Georgia Preservation

Dr. Luce, the head of Georgia's Historic Preservation Division, is retiring after ten years here in Atlanta. In a interview conducted by Steve Goss of Atlanta's NPR Station WABE 90.1, Dr. Luce comments on the general traits of historic preservation, especially here in Atlanta which often maintains a "hostile" attitude toward preservation. Around 7 minutes into the interview, Dr. Luce discusses attempts at defining the historic fabric of 1950's Ranch Homes through a partnership with the Georgia's DOT. Take a listen:

WABE": Georgia's Historic Preservation Division Director to Retire

And The Baying Of His Hounds....

This past Sunday was the inaugural Northcrest Swim and Tennis Club's Pooch Pool Party. After everything that has happened here in the neighborhood recently, we were rewarded with a beautiful late summer afternoon. Over 35 dogs of all shapes and sizes along with their parents turned out for this super fun event. I said to myself early during the event, this is either going to work out really well or it was going to go horribly wrong! All I can say was that all of the dogs had a blast with one another and it was equally fun just watching it all happen. Neighbors even without dogs came down just to watch all of the dog's antics! Just wait till next year....

Pizmo says..."Buy My Cookies!"

Pizmo getting Wet!

Pizmo and Dignon Trying To Figure Things Out!

Our Littlest Swimmer!

Chloe Really Wanting A Ball



Pizmo and the Aftermath.....

Again, it was a great time and we want to thank everyone that pitched in to help. Without everyone, the dogs could have easily taken over the pool and sent us humans running. No one wants to see a Planet of The Dogs! Now we move on to next weekend....Neighborhood Yard Sale!

Northcrest Flooding

It is hard to know where to begin. When I wrote recently about Northcrest and the surrounding areas receiving huge amounts of rain, I never could have imagined the events that have struck Northcrest. Our neighborhood, starting early Sunday morning, was struck by a series of flooding episodes that have caused many to loose so much. I have hesitated about writing this post. It is hard to write about so much destruction and resulting loss of possessions.

We were lucky….very lucky. We only received about an inch of water in our basement and maybe six inches or so of water in our crawl space. This water was not from the flooded creek, but simply from water draining down the slope in our backyard. With all the rain we had been having the ground was saturated and the water had no place to go and crept into our basement. Nothing some hard work and a wet-dry vac couldn’t fix. The fans are still going in our backroom and crawlspace, continuing to dry everything out.

However, our neighbors directly across the street from us woke up to at least three feet of water in their homes. I really do not have words to describe what we saw, and pictures can only begin to show what happened. The following photos are taken mostly from our front yard and our street. Other views from around Northcrest can be viewed on the Northcrest Modern Blog.

I cannot even imagine what neighbors are facing and what they have lost. If there is anything we can do to help, please just knock on our door.

What we woke up to on Monday Morning

In addition to homes being ruined, our beloved neighborhood club was hit hard by the flooded creek. The tennis courts received the brunt of the force from the flood waters.

It is awful what has transpired this week here in Northcrest, but no one was injured and that is what is most important. Things can be replaced, memories always survive, and now everyone looks to the future for whatever is next.

1st Annual Pooch Pool Party!

I just wanted to remind everyone here in Northcrest about Northcrest Swim and Tennis Club's inaugural Pooch Pool Party this Sunday, September 27th from 2:00 to 4:00 PM. Bring your four legged friend down to the pool and let them take a dip in our fantastic pool. Other events include a safe off leash play area full of toys and other fun diversions, Pet portraits by Petra Photo, yummy homemade dog treats for sale, a do-it-yourself doggie salon, and a great raffle full of great services and items for your doggie! Plus, the tiki hut will be open serving hamburger and hot dog plates. Admission is only $5.00 and this is for both pool members and Northcrest neighbors.

The Rain Is Gonna Come, Oh It Surely Looks Like Rain

If you live anywhere near the southeastern US, you know the crazy amount of rain we have had during the past two weeks. I know that we need the rain, but constant rain day after day can really get to you. This really holds true here in Northcrest because when the rain hits the roof of our house, it makes this very nice sound that really makes me want to sleep. Gray days and rain makes it hard to get things done!

So, here are some pictures of the front yard from mid-summer that we took on a warm and sunny afternoon. Maybe they will help brighten your day on yet another dreary day here in Georgia. We had spent the day adding mulch to our front island and trimming the dogwood a bit. It was a fun day and those of you in our part of Northcrest will remember it as it was the day of the unofficial pool party which brought in all of the cars parked along Regalwoods and other streets. Guests walking by were looking at us working in the front yard like we were crazy!

With all of this rain, we have been working some on the basement bathroom. I’m not going to lie, it has been a struggle but we are starting to see some results. To catch everyone up here is where we stood last:

The first task we tackled was removing the generic vanity that was really dragging the bathroom down. Let’s just say it was attached really well! If you look at the picture below closely, you’ll notice a 2x4 on the wall that the vanity attached to. In addition to being nailed to the wall (I don’t think the previous owner knew about screws) it had globs of Liquid Nail securing it on the wall. I cannot repeat the language that came out of my mouth when I realized what I was up against at that point. So, after removing the lumber, I was presented an additional step of repairing the large sections of wall board.

We also found out that the vanity was put down first, and then the floor tiles around it. Luckily for us when we moved in, there was a box of left over floor tiles in the basement backroom. The odd thing we found out was there are two layers of these generic vinyl tiles, one on top of the other. This translates to more work one day when we get to rip up the floor in the basement and put something else in….I can’t wait!

With the vanity removed and the floor and wall repaired, I turned to removing the trim.

Ok, let’s just say that sloppy workmanship really gets under my skin. Did this piece of trim really need +/- 20 nails holding it to the wall? Funny, when I put in our new trim, it only took four finishing nails to attach this same section of trim. I’m sure that just about anyone who has tackled some projects around their house can tell a similar tale of running into some crazy prior workmanship.

The new trim we put up is 1x4 cedar with a couple coats of lacquer. It looks great and allows for a rustic look. I'm imagining it to be like broken down shipping crates sent to the south Pacific islands full of necessary war supplies.

The best news is that we have finally installed our original sink given to us by Brian and Kevin! It took some real figuring out and several trips to Lowes, but it’s in and we love it! I put on new chrome shut off valves to match the chrome drain plumbing. I also ended up having to attach lumber to the studs and then mount the sink onto them instead of directly to the wall. This was required so I could get all of the plumbing to fit nicely. Retrofitting all of the plumbing required a lot of head scratching at times.

The next step is to trim out the mounting lumber with the same cedar trim I used on the wall. Plus, I’m going to be building a couple small shelves that will flank the sink and tie into trim behind the sink to form a single shelving unit kind of thing!

Removing the generic vanity from the bathroom presented us with a new concept for the basement backroom. We had this empty corner that I always wanted to turn into a wine making station. One of our hobbies is making homemade wine and I have always wanted a space where we can keep all the equipment. Plus, wine making can get messy at times and the backroom was the perfect spot because the floor can be cleaned easily and the cool temperature of the basement is perfect for the brewing and storing process.

We removed an AC vent and are rerouting it to behind the forthcoming tiki bar and attached the topless vanity (with screws and without Liquid Nail) to the wall. With the faux marble sink gone we needed a new counter. The whole theme for the winemaking station was repurposing materials we already had or, doing it cheaply! Using some left over floor tile we found in the basement and a sheet of glass tiles, Jordan made a really cool counter top that is just as functional as it is nice to look at. The walls were painted with oops paint from Lowes and I built a wine rack for the wall with left over scrape wood.

The location is very close to the basement bathroom which makes bottle washing a much easier process. I think it turned out great and we have already used it to make two batches of wine. Wine always helps you forget the woes of improper use of Liquid Nail and shotty workmanship!

Cheers everyone and stay dry out there!