Varmint

A chance for you to use your high school trigonmetry! Figure out the distance from the countertop to the light. Using the beam spread (expressed in degrees - you'll find it on the box for the light bulb) you can figure out how much area the light will cover. Make sure you get some light overlap as well otherwise the lighting will be uneven. ← Assuming a 50 degree spread and the distance between the light and the countertop is 4 feet, that results in a beam diameter of about 44". That would cover the width of the eating bar and 4 lamps would easily cover the length, which is about 118". I could get away with 3, but I need the symmetry of 4. The question is how bright that would be on the counter, but having seen MR16s, I'm not too concerned.

When our kitchen renovation begins in a week or two, I suspect we'll be eating off of paper/plastic plates quite a bit. We will not be using plastic cutlery, however. Even Mrs. Varmint won't put up with that!

After spending way too much time on this issue, I may actually go with low voltage, but not with a track or lines. Tech Lighting offers some low voltage products that would be perfect, I think. I would get a single remote transformer and tie 4 of these onto it: tie 4 of these canopies onto it (scroll down to the first photo - look at the canopy, not the lamp). These are VERY unobtrusive. I'd then get 4 of these little buggers, and I could add a blue glass shield to each. These lights can handle a 50 watt MR16 halogen light, and I think 4 of them will get the job done, if I get the beam spread right. By the way, the Garbes.com site is very inexpensive, as they sell their Tech Lighting at 20% off for "preferred customers (just add your name to their mailing list. If I go with the 4 light system with the single remote transformer, I'm looking at about $650 (ouch). I do have a question about dimmers and transformers. If I get a magnetic transformer, I have to get a magnetic dimmer. If I have an electronic transformer, a regular dimmer will work. Are magnetic dimmers expensive or finicky? Are electronic transformers problematic? So, what do you think?

This will be an experiment that is drawn out over quite a long time, as I don't want to be spending that kind of money over the course of a month, either!

We had 4 different "stations" for there to be freshly prepared food. We had an "Asian" area serving satay and dumplings, we had a crepe station, a Mexican area, and one other one that I can't recall -- more traditional, I think. Our wedding cake came in 5 different flavors, something to please everyone. And we only served beer and wine (good beer and wine), but that reduced the number of drunks by 2 or 3. And yes, we ate!

But who the hell sells 'em? The closest place is in Atlanta.

The problem with track lighting on the I-beam casing is that the support post will be breaking up the track. I envision a total of 4 lights above the eating bar, and I'm actually thinking of doing something like this. Alternatively, I could find something similar that is more sconce-like, to be mounted on the side of the beam, on the kitchen side. I'd try to find something blue, as my granite counter will be blue pearl.

I spoke again this morning with Ken Ables, and he has agreed to take lots of photographs of the cabinet-making process. He'll forward them to me and I'll post them.

Campbell's Chicken with Rice Soup with extra rice (yes, I use Minute Rice). Served with PB&J and a glass of milk. I've eaten that lunch since I was a young child, and I still enjoy it!

Yes, post a picture, please. As far as the plug strips are concerned, I'm going to be fine with my outlets, as they're concentrated where they'll be needed the most.

Geesh, how could I forget the McDonald's sausage biscuit, my ultimate, absolute favorite fast food????

The electrician made me add more outlets, because the code required it. Along the main sink area, there will be 3 outlets. Along the baking region, there will be four. There will be an outlet on both sides of the range, and about 2 or 3 along the eating bar. As far as uplighting is concerned, my ceiling is low, very low -- less than 8 feet low. And in the baking area, the ceiling is only 7 feet even. Plus, there's no real space to put uplighting. Just more quirks of this funny little house!

The lighting is currently crappy -- a bunch of overly hot, old-fashioned cans on tracks. Thus, anything I do will be an improvement! I'm not really concerned with the amount of illumination for the bulk of the kitchen, but I want the lighting over the eating bar (which also serves as the primary prep station) to be right.

An artichoke and roasted garlic mini-pizza for lunch.

Hell, there isn't a food, fast or otherwise, that I don't like. I get a "Double with Cheese" from Wendy's, nearly tasteless cheesburgers from McDs, Thickburgers from Hardees, BMTs from Subway, and a bacon double cheeseburger from Burger King. I like the Arby's roast beef sandwiches and nearly anything from Taco Bell. I don't care for most of the menu at the Olive Garden, but their mussels are pretty good the 2 times I've been. I've never eaten at a Red Lobster, but I would if the family wanted to visit. I love fried seafood, but in limited quantities. I like the buffet at Golden Corral, particularly their pot roast. But of course, what I treasure are the meat & 3 joints, the barbecue restaurants, fish camps, chicken shacks, and biscuit shops of the South. They're equally unhealthy, but they're just made with a bit more of TLC. OK, a lot more.

When I said full disclosure, I meant full disclosure. Here's the first page of my cabinet invoice: And here's the second page: Any questions?

I've just heard a few folks tell me that they think LV is too finicky and can overheat easily. I can be convinced to go with it, however. I can't take a picture of the I-beam, because it's currently encased in some cabinetry. I plan on taking some photos in the next few days so we can get a good glimpse of the "before" aspect of the kitchen. I've posted pictures before, but I'll give greater details.

Here's the biggest concern: lighting over my eating bar. As I've previously mentioned, there's a huge I-beam spanning a bit more than half of the eating bar. This I-beam will tie into a post that is replacing the current load-bearing wall. What I've decided to do is have my carpenter make a box to surround the I-beam, up to the post, and then make an empty box on the other side, just to add some symmetry to the entire arrangement. I want to house my lighting in the box, but where the I-beam is, there won't be much space to have a recessed fixture. I don't really want a pendant there, as there's not a ton of space between the countertop and the bottom of the I-beam. Here's an elevation of the eating bar: I originally planned to put in some sort of low voltage unit, but I've heard a number of people (including my electrician) complain about them. What are others' opinions of low voltage lighting? I don't want a cable-run light, and tracks are hideous (although, could the track be installed inside the box housing the I-beam?). As far as line voltage options are concerned, I just haven't found anything that's sufficiently shallow. I have looked at some sconse-like options that could be mounted on the sides of the box, rather than the bottom, and pointing downwards toward the countertop. So, any ideas???

The first bit of financial reality hit today when I got my invoice for my cabinets. One of the things I realized going into this process was that my kitchen had enough quirks that I wasn't able to go for standard cabinets. Support beams, unmovable walls, and plumbing limitations pushed me to put cabinets where they had to go, and in an exact configuration. When I checked prices at Lowes and Home Depot, I realized I'd be spending about $15-17 thousand for cabinets that were not perfect fits and would not be top of the line. That's one of the reasons I chose to go with Cabinetry Direct, particularly after talking with the owner. I originally thought that the cabinets would cost me about $12,000, delivered. Since then, I've recognized the amount of complexity that is involved in my kitchen. I also haven't made a single compromise. For example, the back side of my eating bar (where the kids' feet will be) is going to be made of door panels. Why? Because I'll have 2 doors at one end (near the closet) with finger pulls, giving me more storage space. Thus, for uniformity sake, I've asked Ken to put faux doors across the entire length. This will improve the looks and the durability of the bar. I've also had to add some side panels that I neglected to consider originally. Add toe kick, ceiling molding, some tray dividers and a few more roll out trays, and the price increases. Final cost? $14,339, delivered. So, I've exceeded my "estimate" by 2 grand, but I'm getting awesome cabinets. They should be in my house in 6 weeks. I'm pretty damn excited. I have one final big decision to make. Lighting. Talk to me, people!

I've eaten at Bistro 607 many times, and the chef is a friend. However, it's just not quite in the same category as the ones we'll be trying. Same with La Res. Finally, as a die-hard Tar Heel, I just couldn't bring myself to eat dinner at that Duke place.

'Tis nary a house of beef on this precious list, as fair Mrs. Varmint doth not partake of flesh from animals bearing fur. Glenwood Grill and Frasiers aren't anywhere in the same league. Fearrington is a possibility, but it's so damn expensive!

Beginning on Saturday, January 29, Mrs. Varmint and I will be joining another couple in a regularly scheduled survey of the "top-rated" restaurants in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill-Cary metroplex. Our mission is to find the absolute best dining in the Triangle. We're starting this Friday with Fins, my favorite restaurant in Raleigh. Others that will be tried: Magnolia Grill Nana's Four Square Bloomsbury Bistro or the Cosmopolitan Enoteca Vin Elaine's on Franklin Il Palio Fearrington House When we are done, the four of us will crown the King/Queen of the Triangle restaurant scene. Have I missed a restaurant? I didn't include Lantern, even though I like it very much. It's an excellent second tier restaurant, but not in the upper echelon.

Only because I promised you that I'd give you ALL the details, I'll let you know that my main sink arrived via FedEx today. No dents, scratches or other problems. Saved over $200 by ordering it through an eBay retailer versus buying it locally.

I made potato and cheddar soup last night. I wish it had some smoked sausage in it, but alas, Mrs. Varmint doesn't care for the stuff!

Yup, they've all factored that in. I've now spent 5-6 hours on the phone with Ken Ables, sorting through the plans. He's amazingly thorough.