Auntie Devika's Boarding House (Part2)

Alonzo M. Pamplemouse got to the job site about 11 this morning.

He was hired by Ariel, and works directly for her. It is my understanding that Devika will make all decisions about decorating the house (colors, carpets, furniture and etc.). I will be in charge of construction and my crew. Alonzo will however be the "coordinator", and deal with all purchasing, permits, inspections, Safety concerns, the quality of building materials and etc.



Alonzo came up to the second floor, where we were working, and introduced himself. "Hi, everybody just calls me "Lon". I asked Lon how we were going to handle the work situation, after all, most of the things he was taking over, were things I had been doing. Alonzo suggested that we sit down and discuss everything. "I'm kind of tired from being up this early anyway.



Ariel had told him not to interfere with the house construction, but be as helpful as he could possibly be. As he understood the situation, he was to ensure that only the highest quality materials were used in the construct. Since Ariel was very sure that the more expensive something is, the better it is, he had been told to spare no expense on this project. Ariel wanted him on the site, as close to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, as possible. Since the house doesn't have a roof yet and few other amenities, I questioned where he would stay.



He had planned ahead. I had never seen a portable mouse hole, but he had one. It can be set up on any wall and he says it is quite comfortable. The peanut butter cracker, he said would take care of his meals for about a week.
I knocked off for the day. I some times wonder about this Fae World.


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I was planning on having Wright or Lefty bring the shower stall (for the second floor restroom) in through the back of the house. In the past, one of them would just pick it up and place it in location. "That is not how Alonzo sees it."



He had rented a forklift!



He had had concerns about safety. The strain of lifting might cause the Phist Bros. some physical problems. Also he had rented the forklift from Ariel's "new equipment rental center". Lon was sure that it was top of the line, as it had been very expensive to rent.



The shower stall reached the second floor without incident, amazingly. I convinced Alonzo that the second floor would not stand up under the weight of the forklift, nor was there a reasonable way to get it up there. So he finally allowed the Phist Bros. to move it into place.





There was one more surprise, but I'm sure it is not going to be the last. The Phist Bros. and myself all got huge raises. Since this is work contracted by the FAE Government, we are entitled to the same hourly wages that government employees (doing the same type of work) get. (I think this is referred to as "Davis-Bacon Wages). At this rate,the Maplewood won't look like the Taj Mahal, but it will cost about as much.

Auntie Devika's Boarding House (Part 1)

Things have been progressing slowly. It has taken the Phist Bros. some time to recover from their Christmas Party. They also did not return to work until they had broken all of their New Years Resolutions (that didn't really take much time). With all the snow in the "high country", the Bros are now claiming to be skiers, and claim to be spending a great deal of time on the slopes. I can believe this as I have never met anyone with more potential for going "Down Hill. It is strange however, that anytime there is a closure of Interstate 70, due to weather conditions, they are always trapped in the traffic jam.

We have got some work done anyway.

The Community room came out quite well. The hanging lamp will be over the pool table.



This is a view of the dinning area and the kitchen.





We have been experimenting with the placement of the kitchen counters and appliances. The overhead kitchen light, we are planning on using, is on the floor.



The second floor is in place.



The majority of the electrical for the second floor is installed and tested. Devika picked out the wallpaper, and I think she made a good choice.

I got an E-mail from Ariel, yesterday. It seems that she is sending an individual, named Alonzo Marion Pamplemouse, to oversee this construction project. I don't know much about him yet. Rumor has it that for every dollar Ariel spends on this job, she will be reimbursed a dollar and twenty-five cents by the FAE Government. Ergo, Alonzo will be making sure that only the most expensive materials will be used, and the construction will take as long as possible. (I'm sure the Phist Bros. can help with that). I've heard of some government projects that were handled this way.

NOT a home for the VanSwynes Anymore!

Those of you that regularly follow "Pixielated Builders" know that every thing runs smoothly for C. Pender and crew. NOT!!! Ariel came to the job site, and I was in formed that she now owns the Maplewood. It appears that the Van Swyne sisters had a falling out. The two older sisters do not want to live in the same residence. They sold the Maplewood to Ariel.

With the influx of more residents to the Tree House , Ariel has decided to have the Maplewood redesigned as temporary housing for displaced Fae ladies. If it wasn't for the Tax Breaks Ariel will get and the fact that the Fae Government is giving her an allotment for each tenant, I would think that Ariel had developed a "streak of nice". We all know her better then that.

Devika has agreed to manage the "Home", and I will be dealing directly with her. Some of the first floor walls had to be removed, and most of the second floor interior walls , will not be installed. Devika's plan is for the first floor to have a large community room.

The Kitchen and dining area will cover the rest of the first floor.



Since there will be a large number of meals served daily in the "Home", the area under the stairs has been converted into a pantry.



The second floor will be a large open dormitory and there will be a large common bathroom. The attic will be Devikas personal rooms and office area.

The Phist Bros. are back and the work has been going quite well. I've decided that we will try and finish one floor at a time.

The Phist Bros. insisted on having a Company Christmas Party. I'm not going to say much about it. The picture shows Lefty taking a short "nap". Partying can be hard work!



Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the gang at Pixielated Builders!

A Home for the VanSwyne's 2 (Permit 102407)

In the last year, I've built or remodeled 6 structures for various denizens of the "Tree House". Some rather large, some a great deal smaller, but one question always comes up. "Whose paying the bill"?





After my problems with "Pixie Gold", I now have a policy of checking the financial back ground of my clients, before I get started. Thus, I ended up at the 1st National Bank of Fae. Mr. Sterling, the banker, was very helpful and assured me that the VanSwyne sisters were very capable of financing any project, as long as it did not exceed 7 figures. I did not ask, but Mr. Sterling seemed to feel the needed to tell me more then I needed, about where the VanSwyne fortune came from.





One story that he had heard from his grandfather (their money has been in the family that long), was that the money came from an inheritance from their uncles of several generations ago. As the story went, these uncles (Norman, Hyrum and Maximillian) had designed the first air conditioning unit that would be of commercial value in the auto industry. This was around 1930. They approached several auto manufactures, and while the auto tycoons loved the thought of automobile air conditioning, there was a problem. At that time the brothers were know as the Swine Bros. (they did not change their name until some years later), and were insistent that SWINE AIR CONDITIONING be on all of their units. The name was not necessarily a great selling point, in the eyes of the manufactures. Finally, a compromise was worked out with Ford. The Bros. sold the rights to their units, but with the stipulation that their first names appear on each unit. That is why auto air conditioners have settings of NORM, HI and MAX. Yes, I know, I'm not sure I believe it either.





It was also suggested that their inheritance may have come from the these same three uncles, but had come from a settled lawsuit . Something to do with harassment, along with pain and suffering caused by a Wolf. Again who can be sure? They appear to be very solvent, which is all I needed to know.


I've started with some of the walls.





I'm hoping that once Wright and Lefty return, we'll be able to get a lot more done.

A Home for the VanSwyne's 1 (Selecting a home)

I met with the VanSwyne sisters at Norm's Dollhouse. There are three sisters Cecilia, Josephine and Mina. They seemed like nice young ladies. The girls kind of scattered around the store.

Cecilia wanted a home with a second floor porch.

Mina liked all of the multi-floored houses.

After much searching and discussion, the girls settled on the Maplewood.

It would be very unusual if a home for any denizen of the "Tree House" did not require "modification". This one is no exception.

Since Cecilia likes the second floor porch and is planning on spending a lot of time there, we will need to add a door from the second floor hallway to the porch. The railing on the porch will need to be made a little higher (a safety precaution). It might upset the balance of things, if pigs all on a sudden started to become airborne.

Josephine has decided that she would like her own "Mother-in-law" type apartment in the attic. This will require the addition of an outside entrance to this space.


Mina seems to have no "special" requirements. It is still early in the building process, and there maybe things that come up later.

The Maplewood construction will be starting a bit slow. Tarin is still working as a "Web Site" designer on a bridge building project, but will be coming back as soon as he can. Taelyn is still very busy with his Fire Department and Construction business. I'm trying to contact the Phist Bros. Last I heard they were traveling the "Thumb Wrestling Circuit". I'm going to start with the preliminary work and hope I get some help soon.

Before we left "Norms Dollhouse" the VanSwyne girls posed for a picture at their new home. Cecilia (the oldest in in the pink dress), Josephine (the purple dress) and Mina (the youngest in the green dress).

I'll be back with you, when there is some progress to report.

A Barn of a Different Color

A manila envelope arrived the other day. I contained a picture (drawn with crayon), a printed note and a stack of hundred dollar bills. It was from a little girl at the Tree House.

Kelsey said that she needed a house for her pet Una. Don't ask me what kind of critter an Una is. Her father had given her some money and permission to have a house built. I of course called him to verify. It's always a good idea to check thing out when dealing with the denizens of the Tree House.

The project was a go. Kelsey's father said what ever Kelsey wanted was okay. If the envelope money was not enough, just give him a call.

Here's how it turned out.

Kelsey picked the colors, of course. The "Barn of a Different Color" will be leaving for the Tree House.

I've been in contact with the VanSwyne Sisters about building a residence for them. I'm setting up an appointment to visit Norm' Dollhouse to show them some samples. I'll keep you informed.

Sea View Part 12 (The End ?)

I was on the job site ahead of the Phist Bros. J.R. Katscan and Robo-inspector had worked things out, and the Sea View had passed inspection. The safe had been removed from the tower room, but Ariel was still limiting access to the upper floor.

When Wright came through the kitchen door, I said "Goodmorning Wright, how are you this morning"?

Wright screamed and said, "Oh no! Ariel turned you into a frog! I swear Lefty and me didn't say a word about the attic to anyone!

I started laughing, as I watched my friend the frog hop away. "Ariel did not turn me into a frog. I just thought it would be fun to pull a joke on you. After the bad time you are always giving Taelyn, I felt you deserved it."

Wright of course was not amused. Jokes are always funnier when you are the Joker.

The Sea View will be leaving soon for the Tree House. Before it leaves I thought I would take some pictures of the final product.

I've got a smaller project to work on for a little while, it's a home for a pet. There are also three little girl pigs, that are looking for a "Pixielated Builders" special home.

Thank you very much for keeping Ariel from finding out I told you about the attic.