"The first man gets the oyster, the second man gets the shell."

Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919)

What does that mean?

Carnegie is the quintessential rags to riches story.  Moving to Pennsylvania in 1848, he found work as a bobbin boy changing spools of thread in a cotton mill.  He worked 6 days a week, for 12 hours a day and was paid $1.20 per week.

Finding a job that paid $2.50 per week (!) as a messenger boy in the Pittsburgh office of the Ohio Telegraph Company, he jumped right in.

Here is where the quote comes in.  As a 16 year old messenger boy, Andrew paid attention to the sounds the telegraph made, learning to translate the sounds into letters and could repeat messages without writing the sounds down.

Impressing his superiors, he moved up from there quickly.  Networking, and borrowing money from his family, he made his first investment, and then another and then another.

While working in the railroads, he invested in the things the railroad industry needed - steel, bridges and rails.  Eventually settling into the steel industry, he, to quote him, "Put all [his] eggs into one basket, and then really, really nurture that basket."

The rest is history, as they say.  In 2007 dollars, his worth at death was $300 billion.  That is a few Gates or Buffetts.  Carnegie is regarded as the second richest man in history, behind Rockefeller.

His dictum? 

1.  " To spend the first third of one's life getting all the education one can. "
2.  " To spend the next third making all the money one can. "
3.  " To spend the last third giving it all away for worthwhile causes. "

Carnegie's later years were given to writing and to philanthropy.  He especially liked giving money to libraries, educational causes, to schools that were connected with religion and to the education of blacks.  His philosophy about money was that it was "debasing" unless one spent his efforts in pursuits of giving it away!

He also developed into quite the writer, contributing often to magazines and newspapers.  His most radical work first came out in 1886 called "Triumphant Democracy."  His thesis was that American Republicanism, that of voting for political leadership, was superior to the British monarchical system.  Democracy allowed people to become all they could be being subject to themselves and their individuality (seeking the oyster and not the shell) and not to the whims of a ruling family.

Later he published "Wealth," in which he argued that a man should first accumulate wealth and then work toward giving it away.  Subsequent to that period, he commissioned Napoleon Hill (at no pay) to interview 500 wealthy industrialists, and publish their secrets.  In this way he hoped to pick up the "common man," and then have more philanthropy available for "the masses."

Carnegie spent his life utilizing the capitalist system of developing and implementing one's abilities to seek the oyster.  He never desired the shell.  He never settled for the shell.

And he didn't desire the shell for himself OR others!

AND SO, MY DEAR BROTHERS AND SISTERS OF THE CONGREGATION, DON'T SETTLE FOR THE WONDERS GUBMENT WANTS TO OFFER!  SEEK INSTEAD TO DEVELOP YOURSELVES IN A SYSTEM OF PERSONAL LEADERSHIP AND GROWTH, AND DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT ACCEPT THE EMPTY PROMISES OF SOCIALIST CRUSTS AND THE CONTROLLING OFFERS OF GUBMENT CRUMBS!

DOING SO WILL LEAVE US ONLY SHELLS.  AND WE WILL END UP INSTEAD ONLY SHELLS OF OUR POTENTIAL SELVES!

One very important thing to look for on new construction, pre-drywall inspections are hurricane straps.  Also called "hurricane ties" or "twist straps," let's keep it simple for the post and call them hurricane straps.

A simple piece of engineering, a hurricane strap is a single piece of metal with a half twist. 

There are pre-drilled holes for nails to anchor the straps to roof rafter ends.

In modern construction, every roof truss rafter that rests on an exterior wall is to be strapped.  The only exception is the truss rafter at the very edge of a townhouse, which is itself anchored to the house beside.

My house was built in 1998, and these straps were not required by code.  Some builders used them, but mine did not.  I begged my builder to install the straps, or allow me to nail them on.  They refused me saying that others would see them and want them on their houses!  Their use is code now.

Certainly this rafter is missing one!

There was another too.

And this house already has had the County inspection allowing for the installation of drywall.

They must have missed this.

This photo shows something else I had a problem with.  The framing over the window is such that it contributes to the sagging of the top frame of the window.

Done differently, there would be no sagging. 

But that should be in another post!

It's a simple matter to put on another strap and get things right.

My recommendation:  don't skip the pre-drywall inspection.  Even things that are small and simple can get overlooked.  Unless, that is, you have a home inspector on the job.

Hi folks!  Billy Jays here!

This will bring a tear to your eye!  It does to mine!

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Where oh where could the dryer vent be?

Sometimes you know a change has been made, but you don't know where.

This dryer vent has blown directly onto the AC compressor since the house was built.  That would be 1979.

A dryer vent should not be within 12' or so of a compressor.  Too close, as in this case here, and the compressor will draw in air while the dryer is venting its lint-laden exhaust.  That can load up the fins with lint, clogging them, and robbing the compressor and AC system of efficiency.  I have seen compressors look like they had grown a gray beard!

Over time, enough clogging can kill the compressor.

This compressor is less than two years old.

I have to wonder how many compressors have had to be installed over the years as this dryer vented right onto them!

But wait!  This dryer vent is intentionally plugged with a K-Mart bag!

The dryer no longer vents here.

Not seeing another vent anywhere on the outside of the house, or the roof, I was interested in where it was venting!

When these things happen, they become fun detective scenes.

I like to sing the title of this post to myself!

Sooner or later the vent will show up.

Usually the evidence is, um, visible!

Pulling down the folding ladder to the space over the garage, and looking over, I found it!

Wonderful!

Going further, and I had not been upstairs yet, that white vent cover could be completely removed from the wall there. 

Looking into the hole, I could see what looked like the back side of a dryer!

Mentioning that to my clients, they said, "Oh, yeah, the sellers made a laundry room upstairs."

Hmmm.  This should be interesting.

And it was!  The linen closet had been turned into a "laundry room."  A wall had been knocked out and the "laundry room" was a part of the master bathroom!  And it was cute!

Oh, there was lint everywhere.  And County permits were nailed all over the wall!

I may be exaggerating a bit on the County permits.  There was nothing smart or safe about this installation.  Or the kitchen remodeling.  Or the newly finished basement.  Or the new window in the dining room.  Or the front stoop.

My recommendation:  when you see one wrong thing, it usually leads to another, sometimes connected to the first!  Even if the dryer vent had not been plugged, it still would have been a problem.  And the "fix" for it was no fix at all!  And don't forget to be a preposition!

What is a preposition?  My 8th grade English teacher, Miss Braun, taught me that a preposition was anything you can do to a house. 

What?  I mean, you can go inside, or be outside, over or under, beside or behind or in between, before or after, up and down.  All those kinds of words are prepositions.  They describe relation to a noun and govern it.

So, things you can do to describe your relation to a house would be a preposition.  How prescient since that is what I do today!

So, when I pull up to a house and see a front porch stoop like this, I know I have to be a preposition, here and throughout the house.

Oh, the house immediately across the street has the same kind of porch stoop, so this guy went through the neighborhood!

But I knew it wasn't done with a permit because the hose was almost blocked, the mortar was so sandy I could remove it with my finger, some top-layer bricks at the edges were loose (a couple had come off) and the porch comes up over the rim joist and lowest three courses of aluminum siding, burying it all.

THAT is a termite invitation!

But there was something else.

I could not find the plumbing clean out in the front yard.

You know what that it.  It's a large, white PVC tube sticking up out of the yard.  It has a removable cap on it that can be twisted off so a plumber can put a snake down there to clean out the drain line should it become clogged.

ACCESS TO THAT CLEAN OUT IS IMPORTANT!

Remember, you have to be a preposition.

So I began looking up, down and all around, especially beside!

And guess what I found?

Peek a boo!

They notched off the edge of the paver on top of it, but the cap cannot be removed.  And they bricked around it during the construction.  Then, after the fact, they chipped off the edge with a saw!

No snake could go down there!

I assure you, had there been a permit, the County would have demanded that the stoop NOT be wide enough to cover that clean out.  Hence, no permit was pulled.

My recommendation:  be a preposition!  Have a look all around things.  ESPECIALLY NEW THINGS!  See if you can determine if it looks right.  And if not, ask a home inspector.  You may be right!

It's a wonderful day in my neighborhood!

A wonderful day for a neighbor,

I need you to be,

I'd like you to be,

I'd LOVE you to be my new neeeeiiiighbor!

Hi boys and girls!

Mr. Jay here!  Welcome to Mr. Jay's Neighborhood!

It's a beautiful day in my neighborhood and I am so glad we can be together today!

In today's we are going to talk about how to electrify an outdoor shed!  It's important for a shed to have power!

Can you spell electrify?  E-L-E-C-T-R-I-F-Y  Sure you can!

Remember boys and girls, safety is always first.  We want to be safe in our neighborhood, and in our homes!

First, in order to have power, we need a power source!

And once we find it, be sure that any cable we use is made for the job.  Just plug it in!

Orange is easy to see, so orange cables are very good to use!

Can you spell orange?  O-R-A-N-G-E  Sure you can!

To protect the cable, why not bury it? 

If it's underground nothing can happen to it!

Uh, oh!  A sidewalk is in the way!

What should we do, boys and girls?

Well, our orange cable sure can't be underground any more.  But it still needs to be protected!  How can we do that?

Very good!  When it comes up out of the ground, we tie it to a railing so big and little feet can't walk on it!  We don't want a trip hazard!  Somebody might get hurt!

Can you spell hazard?  H-A-Z-A-R-D  Sure you can!

That will keep it safe until we can put it underground again!

Great!  We got around that pesky sidewalk, didn't we boys and girls!

And look!  The cable is still orange!  What does that mean?

Very good!  It means it's still safe!

But it still needs protection!  So, since there is no sidewalk in the way, we can bury it again!

We don't want to see it again until it gets to the shed!

And there it is!

Look at how much power the outdoor shed has!

This shed is quite the work shop too!

Can you spell workshop, boys and girls?  W-O-R-K-S-H-O-P  Sure you can!

Look at all the other cables in the shed!  Wow, they sure can do a lot of work there.  This shed is FULL of tools!

What's that square white thing on the left?

It's a freezer!  And it's plugged in!  Why is it plugged in?  Because something is inside!

Do you know what's inside, boys and girls?

A deer head!  The deer head is in the freezer because it's waiting its turn to go to the taxidermist!

Can you spell taxidermist, boys and girls?  T-A-X-I-D-E-R-M-I-S-T  Sure you can!

That's a fun word!  Do you know what a taxidermist is?  He gets things ready and stuffs them so they can be put on the wall.  Right!  Just like at the museum!

Do you know why this deer head is in the outdoor shed?  Because Mommy would get upset if she found it in the freezer inside the house!  That's right, silly Mommy.  Mommies can be like that.

Well, boys and girls, it's time for Mr. Jay to leave.

We sure have had fun today!  Thanks for stopping by!

Do you want to come to Mr. Jay's Neighborhood again?  Sure you do!

Mr. Jay sure has fun in his neighborhood!  A lot of home inspectors are very jealous that Mr. Jay has so much fun!!

It's a wonderful day in my neighborhood!

A wonderful day for a neighbor,

I need you to be,

I'd like you to be,

I'd LOVE you to be my new neeeeiiiighbor!

                                          Gee won't you be,

                                        Please won't you be,

                            I'd LOVE you to be my new neighbor!

Funding for Mr. Jay's Neighborhood has been brought to you by Lotsa Nuts!  Remember, when you need a snack eat Lotsa Nuts!  Cause you are what you eat...

Tune in soon to Mr. Jay's Neighborhood - Where You Can Check Out, But You Can Never Leave...

Fade to black...   quick.

Patrick Henry lived his entire life in what was to become the Commonwealth of Virginia.  His life spanned 1736-1799.  He served as Virginia's first and sixth governor.

Elected to the House of Burgesses from rural Louisa County in Virginia, he is most famous for a speech given 23 March 1775 at the Virginia Convention held at the St. John's Episcopal Church in Richmond, Virginia.

Still there, as the oldest church in Virginia, the church is located at 2401 East Broad Street.

The church was selected as the site to house the Virginia Convention to determine if Virginia would send troops to assist in the Revolutionary War.

The speech is fiery, and features a couple of themes:

1.  The past will contribute to the future, so America needed to break from the past.
2.  We should not be swayed by the "illusions of hope."  (presciently mentioned twice)
3.  The name of God is invoked frequently.  After all, they are in church!

A fierce proponent of what he called Republicanism (that leaders should be elected and not inherit public office) and Anti-Federalism (he was a main antagonist of James Madison and essentially forced the adoption of the Bill of Rights), he remained true to the cause of America, and liberty, until his death.

It only takes about three minutes to read the speech.  But some pertinent parts are offered here:

" NO man thinks more highly than I do of the patriotism, as well as abilities, of the very worthy gentlemen who have just addressed the House. But different men often see the same subject in different lights; and, therefore, I hope that it will not be thought disrespectful to those gentlemen, if entertaining, as I do, opinions of a character very opposite to theirs, I shall speak forth my sentiments freely, and without reserve. This is no time for ceremony. The question before the House is one of awful moment to this country. For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery.  And in proportion to the magnitude of the subject, ought to be the freedom of the debate. It is only in this way that we can hope to arrive at truth and fulfill the great responsibility which we hold to God and our country. Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country and of an act of disloyalty towards the majesty of Heaven which I revere above all earthly kings.

Mr. President it is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth - and listen to the song of the siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the number of those who, having eyes, see not, and having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation?  For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst and to provide for it ...

In vain, after these things, may we indulge the fond hope of peace and reconciliation.  There is no longer any room for hope.  If we wish to be free - if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending - if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained - we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us!

Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us.  The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat, but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged, their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable - and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come!

It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, peace, peace - but there is no peace. The war is actually begun. The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death! "

As regards screwing up the gutter - repair or replace?

Homeowners must ask themselves this all the time!

First of all, this is not the first time the gutter on this vacant house has been "repaired."

How can you tell?

The soffit and fascia material has been caulked and painted, although not recently.

And the gutter has some kind of material, what I don't know, oozing out the seams.

But obviously it had come apart again.

So, this time they decided to screw it up!

Literally!

There are 12 sheet metal screws visible in this photo.

There are more on the other side of the corner, not seen from this side.  And from inside the attic there was more yet to see!  I think you spell it R-O-T...

The gutter is full of debris and it rained the previous night, so this corner is still dripping, which is probably the thing that precipitated this "repair."  I suspect that corner material was falling off too.

So, in order to "get the house ready for sale," they decided to screw the gutter up.

IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE!  LET ME TELL YOU, THAT ISN'T THE ONLY THING THEY DID TO THIS HOUSE!

My recommendation:  a brief swing around the house will probably reveal what things have been done to get the house ready for sale.  The "repair" above looks fairly recent, but may not be!  If this is a form of "maintenance," then likely there is other similarly unprofessional "maintenance" elsewhere!

What does a client do when there is a double moisture whammy in a vacant house?

It's a foreclosure.  No appliances left - they were taken.  But there is clear evidence that two things have combined in the past to cause a current condition.

It wasn't easy to get to to see.

My tip off was a spongy, bouncy floor around a powder room toilet.  That toilet, and that bath's sink, were against a wall where the washing machine's spigots and drain were inside the abutting wall.

In the laundry room, there was no washing machine or drip pan. 

There was no evidence of leaking on the floor.

The dryer vent was into the wall, obviously from there turning downward.

We saw this because I removed a panel to see what I could see.

And this is what we saw!

The toilet and spongy floor are to the left.

And there was obviously previous leaking from those supply lines or the drain spout in the wall.

But they are not leaking now because the water has been turned on for some time.

Is the problem, therefore, in the drain line?

The double whammy is of course the dryer vent.

It has been disconnected for a long, long time.

How do I know it has been disconnected?  Because the other end of the tube is far away, and there is lint inside. 

It used to be connected, albeit a long time ago.

It has been blowing its condensation onto the floor below for some time now.

Why would they disconnect it?

Who knows.  To clean it?  Put in a different one? 

And then never get around to it.

Maybe what they needed was a Roun-tu-it!

Well, now this buyer has a lot to get around to.

At least we were able to find it!

My recommendation:  when something feels funny, like a spongy floor, and yet there is no evidence as to why, there is always a reason!  It might take an extra minute, but it's always best to find out why!

Jay's Saturday morning haiku - 16

The English form of the traditional Japanese Haiku includes any or all of the following:

• The use of 17 syllables, in the form of three lines, with 5, 7 and 5 syllables respectively.  Some haiku may employ 10 - 14 syllables, but 17 is traditional.
• The use of a season in the poem.
• The use of a "cut word" or punctuation to set off and compare two images.

 A Strap here and there -  

Keeps me from shaking badly!

I'm a secure house.