Saturday, November 3, 2012

the ghost of jambaloney (okay, i know, Halloween is over ;-), and more trench!!

jambaloney here... in the flesh!!

there have been concerns about my demise... thanks PioneerPreppy for being so concerned...

i read all your comments- it was pretty funny!!!! but i think pp may have been using my absence to tell a good story and suck up to kymber ;-) winston may been  worried i have become a zombie, but not the case either... no...after my bone-headed move (driving the truck into the ravine), i have been laying low, trying to get kymber treats and working on the winterization of the manor... back in the saddle so to speak!

first off,here is helga's belated halloween sky pic ;-)



sooooo..

back in the trench ... a 2 part series!! 

first off, if you are bored enough to read about more digging, you are bored enough to read the last trench post... now we are moving along:

PART I - sept 09 - getting under the footing!

this is where i got to in july; the water is at the footing... (those are kymber's crocs ;-)


here is a pic of the work i did in sept with me lurking in the background.. i scraped the whole thing down to the footing and dug under the footing to the basement. this was a major step as it provided a way for water to flow out of the basement without the sump pump being necessary... i have left the sump pump in place of course, to be safe, but we had a deluge a week later and the sump pump only came on about 5 times (it was coming down in buckets)

 this trench is about 50 feet long...


it is best to work after it rains... i get muddy  ;-))


this rock way laying sideways across the trench about 3 feet down...took a good 15-20 mins to remove .. i thought it was the biggest left... you know how THOSE assumptions turn out!! it was a great anchor for the temporary (forever) drainage... top to bottom:  gray water, dishwasher. sump pump..


here you get a good view of the deeper trench and the pipes..


 PART II - Nov 01 - because i ditched the truck last week, i needed a pride booster... SO I FINISHED THE TRENCH!


i needed to have a pipe that size go under the footing:


there is the hole from sept 09:


this rock was 6 times bigger that the last "biggest" rock... i had to pulverize it with the sledge hammer and take it out in bits... took over an hour and rattled 5 teeth outta my head!!


hi ho, hi ho.... you know the rest ;-) those are old boots from the fire-hall - amazing mud boots!!!


in my element... (i guess) we all have our rationalizations!!!


four hours later... v i c t o r y !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


50 feet long and ready to have pipe laid in!!!!


the night i took that first sky pic was amazing...

17:50


18:00


18:04

18:20


and the next morning  mist in the valley ..







back from the dead, cheers all and have a great weekend!!!

39 comments:

  1. About bloody time you crawled outta that ditch. I have no doubts you are going to miss going out there and turning into a mudball. Good thing Kymber just crams you into the washing machine otherwise you'd be forever Mr. Pigpen.

    Good job, Jambe, Get that doggie buried.

    Winston

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    Replies
    1. isn't it though?? i won't miss it THAT much, lots of other less grandiose but just as muddy projects left..

      will do, need to get pipe and gravel and build the drain on the basement side first ;-)

      cheers w!

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  2. Sweet Kymber and Jambaloney,

    I see from Jam's post he's been playing in the mud again. Good job on the trench by the way. I feel bad for Kymber, having to clean those clothes your wearing. Kymber, I think you just need to put a hook on Jam and throw him in the river, bahahahahaha!!!!!
    This way he won't dirty up the house. It's good to see you on track again. Don't work to hard and thanks for sharing those beautiful pictures of the sky.
    Your Friend,
    Sandy

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    1. hey sandy!!

      thanks for the kudos... don't worry about the clothes, i toss them in a bin for weeks and rinse over and over... then i wash 'em!

      not this load though... so mud caked and waterlogged that they are falling apart..after this is all over, they will probably crawl themselves to the compost pile!

      thanks for stopping by, always a pleasure!!

      your friend,
      jambaloney

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  3. Hey J - That's a really cool Halloween sky pic with those darkened sunflowers in front like that. Love it ! You cracked me up because I can't decide if you look like Rambo, or the creature from the black lagoon. Bahahahahah !

    Your fire boots are perfect for all that icky hard work - but you definitely could benefit from an outdoor shower. Another project for another time. I'm happy to see your sky anytime as it always reflects so much beauty with its array of colours and patterns.

    Have a great weekend guys ! Hugs to my bestie ... xoxoxo

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    Replies
    1. hey helga - glad you liked the pics!!

      i look like a monster for certain, i have an outdoor shower, it's called a hose - hahahaha!

      you have a super weekend yourself - hugs given!!

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  4. I am NOT buying it. You guys were too silent for too long except kymber was sneaking around on other blogs being discreet from time to time. She didn't think we would notice.

    Anyway we need a picture with a current dated newspaper or Jamby is dead. DEAD I say. Call the Canadian FBI or something. Foul play is afoot.

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    Replies
    1. you have to buy it, not even a zombie would get so dirty!!!

      the trench IS foul play, just not the kind you are thinking of..

      stay tuned,m there will be more as proof!!

      cheers!

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  5. Did you pan for any gold while digging all that? Of course, if you told me you'd have to kill me.

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    1. ed... do you how much that would slow me down?? been a year as is lol!

      cheers and don't worry, you are, uh, safe for now ;-)

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  6. After digging that ditch, I suppose this will be a forever place. J. I thought you worked naked. ??? You could at least be hosed off. If I were K, I would have to hose you and clothes down, then hang the clothes on the line and hose them down before putting the clothes in the washer.

    Down here is Alabama, a woman started making Alabama Dirt Shirts, using the red clay to dye them. You could make Framboise Dirt Shirts easily as you work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. oh yes, i plan on moving into that ditch, just needs a tarp!!

      too cold for naked shoveling now, but even in the summer i wear something - the mud is "gritty" ;-)

      she does hose me down (naked), i keep those clothes set aside for trenching... i used to get the mud off them, but they would just get caked the next time.. these clothes will likely just fall apart... i have tons more left from city living!!

      everyone around here has a Framboise Dirt Shirt or two, i would have to sell them online..

      cheers!

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  7. just digging out after sandy bite us here

    glad you didn't kill your husban

    glad you are still alive

    happ y halloeween still looms for its election time soon here

    Wildflower

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    Replies
    1. hey wf!

      hope you didn't get too buried by sandy..

      we are both alive and kicking - thanks!

      that's right, i keep forgetting you have one more horror show on tuesday.. we are praying for you all!

      all my best!

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    2. the storm or the election?



      happy halloween

      Wildflower

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    3. the election...storms are comprehendable ;-)

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  8. Great work....see, I'm wiping sweat for you. Sorry about your truck.

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    1. thanks stephen - there is a lot of sweat to wipe !

      truck came out fine, my ego and kymber's nerves took the hit!

      hope you are well my friend!

      Delete
  9. Regardless of your living status, I'll bet you smelled like a zombie.

    What is the pitch (drop) on your ditch/drain pipe.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. you are bang on, the mud smells pretty rotten!!!

      it drops 15 inches over 60 feet... i think that will do the trick... when it rains hard, the water flows very fast down the trench.

      cheers!

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  10. Dude you are a hard worker! Good job!

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    Replies
    1. thanks grand - still not finished the whole project, but the trench is dug!!

      cheers!

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  11. Jam, I am so glad to read that the rumors of your demise were exaggerated ! No ghost with whom I am acquainted can dig such a neat and straight trench. (But for that matter, neither can the living people I know, who rent "trench-witch" equipment....LOL) Glad you are well, and I send hugs to your lovely wife, whom I hope is feeling much better.

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    1. hey jane, happy to oblige!!

      thanks for the compliment, never heard of a trench witch, does it come with a motor?????

      nice to hear form you, hugs given, she is much better thanks!!!

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    2. Jam, We have used a "trench witch" whenever we need to sink electrical wiring here. (Although all the plumbing here was done by the builder.) When we added a barn, an artist's studio, and a garage, they each needed buried water lines and electricity. A trench witch is a motorized device, which is either diesel or gasoline operated depending upon model, which allows you to trench fairly deeply even through rocky soil. Fifty feet would take an afternoon. We rented one two years ago for about $150. a day. It might be more now. A few times with the large rocks here, we were afraid that we should have hired a jackhammer rather than a trencher ! You did a much nicer job than the trench witch did, and hand trenching is safer from a standpoint of noticing and discovering things that might be buried from an archaeological standpoint. Love to you both.

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  12. Replies
    1. thanks donna - hope you are having a great fall!

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  13. The ditch looks great, very professional looking. I'm glad you are both doing well and enjoying life at the manor.

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    1. thank max!

      how did your digging project go?

      hope you are having a gorgeous fall in the mountains!

      Delete
  14. I hope you were wearing muddy clothes in that one photo - or you have very wrinkly skin.

    And you did all this without a trencher or a backhoe!!! Holy crap!

    What a man. Not much of a driver, but what a man.

    p.s. Helga and I are on our way to get the portrait I drew of her out from Kymber's grip.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. oh, it is muddy clothes all the way!!!

      yeah - it was a job to be certain... clay and rocks - bleck!

      glad you are able to see some qualities in me!!

      good luck gettin' that pic back!

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  15. I'm glad there will be more chapters in the book "The adventures of Framboise Manor" with all of its characters intact.

    It was probably a good idea to get that trench finished up and covered before Kymber found another use for it... After 32 years I have to keep inventing ways to be worth keeping, even if that means planting a spider in the shower or messing with the DVR remote. She keeps threatening to trade me in... keeps me on my toes...

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    1. thanks mo!

      she left me with all my limbs so i am still useful in ways that will keep me alive for now!!

      there is a lot left to do around here so i don't have to invent survival situations just yet, but thanks for the tip!

      cheers!

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  16. atta boy! nice to finish shit off..I try to do it every once in a while myself! take care! egb

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  17. thanks pal!

    it is nice to do, and you get more than your fair share completed, downspouts aside - LOL!

    cheers egb!

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  18. I hope all your hard work sees you out, Jambaloney. It's been a long go with more time yet to get the pipe in place. I bet you'll be glad to see the rear end of THAT little project ;-) I really admire your stick-to-it-ness!

    Here's to dry cellars and sledge hammers!

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    1. thanks sue!

      the last step is the pipe - that should be completed in a couple of weeks!! it HAS been a long go ;-))

      thanks for stopping by, hope you are well!

      Delete
  19. Kymber said I'd find this post boring but I don't at all! Wow that's a hell of a trench.

    Now just between you and me, I find cooking very boring! Don't tell Kymber okay coz she'll kill me! :D

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    1. uh, you don't???

      maybe there is second career as a ditch digger in your future ;-)


      i won't tell k, but she does read my posts - you've been warned!

      cheers joe!

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