Puttering in the Study

Naked Heat - Richard Castle

This is the second "Nikki Heat" book by "Richard Castle" of ABC TV series Castle fame.  But while I really, really enjoyed the first installment, Heat Wave, as I posted here, this one was not as deliciously over the top and - more importantly - just way to hard to follow.  I just can't recommend this one.

TTC "English language" course

I just finished a 36 lecture course from the Teaching Company on the history of the English language.  It was okay at first - really interesting when he was talking about where the language came from, and what Shalespeare's plays would have sounded like originally.  But the closer it got to the present the less interesting it got, and in the end I had to force myself to finish it.  Not my favorite.

Hub: restored cabinet/work table

One of the neatest finds in the office was a mahogany-topped rolling supply cabinet/work table that had been in use previously as shelving.  It has drawers and a pull-out ledge on each side.  This picture shows it in place before renovations started at lower left - it had been fixed in place, its feet covered with baseboards, and shelving added. 

During demolition we discovered it wasn't a stationary cabinet but in fact was on wheels.  During our first trial in September it was everyone's favorite piece of furniture, handling dinner on top and all the trial team's supplies below, as shown here.  (It also makes a great bar for receptions).

  In the last couple of weeks we finally got around to giving it the restoration it needed, removing the baseboard molding to reveal the original feet, replacing the top molding with custom-edged mahogany to match the top, removing the metal runner that at one time most have held a glass display cabinet, and refinishing the whole thing in the same red mahogany as the rest of the woodwork.

It's now a great addition to the atrium work space on the guest offices side, as it can be wheeled around to serve as a stand-up work space for files, hold supplies (if we had any paper forms or supplies, I'd keep them there) and act as a buffet or bar for meals or receptions. 

And yes, the glass does say "Smith Smart Shoes" and no, it has nothing to do with me.  Just another interesting coincidence!

 

Hub: the boys try out their room

As I've posted previously, our three boys have their own room at the office, an upstairs nook behind my office where they can play games on the computer and work on homework, with each having his own study carrel-type space and hatch (note the black square in the wall) overlooking my office.  They finally got to try it out last week, and really enjoyed it.

They haven't decorated yet (at the old office they had all sorts of school drawings and things posted) but we'll get those up soon enough, I'm sure.

Hub: new signage for guest offices

While I was in Tyler in meetings and hearings the past couple of days, the last of the signage for the guest offices side of the office went up - and it looks great.  On the outside it consists of a red and white Hub logo (matching the large sign) on the front door and window signage with phone and website, www.marshalltexashub.com. 

Inside, we have the same logo on the glass doors to the conference room, but this time in the more traditional gold with black shadowing. 

This is a deliberate throwback to the gold and black lettering that was always on the glass display windows of the store, as shown here in the 1908 picture of the 113 side (look above Sam Wolff's head) and on the 111 side in the 1950's (note the black tile).

Snowy day at the office / shoe boxes going up

Nice to see snow on the Hub outside this morning!  I'm also probably the only lawyer that spent part of my lunch putting up shoe boxes over on the west side.  We are fitting out the shelving on the rent side with "faux" show boxes to match up with the 1928 photo we've been using as a guide.  Downstairs we have file boxes on the file shelving (with Hub logo) to show how that's designed to hold the dozens of exhibit boxes trial teams usually have, and upstairs the original shoe store shelving is being filled out with shoe boxes wrapped in brown paper with Hub logos on the end.  The pictures give an impression, but it's really much more effective in person at giving the impression of two stories of shelving.

Hub update - 111 ceiling cove molding

The 111 side had a 1928 (we assume) metal ceiling with a classical egg-and-dart cove molding.  It was completely concealed under a later ceiling and storage galleries, as shown in these pictures from last fall.   The second picture shows the view looking forward from up in the mezzanine, which by then was attic storage.  Note the shelves on the right - they are the shelves in the top left of the 1928 photo.  Unfortunately, unlike the 1897 ceiling on the 113 side, which we left in place, patching as needed, we weren't able to keep the 111 side's metal ceiling.  Look top left in the below picture from the front during demolition, and you can see the same shelves as - again - in the 1928 photo.

The 111 side ceiling was much thinner metal and had a great deal more damage, so we took the entire ceiling down, then put the best pieces back up around the old skylight in the mezzanine area - forward of that is sheet rock. 

Last week Jim finished up the ceiling in the skylight area by adding short sections of the original cornice from the shelving to the new ceiling.  The picture below shows these short sections, as well as the restored shelving, letting you compare the 1928 appearance above, the 2009 appearance, and current.  And oh, by the way, here's a current picture looking forward from the mezzanine showing how different things look now - compare to the dimly lit attic is was a year ago.  No more attic!

Jamie sworn in for fifth term as Harrison County Treasurer

I really like doing the political spouse thing, I've discovered.  I get to stand there beaming at my wife being sworn in while our three boys (did I mention how cute they are?) hold the Bible, and laugh when I get introduced as Jamie's lesser half.  And nobody calls me names, like they did when I was a city commissioner!

Today was a good day as Jamie and our friends Judge Jim Ammerman, County Clerk Patsy Cox and County Commissioner Emma Bennett were sworn in for new four year terms.  Well, it was good for us, but not so good for the boys , who as you can tell were really not happy to be spending their last day of vacation getting up early, putting on their Sunday clothes and sitting listening to politicians speak!

Ghostbusters

I had been thinking the boys would really like the old Ghostbusters, so when I saw the Blu-Ray on sale for eight bucks I got it.  Boy was I right - they absolutely loved it, watching it all the way through the other night then starting again the next morning. 

Aeon Flux

Grayson and I looked and looked on Netflix the other night trying to find something we wanted to watch, and the best we could come up with was this.  I'd seen a few minutes of the animated series so I had some idea what the live movie ought to be like, and I thought they did a good job.  It was very stylized, and pretty short at an hour and a half, but I liked it okay overall.  Just not a lot there.