching up on his sleep..... soon he'll be able to nap under a tree in the backyard.

Kitchen

I've been tearing apart the kitchen from above and WL has been prying up the tile floor. We are finding a lot of rot. Mildew. And Surprises. The sink drains directly to the outdoors underneath the kitchen window. No waste pipe. Seems the previous owner had a mania about water and it's use for watering the lawn. But because of that, there is mildew all over the wall there and the kitchen drywall is rotted. WL seems to think the sub floor is wet too. We are drying it out over night to assess.

Kitchen

Trying to salvage the kitchen counters (and save $4000). They were a mess but I'm trained to see "what could be", to visualize..... so I dismantled the doors and drawers and gave them a good toxic chemical bath out back. And sure enough, there are gems underneath years of grease and ill advised color choices. Now the trick will be to save the counters. To remove them without hurting them too much

Floors Pt.2

As the new sledge hammer and crow bars attest, the living room also has some nice wood floors. The only damage so far is over near the leaky shower. But we already know about the wood damage underneath the shower, seems there was some collateral horizontal damage as well. Luckily, it's only two or three planks.