The Painter Revisited

Apparently he showed up at 6pm last night...Dad said he was apologetic for missing his appointment time and I later found out that he had issues with the saw and tiles blah blah blah whatever. I'm so over this renovation. I wonder if everyone feels this way near the end. Oh well..anyway the rooms should be painted by tomorrow and then he starts refinishing the floor.



What a relief, things are finally coming together...I'll have to pull out the tools to start building my bed (a high platform frame from West Elm) and figure out how to move the furniture downstairs...hmm, any volunteers? Free dinner if you do...

:)

Then I can start decorating! I'll have to check on the delivery date of the couch, maybe it will come earlier than August. That would be awesome...so a housewarming at end of summer is not entirely off the wall.

Sigh of relief.

July: Arts & Culture Month

Things planned thus far:

Monday July 2nd - Anti-Gravity
Info here: http://www.broadwaybox.com/reviews/theater/review.aspx?eid=2308

Saturday July 7th - Lady Sovereign @ Spiegeltents
www.myspace.com/ladysovereign -- hmm, okay I admit I made a mistake with this one, have never been a fan of hip-hop but she's from the UK and toured with Gwen Stefani so it can't be all that bad.

Friday July 13th - La Vie @ Spiegeltent
Info here: http://theater2.nytimes.com/gst/theater/tdetails.html?id=1154671582252

Mer cy Mercy Me....

I am so annoyed and cannot wait until these damn renovations are done. My contractor has finished everything but the kitchen sink (literally). I've been playing hide and seek with the granite guy, I don't know anything other than his name and cell # (Simon: 917-770-0672) and all I can say is DON'T CALL HIM. My contact who referred him did little to assist in the connection, all I can say about that is if you're not going to make sure we connect why bother? Grrr.

My next steps since that utter disappointment is to start calling and emailing other granite distributors to see if I can find slabs at a discount cost. So far, the least expensive amount including installation is $1500. My friend Lisa mentioned (awhile ago) a guy in Sunset Park who sells remnant slabs, need to find out the exact location for him. If anyone has any leads please let me know.

The electrician is still missing in action.

And the final straw? My new painter/refinisher makes a point of reiterating that he will be in-house at 2pm on Wednesday; he must have reminded me a gazillion times on Monday evening. Not only does he NOT show but doesn't call to tell my father or I that he's not coming; and that's after asking me for all the phone #'s. The NERVE, I left an irate message, and duly so.

Why am I at the mercy of these discourteous people? What the hell is going on?

Cinema...Film...Movies

Netflix, I restarted a subscription, I've been so out of touch with films...if it weren't for Angela's invitations I would never see anything *new*. :)

What I've Seen
Evan Almighty (M): it was a goofy film one that I can only imagine was a blast to be in, all those animals!
Knocked Up (M): That was hilarious...it was nice to laugh.
Water (V): Amazing foreign film about the caste system in India, ostracizing widows of any age
The Queen (V): Helen Mirren's performance was remarkable, I came away with a better understanding of the Parliament/British Royalty.


To Be Seen
The Departed (V)
Notes from a Scandal (V)

KEY: (M) - Movie in a theatre; (V) - Video on Netflix

Helicopters on June 13th?

I recorded a low-flying helicopter on June 13, circling the areas close to Bath Beach and Dyker Heights...this police copter was so low I was sure it was going to clip one of the apartment buildings. This went on for a good hour; it was a Wednesday night. But no news of it in the paper the next day...

Ramblings

the most perfect beach day awaits me, and I have less than 3 hours to enjoy it. The painter starts at 2.30pm. On a Sunday! But what could I say, what can I do? I've been pining for the apartment to be finished and a sacrifice here or there is what one does.

I'm becoming more and more frustrated with the granite/marble mystery man; after several calls and messages with nary a response I contacted JR and voiced my annoyance. I know he's doing me a favor, I get that. But if it's not going to come through he needs to come clean. A dead end is a dead end. This one is on life support. Much to my own fault of course, I thought it was a solid source so I didn't even make an attempt to research other suppliers. The soiree is in less thatn 3 weeks and it doesn't look like I will have a 2nd working kitchen. Damn!

A few weeks ago I bought the Pure Digital Point & Shoot videocamera, it takes up to 30 min worth of footage that you can easily download onto your computer (automatic with the attached USB port) and share away. I'm trying to do that now. I noticed Blogger has a new feature that includes video upload, maybe I can figure out how to add the couch clip.

Since starting my new job I feel like I'm noticing more of the world around me; the details of the city. Some of those are:
*A man wearing sunglasses, listening to his iPod and talking on his cell skateboards on the street against traffic.
*Strolling down Fifth Avenue at 6pm passing the diamond district the street is flooded with Orthodox and Hasidics waiting for the shuttle back to Williamsburg and Borough Park.
*A protest of the war in front the New York Public Library: Women in Black Against War (find out more here: http://www.womeninblack.org/)
*Hundreds of runners geared for the Corporate Challenge heading to Central Park

No Exit: Jean Paul Sartre

Last night, Luiz and I saw an off-Broadway performance of Jean Paul Sartre's No Exit. You can read a translation of the French play here: http://www.nyu.edu/classes/keefer/hell/sart.html

About (3) people in hell expecting physical torturous chambers hell and instead finding one filled with psychological torture. The lead actor could have been stronger. The female lead was very good as an actress, not so much as a vocalist. She performed a revue of Juliet Greco (jazz singer who had a love affair with Miles Davis) vocals in French/English/German...stilted expression, not much soul. 25 minutes of my life I'll never get back. :)

The Miles/Juliet story: http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,1782525,00.html

Coloring the walls, ordering a couch

Apartment Update: I finally broke down and hired a painter (he also will be refinishing the floors, Steven is a recommendation from Carl the Contractor)...I finally picked our all the paint, so the color scheme is:

Semolina Gold/Rustica Brown in the Kitchen
Moroccan Red/White in the Entryway
Shaker Beige/White in the Living Room/mini hallway
Castleton Mist in the Bathroom
Blue Spa/White in the Bedroom
White in the closets.

I bought the paint from an azur-eyed guy at Atlas Paints in Bay Ridge...it's been a long while since anyone moved me to speechlessness. :)

Steven the painter will start at the end of the month; he says he will be done by Independence day. I cannot imagine it but perhaps yes. And I bought a couch...would you believe it's 1" too long for my hallway arch? I'm so in love with this couch (it was the first one I saw months and months ago when I started shopping) and that's after nearly 6 months of looking and sitting and stretching out on couches all over the city. I wish I had the sense to order it way back when, it won't be in until the end of the summer :(. Oh well, it's an abbreviated sofa/loveseat (appx. 71" long). The couch is called cloud and...I may be crazy but I bought the sky blue fabric (and the stain guard protection policy, lifetime guarantee c/o Jennifer Convertibles)...its a cocooning sofa with big pillows. and I was so nervous that it wouldn't fit thru the front entrance and doorway...as luck would have it the hallway entrance to the living room is a 1" short...so I have to pay an extra cpl of c notes to get an upholsterer to take it apart and put it back together in the apartment. Insane right? But I'm in love. And I cannot imagine starting from scratch again.

Phew, all I can say is thank god I have a new job, these final moments seem to be the most expensive. But it looks like most of everything will be done by early July :). Just in time for the soiree...

Tasks at hand:
Call the marble guy (Simon?) for the counter top
Call Adrian the electrician for last minute hook-ups
Locate a glass table for the kitchen, maybe a 36" square or 36x40/48 rectangle.