Bob goes to Florida. Bling, bling.

      If progress is measured in degrees, we are progressing nicely.
The driveway grading has now been finished. Not too steep! There will be a safety edge put on the outside to prevent cars from falling off. And you can see that the driveway is of ample size. Trucks and such will be driven up and down to compact the earth. Gates and lanterns to come.

 

       So we had to give it a test drive! Voila! We are on top of the parking pad. Finally!

    
       Then is was time for Bob to go off to Florida for a shopping trip. We need travertine. We need granite. We need swimming pool tile. We need money! Send us some.
Fort Lauderdale. My first impression....blingy. Rolls Royces, mega mansions, people with leather skin. Steven Spielberg's yacht was sitting next to the hotel. Two swimming pools, a Ferrari, and a helicopter. Come on, who needs that stuff? And it just sits there. Imagine the slip fees! Whatever.
      OK, back to shopping. Travertine for the floors. I went to several places and finally found what I was looking for...

      Ivory colored stone from Turkey. Nice and creamy colored. Honed, filled and brushed so it will work inside and outside. Not too slippery around the pool. Basically perfect!
OK let's order that. 4500 square feet please. To go.








     
      Next stop, granite shopping. We need something for the kitchen. Something for the bathrooms. Something for the powder room. Even for outside next to the BBQ. Wow, was there a lot to choose from. But I narrowed it down by color and pattern. So here are two of the winners. Which one where? TBD. We are keeping everything fairly neutral. Warm greys and yellows with a lot of white.

      I packed all the samples into my suitcase and headed for the airport. Whoa, forty pounds on the suitcase scale. I just made it under the limit. My back is killing me.
      On de island, Jim and I head out to the site to see whasss up. Look, more walls are up. It's looking like a real building. Now all we need is a roof. The materials are packed and on the way.

      Check out the dream vs the reality. It may actually match! Stay tuned for more!

Challenge!

      So, it finally happened.
We have a potential budget busting challenge. This has to do with the fact that our lot is uphill of the main road that services it. Way uphill. Here you are looking back down to the common road.

      Now, the driveway was excavated out by the tractor you see. But apparently that didn't mean that the soil it was moving around would remain stable. Hard enough to support a driveway for the long term. So now that they are actually dealing with the driveway, they had to provide a retaining wall on the downhill side. Which means digging until you hit solid rock.

      Here is the 'big dig' portion. The frame for the retaining wall is constructed and the concrete poured. They did hit solid rock. But the hole is about 40 feet deep and 20 feet wide. That's a big hole. Cost? TBD. Ouch.
      We do have good news as well. They are starting to frame the main walls upstairs. Here's a shot of the pool and pavilion. And my take on the finished building. It's starting to look like what I imagined!

       So as the excavation cost is being 'adjusted', the construction continues at a speedy pace. Jim and I are starting to pick out tile, granite, and fixtures. The roofing material has been ordered and we are awaiting delivery within a week or two.  We've picked a cabinet maker. I meet with him next week to get him started. Below is a shot from a nearby hill. You can see that our perch on the hill is pretty amazing. Get your suitcases ready? Well, think Christmas!