Guest Bathroom Improvements

I put in a new shower door in the guest bathroom. The old one wouldn’t slide easily and kept coming off the rail. The new one works great, and looks very nice too.

This looked like a bigger job than it was. The big thing is putting in the caulk. However, I found a calking finishing tool in a cabinet and it worked great. I will never caulk again without such a tool.

 

The drain to this shower/tub was so corroded that you could not even screw in the drain plug. So I replaced that too.

I had to chisel out the old one until it finally started to unscrew. It had a happy ending though, as nothing broke and the new drain screwed in fine. After one instance of leaking, I reseated it and it works perfectly now.

Kitchen Cabinets Refinished

I finished refinishing all the kitchen cabinets. They look new. Now we just need a new counter top and a little realignment of the sink and we’re in business. That is probably not going to take place anytime soon though.

I sanded the cabinets down, put on pre-stain, stain (Golden Oak), and then about three coats of polyurethane.

Sanding was the big task, and even with a sander with a vacuum feature it was very powdery in the house. I was able to do the doors on the porch, but obviously the cabinets themselves had to be done inside. I put drop cloths over everything, but it was still a mess.

Next, I’ll be doing the bathroom cabinets.

New TV and Media Cabinet

We finally replaced the old fashioned 32 inch TV with a flat screen. It is a 46 inch Samsung LED. We also got a new media cabinet to hold the cable box, stereo, cable modem, wireless router, and DVD player.

The TV is mounted on a swivel mount that comes out from the wall and turns. I ran the wires behind the wall so it looks pretty neat.

This really frees up a lot of space that the old TV took up when it was rolled out for watching.

Here is a close up of the new stuff.

New!!! MagicJack Phone

MagicJack Plus

I just installed a MagicJack Plus phone at Mile Marker 23. MagicJacks are internet phone connections that cost $20 to $30 a year. That includes unlimited calls to all US and Canada.

We’ve had a MagicJack (regular model) at home for years. It seems to work fine. I just signed up for a 5 year subscription.

I got the Plus because with it you do not need a computer. It hooks right up to your modem or router.

To use it you just pick up any of the three phones in the house and press talk. When you hear the dial tone, dial the number. You still need to dial 1 for long distance.

If the phone isn’t working, check behind the TV to see if the MagicJack is plugged in to an outlet and that the cable goes from the MagicJack to the wireless router.

Dang! Another Stereo Bites the Dust

Stereo #2: RIP

This is the second stereo that has given up the ghost here at Mile Marker 23. I used to keep the big sliding glass doors on the ocean side open because it is so pleasant here in the winter. My neighbor pointed out that if you do that you get a lot of problems from the salt air that comes in. You can tell that there is a lot of salt in the air from the amount of salt you see on your car or on the glass doors themselves. Besides the stereos, we have had phones and appliances just stop working.

So now I keep the air conditioning on and the doors closed as  much as possible. However, some of our renters obviously like the open door program. That’s totally up to them, but I definitely encourage doors closed, air conditioning on. Anyhow, I’ll be buying a new stereo (the type just a little better than a boom box) when I go to town today or tomorrow.

Murray’s Market

Murray’s Market on Summerland Key

Murray’s Market is the closest place to get comestables and sundries.

They have a deli with subs and cut their own meat. They also have wine and cold beer.

As usual with the smaller markets they are kind of expensive, but it beats going 8 miles to Big Pine or 20 to Key West.

Going North, Murray’s is on the right, right on the Overseas Highway at about MM 25.

Eagle Ray

We see an Eagle Ray.

While out fishing on the flats one day, we spotted an Eagle Ray not too far from the boat.

We manuevered a bit and managed to get near enough to get this close up. You can really see the Eagle Ray’s distinctive spotted pattern.

We were out behind Cudjoe, pretty close to Sawyer Key.

A real good look at the Eagle Ray.

New Knives (YEA!!!)

Quality knives for the kitchen

The kitchen knives at Mile Marker 23 have been iffy for a long time. At last we are upgrading to some pretty good knives.

We refinanced the place in Alexandria and as a reward got a choice of gifts. We picked these knives. Since our current knives in Alexandria fit that place nicely, the new ones are going to Mile Marker 23.

This “Emeril” set contains: 8″ Chef, 8″ Slicer, 8″ Bread, 7″ Santoku, 7″ Boning, 5″ Santoku, 5″ Utility, 4.5″ Steak, 3,5″ Paring, and Kitchen Shears.

Now we just need to get a sharpening steel and we’re set. FYI, there is a knife sharpener already in place. It is magnetized and is on the side of the refrigerator (it’s blue). The sharpener slides out.

Coco’s Cantina (RIP)

Coco's Cantina, Cudjoe Key

The building is still there, but Coco’s is no more. The little dive at the corner of Overseas Highway and Blimp Road closed sometime in 2010.

I loved this place. Cheap food. Good for breakfast with my wife or dinner when I was down here alone.

I hope some one reopens it, but I won’t hold my breath.

Dolphin Mud

Dolphins forming a "Mud"

On the way back from the flats we came across this sight. It is a classic “mud.” A mud is formed when fish stir up the “mud” by rooting around on the sea floor for food or a when group of predator fish do the same thing while attacking other fish.

In this case, the predators are dolphins. There were four of them going round and round and up and down feeding on some little fish we couldn’t quite spot.

Three of the dolphins leaving the mud.

The second photo shows three of them leaving the mud.