The Great Indoors
Hello, Monticello
I awoke in Charlottesville. The fatigue I endured from yesterday's Canes' parade had washed over me after my arrival last night, and I regained much of my energy from the air mattress I crashed upon. It would be another busy day today; instead of braving the hordes of hockey enthusiasts, I was to begin painting the blank canvas that was Emma Lou's recent condo purchase.
The one edge Emma Lou's old abode had over the new was its scenic backyard. I enjoyed my coffee on the back porch before embarking on my labors. I was immediately greeted by a distant fox, scurrying away to cover under the thick overgrowth. Just a minute later and many feet closer, a groundhog peeked its head out of the green. I kept a quiet eye as it plucked leaves of the kudzu to consume for its breakfast. Sadly, my mug ran dry shortly afterwards, so I bid adieu to my new friends and prepared to get to work.
Dr. House
I brought over some paint that Emma Lou had expressed interest in. I fully intended to spend my day smearing it on the walls, but not long into my session I remembered that it might make sense for the electrical engineer to handle some of the electrical work.
Trigger warning: nerd talk
One of the items flagged in EL's inspection was a lack of GFCI (ground-fault circuit interruption) protection next to her kitchen sink. Those are the outlets with the "test" and "reset" buttons on them. I had a few saved from my own renovation this time last year, so I brought them along and swapped the noncompliant outlets out. It turned out to be necessary regardless of code requirements since the old plug had some intense arcing when I tested it out. I also rotated her laundry dryer outlet by 180 degrees since its cord was bent in the previous orientation.
I had to drive home in the mid afternoon to ready my work week, but I plan to return in the near future for more electrical work. The galley kitchen was lit by grid fixtures, almost like you would see in an office setting. I lifted one out of the grid - and lo and behold - it wasn't an array of troffers at all. It was a single fluorescent ballast diffused across the ceiling tiles. This was a baffling design choice to be sure, but we were happy to learn that there was hard ceiling underneath. Next time I visit, I hope to discuss how we're going to put better lighting in it.
