January 3th Wednesday- Our day starts at 4:00 a.m. we are on St John by 5:p.m. My world is complete we get Tempo (the caribbean version of M.T.V.) at the cottage we are staying at. Life is good! Thursday we arrive at Bo Atabey bright and early for the upper level wall pour, only to find three concrete trucks parked and waiting at the bottom of our driveway. Bob asks Rick "Why are the concrete trucks here ALL at once?" Rick was suppose to call Majestic Concrete when the pump truck was set up and here all at once are the concrete trucks!! One truck should be arriving as one truck is leaving, not in this case.....
We (Bob and I) are concerned, if the trucks sit too long the concrete will go bad. It is a calamity watching Rick's crew (2 guys) Kobe & Solo doing their part of this MAJOR pour and what does Rick Meyer do to expedite the situation? As the pour gets started, Rick Meyer leaves! He is off to Argentina to go fishing! BYE!! Now we know why Bo Atabey is cursed!
Friday the Kingsley Bate teak furniture arrives for the business. Saturday we go to Paint Depot on St Thomas to pick up ten gallons of Sikkens stain, we special
ordered from Matt, the stain came in when promised, the service is great and they carry a full line of Benjamin Moore paint!!! The best paint money can buy!!
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Picture below: (left) Aluminum forms ready to be taken off. (middle) Paint Depot on St Thomas. (right) Ramone delivers the Kingsley Bate Teak furniture.



January 7th- We spend the day putting the the Kingsley Bate furniture together. Monday we head over to Customs and M.V.D. to pay any excise tax that is due on the roofing material that is waiting for pick-up at Tropical Shipping. Tuesday we move water plants (that were left over from the flower show in October) from the property over to the business, now we need water, the plants actually survived since last October!
This has nothing to do with building on St John but alot to do about driving on St John. Today two baby goats were flattened/squashed on the road. Everybody talks about "island time" except when it comes to driving! The road from Cruz Bay into Coral Bay is spiraling, ambagious, devious and VERY narrow, as a matter of fact ALL the roads are. Please remember you share the roads, here on the island with "God's Creatures"..enough said...I digress. Wednesday we go to Centerline Concrete to pay for tomorrow's concrete pour.
Thursday the pool floor gets poured. Friday Inner Visions is playing at Spudniks, in Coral Bay and will be filming a music video for Tempo, at Hawknest Beach this Sunday!
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Picture below: (left) Larry delivers water for the plants at our business, St John style!(middle) Centerline Concrete has a Southington connection. (right) The pool floor finally ready for pour.



January 14th- Today Inner Visions is filming a music video for Tempo, at Hawksnest Beach! Our right white hand (is this politically correct?) is used in the "hands" part of their video.. I think this is very cool!... F.Y.I. Bob's hand is the second, in the video, my hand is the sixth!!
Martin Luthur King day at the park Inner Visions continues filming more video, We watch!
The transition from builder #2 to builder #3 ..is going great...Roy's crew start to build the form for the grade beam (this beam holds up the lower level front porch. There isn't much for us to do at Bo Atabey today, the pallets of pond supplies, that we packed in December, are at Tropical Shipping. We can take care of that today, first, to the M.V.D. to pay the excise tax and then to Customs, which by the way is NOT the hassel everyone makes it out to be, now we are ready to pot water plants!
Picture below: (left) Grasshopper warming up to the tune of "Everlasting Love" at Hawksnest Beach. (middle) Ras Paul, Jupiter & Grasshopper at Franklin A. Powell Sr. park. (right) ISLAND TIME: The roof lumber cleared Customs two weeks ago, it sat in Cruz Bay for a week, then sat in Coral Bay for a week. It is finally being delivered to the property by Charlie and Larry. Elvis is on the forklift which he tipped over a few times.



Picture below: The goats waiting for the "open bar" & "all you can eat" plant buffet to ripen. (middle) Our two pallets of pond supplies are finally here! (right) Goevanny & Russell building the forms for the lower level deck porch, getting ready for the next pour!



Picture below: (left) The lower level is a great place for sanding & staining. (middle) With the aluminum forms finally down scaffolding gets put in place, next phase is hoisting up the ridge beam. (right) Bo Atabey with her aluminum forms finally off! NOTE: Bedroom window in its right place!




January 21st- We have breakfast at Maho Bay, spend a few hours at Cinnamon Bay and end the day with Jazz at the Beach Bar!!
Monday at 6:43 a.m. we have a 3.7 earthquake, hum! We still have errands to run on St Thomas. We apply for a trade name, pick up nails and a tarp for the job site a grill and cell phone for us. Tuesday we have an appointment, to look at a sad pond at a home on the north shore at "Peter Bay" the view is to DIE for, this is where Kenny Chesney owns a home.
This is how you get a propane tank filled on St John: leave your tank with your name on it,at the mountain with Moses at his laundromat, it can be picked up the next morning anytime after 6:00 a.m. down the street at the lumber yard. The reason, they say, why the tanks can't be filled durning the day is because it gets too hot!
Finally the fence goes up at our business, this should discourage the goats and sheep from eating all the plants and drinking all our precious water!
The $3500 worth of 2"x12"'s that were purchased in April for footings are NOWHERE to be found on the site. Rick says, they were cut up and used for scaffolding. When Bob asked the foreman of Caribbean Custom Concrete about them.. his answer: "I had to borrowed the wood for the scaffolding".... all of a sudden he gets pale, his mannerisms change and he won't make eye contact with us and stares into space...... hum...



Picture above: (left) Cinnamon Bay. (middle) The North Shore, view is ALMOST pre-historic. (right) Lucus sanding the rough beams. NOTE: The tarp was a great investment!



Picture above: (left) Geovanny and Kenny making forms out of plywood for the bond beam. (center) The ridge beam and hip rafters going in place. (right) Roy standing in front of the hip rafter, where the bond beam will go. The bond beam is a 2' section, in the upper wall, where ALL the beams meet, then secure with rebar and encased in concrete.
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January 28th- This week we start to sand the 3"x12"x24' and 3"x12"x16' beams. They are VERY rough and VERY heavy. Bob and I are way over our head, as far as sanding, Lucus (the sanding and staining guy, who also entertains us with his singing) can take over, we'll stick with just staining! The decision is made to change the roof pitch from a 6/12 to a 7/12. Russell one of Roy's workers was disappointed with the 6/12 pitch, we were touched, that this young worker would even notice such a thing, there is plenty of wood SO change it! I think the higher the pitch the more West Indian it will look anyway! Tuesday we plan for a 31 yard concrete pour. Wednesday the ridge and four hips go in place. The concrete is FINALLY poured Thursday February 1st.
*****ISLAND CUSTOM****
The "Homeowner" buys beer and Ice for the crew, to celebrate the end of a concrete pour.......the next day is business as usual.on to the next phase... Warning!!!! if you see pump trucks or concrete trucks you begin to wonder are they heading to or from a concrete pour and how many pours do they do in a day?
Friday we trade in our silver 2006 rental jeep, with VERY bald tires, 8000 miles, C.D. player that won't work, an emergency brake that keeps chiming and NO windows for either a silver 2007 jeep with 800 miles or a green 2007 jeep with 1600 miles and a plugged spare tire! I really LOVE the green one... but .. let us be practical and get the one lest traveled!!
Saturday we drive the "NEW" jeep for the first time up our driveway...gulp!!
There has been a song that has haunted me for many, many, many, years, O.K. you've guess my age. I never knew and always wondered who sang this song.I did a web search for "The sun is shining" and was in total disbelief, that the artist is Bob Marley.....SO.... last week when we were on St Thomas I picked up a C.D. with this song on it "Natural Mistic" by Bob Marley... now I can enjoy more Marley tunes and I get to hear "Sun is shining." I also did a web search for the song "I can see clearly now" and find out, that was sung and written by Jimmy Cliff.. another Reggae artist, who had the lead role in the movie "The Harder They Come." If you love pre-reggae, reggae and Bob Marley pick up this movie, I got it for Christmas, four years ago along with World Reggae and a Inner Visions C.D.! What would we do without our computers! I love reggae music now and never realized I loved it years ago, I guess I have come full circle!
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Picture Below: (left) Lower level bathroom dirt floor and plumbing. (middle) Lower level floor with vapor barrier, rebar and the electrical conduit lines. (right) We've been waiting for this (31 yard pour) moment! The lower level floor, lower level deck, utility room floor and pump room floor finally being poured.




February 4th- We stain more rafters and cypress. Today is Bob Marley's birthday, he was born February 6th 1945 and would have been 62 years old! Where ever you are, in Zion, Jamaica or Africa Happy Birthday, Bob! The radio station we listen to WSTX (St Croix) has what they call "Marley Monday" this week we get a bonus extra Marley tunes Tuesday. Tempo has Bob Marley tributes all the time as well. I would LOVE to get Tempo here in Connecticut...
Our Campania order arrives and consists of seven pallets of concrete and terra-cotta planters, and some concrete fountains, All packed in sisal, now HOW do We recycle 7 pallets of sisal?
it was so easy, now the goats and sheep on St John ALL have NEW bedding..........maybe now they can forgive Me for shutting off their water and plant supply?
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Picture below: (left) The sanded and stained 3"x12"x24' and 3"x12"x16'. (middle) The forms getting started for the lower level posts. (right) Three of the seven pallets of (bedding) sisal.



February 11th- We stain & polycrylic, polycrylic & stain, pick up primer and white paint at the Paint Depot, purchase two mahogany doors (from Mark Hanson Designs) for the lower level pump and utility room. Kobe from C.C.C. (Caribbean Custom Concrete) is scheduled twice to epoxy the rebar (the rebar was suppose to be tied in the floor of the upper level before this pour was done) where the deck attaches to the house and he is a no-show. We have two more weeks before we head back to Connecticut, but still have so much more to do! I can't believe I said "What are we going to do on St John for eight weeks?"
While Bob and I are busy, trying NOT to be in the way, Roy's workers are busy, busy, busy. When one phase of building is finished, they are on to the next. Roy is our builder and has a crew, working at the house up the hill above Bo Atabey. We really like him and his crew!!
February 17th- Bo Atabey is looking better and better, the guys are doing a fantastic job. We want to do something for them, to show our appreciation, we were looking at a Bosch job site radio at the lumber yard (just like the one Bob got me for Christmas) but it is "reconditioned" what exactly does THAT mean? Tonight We dine at Sweet Plaintains in Coral Bay. We have no reservations but the nice young lady seats us outside.The harbour view is spectacular! (VERY romantic!) The trees are strung with lights, there are candles on the tables, very, very, nice I think the BEST harbour view in Coral Bay! This was actually the first time I got to unwind! After dinner We head over to Spudniks to see Inner Visions play!! Ras Paul is off island, how different the band is without him!!!



Picture above: (left) Blue & Gold Macaw (middle) Harbour at the Weston. (right) Scarlet Macaw, you can meet these beautiful creatures at the Weston!
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February 18th- Sunday We have breakfast at the Weston, stain and polycrylic more cypress. Tuesday Michael does a site inspection, This is the first time he sees Bo Atabey's upper level with the aluminum forms off... he notices more short cuts taken by Rick's crew. Kobe shows up today (with an attitude in tow) he is here to drill holes in the concrete every 8" apart, at a depth of 6" and the rebar is to be at lease 24" long and epoxied into the holes. Meanwhile, it starts to rain and Kobe leaves for the day. I check his work, after all I will be the one walking on this "freakin" deck and it was MY idea to cantilever the covered veranda five extra feet, nice going Linda!!
Well the holes are anywhere from 9 to 12" apart, 1 to 3" deep and he is using the WRONG type epoxy! HOLY S@&!! Now remember, Kobe is only here to correct his company's (Caribbean Custom Concrete's) mistakes. The rebar should have already been tied in the wall, before the aluminum forms were put up and before the wall was poured. Rick told us the reason we couldn't see the rebar was because it was behind the aluminum forms and the forms are in the way. O.K. I might buy that (Yea, right!) Wednesday Kobe shows up at Bo Atabey with an even BIGGER attitude and says he can't drill the holes deeper because he will hit steel..........Bob officially fires Kobe and Caribbean Custom Concrete.....Saturday night we dine again at Sweet Plantains, this time, no reservations, no outdoor seating, We are being punished, the older Gentleman seats us inside...ugh...the hassocks are VERY uncomfortable...my POOR back... I'll remember to make reservations for next time!... after dinner we head over to Spudniks...one last time to see Inner Visions...Ras Paul is back!
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Picture below: (left) The roof rafters in place, forms for the upper level deck porch in place. NOTE: The ramp that was made to hoist the beams to the roof. (center) 3,500 linear feet of stained and polycrylic cypress. (right) Mass transit Island Style!!!



Picture below: (left) Bo Atabey ready for her next pour, you can see the cypress wood leaning in the lower level drying. (center) Zorro and Amego, this wall was their favorite spot, sitting waiting for their "MOM" to get home from work every day. (right) This is the cottage on Bordeaux Mountain where we stayed, very wooded (bay rum forest) and much cooler than the rest of the island We call it "Vermont."




Picture below: (left) Art festival at the Franklin A. Powell Sr. Park. (middle and right) View from the car barge between St John and St Thomas...Truly the saddest part of the trip
BYE ST JOHN............ WE'LL MISS YOU!!!



February 25th- Our last week on St John... Boo..Hoo.... We spend a few hours at Cinnamon Bay Beach, when we are ready to leave Bob notices the L.C.D. is broken on the camera, guess the sun got too intense. Monday we meet with Victor, the tile guy. Tuesday we play hookey from work and spend the day at the Art Festival in the park and guess who is setting up to play? Inner Visions!! Grasshopper FINALLY has (Inner Visions) tee shirts to sell! We ask everytime we see him "What about tees??".... I guess he got tired of us.... I purchase four, greedy.... you say? We met a couple in the park, Scotty and Linda from Kansas, who are big Inner Visions and Reggae fans. Wednesday we say goodbye to Roy and the crew, they will truly be missed...We have lunch at Deli Grotto, what I can't eat of my "aloha tuna" I can finish when We get to San Juan, can't forget two loaves of multi-grain to bring home with us.........off to Cyril E. King... Ugh!!!!!!
Can't wait to see the snow!!!!!!!!!!
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BO
ATABEY
FIVE