Today, I finally got my house leveled. Long story short - one side of my house was originally leveled with incorrectly installed shim. The shims were put in at an angle, and the wall above has been sliding as a result of it over the years. Anyway, the foreman promised me that he took care of the problem, and the shims are now installed flat. Being the skeptical homeowner, I had to go check out their work for myself.
Looks fine, but they had to raise my house 2 inches to get everything level - which created it's own problem.
Funny thing is, I was told the house had settled 2 inches relative to the high point. So each pier, except one, had to be shimmed around 2 inches. I asked why they couldn't just lower the high point 2 inches instead. Seemed like it would have been much less work.
Like our government, I am sometimes faced with a pork problem. Actually, it's more of a Costco problem. There's a reason my friends tell me single people should not shop at the warehouse giant.
I reason that it takes just as much time to broil one pork chop as it does to broil 18. Well, maybe twice as long, because my pan can't hold that many at once. But you get my point.
And then I have dinner to last me a month. Or two. Thankfully, they freeze well.
Went for a short ride with the Hyde Park group this morning. Well, maybe not so short. Hyde Park to Manor to Elgin (for breakfast) to New Sweden - and back. I took the cycle computer off my bike to save 36 grams, but Pete tells me it was about 60 miles. Hmmm... I distinctly recall telling everyone (Pete, Eric, and Jayne) I was good for 25 to 30 today.
Afterwards, Pete came by to uncap a few of his homebrews. I was pretty much worthless the rest of the day.
Received my first royalty check today from ASME. I was surprised, to say the least - since I thought we had to sell 2000 copies first before royalties kicked in. Anyway, it was only for the last 2 weeks in June, but it's better than a sharp stick in the eye.
Spent the night building up Eric's new Cervelo R3. He bought the frameset recently from Excel Sports. It's pretty sweet - and the frame weighs less than 1000 grams. I hung a 7800 series Dura Ace 10 group on it, except for the FSA carbon compact cranks. Nice bike.
Just got back from a long weekend in NYC. Went to check out The Feelies show in Brooklyn on Sunday (and to take a break from job hunting).
Due to weather issues on the East Coast, the nice direct flight to Newark was rerouted through Chicago. Curse you, gods of rain! Ended up touching down at 2:30 AM - about 6 hours later than expected.
Saturday: Spent the rainy morning walking around Central Park. The wet stuff was starting to move out of the area, but the weather seemed to keep a lot of people from the park. The Alice in Wonderland statue is a personal fave.
Had dinner in Chinatown at the Great NY Noodle Town, where the noodles were actually great. On the walk back to the subway station, we were startled by the Feast of San Gennaro in Little Italy. Lots of people, food, carnies, and church activities. Apparently, it's a pretty big deal. Who knew?
Sunday: Spent the day in Brooklyn. Started out in Crown Heights, but that was not very inviting. Williamsburg turned out to much more hospitable.
Took in a softball game between a team of Hasidic Jews and non-Hasidic Jews. Visually, the cultural contrast was very interesting, but on the field they were just a bunch of guys who liked softball.
Had dinner at a Thai place called SEA. Cool restaurant with loud dance music and a hip wait staff. Food was good, but the video surveillance monitors in the restrooms (with views of the restaurant) were more memorable. So was the large reflecting pool with a giant female Buddha.
The day (and the weekend) was punctuated by The Feelies show at Southpaw in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn. It's a tiny Liberty Lunch-type venue that was packed with an enthusiastic audience - and a few overly enthusiastic people. Show was suppose to start at 8:30. The Feelies took the stage at 8:31. Not bad. They played 2 sets. The first lasted about 37 minutes - a little short. The band then took a very LONG 45 minute break before coming out for their 2nd set. Thankfully, the 2nd set lasted considerably longer. I think they played 5 encores.
All in all, the show was incredible, had a good mix of songs from their albums, some cool covers, and lasted about 3 hours. I managed to shoot a few videos which I posted to YouTube. One is below. Links to the others are here, here, here, and here.
Monday: Leaving out of Newark at 8:PM, so had a little time to grab lunch in SoHo. Or at least try to. Apparently, Obama was in town having lunch in the same area, so many of the streets were closed with barricades. I guess he had a plane to catch after lunch and didn't want to be late. Trying to navigate the road blocks, we happened upon a bunch of movie trailers and a bunch of people milling around. A paparazzi said they were waiting for Sarah Jessica Parker to come out from hair and makeup. Sure enough, she stepped out of her trailer a minute later, signed some autographs and walked off with her security guards. Rounding the corner, Cynthia Nixon walks by with her escort, then Kim Cattrall, and finally Kristin Davis - why do I know who these people are? Turns out, they're filming Sex and the City, part Deux. I was going to leave it as a New York moment, but I figured some of my friends would want me to capture the moment, so here's KD coming.
And going.
Nice dress.
Had lunch at a really quaint place called The Kitchen Club. The owner is a very friendly Dutch woman who doubles as hostess and chef. Actually, a very busy woman who also teaches culinary classes and owns the sake bar next door. Bonus points to her for riding a cruiser in the city - in wedge heels no less. Lunch was leisurely, which meant rushing back to the hotel to catch the shuttle to the airport.
Couldn't leave, however, without a couple pix of the Hudson. The common areas are really incredible.
The rooms, on the other hand, are tiny. There's maybe 18 inches between the bed and the side walls.
FYI - The original building was constructed in 1928 by the daughter of J. P. Morgan as the American Women’s Association clubhouse and residence for young women in New York. I'm sure the original rooms had twin size beds. Still, at 150 square feet, I believe my college dorm was bigger than this room. Architectural Record has a good article on the hotel conversion.
Spent the morning getting an MRI (for some reason, I kept thinking EMI) of my cervical spine area (not to be confused with the cervix area, which I do not have). Anyway, my neurosurgeon wanted to check for any nerve issues as a result of my accident.
MRIs are always a lot of fun. I was offered a movie or music, but I chose to go commando. After spending 30 minutes in that tube, I've decided that spelunking is not something I would enjoy.
More enjoyable was Denise's birthday happy hour at the Hula Hut yesterday. Happy B-Day Denise!
Credit EmSue for the pix.
Btw, my former foster kitties have resettled back into life in Houston.
Woke up 15 minutes late for my 7:AM ride with Pete and Glenn this morning. I tried to chase them down, but I just couldn't find my legs. What I did find were a couple of pennies on 360 on the ride back. I've become quite adept at spotting the bearded copper one over the years. Poor things get tossed and neglected like Hummer classified ads from the Saturday paper. People will pick up a fallen quarter or even a nickle, but they're desensitized to pennies like Tarrantino and Roth have desensitized kids to violence in the media. Anyway, I pick up the copper and leave the silver. Someone else will get those.
A new electric bike was unleashed on the world last week at Eurobike. Touted as a packable green alternative for getting around town, the bike weighs 22 lb and is made of carbon fiber. That's more than my full size bikes, but I guess the electric motor adds quite a bit to the bottom line - both in weight and cost ($4860). I might could live with all this if only it didn't make you look like you were sitting on a toilet - a high priced mobile toilet at that.
The kitties went back to Houston. June picked them up in downtown La Grange yesterday. Why La Grange? - because I am a way too nice sometimes.
Truth be told, I miss the little ruggers. Who knew? But I had to get them out of the house before my family arrived today. What with allergies and such.
Here's a parting video for you all. Loaded up and ready for their road trip.
