Selling our house

A beautiful place!

I have a sister in Forks... I'll forward this to her.

She might know of someone looking around.

The Video Lounge version of "Cribs".

John T.,

You already know what I think of that house - it's just beautiful, and should sell immediately. You might then have to move, build, and move once more. As I have mentioned, "MOVE" is a four-letter word to me, though I have to do one, for the renovation of our current home - then move back, when the construction is done.

Good luck,

Hunt

whats gonna happen to the fishes ??

Wow! Really nice. With all those customizations, for me, it would be tough to leave.

Best of luck!

Kevin

John T.,

Not sure that I can remember who needs the attribution on this (Joe Bloe's Razor?), but "the better the view, the less work accomplished... " That's the thing that I love about working on the pool deck - I have a great excuse for not getting anything done!

Hunt

Been there - done that.

Hunt

"the better the view, the less work accomplished... "

I suppose that is true in most cases, but I like to tell people that I was smarter before I quit smoking out in the backyard.

You see, I used to work from home. If I wanted to go outside for a cigarette, I took a product manual or other technical document and read it while I smoked on the back porch. Yes, I watched the birds in the feeder now and then, but sitting outside in the fresh air with a view could only be justified if I read a manual while out there.

Then I quit smoking and took up video editing. Now I hardly look up from the computer except to go out and shoot. And I seldom read manuals anymore, so I am not as smart as I used to be.

Therefore, logic dictates that quitting smoking made me stupid. Or, hmm. well, something like that!

Therefore, logic dictates that quitting smoking made me stupid. Or, hmm. well, something like that!

Steven,

I am not going to touch that...

No matter what I said, I would come off as a hypocrit, as I sit with a cigar nearby.

Hunt

I smoke cigs non stop..

I'M A GENIUS !

makes me LOOK smart too !  The way I hold the cigarette.. the way I furrow my brow and look thoughtful.

( was always into the noel coward look rather than the marlboro man )

Rod

You need help

Great post

Col

Great house

It always amazes me what you guys have as a home, that house would cost 2 million where I live and 5 million in Cheshire, near London 10 mil easy

Typical UK home 1000 ft sq and $250,000

COL

Col,

Same price in this area near San Francisco. I just spent $530K on 1855 square feet but the same house across the bay would be double that. And 30 miles farther East it would be half that (and 30 degrees F hotter in the summer).

Biggles,

As Steven points out, in the US, it's all about three things (as the realtors are prone to say): "Location - location - location."

My wife was being courted for a job in California, in Orange County, below Los Angeles - Manhattan Beach. We talked to several realtors, to see what we could afford, and where that would be located, relative to her job. Well, our house in the immediate area would have been US$ 5M. In the Phoenix, AZ Area, it was valued at US $1.5M at the time. To get anything close to what we had in AZ, we would have had to double the value, and move about 60 miles inland, giving her about a 2 hour drive each way, depending on traffic.

Even within the Phoenix Metro-Area (500+ sq. miles), our home would have been valued at 2 - 3x, if it had been located in an area called Paradise Valley (think St. John's Wood). In parts of the Deep South, our house would only cost about US $300K, and have maybe 20 acres of land around it.

It's no different than buying a flat in Bromley vs Mayfair. It's about the location.

Some years ago, when real estate markets in the San Francisco, CA area were a bit flat, but occupancy in the city were still very high, there was a marketing program for "townhouses" being built about 30 miles east of where Steven is (Oakland, across The Bay from SF), that were soon to be built. People flocked to that area, to pay up front about US $300K (then in the 1980's) for 1200 sq. ft. attached homes, that would not be built for 2 more years! It was like the "land rushes" that took place in territories like Oklahoma, or Nebraska, before they were US states. Homesteaders stampeded in wagons, with their whole families and all possessions, to get that free land - it was really a stampede, with a starting line, etc.. These folk raced to stake out land. The term, now used with endearment, "Sooners," to describe settlers in Nebraska Territory, was pejorative initially, as many of those settlers, who raced all day, and all night to get there found many, who already had erected homes on the plots they had staked out - they were said to have arrived "sooner," than the races being held - or "cheaters." Now, that WAS for free land, which had just been stolen from the Native Americans, many of them, who had already had their land in the Eastern US seized, and had been forced to move "out West," only to have that land seized too. Not a great time in the history (short as it is) of the US.

For three years, we let a flat in the heart of Mayfair, and even thought about buying it, then letting it out, when we were not there. I think that my pulse is still pounding, 8 years later - for a 600 sq. ft. flat (remember, right in the heart of Mayfair) was going for £ 300K, and the exchange rate was ~ 2.5 then! We found that we could get a nice suite in the Hilton Park Lane with a bit more room, for our two week stays, for much less, and even have room service. That is what we have done, and where we have stayed, and I do not even look at the ads in the windows of the realtors around Mayfair - I know that I will never be able to own even a broom closet there. Such is life.

Hunt

looks cool John.. lots of nice open space around living and dining etc...

John,

Dibs on that guest bedroom!

Looks great, and all the best of fortune with it.

We're about to start moving out, and we'll see how the remodel goes. Making final adjustments to kitchen cabinets, and appliances. Should be done by Saturday, but I still have to finalize the outdoor kitchen design, and pick up the grill, clear-ice machine, outdoor 'fridge, beverage center, trash bin and warming drawer, with maybe another wine 'fridge and then the hood. That will give me something to think about.

Good luck,

Hunt

The house looks great John.

I am so glad that the last owner of this home spent the money he did on the two kitchens. I don't have to do anything at all except work on the electicity outside for better lighting over the outdoor kitchen.

This house already has all the stuff we would have wanted to put into any remodel, and some things we would never have thought of, like the faucet abouve the stove.

Having two ovens in the house and one outside really helps when a large crowd is milling around and you need to warm up the appetizers while your wife is pulling larger things out of the indoor ovens. Take that into consideration. And having almost a meter wide grill allows for some serious grilling, not to mention the motorized rottiserie.

Having a six burner gas stove indoors and a two burner outside, will help with having lots of different things on at the same time and outside the Corn on the Cob and Baked Beans kind of stuff for large parties.

And for people who live where it gets really hot, I imagine being able to cook outdoors will save on air conditioning costs.

I would never had put in granite countertops outdoors, but they sure look nice, and I am glad he did.

Our kitchen island is about the same number of square feet as a billiard table. One end is higher to accomodate storage as well as provide a place to eat in the kitchen on bar stools. Lots of storage.

A warming drawer would be nice. We don't have one. We do have a trash compactor though. I only take the trash out once per week. Pretty nice.

Steven,

The faucet over the range top was something that we demanded - filling large pasta pots, Gumbo pots, etc., we did not want to do without. Fortunately for us, it was only a matter of adding it, as the cabinet group will just drill the hole, to accommodate it.

Glad that you have the electrical potential, as that is something that we are adding. With 2 440 boxes, we are having to add a third. Can never have too much electricity. Were I to build, I would have 4x 440, and each would have a half-dozen spares.

I'm going to go back to your outdoor kitchen posts, as I am in the final design stage of that.

Hunt

I went out to shoot a little video of my outdoor kitchen and it was WAY too noisy out there for audio, even with a lav mic, so I did a voiceover. The guy behind me is mowing his lawn, the guy across the street is tuning his engine, or showing off, I can't tell, and there seems to be an airshow in the area (or naval manuevers). Plus, the bikers are getting ready for their Saturday tour of the bay. It is usually relatively quiet out there, but of course, not today when I want to shoot some video.

I really need to get a tripod with a floating head, but I have not decided on one yet. So I didn't get a decent pan. And I now have a reason to buy a wide angle lens. Maybe even a fisheye. I couldn't get far enough away even with a 14mm lens (28mm equivalent). You didn't need to see this ugly old face much anyway, right?

In any case, here is a little video detailing what is both good and bad about the design of my outdoor kitchen. As I state in the video, it needs drawers, but I am thinking that I can buy some sort of storage thing that will fit under the sink or under the grill that has drawers in it. I forgot to mention in the video that I think the sink is a little too far away from the grill. Maybe if the sink and the oven exchanged places? Also, the sink does not have a garbage disposal. You might want to consider that as well. I keep a Microwave oven under the sink, just in case I need to pull it out and put it on the granite countertop.

The deck is made out of Trex and plenty big enough for a long table that easily seats six. I stacked the chairs to get them out of the way of the camera. They are usually placed around the table.

Just stuff for you to think about so that yours comes out even better.

Edit: Oh! Crud. I just figured out that I had the Extended Teleconverter on, which basically means a 2X zoom. No WONDER I could not get everything into the frame. Sigh!

I guess I need to start shooting some video with the GH3 to get used to it before I ever really need it for anything.

That looks really cool.. I was hoping I could get a hamburger...

GIMME A HAMBURGER !

Rod,

We are prepared at any time to cook hamburgers - we have a freezer full. And Rib-Eye steaks (bone in for better flavor) round out the freezer, along with fish fillets and all kinds of other stuff we like to eat and serve at parties.

In fact, Rib-Eye steak is on sale this week at Safeway. My wife picked up $160 worth. I eat about 8 to 12 ounces for lunch on days where I am not eating chicken, or tuna salad.

You are more than welcome to come by for a burger any time. And when that tooth is fixed, a steak!

mmmmm, yum... that sounds really wonderful....

I have heard people say that, but I have no idea how to cut my own steaks.

When we shop at Safeway, they cut them to the thickness we request. But they use what looks to be a pretty fancy sclicer to get through the bone. I am not sure I really want to go through that. Maybe what I don't know about better meat is best left unknown?

Steven,

Stuff happens. One does the best, with what they are presented with. Maybe tell the neighbor with the Harley to "cool it," and the dude with the Lamborgini to wait an hour, or two?

Just spent the afternoon with the Miele folk, at a "steam" cooking class, plus much info gathering, regarding their appliances.

Good news: wife did a Molten Chocolate Lava Cake, that knocked the socks off of some Michelin 3-star restaurants, that charge up to about US $50 for lesser. I did a monster Tortellini, and we dined well. Glad that we had decided on the kitchen products, that we had.

Bad news: because of those Miele appliances, we might need to scale back my outdoor kitchen a bit. We are crunching numbers now. Wife keeps focusing on just the $, while I keep mentioning how the catering chef will love working in BOTH kitchens... Not sure how that will fly, but I am trying. Might need to scale back from a 54" grill, to the 42" version, and maybe not include the double-drawer 'fridge, but did point out how that would help me, and any catering chef, and keep HER 'fridge out of the mix. We will just have to wait to see how that shakes out. Luckily, I have a lot of experience in dealing with my "CFO," and know a few "buttons" to push - whether I will persevere, remains to be seen.

We will see.

Hunt

Sometimes, we do cut our meat, but often just tell the butcher what we want - just depends.

My wife keeps pointing to our Henkles (5-star), and telling me to learn how to butcher, as we will be on a major austerity program, to pay for her kitchen. Guess that I can learn, and I just sharpened ALL of those knives.

Hunt

I think that some of the Henckels that we have are from when my wife went through cooking school as part of her "Hotel/Restaurant Management" degree in San Francisco back in the 1970s. Most are new, but the ones she keeps separate and only pulls out on occasion? Those are special.

Now, I can tell you that I do understand the difference between a steak at Morton's or III Forks (Dallas) or some of the other up-scale places I have been privileged to dine in, and the ones I can buy at the supermarket. I just don't feel the need for the extra quality. My tastes are pretty simple. I figure as long as I can take a bite of steak with a little mushroom, and enjoy it, I don't really need to spend the extra money.

I understand the difference between an expensive sports car, I rented a pretty fancy Porsche in Germany while on vacation a few times, and a little Ford Mustang convertible. That sports car taught me that I had a top end that was lower than the car's top end. I couldn't keep it floored for more than a few minutes at a time. But I enjoy driving a little over the speed limit in California in a Ford Mustang with the top down on a sunny day. Two different experiences.

I feel the same way about steak.

Look at it this way to carry it to extremes... Just because you like expensive steak doesn't mean you won't enjoy a good Ballpark Frank. Right?

As for sharpening? I took a short class in using a proper stone. The stone is from the 1970's, of that I am certain. The class basically consisted of sharpening a knife under the watchful eye of an experienced knife sharpening professional for a couple of minutes until he put it under the microscope, showed me I was too heavy on one side and too light on the other. About ten minutes later he passed my last knife and sent me on my way. Best $10 I ever spent.

And as for the bone, well, I believe that the best part of the steak is next to the bone and I am not above gnawing on it like a canine while nobody is watching.

I've got the honing stone, plus a wheel sharpener, and use those for "daily maintenance," but every couple of years, I like to have a real pro tune the knives up a bit. That then gives me a perfect base, from which to work for the next year, or so. Several local chefs recommended a gentleman, who has his shop in a cube van, and comes to you. He does great work, and can re-serrate, and even restore knives like the Henkles Pot Roast, with little ribs, that allow the juices to flow, and not cause the knife to "stick" to the meat with a vacuum. That is beyond my capabilities, and equipment.

As for the meat, we mostly do Sirloin Burgers, or Beef Tenderloin - few T-Bones, few Sirloins, few Rib-eyes, and almost no Rib Roasts. For the Tenderloin, we probably go with Choice, more than Prime, and when I finish, say my Espresso-rubbed Tenderloin, do not find much difference, but it depends on the Beef that day.

Just had one of the best Filets (I keep a scorecard) at La Folie (French) in North Beach (Polk St). It ended up in the top-5 all-time, and the list includes some Kobe and quite a bit of Wagyu. This one was just excellent, and took over the # 5 spot, right behind a Filet from an Italian restaurant in Poipu, Kaua`i, HI. Ultimate is still one from a little Colorado restaurant, in Winter Park, CO (now gone ), with a Kobe from The Prince of Wales at the Del (also gone).

I can usually get up to equal with maybe #10, if I get lucky, but have never been able to crack the top-10, with my own Beef. I think that sometimes it's black magic? I mean in my top-5, one is from a French restaurant, and another from an Italian restaurant. Few real "steakhouses" have managed to get into my top-10. We just did Alfred's in the Financial District/Chinatown, SF, that was highly recommended and has been around since the 1930's, They did not make it into the top-20. Same with Gordon Ramsay's Steakhouse in LV, and even with his Signature Wagyu. Just did not make it for me, and actually feel behind my wife's "regular" Prime Filet, which did not have a US $75 supplemental charge on it. I should have saved the $, but we wanted to try it, since we really like Chef Ramsay's restaurants in the UK. Let's just say that his LV restaurant is not even close to even his more casual places in London, and should never be mentioned in the same paragraph as Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, Petrus, or even his now closed Gordon Ramsay at Clairidges - those are (or were in the case of Clairidges) great restaurants.

Hunt

knives are weird... I'm no expert by a long shot.. but it seems to me that some of the sharpest are really just simple steel ( not stainless ) ..and I've found French ones that are just steel to be the best ...like French fish filet knives with simple wood handles kinda thing.. in terms of getting a really sharp edge...but they don't keep the edge long.. gotta use a stone and then a steel on them often..

I use a steel for a few seconds on whatever knife I'm going to cut with .... ( except for the little one I used recently to cut X into chestnuts... cause I put the sharp side UP and pressed down on it with my thumb and nearly cut my thumb off ! )  Now I hate that knife and refuse to sharpen it ever again !

I love those knife sharpen guys with cube vans.. and they know whats up so you dont lose the temper ( hardness ) of blades.. from heat ....unfortunately the ones in NY area are all gone now... cheapo customers couldn't keep up with prices to keep them in business.

I don't think the market for retail is the same as market for wholesale, in the meat biz... like, the really big fat beef filet that makes a 1 inch thick mignon , which is 5 inches or so in diameter, is hard to find in retail butcher shops or supermarket butcher shops.. cause that stuff goes mostly wholesale to the restaurants... and now if you are dealing with grade A USDA aged stuff.. it gets even harder to find in the retail ( consumer ) market place...

Just a guess, but I think that's what happens a lot... in terms of differences .. trying to make a steak at " Home " like the one you got at restaurant... is probably linked to the distribution markets to some extent..

???

from chow hound.. about carbon steel, stainless... etc

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/691330

some of this stuff, knives ( stainless, vs not stainless ) and meat quality etc.. is kinda esoteric...

like ' cutting boards '

a butcher block " table " ( like a real heavy giant old fashioned butcher block table ) ... is a certain type of hard wood...with all end grain facing UP to make the surface...laminated ( glued probably with dowels running through )...and like cast iron nobody would ever clean it with soap...nor let it stand long without wiping it dry at least..

The end grain makes it nice to knife edges ( cause the blades sink into the grain a little bit as you cut .. is " soft and kind to the edge " )..

I have one cutting board now and it's made out of some kinda plastic junk....couldn't even FIND a cutting board made of wood with end grain up...

But at least it's big enough to put large chickens and stuff on it... and is sorta " soft " ... and I only cut stuff for my own cooking etc.. so it's fine..

Rod,

There are many discussions on cutting surfaces, or cutting boards. Once, it was assumed that plastic ones were more sanitary, but it was found that they actually might not be vs wood. It seems that proper cleaning of either goes a very long way. We have three wooden ones, and then a couple of plastic guys - different plastic.

Hunt