So we've been sequestered pretty much since early March and during this time, aside from our normal yard work and just generally helping around the house, I've been fairly successful at avoiding new projects. All that ended last month.
Maureen has talked about having a walking path around the one side of the house that is fairly level. And It's a good idea especially now that we are having our guests meet us out back where we have room to physically distance in the yard or on our decks. When it's wet out, and we're in a temperate rain forest area that gets 50 to 60 inches of rain each year so it's frequently wet out, it would be nice to have an all weather path to walk around the house.
At some point Maureen decided that she wanted to install the pavers herself, which of course was fine with me. Liam and I have both tried to help until she shoos us away, but Maureen is making progress, a little each day. I'm more of the mind of our Uncle John. Uncle John (and we can all appreciate this) will help with any project; "as long as it can be done in one day!" I recall a couple of projects where I needed the extra hands, knowledge and experience; once where a water heater failed, and once when I had about 40 feet of fence that blew down. In both cases, Uncle John showed up, we did demo, purchased materials, and completed the jobs before the end of the day. When we replaced the fence, we even poured concrete footings for the posts that day and still had the job done the same day.
Here is Maureen's path. She is planting two or three stones each day. She should be done by the end of the week weather permitting. The wood pole border along the house was Liam's and my job. And yes, it was done in a day, actually in just a few hours. I do have a confession. The last section of pole, per one of my earlier Uncle John-isms, I measured twice...........but made a huge gaff. I'm embarrassed to admit how far off I was. I can't even back into how I made the mistake. Needless to say, from now on I'll be measuring twice and double checking again before I make that cut!
Maureen's July project was our new fire pit.
And again, Maureen insisted on doing the lion's share of the work. I was hands on a bit but for the most part I did what I do best, I supervised.
I don't believe I've ever done any advertising before but there is a first for everything. I was looking for a face shield but didn't like the options with the hinged head bands. I tried to find a baseball cap with an attached shield but found that everything I looked at had a poor review. Problems with attaching the shield and having the shield stay attached. About that time an ad for Instashield popped up on my Facebook page.
The shield is designed to attach easily to the bill of a baseball cap that you already have. The shields are $3.00 each as opposed to $10-$20 per for other options. If you are tired of wearing a mask even around friends and family that you are sure are being careful, this could be an option. Or if you follow Dr. Fauci's advice, he's suggesting that to be more safe, we should all be wearing masks and face shields.
And Now, this installment of "What I Learned From My Uncle John!"**
While we're talking Covid, I was on the phone with our Uncle John this past week and he told me about a Covid self-test he'd heard about. Two of the more common Covid symptoms is loss of smell and taste. So for the test you get your favorite whiskey, bourbon, or scotch (I also imagine wine would work). Pour your beverage of choice into a glass, and raise it to your nose and sniff. If you can smell it you likely don't have Covid. But to be sure, drink the contents of your glass. If you can taste it then it's almost positive that you are not infected. I'm investigating this method myself to test the validity. I've self-tested six times today and so far my ability to smell and taste has been perfect...and I feel great. I think I'll continue my test trials. (**Disclaimer: Not intended to be taken seriously!)
I hope this finds everyone healthy and safe! I'll leave you with a link to my drawings page. I've done a couple of Disney water towers for a friend and they turned out OK.
Take care,
Rick
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