#15 Housework

Quests for Skills

Bathroom renovations are underway, but won't be finished until April.

In the meantime, I tackled other projects around the house. My friend Tim was enlisted in helping replace the deck boards...as well as fix a few other items on our list of house projects (he's a pretty darn handy guy).

On our first day on the deck we got pretty far! One entire (manageabley-sized) section completed.

Looking out toward the side yard.

Looking toward the screened-in porch.

 I didn't realize this,  but fresh treated wood like this needs to dry for approximately three months before staining or painting it. So, it looks like we'll be painting in June, making our deck ready for action by 4th of July!

The following Saturday, Tim came over again and helped knock out a few other projects!

The skewed angle was my bad - the superglue was making it difficult for me to let go of the screen. Ended up taking it however I could leave it.

He helped us repair some screening on our porch (prepare yourself for the Attack of Zika-Mosquitoes!). We had a small hole from who-knows-what that we patched up, and a ginormous hole above it from a determined squirrel. The squirrel had smelled the bird feed we naively left out on our porch. We underestimated the power of a berserking, hangry squirrel. His determination won him the food and cost us a screen.
We're more careful now.

Whole new screen! Tim showed me how to replace this.. Yay for new skills!

Our porch door had been torn up from the crazy tornado weather we had this year (weirdest late winter/early spring I've seen here in NC). The old door was made of wood, and had soaked up the storm water through its previously damaged boards, and rotted out surprisingly quickly. We went with a vinyl door this time, and it looks pretty spiffy!

It opens and closes, while staying in one piece! :-D

Similar to the porch door, our mailbox's wooden post was starting to go. The box also had issues, often not staying closed. But, at 30+ years old, I suppose that's to be expected. Our house now has a new receptacle for the US Post. Hopefully it will bring some small amount of joy to our mail lady. Now it will close when she's done, won't be sopping wet inside when it's raining, and hopefully no longer host ants in the summer.

Ready for you, Ms. Post Lady

The old screen door and mailbox. 

Our garage is now full with house project supplies: lumber for the porch, Sheetrock and tiling for the bathroom, and a host of things that need to be taken to the dump and to the ReStore.

I hope we will have an awesome cookout this summer, celebrating Tim and his mad skills.

KJets