Three Kitty Konstruction

Ed. note: For all those people who expected to see our "old" format, we offer a new look. The story of our new home is taking on a life of its own (as an epic), so to simplify our Website we have changed our format. Please feel free to send comments to: Wookie@3kitty.org.

Please click the links below to jump to other parts of our Building Chronology.

Planning Phase: July, 2000 - Feb., 2002

Building Phase: March, 2002 - October, 2003

Finishing Up: October, 2003 -

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March, 2002

On Friday, March 1, 2002, construction began on the new Corporate Headquarters for the Three Kitty Korporation and all its subsidiaries. Please check our "Building Phase" pages for continued coverage of our adventure.

February, 2002

It is now mid-February and Mom & Dad are negotiating a contract with a potential contractor. It has been almost 5 weeks since they've been "up North" and it has been a cold, dry time here on the San Francisco peninsula. Dry is good for us kitties but we don't like the cold. Wookie has permanent positions marked on the floor in front of every heat vent in the house and even Yoda is spending way too much time inside. As a kitty who lived outdoors for several years, I may never go outdoors again; maybe I'll even become a Princess like Frosty was. Our rain totals, which were above normal early in the season, are catching up with normal amounts and, if the dry, cold weather patterns don't change soon, we might be looking at a drought year.
In the same vein, there is a controversy brewing in both the Gualala area and the area of Albion, a coastal town just south of Mendocino. Both communities are tourist locations and both are blessed to possess the mouth of a fair-sized river. An article in the January 25, 2002 issue of the ICO (the Independent Coast Observer - the local newspaper for the area) was headlined, "Multinationals want Gualala River water". Evidently a corporate entity with both domestic and international roots has applied to the (California) State Department of Water Resources for water rights on the Gualala River. According to the ICO similar application was filed on the Albion River. The idea is to take the fresh water from the rivers, package it in "yellowish trapezoidal waterbeds" that will then be towed to Southern California to furnish drinking water to sustain their population growth. The outrage is not only environmental (There is possibility of damage to spawning salmon, bathing whales and a multitude of other species.) but also aesthetic because these large, yellow water bags would be parked in the ocean at the river mouth - right in front of major hotels, restaurants and a Sonoma County Park in Gualala. At first glance, this looks ridiculous but the corporate people are serious and are plowing forward through the multitude of permit applications. The local news media is helping to line up the opposition because without public input, this might just happen. It ought to be interesting up there for the next 9-12 months. Check back again soon.

January, 2002

The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are past as has the New Year. We had quiet holidays at home with some good friends. December has proven to be one of the wettest in the past 45 years with San Francisco reporting over 300% of its "average" December rainfall. Mom and Dad trekked up to Gualala this month to see the mud and visit with the rhododendron plants that are luxuriating in the wetness. Now that the dust is off the leaves, the flower buds are beginning to swell and the leaves are beginning to uncurl. There are tadpoles (baby frogs) in one of the large "puddles" that formed in the meadow (most probably from Pacific Tree Frogs) and everything is once again coming alive after the dormancy of the dry season.
There was progress in December. Mendocino County approved our building permit and Mom and Dad now have 6 months to actually pick up the permit and another 6 months to start construction. Also, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) called to confirm that our application for electricity has moved on to the next office.

October, 2001

Here we are, in the beginning of November. People are starting to ask why this saga (soon to be an epic), hasn't been updated since August. Simply put, there hasn't been any progress worth reporting.
We still await our building permit; although the application has progressed, about half of the departments must still give approval. Mom and Dad are also still working out the details and specifications with the architect and the builder. One of their goals with this project is to have the specification sufficiently tightly written that the builder can do his job without having to consult with us too often. We'll have to see if that plan works.
One of the things that was accomplished was the delivery and siting of "Fred" and "Ethel", our short, squat, green water tanks (about 5,000 gallons each). Also, their friend, the pump house, was constructed - our first permanent structure on the property !!
We also were asked by PG&E (Pacific Gas and Electric - the electric company who is in bankruptcy) to investigate all the power poles along the road and find the nearest transformer and nearest neighbor who has power. Yeah, right. Dad photographed power poles and recorded their identification numbers for about a half mile and only found one other house in that area. The architect sent all the information to PG&E. We applied for electric power in March and in August we had gotten to number 42 on their list. We anticipate power about the time we move in.
Other than that, the rainy season has started with over an inch of rain falling in Gualala last week. The builder assured us that his people can work through the rains with only an occasional day off due to weather. Stay tuned.

August, 2001

Now we are at the end of August. The engineer still isn't finished. Mom and Dad are starting to worry about having the house "closed-in" before the rains start this winter. There is consolation from the huge number of huckleberries that are ripening everywhere on the lot - along the driveway, in the meadow and everywhere in between. No matter where you look, each branch yields an entire handful of berries. Even in the same area, different bushes have slightly different flavors. Mom likes the ones that are blue-black and oblong in shape.

You probably noticed in the July photos that it is sometimes foggy at the site of our new home. Mom and Dad noticed that, too. They fear that Yoda will spend a lot of time wiping her eyes to clear her vision. Wookie, on the other hand, doesn't see well anyway, so he probably won't notice. The fog along the Pacific Coast is very different from what Mom and Dad remember in New England. It is what Mom calls "thin". When you are in it, you aren't instantly enveloped and chilled. Instead, this fog is almost refreshing. It blows in and out on the wind. One minute you can't see across the house site. The next it is bright, sunny and warm. This is probably because the ocean is so close but it is still very weird.
As Mom and Dad were driving home last week, they saw a place along the sea cliff where there was fog coming up from the ocean at the same time there was fog dropping down from the sky. In between was a perfectly straight, well defined area with no fog. They estimated the clear area was about 50 feet high - like a big stripe.
Mom and Dad will have to gather more empirical information about the fog. If anyone has any actual scientific information that explains the fog and its behavior, please E-mail Wookie@3kitty.org. With Frosty in the Heavyside Layer, Wookie is trying to keep up with all our corporate correspondence.

July, 2001

It is now the end of July. The architect has sent the drawings to the engineer who will determine how to build the house. His work promises to be ready early in August. From there, Mom and Dad can apply to the Mendocino County Building and Planning Department for a building permit and the big machines can come in and dig big holes for the foundation. In the interim, the builder has moved the construction trailer on to the site and the phone line has been connected. We await word from the electric company (Pacific Gas and Electric). Because PG&E recently declared bankruptcy, the builder anticipates using a generator to power his very noisy saws. The buildings have been outlined with stakes and tape and Mom and Dad have determined which plants they would like to have saved. More clearing of the land is also happening because Mom and Dad want a lot of space around the house and lots of sunshine for us kitties to sleep in.

We did have a slowdown in progress this month as Mom fractured her wrist in the same week that the architect developed appendicitis. We anticipate a new Three Kitty Kompany subsidiary: Three Kitty Konvalescence. Click here to see the subsidiary logo.   

May, 2001

Spring is here;
The grass is ris;
I wonder where
The flowers is.

Mom and Dad tell me that they are all in Gualala.

Editor's Note: We are sure Blackie's poetry isn't original. Sincere apologies are offered to its originator. If anyone can identify a source for the above poem, we'd love to have that information so we can credit the appropriate people.

The meadow is full of Douglas Iris. The rhododendron are pink and white and pink all over. The Labrador Tea plants are blooming as are a variety of flowers in the meadow. Please see our wildflower list    for a more complete description. At this point, we decided we needed more flower pictures. Please click on any photo for an enlargement.

The house plans are almost done. The landscape plans are being drawn. The contractor has walked around the site with us and marked with spray paint locations for various trenches, electric meter, propane and water tanks etc. Mom and Dad anticipate the initial grading for the foundation and the driveway as well as the trenching for the underground utilities and water lines to be underway as I'm typing this.
One of Mom and Dad's biggest steps came this month as they received notice from the County that one of their first permits was approved. So, on we go ......................

April, 2001

This month the rhododendron bushes are beginning to bloom as are the first of the Spring wildflowers. The meadow is getting green again.
The brush on the "building site" has been totally cleared and the brush piles have been just about all burned (contributing to global warming, no doubt). The surveyor located the centerline for the driveway and the route that the water will probably take from the well and the power, phone, cable etc. will probably take from the road to the house. He also put stakes in the ground to indicate approximate position of the house, barn and garage. Mom and Dad decided that the barn and garage needed some design revision to lower their rooflines and they both needed to be slightly relocated in the "building envelope".
When not doing something else, Mom and Dad spent a lot of time both in "brick and mortar" showrooms and on the Web looking at kitchen cabinets, counter tops, appliances, plumbing fixtures and stone for both wall facades and the patios.

March, 2001

After almost 2 weeks in Tanzania, Jack and Jan arrived home safely. While they were gone, enough of the land was cleared of huckleberry, manzanita and other brush for us to find where the house, garage and barn will go. The requested small changes were done on the house plans.

February, 2001

Early this month Jack and Jan were in Gualala twice in two weeks. Wookie and Yoda are grumbling a lot about being neglected. The plans for the house are mostly done - just little changes now. Jack and Jan will be away for the last part of February and the beginning of March in Tanzania (Check out Jan's TravelRama Tanzania, 2001 for their stories and photos.) so this will be time for everyone to catch their breath.

January, 2001

The Email system seemed to be working well. The CAD drawings were getting changed and Jack could show Jan 3-dimensional views of the house from various viewpoints both inside and outside. Jan at this point spent a lot of time with little paper cut-outs of her furniture trying to make it fit into the new house. Some windows and doors were moved to help this process. But it is better to do it on paper than after building began. Yoda and Wookie loved walking on the desk and table while Jan was working. They privately told me that they are planning an insurrection if their Mom and Dad don't pay more attention to them. They are, after all, members of the "me generation".

December, 2000

This month the sketches turned into the first real set of plans. The house is almost perfect. Dan said it was time to put the plans on the CAD system. That way he, his draftsman and Jack could Email drawings and changes back and forth. This sounded like a good idea in theory. In practice, it gave Jack an excuse to spend a lot of time with his computer learning new software.

November, 2000

This month we received the first sketches of the new house. The space for kitchen table was huge and was labelled "Way Too Big Table". The upstairs rooms (that are a Guest Bedroom and a Library/Exercise Room) each had 8 sides. I know that because I have 8 toes on my 2 rear feet. (4 on each paw. You see, I'm smarter than Wookie or Yoda. I know how to count. Frosty taught me.) Those rooms will have a good view of the ocean and the sunsets and will have large glass windows on many of the walls.

I heard Jan tell Wookie about the steep sea cliff along Highway 1 between Jenner and Fort Ross. The road is about 400 feet above the ocean and the cliff goes up above the road as well. Cattle graze along the slope (which in some places is at about a 45 degree angle) and sometimes are in the road. Jan was wondering what would happen if a cow lost its footing while on the upper slope, fell and landed on a car. "Honest, officer, it was a flying cow."

October, 2000

Now things are really happening !! This probably means that my foster-parents will really be leaving me sometime in the next year. They will probably take Wookie and Yoda with them, too and I'll have to find new friends to play with. Wookie did mention, though, that Jack and Jan will let me keep the doghouse that I like to hide in.

Anyway, the topographical survey was done and it proved that the land is almost flat where Jack and Jan thought they might have the house built. There is only a 3 foot difference in the land over the area of the house. So, I guess they won't have a walk-out basement. (For anyone who doesn't know, basements are something that aren't usually built in California anyway.)

Along with the topographical survey, arrangements were made to have the old logging road that will become the driveway improved where it met Iversen Road to put a culvert across the ditch at the side of the Iversen. That way it was easier to drive into the lot and Jack no longer worried about hurting the bottom of his car.

Editor's Note: Blackie need not worry about her "foster family" leaving without her. As she has been appointed to a seat on the Board of Directors of the Three Kitty Kompany, she will, if she is willing, be moving with the rest of the Kompany personnel.

September, 2000

This was the month of the Great Land Clearing - actually it was only 3 days and only enough land was cleared for a surveyor to do a topographical survey and for Dan to get an idea of where there might be a view of the ocean.

A great event occurred one day when Jack and Jan returned from lunch and mentioned to the manager of the land clearing crew that they weren't sure they could see the ocean on the horizon. In the Fall, the horizon is often hazy so they couldn't be sure they weren't seeing clouds. The crew chief said that that might be so but he and his crew had watched a ship sail by while Jack and Jan were out at lunch. SUCCESS!

This was the month that Jack and Jan discovered the delights and the potential perils of huckleberries. The berries (so they said) were the size of small marbles (Yoda likes to play with marbles. They roll and make a lot of noise.) and there were handfuls of berries on every branch. I, personally, don't care for them but Jan and Jack did discover evidence (scat and pawprints) that show that a black bear loves the berries. The occasional bear comes out of the forests in the gulches at this time of year to enjoy the seasonal treat. Jack and Jan are looking forward to seeing her (There were both big and small pawprints - mother and cub.) and feel that there are enough berries for everyone to share.

August, 2000

More exploration while Jack and Jan did their "homework" for Dan and explored the land.

One of the times that Jack and Jan were "up North", they came home grumbling about a hairpin turn in Highway 1 between a street called Myers Grade and a stream called Russian Gulch. From what I can tell, a truck full of logs rolled over and blocked the road for a time. Evidently, although the trees are cut, they can still get their revenge. Thankfully no one was hurt,

A surprise event occurred when an Email came in from one of their future neighbors who found the note and wanted to get acquainted.

An even bigger surprise came in the US Mail when a set of aerial photos of Jack and Jan's lot arrived. The neighbors with the travel trailer had photos made of both house sites.

July, 2000

This month was dedicated to, once again, meeting Dan and reviewing and approving his contract. Much of Jack and Jan's "Gualala time" was spent exploring the land. During one exploration, they left a note on the travel trailer that appeared on one of their neighbors' lots.

Planning Phase: July, 2000 - Feb., 2002

Building Phase: Mar., 2002 - Oct., 2003

Finishing Up: October, 2003 -

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