| Progress and News Continued |
Oct. 15th: We had a very successful, and fun, Douglas County
Humane Society flea market this past Saturday. No, it wasn't quite as
good as last years, but we did quite well. Tina and I have high hopes
for this coming week. From what we've been promised, and from
knowing that Houndquarters' job in Virginia and their one in North
Carolina should be finished now, we're expecting to see two crews
working on our place. We'd like to see them there tomorrow, but to tell
you the truth, we'll be glad to see them show up anytime this week.
Keep your fingers crossed!
Oct. 17th: We heard from Mark Harding's secretary yesterday, that
there will be six men working on the lodge on Wednesday. Not bad!
Question is, will they stay long enough to make a difference? I think
they realize, from the calls we've made recently, that we're getting a
little bent out of shape, and they probably realize, too, that they're
running out of time, if they plan on keeping their promise to get us
open before Christmas. So you can bet I'll be there tomorrow to
welcome them back. The rain we've had over the last couple of days
would have held everything up, anyway, so it's just as well they didn't
come on Monday. The house is held up also, but maybe if we can get
some dry weather now, it will get back to moving again.
Oct. 20th: We have walls going up!!! You don't know how good it felt
to see walls being put up! The job supervisor, Dave, is a dog person,
and brought his two beagle puppies with him. They're running around
all over the job site, having a ball, but they never stray further than just a
few feet from Dave. Don't worry, he has crates for them when there's
something dangerous happening that they shouldn't be around. Dave
said it shouldn't be any problem having us open in time for Christmas
business! Ply Mart has finally gotten all the correct windows in for our
house, after a rather large goof up, so once they're delivered Monday
morning, the house can start moving again. I'll get some pictures
taken this weekend and update the picture page. Oh, we will be at
Arbor Place Mall with the Douglas County Humane Society at the
Douglas County Chamber of Commerce Fall Business to Community
Expo tomorrow. Come see us if you're out and around!
Oct. 21st: We had a great time at Arbor Place Mall today representing
the Douglas County Humane Society at the Douglas County Chamber
of Commerce's Fall Business to Community Expo! We answered a lot
of questions and, hopefully, steered a some folks toward what will end
up being adoptions! Tomorrow, Tina and I will be hosting our monthly
meet & greet for Southeastern Greyhound Adoption at the Chapel Hill
Road Petsmart from 1:00 to 3:00. If you have EVER considered
rescuing a greyhound, or if you've heard what unique and great pets
they make and would like to see one, or several, in person, please
come join us! We have a full house at our adoption kennel in Acworth,
and have several in foster homes. In fact, we can't bring anymore up
from Florida until we have a few adoptions take place. Please give it
some thought, then come see us tomorrow and let us get you excited
about owning the neatest, and fastest, dog around! We consider our
meet & greet a great success, as we have had several adoptions as a
result of it. The neat things is, we only started this M&G in May, so it
hasn't been going that long! Help us keep our hitting streak going, and
help us make room to save the life of some other greyhounds when
they've finished racing them. They don't deserve the alternative, you
know.
Oct. 23rd: Things are moving along quickly now! Mark's guys are
working hard to get us open, and they will never know how grateful we
are. It's funny, but the house is falling behind this time. We're still
waiting on Ply Mart to bring the remaining windows, and once they
arrive and are installed, things can start moving once again. Funny
how one thing can hold up the entire building project. I posted a few
new pictures of how things are looking up on the hill, so check 'em out!
Oct. 27th: The lodge is really taking shape now, and we've been told
that, barring anything unexpected, we will definitely be finished in time
for the Christmas Holidays! What we want to happen is that we're
open in plenty of time to comfortably take reservations for Christmas.
Please keep checking in, and we will let you know when we can take
your reservations. Tomorrow, Tina and I will be in Cartersville for
SEGA's annual GreyFest festival. Some hard working members of
SEGA work on planning this event all year, and it never fails to surpass
expectations. If you've ever thought about adopting a greyhound,
please take the time to drive to Old Mill Farm in Cartersville tomorrow,
where you will see literally hundreds of greyhounds. Tina and I will
have a booth set up advertising Beechwood Trails Pet Lodge. We
have many of our SEGA friends very excited about having a place for
their pups to be treated how they know we treat our own kids. At the
end of tomorrow's festivities, we will hold the "Blur Of Fur", where each
dog will have the opportunity to run a 100 yd dash to their owner's
waiting arms. Now, we just have to let Corky do this, BUT catching her
at the far end will be the trick of the century. Corky will be two years
old on January 8th, and she's at the top of her strength right now, but,
brain-wise, she's all puppy. She's about as fit a greyhound as you'll
ever see, and she can flat fly! Racing with Gretz in our front yard
earlier this week, Corky caught Gretz (who's been the big boy on the
block for some time) like he was standing still. I think it upset him,
because he has refused to run with Corky ever since. Anyway,
GreyFest will be a true blast, something you will never forget.
Oct. 29th: Greyfest came off beautifully yesterday, and everybody,
including the dogs, had a ball! We held a 100 yd. dash for the dogs,
clocking them with a radar gun, with the winner coming in at 45 mph.
We only ran Corky, of our five, and she hit a top speed of 41 mph (See
pictures below). I think that was a very good time, considering she
never went through the racing schools, and isn't near as muscled up as
the rest of the dogs, who either raced or, at least, went through the
racing training school. Some of the dogs coming straight off the track
look like body builders, with their muscles just rippling. Tina and I, in
our Beechwood Trails Pet Lodge booth, had a terrific response from
our fellow SEGA members, all being very excited about the lodge's
opening coming soon. We have a very nice looking week coming
(weather-wise), and we should see the progress we saw this past
week continue. As time grows nearer, Tina and I are getting more
excited!
Oct. 31st: Happy Halloween! We got some very exciting news today
from one the guys working on the pet lodge. I asked him if they have
an estimate for when they'll be finished, and he said they would love to
have us in by Thanksgiving! Man, wouldn't that be a terrific
Thanksgiving surprise?!! These guys live in Ohio, and he said they
would like to go home for the Thanksgiving holiday, and, no offense
intended, they really don't want to have to come back down here. Tina
and I would have been elated just to hear they'd have us open by
mid-December, but this was GREAT news! Now, we know things
come up, and unexpected things happen, so, still, we'll just be happy
with a mid-December opening.
Nov. 4th: The lodge is moving forward quickly now! Things we always
kept in the back of our minds just a few months ago, when a finishing
date for the lodge was still up in the air, need to be given more serious
thought now. I heard a man once, using a skydiving term, groundrush,
which describes the change from the euphoric sensation of being so
high up when first making the jump, that you feel like you have forever
until it's time to pull the ripcord, to the sudden realization that the
ground is flying up at an unbelievable rate of speed, causing you to pull
the cord in a frantic, cold sweat. Well, we're entering "groundrush"
now, when those things we had all the time in the world to finalize are
now needing immediate attention. But, in our case, this is a very good
thing! We will be having fencing companies come out to get their best
ideas, grooming tubs will be ordered this coming week, and cabinet
designs will be chosen this week as well. Soon Harry Pierce, with
Pierce Paving, will return to put the smooth, final layer of asphalt down
on our driveway and parking area, and you will see our new
sandblasted sign out front, to show that the door is now open. Now,
you'll have to slow down to a crawl to read our sign, because we're
only allowed a six square foot sign....yeah, six square feet. Anyway,
building our house at the same time has helped us get to know good,
reliable sub- contractors that could also help us with the lodge. We
noticed late yesterday that a trailer and a flat bed truck have been
brought in by the builder, which gives us the hunch that we will possibly
have more workers this coming week. We would really like to see
them come down with enough workers to get this knocked out quickly,
allowing us plenty of time to accept reservations for the holidays. Tina
and I took part in a SEGA promotion inside Parisian this morning at
Arbor Place Mall, and got to meet several really nice folks, who,
hopefully, will consider adopting a greyhound. Our Windy, Panama
and Butternut joined us, and did a wonderful job of showing folks how
sweet and gentle retired racers are. We were asked several times if
all retired racers are as sweet as our three are. Yes they are!
Nov. 10th: Things have slowed down a little with the lodge, and we're
not happy. The office end of the building should have been framed in
early this week, and the framer hasn't showed up yet. Trust me, there
will be some noise made Monday morning! Houndquarters is already
walking on thin ice (as Mom used to tell me), being way, way over the
allotted time they were to have the building completed in. So Monday
morning, we will likely suggest they get moving, or....well, or else!
Funny how "or else" fits when you can't think of anything else to say.
No, if they get back on track, there should be no problem having us
open by Christmas, but if the builder keeps lollygagging, then we could
have a tough time. And if we have a tough time, you can bet they will
have a tough time, and so on... We worked hard this week and I am
going to spend tomorrow (Saturday) fishing with my dad. Can't think of
anything I'd rather do. But, tomorrow night, Tina and I will be saluting
our veterans by marching in Douglasville's Veterans Day Parade at
7:00. So you folks come watch the parade!
Nov. 14th: Tina spoke to the Houndquarters folks yesterday, telling
them our worries and all. He called his builder to find out the latest,
and learned that Mark is still fully planning on, and confident that, the
lodge will be completed in time for Christmas. We called a fence
company, the one we used in our estimates for getting the loan
approval, and we're waiting for them to return our call. They should be
able to come out and do the play yard fencing and some of the
perimeter fence, without being in the way of the builder. I will call Harry
Pierce with Pierce Paving, and schedule him to come back and pave
the parking area and to put the final, smooth coat on the driveway
around the second week in December. The house is going well, with
the drywall having been nailed up Friday, and the finishing of the walls
going on for the next few days. I called a friend, Doug Nestlehutt, who
owns Automatic Garage Doors in Palmetto, GA, to come install doors
on our detached garage.
Nov. 15th: Yesterday, Tina and I, between trips to meetings and stops
at Home Depot and Lowes, watched the roof panels being installed on
the lodge. They didn't quite finish the roof yesterday before quitting
time, but they got enough of it done that they'll be able to work today
installing runs while it pours outside. The crane will have to return
tomorrow or Friday to finish hoisting the roof panels up top. The place
looks more like a building every day now! I suppose the drywall guys
will continue finishing the interior walls of our house today as well. This
is kind of like watching a tortoise race. The house is one "racer", the
pet lodge is the other. The Christmas Holidays (hopefully the week
before Christmas) is the finish line. Which will finish first? Worse, will
they finish at all?!! Enough of that negative thinking! Of course they're
going to finish! Why, Tina will work all day, every day if she has to!
Just kidding!
Nov. 16th: Tina and I talked to the folks at Houndquarters and with
their building contractor many times yesterday. Now we believe we're
all working toward having the lodge up and running by the Christmas
holidays. There are more folks working on the place today than at any
other time during the whole project. This makes us very happy! We
met a fencing contractor there this afternoon to give us ideas and a
price for doing the fencing at the lodge, as well as at our home. I'm not
sure, but I have a hunch this whole fencing project will rival the Great
Wall of China! Needless to say, he was happy to have the chance to
do such a large job, especially here before Christmas. We want you to
know Tina and I are doing everything in our ability to make this the
place you'll have confidence in, and will be happy to make your pets'
home away from home. If you haven't looked at the pictures lately,
please take a little time to check them out!
Nov. 19th: Progress is continuing to move quickly along now! We
have added boarding rates and other prices to the site now, so please
click on our "Rates and Hours" dog bone to see these.
Nov. 21st: The guys worked on the lodge Saturday, but by the locked
gate Monday morning, it was obvious the Thanksgiving "DAY" holiday
meant that there would be no work done this week. It's funny how one
day holidays have been stretched to an entire week nowadays. I'm
glad I wasn't scheduled for a heart transplant this week! Oh well, I'm
sure (I hope) they will be back next Monday to get us finished. The
sheet rock has been finished in our house, and now will come the
interior trim. On the exterior, the porch and deck guy should be set to
go. I guess that, too, will come next week. So, until then, Tina and I
wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!
Nov. 22nd: I was reminded this morning to announce our monthly
Southeastern Greyhound Adoption Meet & Greet at the Petsmart on
Chapel Hill Road this Sunday from 1:00 to 3:00. Tina and I will be
there with at least two of our greyhounds, and will be joined by some of
our friends in SEGA with their pups, that is, if they're in town this
holiday weekend.
Nov. 25th: After reading the Nov. 22nd posts, please read it again.
And keep reading it until you feel that you've just GOT to come see us!
Nov. 27th: Tina and I arrived at the property this morning around 8:30,
and we were happy to see that the gate was wide open! That meant
Dave and the guys had gotten back in town from spending the
Thanksgiving holiday with their families in Ohio and were back at work,
or, of course, it could have meant someone broke in overnight and
vandalized the place, leaving nothing behind. BUT we were thinking
positive and going with our first hunch! After meeting with one of the
subs working on our house, we drove back to the lodge to talk with
Dave, the job supervisor. He said we're still on track to be open by
Christmas! Also, Tina talked to Mark, the building contractor, on the
telephone, and he, too, said they should be able to get everything
done. Now, that in no way guarantees it, but it's nice to hear them say
it....whether they mean it or not. ANYway, Tina and I will do whatever
we can possibly do to make things run smoothly, and if need be, we'll
join in and help them work. But I kind of figure things would work out a
lot better if we just stay out of it.
Nov. 30th: It's going to be a little damp for the next couple of days,
which may slow things down a little, but with the roof on the building,
some things can go forward as scheduled. The guys are installing the
runs in the rear of the building, while the electrician and the HVAC
contractors can carry on with their jobs. Dave and the guys were
installing skylights yesterday, but they will have to wait this rain out
before finishing that job. Tina and I will be buying the sound system in
the next couple of days and have it installed in time for the opening.
Yesterday, I called Harry Pierce, with Pierce Paving, and have got him
lined up to come in around the 15th to pave the parking area and to
put the finish layer of asphalt on the driveway. By then all the super
heavy, driveway busting trucks and equipment should be gone. I am
happy to say, though, that our driveway Harry paved for us back
around July 12th has stood up to everything we've thrown at it!
Between well drilling rigs, steel trucks, concrete trucks, concrete
pumps and cranes, it has been put to the test, doing better than we
ever hoped for. When Harry comes out around the 15th, I hope we'll
be ready for him to pave the driveway at the house at the same time.
Oh, the folks at Signs Now finished our permanent sign and we picked
it up yesterday. They did an unbelievably great job on the sign! It
looks so good, we hate to have it out in the sun and rain! They were
great folks to do business with. Beautiful, sandblasted sign for a very
reasonable price. You can't beat that! It was made as large as we
could make it, but since zoning issues limited us to a 6 square foot
sign, it's a little tiny. Okay, we're going into the home stretch now, and
things will likely get a little crazy as we're trying to get the lodge
finished. Hang in there with us and please keep checking in from time
to time on our progress!
Nov. 2nd: Dave (job supervisor) told Tina and I yesterday they were
going to be working seven days a week until they're finished. Let me
tell you, they really don't want to come back after Christmas. That
works out great, because, even though they're very nice guys, we feel
the exact same way. The HVAC guys and the plumber are to come in
Monday to get their stuff knocked out. Dave and the guys nearly have
the skylights installed and have all but one or two of the runs installed.
It really looks nice! Home Depot, doing the cabinets for the kitchen
and the receptionists desk, should be delivering them this week. Now
we need the fencing folks to come get the play areas fenced in. By the
time they get that done, it will likely be time for them to build our
outdoor covered runs. Keep your fingers crossed!
Dec. 6th: The place was VERY busy today! So busy folks were likely
bumping into one another. We would absolutely love to be open on the
20th, two weeks from today, but, man, things have to move! Still, I truly
believe it can be done, but I've been known to be overly positive at
times. But I'll stay that way and believe things will work out. We're
meeting a fellow there early tomorrow morning about installing our fire
hydrant on the road at our driveway. Considering there's nothing
flammable about this building, at least it will help with our homeowners
policy for our home. Gee, I hope they'll let us paint it any way we'd
like! We paid for it! We have to pay for any maintenance on it! They
sure ought to! It'd be kind of neat to paint it like a dalmatian. That'll be
up to my sister, Lynn, since about all I can paint is a wall....on a good
day.
Nov. 9th: Lots of things going on inside the lodge, and, hopefully, they
will be installing the Hardiplank siding this weekend. I posted one
picture I took a week or two ago, but I will be taking more pictures
today. Our fence guys will be coming out on Monday to begin the huge
task of fencing for us. This is no small chore, either! Folks are busy
working on the inside of the lodge, doing electrical work, installing the
HVAC system and the plumbing, while Dave and the guys put the
finishing touches on the structure itself. Next week, hopefully, will be an
extremely busy week, and will see most things finished. Toward the
end of next week, maybe over that weekend, the parking lot will be
paved and the driveway will get the nice, smooth finish layer put down.
I will be there today meeting some awfully nice folks wanting to see the
place and to meet us. Tina may be late joining me, because she will
be at the Petsmart on Chapel Hill, joining Santa Claus and our friends
from the Douglas County Humane Society for our annual Santa Claws
event, giving pet owners a chance to have their pets' pictures taken
with Santa! Let me tell you, you have to get in line early to get Santa to
come to something like this! He's one busy man this time of year! But
he's a pet lover and seems to always make time for us.
Dec. 12th: I don't know, folks. We're trying our best to line folks up to
come in, do their part, then get out of the way, but it just seems there's
too much to do for the time we have. Tina and I are both nearly worn
out. Our fence guys came in this morning and got the job started; the
electrician got his stuff inspected today; we had a consultant from Best
Buy meet us there this morning to decide what kind of sound system
we need; they started the installation of our fire hydrant (we were
required to have), we poured a little concrete, nailed a little Hardiplank
, moved some dirt, and, still, there's a lot to be done. The sheet rock
will go up tomorrow or Thursday, and that will make things look a lot
better! If we don't make it by Christmas, please don't forget us. If we
don't make it, we'll be opening in the worst possible time of the year to
open. The next time folks will travel will be Spring Break. That's a long
way off. So we'll need everyone to sit down, talk it over with the family,
and take off for one of those wild winter vacations to the beach....uh, I
mean the slopes!
Humane Society flea market this past Saturday. No, it wasn't quite as
good as last years, but we did quite well. Tina and I have high hopes
for this coming week. From what we've been promised, and from
knowing that Houndquarters' job in Virginia and their one in North
Carolina should be finished now, we're expecting to see two crews
working on our place. We'd like to see them there tomorrow, but to tell
you the truth, we'll be glad to see them show up anytime this week.
Keep your fingers crossed!
Oct. 17th: We heard from Mark Harding's secretary yesterday, that
there will be six men working on the lodge on Wednesday. Not bad!
Question is, will they stay long enough to make a difference? I think
they realize, from the calls we've made recently, that we're getting a
little bent out of shape, and they probably realize, too, that they're
running out of time, if they plan on keeping their promise to get us
open before Christmas. So you can bet I'll be there tomorrow to
welcome them back. The rain we've had over the last couple of days
would have held everything up, anyway, so it's just as well they didn't
come on Monday. The house is held up also, but maybe if we can get
some dry weather now, it will get back to moving again.
Oct. 20th: We have walls going up!!! You don't know how good it felt
to see walls being put up! The job supervisor, Dave, is a dog person,
and brought his two beagle puppies with him. They're running around
all over the job site, having a ball, but they never stray further than just a
few feet from Dave. Don't worry, he has crates for them when there's
something dangerous happening that they shouldn't be around. Dave
said it shouldn't be any problem having us open in time for Christmas
business! Ply Mart has finally gotten all the correct windows in for our
house, after a rather large goof up, so once they're delivered Monday
morning, the house can start moving again. I'll get some pictures
taken this weekend and update the picture page. Oh, we will be at
Arbor Place Mall with the Douglas County Humane Society at the
Douglas County Chamber of Commerce Fall Business to Community
Expo tomorrow. Come see us if you're out and around!
Oct. 21st: We had a great time at Arbor Place Mall today representing
the Douglas County Humane Society at the Douglas County Chamber
of Commerce's Fall Business to Community Expo! We answered a lot
of questions and, hopefully, steered a some folks toward what will end
up being adoptions! Tomorrow, Tina and I will be hosting our monthly
meet & greet for Southeastern Greyhound Adoption at the Chapel Hill
Road Petsmart from 1:00 to 3:00. If you have EVER considered
rescuing a greyhound, or if you've heard what unique and great pets
they make and would like to see one, or several, in person, please
come join us! We have a full house at our adoption kennel in Acworth,
and have several in foster homes. In fact, we can't bring anymore up
from Florida until we have a few adoptions take place. Please give it
some thought, then come see us tomorrow and let us get you excited
about owning the neatest, and fastest, dog around! We consider our
meet & greet a great success, as we have had several adoptions as a
result of it. The neat things is, we only started this M&G in May, so it
hasn't been going that long! Help us keep our hitting streak going, and
help us make room to save the life of some other greyhounds when
they've finished racing them. They don't deserve the alternative, you
know.
Oct. 23rd: Things are moving along quickly now! Mark's guys are
working hard to get us open, and they will never know how grateful we
are. It's funny, but the house is falling behind this time. We're still
waiting on Ply Mart to bring the remaining windows, and once they
arrive and are installed, things can start moving once again. Funny
how one thing can hold up the entire building project. I posted a few
new pictures of how things are looking up on the hill, so check 'em out!
Oct. 27th: The lodge is really taking shape now, and we've been told
that, barring anything unexpected, we will definitely be finished in time
for the Christmas Holidays! What we want to happen is that we're
open in plenty of time to comfortably take reservations for Christmas.
Please keep checking in, and we will let you know when we can take
your reservations. Tomorrow, Tina and I will be in Cartersville for
SEGA's annual GreyFest festival. Some hard working members of
SEGA work on planning this event all year, and it never fails to surpass
expectations. If you've ever thought about adopting a greyhound,
please take the time to drive to Old Mill Farm in Cartersville tomorrow,
where you will see literally hundreds of greyhounds. Tina and I will
have a booth set up advertising Beechwood Trails Pet Lodge. We
have many of our SEGA friends very excited about having a place for
their pups to be treated how they know we treat our own kids. At the
end of tomorrow's festivities, we will hold the "Blur Of Fur", where each
dog will have the opportunity to run a 100 yd dash to their owner's
waiting arms. Now, we just have to let Corky do this, BUT catching her
at the far end will be the trick of the century. Corky will be two years
old on January 8th, and she's at the top of her strength right now, but,
brain-wise, she's all puppy. She's about as fit a greyhound as you'll
ever see, and she can flat fly! Racing with Gretz in our front yard
earlier this week, Corky caught Gretz (who's been the big boy on the
block for some time) like he was standing still. I think it upset him,
because he has refused to run with Corky ever since. Anyway,
GreyFest will be a true blast, something you will never forget.
Oct. 29th: Greyfest came off beautifully yesterday, and everybody,
including the dogs, had a ball! We held a 100 yd. dash for the dogs,
clocking them with a radar gun, with the winner coming in at 45 mph.
We only ran Corky, of our five, and she hit a top speed of 41 mph (See
pictures below). I think that was a very good time, considering she
never went through the racing schools, and isn't near as muscled up as
the rest of the dogs, who either raced or, at least, went through the
racing training school. Some of the dogs coming straight off the track
look like body builders, with their muscles just rippling. Tina and I, in
our Beechwood Trails Pet Lodge booth, had a terrific response from
our fellow SEGA members, all being very excited about the lodge's
opening coming soon. We have a very nice looking week coming
(weather-wise), and we should see the progress we saw this past
week continue. As time grows nearer, Tina and I are getting more
excited!
Oct. 31st: Happy Halloween! We got some very exciting news today
from one the guys working on the pet lodge. I asked him if they have
an estimate for when they'll be finished, and he said they would love to
have us in by Thanksgiving! Man, wouldn't that be a terrific
Thanksgiving surprise?!! These guys live in Ohio, and he said they
would like to go home for the Thanksgiving holiday, and, no offense
intended, they really don't want to have to come back down here. Tina
and I would have been elated just to hear they'd have us open by
mid-December, but this was GREAT news! Now, we know things
come up, and unexpected things happen, so, still, we'll just be happy
with a mid-December opening.
Nov. 4th: The lodge is moving forward quickly now! Things we always
kept in the back of our minds just a few months ago, when a finishing
date for the lodge was still up in the air, need to be given more serious
thought now. I heard a man once, using a skydiving term, groundrush,
which describes the change from the euphoric sensation of being so
high up when first making the jump, that you feel like you have forever
until it's time to pull the ripcord, to the sudden realization that the
ground is flying up at an unbelievable rate of speed, causing you to pull
the cord in a frantic, cold sweat. Well, we're entering "groundrush"
now, when those things we had all the time in the world to finalize are
now needing immediate attention. But, in our case, this is a very good
thing! We will be having fencing companies come out to get their best
ideas, grooming tubs will be ordered this coming week, and cabinet
designs will be chosen this week as well. Soon Harry Pierce, with
Pierce Paving, will return to put the smooth, final layer of asphalt down
on our driveway and parking area, and you will see our new
sandblasted sign out front, to show that the door is now open. Now,
you'll have to slow down to a crawl to read our sign, because we're
only allowed a six square foot sign....yeah, six square feet. Anyway,
building our house at the same time has helped us get to know good,
reliable sub- contractors that could also help us with the lodge. We
noticed late yesterday that a trailer and a flat bed truck have been
brought in by the builder, which gives us the hunch that we will possibly
have more workers this coming week. We would really like to see
them come down with enough workers to get this knocked out quickly,
allowing us plenty of time to accept reservations for the holidays. Tina
and I took part in a SEGA promotion inside Parisian this morning at
Arbor Place Mall, and got to meet several really nice folks, who,
hopefully, will consider adopting a greyhound. Our Windy, Panama
and Butternut joined us, and did a wonderful job of showing folks how
sweet and gentle retired racers are. We were asked several times if
all retired racers are as sweet as our three are. Yes they are!
Nov. 10th: Things have slowed down a little with the lodge, and we're
not happy. The office end of the building should have been framed in
early this week, and the framer hasn't showed up yet. Trust me, there
will be some noise made Monday morning! Houndquarters is already
walking on thin ice (as Mom used to tell me), being way, way over the
allotted time they were to have the building completed in. So Monday
morning, we will likely suggest they get moving, or....well, or else!
Funny how "or else" fits when you can't think of anything else to say.
No, if they get back on track, there should be no problem having us
open by Christmas, but if the builder keeps lollygagging, then we could
have a tough time. And if we have a tough time, you can bet they will
have a tough time, and so on... We worked hard this week and I am
going to spend tomorrow (Saturday) fishing with my dad. Can't think of
anything I'd rather do. But, tomorrow night, Tina and I will be saluting
our veterans by marching in Douglasville's Veterans Day Parade at
7:00. So you folks come watch the parade!
Nov. 14th: Tina spoke to the Houndquarters folks yesterday, telling
them our worries and all. He called his builder to find out the latest,
and learned that Mark is still fully planning on, and confident that, the
lodge will be completed in time for Christmas. We called a fence
company, the one we used in our estimates for getting the loan
approval, and we're waiting for them to return our call. They should be
able to come out and do the play yard fencing and some of the
perimeter fence, without being in the way of the builder. I will call Harry
Pierce with Pierce Paving, and schedule him to come back and pave
the parking area and to put the final, smooth coat on the driveway
around the second week in December. The house is going well, with
the drywall having been nailed up Friday, and the finishing of the walls
going on for the next few days. I called a friend, Doug Nestlehutt, who
owns Automatic Garage Doors in Palmetto, GA, to come install doors
on our detached garage.
Nov. 15th: Yesterday, Tina and I, between trips to meetings and stops
at Home Depot and Lowes, watched the roof panels being installed on
the lodge. They didn't quite finish the roof yesterday before quitting
time, but they got enough of it done that they'll be able to work today
installing runs while it pours outside. The crane will have to return
tomorrow or Friday to finish hoisting the roof panels up top. The place
looks more like a building every day now! I suppose the drywall guys
will continue finishing the interior walls of our house today as well. This
is kind of like watching a tortoise race. The house is one "racer", the
pet lodge is the other. The Christmas Holidays (hopefully the week
before Christmas) is the finish line. Which will finish first? Worse, will
they finish at all?!! Enough of that negative thinking! Of course they're
going to finish! Why, Tina will work all day, every day if she has to!
Just kidding!
Nov. 16th: Tina and I talked to the folks at Houndquarters and with
their building contractor many times yesterday. Now we believe we're
all working toward having the lodge up and running by the Christmas
holidays. There are more folks working on the place today than at any
other time during the whole project. This makes us very happy! We
met a fencing contractor there this afternoon to give us ideas and a
price for doing the fencing at the lodge, as well as at our home. I'm not
sure, but I have a hunch this whole fencing project will rival the Great
Wall of China! Needless to say, he was happy to have the chance to
do such a large job, especially here before Christmas. We want you to
know Tina and I are doing everything in our ability to make this the
place you'll have confidence in, and will be happy to make your pets'
home away from home. If you haven't looked at the pictures lately,
please take a little time to check them out!
Nov. 19th: Progress is continuing to move quickly along now! We
have added boarding rates and other prices to the site now, so please
click on our "Rates and Hours" dog bone to see these.
Nov. 21st: The guys worked on the lodge Saturday, but by the locked
gate Monday morning, it was obvious the Thanksgiving "DAY" holiday
meant that there would be no work done this week. It's funny how one
day holidays have been stretched to an entire week nowadays. I'm
glad I wasn't scheduled for a heart transplant this week! Oh well, I'm
sure (I hope) they will be back next Monday to get us finished. The
sheet rock has been finished in our house, and now will come the
interior trim. On the exterior, the porch and deck guy should be set to
go. I guess that, too, will come next week. So, until then, Tina and I
wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!
Nov. 22nd: I was reminded this morning to announce our monthly
Southeastern Greyhound Adoption Meet & Greet at the Petsmart on
Chapel Hill Road this Sunday from 1:00 to 3:00. Tina and I will be
there with at least two of our greyhounds, and will be joined by some of
our friends in SEGA with their pups, that is, if they're in town this
holiday weekend.
Nov. 25th: After reading the Nov. 22nd posts, please read it again.
And keep reading it until you feel that you've just GOT to come see us!
Nov. 27th: Tina and I arrived at the property this morning around 8:30,
and we were happy to see that the gate was wide open! That meant
Dave and the guys had gotten back in town from spending the
Thanksgiving holiday with their families in Ohio and were back at work,
or, of course, it could have meant someone broke in overnight and
vandalized the place, leaving nothing behind. BUT we were thinking
positive and going with our first hunch! After meeting with one of the
subs working on our house, we drove back to the lodge to talk with
Dave, the job supervisor. He said we're still on track to be open by
Christmas! Also, Tina talked to Mark, the building contractor, on the
telephone, and he, too, said they should be able to get everything
done. Now, that in no way guarantees it, but it's nice to hear them say
it....whether they mean it or not. ANYway, Tina and I will do whatever
we can possibly do to make things run smoothly, and if need be, we'll
join in and help them work. But I kind of figure things would work out a
lot better if we just stay out of it.
Nov. 30th: It's going to be a little damp for the next couple of days,
which may slow things down a little, but with the roof on the building,
some things can go forward as scheduled. The guys are installing the
runs in the rear of the building, while the electrician and the HVAC
contractors can carry on with their jobs. Dave and the guys were
installing skylights yesterday, but they will have to wait this rain out
before finishing that job. Tina and I will be buying the sound system in
the next couple of days and have it installed in time for the opening.
Yesterday, I called Harry Pierce, with Pierce Paving, and have got him
lined up to come in around the 15th to pave the parking area and to
put the finish layer of asphalt on the driveway. By then all the super
heavy, driveway busting trucks and equipment should be gone. I am
happy to say, though, that our driveway Harry paved for us back
around July 12th has stood up to everything we've thrown at it!
Between well drilling rigs, steel trucks, concrete trucks, concrete
pumps and cranes, it has been put to the test, doing better than we
ever hoped for. When Harry comes out around the 15th, I hope we'll
be ready for him to pave the driveway at the house at the same time.
Oh, the folks at Signs Now finished our permanent sign and we picked
it up yesterday. They did an unbelievably great job on the sign! It
looks so good, we hate to have it out in the sun and rain! They were
great folks to do business with. Beautiful, sandblasted sign for a very
reasonable price. You can't beat that! It was made as large as we
could make it, but since zoning issues limited us to a 6 square foot
sign, it's a little tiny. Okay, we're going into the home stretch now, and
things will likely get a little crazy as we're trying to get the lodge
finished. Hang in there with us and please keep checking in from time
to time on our progress!
Nov. 2nd: Dave (job supervisor) told Tina and I yesterday they were
going to be working seven days a week until they're finished. Let me
tell you, they really don't want to come back after Christmas. That
works out great, because, even though they're very nice guys, we feel
the exact same way. The HVAC guys and the plumber are to come in
Monday to get their stuff knocked out. Dave and the guys nearly have
the skylights installed and have all but one or two of the runs installed.
It really looks nice! Home Depot, doing the cabinets for the kitchen
and the receptionists desk, should be delivering them this week. Now
we need the fencing folks to come get the play areas fenced in. By the
time they get that done, it will likely be time for them to build our
outdoor covered runs. Keep your fingers crossed!
Dec. 6th: The place was VERY busy today! So busy folks were likely
bumping into one another. We would absolutely love to be open on the
20th, two weeks from today, but, man, things have to move! Still, I truly
believe it can be done, but I've been known to be overly positive at
times. But I'll stay that way and believe things will work out. We're
meeting a fellow there early tomorrow morning about installing our fire
hydrant on the road at our driveway. Considering there's nothing
flammable about this building, at least it will help with our homeowners
policy for our home. Gee, I hope they'll let us paint it any way we'd
like! We paid for it! We have to pay for any maintenance on it! They
sure ought to! It'd be kind of neat to paint it like a dalmatian. That'll be
up to my sister, Lynn, since about all I can paint is a wall....on a good
day.
Nov. 9th: Lots of things going on inside the lodge, and, hopefully, they
will be installing the Hardiplank siding this weekend. I posted one
picture I took a week or two ago, but I will be taking more pictures
today. Our fence guys will be coming out on Monday to begin the huge
task of fencing for us. This is no small chore, either! Folks are busy
working on the inside of the lodge, doing electrical work, installing the
HVAC system and the plumbing, while Dave and the guys put the
finishing touches on the structure itself. Next week, hopefully, will be an
extremely busy week, and will see most things finished. Toward the
end of next week, maybe over that weekend, the parking lot will be
paved and the driveway will get the nice, smooth finish layer put down.
I will be there today meeting some awfully nice folks wanting to see the
place and to meet us. Tina may be late joining me, because she will
be at the Petsmart on Chapel Hill, joining Santa Claus and our friends
from the Douglas County Humane Society for our annual Santa Claws
event, giving pet owners a chance to have their pets' pictures taken
with Santa! Let me tell you, you have to get in line early to get Santa to
come to something like this! He's one busy man this time of year! But
he's a pet lover and seems to always make time for us.
Dec. 12th: I don't know, folks. We're trying our best to line folks up to
come in, do their part, then get out of the way, but it just seems there's
too much to do for the time we have. Tina and I are both nearly worn
out. Our fence guys came in this morning and got the job started; the
electrician got his stuff inspected today; we had a consultant from Best
Buy meet us there this morning to decide what kind of sound system
we need; they started the installation of our fire hydrant (we were
required to have), we poured a little concrete, nailed a little Hardiplank
, moved some dirt, and, still, there's a lot to be done. The sheet rock
will go up tomorrow or Thursday, and that will make things look a lot
better! If we don't make it by Christmas, please don't forget us. If we
don't make it, we'll be opening in the worst possible time of the year to
open. The next time folks will travel will be Spring Break. That's a long
way off. So we'll need everyone to sit down, talk it over with the family,
and take off for one of those wild winter vacations to the beach....uh, I
mean the slopes!
| The kid can truly fly! |
