[personal profile] stoney321
First, the love that should not be named will be impossible by noon: the kittens are at the vet getting their love torn asunder. No Doppleganger Dolls in my house! (And they're not even blond.) I pick them up at 4, where they will come home, be snuggled and loved and fed delicious wet foods. <3 I was a sad cat mom dropping them off with their terrified mreows. :( SOON, MY DARLINGS!! Wah. A necessary evil.

Second, the under-layer of cement is in, dried, and is now being "watered" repeatedly by me. Well, not NOW, now I am typing.

DAY 7

When we last left off yesterday, there were dump trucks a-go-go in the street. Cement mixers, a bobcat, and some big old hoses. Let's get to mixing!






Laying out hoses and setting up fans. It was another scorcher yesterday, heat index here was 110.





The hot tub is about to get a wall!





Meet Phil. Phil is about to give me a dream realized. One of the good dreams, not the one where I have duck feet and trip up the stairs and can't throw punches while my teeth fall apart. (Just me?)





Guys? I can't see the magic when you use safety screens. Heaven forbid we get cement on my soil of health and wonder. (That's sarcasm.)





Ahh, that's better. Also, why so sad, Mr. Deep End? Or do you just have awesome shoes?





Spraying the first wall!





Closer!





You can see that they're starting to form the edges - the nice, sharp rectangles.





How about we get started on that pool?





Big tanning ledge is formed, let's get cracking on the deep end, huzzah!





Shaping up the walls, shaping up the walls, gosh oh golly mighty, we're shaping up the walls! (Um, sing that to "bringing in the sheaves," because that's how my mind works.)





It's getting there!





Now you can see the "waterfall" overspill area from the hot tub to the pool. If we want to heat the pool up in winter, this is how it works. WINTER SWIMMING = AWESOME.





Blowing #2! [That's what she said.]





Almost there... [Stay on target! Stay on target! "I can't see it!" LUKE. USE THE- guys, I'm sorry. I'm a little punchy this morning.]





Hot tub is DONE.





Wrapped up for the day! Now I have to soak this with a sprinkler for a few hours. (Apparently this helps the cement cure more strongly? IDK.)





I now believe this is going to happen. It's all been iffy up until this point. Ha.





Those steps are looking mighty fine! And doesn't the drop off seem crazy severe? It's not, but it seems that way.





Hot tub is all done and yes, those pipes will be cut to fit. Otherwise, ouch.






And from the deep end... That little bench at the deep end looks great. :)







DAY EIGHT!

I ran the sprinklers on the pool for 5 hours last night, and this is how it looked this morning.





Guys, it is CRAZY HUMID this morning, as evidenced by this shot.




I get to stand out there five or six times today and water the cement, yay? I think the boy needs a chore today. :)




Yesterday I finished up all of the school supply shopping, then bought the girls school clothes. Last to accomplish is getting the boy to wear something that doesn't look like he traded a half-smoked cigarette to a bum for their clothes and shoes for #2 because her feet WON'T STOP GROWING. She's wearing an adult's 9. *cry* One day she'll level out, but it can't come soon enough for me. Or my wallet. One full week and a weekend and they're all in school!! AND I GET THE POOL TO MYSELF, HAHAHAHAHA!

I'm so boring now, sorry. It'll all be over soon, honest! (Oh, and tonight is Jersey Shore! I've needed more material to work with, so after last week, I'm guessing there will be loads to talk about in the morning. And there won't be new pool stuff happening of interest to distract me from what's important: making fun of ridiculous people.)

In other news, [livejournal.com profile] dovil and I are planning our epic road trip across the western part of the US, culminating in a drunken 3-days in Las Vegas. YAY SPRING OF 2011! She's pretty much the only person aside from my husband that I can see doing this with. Hikes! Booze! Killing drifters! Drug muling! Oh, the memories we'll share. (And we're taking a convertible, too. IN STYLE, Y'ALL. We're going in style.)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:11 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] withoutwords.livejournal.com
That is a very beautiful, beautiful thing! It brought a tear to me eyes! *happy sigh for you*

Date: 2010-08-12 03:11 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] estrella30.livejournal.com
dude, that pool is AMAAAAAAAAAAZING. ugh. that's going to be so awesome. WOW.

Date: 2010-08-12 03:13 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
The pool is beautiful, but I didn't realize it was tear-worthy! :D

Date: 2010-08-12 03:15 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
I CANNOT WAIT. And the water will be Caribbean blue, and the decking is bone, and there will be Mexican river pebbles along the back and and and... YEARS I have waited for this. Um, I'm a little excitable. :)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:22 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] crazydiamondsue.livejournal.com
(Um, sing that to "bringing in the sheaves," because that's how my mind works.) Well, you know *I* totally did.

I have a weird fascination with wet cement. I want to dig my fingers into it. I know I shouldn't, but...I still wanna!

I read "culminating in a drunken 3-days in Las Vegas" as "culminating in a drunken 3-way in Las Vegas" and I immediately began wondering who the third was. Wayne Newton was too obvious but then I thought Siegfried? Roy? One of the tigers? Criss Angel? Celine Dion? A Rat Pack tribute troupe? The possibilities were obviously endless.
Edited Date: 2010-08-12 03:23 pm (UTC)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:22 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] flyingichthyo.livejournal.com
Ooooh, the pool is coming along nicely! I like how there's a little wading/splashy area before you get to the steps. And the hot tub!! And the tanning area!! 8D

Date: 2010-08-12 03:26 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] withoutwords.livejournal.com
I might be a little strange, but I find construction to be a wonderfully breath-taking thing, especially when it's done as well as your pool. I mean, that's just...wow!

Date: 2010-08-12 03:28 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
Oh, me too, hence the obsessive photo taking! (Um, you should see how many I DIDN'T post. *g*)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:29 pm (UTC)
mumsisdaughter: (Come on. You know you want it!)
From: [personal profile] mumsisdaughter
This plan is coming together! And it's reached that pivotal point with your neighbours, I bet. The 'noise, mess and vehicles parked in the way' will be forgotten because the 'eyesore' in your garden is suddenly looking attractive. They're all wondering who's going to be the first for an invite round. Have they started beating a path to your door, yet, with flimsy excuses for a chat?

Let's hope the hot weather holds for the Inaugural Dip and Dive!

Date: 2010-08-12 03:29 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
YAY FOR YOUR BRAIN WORKING LIKE MINE! (And I hope that you - like I know Lynne will - did a quick Rod and Tod Flanders impression.)

It dried too fast for you to do that! But man, I should have thought about that when they poured the platform for the pool equipment, DANG.)

Ahahahahaha, you know, I don't think D works that way, unless there are sheep involved. (You know how Aussies and Kiwis are about their lamb.)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:32 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
That's the tanning ledge! It's 6 feet by 20 feet. Plenty for me and some friends and our cocktails.

Date: 2010-08-12 03:34 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
Oh, the neighbors are guys that have been CALLING IN SICK so they can hang out and watch, so I don't think they're bothered, lol! They're also excited and bucking for invites, too. Hee. Fortunately, we like them, so they have standing invites.

And HAHAHAHAHAHA!! Did you just hope for us to maintain our hot temperatures?? That is ADORABLE. Here in Texas, we don't even BEGIN to cool down until late September, so I think we'll have it! :D (It's about 40 - 41 C here right now, if that tells you anything.)

<3

Date: 2010-08-12 03:41 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] chiere.livejournal.com
YAY!!! Happy dance for you and your pool!!! Did you scratch your initials in a corner? I know it will be covered with tile, but IT WILL STILL BE THERE, hidden and seekrit! Are you going to have a mosaic on the bottom, like a Roman bath house? You could put some weird little thing in the deep end and see how many people dive to see what it is! OOooo, what about in the hot tub? For the water purification are you using chlorine or ionization? (I will never have a pool of my own, so I must live vicariously through other's pools, LOL)

Also, I love cement,... I used to sculpt in it, both subtractive and additive. Cement actually hardens by way of a chemical reaction, not by drying out; but keeping it damp does slow the curing process and reduces the chance for cracks and brittleness.

Date: 2010-08-12 03:43 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] flaming-muse.livejournal.com
OMG, so cool! Also, yes, the boy needs a chore today. LOL

I know it was hot and humid, but don't you just feel like the guys spraying cement could use, I don't know, goggles or a mask or something? Cement particles in one's lungs = not a great idea.

Also also? You are making me want to rip out our still quite functional decades-old gunite pool and put in a new one. Stop that. ;) I need contractors around here like I need a hole in my head the ground, one with cool jets and shiny new tile and and and....
Edited Date: 2010-08-12 03:45 pm (UTC)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:47 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stephanierb.livejournal.com

Wow, it looks fantastic! How do you not get up every morning and dance around your kitchen in glee? I mean, that's what I would be doing, I'd be so excited for the pool to be done.

Ah, I love road trips. It's an American rite of passage. I know it's not until next year, but I will be looking forward to your stories from the road - the ones you remember anyway. ;-)

Date: 2010-08-12 03:57 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] crazydiamondsue.livejournal.com
Promise me that your first jump off the diving board you'll yell, "Catch me, Lord!"

Well you know D will rout out any sheep to be had NV. I mean, take that as a given...and if so, please bring me back some lovely woolens. *g*

Date: 2010-08-12 04:02 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kuzu-no-ha.livejournal.com
I am amazed at how quickly this is going! I cannot wait to see the sparkly water. It is going to be a damn sexy pool, that is for sure.

The ceramic artist in me wants to mosaic the bottom. But that sounds hot work work where you are. So I will stay in the AC and look at the pictures provided!

Date: 2010-08-12 04:14 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
Oooh, super cool to know about how cement hardens!

And I should glue some dollar bills to the deep end and watch the fun. :D

Date: 2010-08-12 04:16 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
OH HE TOTALLY NEEDS A CHORE TODAY. He woke up on the wrong side of the bed and is already making my shoulders up near my hairline.

And you know, they did have masks on at one point, maybe they got too hot and took them off? Oh, I just went through the pics I didn't post (for redundancy) and saw that one guy had his mask on in the deep end. But yeah - lungs are precious!

HAHAHAHA, remodel! Then again, remodeling a pool is almost as expensive as a new one, think of the college fund! :D

Date: 2010-08-12 04:17 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
I DO DANCE WITH GLEE! I'm all about the shimmy, believe me, lol!

ROAD TRIPS ARE MY FAVE. And that's a trip I've taken countless times, it'll be fun to go with someone who's never seen any of it before. It is going to be so much fun, I can't hardly wait!

Date: 2010-08-12 04:18 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] a-mistletoe.livejournal.com
I envision your time will be even more filled with things that must be done:
look at pool
stand near pool
sit on tanning ledge
put feet in pool
try out hot tub
rescue Sallyderg from deep end
dive in to do so
have family stationed to take photos of rescue
clean pool

explore drinking mojitos while in pool
try out new recipes for pool finger food
buy 45 swimming outfits
wash hair 3 times a day

and so on....

What about zombies? Hmmmm? Do they float in chlorinated water?

Date: 2010-08-12 04:18 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
It really is going fast, right?! Next week is tile and plaster, which cures for a few days, and then they fill it with water! (In the meantime, the pool equipment and gaslines, water lines, and electricity gets run.

No mosaic on the bottom for me - clean, clean solid blue is what I'm after!

Date: 2010-08-12 04:27 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
Hahhaa, we'll see if Sallyderg will even STEP IN. We pool sat for a friend a couple of years back and she was terrified to even put in a claw. Nerd. :)

CLEAN POOL?? WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?! I have a POOL BOY. Um, WILL have a pool boy. I'm taking shirtless applications all week. Hee.

ZOMBIES SINK. I did a copious amount of tests.

Date: 2010-08-12 04:28 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
I PROMISE.

Woolens! Check. They'll be soaked in booze and her love, if that's a problem. You know, for allergies or whatnot.

Date: 2010-08-12 04:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ladycyndra.livejournal.com
When its done, jump in with all your clothes on WHOOO!!!!!

Also, hot enough for ya? X_X

Date: 2010-08-12 04:58 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
NO! CLOTHING OPTIONAL! ;)

Date: 2010-08-12 05:41 pm (UTC)
lynnenne: (bunny yay)
From: [personal profile] lynnenne
YOU HAS A POOL!!!

I have dreams where my teeth fall apart, too. I hate those.

Poor kitties! I hope they come home happy and healthy, and you get to spoil them rotten.

Date: 2010-08-12 05:43 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
I haven't had those in a long time, but I used to get them all the time. (Isn't that related to finances, or something? Entrenous would know - she's my go -to for dream analysis and birth order. *G*)

I have the labyrinthine race dreams more often than any other. Before those came on board, it was the punch but barely make a dent dreams. WHAT UP, HEAD?!

KITTIES! I get them in three hours. SNUGGLE TIME. <3 <3 <3

Date: 2010-08-12 05:52 pm (UTC)
zyrya: (DC - superfamily)
From: [personal profile] zyrya
I can't tell the difference between the rough concrete and your soil.

Does your tanning shelf slide aside to reveal your James Bond villain secret hideout?

Date: 2010-08-12 06:33 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
HAHAHAHA, that's why I was amused by the "protective screening" they put up. A crew just came and shoveled away all of the "droppings" and eventually I'll have someone cart away that big pile of rubble behind the pool - that's being kept for leveling purposes. Then the Mr.s truck is getting massive use by loading up with hummus and soil and going in at the fence for trees, trees, trees!

DON'T REVEAL MY SECRET, OMG!!

Date: 2010-08-12 08:17 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ladycyndra.livejournal.com
YOU SPEAK-Y MY LANGUAGE!!!

Date: 2010-08-12 09:31 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] linden-jay.livejournal.com
Yay for pool!

We had to do the same thing with our cattens when they were wee siblings in love. I kept asking the vet when I should be bringing them in since they were y'know, siblings and all, and he kept saying oh, six months, six months. Five to the day, tiny little 3 pound girl cat went into heat.

She was so confused, but not nearly so confused as her brother who spent two days (I couldn't get in to have them fixed until the end of that week!) running and hiding from her every time she presented in front of him. Opinions were divided on if he was going "OMG EW YOU'RE MY SISTER" or "OMG EW YOU'RE A GIRL!" On day three, he couldn't handle the peer pressure any more and made a half-hearted mounting attempt, but he was clearly thinking of some big tom cat.

Date: 2010-08-12 09:41 pm (UTC)
tabaqui: (Default)
From: [personal profile] tabaqui
Wheeeeee! How deep is the deep end? Ours was ten feet. We would throw stuff that sank down there and dive for it, timing ourselves or racing each other. Very fun!

Also dangling off the diving board and avoiding the skimmers as there were *always* gross dead crickets in them. Ew.

We also had a cool 'vacuum' - you hooked the hose into a skimmer and then sucked up anything from the bottom of the pool that shouldn't be there - such fun! :)

Date: 2010-08-12 09:50 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] elizardbits.livejournal.com
Teeth-falling-out dreams mean you worry about not being in control of your life, apparently. I had them for YEARS AND FUCKING YEARS OMG. Like, I would check the sheets in the morning because I could still taste the blood. DID NOT WANT.

I haven't had a dream like that in maybe 3 years. I suppose this means I am a grown up now?

Date: 2010-08-12 11:38 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] eccequambonum.livejournal.com
my god that's a gorgeous pool! i'm having a sudden fit of envy caused by insanely hot & dry summer. well, at least for us wimpy New Englanders...

Date: 2010-08-13 12:06 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
I thought it was financial worry, but what the hell do I know? I'm stuck on mazes/labyrinths and puzzles in my stressful dreams. WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?

Also, lol at you checking for your teeth. Those dreams where you just CANNOT believe it's not real? Ugh.

Date: 2010-08-13 12:15 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
HA HA to your story!!!

Date: 2010-08-13 12:16 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] stoney321.livejournal.com
Thank you! And we've been in triple digits for a while, so this pool can't be finished soon enough for me!

Date: 2010-08-14 03:49 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] chrryblssmninja.livejournal.com
convertible. Nice.

Date: 2010-08-20 07:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kseenaa.livejournal.com
WOW! You can actaully seeing it becoming a pool now! :-D So cool!

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