Thanksgiving 2016 - New Memories

It has been a really long time since I shared any updates on the Hofmann Haus. In spite of the tremendous amount of work going on, little of it has been notable as far as a blog goes. Attaching a wire to a new circuit isn’t exactly riveting, no matter how vital. 

The whole 2nd floor was this color

But the holiday reminded me that it has been forty years since Gramps has been around for Thanksgiving dinner, and forty-nine since Grandma has cooked a turkey. It has already been two years since Mom and Aunt Joan have been home for the holidays and nearly a year since Jim and I began this project.

I want to take a few lines of this account to thank Jim for tirelessly spending days and evenings all alone to install outlets, drill holes to run wires, fill every possible cavity with an over-abundance of insulation, and remove a preposterous amount of drywall. OMG I hate drywall dust. He promises the insulation made out of rocks and wool will keep us sweltering, even in the coldest temperatures, and keep us safe from the threat of fire.  

Poor guy has been running back and forth to the permit office. Something about codes and standards having changed in the last ten years, updated wiring with circuit breakers equipped with Arc-Fault protection.  

 

We installed new windows to reduce drafts and improve the appearance.  In the process we discovered the original windows were an original Anderson patent!  That old bottle labeled “poison” found in the wall is still perplexing! 

The old chimney

The cottage is starting to shape up. By September we were ready to start framing the bedrooms and bathroom. By the end of October we had installed all of the insulation in the second floor. And November has been dedicated to stripping paint of old doors and getting the kitchen ready for the new cabinets. 

Then next couple of months promise to have substantial, visible changes worth blogging about. Until then, here are a few pictures of the tedious, not-so-sexy work that has been going on. 

Original Stencils

May -the Final Episode

The final episode for our May vacation has sadly taken me almost a week to publish, and I apologize for that. They had to drag me, kicking and screaming, back to my day job. As hot as it was and as hard as we worked only made me want to keep going. 

We were pretty darn proud or ourselves when the holiday rolled around. We had completed the painting we had said we wanted to get done, Jim had successfully installed the new electric service, and I had disposed of all the drywall debris, excess insulation and the stinky old furniture from the living room. And to round out the week we installed a new door and storm door in the basement.

Now, let’s look at each one of those feats independently as each came with its own set of circumstantial adventures.

Painting was by far the bulk of the week’s work. The objective was to complete the three sides of the cottage we could reach with ladders. The back of the house towers three stories above the driveway so it will have to wait until we rent something more suitable than an extension ladder. And, considering the condition of the old cedar shakes, everything we painted had to be scraped, painted with primer, then painted again with the finished color. Good thing both Jim and I have insufferable tenacity. We simply kept working until the goal was achieved, with some help from Ethan for the high spots.

I had to reaffirm my trust in Jim’s judgement more than once when he climbed a precariously balanced ladder just to reach the last square foot of area. But I never had to question his dedication.

Removal of the drywall and insulation from the upstairs was tiring. The temperatures in the space so close to the roof were intolerable at times. Combine that with a dust mask, flying filament adhering to sweaty skin, and constant bending and tossing and you have a recipe for a hazardous work environment. However, it didn’t compare to my days in old automotive factories that were built before air conditioning was available. So, like before, I pushed on  till every speck of dust was neatly captured in the ShopVac. When it rained Jim would come upstairs to partake in hurling debris out the third story window to the Bagsters below. I do say, we make the most excellent team.

I was of little help with the electric service, but I made a good cheerleader. And, just like everyone told us, the inspectors never pass an installation the first time, especially if it was installed by the home owner. You could hear the smirk in voice as he said “this won’t do” and “that won’t do”. It was a minor setback, though not unexpected. A few alterations and it should be ready for inspection in another week or so.

Ahh, installing a door should be such a breeze, right? They come already framed and drilled. Guess again. They come framed for a relatively new structure that has standard widths and heights. Not necessarily for a doorway that was carved into glass block and concrete. Thank goodness for chisels and shims. Jim masterfully installed the door like a pro, but only after a couple of trips to Home Depot. We finally found a pre-manufactured trim set that we thought would work. It was artfully molded to add some appeal to the doorway and wide enough to cover the unsightly edges of the glass block. A little creative framing at the top of the door frame and presto, beautiful.

Poor Jim had to fly out of town on Monday afternoon and wanted to make sure he installed the storm door for me as well. So Sunday evening, after a family get together, we headed back to the Hofmann Haus and began what was to be the most compelling adventure of the week. Nothing went smoothly. And I mean nothing. First of all, that beautiful molding…not so conducive to holding a storm door. We overcame that obstacle only to run right smack into another. The creative top frame, yep, you guessed it. That required some sawing and filing of the storm door frame to make it fit. 

But next came the real humdinger. The door required the owner to drill the holes for the lockset. No big deal, until you realize you need a ½” and a ¾” drill bit and Home Depot has been closed for several hours. Since standing there swearing wasn’t accomplishing anything I suggested we give Meijer a shot, the only place open 24 hours. Jim thought for sure it was a hopeless cause but grudgingly went along with it because, really, what other choice did he have. They had the ½” bit but no ¾”. We ended purchasing an entire set of spade bits, doubting it would be a solution, but getting desperate.

The door gods must have been smiling on us. Both bits worked and we had functioning mechanical parts in no time.

Memorial Day came and Jim had to fly out to North Dakota. I took a break from work until after our family dinner.

During dinner I conned Ethan into coming down the Hofmann Haus with me afterward to dispose of the old living room furniture. There were three large pieces in a small room with even smaller doors. We concluded the best way to get rid of it was to just hurl it over the side of the deck. While trying to maneuver it around doors and railings Ethan twisted his back and I bruised my big toe. Mission accomplished, we left hoping the bulk trash collector wouldn’t pass us by. Tuesday was a glorious day when they took all of the trash, yard waste, and furniture. 

I went back to work knowing we had made major progress and that my next blog would be all about the new roof. The roofers pulled up right behind the trash collector!

Mid-Week Exhaustion

Here it is Wednesday already and I have only shared one post from our stay-at-home-and-work-on-on-the-house vacation. I can explain. It is called “EXHAUSTION”. I found muscles I forgot I had, and some I never knew existed.

The goal for Monday morning was to remove the old roof and lay the insulation. The roofers were to be here Tuesday so we had no time to waste. I had already alerted Jim that I would do my best on the roof but even the 12 foot roof above the deck gave me the willies. Jim, oh my courageous Jim, diligently climbed the ladder to the roof. I heard him shuffle across to the other side, and then …nothing. After seeing him remove the chimney the day before I was  only concerned with my own fear of heights. The loose stone from the chimney mortar caused him to pause a moment, then, with a wavering voice, he called me to the bottom of the ladder and said “I don’t think I can do this”. To which I replied, “Thank goodness you have come to your senses. Now get down here, there is no shortage of work to be done.” 

I heard Jim’s phone ring while he was up very high on a ladder. First delivery of the day was just around the corner. A box truck carrying our four new doors pulled up and quickly place the doors neatly against the wall. One down, one to go.

It is good to have someone tall in the family when trying to paint the exterior of the house. If you didn’t notice in the photos from Part 1, the very peak of the house was not painted. We had to wait till Ethan was available to reach the spots us people of average height cannot. Luckily he showed up Monday morning. Ethan and Jim wasted no time slapping a coat of primer on nearly the whole house. Oh darn. Both ladders were occupied and there was none for little ole me. I figured I would just have to find something to do where I could keep both feet on the ground. 

Donning a face mask, gloves, and steel toed shoes I set to work clearing out drywall and debris we had demoed on the second floor.

As I was tossing debris out the window from the top floor I witnessed a very large truck trying to make a very sharp turn at the end of the street. Second delivery had found its way. This time Ethan had to come down from the porch roof to move his car. The truck went from corner to corner of our driveway. The driver was very intrigued and impressed with our little cottage. After placing the insulation in the garage he wished us well and went on to his next delivery.

 

 Just as we were rapping up I got an email from Rock Bottom Brewery, “$10 Beer and Burger Special”. I didn’t have to ask the guys twice. After cleaning up and securing everything we enjoyed our sweet reward.

Tuesday was more of the same. Scraping. Priming. Painting. Tossing. Cleaning. Jim did get kudos from the Duke Electric Project Manager. He came to give Jim a preliminary inspection of the new electric service Jim installed. He said it was better than a lot of contractors and we would have no problem passing the city inspection scheduled for later in the week.

The roofing company called to let us know they would be out in a day or two to get a signature on the new Statement of Work so that they could remove the old roof before installing the new one. $2,800 is a lot, but definitely worth it to avoid any injuries or visits to the ER.

We had intended to participate in a fund raiser for Queen City Bike that was taking place at Rhinegeist Brewery on Tuesday night and felt we should not disappoint those counting on our contribution. So, after cleaning up we drove downtown once again for a little well-deserved refreshment.

Wednesday, May 25^th and all is well. Jim and I did more scraping, priming, …you get the idea. I believe Jim would have made the Hofmann’s proud.

We had a lot of discussion about what type of ceiling we want in the bedrooms, now that the insulation will be on the inside of the house, as opposed to the exterior of the roof. I think we settled on planking or bead board to stick with cottage theme.

I felt I should avoid any libations the third night in a row. We decided a good German meal at Ron’s Roost was in order.

We made it past the middle of the week. Here’s hoping we can endure another several days of physical exertion. With all the back-and-forth getting rid of debris and up-and-down on ladders we both achieved nearly 15,000 steps, according to Garmin.

Time for the Heavy Lifting

Starting Friday, May 20^th Jim and I are both on “vacation”. Honestly, we will be pulling off a roof and ripping out drywall. If anyone has any pent-up anxiety and needs a release, message me. I will give you the address and put a sledgehammer in your hands.

Saturday and Sunday was mostly prep work for the new roof. The insulation that we are laying beneath the steel roof was to be delivered first thing Monday morning. We wanted to get a few particular spots painted before the new roof was on. But, before we could paint we had to scrape. And scrape. And scrape.

Jim scaled the old ladder and slapped on the paint like a regular Hofmann.

                                 

Next Jim climbed up to check out the old roof and decided to go ahead and remove the chimney. There wasn’t much holding it in place so the bricks came tumbling down, one after another. Luckily no animals were hurt in the filming of this episode. The only fatality was a can of bright red paint that Jill was using next door. The plastic lid of the sample jar was no match for the weight of a falling brick. Thank goodness we weren’t planning on keeping that deck.

We managed to salvage about 75% of the bricks and two of the flues. We had said we wanted an outdoor brick oven on the patio. I guess we know where the brick will be coming from…

 

Stay tuned for updates this week.

April 2016 - Sorting through the Memories

Things are moving slow at the Hofmann Haus. Jim is focused on starting new projects. I, however, am still stuck on trying to bring closure. It seems every corner I look in reveals another pile of letters or a collection of photographs. In a way it makes me feel bad for the next generation. They will never have this experience because everything is digital now.

We have demolished more of the upstairs walls to make way for the larger bathroom and built-in closets. Oh my goodness, what a crazy mess. The walls didn’t reveal much, just an old brass plumb bob that was left in the bathroom wall.

There are a few things I have discovered about the Hofmann family:

   1. Grandma and Grampa Hofmann were very faithful people. I have found Holy Cards in every cabinet and box in the old house. I have kept the majority of them for the family. In addition to the Holy Cards I found pocket prayer books. A ladies book with the name Mildred Morganthal inscribed in it, the other, a man’s book, with Elmer Hofmann on the inside cover. My guess is they predated their marriage.

2.I found a few old newspaper clippings, another treasure my kids will never know. One in particular was a write up about the Hofmann Painters. I always thought my Grampa’s parents emigrated to the US, however it was on generation prior. His grandparents came to Cincinnati in 1861, settled in Over-the-Rhine, and William Hofmann started the painting business.

3. Many, many pictures evoked memories long tucked away in the corners of my mind. May Crownings, First Communions, lilac bushes, kitchen stencils, swings ands slides, screen doors, etc. I even got to know my Grandma a little better. All I had till now was what a four-year-old brain could file away.

4. Grampa threw little away, nor Audrey. Paint cans in the garage still contain the history that was the many shades of pink in the house. Bulletins announced the Memorial Day Parade and Fairmount Day at Coney Island in 1960, and a list of bowling scores for all the neighborhood business teams.

5. The days are getting warmer and the baked in scent of the old house releases a myriad of flashbacks of hot summer nights, trying to sleep on the top floor, no air conditioning, listening to the crickets outside. The rain of late provided a trickling creek that I haven’t seen in a long time. The water gurgling and giggling of the rocks as if to say “welcome back old friend”. Damn! Now I want to read “The Giving Tree” again with my new-found perspective.

 

Jim and I are on the same page when it comes to how to renovate the little cottage. He is helping me to preserve tiny remnants of the two generations before us. There will be a little blue here, a little red there (probably no pink). We intend to reuse as much as we can, from the tile on the bathroom floor to the old pipes from the plumbing to one lone existing ladder left over from the painting business.

Here we are trying different colors of paint. Hopefully May will bring some more noticeable changes in the appearance, but for now I am glad to have completed the task of sorting out memories.