Thursday, February 21, 2013

The Crimson Permanent Assurance

So the tiling's done, sadly it ended with a fizzle rather than a bang. The last row of tiles against the threshold was installed yesterday, and they are less than spectacular. Specifically, they wanted to shatter, crumble, and do anything BUT cut straight. Other than pulling out the big grinder I tried anything I could think of; in the end it just wasn't important or obvious enough to beat myself up over. I have to say, I honestly prefer working with salvaged tiles - mentally I'm more prepared/willing to deal with the curve balls thrown at me by the 100+ year old tiles I drag home than new ones I paid for.

I had hoped the grout would obscure the color
difference in the tile. I hoped in vain.
Although I had planned on just sealing the tile today, I got antsy and managed to grout half the floor - I would have finished except I ran out of grout. Being that grouting is one of my most dreaded tasks, I was surprised this went so smoothly - the black tiles worked beautifully for telling me whether or not I had gotten all the haze off. At least having to go out and buy more grout will help get me to the grocery store tomorrow.

Next on the agenda is trimming out the stained glass windows and putting up the wainscoting. All in due time I guess.

It seems apropos that I post this the day I get hired for a new job, luckily I won't be facing any violent corporate takeovers (although I will be working for The Very Big Corporation of America).

A lot of people have asked the reason for the title of the blog, and it's probably clearer in my mind than I could ever explain on paper, but let's give it a shot. Google will tell you that the Queen Anne's Revenge was Blackbeard's ship, and while I wish I could say that the blog takes its name from the hoards of treasure found in the walls, it doesn't. Instead, I like to envision our old Queen Anne's second chance with us as a revenge on all the people who did her harm who are now dead and gone. The pillaging part rings true as well, being that most of the bits we're using to save her are coming from houses less fortunate. We also can't forget that the last owner built a pirate ship bar in the backyard, and that lumber has been used in repairs all over the house (I'd love to see the look on a future owner's face if they stumble across the stud labeled mainsail.


At the end of the day, I just really like the thought of my house spouting sails and sailing away. That and I like pirates. And rum, we can't forget the rum.
Oh, you don't know what I'm talking about? Don't worry about it, it happens all the time. This will help with that . . . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YUiBBltOg4

2 comments:

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