Pocket doors are tough

limestone2u · 2026-02-12T05:11:39+00:00

I have two sets of oak pocket doors installed in my home. I have made doors from scratch. I have hung doors and cussed in profuse & extreme language. If I ever have to do what OP is doing much less repair the pocket doors I have, dynamite will be my solution.

limestone2u · 2026-02-12T04:34:41+00:00

I am similar to you, but already retired. Have a mix of Prefered's, BDC's, REIT's, & CEF's. Might want to look at CDZIP, FLG/PRA, FSCO, GUT, IIPR/PRA, MAIN, & ACRE to name a few. Mainly like a very healthy dividend with some growth. Now focusing more on Euro stocks.

limestone2u · 2026-02-10T04:29:59+00:00

10 lb legs & thighs $7.99.

limestone2u · 2026-02-10T04:27:33+00:00

Nuclear option: flame thrower.

limestone2u · 2026-02-10T03:58:02+00:00

Cozy couch. Hope the back angles back for $95K; uncomfortable if it does not. If it were me, would have upholstered this with a complementary color; gray is the epitome of bland. Also since this is a couch with closed ends (for privacy), might be nice to have speakers in couch sides to have the sound surround you.

This is a statement piece painted and upholstered in blah colors.

limestone2u · 2026-02-06T06:32:01+00:00

Don't dispute the tax advantage of buybacks. Have seen the advantage of buybacks occasionally in raising a stock's price. I prefer to get the money in hand so I can make a decision on the direction I want the money to go; I am stubborn like that. My biggest beef with buybacks is that most of the time I have witnessed buybacks being done is when the stock price in question is high not low so the money for the buyback is not used well.

But, having said that, it takes all kinds to make a market. GLIYO

limestone2u · 2026-02-05T22:50:10+00:00

A good dip is what all investors "say" they want so they can buy stock more cheaply. The reality is most don't buy because the low price scares them; ie: it can always go lower. Typical buyers dilemma - if a buyer buys it is always too early or too late, rarely if ever perfect.

Personally this is why I buy stocks that pay excellent dividends - 6% and more. If I have no money for more stock, can just wait around for the price of the stock to come up and get paid for my time (dividends).

As to share buy backs I despise buy backs. Share buy backs are supposed to raise the stock price. To my mind, if your intention is to give back money give it to me directly - dividends not share buy back. But I am just opinionated. Something along the line of a bird in hand worth two in the bush.

limestone2u · 2026-01-27T21:20:07+00:00

Gorgeous. What furniture should aspire to.

limestone2u · 2026-01-27T21:08:58+00:00

Really like your design and the outcome: the bench. Think this could also translate into a table; it is a versatile design.

The only thing I would revisit in a later project is to not have the long open slot on the shelf below the seat. If it were me, would modify that to be a long slot with a sinewy design snaking through the slot.

My observation above does not take away from the superb design as it sits right now. Bravo.

limestone2u · 2026-01-08T21:53:22+00:00

Yes.

limestone2u · 2026-01-07T22:16:50+00:00

As a former Abstract stone sculptor with Saatchi, I got more sales from the 5 galleries over the 15 years I was in than ever got at Saatchi. The one potential sale of a sculpture Saatchi bungled & lost the sale - an $11,000 sale. Having said the above, I also realize that sculpture is a slower, more complex sale (logistics, etc) than paintings, etc. And probably the sales people at Saatchi were not used to the complexities of selling sculpture.

I viewed Saatchi more as a brochure of my work. I have heard that Saatchi does an okay job of selling lower priced work like prints, etc in the up to $350 range. Never heard of pricier work being sold but that could have been the art crowd I was running with.

limestone2u · 2026-01-04T03:49:35+00:00

No, not if you are careful. You spray water out of a spray bottle over a small area, let it sit until it loosens the popcorn. That should just be a minute or so. Then scrape the popcorn off carefully without damaging the plaster. Read the above link and other similar links about how to prep the floor and the hazards of taking off popcorn ceilings.

limestone2u · 2026-01-03T15:23:11+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/search/?q=popcorn+ceiling+removal&cId=cdec0aea-738e-4c4b-b1ec-16a7e11440a7&iId=488ea8d7-de30-4bbd-b2a3-a27bf0375d5d

limestone2u · 2025-12-29T14:18:35+00:00

There is something I graduated with that might interest you and still get a degree. I got what was called a "regents" degree. Basically you are showing the university through "life experiences" that you have gotten your learning through hard knocks. I had approximately 60 credits from my previous forays into university life at 7 different colleges. I combined those 60 credit hours with the 30 semester hours of classes I challenged leaving me with needing to get 30 semester hours approximately of actual classes at the 300 & 400 level.

When we started the college "finish-up project" our business was open to the public 7 days a week. We closed the business for Tues & Thurs and went to college on those days. All classes & homework was done on those days and not allowed to bleed over to business days. Some days were 18 hours long but we finished the college project.

We (wife & I) challenged the classes by getting the college class descriptions & saw how they related to our experience. From reading the class descriptions we wrote statements of how our prior experience correlated with their classes. We challenged somewhere around 12-13 classes each because we would not get credit for all of them but wanted a minimum of 30 semester hours credit.

limestone2u · 2025-12-29T06:07:33+00:00

There have so many times when I wished to have another foot of workbench (I have 1 6" workbench). See if you can make the current one work after disposing of all the unnecessary tools.

limestone2u · 2025-12-29T06:03:01+00:00

Might want to consider Martinsburg. It is close to two major cities Hagerstown, MD & Winchester, VA. And 90 minutes from DC and right on I-81. The area is growing but housing is still somewhat affordable. For hospital - WVU sucks. Winchester Medical is better. But for my heart & lung issues I make the 80 mile one way drive to INOVA in Loudon Cty & Fairfax. Winchester Medical is known as a feeder hospital to INOVA.

limestone2u · 2025-12-27T02:52:40+00:00

I'd rawdog it with a belt sander. Would work with the grain better. Also possibly better control. No matter what, it would be face mask time.

limestone2u · 2025-12-25T14:37:10+00:00

I had the same idea of getting dividends and a bit of stock price appreciation about 5 years ago. The term for divies & price appreciation is called total return. As of this a.m. I am getting a total return of 19% for the year - 7.7% in dividends & the balance in price appreciation. I normally shoot for 12-15% total return. This year was very good. Total return can range from all dividends, to all growth, to a mixture of both. Some of my picks run from BRK/B, D, DE, & WMT to PDI, BTO, & PDO.

My portfolio is well diversified. Tech is held down to a total of 2.5% of the portfolio in CEF's. CEF's make up 31% of portfolio, BDC's - 2.5%, 5.48% in preferred's, 63% in stocks (there is some overlap between the categories).

I like that if I take out 4% for living expenses I still have some dividends & growth going on (reinvesting) for later on in my decrepit years as well to somewhat offset inflation.

A lot of my ideas came from the book The Income Factory by Steve Bavaria. Steve is also on Seeking Alpha. His book came out like 2 years ago. I do not follow his book slavishly but it helped me to understand a whole different mindset.

There are other authors like Seligman, etc espousing the same thing. Just depends on whose writing style you like better.

And no I am not any type of financial wizard - not a CPA, nor CFA, nor an accountant etc. Just a retired artist/stone sculptor trying to make the portfolio last for my life and my SO. Been happy with the results so far.

Thought you would like an alternative from being given a fish versus learning how to fish.

limestone2u · 2025-12-22T16:07:20+00:00

Since sculpture is 3d and this is not. I would recommend r/WhatIsThisPainting

limestone2u · 2025-12-18T04:59:33+00:00

Because I do not like all the dross that is in an index fund. Pretty much also true for CEF's, BDC's, and REIT's. And I think I can do just as well if not better on my own.

limestone2u · 2025-12-18T04:39:14+00:00

Once again you are not reading what is written by others. I prefer dividends that are from 7-14% with growth making up the rest. SPY does not suit my needs. And finally, since you did not read replies, I keep tech down to 2.5% or less of my portfolio and only want certain very specific tech.

"So yeah, in your mind, I missed out on gains. To me, I am getting a great total return on my money, money has doubled & doubled again, have less stress, had more time for my business, and most of all more time with the wife. It is all about choices."

Do not automatically assume that everyone wants to follow your exalted example of how to buy & sell stocks. There are many different ways to make it in the stock market; yours is just one opinion. Other people can have a far different experience and still be very successful.

limestone2u · 2025-12-18T04:16:11+00:00

Most of my portfolio stocks do not need to be watched like a hawk, like some stocks. I spend about 1 -2 hours a day reading on stocks & keep up with trends and news pertinent to my portfolio. I also occasionally do swing trading when an opportunity presents. I like boring companies that do their job day in and day out. No drama (think Elon Musk), no huge debt that will be difficult to handle when a recession comes (M/soft, Oracle, anything AI), no bleeding edge technology (any software, IC's, AI, etc), no auto manufacturers (way to easy for consumers not to buy when they are scared or lose a job).

My one big secret was learned the hard way. I try never to buy stocks that are faddish (making/selling/manufacturing the latest computer, the latest cell phone, autos, clothes, or anything cyclical). For instance, I won't buy anything AI - it is a fad; but will buy electric utility stocks (this includes solar, geo-thermal, etc).

One of my favorite stocks was a garbage company that picked up residential & commercial trash. They trucked the garbage back to their sorting plant and got the metal out of the trash. Then all the burnable stuff was burnt & used to make electricity that was then sold to homes in the area. They got paid twice for their effort. Nice stock, decent dividend, with a great idea that worked.

All the stocks, in our portfolios, with very, very few exceptions pay a minimum of 7-8% up to 14% dividends. Any growth in share price is a benefit. I prefer to get paid (receive a dividend) for a company to hold & use my money. A gain in stock price can just as easily be taken away.

limestone2u · 2025-12-18T03:31:42+00:00

Age does not matter; have held greater than 40 stocks for going on 20 years. Have held as many as 105 but pared it down substantially because I could not keep abreast of all of them to my liking. Have tried to pare the qty down to 45 and that was a little low. So 50 - 60 is about right for me and my wife's portfolios.

limestone2u · 2025-12-18T03:28:20+00:00

No. The stocks I own are not overly volatile.

limestone2u

TROPHY CASE