Another challenging day.
This morning I woke up super early because I wasn’t sure what time Dan was going to get to the job site. He was actually coming to help me replace the culvert at the green house. So I got over there and 6:15, and did some organizing until he texted at 7;15 saying that he would be over at nine. Then I worked on moving the temporary porch roof supports on the first house so that later I can dig footings. That was slow going. Dan came a little early and we got to work. Things were going very well until we hit bedrock where we had to trench for the new culvert. So we rented a jackhammer and took turns with it. That was tough work, coupled with some pretty hot temperatures. We hammered through the rock though, and were able to get the culverts set and mostly covered with gravel. I will have some more gravel brought in though. Towards the end of our work we took a lunch break at the Goat Market. After finishing around 2:30 I went to the cottage for a shower, returned the jackhammer at the lumberyard, then hit the road. I arrived home to see Liz and Luke shucking corn on the back porch. We had a nice dinner and Luke ate a ton. Three pieces of corn, two pieces of almond butter toast, a whole peach, and probably more that I am forgetting. He is taking a bath now and afterwards I will do bed time with him.
A total disaster of a day.
I played with Luke for a bit this morning before driving to Cedar Direct in Chapel Hill. There I picked up some of my lumber for the walls, about a quarter of it. I drove the back roads through Lynchburg and things were fine, albeit slow until I was almost to Sewanee. A trailer tire blew out as I was coming up the last stretch of the Mountain.
So I left the trailer and went to the cottage for a spare and jack, and to the storage unit for my impact wrench and sockets. My dad came with me to change the tire. Unfortunately we could not jack the trailer high enough to put on the spare. A neighbor from Laurel Lake stopped and loaned us a jack, but it wasn’t strong enough to lift things. So my mother came and took me to O’Reilly in Winchester where I bought a six ton bottle jack. That lifted the trailer and we put on the spare. Unfortunately after driving a few hundred yards it blew out as well. So I again left the trailer and went for my army trailer. My dad and I loaded up half the lumber and took it to the cottage. The trailer was all over the road and I couldn’t go over 3o miles per hour without it fishtailing like crazy. We loaded the other half and I hauled it as well. I just unhooked the trailer then returned for the empty flatbed. After taking off the messed up wheel we drove it to the cottage.
I drank a couple of cans of water then went to the job site to clean up a bit. I didn’t really do that last week after the siding. Next I went to the storage unit and organized my car a bit. My last stop was Piggly Wiggly for some food. Back at the cottage I ordered five new tires for my trailer and have been working on some lists and other stuff on the computer. I am pretty drained now and will try to get to bed early.
Kind of another off day.
Liz went to get tested for the virus this morning because she was worried she might have it. She did not. Madeline came at ten to watch Luke so Liz and I both napped in the apartment. She felt pretty bad and I felt just a little off. After rising we went for a late lunch at Panera Bread in Spring Hill. The food took a while so they gave it to us for free. We took a long, scenic route home, where Luke was waiting for us. Liz rested some more and I took the mower to Kubota, then did some computer work until Madeline left. We built more towers and he went outside some with Liz. He is taking a bath now and I will probably put him to bed.
Kind of an off day.
Luke seemed to be feeling a bit better this morning, but Liz felt worse, and I didn’t feel great either. Nevertheless we all went to Kroger. Upon returning Luke and I played with Legos and then ate lunch. He didn’t really nap so we went for a car ride and he eventually fell asleep. He woke up as we were going to Kroger to get a few things we forgot this morning. We played more and had dinner back at home. Liz bathed him and then I did the rest of the bed time routine. He was pretty amped up and didn’t want to sleep. I left his room after nine and we was still awake. Liz is going to get tested for the virus in the morning.
Kind of a low key day after a wild night.
Luke went to bed without issue last night, but woke up about 1:15 with a fever and throwing up. He was kind of freaked out, but calmed down when we set up a mattress in his room so that Liz could sleep in there with him. This morning he was doing much better and seemed pretty normal other than a slight fever. We went to the farmers market, but Luke and I drove in the parking lot while Liz shopped. He loved being able to steer. Back at the house we built Lego towers and video chatted with my parents. He took a great nap after lunch and later this afternoon we went on a drive to see some construction equipment. We talked with Aunt Lauren this evening, then had dinner and the usual bed time routine. Liz is putting him down now and soon I will make a quick trip to Monteagle to get a few things.
Early start, early finish.
My dad and I got to the job site around seven again this morning. We finished the siding in about four hours, and put on some of the window pieces before he had to leave. I finished them myself. After loading up the tools and taking them to the storage unit I returned to the cottage to shower, clean, and wash clothes. While the clothes were drying I went next door to see Debbie and Charles for a few minutes. I hooked up my trailer and drove home around four, arriving a couple of hours later. Luke and I played with Legos until dinner. I did bath with him after and Liz put him to bed. She thinks he is coming down with something.
The heat has arrived.
I played with Luke a bit this morning and left home a little later than I would have liked, around 7:30. After stopping for gas I had an uneventful drive to the cottage, where I changed clothes and went to get no ethanol gas for the generator. My dad was waiting for me at the job site when I arrived. We first finished the siding on the front of the house, which was slow and difficult due to the height and numerous cutouts over the windows. Next we finished the far side. The heat and sunshine were pretty draining, and I had to run to CVS for some drinks in addition to the water I had on hand. We started just a little on the last of the back of the house, but I was pretty maxed out at that point, so we just put the trim pieces under the windows and called it a day. After showering we had dinner at the Mexican restaurant a few doors down. The food was mediocre and the service worse, as expected. Now I am just kind of a zombie on the couch. We should finish up the siding tomorrow morning.
More siding, more rain.
We got to the job site about seven again this morning and started off on the front porch – the most difficult and challenging element of the whole house. It was pretty high up and I did not enjoy being on the ladders. It took us about two hours and I was glad to be done. We also did more on one side of the house, and started up the back wall as well. That area was a muddy mess, but we still made good progress. I had to run out for nails, safety glasses, and water, otherwise we worked without stopping. It started sprinkling a little after two so we packed up and returned to the cottage. Glad we did because it really started pouring. I showered, took trash to the dump, then headed home. The drive was uneventful. Liz and Luke were outside when I arrived. I played Legos with Luke until dinner. We had pie for dessert and he was thrilled. He did better than usual at bed time.
Herculean day of siding.
It was a little drizzly when we got to the job site around seven this morning. After setting up I went to get us some siding. That lasted us until the remainder was delivered a little later. We started on the close end of the house and had it completed before noon. Then we moved to the front and got a lot before going to the far end. I was getting tired and didn’t want to do the big ladders. We will start on the remainder of the front tomorrow morning. We really got a lot more done than expected, and I think we can finish in two more days, even factoring in my trip home tomorrow. Our last task of the day was loading the last of the OSB onto the trailer. Once we did so one of the tires was really low, so I went to Ace for an inflator valve for the compressor since I couldn’t find mine. We took the OSB to the cottage and unloaded it, and are now relaxing. Tonight I will try to watch a couple more episodes of Magnum PI that I downloaded to my phone. I watched one last night and it was good.
Partial rain day.
I slept poorly last night and kind of tried to sleep in this morning. My dad declared it a rain day so I didn’t feel bad about it. After finally rising I went to the bank, a couple of tire places, Dollar General, and Piggly Wiggly. I was going to the library to use the internet but forgot my computer. I started preparing a dish in the slow cooker for dinner, but my dad decided the rain day was over, and we went to work. We put trim and siding on the areas above the porches. That went well, but slowly, due to the height and mud. After that we put little siding pieces under the windows and organized the site a bit. I went to get the trailer and we loaded up some OSB and hauled it to the cottage. After showering we went to Piggly Wiggly for some food which we cooked back at the cottage. All in all it was a good day. I’m hoping it doesn’t rain tomorrow and we can get a lot done.