end of week five

Time is passing more quickly, so I must be getting into the habit of not having kitchen or laundry. Things are happening out back but I don't see much, thanks to those plywood panels covering the window and door openings. They've dug the foundation trench and I think they've done most of the framing. They have to move some pipes (i.e., figure out where they can go) before they pour the concrete for the foundation. I spent most of last weekend looking, unsuccessfully, for a compact washer/dryer that would work. After I finally gave up on that idea, I whined and pouted until Ariel came up with a new way to deal with the posts that will keep the window width at 6 feet. 

I've also wasted some time agonizing over whether I can replace ugly sliding door hardware. I think I should do it, if I can.

Last Friday the guys left the hose on in the backyard and the water was flowing for 30+ hours. I stayed overnight at Nola and Thomas's on Friday, and even after I got home on Saturday evening I didn't hear the water in the pipes until I woke up on the couch at 12:30-1:00 am. At first I freaked out, picturing the back yard flooded. I tried to call Ariel, and then I tried to find the water cut-off outside and under the house, so I could go to bed and deal with the hose in the morning. But eventually I looked around for a drill in the kitchen (which is serving as a storage room for tools and equipment for the time being), unscrewed the plywood panel covering the window, and reached out and turned off the tap. Fortunately, it wasn't on full-blast, and there's a lot less concrete in the back yard than there used to be, so a lot of the water was absorbed. Ariel, recognizing my water guilt, was very apologetic. 

I don't think they've done an inspection of the foundation trench -- seems like Ariel would have told me. But maybe this will happen next week, and then maybe they'll pour the concrete. I'm still waiting for a change order for the plumbing and an estimate for the removal of the rest of the concrete. Ariel told me the other day that to do the plumbing work they'll have to remove part of the floor in the half bath because there are only about 9 inches of crawl space underneath. I told him not to worry about the aesthetic results and to try to avoid doing anything that will have to be undone later, if/when I redo that bathroom.