When to Have Gatherings?

With the Chinese almanac Tong Shu shared by The 8th Voyager, my plan is to have my house blessed followed by a house warming party with family, relatives and friends on May 21.

Here is the complete list of auspicious gathering dates:

When to Move to Your New Home?

Here are the auspicious move in dates in 2010 for those planning to do so.

I am planning to move to my new condo on Sunday, May 16. I think that day is perfect because it is very close to the new moon which will manifest itself on May 14.

When to Start Renovating?

I have not really thought about the ideal or the lucky day to start renovating the interior of my condo. However, I was suprised to learn that the day that coincides with the actual start of the renovation work - Tuesday, March 16 - was an auspicious day prescribed by the Chinese almanac Tong Shu.

This is the complete list of auspicious dates for renovation work. Thanks to The 8th Voyager for the info.

By the way, Happy April Fools Day and have a Blessed Holy Week!

Interior Renovation - Day 6 [This Way to the Walk-in Closet]

• The walk-in closet area is now defined after the partition has been setup today.
• The door jamb between the walk-in closet and the bedroom, as well as the one between the walk-in closet and the dining area were setup by Mang Rey.

Interior Renovation - Day 5 [Taking Shape]

• The bedroom is definitely taking shape. I think it will be a very cozy bedroom - just the way I want it.
• Now I understand why Mang Rey calculated that the renovation work will take roughly 2 months. The installation of the paneling alone takes a long while, not to mention that the bleaching, sanding and staining processes will more than double the installation effort.
• Four door jambs were delivered today from a woodcraft shop along the main road.

Interior Renovation - Day 4 [Divide and Conquer]

• The frame for the divider that separates the bedroom from the living and dining rooms have been setup today. The 3 skilled workers should now be able to simultaneously work on different areas of the condo - including the roughing in for the lighting, outlets and switches.
• The panels for the double wall were also extended to the section facing east.
• Another set of 34 kiln-dried S4S were delivered today.
• I finally managed to find a way to dispose of the 22 sacks of debris collected during the first 3 days of work. The guys delivering the materials agreed to take the debris with them and then to return the sacks during the next delivery.

Interior Renovation - Day 3 [22 Sacks of Debris]

• In the third day of the renovation work, 22 sacks of debris have been collected following the demolition of a small section of the T&B wall. I was informed that the pre-casted T&B walls were of high quality. It will be long before the T&B area will be worked on because the inner rooms - bedroom, reading nook and living room - will be prioritized in the succeeding days.
• Additional double wall panels were added today in the dining and living room areas.

Interior Renovation - Day 2 [Renovation Work Indeed in Full Swing]

• A section of the L-shaped T&B was torn down today rendering the area more spacious and ready for the installation of bathtub. In the process, the T&B door was displaced - I need to give it away (any takers?).
• The paneling of the double wall was started today. Initial electrical cabling was also done by Mang Alejandro. Each double wall panel is roughly 11 inches wide. When all panels are installed they will be bleached, stained in off white and applied with polyurethane coating. Each panel will also have a dark brown border.
• The wall-hung cabinet was installed with its own superimposed paneling. I was informed narra plywood will eventually be used in order to have better grain details. This paneling will conceal the necessary wires to and from the wall-mounted LCD TV.

Interior Renovation - Day 1 [Renovation Work Officially Begins Today]

• Another set of materials were ordered today by Mang Rey. Most of the materials were for electrical works.
• Mang Alexandro and Jeff completed stripping the T&B with its tiles. They just left untouched a small patch of tiles behind the pipe since the piping around the T&B will be concealed.
• The wall-hung home entertainment system cabinet which I designed was assembled today by Mang Rey and Mang Eric. I closely worked with them to ensure that the measurements were precisely followed. I was amazed to learn that the cabinet can hold more than 60 kilos of load. Mang Rey himself sat on it and before I could protest he explained that the mounting was strong.

Interior Renovation - Day 0 [Mobilization]

• Today the foreman ordered the materials needed for the early stage of the interior renovation work.
• In the evening I provided the orientation to the workers. I informed them of the things to remember while working onsite, including the penalties should they fail to follow the guidelines set by the property developer.
• For a while I was worried how 50 pieces of 12-foot kiln-dried S4S, along with 30 pieces of 3/4"-thick plyboard and other consummables, will make it from the ground floor to my condo unit. How did they make it to my condo unit? Piece by piece.
• Except for some vinyl tiles which Mang Rey (the foreman) managed to remove, not much was accomplished today. The workers arrived late onsite because the bus which brought Mang Alejandro, Mang Eric and Jeff from Isabela to Manila broke down. The typical 8-hour journey to Manila was extended to more than half a day. The workers requested to catch up on their sleep in order to have the energy to fully start with the work. I didn't have issues with the request and so I looked forward to the renovation work in full swing starting tomorrow.