Creating New Habits

Now that we are finished with our major remodeling work, we are in a position to set some new habits.  We started one yesterday.

Our very expensive bikes (actually trikes) have been silently sending me guilt messages because the tires needed air, the vehicles themselves have been little more than occasionally dusted this season, and my energy to do anything about the situation has been low.  That changed on Monday.

On that day I took the time to pump up all three tires on the trike.  Rick did the same for his bike so they would be ready to ride on Tuesday.  On that day, we took a "maiden" ride around the neighborhood.  I did not know how my muscles or my energy would respond, but I was nicely surprised when we toured the neighborhood with no pain nor trauma.  Granted, we only went a couple of miles, but it was good to rediscover those leg muscles that have not seen much use beyond walking.

Today we again went out early while the weather was cool.  We followed our "normal" route up the street, through the park, down a boulevard, and finally onto the Pinellas Trail.  We were a bit surprised to see how busy it was.  I guess everyone was taking advantage of the cooler morning temperatures to get in their workout for the day.

We did not push it too much, going our normal route a bit north and then south onto a street that connects back to our neighborhood.  We rode about 4.4 miles.  Nothing astounding, but a good beginning to a new exercise habit for both of us.  We'll see what happens tomorrow.

Odds and Ends

For the last couple of days, we have been busy with many little "odds and ends" jobs to finish before we go north.

The shoots of grass are starting to germinate
and to promise a green lawn someday.

We are trying to get the grass to grow, so Rick ordered extra seed and we pretty much reseeded the entire back yard.  We took the burlap off the areas that were still covered. Yesterday we spent most of the afternoon just moving the sprinkler around the yard and really letting the lawn soak.  We are WAY behind in rainfall this winter, so the earth is parched in this part of the country.  I hope that we have a wet summer so everything gets the moisture it needs.

The grass seed is starting to germinate in most areas, so with a little luck we can get something to cover the dirt before we leave for the summer.  Even weeds are somewhat appreciated as they are green (thank you, God) and they keep the dirt from blowing around.

The bud is fat and ready to open... probably tomorrow.

In the yard maintenance department yesterday, I took some insecticide and sprayed both the bougainvillea and the gardenia tree in the corner.  The bougainvillea definitely has something munching on the leaves, so the insecticide can't hurt.  I need to fertilize it again in the next couple of weeks and once more before we leave.  Then I just hope it rains enough to keep it going for the summer.

The gardenia looks a little weary with few leaves, but since this is early spring, I am hoping that water and bug resistance will help it leaf out again.  It did have one flower yesterday with buds for two more, but today the flower is already gone; the buds, however, remain to promise more beauty.

While I tackled some inside jobs today, Rick put on paint clothes and finished the necessary painting. He gave the patched soffits in back a second coat and painted the the front porch wall where the crew had splattered new concrete when putting in the sidewalk.

The wall and shutters have a fresh coat of paint,
and my Queen Kalanchoe plant adds a splash of color.

Sadly, to protect the shutters, he used painter's tape and plastic to cover them.  When he took off the painter's tape, part of the green paint peeled away also, so he ended up repainting the shutters, too.

Three of the windowsills needed attention, so they got a bit of scraping, sanding, and a fresh coat of paint.  Ah, the joys of home ownership.  The work really never ends.

As we were cleaning up the garage today, we decided to hang the wagon up out of the way.  In lifting it, Rick caught his finger between two metal joins.  He cut up a good flap of skin at the end of one finger that is going to remind him of what happened for quite a few days.  We got a bandage on it right away, but he probably should have had a Steri-strip on it to help it heal. Of course, he was too stubborn to go to the doctor.

By that time we were past noon, so we took a break for lunch and then finished cleaning up.  This afternoon is a good time to rest (and heal!), and that is just what we intend to do.

Three Tasks

The weatherman promised a chance of rain today, but we learned by watching the morning news that we will be lucky if we see one drop by later this afternoon.  That gave us the entire day to get some small tasks completed.

While screws hold the top of the brace in place,
tape secures the bottom section until Rick can
drill it from the other side.

The finished south gate with brace actually
is level and square.  My picture is off!

We started with the south side gate.  Like most things old, it had begun to sag.  Rick had sent for a crossbar piece of fencing to fix the problem, but of course it was hollow and thus incomplete.  To have a surface into which we could attach it to the door itself, Rick cut and then inserted a 1/2 inch thick piece of PVC board.  He cut the corners to match the gate, and then we drilled holes through the entire door and brace.  On the outside, all one can see is four more screw heads.  On the inside, we have washers and nylon lock nuts to keep everything in place.  Will it last forever?  Who knows.  For now, the gate is once again square and much more solid than it was when we awoke this morning.

Our new hook will keep the full gate open
when needed.

The second task we wanted to do today was to attach a latch to the gate so it would stay open.  Our lawn service always accesses the back yard through that south gate, and until now Chelly just propped the gate open with a large paver brick.  In doing so, however, we were really starting to scratch the bottom corner of the gate.

While we were shopping yesterday for the bolts and nuts for the brace, we also purchased an old-fashioned gate hook.  With a few well-placed screws, we now have an easy way to keep the gate open without further damaging the structure.  We will have to be gentle with it since the screws are not imbedded in anything other than a few layers of plastic fence, but it should serve its purpose if handled correctly.

The newly transplanted Areca palm now has a little
more room to flourish.

Our third task of the morning was to move the Areca palm that we planted a couple of weeks ago.  It was too far back in the corner, so we decided to transplant it before it got any larger and before it really took root.  Thankfully, we were able to move the root ball of the palm with no damage.  Now we just need to water each day so that it will be somewhat established before we leave for the summer.

Oh, and speaking of watering... how much faith do we have that we will see any rain today?  Well, we have been watering our new grass in the back yard all afternoon long. Enough said.

Daily Routine

We hope to get back to our original daily routine of working in the morning and relaxing in the afternoon.  I always have been a "morning person," so working when I have the energy early in the morning is always better for me.  Rick tends to be the same way, so this arrangement works out well.

Rick fills in the area around the Florida Room
window to complete the paint on the house.

This morning dawned clear and warm, so it was a perfect day to get back outside.  Rick painted the final coat of paint on the back wall which greatly helped "disguise" the patch job to the stucco.  Next year I would like to add some kind of art or visual interest on that wall, but for now the blank wall with the electrical plug will just have to do.

Raking in the shade was much easier than waiting until later
when this whole area is in the sun.  Each time I rake, the yard
seems to get bigger.

While Rick was painting, I raked half of the back yard.  The wind was low today, and what was blowing was blowing away from the house, so conditions were in my favor.  I actually had to rake each area twice.  The first time was to use a garden rake to dig up the leaves, stones, sticks, and other junk that was clogging the grass.  Then I switched to a regular rake to pick up the dead mulched grass clippings and the finer debris.  In all, I now have three full black bags of leaves and debris to drag to the curb for Monday pick-up.  I still have a little area of the back yard to complete, but since we have other construction debris to take to the curb, I had better wait until next week.  If we put too much out, the garbage men refuse to take it all.

After I finished, the back yard looks pretty pathetic.  We have more weeds than grass, and more dirt than weeds.  Because of that, we ordered more grass seed.  We will try to over-seed the entire back yard and see if anything grows.

We removed the burlap from the front yard this afternoon.  In some places the grass came in well; other places have some pretty bare areas.  Again, I will keep watering what is there, add more seed as needed, and hope that it all fills in this summer.

We were finished by noon today which left the afternoon to do a little shopping, and then to relax with books, puzzles, and other past times.  This is what retirement should be.

A Day of Relaxation

My last post was entitled, "Easing into NOT Working," and that is just what we have been trying to do.

After a fairly quiet weekend, we took some time yesterday to plant some grass in front of the pavers by the north gate, next to the pavers which border the patio, and across the area in the back yard where we distributed the "extra" dirt dug out to make room for the paver base.  We covered the front area and the area next to the patio with burlap.  Soon we must remove the burlap that we used in the front yard since the new grass is staring to poke though.

My birthday was this past Sunday, and I told Rick that I wanted to visit certain area attractions -- museums, art galleries, aquariums, and the Tampa Zoo -- as my birthday gift.  Today we took the time to visit a couple of those chosen places.

The Moorish architecture of the old Tampa Bay Hotel made
this an exotic destination.

The first place we went to was the Henry B. Plant Museum in Tampa.  The Museum is part of what once was the lavish Tampa Bay Hotel that Plant built from 1888 -1891.  Wanting to have a southern hotel to entice guests to use his railroads and steamships to travel south for the winter season, Plant bought land next to the Hillsborough River in Tampa, Florida.

In 1888, Tampa had only a little over 750 residents, many of whom worked in the vast orange groves that covered most of the area.  Plant envisioned a grand hotel and he set about building it.  He spent 2.5 million dollars on the hotel, and he and his wife traveled Europe to find furnishings for his unheard-of 500 room hotel.  He spent another half a million dollars on paintings, rugs, pottery, art objects, and furniture for the hotel.  The place is incredible.

The veranda offers a cool place to rest after
a day filled with activities.

Wide verandas and eleven-foot-tall windows gave guests a chance to enjoy the mild breezes that make Florida a wonderful winter destination.  His guests dined on meals created by New York chefs, entertained themselves with hunting, fishing, swimming, racing, bowling, biking, and other outdoor sports. Evenings were filled with first-rate entertainment in his casino (theater, not gambling) and at balls in the grand salon.

The hotel became the national headquarters of the American Army for the Spanish-American War, and afterward returned to being a hotel.  However, as the gilded age ended, guests pursued other interests.  Plant died in 1899 of a heart attack, and his second wife and his son had little interest in the hotel.  They sold the Plant empire, and the city of Tampa bought the $3 million hotel for $125,000.

Today the hotel is owned and operated by the University of Tampa.  While the Plant Museum occupies one wing of the original hotel, the rest of the hotel houses the University's administrative offices.  However, students may still dine in the grand ballroom, and the Rathskeller downstairs still offers a delightful little sandwich shop.

From that shop Rick and I bought lunch which we shared as a picnic in the park across the street from the Museum.  After lunch, we walked across the river to the Tampa Museum of Art.  Parking at the Plant Museum was impossible, so we actually parked near the Art Museum and walked across the bridge to get to the Plant Museum.

The roses spoonbill strolls across a park path.

The spoonbill was not shy and shared our walk
in the park.

On the way back to the Art Museum, we came across a delightful surprise in the park: one of Rick's favorite Florida birds, the roseate spoonbill.  We walked along a little creek, and it followed us from the other side for the entire length of the park.  We were surprised that the bird let us get that close, but he must be used to people since students use the park as an outdoor study/ relaxation area.

The Tampa Museum of Art was not what we expected.  It is advertised as "modern art," but the first thing one sees when entering is a permanent exhibit of "the classics," -- mostly Greek and Roman jewelry and pottery from 3000 BC - 600 AD.

Rick flirts with some new friends at an outdoor exhibit
at the Tampa Art Museum.

The DID have a an exhibit of some modern works, and they also had a collection of sports photography that was interesting.  However, their exhibits were far from the "modern art" like we saw when visiting the Museum of Modern Art in London.  I guess, though, that the terminology can have many interpretations.

We were home by 4:00 so we could avoid the Tampa rush hour traffic.  All in all, we had an interesting, enjoyable day away from Gladys and working around the house.  As the next few weeks arrive, we would like to take one day a week to visit more of the attractions that are just across the bay from us in Tampa.

Easing into NOT Working

We have been trying to take it easy this week, both to recover and to remember that coming to Florida does not mean that we have to work every day.

I have been really tired lately, so Rick did all of the backfilling around the pavers earlier this week.  We still need to smooth things out a bit and to plant grass, but that will be the last step in this whole process.

Rick had to cut back the yard for a couple of feet since
the grass was higher than the walkway or the patio.

The yard around the sheds needs LOTS of grass seed.

I have spent part of the last two days just deleting photos from my computer and putting the rest into albums so that I can easily find a specific picture if we need it for reference.  I am the type of person who takes pictures of wires or plumbing hanging in open walls, or who takes shots of a tape measure showing how far the drainage pipe is buried from the driveway.  One never knows when odd pictures like that become valuable.  Hopefully, our days of opening up walls in Gladys are behind us.

Today we tackled the garage.  That actually is an easier task than it sounds since we only have a one car garage.  Limited space means we could only store so much stuff until something had to go.  Since we hopefully are finished will all of our major projects, we can get rid of some of the left-overs that we know we no longer need.

We took down a lot of crap from the top of the garage and have it bundled and ready to go out to the garbage on Sunday night. The 2x4s that we have been using for various projects now are cut into 4 foot lengths so they can hit the curb.  Chris suggested that someone might want the wood for their fire pit since wood is so scarce down here.  I hope so.  I would love to see it all go. Still, we probably will have to limit how much we put out each week, but it all should be gone before we head north in another five weeks.  Pray for garbage scavengers on the lookout!

Gladys is finally to the point we envisioned she might be when we purchased her.  We started the hard work in 2011, and we have worked each year since that time making the changes necessary to make her a good home.

Not Gone with the Wind

After an evening of rain, we awoke to a very, very windy day.  I suggested that maybe the wind would not be the best weather in which to mix concrete since it would blow the dust of the bags around.  Rick did not think that it would be an issue, so we went ahead with our concrete plans for today.

Rick fills in the area next to the pavers to help
keep them in place.

We needed to clean out a small trough in front of the pavers and to remove the tape that held the sand in before we sealed the pavers.  Once that was complete, we were ready to pour a small concrete rim around the pavers to help hold them into place.

Completed!  As I took this picture, the wind
already was blowing the moved sand back over
the concrete rim.

We used six bags of concrete mix and had
just enough to rim the shed walkway also.

We started at about 9:30 a.m., and we were finished by noon.  One more part of this project is now complete.  Once the concrete dries, we will backfill the area and plant a little grass.  Then this job is done.  Hallelujah!

Clean-Up Crew

Yesterday was a day of rest, and we almost succeeded in making it one.

We did complete one small task.  After church (which was very peaceful), we decided to plant some grass in the front yard before we received late afternoon promised rain.  The whole chore took us not more than a half hour.  While Rick raked and seeded the area, I cut the burlap.  Then we staked it down and gave it a good drink of water since I did not believe that we would receive any rain.  I was correct.

Burlap protects our newly planted grass from birds and cats.

We chose to cover the areas with burlap both to keep the birds, especially the ibises, from eating all of the grass seed and to keep the cats away from using the muddy areas as their litter box.  Since the burlap was undisturbed this morning, I think our plan was a success.

Rick and I generally try to take a walk each day after dinner.  We have skipped our strolls quite a few times in the past week because we have been so tired from the paver work.  I figure that pure exhaustion is a good sign that I have exercised enough that day.  However, yesterday since we did little work, a walk was in order.

We walked in a neighborhood a few blocks from our house.  On one corner is a water catch basin surrounded by trees, including the largest and most beautiful bougainvillea I have ever seen.  I had to include a picture just to share its majesty.

This bougainvillea towers at least 15 feet tall and equally as wide.

Steve came over early this morning and helped Rick load the tamper back into the truck.  Thanks, Steve! After a quick stop at the hospital for me to get a scheduled blood test, we were off to return the tamper.  Traffic was heavy but moving, so we were home again by 10:30.

Rick suggested that we rent a small dumpster to get rid of the extra sand and old patio stepping stones that we inherited from the previous owner.  Sadly, when he called to order a dumpster, the man from the city told him that we could not put in cement or sand.  The dumpsters were more for "building materials" and for junk that one might clean out of a garage.

OK.  Slight problem.  Rick then called the place that sold us the sand, and they told us that we could drop off the extra sand along with the patio stones and paver cut-offs from our current job.  Oh, good.  We would have to move the sand AGAIN.  However, just to get it out of the yard, we did so.

We lined the back of the truck with a heavy tarp and then used wagon and wheelbarrow to transport 5-gallon buckets of sand from the back yard to the back of the truck.  We decided to use the buckets so we could better control how we distributed the sand in the truck bed.  Then, just as the sky started to sprinkle a little of yesterday's promised moisture, we piled the excess patio stones on top of the pile of sand.

At the disposal sight, we both got up into the truck and started to throw the patio stones and pavers out.  We both tried to shovel the sand out, but there really was not room enough for both of us to do so, so I got down.  Then a young man who had parked his company truck next to ours said, "You need a lift truck."  We agreed; however, that just was not available.

He looked at Rick doing all of the shoveling and said, "Can I help you just pull up and dump the tarp?" Rick grabbed one corner, he grabbed the middle, and I grabbed the other corner.  Among the three of us, we were able to pull the tarp over and to dump the sand out.  The helpful man really saved us lots of time.  He was young and strong; we would not have been able to dump the tarp without him.  Thank God for generous people in this world!

The mountain of sand is gone, and the boards that once
held it will be cut up and disposed of with next week's trash.

When we returned home, we cleaned up the rest of the back yard and Rick hosed down the truck.  It had gotten quite muddy at the concrete disposal sight.

This afternoon, the rains are finally starting to fall, and we could not be more pleased.  The tamper is safely returned, the sand is gone, the patio stepping stones are gone, and my new grass is getting the gentle rain it needs to grow. This has been a good day.

9/10th of the Way Done

We are almost finished with this project.  I keep telling myself that, and then we think of just one more thing we have to do to make it truly complete.

Our morning started with a trip to Lowe's to try a bag of more coarse sand, and to pick up a few more bags of concrete.  More on that later.

Starting at the Florida room, the walkway surrounds the patio.

We wanted to try a more coarse sand because the white diamond sand we have is very fine.  In fact, it is so fine that it runs out of the joints at the edges of the pavers.  We thought a more coarse sand may stay put, but we were wrong.  It fell out of the joints at the edges just as easily, so in the end we tried something very unconventional.  We actually used painter's tape to seal the joints and to hold in the fine sand until we could seal the pavers today.

The sand we tamped down yesterday did harden nicely, but the edges still gave us trouble.  By adding the tape, we were able to fill the joints with sand while we applied the sealant.  It penetrated all of the joints, so we can remove the tape tomorrow and be just fine.

Sadly, we still have a small mountain of sand left over.  If anyone needs sand, just let us know.  We have lots to give away!

Sand, anyone?

We needed to get more concrete because we still have to concrete in all of the edges.  That will hold everything in place in this soft, sandy soil.  Then we can backfill around the pavers and have the job finished.  A little grass seed, and all will be back to normal.

The area next to the patio will provide a good place for the grill.

Laying pavers was the most difficult project we have had to do.  Even building the fence was not this physically intense.  I am a little disappointed that some of the pavers are higher than others.  We had hoped that the tamper would even things out a bit more than it did; however, nothing but cement is perfectly flat anyway, and the pavers are just fine.  They certainly fulfill our desire to have a solid surface all the way from the driveway to the back doors.

The pavers go all the way to the front yard
and curve around to connect to the driveway.

The sealant left the pavers with a finished look.  They look good with the color of the house, so we are content.  Today was sunny and warm enough for the sealant to dry, and that was our goal.  We wanted everything sealed before the promised rains come tomorrow.

Sand and Insanity

My husband is trying to kill me.  He is very, very clever because he just refuses to quit working when we should; thus, I continue to work also.  That is his fiendish plot... to work me to death and then have it look like natural causes.  See?  I told you he was brilliant!

Seriously, we both worked far longer than we should have today in an attempt to have our paver project complete by the end of this weekend.  (Note: since we have to concrete in all of the edges, having everything complete before the rains come on Sunday will not happen.)  However, we will try...  Is this insanity?

After a restless night, we were up early.  We talked yesterday about using the "left-over" pavers to build a paved approach to our new sheds, so that is where we started the day.  We framed and then dug out the area.  We used every bit of paver base we could lay our hands on.  Some was from behind the shed.  Some was in a five gallon bucket, and some was in bags of paver base that we had purchased when we put in our flower garden borders.  We probably could have used even more, but for now what we had, had to do.

The first layer of sand it loosely distributed
in front of the sheds.

We wanted to tamp the base down, so we had to pause at that point while we went to the paver supply warehouse to rent one of their tampers again.  They helped Rick load it into the truck.  When we got home, we still had enough of a hill of sand for Rick and me to just drop it from the truck into the sand pile.  That may not be the correct way to take it down, but there was no way I could lift it down.  We just let gravity give us a helping hand.

After Rick tamped down the paver base, we added lots of sand.  We certainly have an abundance of sand left over, so this was a good place to use some of it.  Rick made a jig to get the whole area level, and then we were back to laying pavers.

Last night, on graph paper, Rick laid out the pattern we needed to use to complete this small project.  To utilize all of the left-over pavers, we had to cut quite a few of them to complete the pattern.  Darn! I had worked really hard yesterday to clean up the saw, but out it had to come today.  Having to clean it again today was worth it, though.  We used every single small paver we had, and we ended up with only six of the larger pavers remaining.  That is what I call efficiently using our resources.

The sand awaits distribution to form a smooth place on which
to seat the pavers.  We finished this area and are delighted to have
a solid approach to the sheds.

We had the new pavers in place by 12:30, and we should have stopped then.  However, Rick was eager to keep going, so he started to haul sand onto the pavers.  With our new push broom, we spent the afternoon sanding, tamping, and brooming the sand into place between the pavers.  Wow!  I never knew that pushing a broom could be so much work.  We really have lots of paved area now, so working the sand in took time.  By 4:00 PM, I quit.  I could barely drag myself around to finish washing the saw and picking up the tools.  We worked way too long today, and we both are exhausted.

A walkway next to the concrete patio will help
keep dirt and mud from the patio.

More sand needs to be worked into the joints, but by this time,
we were both too tired to continue.

I am delighted that the former mud patch
on the north side of the house now is solid
pavers.

We still have a bit more sand work to complete tomorrow.  Then Rick wants to seal the pavers to lock in the sand.  His rush is because rain is predicted for late Sunday afternoon and Monday morning.

I am glad that we were able to use the remaining pavers in a way that will serve us well for many years to come.  I also am glad that this project is nearing completion.  Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest, and I fully intent to make it so.

The Final Paver...for Now

At 10:40 AM today, Rick placed the final paver in our north side paver project. Hooray!

Stacks of pavers awaited our attention early this morning.

We started at 7:30 this morning.  While he brought sand back to fill in and to level the last walkway around the cement patio, I set up the saw and started to stage some of the pavers.  My back actually felt better today for whatever reason, so working was not all that difficult.

We left off the final row, knowing we could
cut the one paver if we had to in order to have
enough for the whole project.

We filled in the first few rows of pavers but held off with the final row to make sure that we had enough pavers to fill in the pattern.  We could have stopped a row short, but actually we filled in the whole pattern and still have enough pavers left over for another small project.

The saw was invaluable to cut pavers around
the fence posts and around the drain area.

A trip to the Paver Warehouse this afternoon left us feeling good.  They told us that if we sealed the pavers, which we intended to do anyway, that we would not have to buy polymeric sand.  We have lots of base sand left over, so they said to use that instead of the polymeric sand, and to just seal the pavers once the sand is tamped into place.  We are happy to be able to use the left-over sand.

We had more than enough pavers to finish the
complete pattern and to give our walkway
a defined edge.

Our project was the wrong size in the fact that if we had ordered out just two pallets of pavers, we would not have had enough to finish the area we wanted to cover; however, three pallets have left us with enough to do another small project.

We have enough left-over pavers to pave a small area
in front of the back yard sheds.  That will make rolling items
into the sheds easier, and the pavers will help keep the mud out
of the sheds also.

We are getting the tamper tomorrow and will have it for the weekend.  We plan on getting the sand tamped into the pavers and to seal them this weekend while the weather is still dry.  Then, since we have the tamper here, we might dig out a small area (12 feet by 32 inches) in front of the sheds in the back yard.

We think that we have enough paver base left over that we can fill it in.  We know that we will have sand left over that we can use, and Rick calculated that if we pave the area in front of the sheds, we should have only seven pavers left in the end.  That is what I call utilizing our assets!

If we have the time and the energy, we would like to get that area dug out.  Then we can fill in the base, tamp it down, add the sand, lay the pavers, add the sand fill, tamp that down, and seal the top. Whew! After that, I sincerely hope we are finished with our projects for the year.

Yes, we still have the maintenance items to complete.  Rick has to put a second coat of paint on the back wall where we had the electrical meter removed.  I still have lots of leaves to rake up and to take to the curb, but those are not major tasks.  Houses always need maintenance.  We hope we are now to the point where a little work will keep Gladys looking great, and we can spend some time just enjoying some of our other interests while in Florida.

Two-Thirds Complete

Today is the third day of laying pavers, and I have to admit that I did something to my back yesterday.  I HURT!  And if I do, I am sure that Rick hurts as much; however, we made some great progress today.  I calculate that we are probably 2/3 of the way finished with the laying paver portion of this job.  (Note that we still have to concrete around the edges, add polymeric sand, and seal the whole job before we really are finished.)

The front sidewalk, looking north.

The front walk, looking south.  Rick did a great
job cutting the curve.

The front walk, looking west through the gate.

We are happy with the results in the front. Tomorrow we will focus our attention on the back as we make more strides to finish this part of the project.

More Pavers, More Pain

Rick and I started out with two different goals today.  I wanted to get the pavers put in to the front gate in the north side yard. He wanted to do all of that, and he also wanted to try to get the front portion completed, too.  We met my goal, but Old Sol and lack of energy prevented us from fulfilling Rick's wishes.

Sand marks the area (toward the top of the picture)
that we wanted to fill today.

The north side of the house is always in shade, and since the temperatures did not reach 80 today until noon, we had a comfortable work environment for today's task.  Cramped quarters made getting some of the pavers staged a difficult job, but we were able to get the pavers in place almost to the front gate before noon.

One hour into our work today, we made progress
by paving the area as we work toward the gate.

After lunch, we went back out to see how much more we could finish before the sun swallowed our shade at the front (west) side of the house.  Today was a "putzy" day in the fact that we had to make lots of cuts as we went along the north side slab.  Cutting around fence posts and gate posts also slowed our pace a bit.  (Thank God we did not put in round posts!  Cutting circles is not easy with a paver saw.)

Lots of little cuts slowed our progress a bit today.

We successfully got through the gate and into the front yard, but by then lifting one-too-many pavers really attacked my back, and we both were exhausted.  Tomorrow is another day, and I know that no one will do the work for us overnight, so we can start fresh in the morning.

For now, Rick's knees need to straighten out, and my back muscles are badly in need of ice.  The weather forecasts seem to be in our favor, so we'll start early tomorrow in the front yard which should be in the shade for the entire morning.

Pavers and Pain

We were up early today so that we were ready for our sand delivery this morning.  We expected him to be here by 8:00 AM.  He was a little late, so that delayed our work day a bit.

The truck dumps 2 1/2 tons of sand in our driveway.

Rick is not happy with the sand.  Although this is the sand that the company swears all of the professional companies use under pavers, Rick thinks it is too fine.  Also, we ordered one amount and received much more, so the bill was larger than we had anticipated.  We were worried about what we would do with the extra sand, but our landscape crew told us to just spread it around the yard.  They said that the sand will be very good for the grass.  OK.  That is a new one on me, but I am not going to argue with them.  Our yard is mostly weeds anyway, so the sand certainly will not hurt anything.

All of the pavers on the patio and one of the
three pallets of pavers in the back are now
in place in the largest area that we wanted to cover.

While we waited for the sand, we staged what we could to lay the pavers.  Once the sand was here, Rick made short work of putting down the layer over the area that we wanted to cover today.  We started at the corner of the largest part of the project, and we were able to fill in that area by 1:30 PM today.

We now have placed about 1/3 of the pavers into place. We accomplished what we had hoped to do today, although we both feel the results of our efforts tonight.  I am exhausted, and I would guess Rick is also.  His shoulder aches, and once I go to bed, I am sure that my back will let me know how many pavers I moved today.

The area to the right of the patio was our target for today.
Tomorrow we will fill in the north side walkway and perhaps
the front sidewalk leading from the driveway.

This project will be fine as long as we pace ourselves.  For me, that means not working beyond noon. By that time, the sun and the heat usually are too intense, so we will use the afternoon to shower and to wash our work clothes for the next day.

Our goal is to have the pavers all in place by this Friday.  The saw is working wonderfully, and Rick is doing a good job of making precision cuts.  We both will be happy when this project is complete.

Vacation Fun, Then Back to Work

Stephanie arrived late last Sunday, so we took this week off to have a little fun with her while she was in Florida.

On Monday we slept late, and then spent some time at the Florida Botanical Gardens.  I am always interested to see what is in bloom at each season of the year.  We happened to visit the Gardens when the azaleas were trying to outdo one another for color and the amount of blossoms.  They were gorgeous.  Stephanie got lots of great pictures, even adding a hibiscus bloom as a screen saver on her phone.

While we were at the Gardens, we purchased our annual beach pass for 2017.  We used it on Thursday when we had a picnic lunch on Fred Howard Park beach.

Tuesday found us in the car heading for Orlando.  We spent part of the day visiting one of the largest outlet malls in the state.  Orlando actually has three outlet malls, so while Disney tries to pick the pockets of the tourists, the malls do their share to help lighten the wallet load.  Rick and I bought some luggage better suited to our travels to and from Wisconsin, and I bought two more pair of Clark's shoes.  They make the best walking shoes I have ever found, so I have them now in a variety of colors.

Rick and Stephanie walk toward the new Heros and Legends
Exhibit at Kennedy Space Center.

Tuesday afternoon we drove as far as Cocoa so we would have easy access to the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday.  We have been there before with Stephanie, but they add new attractions each year, so a visit is always interesting and informative.  We like it because the Center has wonderful displays, but it is never crowded.  Rick is dying to see a launch, so we may have to go back a couple of times in the next year.

The Rocket Garden is just one of the many
attractions at the Center.

A small, single-level room with crude computers and lots
of lights and switches somehow got men into space in 1962.

This year, we took a tour of a couple of launch control rooms.  We saw old computers that were used for the Gemini and Apollo programs.  What a risk those men took!  I have more computing power in my iPhone than they did with a whole room full of computers back in the 1960s and 1970s.  I am amazed that the missions were, for the most part, successful.

I kissed a robot!

The old computing equipment that started our quest for space.

Our tour guide showed us the control room used for the Space Shuttle program also, and we passed a room full of computers that were being programmed for a launch in 2019 or 2020.  The guide said that launches were now in the hands of three entities:  NASA, the military, and private companies such as Boeing, SpaceEx, and Virgin Galactica.  His speech almost sounded like a want ad for young engineers, mathematicians, designers, and computer wizards.  He said the old group is all retiring, and they were actively seeking new blood.  We really enjoyed the day, but we wanted to drive home that night, so we had to leave before we could see everything.

On Thursday we spent the day relaxing a little.  We drove north to Tarpon Springs for a little shopping, and we had the afore-mentioned picnic lunch at the beach.  The weather was wonderful the whole time that Stephanie was here, although she said that it was "a little too warm" for her liking.  Steve and Chris came over for dinner, bringing along pina colada mix and some wonderful lemon bars.  Thanks, guys!

We awoke early today to get her to the airport for her flight home.  She just called a while ago to tell us she arrived safely.  Sadly, I am not as worried about the flights being a danger as I am about spending time in the airports!  I hope that she had fun, and I am glad that she has the weekend to relax before she returns to work.

Our new areca palm fills the corner in the back yard.

After we returned to Gladys, we changed into work clothes.  Stephanie helped me pick out a small areca palm tree for the corner next to the backyard sheds.  We planted it today and gave it a good drink of water.  I also spent some time trimming and feeding my bougainvillea plants.

Row one of the pavers behind the shed will
eliminate the need for mowing or trimming.

Rick started to level the paver base that we had put behind the sheds last week so we could install the pavers that once served as our front walkway.  We need to cut the ones that are left to completely cover the area, and we need to purchase a few more to finish the job.  He really damaged his shoulder with all of the construction the last couple of weeks, so he was aching this afternoon.  I hurt my back last week when I fell, so I was not too far behind him in the pain department.  We both agreed to take the weekend off to try to let our poor battered bodies heal.