Gate One

After we returned from a busy four-day weekend at Stephanie's house (where Rick did too many projects!), we decided to keep going by working on our fence.

We tackled the south side gate because that opening exposed more of the back yard than the north side.  This was one of those projects were the measurements and the actual build just would not coordinate.  We built the gate twice, finally taking parts of it and cutting them down since the math said to do so.  In the end, we should have left well enough alone, and the gate would have fit tighter.

The gate swings into the back yard, so that we can hook it to the fence
when we need to hold it open.  The sloping land made the installation tricky.

Once built, the gate was very heavy.  It gave us a struggle to get it in, and we still have work to do on it.  Because the landscape really slopes from the house to the neighbor's yard, we had to dig out the ground behind the gate just so it would be ground level in the front and have swing room in the rear.  We still need to slope the landscape down so that we can sod it before winter.

From the inside of the fence, this picture shows
the landscape work that awaits us so that the gate
will have a proper swing range while the yard 
remains walkable and mowable.

The digging and yard work will have to wait for a cooler day.  Rick went to physical therapy today, and the therapist told him that he overdid the work last week, and that he must totally rest this week.  That's OK with me.  If I feel ambitious, I may go out and remove some dirt.  If not, then the dirt has been in that position for many years, so I am sure that a little more time resting were it is will make no difference.  Eventually, it will be finished.  

We both need a rest.

Fight to the Finish

 We wanted to build a short section of fence today from the house outward so that we could eventually put in a gate on the south side of the house.  This project fought us all the way.

The weather forecast for today called for brief showers in the morning that were supposed to clear by 9:30 a.m.  That was fine; we figured that we only needed between two to three hours for the job, so we still would be finished by around noon.

While we waited for the shower that woke us up to end, we spent the time assembling the ingredients for beef stew in the crock pot.  Dinner started cooking, so we ventured outside to set up the tables, cement mixer, posts, and other tools that we needed to build the fence.  

Then we watched the sky darken, and we heard the thunder start to roll in.  We were getting a little wet by the time we threw and secured tarps over our work stations.  The weather was the first element to fight us. It would pour, then clear, and just as the sun peeked out from behind a cloud, it would start to pour again.  The rain continued, on and off, until about 2:30 in the afternoon.

Once we got back outside, the first hole that Rick had dug a couple of days ago seemed not deep enough.  Yes, we had put stone in the bottom, but it still was not quite right.  Out came the post hole digger -- again-- as we struggled to pull up dirt and stones from the bottom. 

Once we had the first pole set in the first hole, we moved on to the second pole.  Due to elevation changes in the side yard, getting that post lined up with the first was not easy.  A sloping lawn and setting the posts in the holes was the second element that fought us.

The fence panels and upper rail fight us as the
work area in the side yard peeks out from behind it.

Before we could cement the second post into place, we had to put in the lower rail, add the upper rail, and build the slats between the two.  Assembling the actual fence panel was the third element that fought us.  Since we had to cut the upper and lower rails short, we had one end on each that no longer had latches to help it stay in place. One or the other kept pulling out, and fitting the panels in between took us two tries before we could get everything in place.  By this time, we were both tired and uncomfortable as the weather was turning hot and humid.  So once again, the weather continued to fight us.

Looking from the back yard, the fence panel
finally is complete. We left an area wide enough
for a riding lawn mower or other large items 
still can have access to the back yard.

We finally finished the project about 5:00 p.m.  By this time, we both were exhausted, so that state of being was the last element to fight us.  We had to force ourselves to clean up the worksite since more storms and heat are expected for tomorrow.  We knew that if we did not pick everything up today, we would face a soggy mess tomorrow.

View of the fence from the front yard.

Once we add the gate, we will have more
privacy in our back yard.

In the end, we have the fence on the south side of the house in place.  If it rains tomorrow and we feel like working, we always can back the truck out of the garage and build the gate for the south side in the shaded and dry garage.  If we do not feel like working, so be it.  Tomorrow is Sunday, and I am perfectly content to let that be a day of rest.

At It Again

 While Rick has been not-so-patiently waiting for his foot to heal after Achilles surgery, we have been able to take a short break.  I have tried to keep the lawn mowed, and I have transplanted a few flowers and trimmed the back bush.  Other than that, tending the new trees and watching the grass grow have been the extent of our work. However, now we are back at our yard work again.

Last week, we took a trip to our neighborhood nursery and learned the they had received a fairly respectable shipment of new sod.  Since we badly needed sod to fill in the dirt "dump site" on the south end of our property, we took a deep breath and purchased 28 rolls of sod.  Rick had already raised the flower garden to its proper height, so we had the room to fit in sod above black dirt that we had trucked in a couple of weeks ago.

The new sod fills quite a bit of space.  
Rick "tucked in" the edges the next day.

We spent most of that day laying out the sod, only to find that we still were about three rolls short.  Rick returned the next day -- now that he can drive again -- and purchased the necessary sod to finish the job.  The yard looks so much better now that we do not have a dirt patch next to the flower garden.

Earlier this week, we drove to Appleton to Lowes to purchase a fence post that we needed to complete the gates on our fence.  We knew that we would not be able to complete the fence until August, and suddenly, August is here!  With the new post in hand, we thought we were ready to begin the gates.

The north side of the house will require less work (we thought), so we decided to start with that side.  Rick started to dig the hole for the post only to discover, after going down about a foot, that the ground wire and rod to the entire electrical system of our house is buried right were we wanted to put in the post.  Moving the post either forward or backward from that point would have made for an off-balance, angled gate.  That would not be good.

After three alternatives were contemplated, we decided that the only way we were going to successfully put a gate on that side was to install two posts so that we can move the entire gate structure back from the original end of the fence.  While that is not an ideal choice, it will look the best and work the best for our needs.  The only problem?  We need yet another fence post!

The layout of the posts for the fence panel and
gate are tricky as the house is not parallel to the
yard layout or fence. Both holes are dug, awaiting
dry weather and cement.

We both were up at 5:00 a.m. today.  I had an early morning blood test appointment, and Rick just could not sleep.  By the time I got back from my appointment, Rick had already dug the first hole on the south side of the house for our south gate.  I do not feel well at all today, so I am afraid that I was not much help. 

Rick promised me that he would only dig one hole a day, and would go no further.  Of course, while the weather is still nice today, he wanted to dig a second hole and to cement in both posts.  Since he does not have the posts filled with the wooden structures needed to support the gate hardware, and since he had already done more with his still-healing foot than he should have, I refused to even consider hauling out all of the tools and machinery needed to pour concrete.  Rain is predicted for the next three days, so the posts and their concrete will just have to wait.

Fresh, free produce, anyone?

The good news about our other "yard work" is that our patio garden is starting to give us results.  We have picked (and eaten) one green pepper.  Two more are growing on the vine.  We also have harvested so many salad tomatoes (three different kinds from four plants), that we both are tired of eating so many.  Maybe the latest bowl will have to go to Lindsay or to the neighbors. Good thing our zucchini plant did not grow this year!