Project status : Stairs

I would never have believed it would take 3 people 2 whole days to get 1 set of stairs into the project. But it would have been nearly impossible without the help of the “StairMaster”, Greg. He whipped everything out and got all the stringers correctly cut. We found out that the way the bathroom was configured on the plans (toilet or sink in the area under the stairs) would not work for anyone over 4 feet tall, so we are working on alternate configurations. Uncle Mark diligently worked on shear-paneling the walls.

Working on the landing

Working on the landing

Demolition in the house

Demolition in the house

More demolition

More demolition

From above

From above

A peek inside

A peek inside

Uncle Mark, hard at work

Uncle Mark, hard at work

Book Review : Code To Zero, Secret Sanction, Between Hell & Texas


Code to Zero by Ken Follett

2.5 / 5 – This book was told in flash back about the early space program and an amnesiac scientist. Format : Electronic download from Netlibrary played at fast speed.


Secret Sanction by Brian Haig

3.5 / 5 – This is the first book I’ve read by this author, and I intend to search out more. The main character is an Army JAG lawyer sent to Kosovo to investigate a massacre allegedly committed by Army Green Berets. The main character is irreverent and very funny. Format : Electronic download from LAPL played at fast speed.


Between Hell and Texas by Ralph Cotton

3.5 / 5 – Book #2 in the ‘Fastest Gun Alive’ series. This book is the reason that I started doing these book reviews. I had read the first book, Gunman’s Song and knew that there were more that I wanted to read. However, I forgot the title and author, and kept thinking it was Gunslinger something, and so I couldn’t find anymore books by this author. I decided that I wanted to keep track of the books I read so that I could get other books that I liked. Eventually, I just browsed through all the books with g-u-n in the title and got the author. It was worth the effort. This book is an excellent follow up to the first. Format : Electronic download from NetLibrary played at fast speed. Current listening : Sarah: Women of Genesis by Orson Scott Card and Brotherhood of War 07: The New Breed (Brotherhood of War) by W.E.B. Griffin.

Book Review : Rating Scale

A definition of the scale I use to rate the books I review (out of 5): 0 – I didn’t finish it and want to tell you why I didn’t finish it. 1 – Finished it, but won’t ever recommend it, or I wish I hadn’t finished it. 2 – Only OK, I won’t go out of my way to find another book by this author. 3 – Enjoyable. In general, I’d recommend it. 4 – Excellent. I’d recommend it to anyone. 5 – Outstanding. I’ll recommend it to everyone, and may even burn copies of it to give to people I think will enjoy it.