Author Archives: Jim Vanderveen

About Jim Vanderveen

I'm a bit of a Renaissance man, with far too many hobbies for my free time! But more important than any hobby is my family. My proudest accomplishment has been raising some great kids! And somehow convincing my wife to put up with me since 1988. ;)

F minus 1

Posted on 2008-05-05 by Jim Vanderveen

Final inspection is tomorrow! Our attic fans are both permanently installed, and the attic is relatively comfortable except from late afternoon until nightfall. The whole-house fan is wired, tested and operational. Our new fan is a 2-speed unit, whereas our … Continue reading →

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Rest in peace, Ariana.

Posted on 2008-05-03 by Jim Vanderveen

Ariana, our 16-year old cat, suffered complete renal failure a few days ago. The veterinarian confirmed it this morning, and even with heroic treatment there was almost no hope for her survival. The vet euthanized her about an hour ago. … Continue reading →

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F minus 4

Posted on 2008-05-02 by Jim Vanderveen

Four days ’til our final inspection. Our last two tradesmen (for [phase 1A][phases]) were out today–masonry and HVAC. Kevin McKeever is our mason. He came out yesterday to salvage as many of the old bricks from our original chimney as … Continue reading →

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F minus 6 and counting…

Posted on 2008-05-01 by Jim Vanderveen

Final inspection in six days! Over a third of the items on the [final inspection punch list][fipl] got done today. (Unfortunately none of the attic work got done.) I have to go to work tomorrow, so I’ll probably only get … Continue reading →

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“The No A$$hole Rule”

Posted on 2008-04-30 by Jim Vanderveen

A few days ago I finished a book by Robert I. Sutton PhD, [The No Asshole Rule][]. The title may be a little off-putting for some folks, but as the author explained in an interview, there really isn’t a polite … Continue reading →

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One week ’til final inspection!

Posted on 2008-04-30 by Jim Vanderveen

We have about one week left before our “final” inspection. (Final in quotes because I haven’t heard of many people who pass their first “final” inspection.) Our [punch list][] is still fairly long, but many of those items aren’t required … Continue reading →

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2008 exchange student

Posted on 2008-04-29 by Jim Vanderveen

[Claire]: http://sonicchicken.net/blog/wordpress/2007/08/31/claires-visit/ [Marseille]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marseille%2C_France [Caroline]: http://carolyn-b.skyrock.com/ [mbaqu]: http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/ [SF advice]: http://sonicchicken.net/blog/wordpress/20070901/sf-tour-ideas/ [Jelly Belly tour]: http://jellybelly.com/Cultures/en-US/NewsEvents/Stores/Jelly+Belly+Visitor+Center+-+Fairfield.htm [Music Circus]: http://www.sacramentomusiccircus.com/ [world clock]: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/personal.html?cities=330,1440,217 “Clock showing times in Marseille, Sacramento, and UTC” We hosted a French foreign exchange student, [Claire][], last summer. It … Continue reading →

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Life, the Remodel, and Everything…

Posted on 2008-04-25 by Jim Vanderveen

We’ve had a couple of relatively minor setbacks over the last two months. Back at the beginning of March we went to pick up some stuff from our storage unit in Galt (about 30 minutes south of Sacramento). I noticed … Continue reading →

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Remodel update

Posted on 2008-03-07 by Jim Vanderveen

I’ve been pretty busy at work *and* home since Christmas, and I can’t find the USB cable for our camera. Both things have kept me from blogging as much as I would like, especially regarding our remodel. But a few … Continue reading →

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Phone banking for Obama

Posted on 2008-02-23 by Jim Vanderveen

We’re gonna have our first “political party” next weekend at the not-quite-finished house. We’ll be hosting a [phone-banking party][party] aimed at getting out the progressive vote for Senator Obama during the [Texas primary/caucus][texas-primary]. I figure we can get about 20 … Continue reading →

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