Super Secret Big Z Project

So I'm in the process of building a two-person design table that has two cubby hole banks on either side of it. It'll be a three component piece with two 3'x3' bank sections and 1 desktop table section with two sliding drawers on either side of it.

I've purchased 1x12 boards, enough to build one of the cubby hole banks for now. I'm going at this piece on my own pace. The weather has been spotty but I think it'll get better. By the way, I'm keeping this project secret from my wife, Krystal - LOL. We need a good project desk for the two of us in the Big Z Imaginarium / Idea space.

I'll be posting more photos of the project as I go. So far, I've ripped a few of the pieces for the cubby to length and will be ripping more tonight as I go. Then the rough fitment will come next, I'll adjust to see how everything fits as I go. After everything fits, I'll drill and countersink 2" wood screws into the piece for rough assembly.

More to come on this project later.

Big Z is really rolling. Sorry for not posting in a while, I have been busy completing much of the smaller projects in order to get the Big Z house operational. I've also been resting as much as I can - I've been very tired. I think working and getting use to the 9 to 6 shift at work has been a contributor to it. I'm adjusting well though.
Many things have worked out very well since we've moved into Big Z and my family couldn't have been happier moving there. The wife and two dogs, my parents are all very happy with our decision so we have been experiencing a great period of peace which has been a while since we've felt this way completely.

On Big Z Time.
I, personally, have been living on Big Z time. Life has slowed down for me, I'm trying to just get things done but not in a fashion where I feel rushed but satisfied instead. There is a certain quality that comes with completing projects on Big Z time. It makes it worth it. I try to reflect on what life was like before Big Z but now I can't even imagine it.

Freedom.
There is so much freedom here at Big Z, this home and this property is like a blank canvas. We have all the freedom in the world to just do whatever we want to do. Which is a freedom that we never had before. Just this morning, I heard a radio DJ complaining about his HOA restrictions and the quarrels he's had with them. I never in my life considered any HOA (Home Owners Association) to be of any sort of benefit but onto themselves. This was just a clever way to profit off of those that are packed and crammed into unsafe suburbs and neighborhoods. HOA's create a false sense of neighborhood upkeep and safety. They are limiters and restricters of our god given freedoms and liberties. Enjoy and seek out your own Freedom, break away from those that try to take it away. Do something that makes you feel free right now.

Heartbreak

It is very difficult and unreal to watch the events of the Oil Rig Spill unfold here in the Gulf of Mexico. To a couple of surfers like Krystal and I - it is heartbreaking....

The Gulf is what it is, it's not the Pacific or the Atlantic, but it is OUR coast. We have enjoyed surfing, boogie boarding, body surfing, skim boarding, swimming and fishing out of the waters of the Gulf coast. What hurts even more is that we may not be able to safely venture out into the Gulf's waters for a long time even after the spill.

I am gravely saddened by this tragedy.

Fully Functional

So, the AC system in the house had a crossover duct that got disconnected. Apparently, a few feral cats were using the duct to live out of for a while, LOL. Along with a broken AC duct we also had an AC drain pan pipe that became severed off completely. I'm now happy to report that both have been repaired and replaced.

Once we get the house in order, it'll be onto the fun stuff, like the deck, the carport and the Big Z Workshop. I anticipate a few more minor repairs to the home. Some notable projects include repairing the kitchen and bathroom cabinet drawer hardware and will provide an interesting custom project for the Kreg Jig.

The cabinet drawers were suspended from cheap plastic chairs that were merely screwed into the back wall of the cabinet. This is evidence of it no doubt being the cheapest cabinet job in the world. I believe the cabinets were built for purposes of seeming oversized but care was not taken to how the drawers would be inserted.

I intend to build a custom cage out of 1x3's pocket screwed together with the Kreg Jig. The cabinet drawer slides will be screwed into the 1x3 cage. Problem solved. Sounds good in theory, we'll see how well it holds up in practice. Another case of easier said than done...

Moving - Early Phases

So more photos from the move before we moved the big things in.... Yes, we slept in the living room because we were really tired, LOL.

Big Z Pecan Grove

These are photos of Big Z's backlot where I intend to lay out the master plan of our pecan grove and I also intend to have a walking/ vehicle path that will follow the fenceline and will perimeter the entire grove. I'd like to be able to access it with my truck and even by tractor if I needed to.

Days 1, 2 and 3 at Big Z.

Here's the Amazing Sunrise from our first night spent at Big Z.

Here I am tired as hell, LOL... Big Z is worth it.

So here’s the list of crap that my family of Four and I’ve done this weekend….

- reserved / rented a 17’ Uhaul truck

- picked up Uhaul truck

- drove Uhaul truck to the Highsmith house

- loaded the large things and the rest of my junk into a 17’ Uhaul

- drove Uhaul truck to Big Z

- unloaded Uhaul truck into Big Z

- installed Engery Star Digital AC Thermostat

- installed Two Fire alarms/ Smoke Detectors

- hooked up refrigerator

- replaced low flow Toilet hardware

- hooked up dryer

- hooked up washer machine

- hooked up TV, Entertainment center

- hooked up Water filtration system

- put up 8 mini blinds

- put up 8 sets of draperies

- installed 10 foot cattle gate

- installed 30 feet of critter fencing

- yard cleanup, mowed grass, weed eated

- dug holes for Oleanders

- planted 10 pots of Oleanders

- dug holes for Oak Trees

- planted 2 Oak Trees

- unpacked, unpacked, unpacked.

More to be done:

- Hook up / inspect / Clean AC duct work

- Layout Big Z’s deck foundation plan / site prep

- spray for spiders SPIDERS spiders BIG BROWN SPIDERS, small Black Spiders and don’t forget Scorpions

- Hook up Surround Sound system through subflooring

- Put together treadmill, workout bench in workout room

- repair / build Master closet shelves / closet rods / racks

- unpack some more…