Renovations in Phoenix and on the road again

Life in Phoenix is proceeding along at a good pace.  We continue to get some of Megan’s mail, such as this notice about the Florida Sunpass for the Subaru.

As we continue with the renovations, we discover both big and little things that need to be done.  After getting the new light installed over the dining room table, we found that the dimmer switch was not working.  So I took a photo of the old switch. 

I then headed to the local hardware store to get a replacement, using the old switch as a guide.  The new switches are configured differently in appearance, but work just the same with one button for on/off and one for the dimmer.

Besides work on our condo, I am on the board and have been searching for light fixtures for the HOA.  Another board member found a possibility online, so I ordered one to see if it would work – unfortunately, it appears that it will not work.

On the 22^nd, the contractors came to remove the wall to wall carpeting throughout the condo and the tiles in the front entrance hallway.  After all was removed, they then put down the pink underlayment and installed the laminate flooring.  They worked two long days (till 7:00 p.m. on the first day) and got it all done.  It looks great.

We then had to proceed with painting the quarter round molding they installed and all of the baseboards.  We cleaned, taped, painted and then removed the tape.  Patty did the painting and I did the bulk of the other tasks, including moving furniture out of the way.

 Another task was taking the rugs from Nepal and the new area rug from Vermont to be cleaned.  The Nepal rugs had not been cleaned since we got them in 2011, but had only limited use here in Phoenix.  The other rug had seen about 18 months worth of use, including Mr. Shadow sitting on the rug – so it was in need of cleaning.

Did I mention that it is summer in Phoenix and it gets hot?  On the 24^th, I took a photo of the reading in the car – 115F.

 In spite of the heat, I took a walk that morning and came across this unusual collection of bees swarming around and up on this electric light pole.

As we worked on painting the baseboards and trim, we ran low on paint.  So I took a photo of the label showing the blend to get the right color.  What happens?  Ace Hardware has changed their system and the numbers don’t work, so I had to go back, get the wooden paint stirrer and bring it to the store for them to match.  It appears to have been successful.

We have started putting things back together with a mix of things we brought from Vermont and some of the things here, plus some new things like the drapes in the living room – but there is much to do.  We need to finish painting some of the door frames plus paint the eight doors and hang up pictures and other wall decorations.

Just before we left, we had more warm weather.  On the 30^th, I took another photo of the car thermometer when it was 123F.  But it got even warmer, at one point showing 126F when I was out running errands.  The overnight low for the 29^th/30^th night set a new record.  The highest night low had been 90F, but it only went down to 92F.

And now we are off on another adventure.  Patty and I finally got the car packed and we got going about 10:30 for the drive to Chinle.  For a change, we did not take the Interstate: I-17 to Flagstaff and then east on I-40.  Instead, we took a route through Payson, Hebron and Holbrook and then just a few miles on I-40 before heading north.  We stopped in Gedano for a brief visit to the Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site: http://www.nps.gov/hutr/index.htm – an interesting look at a little bit of local history and an intro to our travel through the Navajo Nation.  We then drove on to Chinle for a visit to Canyon de Chelley National Monument.  And so our three week road trip has begun.