Friends

Today there were TWO MEN here helping me with miscellaneous jobs. One patched an old hole in a bathroom bottom log that was formerly used for a drain hose of an old dehumidifier. At least the log wasn't rotten! He then figured out why the bottom drawer of the newer (but still quite old) dehumidifier wasn't cooperating with me when I attempted to put it back in after emptying it into the toilet every day last summer. Let's hope that it will function better for this year and I won't have to invest in a new one yet.

The other man is my "yard guy" a very dutiful and thorough fellow who sprayed for carpenter ants a couple of weeks ago. Today he raked, wheelbarrowed debris away, cleaned gutters, blew leaves out of places they didn't belong, fixed the ramp to the shed and then moved the snowblower into it to rest beside the lawn tractor. Soon he'll take the tractor for a ride just to make sure it still functions, even though he uses his own. THEN...the summer mowing and weed-whacking will begin. The porch chairs still need to be power-washed and the swing will be uncovered as soon as the 'squiggleys' have fallen from the trees. They are actually tree catkins and are a nuisance. In early spring it's the turn of the willows, populars, maple and oaks to open up their catkins.

How lucky am I? I have a long story that a friend sent me from SC about the need for having friends. There sure is! I'm keeping that story as I continue to clean out my files. It hit me really hard. 

Dance

My dance of life and living continues...

The men came yesterday and sealed up the area around the chimney so when hard rain comes, it can no longer leak down the yellow bricks onto the wooden beams indoors. Well, it was a very hard rain! Shouldn't have leaked. Probably won't rain like that for  many years to come, I hope!

A delivery was made yesterday. The package contained specialty cheeses, jellies and crackers. Just in time - I was out of cheeses, and jellies! It was a gift from dear friends who live far, far over the ocean. The box also contained a note telling me that it was #1 of TWO! I am anticipating a second delivery soon.

Another delivery also arrived. It contained some smaller fleece slacks as my older warm ones are way too large for me now. (I just ordered some smaller underwear too, FYI!)

I had to call my neighbor to bring me more Victor mouse traps. I'm not emptying them and reusing. I went through all four so far. The refillable bait station hasn't been touched and the sticky glue traps are empty. Guess that tells me something. When he came I had to have him open my new jelly jars because my strength for this mundane chore has left.

A blogger I follow showed pictures of some of her porcelain birds. That prompted me to research one of several mantel pieces that have been here for a long time. (Of course they are all ducks!) My mom loved ducks.

I have this pair here

My cheery young neighbor delivered my clean laundry this morning. She picks it up every other Thursday and delivers on Friday. I'll bet she wonders why there are so many pillow cases needing to be done. Well, I drool when I sleep - doesn't everyone? The scary part of her laundry responsibility for me is that her driveway is very steep and curvy. It sure will be a challenge for her throughout the winter. As she will accept no fees nor supplies for her caring service, I'm thinking very hard about a special holiday gift suited for such generosity.

There are quite a few Canada Geese on the lake now. I hope they are just passing through. 

OH! First SNOW today! I took these just before the sun came out!

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Time to change his autumn leaves to winter scarf!

Repairs

James was drawing several gawkers yesterday as they passed by. The reactions were a treasure, especially when I watched two ladies stop, look, and chatter with hand hands going and heads shaking. The discussion would probably have been interesting. You see, our yardman had just completed filling the holes that the bees, bugs, and woodpeckers made last late Autumn when I wasn't paying enough attention to James and his comfort. It's now time for a fix. A little plastic surgery. The first step was to fill the holes. Well, after that operation some seeped out and it looked like he was spewing nasty stuff!

The good news is that the excess material has been removed today and the project will soon be completed with wood putty and stain. That's the plan. Then he can be dressed in his Spring Glory attire! A bluebird came and sat on his head after he was cleaned up so that is a great sign that all will be well.

Speaking of Spring Glory - the daffodils in the old-old rock garden have started to bloom. The ones in the flowerbeds around the front porch haven't. The porch area only gets a few minutes of sunshine in the early morning at this time of year. It's a waiting on Mother Nature Game! She always knows what she's doing.

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Fixin'

Well the repairs and replacements continue today. That is wonderfully prompt service! The estimate for the labor,  replacement of the 40 feet of new gutter and the two new downspouts plus the fachia board replacement quote of cost came in (via phone) this morning. I gave the "OK" over the phone and another man, "Phil" is here as I write doing the work! It makes us feel important and valued as customers.

They were very considerate of our needs and costs and were definitely fair. Wonder if he'd like a brownie when he's finished. Bet he would!

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The Project

My fellow blogger, Anni understands the enormity of my old photo album project and says she hopes I'll take "before" and "after" photos. Darn! I didn't think of that but here are a few to give you the idea.

I just want to keep it as “vintage” as possible, not create an up-to-date style. I’ll be OK. Just takes time and motivation. Most of the photos are trimmed with pinking shears - haha! Crooked and all.

So far I have trimmed 30 pages and have scored and bent over one end 1” and punched about 10 pages with two holes each 3” away from ends and 1/2” in from ends. The really messy part will be trying to unglue the photos as in those old days I used Mucilage. Remember that stuff? Red rubber tip with a slit to let the glue out when you press down. I will soon start to do one page at a time. Remove and remount.

Some of the photos have both corners AND glue!

Time Out

I'll try to keep up with reading other's blogs but am backing off writing and taking pictures for a while.

Left hand is wearing a brace for next 10 weeks due to painful tenosynovitis. This morning my left eye had another corneal erosion, and am now treating that! It isn't as severe as the one I had last August, but still very painful and expected to close soon.

It is just too difficult for me to continue hunt and peck right hand typing and have only one eye in fair working order.

This old wagon is wearing out piece by piece.  Will contact again when parts are repaired.

Tenosynovitis

Corneal Erosion

Fixin' For Spring

The Mister has called an outfit in Binghamton NY to come and pick up his Yamaha ATV because something in the shifting mechanism is malfunctioning. Hopefully, it won't cost an arm or a leg. The pickup and delivery fee was pricey but he definitely wanted a business that has been long established and reputable and that's where it went for a diagnosis and estimate. This cycle center has been in business since 1975 and we have had service by them before. A friendly and knowledgable staff and good business was what we remembered. Hopefully the problem will be corrected and the Mister can ride the trails soon. He bought this 1994 machine in 1996 USED and has had lots of rides on it since then. In 1999 he had to have a brake cable installed. It had a new battery put in year 2000 and another in 2014. Keeping fingers crossed that all will be fixed and we can handle the expense!

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Bridge Foundation Repair

Well I cannot go into the technicalities of how this is done because you'd never understand my explanation. I'm just happy that the cracks in the old bridge underpinnings are being fixed. Also it is nice that local men are doing the work.  They're the ones that tugged the old tree log from the lake. There are many 'macgyvers' in this area that get things done and done well.

It all started with the big Cat's arrival and some concrete forms being delivered and then a wooden form being built and filled under the bridge. 

Today they are working on the other side, and patching and pumping their work area to have easier access to the wall. An inspector also checks on the work done to date and has been here several times.

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Well, that's all the excitement for today!

Dock Update

I think the year was 2004. Our grandson and daughter undertook the task of building a new dock. The supplies were purchased by them and it was built as a surprise anniversary gift to us for when we returned in July from SC. After five years of hot summers and icy winters, it needed preservative applied once more. He had recuperated from a terrible car accident which happened on May 18, 2009 and was ready to get back in action on a project. That same summer they applied preservative.

July 4, 2009

 Two summers later, on August 28, hurricane Irene blew through and the turmoil of the wave activity in the waters caused it to break loose at one end. We were lucky because other docks separated completely from their moorings and floated freely, later crashing into the banks.

August 28, 2011

October 12, 2015

This year we noticed a dip between the ramp and the main end. Our grandson looked it over and decided it needed to be pulled out of the water and reinforced. When he and his buddy got around to doing this, it was October 16 and cold! They pulled it entirely out and up onto the bank with ropes and his truck. It was then discovered that one of the barrels was filled with water, one was partially water logged and one was slightly leaking. This meant they had to all be removed, dumped, and the bungs re-glued so hopefully, no more problems like this could happen. They were able to re-attach the barrels, relaunch and secure the ramp, float the deck out to be attached to the ramp and then resurface all with treated lumber. It took two and a half days of continual work.

October 19, 2015

These two young men (grandson is 26) got the job done with determination while enduring extensive  strain and pain and cold (did I say cold?) weather. Just in time. You may wonder why I didn't take pictures. Well, it was tricky work with a lot of MacGyver action and I didn't want them to be distracted at all.

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This is an autumn view my mother took many years ago.
I just came across this and couldn't help showing it to you. The tall blue spruce is now "James." 

Repair and Replace

The old catch drain has totally worn out so the handyman has come to give it a complete overhaul! Yeah for young men who do this work for older people. He is a wonderful fellow and works very hard, charging fairly. 

We need this basin for the gutter to empty its contents when it rains. A down-pipe isn't used because of winter icing. The rain water is taken through this pipe and led to the main drain at the roadside. We think that one leads into the lake. 

I didn't take a "before" picture, but believe me it was a hazard, all out of whack, and a dangerous place to walk through and over. Only my long-gone "Putter-Pop" would know what year he built it!

The grate will be put in place after the concrete has cured. There is a new "Putter-Pop" in the making! 

He had to add some topping wedge so the drop off on the upper slope wouldn't trip anyone.

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Not Dull Here

At about 7 PM the power went off. We knew it would be completely off after two short losses. Out came the propane lantern. Out came the flashlights. After deciding it would stay off, we knew the generator would be the only way to save the exposed water pipes from breaking.

The layout of the water supply here is as follows:  The well is deep and a good one and it is near the carport. The underground supply pipe goes to a storage tank that is in a small shed at the back of the carport. The supply pipe from the storage tank goes out and up and is attached on a beam from its source, across the open carport into the log wall of the cabin bedroom. It is then split into a second pipe that goes into the water heater in the kitchen, back out with a hot pipe which is is run to the kitchen sink and also is routed along the bedroom top wall into the bathroom with the cold water pipe. After reading this I guess I'm not doing a great job of describing the plumbing but it's my best effort.

The problem here is the possibility of a freeze up of the pipes outdoors. As a preventative, several years ago a trench was dug from the well to the storage shed. The shed was rebuilt and lined with half inch styrofoam throughout. The underground pipes were wound with heat tape before being covered over. The pipes in the storage tank shed were wound with heat tape and a 90 watt halogen flood light is aimed at the pressure switch, which turns the pump on and off. The pipes going across the open carport are wrapped first with heat tape and are covered with foam pipe insulation. There is a lever operated switch box which turns on all tape and heating elements electrically. This is flipped on in October and stays on through March.

This is the well and the shed is at the back.

Ed's Shed (water shed)

The exit pipe going across the beam.

The pipe enters the cabin through the log.

The red box is the flip switch for the heat tape and lamp.

This is the cold water pipe entering the cabin and split with a "T."

The top pipe is the hot water return pipe heading to the bathroom. 

When the power goes out the generator is put into action. It isn't automatic. There is a specific procedure to follow. This generator is plugged in to a special charger that keeps the battery up to par so the push button starter will work. Every year since 2006 when we bought it, updating the style to easy start, it has been diligently and thoroughly serviced by the in-house super mechanic. Who was to know that the battery didn't take its charge during the past year and was dead - DEAD!

It was a serious dilemma for a bit. The truck was parked heading out - it doesn't fit under the carport. The engine is in front, which meant no jump starting unless turning the truck around. Then the thought occurred…there is a battery that is used for the boat out in the larger storage shed in the yard. It is always being charged and is ready to use.

Hey! the generator was started and running smoothly. We had power. After waiting from 7 PM to 10 PM we finally went to bed in complete darkness and to the comforting hum outside.  The mister left the small TV on and muted, and when he got up in the middle of the night there was a picture so he got dressed, turned off the generator, flipped the house power back on and all was well. Today was another trip to town to replenish gasoline in the cans.

Now the next mission will be to order and replace the generator battery. We have the model and serial number and a place to order it but the problem will be installation. After checking everything out, Mr. Mechanic has discovered that the fuel tank has to be removed in order to withdraw and replace the battery! Do you believe it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The fuel tank is full!