OTB's Fireplace Adventure the Rock 2/9-13/11
Joe, the boys, and I left for Moab Wednesday after I got home from school. My principal was gracious and let me off for two days so I could “supervise” the laying of the rock.
When we arrived at OTB, a lot of work had been completed in the four days since we had been there last. Clark had the drywall and metal edges built for the partial wall. When he proposed to build the wall, I was skeptical. I didn’t want anything obstructing the fireplace; however, the wall has a structural purpose which is to support the shelves.
Manuel had laid cinderblock around the gas fireplace, hung expanded metal on the upper half of the chimney, and applied mud on the expanded metal. For the first time the chimney was starting to take shape. The only concern was the cinderblock had been laid so high. At this level the mantel would be about 6 inches higher than what was called out on the drawings.
As promised Manuel and Nick, his son-in-law, arrived at 8:30am to hang the rock. The first thing on the agenda was to inquire about the height of the mantel.
Manuel explained that the cinderblock had to be built higher on the chimney for structural integrity. When the HVAC crew ran the pipe up the chimney, additional adobe bricks had to be removed to accommodate the pipe. Manuel had to build the cinderblock higher so the mantel, a combustible material, was sealed off from the heat source. I’d have to say that was an excellent reason to stray from the call outs on Joe’s drawings. 
Once that was out of the way, it was time for the first piece of Torrey Buff stone to be laid. Manuel gave the dimensions to Nick who would run outside and cut the stone with the big Husqvarna tile saw as per Manuel’s measurements.
Manuel laid the first stone, and boy was it beautiful! 
The boys' system was well orchestrated. Manuel measured, Nick cut, Manuel put mud on the rock and laid it in place, and the process was repeated.
They worked like a couple of automated machines until around 10:30 when Manuel had to go to a funeral. He had told me earlier in the week that he would have to leave for the funeral, and he’d have a capable man laying stone in his absence.
Well, I’d be lying if I said I never gave it a second thought. When Manuel left and Nick took over, I must admit that I was slightly stressed. After Nick laid a couple of pieces of stone flying solo, I was confident in his ability to hang rock. He was very good to ask me what I thought and what kind of rock I wanted next. Manuel told Nick to lay rock to the bottom of the mantel (they had marked it off before Manuel left) and to go to lunch if he reached that point before his return. Nick finished before Manuel returned, so Nick went to lunch.
It wasn’t too long before both of them returned and were back to their two man system.
Manuel was happy with Nick’s work, so I knew he had done a good job. The top half of the chimney went up quickly. By 5:30 the entire chimney was entombed with stone. 
Once all the stone was laid, the fireplace stood like a massive monolith. What is a synonym for beautiful? Spectacular, pretty, exquisite, gorgeous, stunning, picturesque, lovely, divine, fine, grand, and pulchritudinous (I've never even heard of this word before). These are just a few words to describe the fireplace.
That evening, Joe and I would catch each other staring at the chimney and would call each other on it.
We just couldn't help but look at how beautiful the stone looked. The Torrey Bluff sandstone has a lot of swirls of color and texture. 
It reminds me of currents of the Colorado River or Green River. 
We just couldn’t soak in all of its beauty.
Friday morning I got up early.
The sun was just coming up over the mountains to the east and the Rim was a gorgeous shade of pinkie-red. 
The morning light that came through the living room windows cast the most beautiful light on the Torrey Buff stone. 
It reminded me of an old church or cathedral. 
Sunrise on the Torrey Buff stone was incredible beautiful. What is a synonym for beautiful? I think I'll stick with pulchritudinous. Pulchritudinous is a funny word. It sounds like it should describe something gross rather than something beautiful. 
The boys watched the early morning activity outside the living room window. All was peaceful until the occasional owner and dog walked in front of the house, then all "H-E-double toothpicks" broke loose. 
Manuel arrived at 8:30 to lay the stone in the shelve units.
Manuel gave Nick the day off, so he had to do all the running back and forth between the saw and the fireplace. Manuel said he didn’t realize how much running up and down the porch stairs Nick did the day before.
Manuel laid the rock under the north window first and then took his lunch break. 
When Manuel returned from lunch he got busy laying rock under the south window. 
When it was time to lay the last stone, Manuel called me over to lay the keystone. I was so excited! Manuel gave me thorough instructions and hovered over the top of me making sure I laid it correctly.
My keystone is the one that is directly under the wooden slat with the screw. 
That piece of stone was beautiful and my own!! 
I’d almost say that laying that keystone was the highlight of the two days of hanging the stone, but it takes a close third after the first piece of stone being laid (2nd place) and sunrise on the Torrey Buff (definately 1st place)!
By the end of the second day, all the fireplace stone had been laid. 
Later that afternoon we met with Al, the cabinet maker, and went over everything again. Joe updated the drawings again because of the change in placement of the mantel. Al’s list includes the mantel, shelves, corbels, the window for the stained glass, the window sills, the wood under the sills, and the trim around the slate tile on the floor in front of the fireplace.
Saturday we ran some errands and ate lunch at Milt’s Stop & Eat. 
Milt’s is a hamburger joint that is like something out of the 50’s. 
Milt’s is owned by a gal named Nellie who almost perished on the Amasa Back trail when she slipped and fell off a 60 foot cliff and shattered her pelvis. She tried to drag herself along the trail but did not make any leeway. She laid helpless in the backcountry for 52 hours in the middle of December with her dog, Taz, by her side protecting her and keeping her warm.
Her loyal dog (who she rescued from the shelter) saved her life by leaving her to venture back to the trailhead and lead search and rescue personnel to her near lifeless body. What a great example of paying it forward.
When we got home, I taped the stone at the top of the chimney and painted the coffered ceiling trim.
I would have liked to have painted the trim before the stone was hung, but since it was lower on the priority list I never got around to taking care of it before the stone was laid. 
I gasped with horror when I dripped wet paint on the newly laid rock! Luckily a wet paper towel took care of the stray paint. 
I met with Dorina, the stained glass artist, Saturday afternoon. Dorina verified her stencil one last time and plans to cut glass this week. A couple of weeks ago, Dorina, her husband (who teaches at a tiny school in Gateway, CO during the week, so they commute weekly), and their three dogs rolled their Subaru Forester 360 degrees while driving home to Moab from Gateway. They hit an icy patch of highway along the river and lost control of their vehicle. They had a Subie angel riding shotgun and were very blessed to have walked away without a scratch.
After the previous owners removed the partial wall which separated the living room from the dining room to give the area a modern open floor plan, they used the wainscoting from that wall on a section of wall that was in the living room.
When Clark removed the wainscoting from that section of the wall, the original 1916 wallpaper on the lathe and plaster was exposed.
Sunday morning I painted a second coat of paint on the ceiling trim. After letting the paint dry, I pulled the tape off the ceiling trim and my suspicion was confirmed. There were splotches of white paint that had seeped under the tape and was on the stone.
Luckily a metal scraper and a little elbow grease took the paint off the sandstone.
Joe taped plastic on the floors and the fireplace to protect everything from the muriatic acid that Manuel will use to clean the stone after he grouts.
I’m glad we’re not around for this job. 
I’m sure it will stink up the house pretty good.
Joe revised his drawings again and printed off a set for Al. 
We straightened up the place, loaded up the truck, dropped the drawings off at Al’s cabinet shop, and hit the road for Ogden.
This is the Monitor and Merimac. 
The scenery never gets old!! 
This is Klondike Bluffs.
This week there will be a lot of work happening to OTB’s fireplace. My only concern is the temperature will hit in the 60’s this week, and there are a lot of guys working on the fireplace who are avid golfers. The lure of golfing in the beautiful weather might be too much for them to handle. After all this gloomy, cold weather, I can't say that I blame them. Manuel will grout the stone, lay the slate tiles, and grout the slate. Nick will use Thompson’s Water Seal on the stone to seal it (another stinky job that I don’t want to be around while it's being done). Clark will tape and mud the sheetrock and paint it. Al will get going on the mantel and shelves. Dorina will work on her stained glass masterpiece. With any luck we will make our deadline for the guests that have OTB booked in mid March.
When we arrived at OTB, a lot of work had been completed in the four days since we had been there last. Clark had the drywall and metal edges built for the partial wall. When he proposed to build the wall, I was skeptical. I didn’t want anything obstructing the fireplace; however, the wall has a structural purpose which is to support the shelves.
Manuel had laid cinderblock around the gas fireplace, hung expanded metal on the upper half of the chimney, and applied mud on the expanded metal. For the first time the chimney was starting to take shape. The only concern was the cinderblock had been laid so high. At this level the mantel would be about 6 inches higher than what was called out on the drawings.
As promised Manuel and Nick, his son-in-law, arrived at 8:30am to hang the rock. The first thing on the agenda was to inquire about the height of the mantel.
Manuel explained that the cinderblock had to be built higher on the chimney for structural integrity. When the HVAC crew ran the pipe up the chimney, additional adobe bricks had to be removed to accommodate the pipe. Manuel had to build the cinderblock higher so the mantel, a combustible material, was sealed off from the heat source. I’d have to say that was an excellent reason to stray from the call outs on Joe’s drawings. 
Once that was out of the way, it was time for the first piece of Torrey Buff stone to be laid. Manuel gave the dimensions to Nick who would run outside and cut the stone with the big Husqvarna tile saw as per Manuel’s measurements.
Manuel laid the first stone, and boy was it beautiful! 
The boys' system was well orchestrated. Manuel measured, Nick cut, Manuel put mud on the rock and laid it in place, and the process was repeated.They worked like a couple of automated machines until around 10:30 when Manuel had to go to a funeral. He had told me earlier in the week that he would have to leave for the funeral, and he’d have a capable man laying stone in his absence.
Well, I’d be lying if I said I never gave it a second thought. When Manuel left and Nick took over, I must admit that I was slightly stressed. After Nick laid a couple of pieces of stone flying solo, I was confident in his ability to hang rock. He was very good to ask me what I thought and what kind of rock I wanted next. Manuel told Nick to lay rock to the bottom of the mantel (they had marked it off before Manuel left) and to go to lunch if he reached that point before his return. Nick finished before Manuel returned, so Nick went to lunch.
It wasn’t too long before both of them returned and were back to their two man system.
Manuel was happy with Nick’s work, so I knew he had done a good job. The top half of the chimney went up quickly. By 5:30 the entire chimney was entombed with stone. 
Once all the stone was laid, the fireplace stood like a massive monolith. What is a synonym for beautiful? Spectacular, pretty, exquisite, gorgeous, stunning, picturesque, lovely, divine, fine, grand, and pulchritudinous (I've never even heard of this word before). These are just a few words to describe the fireplace.That evening, Joe and I would catch each other staring at the chimney and would call each other on it.
We just couldn't help but look at how beautiful the stone looked. The Torrey Bluff sandstone has a lot of swirls of color and texture. 
It reminds me of currents of the Colorado River or Green River. 
We just couldn’t soak in all of its beauty.Friday morning I got up early.
The sun was just coming up over the mountains to the east and the Rim was a gorgeous shade of pinkie-red. 
The morning light that came through the living room windows cast the most beautiful light on the Torrey Buff stone. 
It reminded me of an old church or cathedral. 
Sunrise on the Torrey Buff stone was incredible beautiful. What is a synonym for beautiful? I think I'll stick with pulchritudinous. Pulchritudinous is a funny word. It sounds like it should describe something gross rather than something beautiful. 
The boys watched the early morning activity outside the living room window. All was peaceful until the occasional owner and dog walked in front of the house, then all "H-E-double toothpicks" broke loose. 
Manuel arrived at 8:30 to lay the stone in the shelve units.
Manuel gave Nick the day off, so he had to do all the running back and forth between the saw and the fireplace. Manuel said he didn’t realize how much running up and down the porch stairs Nick did the day before.
Manuel laid the rock under the north window first and then took his lunch break. 
When Manuel returned from lunch he got busy laying rock under the south window. 
When it was time to lay the last stone, Manuel called me over to lay the keystone. I was so excited! Manuel gave me thorough instructions and hovered over the top of me making sure I laid it correctly.
My keystone is the one that is directly under the wooden slat with the screw. 
That piece of stone was beautiful and my own!! 
I’d almost say that laying that keystone was the highlight of the two days of hanging the stone, but it takes a close third after the first piece of stone being laid (2nd place) and sunrise on the Torrey Buff (definately 1st place)!
By the end of the second day, all the fireplace stone had been laid. 
Later that afternoon we met with Al, the cabinet maker, and went over everything again. Joe updated the drawings again because of the change in placement of the mantel. Al’s list includes the mantel, shelves, corbels, the window for the stained glass, the window sills, the wood under the sills, and the trim around the slate tile on the floor in front of the fireplace.
Saturday we ran some errands and ate lunch at Milt’s Stop & Eat. 
Milt’s is a hamburger joint that is like something out of the 50’s. 
Milt’s is owned by a gal named Nellie who almost perished on the Amasa Back trail when she slipped and fell off a 60 foot cliff and shattered her pelvis. She tried to drag herself along the trail but did not make any leeway. She laid helpless in the backcountry for 52 hours in the middle of December with her dog, Taz, by her side protecting her and keeping her warm.
Her loyal dog (who she rescued from the shelter) saved her life by leaving her to venture back to the trailhead and lead search and rescue personnel to her near lifeless body. What a great example of paying it forward.When we got home, I taped the stone at the top of the chimney and painted the coffered ceiling trim.
I would have liked to have painted the trim before the stone was hung, but since it was lower on the priority list I never got around to taking care of it before the stone was laid. 
I gasped with horror when I dripped wet paint on the newly laid rock! Luckily a wet paper towel took care of the stray paint. 
I met with Dorina, the stained glass artist, Saturday afternoon. Dorina verified her stencil one last time and plans to cut glass this week. A couple of weeks ago, Dorina, her husband (who teaches at a tiny school in Gateway, CO during the week, so they commute weekly), and their three dogs rolled their Subaru Forester 360 degrees while driving home to Moab from Gateway. They hit an icy patch of highway along the river and lost control of their vehicle. They had a Subie angel riding shotgun and were very blessed to have walked away without a scratch.
After the previous owners removed the partial wall which separated the living room from the dining room to give the area a modern open floor plan, they used the wainscoting from that wall on a section of wall that was in the living room.
When Clark removed the wainscoting from that section of the wall, the original 1916 wallpaper on the lathe and plaster was exposed.Sunday morning I painted a second coat of paint on the ceiling trim. After letting the paint dry, I pulled the tape off the ceiling trim and my suspicion was confirmed. There were splotches of white paint that had seeped under the tape and was on the stone.
Luckily a metal scraper and a little elbow grease took the paint off the sandstone.Joe taped plastic on the floors and the fireplace to protect everything from the muriatic acid that Manuel will use to clean the stone after he grouts.
I’m glad we’re not around for this job. 
I’m sure it will stink up the house pretty good.
Joe revised his drawings again and printed off a set for Al. 
We straightened up the place, loaded up the truck, dropped the drawings off at Al’s cabinet shop, and hit the road for Ogden.
This is the Monitor and Merimac. 
The scenery never gets old!! 
This is Klondike Bluffs.This week there will be a lot of work happening to OTB’s fireplace. My only concern is the temperature will hit in the 60’s this week, and there are a lot of guys working on the fireplace who are avid golfers. The lure of golfing in the beautiful weather might be too much for them to handle. After all this gloomy, cold weather, I can't say that I blame them. Manuel will grout the stone, lay the slate tiles, and grout the slate. Nick will use Thompson’s Water Seal on the stone to seal it (another stinky job that I don’t want to be around while it's being done). Clark will tape and mud the sheetrock and paint it. Al will get going on the mantel and shelves. Dorina will work on her stained glass masterpiece. With any luck we will make our deadline for the guests that have OTB booked in mid March.
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