A Recap ... And a Reveal - Part 2

Not to leave you up in the air, but ... in my last post, that's exactly where the patio/porch project was. We had framed the roof and it was need of shingles. After some rookie errors on my part (not knowing that the mismatched colors on the shingles were done that way on purpose because one half would be covered by the next row), we put on a roof.

The next night we got five inches of snow. That pretty much closed the door on finishing the project last year. With the exception of one or two days after that, it was cold and either raining or snowing. No chance really to get it done.

At the end of April, we pulled the tarps off all of the construction materials that had been under wraps for almost six months. Lawrence put scallops on the sides and we closed in the ceiling. FINALLY! I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. And then, we covered  all of the ceiling with beadboard. And at long last, one by one, the columns I had been waiting to see since the day we purchased them in September, began to go up.

After that, we worked around some issues with the caps and bases and installed a ceiling fan. Now, all I have left to do is to caulk the seams between the boards and do some touch-up painting. So, ladies and gentlemen, I give you the almost 100-percent complete patio!

 

It's been a long time coming but I'm so ready to enjoy it. (And have been during its various stages in the past few weeks.) It has been a fabulous addition and one we'll be able to enjoy for a long time to come. I also think it has transformed the entire look of this part of the house. What do you think?

A Recap ... And a Reveal - Part 1

So, last August I tore down the deck. I didn't know just how we were going to build the covered porch out back that we had been talking about off and on for years. What I did know was that nothing was ever going to happen as long as the ramshackle 10x10 deck was still standing.

It took DAYS to get the deck down. (While the previous owners never did anything else right around here, they DID put that deck together well! But, in typical fashion, they didn't plan it out well. We always thought the deck never went with the house, a fact made more obvious by the fact that its placement also looked like it was just plunked down in the yard.) It took several more days to clear the mess, remove all the rock (white marble chip that we had put around the deck and then layers of Ponderosa rock that had been there previously, buried under layers of plastic).

Then, we mapped out the placement of some 4x6 posts and poured a 12x18 concrete slab around them. I had never poured concrete before. I'd messed with lots of mortar out front so I couldn't imagine it could be too hard. Let's just say it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me. Never. Ever. Never again. (Did I mention I will NEVER pour concrete again?)

And then, just as I'd done with the front porch and the old sidewalk, I began covering it with bricks.

And covering it. In all, I put down nearly 1,000 bricks.

And then, after weeks of staring down, things started looking up. Literally.

 

I remember very clearly wondering just how in the name of all that's holy Lawrence and were I going to get that ginormous truss more than 12 feet in the air. But I should have known that Lawrence would have a plan. He is always the man with the plan!

 And it was nothing but up from there on out.

Better Than Factory

Have I mentioned lately that I love Lawrence?

He has never officially told me no. He has gently nudged me in other directions. He has provided a working alternative. But he has never just flat out said, "No. I'm not doing this."

I know, however, that in all the years we've been working together, that he really, really wanted to say it last weekend. Even as the plan to address the single-piece caps and bases was coming out of his mouth, I knew he really wanted to say, "No, I'm not doing this."

I had asked him if we couldn't just use my miter saw to cut the caps and bases in half and then somehow screw them together. Lawrence’s concern was that it would leave a significant gap if we used the miter saw. “Your gap will be as wide as the blade,” he said. “And we don’t want that.”

But then I saw the wheels turning behind his eyes. He turned to me with that grin that I have come to know so well. “We can get some aluminum strips. We’ll drill holes on each side and then use screws to attach the strips on each side and that will connect them.” That was our plan last Thursday. 

I went to the hardware store that night and bought six feet of 1-inch wide aluminum strips and a metal-cutting blade for my saw. I was going to buy screws, too, but Lawrence said he had those covered.

When he arrived last Saturday though he plopped down a small box of white rivets. “These should let us cinch up the gap a little more,” he said. Unfortunately, they were too short to do the job. (I had to go buy half-inch silver ones instead.) Lawrence also decided that the metal blade would leave an even larger gap so we didn’t use it.

When we cut the first cap/base, we held our breath. As we carefully fitted each half with an aluminum strip, we were anxious to reach  the moment of truth. Taking on the first column, we began the assembly. DRAT! A nasty gap.

Lawrence shook his head. He was quiet for a few minutes and then said: "We need to put the strips on the opposite sides, attach them and then put in a third hole to cinch it all up." And that's what we did. We decided to make the bases our project guinea pigs before moving up to the caps. After doing just a few, we had a system down -- and one that worked. The result? I think it's better than factory.

The good news is that this is the only place you'll see such a gap. The bad news? Blogger won't let me publish a comparison in this post. (D*MN you, Blogger! Been a pain lately with photos.) Hoping that when I do my next post, photos won't be such an issue.

Columns! But wait, WTF?!

I managed to score the day off before the Fourth. Lawrence didn't have plans, so we thought that, at long last, we could FINALLY get the columns up. It was a day I had been waiting for since November when they had finally arrived (more than two months after they were ordered) and were hauled home.

We unpacked the first box and searched in vain for instructions. We opened a second box. Still, no instructions. Oh well. It seemed forthright enough. Four rounded panels. You snap them together. All there is to it, right? Not quite.

I'll admit, that first one sent me into small fits of rage. Each time we thought we had it whipped, something went awry. And then, finally ...  There it was! The first one.

I was like a kid in a candy store. Wound up and happy to finally see this. Until we opened up the first of five boxes, each containing a cap and base.

Last fall, when the three-week delivery time on the columns was hitting four weeks (and would ultimately hit nearly nine weeks) I called to change my order. "I can't wait anymore ... the roof has to go on," I said. "I need the two-piece cap and base instead of the one." The two-piece version means I'd be able to wrap the two pieces around the column and attach. OK. Done.

Except here in my hands was a one-piece base and a one-piece cap. WTF?! Now what?!

The ever-unflappable Lawrence shook his head and calmly replied: "I guess we're just putting up columns today." And that's exactly what we did!

Two columns. Then three. (You get the idea by now.)

Slowly, the support posts began to disappear and the patio began to take on a more finished look. I had to pry myself away from the middle of the backyard, each time a new one went up. With everything cleared out of the way so we could work, and the construction materials becoming so many empty boxes, it was coming together – FINALLY – before my very eyes! 

My excitement waned, however, when conversation shifted back to the caps and bases. Having taken almost nine weeks to get them, I did not relish the thought of extending this project ANOTHER nine weeks. (By that point, we’d surpass a year since starting!) But what were my options? Before we called it a day on Thursday (nearly 10 hours in), Lawrence and I had arrived at a plan when he returned on Saturday. Would it work? We’d soon find out.

Dead Woman Walking

Today I returned to work after a four-day weekend. Before you envy me too much, I spent 40+ hours of that time working on the patio. But I'm getting too far ahead in the update.

A few weekends ago, I discovered a fabulous new tool: a drywall lift. I had already mentioned that Lawrence and I struggled with the plywood for the ceiling. But, since it was going to be covered by beadboard, we wouldn't need to put it up in full strips; we could slice and dice into more manageable pieces. With the beadboard though, that wasn't an option. It was bad enough that we were having to piece it together at the ends because the panels are 8 feet long while the patio ceiling is 12 feet long. (The resulting gaps have yet to be caulked. But, I digress.)

Before we could even get started on the patio, the mother decided that she wanted the carport to have a beadboard ceiling, too. Sigh. Another trip to the hardware store.

But, on this particular day, the trip to the hardware store, we rented the lift. Interesting contraption that. It's on wheels and has a crank that lifts a tiltable easel that you load your board onto. From there, it's up, up and away! Once you get the board in place, you lock the wheel and the pressure holds it there. Not that I ever plan such a job again, but if I did, I wouldn't do it without renting one of these babies!

Before that weekend had ended, we had installed more than 400 square feet of beadboard. Some in the carport (which also got a new light and a fancy new medallion). And then, there was the patio. A nice hole in the middle got the wiring pulled through, just waiting for a fan/light to be attached. (A photo I'd love to share but Blogger is having none of it.)

Next stop: COLUMNS!

A Crew Member Moves On

As Lawrence and I were working over Memorial Day weekend, a car pulled up in the alley at the edge of the driveway. A man got out and approached us.

"I don't mean to bother people who are working," he began. "What's the story on your Thunderbird there? Is it running?"

"Yes, but not well," I responded. "She needs work."

And then, the ultimate question: "Is she for sale?"  It seems the guy had bought a motor for his son's aging T-bird but the chassis was so rusted out he was afraid that "the motor would go right through the car." He'd been looking for a while and noticed Ladybird a while back

For many months, the mother and I had discussed what to do with Ladybird. While she hadn't settled completely on any option, the one the mother absolutely did not want to do was to sink more money into getting her fixed. As much as I missed having her running, I had to admit that it was a wise choice. The car is 23 years old. It probably has 140,000 to 150,000 miles on it. It probably would need at least, being conservative, $800-$900 to get up and running again in some kind of shape.

I told the mother about the offer and gave her the guy's phone number. About three days later, she finally called him. And two weeks ago, Ladybird, who had been idled in the driveway for almost eight months, drove away.

She not only left a noticeable hole in the driveway, but she left a hole in my heart, too. LB and I have had many adventures together. That car hauled as much, if not more, than any truck ever could. Her trunk alone was larger than some small cars!

So, goodbye and good luck, Ladybird. You served us more than well and we'll always think of you fondly.

Channeling Michelangelo

Getting back to the progress on the porch ...

Once we got the back sealed up, Lawrence came and added the shingles to the sides of the porch. In the "Let's Make the Whole House Match" department, we were getting closer to .1000.  Bricks? Check. Scallops? Check! That leaves just beadboard and columns to go.

Once the scallops were in place, Lawrence and I took on a few tasks:

1) Putting the wiring in place to eventually power a ceiling fan and light

2) Installing a brace to hold the future ceiling fan, and
3) Enclosing the ceiling in plywood, a surface that would eventually get covered in beadboard.

It sounds easy. The first item on the list I was the most concerned about. After putting in the outdoor outlet some years back, and then adding two more indoors since, I know what a pain-in-the-*ss job wiring is. When we started, I steeled myself for a lengthy and difficult process.

It only took a little more than 30 minutes, most of which was spent drilling a hole above the door, near where the existing light fixture is mounted. Once the hole was drilled through, Lawrence started to fish around inside it. Then he began to laugh. He had successfully thread the wire through. Two minutes later, the wire was pulled across to the center of the ceiling. Voila!

We were going to attempt Job 2 when Lawrence said we had to finish Job 3 first. So, that's what we set about doing. The first sheet of plywood was murder. WHAT IN THE HELL WERE WE THINKING?! Hoisting a full sheet of 3/4-inch plywood over one's head, balanced in part by a 76-year-old man who isn't any bigger than me and then, attempting to wrest it into place in a manner slightly resembling level ... let's just say it wasn't the brightest thing I've ever done. Then I remembered: Lawrence and I had talked about this. We knew we weren't going to make it through the project THIS way. Since we were going to put beadboard over it anyway, we cut the panels in half.

What a difference! Still heavy. Still labor intensive. But infinitely better. And we managed to get it finished, too. With that task complete, Lawrence put up the flashing. Hey, it's starting to look a lot less like the Beverly Hillbillies! Maybe something really will come of all this.

Next stop: beadboard.

Rockin' Robins

Just as things were starting to get fired up again at This D*mn House, I came out one morning to find straw and other debris all over Pearl's roof and hood. It seems a robin had been trying to build a nest atop the ceiling fan in the carport and had been deterred by some of the nasty winds we had in early May.

She was diligent though and I came home a few days later to find this.

I'm a soft touch and as much as I might have liked to tear down the nest and keep all that gunk off of Pearl, I didn't. As a result, the mama settled in.

And then one day, I saw a tiny head pop up out of the nest. Then another one! "We have two baby robins!" I excitedly told the mother.

And the mama robin kept herself busy with the little duo.

 

 Or so I thought ...

They didn't make much noise but I would occasionally see one or then maybe both babies. But one day, I came outside and spotted this:

There were THREE!!!!

And just as quickly as they appeared, they disappeared. Sort of.

I would frequently see one of the babies relentlessly chasing his mama, squawking to be fed. She obliged.

And then I noticed that one of the babies was still on the ground, not flying like his siblings. He stayed close to the tree that separates our part of the lot from our neighbor's. We watched for him so as not to step on, run over with a lawnmower or to protect from a rogue cat.

Finally, I saw the baby fly. He would teeter wherever he landed. And then fall. After two days of this, I noticed that he was walking on what would be his knees, not his feet.

I was able to scoop him up in a box and realized that one foot appeared to be damaged; the other was a mangled mess. So, while he could fly, he could never land. So, for several days he was shuttled between a box, a bird cage and the great outdoors. I made him a makeshift stand he could lean against. I fed him bread, cereal and worms. He ate hungrily, gulping the cereal from an eyedropper. He would try to leap on my hand and once outside, he would hobble around, occasionally taking a short flight before crashing off something. I would talk to him and he would sing back at me!

And then one morning, I awoke to find he had died. He looked very peaceful.
I was sad. But, at least he was not out on a cold, wet night. He was not torn apart by cats. He was not eaten alive by bugs or mites. I still see his parents and siblings; they have settled in about 20 feet from where the nest once was. Evenings, they are outside at dusk dining on lightning bugs. I like to think that maybe that little guy is, too, somewhere. Somewhere where he can fly ... and safely land.

Wait. Where did 2014 go?

Hi! Remember me? Yeah. That me. The one at This D*mn House.

I can hardly believe that 2014 is nearly half over. It's been a really busy one already. (Can't you tell? It's June 26 and I'm just NOW posting something!) Hope that everyone is well. Hope there is even anyone left out there to read this.

So, you remember that covered patio? You know, the one I started at the end of last summer and then had to quit working on when Mother Nature kicked into overdrive in November. It's still there. And it's starting to see some progress! Let's take some time to catch up. I'm getting too far ahead. It will take a few posts to get you there.

Toward the end of April, Lawrence reappeared, something akin to flowers popping back up in springtime. Good thing. We had lots of work to do. The first order of business: enclosing the BACK of the patio frame above the house. We couldn't begin to put a ceiling in until that was done. The plan: take the aluminum from the side of the house over the carport (seen here) and replace it with vinyl scallops. Use that aluminum to close in the back of the patio roofline that no one will ever see. So, we ordered scallops -- months ago. But winter came early and we were cut no slack.

Fast forward to late April. Lawrence patiently strips all of the siding you see here. And we began unboxing those scallops. When we started, it looked like quite a bit of siding. As the job wore on though, it began to look like not so much. I finally had to ask Lawrence if we were going to have enough aluminum to cover the back of the patio roofline. His reply: "We'll have to see."

Once the aluminum was gone, scallops started going up. I'll admit, I was a little skeptical when the mother suggested doing this. I was not at all convinced that I was going to like it. From the time the first row went on, I worried a bit that it might be too much. But as each new row appeared, I began to soften a bit. Yeah. I kinda like that!

Once we had finished that task, we got delayed by rain. And rain. And still more rain. Just as I was frustrated beyond frustrated, we were able to get things moving again. We crawled up on the roof to set about closing in the back. We were met with quite the mess. The raccoon that we had noticed in the yard at night -- and whom the mother had seen sliding down one of the patio posts -- had apparently made himself a home between the unenclosed rafters of the patio roof and where it meets up with the house's roof. The tar paper we had left in place to help limit the rain and snow that piled up in the rafters was coated in spots with raccoon crap. UGH! Cleaning all that up was not fun.

At last, we got the back closed up. And we had maybe 6 sq. ft of aluminum to spare! Talk about cutting it close. The even better news was that the raccoon had been evicted. BOOYAH!

Merry Christmas!

Wow. Where did December go?

Well, it went toward a multitude of year-end projects at work. And our annual holiday charity program. And sickness. Don't forget the sickness. Both the mother and I seem to have been battling some kind of crud or other all season. For me, it culminated in a trip to urgent care on Friday. I left with Rxs for antibiotics and ear drops.

I am very much improved. I shudder to think what kind of shape I'd be in had I not caved and walked the four blocks from the office to urgent care five days ago!

So, all is quiet on this front. I munched on barbecue meatballs, watched "Christmas in Connecticut" and chatted with friends on Facebook after the mother fell asleep. I was going to watch "A Christmas Story" but when she wakes up she'll want to watch it. And, it will be on again and again and again. And again.

Instead, I'm here in the light of the tree, watching the latter part of "It's A Wonderful Life." I love this movie, so I'm content to be right where I am and grateful to be so much better than I was, even if I'm not completely well. (I'd share a pic of the tree but Blogger has decided I cannot post it vertically. Whatever.)

It's been bitterly cold today and I'm contemplating brewing myself a nice cup of tea and perhaps spiking it. And, topping it off with a nice slice of fruitcake. Yes. That's a good plan. I'll do that!

But first, I'll wish you a very Merry Christmas. I hope that you are well, safe, warm and surrounded by love wherever you may be.

Two Tales of Black Friday

"You're an idiot."

That's what someone said to me on a friend's Facebook thread where I was talking about Black Friday shopping. The person was apparently vehemently opposed to the annual post-holiday consumer pilgrimage. I respect that.

I'll even admit that every year, there's almost always a strong case to be made for that opinion. And this year is no exception. But still, in roughly 13 or 14 years of observing this annual event, I've seen only a handful of incidents and those were minor at best.

Instead, what I have seen are people laughing, talking to one another and often, helping each other. People sharing carts when there were none and purchases were tough to keep moving in the line. Others offering a cell phone so a girl could attempt to contact her mother and let her know she was in line. Still others telling one member of a shopping "team" where they located one of the bargains so someone could quickly retrieve one while the team was still in line.

And today, when a lady discovered she had one less T-shirt than she had intended to purchase (either hadn't grabbed enough or had dropped one while making her way through the store), a guy piped up and said, "Go get you one. I'll keep your place and watch your stuff." And he did.

One reason I've probably had such positive Black Friday experiences is that I don't buy electronics. (Except online.) Or, I'm generally not seeking the season's hot new toy. That's not to say that I don't often shop for popular items; I do. They just don't happen to those things that folks generally would duke it out over or trample someone else to get to.

Through a combination of online shopping and devoting just a few hours to hit three stores on Friday morning (and mid-morning at that), I scored several of the items on lists for families and seniors we are adopting for the holidays at work. I also got a few things for myself, some gifts for friends, the mother and Toby -- and saved hundreds of dollars doing it. I also earned $90 in Kohl's Cash from some of those purchases.

I did all that and while I was doing it, no one was trampled or even rude. Lines moved quickly and shoppers were well behaved. Friendly even.

If then, going out to shop on Black Friday makes me an idiot, so be it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's been a busy day around here -- for me at least. It's probably the only day of the year you can almost always find me in the kitchen.

I got a later start than usual this year. Instead of being up getting the turkey ready at 8 or 9, I was determined to not get up until I felt like it. This year, that was 11:15. And for most of the next four hours, I was cooking, prepping or checking on something.

Then, after gorging myself silly, it was getting everything into the fridge, the dishes done and the kitchen cleaned up. Now, I'm quite tempted to emulate both Toby and the mother and just curl up and go to sleep. Instead, I may just tear into this.

Tomorrow, instead of a traditional midnight, 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. shopping start, I just have to get going in time to use a coupon at Michaels before noon and multiple discounts at Kohl's before 1 p.m. (I did most of my Black Friday shopping online, not including a pre-midnight run last night to Walgreens to score some toy deals for our charity program at work.)

Whatever you did today and plan to do tomorrow, I hope it's a lot of fun! Be safe out there.

Gee Thanks, Mother Nature

A couple of months ago, I was delighted when I saw a fall forecast preview that predicted a "warmer than average November." If only ...

It's been below average most of the month and downright bone-chilling for most of the past week. (Single-digit windchills tonight.) This wouldn't be a big deal except for one important thing: I have a patio to finish.

I took Friday off and the only thing I got done was a trip to Menard's where Lawrence and I picked up both the scallops and the columns, both of which had FINALLY arrived. It was just TOO cold to work out there Saturday. And so, it's supposed to warm up this coming week but Lawrence isn't available.

I had hoped he could put the scallops on the sides of the patio roof on Tuesday when it's supposed to be back near 50. But, he recently had a fender bender and is dropping his truck off for repair on Tuesday. Then he and his wife are heading out of town for Thanksgiving. He won't be back until next Sunday. Perfect.

So ... my one hope is that we're going to get some 45 degree or better days in December. The odds are in my favor because the average temperature is in the 40s. Which, apparently means nothing, considering that average November temps are the low to mid-50s.

I'm off again the next two Fridays (the day after Thanksgiving is a holiday at work) and I took the following Friday as one of my remaining vacation days. Here's hoping that I can get something accomplished THAT weekend since we're clearly running out of time.

Changing Up

I can't believe I haven't posted these yet, but I've been a little busy. And, since yesterday, been having trouble signing into my account. But that's a rant I don't have the energy to go off about.


So, the other half of the Special Project changed out the storm door on the front of the house as we had on the back. That happened last Saturday. As I did with the back door, I have to admit, I like it. While it wasn't as hard to install as the first one, it did take some time. The good news: It was worth the effort. That sucker seals up TIGHT. It will definitely help keep out the cold in winter and the bugs in summer in ways its predecessor never did.

I did not anticipate that it would change the look of the house as much as I think it has. You can decide for yourself.

I did not anticipate that it would change the look of the house as much as I think it has. You can decide for yourself.

A Roofing Lesson

I'll caveat this post by concluding that I am an idiot. In fairness, sometimes you don't know what you don't know. Except for picking up those ripped from the roof in 2006 (the roof our current one replaced), I'd had relatively little experience with rooftops. Until Friday.

Thursday evening, I spent 30 minutes at Lowe's trying to see what, if anything, might match the roof since I couldn't get what we have on the house to put atop the patio. Or so I thought.

I made up my mind that Friday morning the very FIRST thing that Lawrence and I would do would be to ascend the roof with samples.  So up we climbed with two sample booklets, an actual sample AND one of the roofing shingles from the 8 packs of Sierra Gray laying on my patio. Lawrence flipped that shingle onto the roof of the house. And my heart stopped for a second.

Not only it was a match, it was an EXACT match. And so, shingling began in earnest. Turns out that the part of the shingle that freaked me out, that off color ... you don't see that. That's where the next layer covers over. Stimpy, YOU IDIOT! Well, what did I know? Even Lawrence didn't immediately get that because he hadn't put architectural shingles up before. Of course, he has now.

The foreground shingles are the house. That upper portion is the new roof for the patio. If you don't see a difference, that's OK. There isn't one!

I shot this picture because you can't really appreciate the match as much from far away nor can you really see the detail of the architectural shingles from the yard. The slope of the roof isn't substantial enough that it shows like it does on the house or the carport.

See for yourself. I had to go halfway down the alley just to get a full view!

 You'll notice that there is actually some furniture on the patio, in addition to the plywood and soffit and fascia waiting to go up. We moved stuff out of the carport, now that the patio is at least covered, so that Pearl could have at least some of her space back.

It's the first time that Pearl has been in her own space in about 10 weeks. It took me more than one try to get her where I could reasonably open the door because is there is so much still under there!

To say I was relieved by the match and overjoyed to get this finished is a gross understatement. I was obsessing to the point that it was making me sick.

So now I'm siting here hoping they STAY UP THERE. Severe storms and wind here today. What should be a peaceful day of rest for me is just a little intense as we keep checking on everything. So far, so good.

Cross your fingers our luck holds out!

The "Special" Project

I alluded to a special project Lawrence and I half-completed. Well, here it is. We managed to complete this last Saturday.

This is the new back storm door. (Note the construction in the upper right corner.) Hoping tomorrow to put the matching one on the front. We had intended to get both of them up last week but man, this door had absolutely NO HOLES in it at all.

Instead of getting two done in three hours (including packing up the old doors in the new doors' packaging) it took that long just to get this thing on! I'm hoping that now that we've done this once, the front will go a little faster. We'll see.

It really makes the back of the house pop! I hate to admit it, but I like it. It was one of those things that the mother HAD to have. Our storm doors were still in pretty good shape . But hey, with all the work that has gone into this freakin' patio, I can't say I mind.

Today was focused on the patio roof. (More to come later.) But here's hoping that some of tomorrow can be devoted to switching out the front door.

Sorry, That’s Discontinued

If you’ve never heard those words before regarding a needed product for a home improvement project, I hope that you never do. But this week, it sucks to be me: I heard that phrase while trying to track down the shingles we have on the house.

 

Obviously, I’d like to have the same shingles for the patio roof. (Of course, I’d like to spend the weekend with Hugh Jackman, too. At this point, my odds with Hugh are looking better than my odds of scoring those shingles.) I thought I’d found them, too.

You can see the shingles in question in the banner and in the various pix of the house on this page. I mistakenly thought they were Owens Corning Sierra Gray. After several discussions and much research, I now believe they are actually OC’s Antique Silver – a color that no longer exists. The Sierra Gray is close – or at least some of it is. In this picture, you can see that the top half is a light gray with both black and white accents. Meanwhile, the lower half is dark and, of all things, has BROWN mixed in. WTF?!

 

My dilemma is this: Knowing that at least part of these shingles are dark and will create a checkerboard pattern on the patio roof that doesn’t exist on the house, do I just go with them?

 

They’re on the patio, sitting, waiting. Or, do I go a shade or two lighter with shingles that may not be in stock. If they’re not, that means going through the special order process yet again. *sigh* Frankly, I don’t like either option.

 

I’ve yet to break this to the mother. *triplesigh* And I’ve not yet decided what to do. But I'll figure it out. Somehow, I always do. On to Plan B ...

The Good, The Great and the Very, Very Ugly

I took yet another Friday off and the extended weekend produced a mixed bag of results.

 

The good: My neck and shoulder have healed. (Crosses fingers.) On Friday, we got the second side of the patio roof enclosed.

On Saturday, Lawrence got the drainage work completed, including attaching all the drip edge, so we’re ready for shingles.*

 

The great: I finished the brickwork!!! (Waits for vault of Heaven to open and cherubic interlude to the Hallelujah Chorus to begin.) We also managed to get half of the special project done. We only got half of it done because it took twice as long as anticipated. sigh. Stay tuned for details on that in its own post.

 

*The very, very ugly: Something is amiss with the shingles. I discovered this late yesterday, only after the mother kept nagging me about it. One half of the shingles are the color of our existing roof, as they should be. The other half? A weird mishmash of varying colors. Why? So far, no one can tell me. The solution? Hell if I know.

 

The end result of my one step forward, three steps back weekend put me in sort of a funk. Add to that Mother Nature's latest handiwork. We're being plunged into the deepfreeze as I type this. It was over 60 degrees today (and a day I had anticipated that Lawrence could shingle the patio roof) but tomorrow the high will be 38. Yes, 38. WTF, Mother Nature? Et tu?

 

Let's say that and a small family drama haven't done much to improve my somber and sullen state. On the bright side ...

 

This cold snap is only supposed to last through Thursday. By Friday and through the weekend were back over 50 degrees. And, I am taking yet another Friday off. (This is what happens when you take two vacation days all summer and maybe only three or four others the rest of the year before that! You scramble to get all of it in before the end of the year.) With the holidays upon us -- another thing that is irritating the crap out of me, the endless countdown of days 'til Christmas -- I'm going to get mighty spoiled by all these three- and four-day weeks. I think I deserve it though.

 

Besides, it's not like I'm sitting around eating bon-bons. I've been working my *ss off. As a result, I am the tired, grumpy and frustrated individual writing this post. I promise I will return soon in an improved frame of mind and will update with photos as soon as the weather relents.

Slowed to a Crawl

My neck/shoulder is better. (Today, it's moved away from my neck and a little down into my upper back.)

I debated going outside and trying to finish my brickwork. Thinking that I should just lay low instead. So, I'm holed up in the livingroom watching the TV adaptation of Stephen King's "Bag of Bones." This means that nothing gets done today. And that's on top of yesterday's rather slow progress.

That's not entirely true. Lawrence and I spent yesterday morning at Menard's. We picked up the shingles for the roof, all of the associated drainage pieces and another special order I'll share next week, once it's unboxed. I had some limited activity yesterday, helping unload the truck once we got back home and helping Lawrence by handing things up to him when he was on the ladder or the roof. His big progress was closing in one side of the patio's roof and covering it in roofing paper.

But back for a second to drainage. I think drainage, I'm thinking gutters. Who the hell knew it was gutters, downspouts, elbows, extenders, connectors, end caps, facia, soffit ... the list just seems to be never-ending. All of these pieces made up the largest chunk of the bill, too. Not cheap either.

Lawrence is going to come tomorrow and work on said drainage and then, ideally, at least start on the roof now that we have shingles. I'll be at work. I hope to be taking Friday off so we can deal with that special project and then back to the scheduled activity. Of course, all this is assuming that my neck/shoulder and now back decide to cooperate.

Pinched

Earlier this week, I was awakened at 2 a.m. by an excruciating pain between my neck and right shoulder. It radiated into my upper arm.

It took a long time to die down and nearly as long to find a way to fall back to sleep, but I finally did. When I got up in the morning, the area had a twinge to it but I was other wise fine. But by the time I got home that night, it was kicking in again. Through a combination of heat, ice and electronic impulses, I made it to sleep and didn't get woke up.

But yesterday, the pain had resumed. Not unmanagable but definitely uncomfortable. By lunchtime, it had kicked into overdrive. I ended up coming home a few hours early to resume the hot/cold treatment. Had a hard time getting to sleep and this morning, I decided to work from home so I could keep switching the heat and ice. (Kind of hard to do at a desk, in office-appropriate clothing.)

So ... now what? Twisted something? Pinched nerve? Overuse? Slept wrong? I think it might be a combination of all those. It means I'm going to be slowed down at a time when, especially on the homefront, I can't afford to be. I know it could be a lot worse but d*mmit! I have things to do and with a pretty solid deadline.

Cross your fingers that this passes pretty quickly.