Construction = Destruction

My current job is a hotel remodel. We all know how bad we are to hotel rooms. And after 5-10 years of people being bad to the rooms...well, it's time for a remodel. Before you can have the new you must remove the old. DEMOLITION: Grown men getting paid to bash holes in walls and rip carpet to shreds.

You have some really great construction people in the world. Well spoken, college educated, take home to mom type people. Then you have the people I work with....

Shane doesn't always look like this, but I'm pretty sure it's how he feels inside.

Then you have this guy....

.....I've known him for years and he still scares me.

But just to show that their faces aren't stuck that way, here they are at the material relocation area. i.e. Dumpster

And because we're professionals of the highest quality, we have this fine caddy. Okay...it isn't exactly something to write home about, but you take what you can get.

And the other perks?.............

..........well, we get an executive view of the city.

P.S. When planning your next vacation I might suggest a tent. I say this becasue I get to see the bottom side of the carpet in high end hotel rooms. I won't say anything more, except that you don't want to see the bottom side of the carpet in high end hotel rooms.

Melted Hearts

In celebration of Cupids Day this year we booked a table at a great fondue joint on the plaza called The Melting Pot. To be honest, I wasn't looking forward to this meal. I've managed to live 31 years without fondue, and figured I could skip it the rest of my life without regret. To add to my mood I was informed by my sister (who recommended the restaurant no less) that I would need to wear slacks. :( From my stand point the evening was looking dismal. Not to say I wasn't looking forward to a nice meal with my wife....it just wasn't this meal. Or so I thought. Meet the worlds newest fondue fans.

We had a wonderful secluded booth, an unbelievably talented server, and food you can't put a price on. We now have a love for all things melted and dipped! This meal took two hours but we throughly enjoyed every minute.

Note to sister: The only people wearing slacks were the waiters! They offered me a job app when I walked in the door.....I forgive you.

Birds and Bees

I'm fortunate in that my daughter is still young enough for me to enjoy Valentine's Day. I'm already dreading the coming years when she'll be more interested in boys than card boxes. But until then I'm a card box making fool. Tonight we put together the "love birds" bird house shown below. I got a bit crazy and hand cut all the shingles which I'm sure I will never do again. An hour and a half roofing a card board box will drive you mad! At any rate, she's happy, so I'm happy. And the world keeps turning.

Wood Hunters

This past Saturday my deer hunting comrades and I went to our happy hunting grounds to do some maintenance. My granny Norma owns the property where we hunt and she had asked us some time back to trim some brush in the fence rows. While this seems easy enough, it took us about a year to get the day scheduled. We arrived with three chainsaws, one tractor with mower attached, a four wheeler with a wagon, and a twelve pack of beer. I'm glad to report no major injuries were sustained. We returned home with mere scratches and thorns. ( Well, except for my brother-in-law, who almost died when he attempted to walk under a tree I had just finished cutting that was on it's way to the ground. I must say I've never seen a 33 year old man with a chainsaw in his hand do a "juke" move like that. It was most impressive. )

Here I am with Shane (left) and Tony P.

And here's "Honey".....you can't see his muddy butt.

Drill Finger / Hammer Foot

While doing some demo today I put a drill bit into my finger and then smacked my foot with a hammer. Hence the title. I don't recommend doing either, and definitely not in close succession. I managed not to scream or cry, so my manhood is spared. This all reminds me of the time I stuck my head, hardhat and all, through a finished sheet rock wall......that was embarrassing!

All is well with us this week. Macy is enjoying some time outside with the 70 degree weather. She wanted to go by the pool tonight but I told her it would be a few more days before we could swim.

I got to feel the baby kick last night for the first time, which is great. The next baby doc app. is Feb. 27th. Crystal has been feeling pretty good, but apparently our little trooper is pretty active. I hope he's fat and bald. :)