Next stop the LSB. I just had to have this one. I bought it from a neighbor whose dad had it made by a flight instructor of mine from South Texas back about 1959. What goes around..... There were many times that Cessna 120 felt like it was made out of the same hunk of steel and had the same solid wheels. I lived through it though and became a fair pilot but those days are gone and the smoker is still a welcome addition to the bunker.
I cooked a turkey and a big briskit the Saturday after Thanksgiving and it held heat like a dream and was very easy to regulate. Both hunks of meat came out lookin like coal but inside the meat was jucy and sweet.
Now I have to figure out a way to transport it to the bunker. It weighs about three hundred pounds and is very top heavy.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Monday, November 20, 2006
Back in town
California was nice but I am glad to be back. We arrived at LAX about 9:00AM and picked up a new Pacifica for the jaunt out to Venice beach for brunch. Spent about three hours just people watching. We just bummed around the rest of day, even visiting a Trader Joes out in Reseda. By five we were heading for Hollywood and the restaurant linked below. Due to the time difference and having to try to catch a 5:00AM flight we turned in the rental car and turned in early. We had a little trouble getting out of LAX (got bumped 4 times) because everyone was traveling for thanksgiving. I did have a back up reservation on Southwest so I was GOING to make it home. Back before sundown.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
No News is ......
Been trying to make it to the bunker all month. There are many reasons we haven't made it, not the least is there is just too much to do this month. This weekend I plan to take Barbara out to California, to her favorite resturant in West Hollywood, for our aniversary. We will fly out early Sat morning and spend the day on the coast hiway; Venice,Santa Monica, Malibu, etc. Then back into WH for the Gardens of Taxco
It is the best Mexico City style cusine in the US. They have an unusual drink that they call a margarita but it is made with sweet vermouth and fruit juices that makes your toes curl up like a baby on the breast. Yumm.. Then a good nights sleep and back to Austin Sunday morning.
It is the best Mexico City style cusine in the US. They have an unusual drink that they call a margarita but it is made with sweet vermouth and fruit juices that makes your toes curl up like a baby on the breast. Yumm.. Then a good nights sleep and back to Austin Sunday morning.
Monday, October 23, 2006
Gate Too
Concrete blocks from doors and windows. 0.00
Doors from habitat-for-humanity re-store 40.00
Gates for courtyard priceless
I love to make something from nothing. These doors will really look great when they are hung and painted. The glass blocks on the upper left corner will be back-lit at night to compliment the porch light. I also have a 4X12X12ft truss which will span the gates and be covered with foamboard and stucco to make an arch over the gate. Everything will match the stucco of the bunker and look like it is part of the compound.
Doors from habitat-for-humanity re-store 40.00
Gates for courtyard priceless
I love to make something from nothing. These doors will really look great when they are hung and painted. The glass blocks on the upper left corner will be back-lit at night to compliment the porch light. I also have a 4X12X12ft truss which will span the gates and be covered with foamboard and stucco to make an arch over the gate. Everything will match the stucco of the bunker and look like it is part of the compound.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Monday, October 09, 2006
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Way to Date
On the way to the bunker this month we stopped for a steak in Ozona, this is roughly half way and the they have the best steaks just East of the Pecos. There was a young man and his date at the next table and the were obviously celebrating, you know ordering the big chicken fried steak and extra gravey. They were fun to watch and the whole place kind of joined in. When we left we saw their ride. No SUV for them. See above. Now thats the way to travel out here.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Friday, July 28, 2006
Glass Blocks
A high school was undergoing renovation here in Austin and I scored a few hundred 8X8 glass blocks. I don't know yet what I will use them for but I think they might be good for the fence. Four feet of adobe with sixteen inches of glass block with a cap of adobe sounds neat to me. I may incorporate them into the gate somehow. No reason to let them go to waste. They may work in the addition too, as a shower or the base for an island in the kitchen. We will see.
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Light Polution
It's dark out here. UT operates McDonald observatory in Fort Davis just because of the lack of light and the clear cold air. This is what you would see if you were looking down from space trying to see me sitting on the roof in my shorts drinking a Mexican Martini. You can see that ther are not many lights Southeast of El Paso.
It cools down really fast when the sun goes down and believe me shorts are not the uniform of the night. That's what is nice about the Davis Mountains. Even in the summer when temps get into the nineties the mountain thunderstorms cool it back into the seventies/eighties and when the sun goes down it drops into the sixties at least and add in a little wind (yes the wind blows, a lot) and it starts to feel even colder. It is super to toast the end of the day from the roof and watch the fantastic light show that changes with each cloud or passing plane.
It cools down really fast when the sun goes down and believe me shorts are not the uniform of the night. That's what is nice about the Davis Mountains. Even in the summer when temps get into the nineties the mountain thunderstorms cool it back into the seventies/eighties and when the sun goes down it drops into the sixties at least and add in a little wind (yes the wind blows, a lot) and it starts to feel even colder. It is super to toast the end of the day from the roof and watch the fantastic light show that changes with each cloud or passing plane.
Monday, July 17, 2006
The wall
Finished laying up the blocks for the corner post this weekend. I need to find a 18ft cedar beam to lay across the top and the gates will be ready to hang. The neighbors are wondering what I'm doing with the crane and all the blocks. One of them came by Sunday morning and stayed for the whole tour. His place is right across from the bunker at about the same level.
We talked about the guy down the hill that had told me about the mountain lion that might be living under the bunker (in the escape tunnel). If there was a lion he must have been on the move like the bear that wandered through years ago. No signs of either of them. A small herd of desert bighorn sheep came through Sunday and some deer so that sort of shows the big preditors are not around. All in all a pretty nice weekend.
We talked about the guy down the hill that had told me about the mountain lion that might be living under the bunker (in the escape tunnel). If there was a lion he must have been on the move like the bear that wandered through years ago. No signs of either of them. A small herd of desert bighorn sheep came through Sunday and some deer so that sort of shows the big preditors are not around. All in all a pretty nice weekend.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Vacation to the North
The 4th of July is our time to seek the adventure and coolness of Canada and the NorthEast Coast of the US. We flew into Manchester NH to avoid Boston and its problems. First stop was a resturant called Legal Sea Food in Burlington. I had read about it and wanted to try their Clam Chili. Being a Texan I Know chili and the clam didn't measure up. It may have been too much chili powder or the beans but I'll pass.
Next it was on to Gloucester and a really neat seaside inn. We were off in the morning up the coast to Ipswich for another resturant called the Clam Box. What a terrific meal, 25 fresh clams, as many scallops, all deep fried with about 2 pounds of fries and fresh fried onion rings as well as a bucket of cold slaw (or if you prefer cole slaw). It satisfied my clam hunger and then some. On up the coast to Portland, Augusta then inland to Quebec City. This city was as close to Paris as I will ever get. Old town was narrow streets and open cafes. We were there on Moving Day and along with an international bike race and Canada Day so it was really crowded. Still, we have made reservations to go back on Barbaras' birthday.
Next it was on to Gloucester and a really neat seaside inn. We were off in the morning up the coast to Ipswich for another resturant called the Clam Box. What a terrific meal, 25 fresh clams, as many scallops, all deep fried with about 2 pounds of fries and fresh fried onion rings as well as a bucket of cold slaw (or if you prefer cole slaw). It satisfied my clam hunger and then some. On up the coast to Portland, Augusta then inland to Quebec City. This city was as close to Paris as I will ever get. Old town was narrow streets and open cafes. We were there on Moving Day and along with an international bike race and Canada Day so it was really crowded. Still, we have made reservations to go back on Barbaras' birthday.
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Minor injury
While drilling the blocks to stabilize them I hit a rebar and the drill stopped. No problem, I'll just back up and start again. When I pulled up on the drill I grabbed the switch and the drill spun out of my hand and snapping two knuckles in the process. It's been two weeks now and I've got 95 percent use back and the swelling is down so I'll try to bring this blog up to date.
UPDATE Tried to finish the wall the weekend of the 15th and like the dummy I am I let the drill spin again. This time it really hurt. The pain was so bad, I relented and went to the Dr. and he put me on a course of steroids for the swelling. Nothing was broke but the pain was much worse and still is. The swelling has gone down but the pain is still there. I'll give it a couple more weeks but I think it will be all right. It seems as though as I get older it takes longer to bounce back from these small injuries.
The wall looks good and is about half finished as you can see. Three more blocks high and I'll start on the other side. The gate will swing on hinges mounted through steel studs set in concrete. Don't know what I'll make the gates out of but probably rough cedar with wrought iron fixtrues. The fence will be a hybred of steel studs and EIFS foam and a polymer cement mixture. The finish will match the bunker in color and texture and also will finish the kiva and the 16 foot false front at the western end of the courtyard. This false front will stand alone until it becomes part of the addition.
UPDATE Tried to finish the wall the weekend of the 15th and like the dummy I am I let the drill spin again. This time it really hurt. The pain was so bad, I relented and went to the Dr. and he put me on a course of steroids for the swelling. Nothing was broke but the pain was much worse and still is. The swelling has gone down but the pain is still there. I'll give it a couple more weeks but I think it will be all right. It seems as though as I get older it takes longer to bounce back from these small injuries.
The wall looks good and is about half finished as you can see. Three more blocks high and I'll start on the other side. The gate will swing on hinges mounted through steel studs set in concrete. Don't know what I'll make the gates out of but probably rough cedar with wrought iron fixtrues. The fence will be a hybred of steel studs and EIFS foam and a polymer cement mixture. The finish will match the bunker in color and texture and also will finish the kiva and the 16 foot false front at the western end of the courtyard. This false front will stand alone until it becomes part of the addition.
Monday, June 12, 2006
Playing with blocks
As you can see from the pictures above and below the wall is starting up. Each block weights about 500 pounds so the wall may take several trips to finish. These are the blocks that were cut to make the door and windows in the bunker. Had to do something with them so I am incorporating them into the gate posts. I am up to 40 inches, the blocks on top are just there for trial fits because I ran out of mortar. Barbara learned how to operate the crane (we call it Denny) and I guide the blocks into place. The pictures are after one very long day so if I hope to top it off at 7+ feet we will have to hustle. Another wall will be built over at the corner of the bunker to make the other side of the gate. The gate will be 12 feet wide and the nearest one to the bunker will have a 30 inch door in it so we can come and go into the courtyard more easily.
The crane is from a contractor that used it to build log homes and it will come in very handy when the addition starts up next year. It can lift a 3,000 lb load to 28 feet and can be towed behind a pickup. We bought it two years ago off ebay and a 16 ft trailer came with it and there are times, like the wall, where nothing else would do.
The crane is from a contractor that used it to build log homes and it will come in very handy when the addition starts up next year. It can lift a 3,000 lb load to 28 feet and can be towed behind a pickup. We bought it two years ago off ebay and a 16 ft trailer came with it and there are times, like the wall, where nothing else would do.
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Monday, June 05, 2006
Time to begin the expansion
Everything went well over Memorial day. The A/C had a slight fit and blew out a transformer, no I don't know why, probably gremlins. I had another unit in the trailer for the addition so a quick swap of transformers and viola, cools like a champ. Unloaded the trailer and stacked the studs in lenghts and widths so when the time comes it will be easy to lay my hands on the right ones. I need to take the trailer back to Austin because I have purchased a load of trusses for the roof and it is time to load up eveything else in the back yard and bring it to the bunker. This time I will leave the trailer at the bunker.
The first order of business is to fence the courtyard and build the kiva, which is a big fireplace/oven, that will make up the NW corner of the courtyard and the North end of the fence. The fence will be 5 to 6 feet tall and I have about a hundred glass blocks and some wine bottles that will add color and light. The gates are part of the package too but I don't have that figured out yet. Maybe I'll run across some weathered barn wood or something similar and will make the gates look like they have been there forever.
The first order of business is to fence the courtyard and build the kiva, which is a big fireplace/oven, that will make up the NW corner of the courtyard and the North end of the fence. The fence will be 5 to 6 feet tall and I have about a hundred glass blocks and some wine bottles that will add color and light. The gates are part of the package too but I don't have that figured out yet. Maybe I'll run across some weathered barn wood or something similar and will make the gates look like they have been there forever.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Memorial day weekend
It's still decoration day to guys my age. This is another loose ends trip. I have a trailer load of steel studs to unload and an air conditining compressor to install. I found some ready made trusses at habitat for humanities that will really work on the west side so I have to bring the trailer home again.
If you can picture this: the "taco bell tower" will be a 20'x20' two story structure at the West end of the courtyard and will join with a 14' shed roof along the West side of the Bunker. The tower will be a living room and the rest will be a bath and an office/bedroom. The shed roof will be tile as the mansard on the bunker and the roof of the tower will be flat. Big ideas, huh? So far the frame and roof trusses are less than 1k and the walls, which will be 8" sip panels, will add about 3k. My labor, which is worth zip, will bring the total to 6k for the addition. Stay tuned.
If you can picture this: the "taco bell tower" will be a 20'x20' two story structure at the West end of the courtyard and will join with a 14' shed roof along the West side of the Bunker. The tower will be a living room and the rest will be a bath and an office/bedroom. The shed roof will be tile as the mansard on the bunker and the roof of the tower will be flat. Big ideas, huh? So far the frame and roof trusses are less than 1k and the walls, which will be 8" sip panels, will add about 3k. My labor, which is worth zip, will bring the total to 6k for the addition. Stay tuned.
Thursday, May 18, 2006
Phase One Finished
It was 1,303 miles in two days but the load of studs is home. We left Austin at 6:00 on Sat morning, reaching Farmersville (35 miles NE of Dallas) at 10:00. Terry's kids were home from college so it only took an hour to load all the studs. On the road by 11:30. Eight hours later we were in Pecos where we had to make up our minds to stay the night or drive in the dark for a couple of hours. The thought of our own bed at the bunker won, at 10:00 PM we pulled into the driveway.
The load came off easy and Barbara finished her work in the bunker so by 10:00 we were on the road again (that would make a good song title...Oh, wait). What to do for Mothers day, food always works so we pulled off interstate 10 at Iraann and headed for Coopers Bar-B-Que at Llano. Without a doubt it is the best in Texas, a state with a LOT of B-B-Q. Be sure to put a drool guard on your keyboard before you click on the link. We had an early dinner and were home by six. Next I will take the trailer from here out to the bunker and the frame for the courtyard and the addition will be ready to build.
The load came off easy and Barbara finished her work in the bunker so by 10:00 we were on the road again (that would make a good song title...Oh, wait). What to do for Mothers day, food always works so we pulled off interstate 10 at Iraann and headed for Coopers Bar-B-Que at Llano. Without a doubt it is the best in Texas, a state with a LOT of B-B-Q. Be sure to put a drool guard on your keyboard before you click on the link. We had an early dinner and were home by six. Next I will take the trailer from here out to the bunker and the frame for the courtyard and the addition will be ready to build.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Stud watch
Not what you think. I found some metal studs on e-bay that will frame the addition and several other things around the place. I had to go to Dallas to pick them up and it turned out that there were many more than I thought. I loaded my trailer to the limit and stacked some on the top of the truck and will still have to go back for another load. I left about 100 2x8x20's and 50 2x6x14's an a ton of connectors and stuff. They are really heavy too, 14 and 16 ga. A logistics nightmare. The full trailer sits here in Austin and I have to rent a trailer to go to Dallas, then to Ft Davis, unload, and back, then the trailer from here to Ft Davis where I'll leave it for a while. I had planned to make the addition 14x45 but with all these 20'ers I will make it bigger. There are enough to build a freestanding garage, too, so the bunker will look more like a compound.
Monday, April 24, 2006
The Gate
Below is a bad photoshop rendering of the front gate at the courtyard. This wall is to be constructed from the large concrete blocks that were cut for windows and door. They are many and are in the way so this is the best thing I could think of to do with them. They will be "dry stacked" and trimmed to square. Each course will be pinned with rebar drilled through and leveled, if required, with a shovel of mortar. The beam will be peeled cedar like the porch posts and will serve to give lateral support for the weight of the gates. The gates will be built from cedar tongue and grove and have a 32" door on one side for access to the courtyard.
The Corner Post Footings are Ready
Working with the tractor and moving LOTS of rocks gave me this nice flat
courtyard. The pavers are there and ready to be laid. The cornerpost and
the bunker side of the gate will be next.
courtyard. The pavers are there and ready to be laid. The cornerpost and
the bunker side of the gate will be next.
Tractor work
Not buying a tractor is one of the best moves I have made. For two hundred bucks I was able to rent a back-hoe (as opposed to just a 6th street one) and move all the dirt and rocks that I could stand. The West side was leveled and a large hole filled where the sewer exited the slab. The courtyard was dressed and leveled and all of the concrete blocks that came out of the door and windows were moved in preparation for stacking up and making one side of the courtyard.
Monday, April 17, 2006
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Easter
Time for this months assault on the mountain. I have reserved a tractor/backhoe and now the fun will begin. First I will use the bucket to mow the weeds and pick up the rocks that are everywhere. There is a large hole on the West side where the sewer comes out of the bunker and I will level this side before moving on to the digging.
Footings are next, both for the courtyard wall and the false front that will be the West wall. Should take most of the day Saturday and even part of Sunday if I find rocks. All the rolling stock gets relocated and the place will begin to look like mountain top villa, which it is, and the outdoor structures will start up.
Barbara is assigned the job of painting the spiral stairs. I think she plans to sit in a bucker of paint and slide down the handrail. Anyhow that will make it look great.
This trip Pepi will go with us. G'maw dosen't let her go normally so we are taking them both. I'll have plenty of pictures to post after this trip.
Footings are next, both for the courtyard wall and the false front that will be the West wall. Should take most of the day Saturday and even part of Sunday if I find rocks. All the rolling stock gets relocated and the place will begin to look like mountain top villa, which it is, and the outdoor structures will start up.
Barbara is assigned the job of painting the spiral stairs. I think she plans to sit in a bucker of paint and slide down the handrail. Anyhow that will make it look great.
This trip Pepi will go with us. G'maw dosen't let her go normally so we are taking them both. I'll have plenty of pictures to post after this trip.
Monday, March 20, 2006
Texas Flag
This picture was taken toward the stair entrance. The metal is covering the frame for the tile roof and dresses up the view. The flagpole is on the top of the tunnel that runs from the bunker to the clif and the picture below was taken with my back to the pole.
Stairs
The stairs are up. The wall had to be cut to clear two stair treads but it looks really good. The concrete pad that the stairs set on forms the first step and it fits. All in all when I finish at the top landing it will the first step in the courtyard design. The top of the tunnel forms a sidewalk that runs 20' to the rock wall on top of the clif and the flagpole sits at the end.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Friday, March 10, 2006
Courtyard wall
Line drawing example: This will be the NW wall of the courtyard. The right side is made from the blocks that were cut out for the windows. These blocks will form a "L" shaped corner and a gate will run to the bunker. The gate in the picture will be mostly for looks but it will provide access to the flag pole which will be behind the Kiva and outside the wall. On the left will stand a wall that will be fourteen ft tall and look just like the front of a spanish villa. This wall will provide shelter from the wind and when the addition is started will be incorporated into the construction.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
The Big 65
Birthday, today. This is the biggie, that's what "they" say but somehow I don't feel any change at all.
Work on the bunker is all but finished. It will be nice to just enjoy it for a few trips. I know, I know, just being here will cause both of us to work on something. Now that the heat is all ducted in it's looking like summer and I will have to hook up the AC. The carpet is down and the floor really looks good. I think I'll start planning the courtyard.
Work on the bunker is all but finished. It will be nice to just enjoy it for a few trips. I know, I know, just being here will cause both of us to work on something. Now that the heat is all ducted in it's looking like summer and I will have to hook up the AC. The carpet is down and the floor really looks good. I think I'll start planning the courtyard.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Valentines Day
Happy Valentine Day. This blog is the best place for that wish. Valentine is the only other town in Jeff Davis county. Each year the post office gets inundated with cards to stamp and send all over the world. Neat post mark, eh. As for Barb and I, we are as much in love as ever and we are way ahead of the day because we have a "date" each Wed for lunch. And this bunker has been an on going work of love too. One of these days we will be able to spend more time here and that will be a great day.
Saturday, January 21, 2006
Texas Roadhouse
May have to change the name of the bunker. These neons came from a B-B-Q joint that was undergoing transformation to a Madam Mam's. If there is Anything that is as good as Texas B-B-Q it's Viet/Thai from the madam. I think I'll place the neon pieces where you can see them from the highway. It'll be too far away to read them but it will make everyone wonder.
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Sunday, January 15, 2006
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
The rest of the courtyard
After the kiva is completed (at least the structure) the rest of the courtyard will be enclosed with a knee fence and gates at the front. The gates will be swung from the bunker NE corner and a wall made from the concrete which was cut from the door and windows. This wall will be a rubble style with the North face appearing to be crumbling down to the knee wall. The knee wall will be of various heights (as rubble) and in the center topped with an arch then continued to the kiva. Drawing below shows the general concept.
The construction of the wall will be metal frame covered with EPS and drivit. This wall will be anchored with concrete each four feet. There will be no attempt to make it water tight other than sloping the earth away from it on both sides.
The construction of the wall will be metal frame covered with EPS and drivit. This wall will be anchored with concrete each four feet. There will be no attempt to make it water tight other than sloping the earth away from it on both sides.
Monday, January 09, 2006
Thursday, January 05, 2006
A really new year
I was chided by Van about not keeping up this blog. A picture may be worth a thousand words but lately that's all I have posted.
I'll try to do better this year.
First of all the Bunker is Done. Lots of little things to do but if I didn't hit another lick it would be liveable. The next phase is to make the courtyard a showplace. The first project, outside of the spiral stairs, will be to build a "kiva". That's the beehive style fireplace you see in all the fancy places in Santa Fe. I will start with a fireplace insert and make a chimney (chimley, for some of you) out of square sewer tile. The whole thing will be on a raised platform in the NW corner of the courtyard. The raised platform will be the sit-on hearth and become part of another porch when that phase is started. Then I will begin with sand bags full of dirt alternated with barbed wire, (bob wire to some) to keep them from sliping, arranged in a circle that gets smaller and smaller as it reaches the chimney. Once formed the shape can be tweaked with a large hammer and a 4X4 then covered with stucco. The opening will be glass block arranged in an arch and set so as to catch and reflect the fire.
I'll try to do better this year.
First of all the Bunker is Done. Lots of little things to do but if I didn't hit another lick it would be liveable. The next phase is to make the courtyard a showplace. The first project, outside of the spiral stairs, will be to build a "kiva". That's the beehive style fireplace you see in all the fancy places in Santa Fe. I will start with a fireplace insert and make a chimney (chimley, for some of you) out of square sewer tile. The whole thing will be on a raised platform in the NW corner of the courtyard. The raised platform will be the sit-on hearth and become part of another porch when that phase is started. Then I will begin with sand bags full of dirt alternated with barbed wire, (bob wire to some) to keep them from sliping, arranged in a circle that gets smaller and smaller as it reaches the chimney. Once formed the shape can be tweaked with a large hammer and a 4X4 then covered with stucco. The opening will be glass block arranged in an arch and set so as to catch and reflect the fire.
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