One can was not enough...

I discovered that one can/gallon of Superdeck was not enough to treat the deck.  So, yesterday I was able to pick up another can...and as soon as it cools down a few degrees, I'll finish the job.  It's going to get mighty close to 100 degrees today...so they predict.  And I didn't get up before the crack of dawn to work in the cool of the day...so the job awaits.

With all the construction activity going on around here, I did not see my little wildlife buddies - the rabbits and lizards.  Then...finally, they both showed up.  The lizard was really wondering what the heck happened to his old haunts.  The rabbit  seems pretty content...nibbling on greens, with no one bothering him or making a bunch of noise. 

They don't seem bothered a bit by the heat... just hide from it and relax.  Another day in paradise?

And the deck is stacked...

Here's the rickety deck - a "before" shot.

The tear-down is in progress.  Oh yeah, and I had to give the juniper a major trim.

And here's the new wrap-around deck - an "after" shot.  Huge improvement.

The guys did a great job.  I'm so thrilled.  Within the next few days I'm going to treat the wood...that ought to keep me out of trouble.

Tear out the old...pour in the new

I've been waiting...waiting...waiting...and the crew finally arrived!  They tore out the wood porches and walkways. 

And poured cement!  These guys are amazing.  Their work is perfection. 

I'm lovin' it!!

A little shake-up

Saturday morning I was awake and reading in bed...and suddenly it felt like someone or something under my bed was turning over.  What the heck??  Then it happened again.  Really creepy!  How could that be happening...shaking my bed like that???  After I got over the shock...and looked under the bed...discovering nothing...I settled down into some rational thinking.  Could it have been an earthquake?  As a matter of fact, it was!  The epicenter of this 4.9 quake was  about 30 miles away as the crow flies. 

My old fence is so weathered, it's starting to fall down.  It wouldn't take much of a shake-up for more of it to go.  So, I decided it was time to take off the top rails, remove the wire fencing stapled to the posts, and pull the posts.  Some of the posts are so rotten at ground level, they just broke off; but some are still in the ground too solid for easy removal.  But, I got started, anyway.  It's time to spiff up the place before it starts looking a little too ghetto. 

I'm putting nails and staples in a green bucket.

The fence represented one of the structures my neighbor Earl helped me build over 30 years ago, shortly after I had a house built on the property.  Earl brought over his tractor and post hole digger, and we spent many days getting this fence built.  I learned a lot from watching and helping him:  how to measure the placement of the posts, how to get the fence height even, how to use both 8' and 16' 2X4's for the top rail, how to staple wire fencing and get it tight.  I was so pleased when it was all done. It outlined a portion of my property line to the west and to the north. 

Well, several years ago I  purchased a few more acres to the west.  So, the fence really doesn't reflect  accurate boundaries anymore.  Neither does it serve to keep anything in...or anything out.  It served its purpose, but it's time for it to come down. 

Talk about shaking- it -up, the recent storms and winds have been shaking loose dead needles off the pine tree and several pine cones have been dropping too.  I have quite a collection of pine cones from the last few years.  I need a  great idea for a holiday project, using pine cones!!  I'll take suggestions!

It's always something...

I posted a picture of Purple Sage, more accurately Russian Sage, a few days ago. Now the blooms have opened even more and are a welcomed splash of color.  This plant looks spiny, but its very fern-like and soft to the touch.  And when you do brush your hand over the leaves, you can get a great whiff of sage.  It's very pleasant.  The bees were buzzing around these two plants and were so busy going from flower to flower, they didn't even notice me. 

Well, I say it's always something...because I had hoped to go 4-wheeling this weekend...but when I asked a friend to help me put the battery back in the jet-ski, we discovered it was not putting out enough amps to start the motor.  The mechanical advice was to get a new battery.  Rats.  So, then it's another trip to town to drop off the old one and pay (wow...too much!) for a new one.  They are pricey little buggers!  It better last 5 years!!  Well, then my friend had to stop by again and help me put the new battery in (they are small, but so darned heavy) and make sure it would start the engine; thankfully it did!

Another friend also had time over the weekend to stop by and drill bigger holes in my 4-wheeler trailer to accommodate the newer tie-downs, which have bigger hooks on the end.  So, I was really grateful for this too.  Got to get things done when you can...

So this week a new battery. Over the last couple months I've had to put new tires on the car and new tires on the trailer.  Cha-ching! LOL.  Now if it was a new pair of shoes or a new outfit, I wouldn't have felt this way at all, perhaps...so it's all in one's perspective.  I get it. 

On the flip-side of "it's always something" is a purchase I made that I think I'm really going to like: a Soda-Stream machine. I can fill a bottle with tap water, carbonate it with the machine, and then add any variety of flavors to create my own carbonated drink with 2/3 less sugar and sodium.  I have tried the tropical punch Koolaid and the "my water" orange flavored drink (this one is my favorite).  I received a bunch more with the machine: Orange soda, Rootbeer soda, Lemon-lime, Dr. Pete, Diet Cola, and other my water flavors too. Although I haven't tried them all, I'm giving this machine a thumbs up so far!!

I've also downloaded some new apps on my iPhone that I am anxious to play with...yep, it's always something.

Splittin' wood

Thank goodness I was able to borrow a wood-splitter from another good friend, which made the job for Mike and me so much easier.  Nevertheless, we spent 4 1/2 hours yesterday splitting.  Mike guessed we had close to 6 cords.  We didn't waste any time...and worked like a well-oiled machine!  I ran the lever on the splitter, and Mike did all the heavy work (putting the logs on the splitter, turning them, and throwing them), so he got most of the exercise!

 My exercise is ahead of me...stacking it all.  I'm quite sure I'll do it in installments...not 4 hours at a whack!! 

We saved some big pieces to serve as "ends" to hold the stack in place.  I'll be placing all of those real soon and start stacking. 

I have a bunny that had been hanging out under the wood pile, so I'm sure he's wondering about the renovation of his home.  "Don't worry, buddy, it will be an updated look!  You'll be able to move back soon."

Wood for Winter

I still have about two cords of wood which are "well-seasoned" and will burn very well.  But, I'm pretty sure I'll need more split to be ready for this winter.  So, in casual conversation with my friends about getting things "winterized" around the place, I mentioned that I needed to get some more wood split before the cold temps hit and stay. 

My friend Kris offered her log-splitter, but we would need our go-to guy, Mike, to get it started and see about the best way to get it transported to my woodpile.   So, the plan was sort-of set in motion.

I got a surprise phone call late Sunday morning.  Was I home? Could Mike bring out the log-splitter?  Absolutely!  Zip, zip!  He was here in no time.  After showing me the procedure for starting it, he asked if I wanted to split some up while he was here.  Sure!!  So I grabbed some leather gloves, threw on some tennis shoes, and we got to work.  With two of us, the work went quickly and efficiently.  Within an hour, we had a cord or more split and thrown into a woodpile.  Yippee!  Many, many thanks to Kris and Mike!!  I have wood for winter!