Pickets done!

[From Craig]  In response to all of the "we want to hear about your getting your house ready for sale" comments to Merikay's last post, I've volunteered to do some of that.

Long-time readers may recall a post last Halloween, in which Merikay noted that our house has 516 pickets in its deck railing, each of which had to be sanded and then stained before we could put the house up for sale.  We stopped work on that project when the weather turned. Today we finished sanding and staining the last 71 of the 516.  Here are some of them:

Which is not to say our deck sanding and staining are done.  We still have 2 1/2 flights of stairs plus two areas of deck boards before our deck work is done.  

Between Merikay and I, we will try to keep our home preparation fans in touch with our progress.  It's just that we're getting close enough that we want to be careful that our blogging doesn't affect our coming home sale in any way...

Progress

We are Sanding!

And Staining!

We have finished another section of the deck railings.  This area is along the back of the house, family room door and outside entry door to the laundry room. The six steps are not yet done, but will be.  At this point we are almost but not quite half way. 244 uprights complete, 272 to go.

This is the Next Area ...

When I counted the 516 uprights, I counted each of those on the stair well as two.  We will it break down into smaller sections.  In fact we worked on the upper deck, which is outside the kitchen door, yesterday and today.  It is ready for stain, but there is rain coming tonight so we just put a tarp over it to protect the newly sanded uprights.

This is the view from the deck side.  We have not done the floor in this area yet.

And the same place, but looking down another set of stairs that go to the area below the house. 

As I was snapping pictures this morning, I took this one looking down from the kitchen deck.  I thought the image is interesting.

This project is a big one, but it is not difficult. It was time to do it for the good of the wood.  I keep telling myself that part of it is so a future potential buyer will see the decks as a big positive and a wonderful space, not as a humongous job that will need to be done again in the future.  

It should still look pretty good next summer. 

Not all my time is spent on work around here.  I have also been planning our winter trip and have booked our first reservation using our new Passport America membership. 

We just do not have enough experience to just drive and stop wherever we end up.  I like having a plan, and like to know where we will be sleeping.

I hope all of you who have been affected by Sandy are OK.  As of Wednesday afternoon (when I'm writing this) I haven't seen any posts by the few people who I know are there.  I'm hoping it is just because the power is still out!

Rainy Day Pursuits

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were spent sanding and staining deck railings.  We have finished slightly more than one-fifth of them. 

Rain was predicted for the first half of the week, so we planned on a few days off.  

We woke Monday to a wet world and enjoyed a relaxed morning. 

Then we went to a matinee showing of the movie ARGO.  It was as good as the reviews said it was. It is definitely worth seeing, or if you are not a movie theater person, putting on your future DVD list.

Although it didn't rain on Tuesday, it was a bit too cold and damp to return to the sanding project.  Instead we did a few things around the Alfa including running the generator and the engine.  Craig also installed some hooks and eyes in  the table and the wall to help keep the table from tipping over when we are driving.

Pendleton Blanket on the Alfa couch

I have been looking for some fleece fabric with an Indian print ever since we bought the Pendleton blanket at Crater Lake.

They say when you are decorating a room you should start with an "inspiration" piece. This is mine. Anything I bring in will either echo the colors, the pattern, or the spirit of the blanket. 

Last week I finally found the type of fleece I was looking for. The colors are a little different, but it reflects the spirit of the blanket.

Several years ago, when I was having back pain, Craig bought me a vibrating, heating, chair-pad.  I have used it often and it was kept on a chair in our family room.  It is black, which was fine for a room with two black leather couches and two black leather recliners, but not compatible with the Alfa decor. 

Sunday, while Craig worked on his part of the sanding, I made a cover for the chair pad using the new fleece fabric.

I have also been looking for a new back support pillow to use in the Alfa when I want to read or watch the TV. For years, I have used the type of pillow that has arm rests, but feel that since the bed in the Alfa is only a queen size, the arm-rests would take up an unnecessary amount of space.  So I wanted a different kind of reading pillow.

Of course, I couldn't find exactly what I wanted.  So I had to create it. 

I bought a foam rubber "bed wedge" pillow at Bed Bath and Beyond. I cut it in half, and combined the two halves to make a fatter wedge. I added a rolled piece of "egg crate type" foam mattress pad, along the top edge. And then I covered it with my new fleece fabric. 

I wish the background color of the fleece had been a dark brown instead of black, but you can't have everything!

I have also replaced the original light colored throw rugs I bought last fall with some dark brown ones.  The light ones just got too dirty too fast, and really shed a lot of lint in the dryer each time they were washed.

The rain forecasted for tomorrow has been cancelled. So it will be back to work on the railings once again. 

I'd rather be making things for the Alfa! 

Beware of What You Wish For!

I have pretty well run out of projects that I can do on my own around here.  Some of the things I could be doing have to wait until Craig does other work first, or are Craig's projects and I am just a helper.  Much of the time I'm not even that, and I get restless wishing I could do something to make the house ready for the market.  

I guess I could be doing more housekeeping, but the large clouds of dust and dirt that go with renovations are very discouraging.  Particularly to someone who hates housework as much as I do!

I could be getting rid of stuff, but I want Craig to be involved. He is busy with the repairs and not ready to start going thru things yet. He assures me it will not be a problem, it's just not time yet.

Most of this summer I kept wishing there was a project that I could be working on that would contribute significantly to the improvement of the house.

I guess I got my wish. Sanding and staining the deck railings is very much MY project.

Craig will, and has, helped with some of the sanding.  He is using his new belt sander for the top surface of the rails, but I am doing the picky stuff. We found that the staining works best when we do it together. Craig on one side and I on the other. That way we can catch the drips and missed places. We work well together.

We finished the first section of fifty-five uprights today.  The color will fade to a more golden color with time. 

I have also gotten part of the next fifty-plus partially sanded.  I'm using two small hand sanders.  It's slow, but not difficult. These are among the easier sections because I can get at both sides in comfort.  I used the eight foot step ladder for one side of the first section, but it was easy to move, and I'm quite used to step ladders.  I just can't go up high on the extension ladder.  Craig will have to do some of the outsides of the upper deck rail.

I try not to think about the whole job.  I'm working on one upright at a time, one section at a time. 

This is how they look before I sand.  They have been power washed and need the oil staining to protect them from the sun and rain.  

In my last post, I mentioned I thought the rain we were getting was the end of the wild fire season.  I was quite wrong.  That rain did very little to dampen the grasses and brush.

The weather has been wonderfully warm all week, but last night we started getting some pretty gusty winds.  That increases the fire danger. 

As much as I love the warm temperatures, and want to get on with my project, rain will be most welcome.

I do so envy all you houseless people out there.  Especially those without decks!

Someday ...