Thursday

 

The workers arrived first thing this morning, ready to demolish the back bathroom.

Last view of the old bathroom

3 1/2 hours later

They finished the demolition before lunch, removing the tile from the walls and the door casings (because the tile messed them up).

Towel rack and tile wall

Ceiling fan

tub and tile surround

floor tile, toilet, vanity and mirror

We had wanted to take out the soffit above the tub to raise the shower ceiling to match the rest of the bathroom, but we needed to keep the costs down. So, it stays. 

The next step is to wait for the plumber. He will install the tub first. Then our workers can install the wallboard. I think all of the electrical work in the bathroom is on the surface, no new lines.

Less than a year ago, John asked a mayoral candidate (she won) at a meet-n-greet at one of our neighbors' houses about the city replacing the dead trees in the median of Palm Boulevard, which the city owns and maintains. She won the race last November and must have remembered his question because today, two flat bed trucks pulled up at Stirling park with palm trees ready to be planted.

The city planted dozens of new trees in the 3/4 mile median to replace those that had fallen during the hurricane or died over the years. We were impressed, especially with all the other storm related needs.

We took the golf cart downtown after lunch and treated Toby to some ice cream. He sampled a few flavors and chose Beef Stew.

On the way to the ice cream counter, Toby grabbed a pail of cookies and spilled them all over the floor, managing to scarf down one. I apologized and told the clerk to add it to our tab.

On the way out, Toby grabbed a pancake-size treat that we later found out was dried rabbit meat. He tried to swallow it whole. John grabbed part of it out of his mouth and asked the clerk to "add it to our tab." We thought later, what a display scheme! All open containers of irresistible treats on display on the bottom shelf where dogs' noses are. It didn't help that our two-handled leash broke just before we left for downtown. We had to resort to our old leash with only one handle at the end. Our preferred leash has a handle integrated into the leash that's about two feet from the dog, so when you need to keep him close, you can. I ordered a new one when we got home.

On the way downtown, we took the shell path through Highlander park. Just as I was taking this picture, Toby jumped up and tilted the camera.

This is the shot I was going for. He knows when we make a left at the ball field that that choice leads to downtown fun and sometimes ice cream. From that moment on, he can't sit still. He's up and down, up and down, like a tightly coiled spring going off every three seconds.

Last walk of the afternoon at Stirling park. We will all sleep well tonight. Toby never got a nap. It was the best day ever for him.

For dinner, we prepared a mix of peppers and onions (Thanks, Trader Joe's), some fire roasted corn (TJ's), black beans, and garlic. We topped a tortilla with the mix and a slice of havarti with another tortilla on top. We grilled them on the griddle. They were very messy, but delicious.