Monday, July 26, 2010
Monday, July 26th,2010-more home repairs to be done.
Here it is Monday , July 26, 2010. Finally cooled off some and no rain so I was able to get a little more out side work done. Right now it is only 80 degrees F with low humidify. First day in quite a while without the window air conditioners both running, along with the furnace blower to help circulate the cooler air around the house. This was the longest heat wave here in a few years. Leaves me wondering what winter will be like this year.
A few weeks ago I decided to get the underside of the front porch roof re-painted. It should have been done earlier last year, but so much kept happening that before I knew it , it was already to rainy and cold for painting. So, I just tossed on a layer of paint to protect the wood over the winter. A few weeks ago I finally got my trusty step ladder and my scraper and scraped off all the loose paint. I knew the paint wouldn`t adhere well with the damp weather, but it did accomplish what I was hoping. The wood was protected, but of course I also knew I was making more work for myself because I knew it would probably need to be removed before re-painting it again. As I started doing a little scraping, in some places the paint came off in small sections. So, I ended up scraping almost all the paint of before doing a layer of primer. Then I got laid up for three weeks and couldn`t get my shoes on, so no climbing the ladder for me. This morning I went out and painted on a second coat of primer. I bought the primer paint that will cover stains so it wouldn`t show where there was still some old white paint from where the bare wood was. I also had used my multi master tool with the sander and sanded over the paint that was left on to make sure the whole surface was smooth and wouldn`t come loose , before I started painting. Now instead of seeing some flaking paint, it looks lots better. Now, I have to wait for another nice dry day so I can do the white top coat. Thought I could do it tomorrow, but the weather man has changed his report to possible thunder storms. So, will have to wait till tomorrow to know. Once that is finished, I am hoping to be able to re-stain all three porch floors before winter. I try to do the porch floors about every 3 or 4 years.
A few years ago my youngest son extended the back porch roof out to cover the steps for my safety. Every winter I was having ice on the steps to worry about. I was going down those steps often to get to my 3 section compost bin that sits on the property that connects to the house property on that side of the house. Every winter I tell myself "this will probably be my last year working the compost", but then I keep saving house scraps and taking them out and covering them with the leaves from the leaf pile. The soil from the compost is usually used in the flower beds by the front of the house and the long bed beside the driveway. I noticed the plywood used to cover the extension has started flaking on the underside and needs replacing. It was covered with the black paper and shingles, which protected the top side. I am hoping to have it re-done using boards this time. Plywood did last 4 or 5 years before the moisture started destroying it. Used the plywood because I already had it handy and too save money. OH Well, at least now when it gets done, it should last as long as I need it to if I can get it painted. Now have to wait till my carpenter son`s work load slows down and he has time to do it for me. Wish I owned one of those ladders that can be sit on the ground with the other side on a step so I could reach to paint it myself. I do have the long handled section to connect the paint rollers to, but that doesn`t do the job in the edge where the framework and boards are nailed together. I tried taping a paint brush to the handle, but it didn`t work. Last summer I used my floor scrub brush handle and taped my long handled scraper to it and was able to scrape down the eave board on the front of the house. Worked great. My home has a single front with a second story only on the back half of the house. So, I am able to do the front eaves myself. To be honest, I never wanted a two story house, I wanted a ranch style with all the bedrooms on the main floor. Might have won that battle if my Dad hadn`t told Walt we should add the second story. Walt felt our property was not wide enough for the size home I wanted, I was willing to build it sideways with the kitchen end towards the road. That would have given us plenty of room with still lots of back yard for kids to play in. Years ago we had the sewer changed and I wanted to have it moved further into the back yard so we could add a couple more rooms to the back of the house, lost again. Walt felt it would be too hard to run the sewer pipes under the addition unless we also had the cellar extended under the addition and he was probably right. Would have cost too much to have a cellar dug out and built- really not worth the cost at our ages then. I can`t complain, because if it had been something I felt was really important, I would have insisted and he would have given in. I knew when to take a stand and when to let it go- all depended on how important and needed it was. If you want to win the important battles, you first need to learn how to let the unnecessary wants go. We both learned over the years how to give and take and how to listen to each other`s reasons behind out actions. Kept us together for a little over 50 years. July 19th made 8 lonely years living here alone with out him. Many time I wish he was here to talk over some repair that needed doing. I still remember what he said to me when I mentioned some repairs I felt should be done. His answer was " Let who ever gets it after we are gone do the repairs. It will last as long as we need it". I remember those words whenever I start putting money into more repairs. So glad I have three handy boys willing to help with the harder work. We have done so much in the past 8 years, new roofing shingles on house and on kitchen addition, whole new side of the building and new shingles on shop building, new bathroom tiles , mopboards and ceiling and casing trim, over half of the main boards and sheeting boards replaced on the back lower section of the house, new bathroom window to replace the rotting one, added new insulation and plastic in the attic to save fuel money. Walt would be shocked if he knew how much the fuel prices went up. I could go on and on as have done loads of repairs over the years. Yes, the home might have lasted as long as we needed, but I sure would have been living in tough times. Roof probably would have been allowing the rain in by now. Ha Ha. Part of owning your own home is keeping up with all the necessary repairs. I have a cousin who told me they sold their home and will be renting until the new senior housing settlement is finished, then they will get one of their places to live in. She said it was nice letting others be responsible for all home repairs, mowing, snow plowing etc.. Her and her husband think it will be cheaper to rent there than paying taxes and for repairs for their own home. It will be about another year before the housing settlement is finished, so I am waiting to see how they make out. I hope things work out for them. She is just a few months older than I am and her husband is only a few years older. So, it probably will make their life a lot easier. I just can`t imagine myself not living in my own home. One of my wishes is to continue living in my own home the rest of my life. I hope my wish comes true. Watching my Aunt that last year living in a nursing home and seeing how much she wanted to go back home was very heartbreaking. I went every week to sit and crochet with her to keep her active and feeling she was still able to do something she enjoyed that also made her feel more useful. One day she forgot how to crochet. She asked me how anyone can forget how to do something they had been doing for years. I told her she was just tired and it is hard to think well when we are tired. I kept her crocheting up to three days before, by constantly finding easier and easier crochet patterns, then near the end I got out some of the small blocks she had done before and showed her how to just do a single crochet row of a different color for a border. Told her they would make cute doilies to sit some of her knicknacks on. The next day when I stopped to visit, there they were, finished and her knicknackls were sitting on them. She was proud of how it looked. That make me feel happy seeing the smile back on her face. As much as I still miss her, I know she never accepted losing her husband only 1 1/2 years before, after being married for 67 years. They had gotten married on her Birthday, so her 80th Birthday this year was a sad day spent thinking of him. Her husband, my Uncle John, was my mother`s youngest brother and the last living member of her family.
Saturday we had our family yearly picnic, held this year at one of my youngers sisters yards. I can remember many years when we would have way over 100 people attending. This year there was under 40 and almost half of them were my sister`s family. She felt so discouraged that she told me she was thinking of just having her own family picnic next year. I sure do not blame her. A lot of extra work and money spent and few showing up. We have lost so many family members that the family gets smaller every year, but at the same time, it keeps growing with everyones new great grand babies. There is just my three sisters, 2 sister-in-laws, and a few cousins left and some of them live out of state. One of my daughters could not go because she had a back operation, one son had accepted a previous invitation to a graduation party, another son (A carpenter) worked, another daughter is a correctional officer at the prison and had to work, the son who lives an hour`s drive away was working on his car as he needed it for work today. Getting harder every year to get everyone together. Was planning on taking my older sister`s Birthday gift down to her today as she will be leaving for home on Wednesday, but when I called, she had spent the night ou at camp with my sister-in-law and it is quite a ride out there. Am hoping I might catch her tomorrow if they come back from camp. The daughter with the back op shares the same Birth date as does one of my good friends I have known over 10 years on the computer. 29th is a popular date in my family.
Still having trouble getting used to living here without my trusty Border Collie. For 14 years she protected us and our home and let us know whenever anything different was going on outside. I went to bed knowing she was there looking out for me. The last few weeks of her life I had to use a harness with strap type handles to pick her up as her hind legs and hip could not do it. Once she was on her feet, I would walk along with her using the harness until she got steady on her feet and could walk alone. Finally I had to give in since the pain pills stopped working and I could not let her be in pain. One of the hardest things I ever had to do in my life was taking her to the vets and saying good by to her. Kids keep telling me I should get another dog, preferably one a couple years old and already house trained. It has only been a few weeks, and I still am not sure if I will ever get another pet or not. Just know I am not ready right now.
A few weeks ago I decided to get the underside of the front porch roof re-painted. It should have been done earlier last year, but so much kept happening that before I knew it , it was already to rainy and cold for painting. So, I just tossed on a layer of paint to protect the wood over the winter. A few weeks ago I finally got my trusty step ladder and my scraper and scraped off all the loose paint. I knew the paint wouldn`t adhere well with the damp weather, but it did accomplish what I was hoping. The wood was protected, but of course I also knew I was making more work for myself because I knew it would probably need to be removed before re-painting it again. As I started doing a little scraping, in some places the paint came off in small sections. So, I ended up scraping almost all the paint of before doing a layer of primer. Then I got laid up for three weeks and couldn`t get my shoes on, so no climbing the ladder for me. This morning I went out and painted on a second coat of primer. I bought the primer paint that will cover stains so it wouldn`t show where there was still some old white paint from where the bare wood was. I also had used my multi master tool with the sander and sanded over the paint that was left on to make sure the whole surface was smooth and wouldn`t come loose , before I started painting. Now instead of seeing some flaking paint, it looks lots better. Now, I have to wait for another nice dry day so I can do the white top coat. Thought I could do it tomorrow, but the weather man has changed his report to possible thunder storms. So, will have to wait till tomorrow to know. Once that is finished, I am hoping to be able to re-stain all three porch floors before winter. I try to do the porch floors about every 3 or 4 years.
A few years ago my youngest son extended the back porch roof out to cover the steps for my safety. Every winter I was having ice on the steps to worry about. I was going down those steps often to get to my 3 section compost bin that sits on the property that connects to the house property on that side of the house. Every winter I tell myself "this will probably be my last year working the compost", but then I keep saving house scraps and taking them out and covering them with the leaves from the leaf pile. The soil from the compost is usually used in the flower beds by the front of the house and the long bed beside the driveway. I noticed the plywood used to cover the extension has started flaking on the underside and needs replacing. It was covered with the black paper and shingles, which protected the top side. I am hoping to have it re-done using boards this time. Plywood did last 4 or 5 years before the moisture started destroying it. Used the plywood because I already had it handy and too save money. OH Well, at least now when it gets done, it should last as long as I need it to if I can get it painted. Now have to wait till my carpenter son`s work load slows down and he has time to do it for me. Wish I owned one of those ladders that can be sit on the ground with the other side on a step so I could reach to paint it myself. I do have the long handled section to connect the paint rollers to, but that doesn`t do the job in the edge where the framework and boards are nailed together. I tried taping a paint brush to the handle, but it didn`t work. Last summer I used my floor scrub brush handle and taped my long handled scraper to it and was able to scrape down the eave board on the front of the house. Worked great. My home has a single front with a second story only on the back half of the house. So, I am able to do the front eaves myself. To be honest, I never wanted a two story house, I wanted a ranch style with all the bedrooms on the main floor. Might have won that battle if my Dad hadn`t told Walt we should add the second story. Walt felt our property was not wide enough for the size home I wanted, I was willing to build it sideways with the kitchen end towards the road. That would have given us plenty of room with still lots of back yard for kids to play in. Years ago we had the sewer changed and I wanted to have it moved further into the back yard so we could add a couple more rooms to the back of the house, lost again. Walt felt it would be too hard to run the sewer pipes under the addition unless we also had the cellar extended under the addition and he was probably right. Would have cost too much to have a cellar dug out and built- really not worth the cost at our ages then. I can`t complain, because if it had been something I felt was really important, I would have insisted and he would have given in. I knew when to take a stand and when to let it go- all depended on how important and needed it was. If you want to win the important battles, you first need to learn how to let the unnecessary wants go. We both learned over the years how to give and take and how to listen to each other`s reasons behind out actions. Kept us together for a little over 50 years. July 19th made 8 lonely years living here alone with out him. Many time I wish he was here to talk over some repair that needed doing. I still remember what he said to me when I mentioned some repairs I felt should be done. His answer was " Let who ever gets it after we are gone do the repairs. It will last as long as we need it". I remember those words whenever I start putting money into more repairs. So glad I have three handy boys willing to help with the harder work. We have done so much in the past 8 years, new roofing shingles on house and on kitchen addition, whole new side of the building and new shingles on shop building, new bathroom tiles , mopboards and ceiling and casing trim, over half of the main boards and sheeting boards replaced on the back lower section of the house, new bathroom window to replace the rotting one, added new insulation and plastic in the attic to save fuel money. Walt would be shocked if he knew how much the fuel prices went up. I could go on and on as have done loads of repairs over the years. Yes, the home might have lasted as long as we needed, but I sure would have been living in tough times. Roof probably would have been allowing the rain in by now. Ha Ha. Part of owning your own home is keeping up with all the necessary repairs. I have a cousin who told me they sold their home and will be renting until the new senior housing settlement is finished, then they will get one of their places to live in. She said it was nice letting others be responsible for all home repairs, mowing, snow plowing etc.. Her and her husband think it will be cheaper to rent there than paying taxes and for repairs for their own home. It will be about another year before the housing settlement is finished, so I am waiting to see how they make out. I hope things work out for them. She is just a few months older than I am and her husband is only a few years older. So, it probably will make their life a lot easier. I just can`t imagine myself not living in my own home. One of my wishes is to continue living in my own home the rest of my life. I hope my wish comes true. Watching my Aunt that last year living in a nursing home and seeing how much she wanted to go back home was very heartbreaking. I went every week to sit and crochet with her to keep her active and feeling she was still able to do something she enjoyed that also made her feel more useful. One day she forgot how to crochet. She asked me how anyone can forget how to do something they had been doing for years. I told her she was just tired and it is hard to think well when we are tired. I kept her crocheting up to three days before, by constantly finding easier and easier crochet patterns, then near the end I got out some of the small blocks she had done before and showed her how to just do a single crochet row of a different color for a border. Told her they would make cute doilies to sit some of her knicknacks on. The next day when I stopped to visit, there they were, finished and her knicknackls were sitting on them. She was proud of how it looked. That make me feel happy seeing the smile back on her face. As much as I still miss her, I know she never accepted losing her husband only 1 1/2 years before, after being married for 67 years. They had gotten married on her Birthday, so her 80th Birthday this year was a sad day spent thinking of him. Her husband, my Uncle John, was my mother`s youngest brother and the last living member of her family.
Saturday we had our family yearly picnic, held this year at one of my youngers sisters yards. I can remember many years when we would have way over 100 people attending. This year there was under 40 and almost half of them were my sister`s family. She felt so discouraged that she told me she was thinking of just having her own family picnic next year. I sure do not blame her. A lot of extra work and money spent and few showing up. We have lost so many family members that the family gets smaller every year, but at the same time, it keeps growing with everyones new great grand babies. There is just my three sisters, 2 sister-in-laws, and a few cousins left and some of them live out of state. One of my daughters could not go because she had a back operation, one son had accepted a previous invitation to a graduation party, another son (A carpenter) worked, another daughter is a correctional officer at the prison and had to work, the son who lives an hour`s drive away was working on his car as he needed it for work today. Getting harder every year to get everyone together. Was planning on taking my older sister`s Birthday gift down to her today as she will be leaving for home on Wednesday, but when I called, she had spent the night ou at camp with my sister-in-law and it is quite a ride out there. Am hoping I might catch her tomorrow if they come back from camp. The daughter with the back op shares the same Birth date as does one of my good friends I have known over 10 years on the computer. 29th is a popular date in my family.
Still having trouble getting used to living here without my trusty Border Collie. For 14 years she protected us and our home and let us know whenever anything different was going on outside. I went to bed knowing she was there looking out for me. The last few weeks of her life I had to use a harness with strap type handles to pick her up as her hind legs and hip could not do it. Once she was on her feet, I would walk along with her using the harness until she got steady on her feet and could walk alone. Finally I had to give in since the pain pills stopped working and I could not let her be in pain. One of the hardest things I ever had to do in my life was taking her to the vets and saying good by to her. Kids keep telling me I should get another dog, preferably one a couple years old and already house trained. It has only been a few weeks, and I still am not sure if I will ever get another pet or not. Just know I am not ready right now.
Labels: Home repairs
# posted by Dotm @ 7/26/2010 08:46:00 PM 
Comments:
<< Home
I would like to congratulate you that you have done most of the work. I want to see your repair work. Can you show it with us?
EPDM Coatings
EPDM Coatings
Oh Dot, you work so hard! I don't know how you do it all. So sorry about your dog, and like you I'd be waiting a little time before deciding to get another one.
We had a family reunion the weekend of the 4th and as much as I was glad to see the ones who were there, it saddened me also for the ones who have gone on. Also like you, we used to have over l00 people and now down to less than half. I don't know if I ever told you, my grandmother lived to l04 1/2 years, and one of my uncles to 105 1/2. Sadly, though some of my mom's brothers passed away in their 60's. Well, we just have to appreciate what we have when we have it.
I'm sorry to be so long in visiting you this week, but my granddaughter, Brittney, is back in the hospital. We're hoping she'll be coming home tomorrow.
Take care, my friend. I always enjoy reading your posts. (((hugs)))
Post a Comment
We had a family reunion the weekend of the 4th and as much as I was glad to see the ones who were there, it saddened me also for the ones who have gone on. Also like you, we used to have over l00 people and now down to less than half. I don't know if I ever told you, my grandmother lived to l04 1/2 years, and one of my uncles to 105 1/2. Sadly, though some of my mom's brothers passed away in their 60's. Well, we just have to appreciate what we have when we have it.
I'm sorry to be so long in visiting you this week, but my granddaughter, Brittney, is back in the hospital. We're hoping she'll be coming home tomorrow.
Take care, my friend. I always enjoy reading your posts. (((hugs)))
<< Home
