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9/2/2015 2:14:26 PM

I am Done.



No, the list isn't done... don't I wish.  No, I am done... D-O-N-E.  Yep.  At least for a good several days, if not more.  Hubby seems to be in slightly better shape, but I am beginning to think he will see going out of country for work to be a nice break.  LOL.

So… what on that big list for the over-sized weekend did we get done?
  1. Sliding glass door replacement - Done.
  2. Sealing spots around sky-lights and the entire lower roof edge - Done... mostly.  The lower edge foam still needs a little work.
  3. Scraping, sanding, and painting the facer/trim boards around the roof overhangs - Done. 
  4. Installing trim around new sliding glass door and replacing trim around another and some damaged trim - Nope... another day... or week maybe.
  5. Mixing and pouring 30+ bags of concrete for the curved ramp walkway - Done. 
  6. Digging up the septic lids for pump-out then re-filling - Nope... septic pump could not be scheduled until late September, so I have some time to get that done later.
  7. Digging a water run-off ditch across the straight driveway - Nope... maybe next year.
  8. Moving junk and building materials off the patio and into the barn/shed - Nope, nope, and nope... we made more of a mess of the yard than ever.
  9. Hopefully selling off two of the semi-running extra vehicles - Done... probably the easiest of all the projects we did.
Our long weekend started on Thursday with the first half of installing the new sliding glass door.  It took two long days of fitting a door that magically grew over night to be larger than the old opening in pretty much every possible way.  The first step of course was removing the old door... which ended up considerably more difficult than I had hoped since the door was more original to the house than the siding, and the siding had to be cut back to even get started on removing the door frame.
  
  
Once the old door and frame was gone, it was quickly obvious that the depth of the door was going to be an issue that we could not ignore, so after removing the old door we had to start with cutting the drywall and tile to adjust for the new depth.  Some removal of shims and tightening the frame-out board was also needed for the sides.  Plastic sheeting helped keep the majority of the drywall and sawdust out, though hubby and I both ended up completely covered several times over.
  
  
By nightfall we thought that the opening was close, if not perfect, and should only need adjustment at the top... if that.  But yea.... no.  Things don't work that way no matter how many times you measure it if the door grows another 3/4 inch over-night somehow.  So the Friday morning and most of the day was a continuation of cutting and carrying and a little cursing.
  
But it is in there now.  Yea!!!

Friday evening, we went to dinner to celebrate hubby getting hired on directly to the company he has been working for instead of being contracted to them.  Wooooot!!!  Happy Day!

Saturday back to work and hubby and I spent all day (with a short break at the worst of the burning sunshine) dangling over the roof edge and bruising our ribs in the process of scraping and sanding the roof eaves on the front side of the house.  About 140sf of it.  Isn't that what we got the ladder for you ask?  Yes... and no.  We got the ladder so that we could use it when we needed it, but hubby and I both agreed that bruised ribs were do-able, but climbing 20ft of ladder over 200 times just wasn't.

 
We scraped down with putty knives and a hammer claw to bare wood and the belt sander worked wonders for the majority of it, but it just couldn't reach the very bottom edge... so I invented something new.  "Sander on a Stick".  Yes!  And then the heat made me silly and I pitched the idea in the form of a full length infomercial to hubby.  "Yes!  That's right... how often have you been dangling off a roof and wished you could sand just a little further away?  Now you can!  With... Sander on a Stick!  Only four easy payments of $19.95 and this amazing device can be yours!........"
 
Yea, you laugh... but it worked.

Sunday was more sanding and scraping and then a break after spraying it down with the hose before painting.  We finished the first coat right as the sun fully set and darkness pushed in.  So Monday morning the second coat of paint went on and it looks pretty good... though there are still a few spots that could use a little more sanding and a third coat... next... year.

 

Then, Monday evening, the hard work began... because none of the rest of that could be considered hard, right?

 

A great mixing tool and a medium grade 1/2 inch hammer drill from Harbor Freight made the task of mixing the concrete about 50 times easier.  The big trouble was that we had made the final decisions about the task and how to accomplish what we wanted in the best compromise between style and ease, too long ago and the details were a little fuzzy.  While I had the general idea in my head of what we were doing, once we started things didn't seem to be working like they should and instead of stopping to think it all through (not something easy to do with concrete starting to set), we jumped to a semi-spur-of-the-moment change of plans.  Of course, in the process making everything about 50 times harder than it should have been.  Moral of the story... always re-visit your set plans fully and in detail before you start to put permanent fixtures on your lawn.

Regardless, the end result seems like it will be nice, if a little more maintenance than the original plan.
 

However, rain came down, night fell, and the drill burnt up (quite literally with sparks and tons of smoke), all about the time we finished the second section.

Tuesday we had to go into town for hubby to pick up more malaria pills and get some paperwork done and I needed to update my driver's licence and wanted to get my passport applied for (though evidently that requires an appointment just to drop of the paperwork).  We also picked up a replacement drill from Harbor Freight. ( I managed to nurse along this drill by going with shorter bursts instead of constant mixing and letting it rest more in between mixes, and despite a little smoke now and then, it made it through. )

Back at home Tuesday evening hubby and I decided to continue and see what progress we could make on the curved ramp walkway.  And let me just say to all you who plan on doing something like that... ever... when the sun is going down and you have "just two more" sections to go.... STOP.

Don't pull out light bars and have hubby directing your concrete pouring like an airplane making a shaky landing.  Don't ignore the repeated drizzles of rain.  Don't think that just because now there is "only one more" section left that you should keep going in the near pitch black.  And don't let hubby be supportive and say he doesn't mind continuing even though he has to get up early in the morning.

That is... unless your me evidently.  Because at 12:30 AM we finally tossed the tools back in the house, covered the concrete with plastic, showered off the dye and dust, and fell into bed... not surprisingly barely able to move.



But it is DONE.

 
 

While it looks like that right now... the end product after the excess dyes rinse away and it cures fully over about a month, will be much more mild in colors.  This is an approximation of what it will look like now and later...  (don't you just love photoshopping?)
 
 

Sore and broken as I felt this morning, I took some pain-killers and finally got out of bed... uncovered the concrete to check it's water channels, take some pictures, and mist it with the hose...

...and something stung me in my arm-pit!!!  Why?!?  Seriously!

And... that is why I am D-O-N-E.  Capital everything... and maybe it deserves an underline, too.  Sometimes you have to push past your limit just to see what you can do, but blow past your limit too far and you end up in a semi-controlled stumble with a bee who is offended by your flowery deodorant.............. and then you go back to bed.


     POST LINKS FORWARD TO:
          9/4/2015 2:28:45 PM - Poor Darn Drill
          5/13/2017 11:06:02 AM - Widen a path or walkway
     POST LINKS BACK TO:
          8/25/2015 2:00:00 PM - New Door is Here!


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COMMENTS

9/3/2015 10:12:53 AM Mom
Your door, facer boards, and walk way look amazing! You and hubby did a terrific job. I love your walk way. How are you feeling today?  Tell hubby congratulations on the job for a permanent position. Take care of yourself, love lots, Mom

9/3/2015 10:14:17 AM TinkerT
Thanks… I am pretty proud of us.  Feeling a bit better today though still having to take a lot of naproxen to keep the swelling of joints and muscles down.

9/3/2015 11:20:59 AM Punkin
For the first time in my life I am speechless. Too Much! Too Much!

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