3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Ha, nice, that's exactly it! So, overall, I found around 400 dollars' worth of gold. I likely won't sell it, and if I sell I am probably going to get less than that for it, but still, my curiosity has been sated. Awesome tracking the coins down sky!
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2Birds1Stone
- Posts: 1606
- Joined: Thu Nov 19, 2015 11:20 am
- Location: Earth
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Each coin has a melt value of $400, the price in the ebay link is just current bid.
https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide/wor ... id-1533737
https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide/wor ... id-1533737
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Mister Imperceptible
- Posts: 1669
- Joined: Fri Nov 10, 2017 4:18 pm
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
My eyes are bad.
Maybe more valuable as good luck charms if you don’t need the cash.
Maybe more valuable as good luck charms if you don’t need the cash.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Yeah, I'll just keep them as is. It was a neat find 
. Will take pictures of (a) the mess and (b) other neat finds tomorrow.
Thanks for the link 2B1S, I was never into physical gold coins so I didn't know that site was a thing
. Will take pictures of (a) the mess and (b) other neat finds tomorrow. Thanks for the link 2B1S, I was never into physical gold coins so I didn't know that site was a thing
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Alphaville
- Posts: 3611
- Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2019 10:50 am
- Location: Quarantined
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
What a bummer. I hope they at least left the gold, for ertyu's sake
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Alphaville
- Posts: 3611
- Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2019 10:50 am
- Location: Quarantined
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Give me some time, I’m just working on getting internet set up at my place . Right now, I need to go hang out at this local coffeeshop which allows people to smoke inside so it’s not a nice place to hang out for a long time.
I have mostly been cleaning and throwing stuff out. No other valuables finds - mostly household items I can still use. A shiny shaving kit that takes razor blades. Thank you old guy.
Mostly, I have been having thoughts about how under socialism people did things very similarly to ERE (will expound when not on mobile trying to peck out a post with my sausage fingers).
I have also been having thoughts about simple living and ageing: namely, even if you don’t want to live simply, ageing will impose simplicity on you. Your life reduces to a room, you can’t reach those tall storage spaces anymore, and if your head happens not to be cottage cheese yet, you still only have strength to maintain your immediate life needs and abandon all those things you were some day going to do. All those things you stored, either to give you a sense of ego gratification or a sense of safety, turn into a roach breeding ground. Much better to live simply to begin with and short-circuit the process.
. Right now, I need to go hang out at this local coffeeshop which allows people to smoke inside so it’s not a nice place to hang out for a long time.I have mostly been cleaning and throwing stuff out. No other valuables finds - mostly household items I can still use. A shiny shaving kit that takes razor blades
. Thank you old guy.Mostly, I have been having thoughts about how under socialism people did things very similarly to ERE (will expound when not on mobile trying to peck out a post with my sausage fingers).
I have also been having thoughts about simple living and ageing: namely, even if you don’t want to live simply, ageing will impose simplicity on you. Your life reduces to a room, you can’t reach those tall storage spaces anymore, and if your head happens not to be cottage cheese yet, you still only have strength to maintain your immediate life needs and abandon all those things you were some day going to do. All those things you stored, either to give you a sense of ego gratification or a sense of safety, turn into a roach breeding ground. Much better to live simply to begin with and short-circuit the process.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
True, but isn’t bare bones simple vs dirty hoarder a false dichotomy? Why not something more like modular complexity? This is what I strive for, although I must admit that I got the idea from playing with Barbie or paper dolls. Obviously, Barbie always need a LBD in her suitcase, but what is the minimum kit if she also wants to go hiking with Ken?
All my worldly belongings currently fit in my Smart car, but if I want to be able to do something new, I figure out how to work it in too. For instance, my new book scanning machine for my new business. Like you, I might buy a house soon, because grouchy old roommates suck and rent is relatively very high in my region, but I hope to maintain my modular organization.
I think the key is to always tie everything you choose to own to your calendar. For instance, you should now schedule all your routine home maintenance tasks in daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, and annual cycles. “Home Comforts : The Art and Science of Keeping House” by Cheryl Mendelson offers master level lists and instructions on these tasks. Of course, you don’t necessarily have to choose to maintain your home at the same level Barbie maintains her makeup
All my worldly belongings currently fit in my Smart car, but if I want to be able to do something new, I figure out how to work it in too. For instance, my new book scanning machine for my new business. Like you, I might buy a house soon, because grouchy old roommates suck and rent is relatively very high in my region, but I hope to maintain my modular organization.
I think the key is to always tie everything you choose to own to your calendar. For instance, you should now schedule all your routine home maintenance tasks in daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal, and annual cycles. “Home Comforts : The Art and Science of Keeping House” by Cheryl Mendelson offers master level lists and instructions on these tasks. Of course, you don’t necessarily have to choose to maintain your home at the same level Barbie maintains her makeup
Bathroom
Some before pictures:
This had the consistency of soil and went all the way back around the toilet dish.
Hardcore limescale build-up on sink. Unsure why I had the toilet closed for this picture but situation inside was much the same.
Under the grime around the toilet was more limescale bild-up
Unsure what exactly is going on with the link between the toilet and the sewer, but I strongly suppose I'll need to reinstall that come spring.
The one good side to all of this is that the site of any and all issues and leaks was clearly visible and marked by a limescale trail. Thus the situation looks overwhelming but there are no surprise issues.
Ceiling:
Where the central heating pipes pass. These carry hot water from the local coal power plant and keep the bathroom warm.
Cobwebs and discoloration from how the guy used to smoke. Pipes look yellow now but were originally light blue. Expansion and contraction of pipes as they changed temperature means plaster has crumbled where the pipes enter the ceiling.
These are supposed to be vents. Ideally, one would rip down the spackling on the walls and run an electric line to install fans there. Have not decided if this is something I will do as the place has much more pressing issues. You can see the two hooks in the wall and the matching two hooks next to the heating pipes; those used to hold a clothesline which I have removed to better clean.
There is also a crack in one corner and some roach tracks.
This bathroom (more of a wetroom, which is common around here) has been renovated somewhere around 2000. That's when the tiles and the blue sink and toilet were installed. Originally, bathroom walls in socialist era buildings used to be painted. You can see the original brown paint through this hole.
The pipes were originally exposed and it used to be fashionable (still is, I guess) to cover them up as seen in the picture. One still needs the opening because that's where you shut off the apartment's hot and cold water main lines. Also, that's where the hot and cold water meters are. A person from the water company comes to shine a flashlight on those once a month and read them, so they need to be visible and accessible.
The disadvantage to covering up the pipes this way is that repairs can't be easily done in there. For example, the tap that shuts off the tap water leaks when the water is shut off, I guess from the pressure from the main water supply. Doesn't leak when water to the apartment has been turned on, and the leak is just a drip really, but water still accumulates in that hollow without having a way out (which, I assume, is why the previous owners have left this opening uncovered instead of capped somehow).
A second disadvantage is that this nook, wet and warm as it is (one of the pipes passing through there is the hot water pipe), is a stellar roach breeding place. On the whole, I would prefer the pipes to be uncovered even though they're old and "unsightly."
My approach to the bathroom has been to first clean it thoroughly and only then think about any fixes or repairs.
Here is a close-up of the build-up on the walls I've been scraping out
I've broken out the 5% HCl solution for the limescale; it's almost completely scraped off from sink, toilet, and surrounding area. Went through 3.5 liters so far. Vinegar just wasn't going to cut it with this one.
Left to do cleaning-wise: (1) full clean of wall and floor tile, (2) clean of upper part of walls and ceiling. Might spray ceiling with degreaser and/or bleach just to see what build-up soaks off. Because the guy was a smoker, degreaser loosens up all sorts of dark brown residue from literally everywhere.
List of potential repairs. Advice appreciated on any and all:
(1) Repaint upper part of bathroom (white). Clean heating pipes with degreaser and repaint with radiator paint.
(2) See what's going on at the back of the toilet dish and around the bottom ring. Right now, the toilet is fixed to the floor with tile grout mixture and nothing in the bathroom is silicone caulked. Sometimes, have not yet determined when and why, there's leakage around the bottom ring of the toilet. Unsure if that's just water making its way from the joint all the way back, or if the issue is with the ring of the toilet itself.
(3) Bathroom door needs old paint stripped, some scraping out and wood filler where it's begun to swell from moisture but the problem is way less than with nuke-it-from-orbit rental door and appears fixable.
All interior doors need a paint strip, filler, and repainting. I will not rip them out at this stage; I will maybe just replace the handles. There is still some life in them imo.
Pictures of bathroom door, including water swelling, some misshaping of the case that would need sanded off when I repaint (has happened on all interior doors so I assume this is ageing related). Also, degreaser tracks in the nicotine build-up providing a "and this is why we don't smoke indoors, kids" cautionary tale.
(4) The shower is one of those wall units and needs replaced. I've been faffing off on that as a new shower is around 100 euro and would require drilling in the wall or the tile to install. But at the very least, this old unit needs the rubber rings at all joints replaced, as they are all old, hard, and brittle and the thing leaks.
Red thing is a bottle cap.
Current state of shower, after having soaked in vinegar for a whole day. All build-up not gone, but it's usable and will do until I decide what to do with the whole contraption. Right now, what's most annoying is that there's no wall mount for the shower handle so I can't really hang out under the shower as is my bad habit; I must rinse, switch water off and rest shower handle on mixer, lather up, turn water back on and rinse. Good for my water bill, but sad.
You can also see the de-limescaled sink which has revealed its former light blue glory.
This had the consistency of soil and went all the way back around the toilet dish.
Hardcore limescale build-up on sink. Unsure why I had the toilet closed for this picture but situation inside was much the same.
Under the grime around the toilet was more limescale bild-up
Unsure what exactly is going on with the link between the toilet and the sewer, but I strongly suppose I'll need to reinstall that come spring.
The one good side to all of this is that the site of any and all issues and leaks was clearly visible and marked by a limescale trail. Thus the situation looks overwhelming but there are no surprise issues.
Ceiling:
Where the central heating pipes pass. These carry hot water from the local coal power plant and keep the bathroom warm.
Cobwebs and discoloration from how the guy used to smoke. Pipes look yellow now but were originally light blue. Expansion and contraction of pipes as they changed temperature means plaster has crumbled where the pipes enter the ceiling.
These are supposed to be vents. Ideally, one would rip down the spackling on the walls and run an electric line to install fans there. Have not decided if this is something I will do as the place has much more pressing issues. You can see the two hooks in the wall and the matching two hooks next to the heating pipes; those used to hold a clothesline which I have removed to better clean.
There is also a crack in one corner and some roach tracks.
This bathroom (more of a wetroom, which is common around here) has been renovated somewhere around 2000. That's when the tiles and the blue sink and toilet were installed. Originally, bathroom walls in socialist era buildings used to be painted. You can see the original brown paint through this hole.
The pipes were originally exposed and it used to be fashionable (still is, I guess) to cover them up as seen in the picture. One still needs the opening because that's where you shut off the apartment's hot and cold water main lines. Also, that's where the hot and cold water meters are. A person from the water company comes to shine a flashlight on those once a month and read them, so they need to be visible and accessible.
The disadvantage to covering up the pipes this way is that repairs can't be easily done in there. For example, the tap that shuts off the tap water leaks when the water is shut off, I guess from the pressure from the main water supply. Doesn't leak when water to the apartment has been turned on, and the leak is just a drip really, but water still accumulates in that hollow without having a way out (which, I assume, is why the previous owners have left this opening uncovered instead of capped somehow).
A second disadvantage is that this nook, wet and warm as it is (one of the pipes passing through there is the hot water pipe), is a stellar roach breeding place. On the whole, I would prefer the pipes to be uncovered even though they're old and "unsightly."
My approach to the bathroom has been to first clean it thoroughly and only then think about any fixes or repairs.
Here is a close-up of the build-up on the walls I've been scraping out
I've broken out the 5% HCl solution for the limescale; it's almost completely scraped off from sink, toilet, and surrounding area. Went through 3.5 liters so far. Vinegar just wasn't going to cut it with this one.
Left to do cleaning-wise: (1) full clean of wall and floor tile, (2) clean of upper part of walls and ceiling. Might spray ceiling with degreaser and/or bleach just to see what build-up soaks off. Because the guy was a smoker, degreaser loosens up all sorts of dark brown residue from literally everywhere.
List of potential repairs. Advice appreciated on any and all:
(1) Repaint upper part of bathroom (white). Clean heating pipes with degreaser and repaint with radiator paint.
(2) See what's going on at the back of the toilet dish and around the bottom ring. Right now, the toilet is fixed to the floor with tile grout mixture and nothing in the bathroom is silicone caulked. Sometimes, have not yet determined when and why, there's leakage around the bottom ring of the toilet. Unsure if that's just water making its way from the joint all the way back, or if the issue is with the ring of the toilet itself.
(3) Bathroom door needs old paint stripped, some scraping out and wood filler where it's begun to swell from moisture but the problem is way less than with nuke-it-from-orbit rental door and appears fixable.
All interior doors need a paint strip, filler, and repainting. I will not rip them out at this stage; I will maybe just replace the handles. There is still some life in them imo.
Pictures of bathroom door, including water swelling, some misshaping of the case that would need sanded off when I repaint (has happened on all interior doors so I assume this is ageing related). Also, degreaser tracks in the nicotine build-up providing a "and this is why we don't smoke indoors, kids" cautionary tale.
(4) The shower is one of those wall units and needs replaced. I've been faffing off on that as a new shower is around 100 euro and would require drilling in the wall or the tile to install. But at the very least, this old unit needs the rubber rings at all joints replaced, as they are all old, hard, and brittle and the thing leaks.
Red thing is a bottle cap.
Current state of shower, after having soaked in vinegar for a whole day. All build-up not gone, but it's usable and will do until I decide what to do with the whole contraption. Right now, what's most annoying is that there's no wall mount for the shower handle so I can't really hang out under the shower as is my bad habit; I must rinse, switch water off and rest shower handle on mixer, lather up, turn water back on and rinse. Good for my water bill, but sad.
You can also see the de-limescaled sink which has revealed its former light blue glory.
Last edited by ertyu on Sat Nov 28, 2020 3:14 am, edited 4 times in total.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Unsure why the linked images don't display, this is a right pita. Pictures do open with a select all-copy-paste in browser but ugh. Is there a limit to how many pictures will display in one post, maybe?
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
previous discord-hosted picture uploaded just fine, so i'm not sure the host is the issue. Oh nvmd I'm an idiot I used the wrong button uploading. OK, time for another cup of coffee and an edit to this post.
All done now
All done now
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ThriftyRob
- Posts: 148
- Joined: Wed Jul 01, 2020 7:20 am
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Looks like you have taken on a real challenge with this property. You've made a good start with cleaning off all the accumulated dirt and limescale. In the UK it's usual to conceal pipes behind walls or box them in. I used to be amused by the plumbing in French hotels, where all the pipes are mounted on the walls but I now know which I prefer for ease of repair!
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Fun, but icky too. I have temporarily given up on looking at houses in my price range because my lungs are too fried to tackle disaster cleaning or construction tasks. So, I shall attempt to live vicariously through your adventure.Plumbing is not too tough. I’ve done a lot of it with only reference books and internet clues. I’ve also tagged along with more highly skilled significant others on trickier stuff like hot water tank replacement and frozen pipe repair. Number one task is locate your turnoffs and make sure they work. It also doesn’t hurt to befriend your local knowledgeable old hardware store person.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Cleaning on hold for the time being as I appear to have gotten ill. So far, runny nose transitioning into less runny nose, muscle aches, and a mild fever. Don't plan to do anything about it other than isolate and wait; the runny nose is making me hope it's not corona as corona tends to be in the lungs more than in the upper respiratory tract.
The reason why I am writing is, I'm so grateful to not be working. No need to stuff myself with dayquil so I can continue to be relentlessly gung-ho. No need to justify myself to anyone or to prove that I am "sick enough" to deserve the simple human kindness of taking time to heal. No need to feel guilty for burdening coworkers who would need to pick up my slack, or to worry about catching up when back. Sunch a simple but profound luxury: being able to spend a cold in bed.
The reason why I am writing is, I'm so grateful to not be working. No need to stuff myself with dayquil so I can continue to be relentlessly gung-ho. No need to justify myself to anyone or to prove that I am "sick enough" to deserve the simple human kindness of taking time to heal. No need to feel guilty for burdening coworkers who would need to pick up my slack, or to worry about catching up when back. Sunch a simple but profound luxury: being able to spend a cold in bed.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
You have my respect for taking on that project.
I would get a brush on a stick (like a broom) and scrub every square cm with the strongest possible cleaning solution at least three times, including a scrubdown or two with degreaser. Then follow up with car wash soap, then water. I have no experience, that is just my reaction from looking at the pics. Then cover with a couple of coats of paint primer.
I would get a brush on a stick (like a broom) and scrub every square cm with the strongest possible cleaning solution at least three times, including a scrubdown or two with degreaser. Then follow up with car wash soap, then water. I have no experience, that is just my reaction from looking at the pics. Then cover with a couple of coats of paint primer.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
Wow, that bathroom looks rough. Good luck to you.
Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal
oh ye spoiled westerners that bathroom is the best place in the entire apartment it's at least been renovated 20 years ago
Joke aside, thanks all and sorry, sky, for giving you trauma I laughed when I read your comment because it felt like your sincere reaction was, "napalm, friend, just napalm"
However, no. The bathroom is fine. The napalm is for what used to be the kitchen
Two deaths of old guys in my building, nov 27 and nov 29, on top of the guy whose apartment I moved into who died in the middle of october. The obituaries on the notice board aren't proclaiming cause of death, but I would not be surprised if corona was here and making a sweep.
I leave you with a picture of a 1970s elevator mechanism which I saw when I went up to the roof with the guy who ran an internet cable from the roof down the outside of the building, through my balcony, and into the living room through a hole drilled in the wooden window
Some pictures of my foggy city from the roof
Made an illegal copy of the roof keys. Looking forward to returning there with a beer or two once the weather is nicer to watch the sunset. Or the sunrise. Or both.
that bathroom is the best place in the entire apartment it's at least been renovated 20 years ago Joke aside, thanks all and sorry, sky, for giving you trauma
I laughed when I read your comment because it felt like your sincere reaction was, "napalm, friend, just napalm" However, no. The bathroom is fine. The napalm is for what used to be the kitchen
Two deaths of old guys in my building, nov 27 and nov 29, on top of the guy whose apartment I moved into who died in the middle of october. The obituaries on the notice board aren't proclaiming cause of death, but I would not be surprised if corona was here and making a sweep.
I leave you with a picture of a 1970s elevator mechanism which I saw when I went up to the roof with the guy who ran an internet cable from the roof down the outside of the building, through my balcony, and into the living room through a hole drilled in the wooden window
Some pictures of my foggy city from the roof
Made an illegal copy of the roof keys. Looking forward to returning there with a beer or two once the weather is nicer to watch the sunset. Or the sunrise. Or both.