Good Samaritans

It was a strange sort of day... cool, for April, a little damp with passing moments of sun...just passing moments.

So, I worked outside; slowly turning the old garage foundation (three sections: the largest...and most deteriorated...in the middle. I had previously broken up most of the concrete in the right section so I spent the morning picking up the pieces and piling them on the side of the fence by the railroad tracks. THEN I felt guilty about it but was too tired to undo the pile. At that point, this happened to come by:

{This is a track maintenance vehicle...one of several following each other...this one appears to clean up after the other ones that dump and "tamp" ballast between the ties} I chatted with the driver, a young man from Virginia that works with the maintenance contractor, for a while. As he left, he said something to the driver of a ballast spreader. As they left, he opened a wing of the spreader and pushed the pile of broken concrete all long the side of the tracks for about a tenth of a mile!

That afternoon, the two neighbors to the north of the house came over to help remove one of the brick posts on each end of the property...which stick into the adjacent driveways and have become a hazard to navigation. We dug down a foot...then two...then three. The thing (to our dismay) has a four foot base...probably more than the house does! Mike (top, right) tried to pull the post out with his truck only to have the line snap. About then, another good samaritan showed up...this one with a backhoe;

His name is Jay and that's about all we know. Jay picked up the four foot post with ease and deposited it in a hole in the backyard where it will become the base for Joyce's sundial at the center of the herb garden!



Maybe he was an angel?
Almost as good, he said he was a plumber!












Well, we know a contractor who is going to work on the kitchen and bathroom...we've decided to keep the laundry room downstairs instead...just too much trouble moving it upstairs in an old house (and nightmares about leaks).

Cya next time! Deano

Let's Change EVERYTHING!

Here's a photo of the front of the house TODAY; new brickwork and wood columns and an unusual yellow Rhododendron that we purchased from the garden center on Sunday.

We also planted a Red Maple and a Climbing Hydrangea (I'm not sure what that is). Here's more photos:



















Today is Joyce' birthday (I won't say how many). She celebrated the day by changing her mind about the kitchen! Mark, a contractor friend suggested knocking an outside corner out so we could expand things...good idea, but straining our already tenuous budget.

Why didn't they do this in the first place? I ask.

We've already spent over $10,000 on this project!








Well, work goes on and here Greg the mason is up on the roof inspecting the chimney...something neither of us should be doing at our age...............................................















Joyce received this nifty sundial/birdbath for her birthday that I will put on an old tree stump...it reminds us of how short life is and to value each moment...an appropriate thing for a birthday!



Next week...my special "birthday gift" for myself and the estimate for the kitchen addition...

Deano

THE BIG JOB

The Masonry Piers are being built at the front of the house to replace the ones that had been "bowing out." The original bricks are being reused. The front room need to be jacked up for the work to be done. Estimated cost: $3000 as opposed to a $14,000 estimate I received from another local contractor...who was rather arrogant, I thought ("I'm the best mason in Cincinnati, maybe the world")....think of that with his very German accent.




Joyce, for whatever reason, thought this would be a good time to plant Hostas...right where the boys were working!


In other news, we purchased this odd little bench at a yard sale and had a blacksmith make new footings for it. I believe it is made from an old railroad baggage cart.



I spent most of the day using a rented jackhammer to break up concrete from the old garage foundation. Four hours...one third of the job done...maybe. It was the most strenuous workout I've had in a long time and I'm a little sun burnt as well!

Meanwhile, a lady came and bought the old stove which I listed on Craig's list. She had lost her job and was living in an apartment so I reduced the price by one half.

Well, it's almost tax day and we didn't realize it at first, but we saved several thousand dollars via the "first time homebuyer's credit." It's not really for first time homebuyers...but for anyone who buys a primary residence after living at one address for several years...go figure.

Well, the weather is great; we need to get the bathroom floor done and the electrical work started in the next week. Bring your hammer and electrical tester and stop by!

Deano

The FENCE is DONE!

Well, here is the finished fence and gate...not quite dog proof yet! I plan on rocks in the front and maybe Impatients (sp.)

Ginger, of course, has figured out how to bypass the fence!!!

The backyard is littered with these star-like wildflowers, white with a slightly pink tint...I delayed cutting the lawn until they were gone.

I wonder what they are?

I really did not make much progress this week...the toilet upstairs is working but seems to have a small leak between the top and bottom of the thing...that's what I get for buying a Mexican toilet from the discount store! So much for my grandfather's advice: "You buy cheap you get cheap!" He didn't anticipate the world economy.

The mason is supposed to start this week; jacking up the room over the porch and replacing brick columns...I like him, despite his "redneck" persona.

It is annoying dealing with contractors in this part of the country; they act like they do not need the work and often do not return phone calls. I REALLY need an electrician bad! and am working on that this week!

Well, I'm sitting in the backyard at the (old) house having a beer and watching the leaky garden pond and stream...they will be relocated too...when I get around to it!

See you next time! Deano