Ocean Contractors - Built on Quality

Hi Folks!

My little guy Rialey has always called Stanley Street in Halifax Mighty Machines, just like on TV because Ocean Contractors have all the machines that Mighty Machines have.  We have Might Machine books too.  From the time he started day care in 2006 when he was 2 1/2 years old, we would go up this street and he would call out, Nanny, Mighty Machines, so the street was always called Mighty Machines street from that time on.  Everything on TV that had big machine equipment, was his favourite.

He was so focused on all equipment machinery.  He said he wanted to be a garbage truck driver.  I said, sure, but what about owning the company.  To say the least, little Rialey always loved trucks, bob cats, tractors, loaders and more.  He even loved concrete trucks.  This is what Ocean Contractors is all about.  They have the cleanest trucks I have ever seen anywhere!  The drivers take such good care of all their equipment and especially their trucks.

We started stopping in the parking lot of Ocean Contractors to watch the machines load or unload sand, gravel and dirt.  I'd have to watch with him until the truck was empty.  One day, we decided to drive up to the main building and a man named Darrell came out.  From that time to time, Darrell became Rialey's best machine buddy.  I took pictures of Darrell and Rialey long ago.  About two weeks ago, we stopped again to say hi to Darrell and the "boys'.  When Darrell came out, Rialey said to him, "you said I could drive the tractor at another time, so how about now?.  Darrell laughed and said sure, come on.  Off the walked towards, the tractor.  Darrell felt that it was slow so this would be a good time.  One time about 3 years ago, Darrell let Rialey up into the tractor bunk and within 20 seconds, Rialey moved so many switches, that it took Darrell 20 minutes to put them back into their proper positions.  He chuckled!


So when we stopped in a few weeks ago, Darrell and Rialey were off to drive the tractor.  I didn't have my camera charged very good so I was hoping to get a few good shots and possibly some video, The only video I got was very short blurbs.  Later, Darrell said he had to hold his foot on the brake so hard because Rialey was gunning the gas and Rialey learned how to manipulate the handle to move the tractor bucket up and down and to scoop the dirt.  It was awesome watching him.  He was so proud of himself.

I want to thank Ocean Contractors and in particular Darrell for always taking the time to talk to a little guy who loves machines and who hopes to one day drive them.  I personally hope Rialey will own the company!!

The first pictures will be from about 2009 and the others 2012.  Darrell always made Rialey feel very special and for that, I am so grateful to him.

What impressed me most about Ocean Contractors (besides Darrell of course) is the way their machines are taken care of.  I don't think I have ever seen anyone take such good care of the concrete trucks, tractors & bobcats.  They are green and clean!  The workers at Ocean Contractors are surely some of the best employees and the company is very lucky to have them.  All the guys at Ocean Contractors are so friendly especially with children.  They know that kids love tractors, cement trucks, loading trucks and dump trucks.  I've watched many a sand, dirt and crushed rocks roll down the sliding truck bed.

Ocean Contractors are a wonderful clean company with the friendliest of employees.  Thank you Ocean, the best concrete company around!  Their reputation is for great quality cement.

Enjoy the pictures.  When I finally get a video of Rialey driving the tractor, I'll update my post for you to enjoy.

Jack Flemming native of Halifax and founded Ocean Contractors Ltd. Built on Quality - http://www.oceancontractors.ca  902-434-4944

                             These pictures were THEN! (about 2009)

This was about 2009, Darrell & Rialey at Ocean Contractors on Stanley St. in Halifax

Rialey has grown a lot since this picture was taken.


These pictures are NOW 2012

                       

              Rialey and Darrell towards the back to get in the tractor. Rialey can't wait to get in that tractor!

Rialey just inside the tractor & Darrell climbing in the other side.  I wish you could really see his smile here, it is almost breaking his face!

Now he really ready to drive it.  There's no doubt that Rialey will drive big machinery like this tractor when he grows up.  He said he felt so comfortable behind the tractor gears.

Hey Nan, look at me!

He was so proud of himself and couldn't believe that he actually drove the tractor (with Darrell's help of course).

What a sweet & handsome kid.  This made a great ending to a wonderful day.  He started his new special school and loves it.  Then we drive down "Mighty Machine" street (Stanley St in Halifax) which is what he called it since he was 2 1/2 years old.  We stopped in to see Darrell, to show him how big Rialey was getting and Rialey asked him if he could have that drive on the tractor he was promised.  The little guy never forgets!  So they went!

Rialey and Darrell 2012.  Darrell, you a hero to little guy Rialey and for me too!  You always had the time for us to come out and say hello and to help make a little boy's dream come true.

Darrell getting tout of the tractor with Rialey

I'm watching from a safe distance! But boy is Rialey ever digging into the dirt and lifting it up on to the pile.

It was amazing to see him drive this tractor.  He was really gunning it.  Darrell said he had to hold both feet to the floor with the break!!  Rialey was pushing that CAT.

Hey Nan, I'm really doing it!!! Bucket up! HERE I COME!!

You can see Rialey using the handle to move the bucket up, down and dump.  He is so intent on moving the bucket that he won't even look at me.

Kapo Trading Company

I've been to Hawaii last year and I loved it so much, I could live there. Unfortunately my family is here in Nova Scotia.  One thing I can tell you is the high quality of Hawaii goods.  I love all things Hawaiian.  The home made dresses we passed along our travels were so beautiful.  The Hawaiian pineapple was so fresh and tasty. It's my grandson's favourite, little guy Rialey.  I am working in conjunction with this wonderful company who make original Hawaiian clothes, drinks and so much more.

Their adds are below so don't be shy about looking and putting your order in for some excellent goods and pricing, AND it's free shipping for orders over $29.95 US.

Thanks for stopping by.
Debbie

Try Something Different Have Fun...Kapo Trading Your Hawaiian Products Company

Authentic Premium quality Hawaiian shirts - border, floral, woody and surfing! Huge selection, made in Hawaii.

Authentic Premium quality Hawaiian shirts - border, floral, woody and surfing! Huge selection, made in Hawaii.

Premium quality Tiki Bars - indoor, outdoor. Great Addition for the Luau, Deck or Pool.

New I-MAC from Future Shop having major PROBLEMS!

UPDATE:  I got my MAC from Future Shop and with the tech guy and he said the mother board wasn't fried like the service guy said the night before.  He did say it failed a PC test, which apparently most all do.  He said he let the Mac run for days and he couldn't find anything wrong with it.  I said if it happens again, I'll bring it in.   He said fine.  He was very polite and helpful.  I will bring the Mac back if it starts acting up again.  I hope not because it is a lot of money and I want a good computer.

I hope that what I typed below won't become a reality.  I do feel that this Future Shop in Bayer's Lake was very service oriented and helpful.

I can't believe it, my new I-Mac, 27" which I purchased on May 29th 2012, has a fried mother board!  This is the 2nd item I purchased from Future Shop that is defected or a lemon.  I had to take my camera back and thankfully, the GM of Future Shop in Bayer's Lake Dennis, exchanged the camera for me with one that was better.  Thankfully I purchased the extended warranty offered by Future Shop which is over and above the Manufacturer's warranty.  Now, I can't believe I took my IMAC in on Sunday because it was shaking (the screen) and then Saturday, the screen went dark grey.  They thought I'd get it back within 24 to 48 hours.  I hadn't heard from them by Tuesday, so I called Tuesday night and was told that the Motherboard was fried and they had to order a new one. It could take anywhere from 1-2 months.  That is totally unacceptable.  I asked to speak to the manager because if a new IMAC had such a severe breakage at this new stage, I can't imagine what it will work like in a few years. 

I will call him tomorrow and the IT tech took a lot of notes. I expect a new IMAC and not the broken one.  This is not quality if MACs are turning out to be lemons.  This is the 2nd MAC I purchased in 4 years and the other one broke in the first night.  The motherboard was fried as well.  What is happening APPLE????

I'll update you on how this gets resolved by Future Shop and maybe Apple as well.

UPDATED AGAIN: Oct 26th.

I have contacted Future Shop and spoke to Denis one of the managers and spoke about the problems with my 4 month old IMAC.  I'll bring it in to them when I get a moment, probably when I do my travels in November. In the meantime, I have been emailing and calling APPLE in California.  To date, no resolution to my IMAC problems.  Here just a list of some:

- shakes back and forth when I click the mouse
- Turn on: Not consistent at start up.  Screen turns white then black then comes back brighter
- too long starting up and SOMETIMES goes from a med grey colour with the apple sign & my name & ask for password. I click my name & apple sign then it shakes and starts up with the galaxy
- MS errors
- scrapping sounds within the IMAC
- keeps blinking then shakes when I click enter
- if the IMAC is on too long, it won't give out any sound at all I have to turn the IMAC off then back on to get the sound to work.
- when I click on a game, it goes to a deep grey screen and stays that way so I have to hard shut it off then start it back up.
- if I start it back up right away, the entire screen turns into little individual coloured double lines.

I'm feed up with this Apple product and I want something done about it.
People should not have to go through this to get the machine to work properly and with this many problems, it can only get worse!

Thanks for letting me vent.  I'll try Future Shop tomorrow and then Apple again on Monday.

Debbie

UPDATE: Fireplace front refinishing

Hello.

When I moved into my home, many years ago, one of the first things I fell in love with was my fireplace.  It had the Santa bricks (that's what I call them).  They are the red, lined bricks.  The front of the fireplace opening is very small, unlike what I had in my other place, which was so huge that I could sit inside it!  The fireplace didn't have a mantle on it so that was one of the first things we purchased.

We went to Kent's Building and looked at fireplace mantles.  They were very expensive.  The service guy who waited on us said for us to wait a minute.  He came back and brought us to a complete fireplace mantle and outside closure.  It was unfinished so we could stain it or paint it whatever we like.  The price was only $150.00 dollars but the actual price was $650.  The person who ordered it special, didn't come back for it so Kent's sold it to us.

We brought it home and pushed it up against our own fireplace with our bricks already in place and it fit perfectly as if it was made for our fireplace.  We couldn't believe it!  We decided to stain it with a cherry red stain, to match our existing furniture at the time.  So I sanded and then stained it myself.  I usually don't do well to paint or stain anything, because I paint everything in my way!!!

Later years, my cousin Richard, put a back on the mantle, which didn't come with any.  I lost many things down the back of the mantle.  The back was stained the same colour and no one ever could guess that it didn't come as one piece.

Throughout the years, cracks began going across the red, lined bricks, leading upwards.  The crack became longer and wider.  I knew it was time to call in a fireplace guy to see what could be done and if I could afford it.  There was a huge gap between the fireplace and the walls so I wanted this to be fixed as well.

I made a number of calls and left messages, but you know, it amazes me how few called me back.  One person actually came out to my home to give me an estimate.  The other company called but never came out and none of the other companies I call, ever called me back.  I guess it does pay to do your research.

I had an idea of what I wanted, it was rocks or stones.  The man came out and looked over the fireplace carefully and quoted $1500.  Well, I couldn't afford that.  We discuss it for a while and he finally came down to $1200.  I agreed.  We sat down and picked out what type of fireplace I wanted it to look like.

I ended up with Sandstone.  It has a tinge of green in it, which would go with all the colours in my living room.   Prior to this, I didn't have a hearth but I wanted one.  He was able to raise the flat hearth that I had up to about 5 inches and he put two huge sandstones on it for the hearth.  He made the hearth even with the actual inside of the fireplace.  He also did over the inside bricks.  He said I shouldn't use the fireplace as a shredder and to not burn Christmas and other papers in it.  Actually, I don't use it all that much anyway and I do get it cleaned every two years.  He inspected it and said it was pretty clean.

These are pictures of my Santa brick fireplace and as you're looking at it, the large crack
goes up from about the 4th brick over.  I loved these bricks but I need a change. My fireplace guy
said they don't even make these kind of bricks anymore.  Too bad, they are nice with the lines through them.  They look or remind me of Santa bricks.

While he was doing this, I was getting ready to have my wood floors redone & the walls painted.

The light spots are the sandstone beginning to dry and it will brighten right up!

You can see the two huge slabs he put down for the hearth.

This was the artist who brought new life to my fireplace!  He really knew his stuff.

See how lovely the sandstone is and how it brightens up the fireplace.

I really love it!  I'm so happy I did it and you are thinking of changing your fireplace, don't hesitate, you'll love it!!

I loved this colour for many years, but now I want to paint it an antique white.  I placed a colour block up against it and the sandstone came to life!  I'll post his name on an update.  So folks, if you think you WANT to fix your fireplace, I'd recommend doing it.  It will make a big different to your room and your comfort.  Thanks for your time reading my blog.
Debbie

Movie - The Black Knight Arises

I picked the little guy up at day camp, after he returned from a hard, long day at Ross Farm.  He reminded me that I was going to take him to the show to see the Black Knight Arises.  Actually, I was going to take my nephew but he and his family left for home in Toronto today.  I wasn't going to, but then decided, yes I will.  So I surprised him by driving towards the movie theatres.

He asked where we were going and I then said to the movies.  He was excited.  Unfortunately when we arrived at the theatre, it was only about 4:35 pm and the movie didn't start until 6 pm.  We got food stuff and waited.

Finally we went in and picked our seats (not too many there at all since the movie was out for a little while now) and had to watch all the pre-showings, way too many!  Then finally the movie came on.

WELL, I can tell you it wasn't a disappointment!!!!  It was so engrossing that I don't think I blinked for a while.  Little Rialey said his eyes were dry because he couldn't even blink.  The movie was that good.  Really, I didn't expect that it would be that exceptional.  They did it more than justice.  I don't want to give anything away here, but I can tell you I usually can figure out plots in movies, but this movie, I couldn't.   I actually couldn't imagine what was coming next and next then next.  It kept me awake and on my toes.  It was exciting, fast-paced, great acting and action.  I don't think that anyone who is a follower of these types of movies will be disappointed.

I can't wait for more of these movies to come out and I know they will!!  But that's my little secret until you see the movie.

Nite for now!

Mandy's Little Art

Hi everyone.  My daughter Mandy started her own jewellery design company.  She has made some wonderful jewellery.  She is so artistic!  She can sing like no tomorrow and she paints as well.  She had made lovely paintings.  She is brilliant in cartoon art and she loves to paint pictures on rocks.

I'd like you to visit her site and if you are interested, please give her a call or contact her through her contact page.  Thanks for taking the time to help a struggling artist.

Kitchen cabinets refacing

I am in the process of deciding if I should reface my kitchen cabinets.  I can't afford to replace them but I don't think I would want to because I have old kitchen cabinets that are about 75 years old.  The cabinets have the old Boston trim and they have solid doors, but they are in bad shape.  Since I can't afford to replace them, I then decided to look into refacing my cabinets.

I started requesting quotes from different suppliers.  I first started looking on the interest. I like to read reviews from people who used the services of various suppliers.  One supplier I found had an advertisement on the TV channel, Atlantic Kitchen Refacing, so I left a message to call me.  Their price was very high I felt, but the end product would be awesome.  Their price didn't include the door knobs or handles or slow close doors.   I decided to get a few more quotes. I contacted various companies and Kitchen Refacers from Middle Sackville came and quoted me.  This was the lowest quote.   I received his quote a few days later.  I have one more quote to get tomorrow from Cabinet Works, then I'll have to decided if I can do the refacing at this time.  Cabinet Works came and later sent me a quote.  He was the middle of the other two quotes.  However, his price included all the knobs and handles.  I have to find the money to send the little guy to the special academy school for September and that will cost quite a few dollars.

One thing Atlantic Kitchen Refacing in Halifax, Kitchen Refacers of Sackville and Cabinet Works said is that if I can get someone to sand and paint in between the cabinets and above and around the doors, then it would cost a lot less to just replace the doors with the soft close hinges.  I brought my son-in-law in to access if he can do it since he a paint.  He said he could do it, no problem. 

So this is one way to save money for those of you who can get your projects done much cheaper than to go full into service product.

I have to say that when I put up the antique white sample cabinets to my old cabinets, it was amazing and brought the kitchen into a lighter, more brighter space and it also brought out the antique white colour in my counter and floor tiles.

Remember, get more than one quote, compare prices, ask questions including how can a job be done cheaper but with decent quality or do they have insurance in the event some accident happens in your home, and what accessories are included.  You can even ask if they are prepared to a discount and how long the quote is for.  Cabinet Works said his quote is good for up to a year.

One more ironic thing was when I took the sample of the cabinet (antique white) into my living room and put it against my dark stained cherry red fireplace, it brought it to life!  I am going to have my fireplace done in antique white now and my son - in - law is willing to do it and I'll pay him.  I'll post some pictures later.

Stay tuned.