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Grippe

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Posts posted by Grippe

  1. Here’s the idea: I live in RR and have had a great deal of contracting & specialist work/remodeling done on my original 1970’s home to get it up to snuff (my wife adores Joanna Gaines, just like every other Texas woman).  Along the way I’ve worked with some good local contractors that I fully endorse/recommend and others I won’t call again.  I’m going to post the below recommendations by field/specialty and encourage other Shagsters (don’t call me Shirley) to copy and paste, avoiding the dreaded reply/quote masking effect, with recommendations for their own area.

    Yeah, there’s Yelp, Angie’s List, all of those sites that are a pita imo and I can never quite trust if its sponsored or not – this is a recommendation from a guy in RR based on my experiences (who’s been posting with you assholes since 2008).

    Legend:

    $ = too good to be true? / $$ = about what I expect to pay / $$$ = wtf are artisan prices?!?!?!

    * = good enough quality to satisfy / ** = everyone is happy / *** = this guy is amazing/saved my ass

    (anything below a single * ain’t getting posted as a recommendation – I’m still looking)

     

    AREA: Round Rock/ N. Austin/ Cedar Park / Pflugerville

    General Contractor: (still looking)

    Handyman/Carpenter: (still looking, I do a lot of the small things myself)

    Foundation: (not used – yet)

    Plumbing: Asics Plumbing Services (Jon Betak) / (512) 228-8568 / $$ / *** / I got Jon’s number from a neighbor when my previous plumber attempted to gouge me after we broke ground, Jon showed up under 24 hours and saved the day at a reasonable price

    Electrical: Pincham Energy Solutions (Ryan Pincham) / (512) 514-3629 / $ - $$ / ** - *** / Ryan is a fucking stud, he does damn solid work at a great price and is a veteran to boot, the only thing preventing me from full 3 stars is he is sometimes late (he will stay on a job until it’s done, running late on the next if necessary, which I’m ok with)

    Flooring/Tile: (still looking – bad experience here)

    Drywall (include sheetrock/mud/texture): (still looking – even worse experiences here)

    Painter: (still looking)

    HVAC: Fontaine A/C (Eric Fontaine) / (512) 250-5420 / $ - $$ / ** / Really good work, great price, no drama

    Insulation: (still looking)

    Water Conditioning: Tommy Dorsey Water Conditioning (Tommy Dorsey) / (512) 255-1960 / $ - $$ / ** / Another professional journeyman who does solid work at a great price

    Roofing: Trident Roofing Co. (Tom Willi) / (512) 394-9994 / $$ / ** - *** / I’ve called on Trident three times in 20 years (different houses), the last time about 7 years ago – average prices with top quality work

    Cabinetry/Countertops: Southwest Custom Interiors (Richard Ronk) / (512) 388-2975 / $ - $$ / *** / Another stud – top quality work at a VERY reasonable price by a thoroughly professional team

    Doors/Windows: Anything around the house (K.B.) / (512) 577-9228 / $$ / ** / Average work at an average price – I will prolly call on them again for some of the larger handyman level stuff I need done (I had 2x French doors replace old sliding glass doors)

    Landscaping/Irrigation: (still looking)

    Fencing: B.C. Fence (Dusty Brents) / (512) 284-8716 / $$ / ** / Solid fence at market price, Dusty knows his business and works to make the process easy - excellent service

    • Like 1
  2. I enjoyed the Krakow area - the city was ok but Wielczka (Salt Mine) and Auschwitz are game changers.

    Never been to Odessa but if you're looking for something out of the way, try Ljubljana and Bled (Slovenia), it's a beautiful and peaceful place.

  3. As I'm sure many of you know, Weird Tales was the pulp fiction periodical where many early fantasy, horror and science fiction works were published.  H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard (Cimmeria was based on the foothills around Fredericksburg), Seabury Quinn, etc. were first brought to the American public's awareness by this magazine despite it's financial troubles.

    I've greatly missed hearing recommendations from the old site and comparing thoughts to the books they're read in this genre, so here goes at trying to keep the ball rolling.

    I think it was Rage who gave me the recco to try this series:

    51oul60C3fL._SY346_.jpg

     

    I'm enjoying it so far but it hasn't hit me with plot twists or extraordinary intrigue (like ASoIF or Kingkiller) - does it ramp up a bit in the following books?

    Also, the last Irondruid is now released and in my reading queue - looking forward to seeing how Hearne closes that series.

  4. I just wrote this to another Shagster who PM'd me for rec's:

     

    Quote

    May is beautiful - they might still be having the flower festival in Old Town Square, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

    I prefer to book in MaloStranske (small town) which is still a part of old town.  There are some nice out of the way restaurants that haven't hiked up their prices like Old Town Main (like U Schnellu, Pizza Resturante on Josefska, Ferdinanda (basement place)).

    Definitely do the following:

    Old Town Square - be there at the top of the hour during evening, there are performance from the top of the clock tower that are fun crowd yelling events; take lots of pictures, avoid the tourist groups, and don't eat in the cafes there (prices are WAY jacked up)

    Castle - because it's one of the loveliest Gothic castles still in use (Czech government uses it)

    Charles Bridge - I tell people to go at the crack of dawn, when the mists/fog make it look mysterious (like when it was shown in Mission Impossible 1), later in the day it's packed with tourist, vendors and pickpockets

    Wenceslaus Square (namesti) - it's a pure tourist fest here now, but this square is where Communism broke in 1989.  The protests in this square were what caused the Czechoslovakian communist government to abdicate and started the domino effect of Poland, East Germany and (eventually) Russia to fail.

    Metronome - north across the river of old town, walk up to it, it's a nice easy hike up a small hill, but then enjoy the park with your wife and take plenty of pix looking down into old town

    U Fleku - yeah it's a tourist trap, but it's OLD and it's BEER, but get the pig knuckle and be sure to walk it off by the legions bridge (you can go down on the island and take pictures looking up to the Charles Bridge

    Finally... Petrin, Petrin, Petrin.  The park on the hillside south of the Castle, overlooking all of small and old town (it has a Eiffel tower looking tower at the top).  Stroll through this park, stop at the Petrin Terrace restaurant and enjoy a Krusovice (my favorite Czech pivo), if you see young lovers in the bushes/woods it's considered normal there, just smile and move on

    God I miss that place, best years of my life.

     

    • Like 1
  5. Anytime I see Knopp0e post one of those oversized & incessant realignment posts I'm going to want him/her/it banned.  While I respect anyone freely stating their opinions in an open environment, that guy takes a four year old mentality of screaming what he wants again and again like he's trying to bludgeon us into conforming to his position.

    While not disrespectful on a verbiage level it's still abusive by method.

    • Haha 1
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