OCTOBER thru NOVEMBER 2004
OCTOBER thru NOVEMBER 2004
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2004
TA DA!!!! Finally, after months of discussions, napkin drawings, domino-effect changes,
site restrictions, you name it; the preliminary floorplan for 
is here!!! I think I've already
told you we've decided to go with the two-story design...with a twist. We don't want
to be going up and down stairs on a regular basis but we also want to be as high
up as possible to capture the best possible views. Hence, the two stories to get
the best of both.
The first or "lower" story sits at ground level and has the two-car garage, storage/craft/studio/exercise
and office space for Greg, as well as the guest room and guest bath. The configuration
of this floor could possibly change depending on where the septic system will go,
but this is a rather minor consideration because... the entire living area will be
on the second "upper" story...and the front door will bring you directly up to the second floor.
This unique idea will be a design challenge for sure. Right now the square footage
hovers at around 5,000 BUT don't forget that the main living space is nearly half
that. According to Greg's estimates, the addition of the lower story is, for the
most part, lumber and drywall, therefore, does not equal the cost of the upper story
with design features.
As you enter at the front door, straight ahead will be something of a structural
work of art. Greg plans to build a complicated form of a spiral staircase which will
lead to what amounts to a third story but is actually an observation turret. A typical
spiral staircase is built around a central pole with a very small radius to fit into
a small space. Greg will create what is called a "double helix" which has
no central pole and looks rather like a ribbon that has been loosely coiled. We'll
be using terrazzo for the Entry flooring, the same kind of flooring you see in front
of old movie palaces or at airport terminals. It's an "old fashioned" aggregate
custom-made using many types of colored stone and glass.
To the left of the Entry is the Great Room which you enter between two large columns.
The focal point of this room is a massive fireplace with a raised hearth. One of
the problems we're having is finding space to display our collections since we will
now have so much window space, especially in this room. Both the Entry and the Great
Room will have 14-16 foot ceilings and so a large fireplace will fit within the scale
of the room. But such a fireplace will require a rather tall mantle. This creates
a little problem that doesn't work for what we would like to display there. Being
so high up, small items will not "show well". So, we designed a set of
lower mantles on either side of the firebox. Above the mantle will be a large painting
concealing the television. Access to the back of the television as well as the stereo
system and CDs, tapes, etc. will be behind the fireplace in the hallway which leads
to the Master Bedroom.
The Office is to the right of the Entry, the door to which will be at the corner
so you enter at an angle. We like angles!
Many of the design ideas from Kelton will be used here again, like the mahogany office
that Greg designed for me. I especially loved his idea of adding picture frames to
the file cabinet drawers. 
to
see a tour of our old homestead, including the office.
Between the Office and the Dining Room is the Powder Room.
The Dining Room entry will also be at an angle and will also make use of columns.
In fact, we've already purchased those at a salvage yard from a dismantled home in
Indiana. I'm also working on changing out the clear crystals from our brass chandelier
to jewel toned ones. Again, thanks to Google for locating such items.
A door from the Dining Room leads into the Kitchen, described in the previous entry.
I never tired of the color palette I used before and will go with those colors here
too. Other than the Entry and Great Room, all the other rooms have 10' ceilings.
Standard ceilings measure 8' but after looking at other ceiling heights, the 10'
option gives a great feeling of space. Hey, it's only lumber!
Of course, there will most likely be changes and concessions but this is our "wish
list" at any rate.
And, finally, here's the completed topographical survey which shows the location of the house.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2004
It's been a month since the last entry and there's been lots going on.
We trekked down to Seattle to go to the Home Show. That's where you see rows and
rows of booths with every type of building material and/or design element you can
think of. And we came back with lots of ideas.
I found the perfect material for the bathroom counter top and tub decking....onyx.
Onyx is a type of marble. This particular example has a mixture of greens and reddish
browns which works perfectly with my color scheme involving copper accents. I'll
also be using copper touches in the living room and so plan to use this onyx surrounding
the fire place opening. In a few weeks I plan to make a trip with our installer to
go to the "yard" to pick out the exact pieces of onyx - each one is unique.
We also saw some windows we like made in Germany. The workmanship is excellent and
we've already run into a owner-builder in Sequim (an ex-contractor moving here from
Hawaii) who's using this brand in his own home and highly recommended them. Not only
are these windows extremely secure, they tilt and swivel, facilitating cleaning on
the exterior side.
And, we think we've made a decision for the roofing material. Roofs are expensive,
and depending on what material you use, the cost can get ridiculous. Roofing material
is measured by "squares". An inexpensive roof may cost $50 or less a square.
The Rolls Royce versions can go higher than $300 per square. When you figure that
an "average" house requires about 50 squares...well you do the math. Our
house will probably require about 60 squares. In forested areas, you'd have to be
crazy to use shake for your roof. Besides being expensive, it's not such a good idea
where fires are a consideration. Composition roofing is one of the more economical
choices. While some manufacturers will tell you they have composition roofing that
lasts up to 30 years, it ain't necessarily so. Up here in this kind of weather, you're
probably talking nearer to a 15 year life expectancy. But...even in just a few years,
composition will begin to look very very tired. There are other choices like slate.
Slate is definitely in the Rolls Royce category, plus requires beefing up the underlying
structure to support the massive weight of the slate. And then there are rubberized
and metal roofing. Both have their pluses and minuses. Rubber roofing is definitely
an expensive choice, and metal can run the gamut from rather inexpensive to hyperexpensive.
Aesthetically, I was hoping to get a roof that had the random look of shake, but
that is not possible with these materials. After going round and round, we think
we've settled on a metal roof that looks like slate. Hopefully, our budget will allow
for it. It's either pay me now or pay me later. You either go very inexpensive with
say composition, but you'll be reroofing before you know it. Or you spend big bucks
up front but never have to reroof again. We were lucky to see the slate metal roof
I like already installed and it looks pretty good. Having Greg install the roof will
drastically cut down on the cost.
As I've said before, people here are very helpful and every one you talk to ends
up giving you valuable information. One of the high end areas in Sequim is Bell Hill.
Just by driving around we've met two owner/builders in the midst of completing their
homes. And both were contractors, so Greg was able to "talk shop" with
them. One of the owners is the one whose house has the slate metal roof and also
the German windows. The other owner happened to be using stucco on his exterior and
radiant heating in his floors. Stucco is rare up here and we're trying to go more
"English Tudor" with our exterior. This owner explained that local stucco
companies gave him exorbitant bids and he ended up bringing his crew from California,
at less than half the cost. We spoke to his worker and it looks like we may use him.
We've also done some research on heating and almost everyone tells us radiant heating
in the floor is the way to go, so that's the plan so far.
We're also trying to come to a decision on what type of system to use in the fireplaces.
There are gas systems which are self-contained and therefore don't require a chimney
through the roof (which would save money on construction) and are said to be efficient
when it comes to heating; but these systems cost about $4500 or more. Or you can
go with wood burning or gas logs, which are more or less for aesthetic use only.
But these types of fireplaces can require a beefier substructure which adds to the
cost. We're not so much concerned about heating efficiency as we think we'll be relying
on the radiant floor heating. This system gives a nice overall warmth to the house.
But if we go with wood burning or gas logs, that will require a true chimney whereas
the self-contained version can just be vented to the outside. So at this point it's
a toss up with leanings toward the wood burning types.
We've made several trips to the County Building Departments with questions about
some of our design plans. Case in point, the double-helix staircase leading to the
third story turret. Turns out, this should be no problem as far as the County is
concerned. And, it's one of many projects we plan on completing after we move in,
which takes some pressure off what's necessary for a certificate of occupancy.
In order to place the house, the septic system, and the drainage, we needed the survey.
Now that Greg and I have completed that, we've made appointments with architects
and engineers.
After some long discussions and muddy boots from tramping the land, we've decided
to change the placement of the house to another side of the lot. And here I thought
we pretty much had the final layout. Well...the best laid plans. But the reconfiguration
actually improved the floorplan. Greg spent more than a full week at the computer
making changes and then showed me how the new site required turning the living room
in a different direction, among other things. With a floorplan, even the slightest
changes sets up a domino effect. When we took the plan with us to the lot and started
to see how the slope of a nearby ravine would make getting to the front door difficult,
I was actually able to contribute to making the new plan work by suggesting we "flip"
the plan over, allowing for a more advantageous placement of the front door and better
views for the living room, dining room and kitchen.
There is no such thing as the perfect lot with the perfect view, and we've had a
devil of a time coming to some compromise on these issues. You want the house here,
but it doesn't fit, you want it there and some of your favorite trees will be history.
And, too, you never know where you're neighbor will build their home and what it
will look like - such is the gamble when you buy into a new development. So I try
and reassure myself that once we were inside, we're in our own little world (I mean,
you don't spend all your time looking out windows! Even though we're hoping
to have some magnificent vistas to look at.)
.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2004
Armed with new calculations, we spent today plotting out the exact footprint of the house with the help of the survey transit and plenty
of wooden stakes and fluorescent tape. By late afternoon, we were able to stand in
each room and get a feel for the size and layout. Once we stood "inside",
the house didn't seem as monstrously huge as it does on paper...at least to me. Greg
on the other hand is ruminating on whether or not we're building too big a house.
But then we go over the reasons for our decisions and come back again and again to
the same floorplan. Doing this stake out also gave us a chance to figure out some
other details including where we'd like to "hide" the propane tank, what
adjustments are needed on room size, and what selective pruning we need to do to
improve views. But this is all still in the fuzzy stage...the site is a mass of weeds,
clumped mud and felled trees making it near impossible to really "see"
what we've done. So now we're making plans to have the footprint area graded out.
Once that's done, we'll take more pictures.
In the meantime, with the help of a tall pole and the digital camera, we were able
to get a glimpse of the mountain views on the southern exposure.
.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2004
Since our last entry we've been busy. And today marks six months since we began living
here on the Peninsula.
We made a trip into Seattle last Friday to purchase materials with the craftsman
who will install our bathroom countertops. I've had my heart set on onyx ever since I fell in love with it at the Seattle Home Show. Seattle
has an area of town devoted to interior design, much like the Pacific Design Center
in L.A. The stoneworks showrooms there are filled with hundreds of choices from granite to marble to onyx. This particular onyx has
a very interesting coloration that not only suggests copper but also has shades of green that will work with the copper accents and green palette
I'll be working with in the bathroom and living room. We decided to go ahead and
buy now because it is quarried (probably from Pakistan) and who knows if there will
be a supply problem next year. We bought two slabs to be stored until probably late
next summer.
Last Wednesday we did a preliminary excavation of the lot to get a better idea of
the space for the house. So down came all the stakes we put in before and Les, the young man
with the excavator, went to work.
I followed Les around like a puppy, wincing at every tree his excavator grazed and
pointing out hidden logs to remove. After two days, we were left with a big pile
of logs. Because dumping charges can be very expensive, woodpile burning is a common
practice. Although we had material that went to the dump yard, there were enough
large logs to build a huge bonfire and Greg and I stayed there stoking the fire and waiting
until it died down until 8 p.m. that night.
Les is proving to be a great find. Since he works for the company that sold us our
lot, he's in the area clearing out other properties for sale and has turned us on
to possible natural building materials. Thinking ahead, we're on the lookout for
large boulders and tree stumps to use in the landscaping and logs which may be used in the exterior construction of the house as nonstrctural
"plantons" for an English Tudor look. We're getting quite a deal on these
items. Tree stumps like this one could
easily fetch hundreds of dollars; likewise boulders.
While Les worked, I supervised. All the while watching the pad of the house appear
as the debris was cleared. Meanwhile, Greg gathered large rocks which were uncovered as Les worked, for future use. Although
you can't tell from this picture, there are rocks of granite as well as a turquoise-colored
quartz.
Yesterday our landscaper, Jeff, brought in his smaller excavator. We discussed plans
for water features and trails. I'm expecting the worst when it comes to a final tally
of the budget and so, while we want to plan ahead for these features, they may have
to be altered or eliminated but definitely won't be worked on until after move in.
We also made some decisions about taking out some trees. As much as I wanted to avoid
that, I ended up losing a large Douglas Fir which would have been smack dab in the middle of our breakfast
nook. I actually started to cry when it came down. But Jeff reminds me that you don't want trees too close
to the house because winds topple trees all the time and they can do some expensive
damage to buildings! And, too, we have hundreds of trees and we need to open things
up for the view of the Olympics.
We also have to keep in mind that we'll be up on the second floor looking out at
our views, so standing on the ground looking around is deceiving. I don't think we'll
have a clear idea on how this affects the landscaping until the house is framed and
we can get up to the second floor height. But I'm thinking your line of sight will
be some distance out from the walls of the building. Once we can take a look from
that vantage point, we can make better decisions about trees and views. And if any
larger trees impede a view, my first choice would be to use a pruning technique called
"windowing" which opens up your line of sight by removing sections of branches
but keeps the tree and doesn't destroy its beauty.
There's always something that throws you for a loop no matter how well you think
you've thought your ideas through. As we all tramped around in the mud we realized
the garages were on the view side, and we would rather not be looking over a driveway
to the view. Although having said that, and keeping in mind that we'll be up on the
second floor, who knows exactly how much this will come into play. At any rate, that
realization sent us back to the drawing boards. Remember my comment about dominoes?
One change and the whole plan is in danger. So, we found a way to put the garages
on the bedroom side and still have a turnaround area for the cars. This change will
mean we'll have a little walk to the dumb waiter when we bring in groceries, but
that's a small concession in my book.
Everything takes longer than you think. I thought we'd have the house "restaked"
yesterday including tying off the rooms but by the end of the day we had barely begun
the task, so we'll go back today to finish that up (hopefully) and then get the engineer
started. He has to tell us if the ravine will affect where we've positioned the house,
what we have to do to allow for drainage (possibly requiring small ponds), and also
help design the trestle that will lead to the front door.
We're keeping our fingers crossed that we can get our plans to the architect/designer
right after Thanksgiving.
We've also had the septic system designers finalize the location of the septic field.
This requires a large area, approximately 30 ft by 90 ft. We've had to go with a
mound system because the soil here does't "percolate" well. It's not a
problem, but it's a good thing our lot is over two acres. We'll be putting the field
on the north side (actually the side of the lot where we were originally locating
the house). Between Greg and the designer, only some small trees will have to be
relocated. Septic systems don't allow for any landscaping on top of the mound other
than small plants, groundcover, or flowers.
.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2004
We decided to stay home this morning, fine tune some things on the computer, and
then go to the lot to finish up staking out the footprint. We were able to set up
an appointment with the engineer to meet at the property this afternoon.
By the time we get to our property it's begun to mist but I'm adamant about finishing
this stake out. This process requires using the survey equipment which allows for
exact placement of the floorplan. Now that the land has been cleared, we were able
to inch the house a little this way and a little that way. But who knows what changes
will ultimately have to be made once the architect gets involved. You might wonder
that with all the work we've done on the design, why would we need to hire an architect.
First, we're not using an architect per se, but a "building designer".
It's one way of keeping costs down and should work well for us since Greg is so knowledgeable.
But as knowledgeable as Greg is, he doesn't know everything, including local building
codes. And it wouldn't hurt to have another professional's perspective on our ideas.
Designers charge about $1 per square foot of living space for their work. As a comparison,
in Los Angeles an architect (which is a requirement) would charge about 15% of the
total construction costs.
Shortly after we arrived the engineer showed up. His fee should be around $1000 and
he'll determine how best to deal with rain run off, something we're required to do.
He said the fact that we're not clear cutting the land (removing most of the trees)
will make this phase easier.
It took a while to complete the survey stake out but when we were done we were able
to make some decisions about window placement in preparation for our meeting with
the designer. We'll be seeing her late next week. We were going to come back tomorrow
to stake out the individual rooms but since all of that will just have to be removed
again when we do some final clean up in the next couple of weeks, we decided to use
the "virtual reality" of the computer to go room by room working out kinks.
Greg has been using a sophisticated film animation program to design the house. While
there are programs made specifically for architectural design, Greg is more fluent
in this program, Soft Image, and it's allowed us to put furniture in the rooms, to
scale, in order to fine tune architectural elements such as the fireplace and interior
design ideas including artwork display.
We have a lot to do between now and when we meet with the designer, and Greg is worried
we won't have time to do it all. If we are to keep to our schedule, we must get the
designer going on these plans so that she can finish by the end of the year and get
them to the city for approval.
We're also about to make an appointment with the president of the development company
to get his approval on our plans. Since so few people have begun to build here, he's
the majority of the homeowner's association. Not only we will be building one of
the few, if not the only, two-story houses, our "third story" turret is
planned at 45 ft in height and that requires special approval.
.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2004
No matter what I write here about plans for this house, it is all subject to change
until the finished product.
Today is a momentous day...we are working on the budget. And a budget is the most
changeable of all. We can make educated guesses as to cost but the answer is in the
final bill. Generally, you can figure your budget will be 30% more than estimated
(10 to 20% if you're very very lucky). I'm hoping we're lucky.
Not only will budget precipitate change, so will logistics. Case in point: the cobalt
blue glass backsplash I have or should I say had planned for the kitchen.
Greg and I go for long walks in the forest almost daily and that gives us a good
hour or two to discuss the house. Yesterday we took an imaginary walk through the
house with the goal of finding places for all our display items such as figurines,
collections, and wall art. The room with the most items for display is the kitchen.
At the Kelton residence, most of the figurines were on the countertop pushed back
to the backsplash. In Los Angeles, restaurant meals were the norm and I was usually
so busy I had no time to think of meal planning. But here, the opposite is true.
And I've designed the kitchen to be much more user friendly as a result. That means
the counter space needs to be reserved as a working space. So where to put these
figurines?
Now you might say why make such a big deal out of finding places for unnecessary
items. And that brings me to a philosophy on "what is a home". Greg and
I have been collecting since we've been together. Each item has a story behind it,
whether it's a trip we've taken, a day at a flea market, or a genre or artist we
enjoy. What enjoyment can we derive from all these things if they end up in boxes?
So display is important to us.
So, back to finding places for the kitchen figurines. At Kelton we made use of niches
recessed into the walls for display. This not only made a special statement about
the particular item, but also made the display unique and out of the way...safe from
bumps and earthquakes (and yes, Washington has earthquakes too although not as severe
perhaps as California). We liked the idea of displaying the figurines in niches recessed
into the backsplash. Not only would the labor involved in creating openings in the
glass be expensive and difficult, by the time all the niches were built in, there
isn't much uninterrupted backsplash overall. So we have now changed from glass to
plexiglass. Having made that decision, the niches can be fabricated by a good plexiglass
company and built into the total backsplash as a complete unit. Also, it helped us
figure out how best to backlight and rope lighting seems like a good way to go. The
plexi gives us the opportunity to create channels for the rope lights. It will also
allow us to make the backsplash removable for maintenance.
When we were done with our imaginary walk through, we felt we had found places for
the majority of our collectibles.
I've also spoken with a very dear friend from Los Angeles who has been an interior
designer for thirty years. I ran by her several of my "out there" design
ideas and she was kind enough to give me the benefit of her professional advice.
What follows is the reasoning for my choices based upon her professional knowledge.
Regarding my choice in bathtub: I've chosen a fiberglass tub without jets.
I was looking for a relatively small tub but one that would accommodate two people
comfortably. It was also important to have arm rests on either side for both people
as well as some lower back support. I spent hours googling to find a tub that fit
those specs and Jacuzzi was the only one I could find. Another consideration from
Greg is the weight of the tub. Fiberglass is relatively light but porcelain tubs
are very heavy and properly done should include beefing up the supporting structures.
And, too, we're on the second floor of our house. So Greg is adamant to stay with
fiberglass. According to my friend, the industry is moving away from fiberglass.
It is easily scratched and the general feeling is that it does not reflect the "high
end" look as does porcelain, and does not maintain temperatures as well. However,
after reviewing choices, I'm going to stick with the fiberglass. I had it before
at Kelton and since we're very good housekeepers and don't have children, the scratching
isn't a major consideration. As for the "look" of porcelain, while my friend
is absolutely correct, I'm going to stick with the original choice if for no other
reason than it has the design elements I want for comfort. Everything is a compromise.
Regarding my choice of general floor covering: I like carpet. I guess you
tend to go with what you've had in the past or your comfort zone and maybe the type
of flooring you had as a child weighs in there too. I know the world loves hardwood
and tile, and it is indeed beautiful plus has many other aesthetic and practical
attributes, but still I like carpet. So sue me! And I do like the softness of a "plush"
surface as compared to a looped tight weave. I also like nylon. But I learned a big
lesson last time we carpeted at Kelton. I thought I was given the same type of carpeting
I was replacing but ended up with something that pilled profusely and put so much
dust in the air my housekeeper was threatening to quit. Turns out it was cut pile.
I'll never make that mistake again, from now on it's continuous filament nylon for
me. My friend informed me that there are many beautiful, soft looped type carpets
available now more in line with current design aesthetics, especially wool; not only
for the quality but for cleanability. I've given this some hard thought and looked
at the carpeting she's recommended, but again I will stay with my original choice:
a "frieze" which is like a plush but the ends are "frizzy". It
gives a nice texture but also doesn't show footprints like plush. As for cleaning,
all these manmade fibers have Stainmaster or something like it and if I do say so
myself, I am a champ at spot removal. After ten years my light grey carpets looked
new except for traffic wear. Carpet cleaning advice: if you ever clean up a spill
or try to remove spots on carpeting, NEVER rub, only blot.
Regarding my choice of kitchen flooring: going against everyone else in the
world, I like a carpeted kitchen. And not only carpeted, but none of that "outdoor"
"kitchen" type of carpeting, but full-on household carpeting. I know, I
know, but just as with my other carpeting, my (dark blue) kitchen carpet always looked
great. And, it was soft on my bare feet when I got up in the middle of the night
to get a drink of water. As for cost: at 200 sq feet (or 22 square yards) of floor
space, the cost of carpet should cost out at approximately $800. The kitchen counters
are terrazzo; if I were to continue with that material for kitchen flooring, the
cost would jump to $15,000. And tile or vinyl or linoleum (the old fashioned type
is making a comeback) are pricey too - although no where near the likes of terrazzo.
To each his own.
Regarding our choice for heating: this is a big subject and one that we have
spent hours and hours researching. Household heating is an important item here in
the colder temperatures of the Pacific Northwest. We narrowed our choices down to
two: forced air or radiant heating which involves piping or tubing under the floors
flushed with hot water. Forced air uses electricity and is what we had in California.
It's very expensive to run and gives "hot spots" near the ducting, but
would be the least expensive to install. People here swear by radiant heat. Although
it doesn't have the immediacy of forced air (radiant heat takes 2-4 hours to make
a noticeable difference), it is noiseless, clean (no dust particles from blowing
air), and gives an overall toasty feel that you can maintain at a lower temperature.
It runs on gas (propane here) and is more economical to run by far. We visited friends
who keep theirs at 62 and I and their guests found it very comfy. Of course there
is the possibility that a pipe or tube could leak and then you have any number of
repair problems. But with proper installation, this is rare...and that's what insurance
is for. However, my friend informs me the industry is now going with low-voltage
electric pad heating that gives similar effects of radiant heat. She swears by it
and has used it in kitchens and bathrooms and her clients sing her praises. We googled
this choice and the literature explains this type is best suited for hard floors;
the company even recommends using radiant heat with carpet. We're ballparking the
cost of radiant heat at $20,000, forced air would be about than half that figure,
but the low-voltage pad would be in the neighborhood of $35,000. As I've said before,
compromise is the name of the game when you're building a house, and we're going
to go with what is tried and true here and use the radiant heat, provided the bids
come in as expected. However, using floor-type heating under carpet requires top
of the line carpet pad.
One of my goals with this house is to try to keep housekeeping duties as uncomplicated
as possible; our love of "dust catching" collectibles aside.
Greg is a cabinetmaker and stairmaker by trade and so he'll be building the bathroom
vanity. As I've said, I'm using copper accents in our home. The two main applications
of this will be the living room and bathroom. Since the countertop in the bathroom
is the green and "copper" onyx, I've decided
to use "copper" for the vanity. One way I could get the look of copper
without the upkeep is the use of metal laminates (like Formica). My research lead
me to a company that specializes in this type of laminate and I found some faux copper
ones that were very promising. My friend suggested in keeping with the the luxury
of the onyx that we consider the real thing and that's just what we're going to do.
But I want to find a sealer for the copper so I don't have to worry about things
like oil from fingerprints. I could go with a verdegris patina but I'd rather have
the aged look of plain copper. But that will be a work in progress and something
I won't have to make a final decision about for many many months.
Now proceed to the December 2004 thru January 2005 Entries
and...
DON'T FORGET to KEEP CHECKING BACK at
2004
and
2005
to see what we've been up to lately
(the newest entries are always at the bottom of the page)
