This was one of those week where we just did not accomplish a whole lot on M. T. Acres.  I spent the week in Phoenix for work and I picked up a nasty cold there.

Tina went out to M. T. Acres on Wednesday and finished grouting the shower in the master bathroom and got some more mouldings varnished.

I especially like how the front of the shower came out.  That part had me a little worried about how it was going to look when it was just red bricks.  But once she got the grout in, it looks pretty dang nice.

The electrician finally came by on Friday.  He did not actually do anything other than make a list of the supplies he needed to pick up to finish the job.  Supposedly he is coming out this week to do some actual electrical work.  We’ll see…

The countertop people were originally scheduled to install the countertops on January 23rd.  They called this week to tell us their entire staff was out this week with the flu.  So they rescheduled us for January 29th or 30th.

But the plumber is still planning on coming out this Thursday as far as we know.  He will not be able to plumb the kitchen until after the countertops are in, but at least he might be able to get the gas hooked up so we can use the furnace and maybe even get the hot water heater installed!

As I said earlier, I got home from Phoenix about 8:00 o’clock Friday night and was sicker than a dog.  So having a few extra days to get ready for the trades to finish their work really did not upset me too much.

Saturday I had an easy day.  I drove up to Tucson and returned the extra wall tile from the bathrooms.  Then I picked up the door moulding they had shorted us on the original order.  That took most of the day, so I really did not do any building on Saturday.

Today, we also took it easy, doing only as much work as we had to do to get ready for the plumber.

First, I installed the drawer glides on the vanity in the master bathroom as I figured it would be easier to install them before permanently fixing the top on.  Then I got the top screwed down and got the whole assembly permanently attached to the wall.  Finally, I drilled the holes in the top for the sink and faucet.

Drilling the holes, while very easy to do, was an exercise in stress.  I really did not want to screw up and have to remake the top.  As it was, it went quickly and came out fine.

Then we went through the same process, with the same result, in the guest bathroom.

In mounting the guest vanity to the wall, we just put a bead of silicone on the edge of the top an pressed it into place.  I am not sure if that is going to be strong enough to hold it in place or not.  When we were leaving, I checked it, and it seemed to be pulling away from the wall a little bit.  I think we will add another bead of silicone between the top and the wall to fill in any gaps.  I hope that is good enough to pass inspection as I really do not want to have to drill holes in the floor.

When we got back to the rental house this afternoon, we discovered the furnace had quit working.  This is especially frustrating since tonight is forecast to be the coldest night of the year so far with lows in the teens.  Also, the fact that we went almost a month with no air conditioning last summer in the rental house has both of us pretty pissed at the landlord.  It will be nice to be out of this dump and permanently settled at M. T. Acres.

I keep thinking, wouldn’t it be ironic to have lived the first 49 years of my life in the snow and cold of Minnesota with no ill effects from the cold other than some frostbitten ears and cheeks, then die of hypothermia in my second winter in the Arizona desert?