Fireplace

After months of waiting the fireplace face finally arrived and everything was installed. With the fireplace in, we were able to bring out the guy who will be installing the stone around it as well as the back splash tile. Work will begin on both later this week.

The only catch was that he didn't want to come out until the fireplace was installed so that he had a clear picture of what he was dealing with. Then he came out and said that the fireplace would have to come out. Mostly, he wants to remove it so that he can build a fixed, solid base on which he can face.

This week he will concentrate on the kitchen backsplash. The stone for the fireplace in on order and will take 2-4 weeks to come in.

The Weather Outside is Frightful

The second of three storms blew through yesterday bringing heavy rain, high winds, and a little thunder and lightning. It was a good day to stay in and cook a soup. I made a butternut squash soup using home grown squash.

It is such a pleasure to cook with gas again. The old kitchen had the hideous electric coils. The new Wolf cook top also has a down draft ventilation system. It was put to the test yesterday as I used curry in the soup. As much as I like curry, I find that the odor lingers in the kitchen for a few days. So I cooked the soup on a back burner close to the ventilation and there were no lingering curry odors today.

The down draft has a "Star Trek" like feature where the vent raises and lowers with the press of a button.

While the soup was simmering we loaded up the side cabinet with glasses and dishes. Some of which haven't been out of a box since we moved in in January 2004.

We also got some good news on the fireplace. The face has finally arrived. We set up a tentative installation date for this Friday. Once installed, we can call in the tile guy who will install the stone around the fireplace and the tile back splash in the kitchen.