RVNTNS Vol. IV, #3 Now We're Cookin' with Gas... er, Mortar

Memories like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hand.

In the last few days there has been evidence of some heavy duty
advances out on/near the Media Center floor.  In this photo we see one of three platforms for holding concrete blocks.  The man emerging from beneath the platform is holding a level.  There are cranks at various points under the framework that the men used to adjust the leveling. The three platforms had been put in place by a larger fork lift--something to watch!


Here's the forklift.  If you ever want to move something heavy at your house, you may want to think of renting one.


The men here on the right seem to be getting ready for the laying of the concrete blocks which are accumulating on the floor of the MC.  Now the next thing needed is the block-layers; but wait.  The platforms must have a few more components, it seems.  Today has proven what was still needed, but for now we can think more lay thoughts, like mortar.  The block-layers will need mortar.

 So we (they) have our (their) own mortar mixer.  Makes one think of "Mortar mixer, sand and water. (repeat)"  which you can sing to the tune of "Cement mixer...'" i.e. if you are old enough to remember the tune, of course.  In the first photo, the workman is in the process of putting in the ingredients--sand, water, and the powdered whatever (in the white bags on the right) that makes the mortar.  It's all chemistry just like cooking, one might think.
In the second photo, he's shoveling the mortar out of the mixer into a kind of wheel barrow.

Now for the real thing.  Three men are engaged in this operation.  The man on the platform is getting the concrete blocks (what was needed at the top) nearer the end of the platform for forklifting (?) to the foundation area (there are already stacks of the blocks on that floor).  The man on the left has just put a block down and is tapping it in place.  The man in the orange is getting mortar onto a mortar board from the barrow (below the picture frame).  Very systematic.  At one point while blogger was taking photos, one end of the first platform slipped and lowered less than a foot.  The man on the platform looked over, assessed the situation, then walked nonchalantly to that site, calmly opened a hatch, pulled up a crank and jacked the slipped end back up to being level with the other two platforms.  All in a day's work.  Blogger had expected some alarm to sound to gather the troops to right the wrong, but blogger thinks lay-thoughts.  Whew.
We'll see how high the wall will rise within the next week.  Truly, it is getting exciting.

RNVTNS VOL. IV, #2 It's SO EXCITING!

Memories, like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hands.

This just about says it all.  Prepare for, look for, anticipate, and celebrate the adventure of School Year 2017-2018.  We are on the move and don't get in our way.

Since the workmen feel the same way, they've assured that their operations too, will be out of our way.  School is serious business, after all.  Yes, but how are the workers going to stay out of our way?  Where there's a will, there's a way--through the outside door (where the drink/candy machines used to be), through the once-apon-a-time restroom, through the cupboard at the end of it, into Dr. Kohl's old office, and through to Mr. Greife's old classroom, as seen in this photo.  Note that this door had to be created with a sledge hammer.  Actually, you're looking from the other end, i.e. starting in Mr. G's room, in this photo--

and heading back toward the old rest room.  Imagine walking from Mr. G's room, through Dr. K's office and cupboard, and arriving back in the rest room.  Now look to your right.  Can you figure it out?   What you're  seeing on the right is the old utility cupboard.  Further to the right you would have seen another opening into the rest room (sledgehammer).  This arrangement allows the workmen to do the rest of the work in Phase 1 without entering the first floor hall.




                                                                                     
Now let's go down the hall to see the new counselors' suite.  Here we see two offices in the suite.  As you can see, the counselors allow no grass to sprout beneath their feet.




Now step out of the suite and proceed down the hall a bit further to your left, and voile: the finished iPad charging station (referred to in an earlier blog as power station).  Note that there are no condiments near the wall, so don't bring your lunch!


There are some hints as to outside activity, but for now blogger will have to go on little sleuthing expeditions after workmen's hours.  It has its hazards.

RNVTNS VOL. IV, # 1 (Think "William Tell Overture")

Memories, like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hands.

Down to the wire!  Talk about pressure, but no,
no time to talk.  Just work and get it finished--
and that's what they're doing for this part of
Phase 1.  But we have intrepid leadership here.
This photo could be titled, "Have President
(who) will travel."  So we see Dr. Koehl in her
"itinerant" office (her second) ...

                                       then catch a glimpse of her future office.  We can be sure that Dr. Koehl will be even happier in her new digs when she is finally able to occupy them.  Note the new door and the new carpet, both installed a few days ago.







Now to what is happening in other areas of the first floor:  How about this?  Talk about accommodating the clients!  This will be a power station for students' iPads. (Will they be tempted to use it to fuel themselves since it looks a bit like another kind of booth?  Some will, no doubt, take their chances, but this is out in the hallway--a bit risky).  There will be seats soon, we trust.



                                                    Another small item appearing this week on corners of doorways--corner bumpers (lay-speak).  One of the little finishing touches which we would certainly miss if they were not there.

A look into chapel shows remote moves toward renovation of that area.  The sanctuary carpet has been thrown back so that the wooden addition of several years ago could be removed and the original front of the step revealed.  The whole step must come out, of course.  The new sanctuary will be at the north end.





                                                             Things are abuzz outside too, of course.  Since the edge of the drive around the school was broken with all the pipe laying, and will be expanded a little anyway,  preliminary asphalting is in process to fill the gap.  The details of this photo show up better in black and white.  Note the steam rising from the asphalt, hot in its more fluid state.  Nice that the day was not too hot and the workmen could handle it with a little more comfort.

Now back indoors for blogger's favorite photo of the week.  What impressed the photographer here was the use of the scaffold for a work bench--resourceful.




Any applicants for the next opening for this job?





So ends August with the students arriving next Tuesday.  The work will continue, but not where the students can observe it.
And so begins the fourth volume of this accounting.

RNVTNS VOL III, #4 Scrunch Time Scrunching

Memories like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hands.

One more week to work and get out of the way of the onslaught of students--probably a bit scary for the workmen, at least for a few minutes.  The gaggle in the foyer for about the first half hour can be a bit disorienting if one is not used to it.  So where do the workers go?  Sort of underground, above ground.  But that will be covered in a blog in two weeks.  Stay tuned.  Now for this past week.  Let's see:

The trench behind the theatre (which got filled) proceeded to go around the east side of the building and then turned to go along side the back drive.  Blogger was told that it will again change course and go toward the main building, at least that's what blogger thinks was said.  We'll all see.


Still outside but around on the north, the sidewalk to the field house was completed, as predicted.  Nice addition that will keep the folks going to the ball field from having to walk on the road, plus other advantages.






Also outside, but in a different vein, before the bricks for the additions can really be decided, brick layers built a tiny wall against one of our outside walls to make sure the choice of bricks was the right one.  Verdict not in yet, at least not heard in this direction.



Moving inside, the hallway has gotten its new LED lighting.  Here you can see the installation and finished effect.  
The rest of the ceiling tiles will be replaced, we promise (we think).



Quite dazzling!  The students will be surprised by the lights, but by all the other new things they will see.  It should be exciting, and yes, quite dazzling!

RNVTNS VOL. III, # 3 Time Marches On

Memories like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hand.

As blogger blogs, the next section of the new sidewalk to the field house is continuing.  The photo here shows the beginning which now swings around to the right of the fire hydrant and then onward where you see the dark gray path with the foundation layer of the next section.  Next week's photo will, blogger presumes, show a great deal more of the sidewalk, and maybe the whole thing.



 The new lavatory is pretty much finished and you can see the color of the flooring.  The stall doors are pretty much the same color.   The whole lavatory is quite different from what we are accustomed to.



Other interesting items:  Here's something to practice on your days off.
Really, you may like it.  The first trick is to get oneself up after putting on the stilts, blogger has heard.  This occupation seems to be had by younger men.  Hmmm.


Now to get practical.  Choices, choices.  Brick color is very important for the next big move here on the campus--the addition for the commons.
Blogger recalls that when the theatre was built, the bricklayers couldn't alternate occasionally with a dark brick because they weren't being made anymore.  We'll see what kind of surprises the bricklayers can come up with this time.


Around back, we find a new ditch with pipes already in place.
There seem to be more coming, however, judging from the
stack of them to the side.  They are for new outdoor lighting in
that area.

But on Thursday all became said and done when the sky announced its own plan.  This sent workmen inside and out scurrying to their cars.  Probably you may recall why.Friday, however, brought the workmen back and busy again.  As the site manager said, "It's scrunch time now."

RNVTNS VOL. III #2 Stay Out of Their Way

Memories like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hand.

Reminder: you can enlarge a photo by clicking on it.  Return to the blog with another click.

Well it certainly has been a busy week.  The workers know that for Phase 1 they are looking at only about four weeks and are working mightily to get their parts ready.  To start with was the pouring of the foundation for the Commons addition.  This shot was taking from a third floor window, so you are looking at the hose for the pouring of the cement, while you can also see what they have poured.


To the right, we can just see in the left hand corner the cement mixer truck along with the hose and the whole of the foundation, covered, perhaps, to avoid a too rapid drying.

Before a few finishing touches could be accomplished in the hall way, the terrazzo had to be polished to reveal the "real thing".  This is done, as you can see, with a lot of water as the polisher does his work.  Another man is suctioning the slurry, as the spent liquid called.  One of the things that impresses blogger is how tightly ordered each step of this whole complex renovation is.  Good management.


Now with the terrazzo work finished, painting could proceed on new doorways  Note the color of the door and window frames.  It's the same color of the lockers in the hallway.  Nice touch.  In this photo, you can also see the finished terrazzo in front of the president's office.

On a higher level, 2 1/2 actually, the new classroom is now occupying most of the media center's south side.  This classroom 

will accommodate a smaller class.  In Phase 2, other classrooms will occupy the north side.  That side will remain the media center for this coming school year.



The lavatory on the first floor is almost finished so we can fill you in on that next time.  Be sure to stop by.

RNVTNS VOL III, #1 No Rest Around Here

Memories like birds, fleeting--one must grasp and hold in heart's hands.

N.B.  You can enlarge any photo in this blog by clicking on it.  Another click will restore the blog.

Now, let's get down to business.  Blogger must stay out of the way of the workmen, but their activity is quite obvious.  So much goes on overhead as they work on wiring and other mysterious things.  Early in the week a man was drilling holes in the new lavatory wall for the sink installation.  Later we find the sinks.  Certainly a surprise, but reminding a few of us of the sinks in the dormitories at our orphanages years ago.  Interesting.

Outside brings more surprises frequently.  The roof over the foyer near the skylight sports a few new whatevers (maybe connected to the a/c system).  On the expressway side we see more elements of a/c installations.
Perhaps the most notable on the soccer side of the building and a development of last week's blog is the beginning of the wall of the building extension that we can see in this photo.  If you are a casual walker near the building, you can keep an eye on this area.

Well, that all for this week, folks.  Blogger will be away for a week, but will be taking photos again and sending them on to you when she returns.  Always something new here, so stay tuned.