Went to home Depot first thing for bolts and more wood. Jack and Joy were coming over today at 10. I didn't get started on the greenhouse project until after lunch. Added some baseboards and nailers to the mix. I also bolted the shutter wall to the vertical pipe. The greenhouse is closing in on the day it will be covered. I'm hoping for next week. Dinner was a Korger Rotisserie chicken with Bush baked beans.

After the normal Sunday programs I went out to work on the greenhouse some more. Put the shutter wall up. I roughed in the shutter at 40 inches but it looks too big. Need some bolts to fasten this wall to the vertical post. Libbie made some of her best Pizza yet. She used peppers from the garden and some onions in the refrigerator to make an outstanding pizza.

Worked the first few hours of the morning on an Xbee temperature monitor for the porch and greenhouse. I glued down 4 RJ45's onto a proto board as the first step. One wire buses will plug into this. Next I went outside and started the East wall by digging up the Mondo grass and dumping it in the front for transplanting. Measured what I needed for wood and went to Home Depot for the stuff. I'll put it up tomorrow. Dinner was parmesan crusted tilapia with steamfresh veggies and sweet potato. This was accompanied by a bottle of Shiraz.

This was a productive day. I worked on the roof putting up flashing from the window to the edge of the West side. This was in preparation for the two pieces of 1x4 PVC corner bead that I installed next. This essentially completes the cornice work. Out in the back somewhere is a noisy and annoying machine that just roars. I don't know what they are doing but it gets to me after a while. We had a long list of errands to do which included a post office trip to drop off a package, a trip to Whole Foods to use our Groupon and get tomorrow's dinner then a stop by Ira's office for Libbie to get her glasses. We also went to the greenhouse where I picked up 4 more pails of gravel. Lots of running around!

Came in and cleaned up for First Friday. We went to Nichole's and had some wine and bought some fused glass angels for the TAVS gift exchange. Next stop was Raleigh CAM. Had a hard time finding parking but eventually a block down from CAM we got a spot. Admission was $5 each. The building is lovely, it's a converted produce warehouse. The art was not to my taste. Downstairs they had a weird NC State School of Design high tech art display. Once again, not for me. We had dinner at the Pit. I had Carolina style Spare ribs with beans abd french fries and some Brooklyn beer which was a microbrew. Excellent. I remarked to Libbie that we were the oldest people in the place. Surrounding us were tables of young professionals.

Cleaned the house up because Nancy was coming over. It turns out she came but we didn't hear her at the front door. need to fix that, either a bell on the porch or in the back room. I finished enclosing the cornice and built some more of the greenhouse wall including a header over the door frame. I planted all the daffodil bulbs - some in the front yard, some in the woods in the back and a few in the garden below our porch chairs. I also pulled the dahlias. After lunch today we went to the farmers market and visited with Jennifer who was selling xmas trees. I also gave her the parrot toys from Vicki Carr.

It was a sunny but chilly day. I went to AC Moore for some poster paper and made a template to cut the hardiboard for the cornice. This went well. I cut most of the pieces but did not nail them. Will work on the rest of that tomorrow. I came in pretty tired. Removed an Orange background from a pic of Brianna for Anne and also reviewed the latest MAAVS Memo for Ken. Went upstairs to lay down and read and as expected, I fell asleep. It felt good. I switched gears in reading putting aside the Murakami book in order to start the Stephen King book about JFK and time travel, 11/23/63. Dinner was BBQ pork with steamfresh veggies. Nice!

We still have a little rain this morning. Did the groceries, first Trader Joes then Krogers. We didn't need much. Bolted the wall to the greenhouse gutter support. Next I worked on the cornice repair adding some 2x4's to replace rotted wood. Dinner was Lobster Ravioli which i picked up in Trader Joes today.

Started out leveling the wall with gravel I picked up at Jessie Dr earlier. Worked on the cornice somewhat before hooking up the trailer for a Lowes trip. Picked up a French Door, hardi siding and some bolts. On the way home it started raining. The saw and tools at home got wet which we dried with old tools. It continued raining off and on all day. Instead I finished the Lonestar website. Dinner was leftover turkey with mashed potato and gravy. Very delicious. Listened to LaBoheme live in the evening on Sirius.

Short work day. Cinderella is at 2 so after the morning shows I went to Lowes for more treated 2x4's. Cut them and built a wall which I temporarily propped up since time was up. Have to shower and clean up for Cinderella.
The performance was a surprise in more ways than one. I couldn't get over how many kids were here. It apparently is a holiday family treat for little girls mostly brought there by grandparents. My second surprise was tha it was in memorial instead of Fletcher. I chose balcony seats thinking we were in Fletcher. We were way up high but it ended up being OK. I enjoyed the excellent performance with custom composed music and played on piano by the composer. The company was in fine form. The second piece was the Grieg Piano Concerto. It was OK but paled compared to Cinderella. When we got back dinner was Lib's home made pizza.

Built the second shelf in the living room. Later in the day I cut the plywood squares to put under the shelf legs. Outdoors it was a gorgeous day with perfect temperatures. I put the West wall up but discovered it was in the wrong place. It needs to be directly under the bow. Cut the wall off and started building a new one. I need about 8 more 2x4's to finish this wall. Will probably cannibalize wood from the old greenhouse benches. Dinner was turkey sandwiches and Libbie's first baking of fruit cakes. She made them all afternoon, we were short of raisins so i made a Kroger run. Didn't do anymore outside.

This morning I went outside and started working on the West wall of the greenhouse. Went to home Depot for some 2x4's and flashing. Dug out for the base plate and placed it down. Cut some of the vertical studs for the wall, then went inside for lunch and did not return to the project. After lunch Libbie and I photographed violets that had blooms that would not last much longer. Next activity was a trip to Lowes. The shelves I bought Wednesday were now $30 less. They refunded the difference then we bought a second set of shelves for $49. This is a pretty good deal. Anne Nicholas called when we got home. She was excited about the triplets of Joe and Christa. Dinner was turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes with a bottle of Shiraz.

Watched the Macys parade on TV then worked on the Tower Timer program. I added a table that will contain water time for each shelf individually. Tried it at the 2 PM scheduled watering and everything worked the way it was supposed to which was a delightful surprise. Next I went outside and put the top row of shingles on the greenhouse roof. started putting down flashing but I ran out with approx 25 or 30 more feet to do. Moved over to the end wall where it meets the house cornice board. The cornice is very rotted. started replacement and trying to concoct a plan to tie it into the new greenhouse. Much to do. Talked to Joe and Christa about the triplets. They were very surprised but it's still too early to count on three full term babies. used the moving discs to rearrange the furniture in the living room so we could have a pack and ship center. Still much to do.
After a lovely Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberries and Andre Champagne we watched 2 hours of the Punkin Chunkin competition on the Discovery channel. It was amazing to see grown men with these huge machines investing an incredible amount of money and time in order to toss a pumpkin 4,000 feet.

Lazy day. I rebuilt the top light shelf of the FloraCart in Libbie's office. Next stop was to Lowes to get the shelves and Ott light for the "living room to be" packing area. It's warm outside which is a nice pre-Thanksgiving day. I wanted to work on the greenhouse walls but the car was full with the shelves so I didn't purchase the wood. I may be able to get by with the former greenhouse benches. Will visit the greenhouse tomorrow possibly with the trailer. Hooked up the spotlight which involved cutting holes in a new weatherproof PVC box and mounting it on the wall. This went well and after dark I tested the spotlight. Dinner was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on the sandwich rounds. We wanted something light. Found out Joe and Christa are expecting triplets! Whoa. Late night (8:30) we ran over to Home Depot and picked up furniture coasters to more the shelves and sofa in the living room. We also stopped by Krogers and picked up a small tabletop Christmas tree.

Went out for a grand shopping run. Returned the gas pipe to lowes and looked at shelves and lights. I like the metal and particle board shelves. The price is $77 and they are 4 feet wide. They also have an Ott light floor lamp. Looked at shelves in Home Depot but they weren't as large. I bought the outdoor outlet cover in Home Depot and went home and installed it. On this same trip I stopped at Office Max and got a box of paper. Next stop was Krogers for Thanksgiving food. I ended up spending $116 after coupons and old geezers discount. Did a Trader Joes run then got out the blower and cord onto the roof and blew the pine needles off. This was so I could walk down the garage front and install the satellite antenna. Went inside and tested the antenna - I now get a full scale signal strength. Picked up the pine straw which came from the roof and put it around the azaleas in the back. Dinner was lobster ravioli from Trader Joes which was excellent. Listened to La Boheme live from the Met tonight.

Finished running the thermostat wire. Ran the wire into my shop and then built two temperature prones, one for near the thermostat and the second for monitoring the heater stack temperature. I will look for a Zigbee based Arduino to do this temperature monitoring. Libbie still has her cold but she took out some pizza dough from the freezer and made a traditional Libbie pizza for dinner.

This morning I finished hooking up the vent pipe for the furnace. Skipped going to the Bolshoi because of this. Started wiring up the thermostat. Mounted the box on the brick wall and ran a piece of Cat 5 over to the sink. This wire will carry both thermostat lines and also temperature sensing. I will route the wire to the shop where two of the lines will break out and resume their journey to the heater. The heater is mostly set to go - gas hooked up and cover put back on, vent pipe completed both inside and outside. At approx 8:00 I left to pick up Libbie at the airport. She was due at 8:40 but the plane was coming in early. I brought two peanut butter sandwiches I made at home with PN and J purchased at Krogers this afternoon.

Went to the greenhouse this morning to get the mail. All looked well. I removed the white thermostat to use at home and then stopped by Lowes to return a piece of vent pipe I don't need. Went to the Opera, Satygraha at 12:15. Libbie called at around 12 from RI. she has a pretty bad cold. I enjoyed Satygraha. Met an interesting couple in the seats next to me. They have a business writing program notes for opera programs. After the Opera at 5:15 I stopped in Home Depot and picked up a reduction bushing for my gas line to the porch heater. The shutoff is 3/4 inch and the furnace flex line is 1/2 inch. Dinner was Lancasters BBQ on a bun. Very good. Talked to Libbie again, she is moving her flight up one day to Sunday. Vicki also called to talk about her trip out west and Joe and Christa's babies.

Took the box to the Post office that I packed yesterday. It's going to be cold again tonight. I woke at 4:30 this morning and came down to check the porch temperature. It's 30 outside, the porch was at 56 so I put the gas heater on low and went back to bed. Came down at 7 and turned the heater off. It climbed to 60 on the porch with the fans running all night long. I need to find a better way to monitor the back porch. Libbie called from RI. she talked to Joe and he said Christa is pregnant with twins. Dinner was fried chicken and the potato salad I picked up yesterday.

Rain and cold in the morning then the sun came out. Went to Home Depot and picked up some chain which I cut into 45 and 35 inch lengths. Moved the ceiling hooks over 18 inches and installed the chains. The hooks needed moving to allow 12 inches of horizontal vent pipe per the instruction manual. I rebuilt the lower light shelf in Libbie's office. There are now 2 shelves done. The upper shelf has plants on it so it will be more difficult. Dinner was Krogers fried chicken with macaroni and potato salads. Listened to Nabucco live and also packed up a box of 10 pots for a customer.

Went under the house and tied the porch heater power into the downstairs furnace. Called the IBM Health line this morning about Aetna PPO. They said I couldn't do it because Libbie is on the IBM supplemental plan. That sucks. Aetna gives me a free physical, the IBM plan doesn't. I don't know if it's an approved pharmacy plan either which means I have to buy a plan. Big sucko. Installed the hooks in the porch ceiling for the heater and went to Lowes for the 3 inch flu pipes. Hopefully I can hang the heater tomorrow and install the flu pipe after that. Unfortunately the weather will work against me. It's supposed to be cold tomorrow. Dinner was a bean burger with onion and ketchup on a sandwich round.

Dropped the boxes at the PO and picked up our mail. I have my new license!!!!! Went to Lowes and got two more shop lights to cannibalize. The first light i converted to T8 was placed in service this morning and all seems well. I put the convention leftover plants on the stand in Libbie's office utilizing the rebuilt light. Finished up the outdoor conduit and wires to the heater. Next step is to control under the house and tie the power in to the existing downstairs furnace circuit. Dinner was Veggie Pad Thai, a TJ's frozen entree.

Did a little financial catchup today and then visited the Credit Union to deposit the MAAVS check plus a $700 withdrawal from Scottrade. Still a little short. Picked up a fluorescent fixture and wire from Lowes then went under the house and ran the wire. Still need to tie it in under the house but this allowed me to mount a junction box outside. Packaged up the mail orders, weighed them and then printed Click n ship labels. I also searched for a home dock for the Sirius Radio. Found one on Amazon which I ordered along with ink carts and a whole house carbon filter for the back porch. Dinner was Chile Rejeno. After dinner i tried to listen to Rodelinda live from the met but it was not an Opera I could get into.

We got up early and started loading the car in the 48 degree weather. It's a blue sky Fall morning. We drove down the street and got breakfast at McDonalds before driving to Silver Spring. I dropped Libbie off at Sue's then continued the journey. It was an easy drive with me arriving home at 2:30. i was shocked to see the garage door was open!!!1 Apparently it had not closed when we left - it must have auto reversed, something it does if there's a leaf or two hanging from the door. Unloaded everything and then took a shower and washed my hair. Did a Krogers trip for milk and OJ then started straightening out my finances. FIA online account has disappeared so I couldn't make a payment. I called them and they said it was changed to BankAmerica. I made a phone payment. What a pain in the ass. When the card gets here I'm not going to use it. It's out of here!

Things are pretty slow at MAAVS. I went to the Gesneriads in China talk which was very informative and entertaining, especially the life in Southern china near the Vietnam border. In the evening we got dressed up and went to the banquet. We were seated with Donna and her Mother, Janet Reimer, Nancy Hayes and Francis Silva. Sue Hoffmann also joined us. We used our priority coupons and got 2 for 1 drinks at the hotel bar, then took them into the banquet.

We didn't get up this morning until 7:24. I slept very well. Had the hotel breakfast which was a not too bad buffet for 10.95 each.
The showroom opened at 9 and the show at 1 but we couldn't be there because we were on the Inner Harbor bus tour. Enjoyed the ride through downtown Baltimore. There is a lot to offer down there. We may come back to the Peabody institute with Road Scholar. The banquet this evening was fun. I dressed in my Pink Flamingo costume which was voted most outrageous costume. Michelle also dressed as a Flamingo. The banquet dinner was Prime rib which was very good.