Photo #359

Thank goodness it's Friday! Now that I'm back to work full time, that phrase has meaning again! I've had a busy week doing prep work on the exterior of the old CPR Steamship Terminal building. Here are a few photos to give you a glimpse into any given day at work for me...

My "office". Four storeys of scaffolding along the front of the building which is also wrapped in tarps to minimize dust and paint chips falling onto the street below.

Chipping the old paint off the decorative concrete mouldings is not unlike peeling the shell off a hard boiled egg. A little tap with my knife and peel off the flakes. We're not going to completely strip them. We only want to remove the loose paint and prep the bare concrete for painting, repairing where needed.

This is one of several faces found on each corner of the building. I'm not sure if it's Poseidon or Neptune. This one has been prepped and primed  by my coworkers and is ready for painting.

And finally, here's what the interior currently looks like. We're not painting in here, but I just wanted to give you a look.

 

In spite of the daunting amount of work that needs to be done, I kind of like being able to say I've had a hand in restoring a Victoria landmark.

W.O 365

Photo #355

Being a painter and not having a car can be a bit of a hassle sometimes. Like with any trade, sometimes there can be a lot of tools or safety gear (and let's not forget my lunch) that I may have to bring to a job site, depending on the scope of work. Thankfully Victoria is a small enough city to easily get around by bicycle, bus or on foot. Most of the time I can manage by carrying my most basic tools (brushes, knives, scrapers, etc) and my lunch in an average backpack, but sometimes I need a lot more. Rain gear, hardhat, safety vest, caulking gun, respirator, and so on. Thank goodness the company I work for brings the ladders and heavy equipment to the sites.

So, for those big jobs, I finally went out and bought a bigger bag...

It's actually a rolling duffel. A little handle slides up from the top so I can roll it along like airline luggage. Or, if I can't roll it, I can carry it horizontally like a regular duffel. I even got it on sale for 50% off! My coworkers bet I could carry a 5 gallon paint pail in this thing!

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Photo #348

Two job sites in one photo. The blue building on the far left is Orchard House, where I worked last year. The sandstone coloured building on the right with the Roman style columns is the old Canadian Pacific Steamship building, more recently known as the Wax Museum, where I'll start working on Tuesday. In the middle is BC's Legislature building. I haven't worked there. I'm not sure any work gets done there. *ahem*

Photo taken by me in 2007. It's the only one I have that clearly shows the Wax Museum.

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Photo #299

Dusting off the old tools and heading back to work tonight...

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Photo #201

The view from my "desk" at work...

That's my safety line on the left and the swing stage's power cable on the right.

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Photo #196

My only complaint about this time of year is that I'm not too crazy about going to work before dawn...

However, seeing the sunrise from the roof of a 24 storey building this morning really made up for it...

Neither of these photos have been edited. The first one was taken at about 7:00am and the second one was nearly an hour later.

W.O 365

Photo #195

Swing stage beams, lifelines, and counterweights, oh my!

This is where I'm working this week, but I didn't have the camera with me today, so this photo is from the last time I was on the roof of this building a few weeks ago. It looked the same today as it does in the picture.

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Photo #187

This is where I spent my day...

How was your Monday?

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Photo # 180

A great perspective along the starboard side of the ship. The building I was working on today is the blue high rise in the background....

(Colour and contrast were enhanced.)

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Photo #147

A peek at where I've been working this week...

This is looking into the liquor store from the back room. I've been given the task of painting the entire store one section at a time while renovations are taking place. The tricky part? The store is open during renovations.

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Photo #141

Like I said yesterday, I keep my equipment and work area tidy!

Of course I don't mean any disrespect to my co-painters. I just find the job goes smoother when things are clean and organized. And if my boss sees this or the previous photo, I took them during designated breaks.

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Photo # 140

When I use the paint sprayer, I'm much more tidy than my co-painters...

Tomorrow, I'll show you how I set up the sprayer.

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Photo #133

The view from my "office" today...

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Photo #97

My concrete ball. I actually made this last summer at work during a lunch break and rediscovered it while unpacking some boxes today. The concrete I made it from is the quick-set type that you just add water to. I had some left over that would have gone to waste, so at my friend's suggestion I made a ball by compressing and rolling it in my gloved hands until it was as round as I could get it. It's not quite perfectly round, but I still like it. It's like holding a little tiny planet in the palm of my hand.

The penny is just there for a size reference.

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Photo #84

The hundred-and-five-year-old Character house I've been working on this week...

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Photo #57

I spent today washing parapet walls on the tallest roof in Victoria...

What did you do?

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Photo #35

Look up...waayyyy up.....

This is the 23 storey building I'm going to be working on very soon. Today was the fall safety orientation. I promise I'll post a photo of the view from the rooftop.

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Photo #27

Deja Vu, I'm working on this building again...

Just a little touch up on something that wasn't done last year. I'm working by myself on this one, but that's kind of a nice change. At least I know the building!

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Photo #6

Painting isn't a dirty job per Se, but it can be messy...

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