In the garden, and RAIN!!!!

POSTED BY: SIGNYM
UPDATED: Thursday, December 25, 2025 04:27
VIEWED: 1005090
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SIGNYM

Thursday, July 2, 2020 1:54 PM

I can't tell you what a relief it is to have that garage at the point where hubby thinks it's functional. The project has taken many days out of each week for the past four or five weeks, and it seemed that just after we had completed one thing, he'd think of something else to work on.

I know I was just helping level, holding conduit or plywood or whatever in place, pulling wire, cutting plaster and wallboard etc and that hubby was doing all of the hard work, but given all of my aches and pains and the fact that I have daily household things to take care of, plus tax and legal shit to do, plus all of the yardwork and walking the dog, it was really taking a toll on me. I was beginning to wonder if there ever WAS going to be some sort of stopping point, or if this would continue interminably.

It wasn't until he had wired up the last quad outlet and put in the last circuit breaker and he started thanking dd and me profusely that I realized that he had come to some sort of ... well, not conclusion bc the garage still needs to be sorted and organized, but at least where he feels the garage is functional as a workspace: it has all of the outlets, shelving and workspace that he needs.

So altho it isn't "DONE!" it's not going to need an all-hands-on-deck effort.

So I'm in the process of making long-delayed phone calls and attending long-delayed business.

I'm also at a bit of a decision point with the yardwork: two of the three "big" projects that I started have been completed (vegetable and flower garden), the other is 90% done (taking the compost pile apart) and I'm sort of noodling about what to do next. There's plenty of plain maintenance to do ... weeding and pruning, mostly ... but I would really like to firm up a frontyard design so that I can actually make progress and not just keep status quo. But I'm having a terrible time coming up with a plan, I don't know why this is so difficult but I just can't seem to visualize what it should look like, so I just keep planting things to see how they work out and keep the things I like and get rid of the stuff I don't. Not a very good way to get things done!

Anyway, the pressure is off, for now.

We had a couple of thermostats bonk, so I called Honeywell for the next compatible model but wound up finding the exact replacement online. Looks like it should be able to just be plugged in. We should get them in a couple of days ... right before the weather turns really hot again!

It's never-ending, isn't it?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

1KIKI

Thursday, July 2, 2020 2:50 PM

Quote:
But I'm having a terrible time coming up with a plan, I don't know why this is so difficult but I just can't seem to visualize what it should look like, so I just keep planting things to see how they work out and keep the things I like and get rid of the stuff I don't. Not a very good way to get things done!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

That's my MO. I started with the original yard that had rusty skin-ripper chain link fence (the tops hadn't been bent back down so the sharp cut-off points were sticking up), YUGE overgrown boxwood along the front, a large jacaranda on the west side, an ugly brick planter to the east side of the font door, the juniper which had two chest-high stumps cut down (it was originally a multi-trunked tree) on the east, and an incense cedar also on the east, a midgey sidewalk to the front door, and of course the Bermuda grass 'lawn'.

But I wanted to replace the old water main to the house because the original was galvanized pipe with a completely rusted solid shut-off valve (ie there was no shut off at the house), and the jacaranda was sitting right on top of where the water main ran. So I had the jacaranda removed and chipped up, but I took out the stump myself. I cut down the two juniper stumps, and removed the boxwood (it made the house look like a spooky Halloween house). Then I had planted what I thought was Catalina Island cherry nearish the west edge - it turned out it was more like a hollyleaf cherry and that I like that version better. (I think that's where the silver lace vine might have come in that I'm still finding). Eventually the cherry planted more of itself and made a beautiful hedge. Plus I had no trees on the parkway and the city was willing to plant one, so they ended up planting a large white crape myrtle. I also had brick walkways put in the parkway, which is how I found out about brick in sand making a happy home for ants.

A few years later I had a landscape architect design and install the front yard. That's where I got really pretty fencing, 4 stone pillars, a very wide wood-polymer walkway put in, a stone stoop, plus a whole bunch of drought tolerant plants. But drought tolerant landscapes were not even 'thing' 27 years ago so the plants were the best experimental guess available. But many of them didn't last past 5 years. So long rosa rugosa, dwarf ceanothus, blue-eyed grass, coral bells, and dwarf fescue! Plus I decided I really didn't like the rockrose, so bye-bye!

What DID last were the Catalina Island cherry hedges planted on either side, plus the extra pink crape myrtle planted in the parkway.

I did have some hardscape modifications made - I got replaced the sidewalks across the front with wood-polymer walkway, the main walkway extended on the sides, and had large wood-polymer walkways put in the parkway to replace the brick-in-sand ant haven from before.

Eventually the front filled in with wildflowers that grow naturally in the area, specifically, Mexican evening primrose, plus a few others. It was truly lovely, but maintenance was EXTREMELY time-consuming.

So this will be my last and final iteration, plus I'll extend my experiences to the rest of the lot.

I'm not trying to make this about me, but as you can see, my experience in trying to create a yard that looks nice to me, is drought-tolerant and wild-life friendly, and low-maintenance has involved a lot of do-then-redo. So you're not the only one.

1KIKI

Thursday, July 2, 2020 3:01 PM

But YAY HOORAY!! on the garage!!

THG

Thursday, July 2, 2020 4:54 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Good to hear you're still making progress Sigs. Always nice to get more trash out.

I didn't even bother putting anything out to the curb this week, after 6 weeks of putting out two full containers and wishing I could do three. Nothing really to throw out when I'm not dehoarding the garage, tearing something down I plan to rebuild or (thankfully) when the springtime weeds and seeds and fallen branches and constant lawn clippings finally give way to a much needed break.

I decided to buy more of the vinyl window film. I'm LOVING the stuff that I put up in the master bedroom and the excess I used on the front door. It looks great, and contrary to some really negative reviews about it not sticking, I think they'll stay up for 10 years since I prepped everything well and followed the directions. Not a single sign of any of them peeling at all.

It just occurred to me today that the windows in the basement are shorter than the ones upstairs and you can buy the same stuff that is twice as long so I can get the entire basement done with only two rolls and have more to spare. One more roll makes 3 and that will be pretty much every window in my house except for the large window in the living room.

In the basement, I'm going to put them on both the top and the bottom pane. Everywhere else, just on the bottom pane.

I love how clean they look upstairs and how I don't need to put holes in the wall or window frames to install any blinds or drapes. They'll look great when I repaint everything that I haven't done yet and make the new frames for the living room, and whenever I sell the house down the road it will be a clean slate for the new owners to decide what they want to do with them.

When my friend saw the windows I did at first glance he thought that I'd bought new windows. The last time he was up there was before I'd done the new sills and framed them out, and the windows had at least 8 years of dirt and grime built up. He actually thought I sprung for brand new windows with privacy panes on the bottom.

That means I get to tear down those old horrible blinds I have up everywhere that are caked with years of dust and crap on them too. Even though the film gives privacy, it lets a whole lot more light in than dingy blinds that are closed most of the time.

I can't wait!

Do Right, Be Right. :)

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:

Do Right, Be Right. :)

T

Stupid people don't know they're stupid, and they certainly don't realize how obvious it is to others.

BRENDA

Friday, July 3, 2020 3:41 AM

Been out for my walk and back.

Got some vacuuming done when I got home as well as a couple of other things.

2nd of July and it is heading for another rain and my head is not in a good place.

1KIKI

Friday, July 3, 2020 3:58 AM

I'm sorry to hear that Brenda. Please be gentle with yourself, and let us know how you're doing.

SIGNYM

Friday, July 3, 2020 8:36 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Been out for my walk and back.

Got some vacuuming done when I got home as well as a couple of other things.

2nd of July and it is heading for another rain and my head is not in a good place.

Oh dear. Thats crypic but negative. "Not in a good place" like feeling low? or "not in a good place" like impending seizures? (Always a concern when you lower meds!)

I hope you feel better very soon, hon.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

SIGNYM

Friday, July 3, 2020 8:44 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Quote:
But I'm having a terrible time coming up with a plan, I don't know why this is so difficult but I just can't seem to visualize what it should look like, so I just keep planting things to see how they work out and keep the things I like and get rid of the stuff I don't. Not a very good way to get things done!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK
That's my MO. I started with the original yard that had rusty skin-ripper chain link fence (the tops hadn't been bent back down so the sharp cut-off points were sticking up), YUGE overgrown boxwood along the front, a large jacaranda on the west side, an ugly brick planter to the east side of the font door, the juniper which had two chest-high stumps cut down (it was originally a multi-trunked tree) on the east, and an incense cedar also on the east, a midgey sidewalk to the front door, and of course the Bermuda grass 'lawn'.

But I wanted to replace the old water main to the house because the original was galvanized pipe with a completely rusted solid shut-off valve (ie there was no shut off at the house), and the jacaranda was sitting right on top of where the water main ran. So I had the jacaranda removed and chipped up, but I took out the stump myself. I cut down the two juniper stumps, and removed the boxwood (it made the house look like a spooky Halloween house). Then I had planted what I thought was Catalina Island cherry nearish the west edge - it turned out it was more like a hollyleaf cherry and that I like that version better. (I think that's where the silver lace vine might have come in that I'm still finding). Eventually the cherry planted more of itself and made a beautiful hedge. Plus I had no trees on the parkway and the city was willing to plant one, so they ended up planting a large white crape myrtle. I also had brick walkways put in the parkway, which is how I found out about brick in sand making a happy home for ants.

A few years later I had a landscape architect design and install the front yard. That's where I got really pretty fencing, 4 stone pillars, a very wide wood-polymer walkway put in, a stone stoop, plus a whole bunch of drought tolerant plants. But drought tolerant landscapes were not even 'thing' 27 years ago so the plants were the best experimental guess available. But many of them didn't last past 5 years. So long rosa rugosa, dwarf ceanothus, blue-eyed grass, coral bells, and dwarf fescue! Plus I decided I really didn't like the rockrose, so bye-bye!

What DID last were the Catalina Island cherry hedges planted on either side, plus the extra pink crape myrtle planted in the parkway.

I did have some hardscape modifications made - I got replaced the sidewalks across the front with wood-polymer walkway, the main walkway extended on the sides, and had large wood-polymer walkways put in the parkway to replace the brick-in-sand ant haven from before.

Eventually the front filled in with wildflowers that grow naturally in the area, specifically, Mexican evening primrose, plus a few others. It was truly lovely, but maintenance was EXTREMELY time-consuming.

So this will be my last and final iteration, plus I'll extend my experiences to the rest of the lot.

I'm not trying to make this about me, but as you can see, my experience in trying to create a yard that looks nice to me, is drought-tolerant and wild-life friendly, and low-maintenance has involved a lot of do-then-redo. So you're not the only one.

Jeez, that was a lot of work! I can't imagine doing that even thirty years ago!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Friday, July 3, 2020 8:55 AM

Anybody know why Ted Bundy keeps reposting my stuff in here?

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Friday, July 3, 2020 8:56 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Been out for my walk and back.

Got some vacuuming done when I got home as well as a couple of other things.

2nd of July and it is heading for another rain and my head is not in a good place.

SAD???

Hope you're doing well Brenda. The sun's bound to finally come out sometime.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Friday, July 3, 2020 9:02 AM

I got scaffolding and a big monster of a ladder from a neighbor. Tomorrow another neighbor is going to help hold the ladder and they'll just keep tabs on me until I'm ready to come back down.

I think first I'll take my tablet to photograph what I see and check out the condition of the roof. Fingers crossed it's still a roof and I'm only going to need to do some patch work and replace a few seals on stacks.

I've got a gutter guy coming next week for measurements and a quote and he said he'd take a look at my roof too, but I'm hoping that I've already gotten that all taken care of before he gets here. I'm going to have to fix some of the sub-facia in front and put up new facia on it before he can hang the gutters.

I got the last of the dirty ass horizontal blinds out of my house. I even managed to install the screen for the window I was never able to open before, so I can actually open it during the spring and the fall now, and where it's located it will really up the airflow of the house during nice weather.

Two more windows cleaned and scrubbed with the vinyl applied. Only one more standard window to go in the livingroom. Now I just have to decide if I want to cover the entire large 4x5 window that doesn't move in the center of the large window system in the living room. I'll have to order one more roll if that's the case.

Everything looks so nice and clean and bright now.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Friday, July 3, 2020 9:27 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Been out for my walk and back.

Got some vacuuming done when I got home as well as a couple of other things.

2nd of July and it is heading for another rain and my head is not in a good place.
Oh dear. Thats crypic but negative. "Not in a good place" like feeling low? or "not in a good place" like impending seizures? (Always a concern when you lower meds!)

I hope you feel better very soon, hon.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

I seem to be doing okay with the lower meds SIG. I'm just feeling a little low. Feeling a little abandoned. Things I would like to do but can't.

BRENDA

Friday, July 3, 2020 9:30 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Been out for my walk and back.

Got some vacuuming done when I got home as well as a couple of other things.

2nd of July and it is heading for another rain and my head is not in a good place.

SAD???

Hope you're doing well Brenda. The sun's bound to finally come out sometime.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

More like I got hit with a bout of depression. Just feeling blah and wishing I could get some physical help to get a couch or a futon or something like that. Don't mind me.

SIGNYM

Friday, July 3, 2020 11:18 PM

Quote:
BRENDA: Been out for my walk and back.
Got some vacuuming done when I got home as well as a couple of other things.
2nd of July and it is heading for another rain and my head is not in a good place.

SIX: SAD???
Hope you're doing well Brenda. The sun's bound to finally come out sometime.

BRENDA: More like I got hit with a bout of depression. Just feeling blah and wishing I could get some physical help to get a couch or a futon or something like that. Don't mind me.

I can imagine how I'd feel if I didn't have any help for the big things. Little things too, for that matter.

I can get quite a few things done if it doesn't involve too much muscle-power. It's not that my muscles are weak (well, at this point they prolly are) but my joints are so unstable and painful that I can get things done but only if it's something that I can chip away at. Literally. Like digging up a gaden or weeding.

BTW, just to give you an idea of how disabled I am, just writing with a pen causes my thumb and finger joints to pop and hurt. Sometimes I can't open ordinary jars, and occasionally things will slip from my hands. And that happens in my wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles, and feet, depending on how much I stress my tendons and ligaments! So I can only do a little at a time, and be careful not to overdo.

But then, I do have help. Sometimes I dragoon dd into yardwork, and altho her hands are smaller than mine they're mightier, so she can always open jars for me! And hubby will come out and help with the big stuff I can't manage on my own, like cutting thru some very hard camellia wood to take down/cut up a major limb that had died from borers.

Plus, hubby is the driver of all major repairs and improvements here. Since he's done everything from computer design and programming to plumbing, wiring, masonry and engine repair, he's a wealth of "how to" knowledge. And despite his own major aches and pains, he's still much stronger than I am, so when really heavy things need to be shifted he and dd put their backs into it. Plus, he's way taller than I am, so stepladder not necessary!

In many ways, I'm very fortunate to have my hubby and dear daughter (dd) because we help each other achieve our goals and I'm aware of that and thankful every day, even when they piss me off no end sometimes. If they weren't around, I would definitely move to an apartment or a condo which would be maintenance-free (at least I wouldn't have to do it personally) but I'd have to pay for help with major things.

So I keep that all in mind as we plow our way thru the backlog of "things to do" that have been accumulating thru all the years that we've been working. One of these centuries we will get all of them done. By then, hubby will be too old and decrepit to enjoy the space and I won't be too far behind, but then the house will be in more saleable condition and then we can all move to a smaller and more manageable space.

As hubby likes to remind me We are ALL only temporarily able-bodied.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Saturday, July 4, 2020 4:15 AM

Feeling any better today, Brenda?

I was going to do more today than I've done, but I'm wiped out.

Finally got up on the roof after borrowing the right ladder from a neighbor. The roof itself and the venting are more or less fine. I don't see any evidence of problems.

The stacks were another story though. One had never been sealed at all, and the larger one was sealed at some point but it had deteriorated. I had to scrape off all the old crud, then I caulked a tube of tar sealant and brushed it all in. The boots still looked good on the crap-tubes, but I dusted them off and threw a bead of sealant around them for good measure too. Won't know how I did until it rains again.

Can't remember the last time I actually wanted it to rain...

Wouldn't you know it? We're not supposed to have rain now until late next week. Go figure.

I still might try cleaning at least one more window in the living room and getting the vinyl up on it. I've got to see how I feel after resting a bit. 92 degrees makes for an extremely hot roof.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Saturday, July 4, 2020 4:54 AM

Soggy 3rd of July.

BRENDA

Saturday, July 4, 2020 4:57 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Feeling any better today, Brenda?

Do Right, Be Right. :)

I'm so-so today. Takes a bit before I beat it back. But I will.

1KIKI

Saturday, July 4, 2020 5:17 AM

Brenda, I'm glad to hear you're going to be on the mend.

1KIKI

Saturday, July 4, 2020 5:33 AM

As I'm thinking about it Brenda, you've accomplished a lot. You got a good place (YAY!!!), moved, and have-settled and are-settling in, with a lot of tasks behind you: sorting, organizing, repair, replacement, and even new things you need and want.

Those to me are serious, life-changing accomplishments and no small feats!

If you're like me, after a major accomplishment, there's a kind of let-down.

And if you're like me, also the build up of stacked requirements without a possible way forward - before I do this I need to so that but before I do that I need to do that other thing but I can't do that other thing ... - is demoralizing. And if you're like me you don't have the physical capability to get a lot of things done on your own. I'd even call the whole scenario depressing. You have no idea how stuck I at least can become due to that. It's hard for me anyway to get past.

Anyway, one way or another, I have sympathy.

BRENDA

Saturday, July 4, 2020 9:34 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
As I'm thinking about it Brenda, you've accomplished a lot. You got a good place (YAY!!!), moved, and have-settled and are-settling in, with a lot of tasks behind you: sorting, organizing, repair, replacement, and even new things you need and want.

Those to me are serious, life-changing accomplishments and no small feats!

If you're like me, after a major accomplishment, there's a kind of let-down.

And if you're like me, also the build up of stacked requirements without a possible way forward - before I do this I need to so that but before I do that I need to do that other thing but I can't do that other thing ... - is demoralizing. And if you're like me you don't have the physical capability to get a lot of things done on your own. I'd even call the whole scenario depressing. You have no idea how stuck I at least can become due to that. It's hard for me anyway to get past.

Anyway, one way or another, I have sympathy.

Thanks Kiki and I know that I have.

But yeah just feeling a bit stuck and I will get out of this feeling. And I know it will happen every so often.

I will survive.

BRENDA

Sunday, July 5, 2020 3:36 AM

Laundry done and I got my walk in as well.

No rain so far today and blue sky trying to break through the clouds.

1KIKI

Sunday, July 5, 2020 4:02 AM

Doing stuff around the house then headed over for a 4th celebration.

Happy 4th to all and see you on the other side!

BRENDA

Sunday, July 5, 2020 9:02 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Doing stuff around the house then headed over for a 4th celebration.

Happy 4th to all and see you on the other side!

Have a good time Kiki.

6IXSTRINGJACK

Sunday, July 5, 2020 9:52 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Laundry done and I got my walk in as well.

No rain so far today and blue sky trying to break through the clouds.

You ever get that sun???

I finished cleaning all the windows in the livingroom, then decided after all that work the filth outside was unacceptable, so I washed them outside as well along with the screen door and the kitchen window, then Windexed it all down and it looks amazing. I never cleaned those windows since I moved in. 1 more roll of privacy film on the way and my entire house is going to be as bright as can be.

Did some dusting and swept the floor while I was at it, then I found time to fix a $60 mouse that had stuck buttons and I had to stop using around a month back. I was able to get around it for a while by reversing which button was right and left, but then the other side went too. Nothing a little all purpose cleaner, a can of air and a screwdriver couldn't fix.

Tomorrow I have to finally get all that gutter info together so I can get a new quote on Monday morning and call the guy to make sure he's still coming by to give me a quote on the work.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

SIGNYM

Sunday, July 5, 2020 3:50 PM

Taking a somewhat prolonged break from projects. The weather here has turned hot ... not surprising, it IS summer! ... but too hot to do much gardening except VERY early in the AM, and I'm still beat from the outdoor projects/ indoor projects/ daily grind/ legal-financial stuff I've been trying to accomplish. All I've had the energy for lately is little piddly stuff: two of our three thermostats gave up the ghost prolly from internal corrosion so we got replacements just in time for the heat wave, and hubby helped me install an indoor/outdoor thermometer/humidity/barometric pressure sensor that he got me for Xmas bc I'm ALWAYS wondering about the weather! So, better late than never, I guess! But I haven't even been cooking, I'm just worn out for the while.

The seeds in the flower garden are just beginning to sprout (sunflower, cosmos, evening primrose, yarrow, borage, marigold and nasturtium) and the vegetable garden is in full swing ... except the tomato, which is almost as tall as I am but hardly any tomatoes.

I've decided to extend the veggie garden a bit more into the xeric area this winter, going to give the family a list of winter vegetables (carrots, onions, beets, lettuce, spinach, arugula, snow peas, sweet potatoes etc) to choose from, put in a raised asparagus patch, but also include a PERMANENT double-row of pollinator-friendly flowers right in the garden (Joe Pye, verbena, milkweed- for the monarchs, and cosmos), and then either sow (organic) seed directly or start the seeds myself and transplant. Hubby and I even talked about a bee box. Maybe even a couple of chickens. Wouldn't that be a hoot? A little suburban farm, right among the snooty McMansions.

Definitely going to put in an elderberry but prune it for production, not shade. Noodling on the front yard some more, parts of the design are coming into view, and when I imagine what it should look like I always imagine trees and shrubs around the perimeter with aralia californica (elk clover) and mahonia repens underneath; but clumping grasses ... purple three-awn or fountain grass, plus cliffside buckwheat, cosmos, golden yarrow (if I can get it to grow this time) interspersed in the grass, and beach daisy, CA poppies, CA fuchsia, and silver carpet CA aster at the base of the clumps.

But altho its fun to think about, the planting will have to wait until later in the year, because this is NOT the time to plant.

So onward with other more important things while it's too hot to work outdoors. Time to roust myself and see if I can figure out where my get-up-and-go got up and went.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

SIGNYM

Sunday, July 5, 2020 4:04 PM

Hey SIX, how about coming over and helping me get unstuck?

BRENDA, how're you doing? Better, I hope? I know how it feels to be kind of mired in place. I know I can't help directly, but if you want to just vent, I'm here to listen.

Hey KIKI I hope you had fun!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Sunday, July 5, 2020 4:08 PM

The get up and go can leave pretty quickly in the hot weather.

Not sure how hot it's going to be by you (probably hotter), but our two week outlook doesn't show a single day under 90 for the high here.

After five mild summers in a row, this one is a scorcher in these parts. Last summer we only had a single day in the 90s.

I love my A/C. I'm afraid of my next bill.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

THG

Sunday, July 5, 2020 5:34 PM

Carried over from the elections thread...
T

Stupid people don't know they're stupid, and they certainly don't realize how obvious it is to others.

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Carried over from the Epstein thread

http://fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?bid=18&tid=63147&p=3

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Hopefully that becomes interesting.

She'll probably just Epstein herself though.

Do Right, Be Right. :)
It's called Arkanside, because so many who could have testified against the Clintons committed "suicide". And it's not just Vince Foster, but at least a dozen state troopers and other witnesses.

According to the video, a possible reason why Barr fired Berman is bc Berman was sitting on the Maxwell investigation. They note that Berman was fired and Maxwell was arrested shortly afterwards.

I can imagine all sorts of scenarios and deal-making going on in the background, anything from You give us a list of names and locations of all of the videos and we'll go easy on you to You take the fall and leave all of those names out of it and we'll make sure you stay alive.

AFA a Trump is concerned, he needs to pull a rabbit out of the hat if he's going to wing this election. IMHO Trump isn't in trouble for what he's done but for what he HASN'T done: He didn't defend Flynn but threw him under the bus. He let the Mueller investigation and all of that other slander against him go on far too long. He never got the wall built. He didn't crack down on the censorship that the Silicon Valley moguls were applying to conservatives. He hasn't pulled our troops out of the Middle East. He didn't fire the backstabbers and neocons, and he didn't stop listening to Javanka. He didn't take a big bite of the Covid-sandwhich early on and insist that everyone mask up ... and find the sources of masks to make that happen.

I appreciate that he killed the "free trade" agreements and I'm on-board with him making NATO an alliance of equals rather than a gravy-train, and I think illegal immigration needs to be dealt with forcefully. We need to decouple our economy from China's by any means possible, so I'm OK with any steps in that direction. And I'm extremely grateful that he hasn't gotten us into YET ANOTHER WAR. But unless he wins he won't be able to cement those gains and fill some of those mighty big promises that he made four years ago.

Six months ago, I would have thought that BY NOW, with all of the dirt on Biden and the FBI et al there would have been arrests, if not indictments and maybe even trials.

What is he waiting for?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

It may be off topic, but I think it's all connected.

Not that I voted for Trump because of this, but one of the (many) promises that he made was that he would sweep up human traffickers, especially those trafficking in children.

Aside from being a worthwhile goal on its own, those "human traffickers" (including Epstein) made use of children to trap high ranking people into a web of blackmail. There is no way to cement loyalty quite like having a prospective member commit a crime. On tape, even. And despite the fact that people constantly laughed at Pirate News for his obssession with the Bohemian Grove IMHO it was never out of the realm of possibility. I think many of the pro-transnationalists of BOTH parties are deeply corrupt in ways involving more than money.

After all, look at the more lurid ("golden showers") stories against Trump, and that he was being blackmailed into doing Putin's bidding. Who makes up shit like that? It's my observation tha

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6IXSTRINGJACK

Sunday, July 5, 2020 5:49 PM

Idiot. Marxist. America Hater. Ted Karen Bundy.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

1KIKI

Sunday, July 5, 2020 6:03 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Hey KIKI I hope you had fun!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Oh, MOST DEFINITELY!

BRENDA

Monday, July 6, 2020 12:47 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Laundry done and I got my walk in as well.

No rain so far today and blue sky trying to break through the clouds.

You ever get that sun???
Quote:

Got sun today on a lazy Sunday when I don't have to do anything. S'always the way

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BRENDA

Monday, July 6, 2020 12:49 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Hey SIX, how about coming over and helping me get unstuck?

BRENDA, how're you doing? Better, I hope? I know how it feels to be kind of mired in place. I know I can't help directly, but if you want to just vent, I'm here to listen.

Hey KIKI I hope you had fun!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

I am slowly feeling a little better. Once the week starts again. Yeah, I know I can vent here and I will have a little vent at my chiropractor this week when I go.

BRENDA

Monday, July 6, 2020 11:34 PM

Out for a walk in a bit.

BRENDA

Tuesday, July 7, 2020 4:00 AM

Well, the people who installed the fire system were here to check it today. Along the way they caused an issue with the elevators and never bothered to make any sort of announcement. I found out when I got in to the building and wanted to use the elevators. THEN they decide to let people know that they elevators weren't working. So I had to walk up 10 flights of stairs. Was going to take the garbage out but not after I did that. I've been home an hour now and I just heard an announcement that they had fixed the elevators. Well, whoopdeedoo!!. I am not doing anymore chores after that episode.

Morons!

BRENDA

Tuesday, July 7, 2020 9:28 AM

Well, I decided to take the garbage down anyways after supper. Needed to get done.

Also started watching "Ad Astra". Not sure about this one. Will make up my mind once I watch more of it.

SIGNYM

Tuesday, July 7, 2020 10:08 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Well, the people who installed the fire system were here to check it today. Along the way they caused an issue with the elevators and never bothered to make any sort of announcement. I found out when I got in to the building and wanted to use the elevators. THEN they decide to let people know that they elevators weren't working. So I had to walk up 10 flights of stairs. Was going to take the garbage out but not after I did that. I've been home an hour now and I just heard an announcement that they had fixed the elevators. Well, whoopdeedoo!!. I am not doing anymore chores after that episode.

Morons!

Morons indeed!!!!

I read this post while waiting in the car for someone and didn't have a chance to reply but, seriously ... they take the elevators out and don't tell anyone ahead of time???

Oh! We just watched Ad Astra a week ago. Let me know what you decide.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

BRENDA

Tuesday, July 7, 2020 11:48 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Well, the people who installed the fire system were here to check it today. Along the way they caused an issue with the elevators and never bothered to make any sort of announcement. I found out when I got in to the building and wanted to use the elevators. THEN they decide to let people know that they elevators weren't working. So I had to walk up 10 flights of stairs. Was going to take the garbage out but not after I did that. I've been home an hour now and I just heard an announcement that they had fixed the elevators. Well, whoopdeedoo!!. I am not doing anymore chores after that episode.

Morons!
Morons indeed!!!!

I read this post while waiting in the car for someone and didn't have a chance to reply but, seriously ... they take the elevators out and don't tell anyone ahead of time???

Oh! We just watched Ad Astra a week ago. Let me know what you decide.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Yup and this building has a lot of seniors and people who are disabled. They looked around while I stood there for a minute then I thought I am not waiting on these idiots and walked up the stairs. Huffing and puffing and complaining.

I did decide to get the garbage out after supper.

I watched the first hour of it SIG and I am not sure. It is sooo slow moving. As much as I love Brad Pitt this doesn't seem to be one of his better ideas for work.

Out for my walk.

1KIKI

Wednesday, July 8, 2020 7:01 AM

Brenda, I ran across this and thought of you. It reminded me that years ago, I'd read elsewhere that stretching does improve blood flow. This may be the first time it's been documented for passive stretch. If you could do some GENTLE static leg stretches, you might improve circulation in your legs which might help with the leg-muscle cramping you have.

Quote:

https://www.medpagetoday.com/cardiology/prevention/87396

Leg stretching exercises were associated with improved vascular function, researchers reported in a small study.

This study involved passive stretching. Generally, a passive stretch is if someone moves your body parts for you into a stretched position and holds them there. But the same is true (as I've read) for static stretching. A static stretch is if you move your body parts into a stretched position yourself and hold them there.

Here are some examples of passive and static versions of leg stretches: https://www.trueap.com/flyers/1/BegStatPass.pdf

It's important that you're GENTLE with your efforts, since nobody wants to do any damage!

Many years ago I did passive post-op range of motion stretching for a relative who was in a serious accident and needed surgery, including replacing a joint with a metal version. After initially watching 3 different therapists do the routine (which was so aggressive and painful with the first 2 it involved serious extra hits of morphine ahead of time) I discovered with the third therapist you can get just as good a results by EASING into a good stretch in minor, non-painful increments, over time. GENTLE is good!

That old mantra 'no pain, no gain'? Twaddle!

BRENDA

Wednesday, July 8, 2020 9:36 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Brenda, I ran across this and thought of you. It reminded me that years ago, I'd read elsewhere that stretching does improve blood flow. This may be the first time it's been documented for passive stretch. If you could do some GENTLE static leg stretches, you might improve circulation in your legs which might help with the leg-muscle cramping you have.
Quote:

https://www.medpagetoday.com/cardiology/prevention/87396

Leg stretching exercises were associated with improved vascular function, researchers reported in a small study.

This study involved passive stretching. Generally, a passive stretch is if someone moves your body parts for you into a stretched position and holds them there. But the same is true (as I've read) for static stretching. A static stretch is if you move your body parts into a stretched position yourself and hold them there.

Here are some examples of passive and static versions of leg stretches: https://www.trueap.com/flyers/1/BegStatPass.pdf

It's important that you're GENTLE with your efforts, since nobody wants to do any damage!

Many years ago I did passive post-op range of motion stretching for a relative who was in a serious accident and needed surgery, including replacing a joint with a metal version. After initially watching 3 different therapists do the routine (which was so aggressive and painful with the first 2 it involved serious extra hits of morphine ahead of time) I discovered with the third therapist you can get just as good a results by EASING into a good stretch in minor, non-painful increments, over time. GENTLE is good!

That old mantra 'no pain, no gain'? Twaddle!

I do stretching in while lying in my bed either before I go to sleep or when I first wake up in the morning. Both I do slowly, stretching my back, legs and arms. If I feel pain anywhere I stop and relax then maybe try again. Been doing it for years.

1KIKI

Wednesday, July 8, 2020 10:15 AM

OK then!

SIGNYM

Wednesday, July 8, 2020 12:48 PM

Well. Here it is July 7th and I still haven't gotten my rear in gear. All I've managed to do was little piddly stuff: We always do "safe and sane" fireworks for the 4th, which we did again this year. Went with hubby and dd while they went to see the doctor. As I mentioned, replaced a couple of thermostats and put up and indoor/outdoor bluetooth weather station. Repaired a couple of hose ends so I could insert trigger grip nozzles, helped sort wire and screws, walked the dog and yada yada. Small stuff.

But I have plans for tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, so I think I just needed a break. I feel like my energy might be coming back, and after a nice rest most of my aches and pains have throttled back.

So here's hoping I get a good night's sleep and wake up ready to roll tomorrow.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

BRENDA

Wednesday, July 8, 2020 11:06 PM

Out in a bit. Things to do.

BRENDA

Thursday, July 9, 2020 10:23 AM

This thing survived its brush with the power being off for several hours today. Before anyone asks the city checks the buildings electrics once a year and today was the day.

Though I will admit this site has been acting weird this evening.

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 9, 2020 11:49 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Well. Here it is July 7th and I still haven't gotten my rear in gear. All I've managed to do was little piddly stuff: We always do "safe and sane" fireworks for the 4th, which we did again this year. Went with hubby and dd while they went to see the doctor. As I mentioned, replaced a couple of thermostats and put up and indoor/outdoor bluetooth weather station. Repaired a couple of hose ends so I could insert trigger grip nozzles, helped sort wire and screws, walked the dog and yada yada. Small stuff.

But I have plans for tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, so I think I just needed a break. I feel like my energy might be coming back, and after a nice rest most of my aches and pains have throttled back.

So here's hoping I get a good night's sleep and wake up ready to roll tomorrow.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

It's hot by you, ain't it?

Don't hurt yourself.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

1KIKI

Thursday, July 9, 2020 12:04 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
This thing survived its brush with the power being off for several hours today. Before anyone asks the city checks the buildings electrics once a year and today was the day.

Though I will admit this site has been acting weird this evening.

I was having generic inet problems a few days ago (I could connect up with google and duckduckgo after a long time, but everything else I tried either said server not found or connection timed out), but it turned out it was the provider.

Other than that, this is the first time I'm on it this eve, and it's been OK for me.

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 9, 2020 12:17 PM

No problems here on my end.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 3:15 AM

Been out in the rain and back. Looking for something to turn into a writing table.

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 3:16 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
This thing survived its brush with the power being off for several hours today. Before anyone asks the city checks the buildings electrics once a year and today was the day.

Though I will admit this site has been acting weird this evening.
I was having generic inet problems a few days ago (I could connect up with google and duckduckgo after a long time, but everything else I tried either said server not found or connection timed out), but it turned out it was the provider.

Other than that, this is the first time I'm on it this eve, and it's been OK for me.

That's good Kiki. Maybe this thing was just reacting to having the power out and back on, so it was sluggish. It's been fine today.

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 3:17 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
No problems here on my end.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

Probably just this turkey then.

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 3:19 AM

A good portion of the middle of my province has been on flood alert for the last week. Even down to where I am the mighty Fraser River has been on a rampage. Part of a boardwalk has been closed since last Friday because of water levels. People who live in Condos along this walkway were warned not to walk their pets there and if they did not to let them off their leashes.

SIGNYM

Friday, July 10, 2020 3:54 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
A good portion of the middle of my province has been on flood alert for the last week. Even down to where I am the mighty Fraser River has been on a rampage. Part of a boardwalk has been closed since last Friday because of water levels. People who live in Condos along this walkway were warned not to walk their pets there and if they did not to let them off their leashes.

Hmmm... about that fire danger they were predicting.

Cancelled?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

SIGNYM

Friday, July 10, 2020 4:00 AM

Quote:
SIGNYM:
Well. Here it is July 7th and I still haven't gotten my rear in gear. All I've managed to do was little piddly stuff: We always do "safe and sane" fireworks for the 4th, which we did again this year. Went with hubby and dd while they went to see the doctor. As I mentioned, replaced a couple of thermostats and put up and indoor/outdoor bluetooth weather station. Repaired a couple of hose ends so I could insert trigger grip nozzles, helped sort wire and screws, walked the dog and yada yada. Small stuff.

But I have plans for tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, so I think I just needed a break. I feel like my energy might be coming back, and after a nice rest most of my aches and pains have throttled back.

So here's hoping I get a good night's sleep and wake up ready to roll tomorrow.

SIX: It's hot by you, ain't it?
Don't hurt yourself.

Thanks SIX.

Managed to get out early enough to walk the dog, do yardwork yesterday and have a righteous bin of yardwaste to show for it. Also helped hubby sort out more stuff in the garage.

DIDN'T manage to get out early this AM, so contented myself with walking the dog, watering the flower garden and watering and harvesting the veggie garden (cucumbers, zucchini, and avocados galore), and tracking down the fuckups that hubby's retirement plan managed to create, as well as grocery shopping (yet to do).

But tonight I'm going to irrigate the whole property in prep for weeding over the next few days.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 9:24 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
A good portion of the middle of my province has been on flood alert for the last week. Even down to where I am the mighty Fraser River has been on a rampage. Part of a boardwalk has been closed since last Friday because of water levels. People who live in Condos along this walkway were warned not to walk their pets there and if they did not to let them off their leashes.
Hmmm... about that fire danger they were predicting.

Cancelled?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

What with all this rain. Pretty much.

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 9:28 AM

Think I've finally figured out my story.

SIGNYM

Friday, July 10, 2020 10:09 AM

Good news for both!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 1:21 PM

Reckon so.

BRENDA

Friday, July 10, 2020 11:30 PM

Looks like more rain today and Windows 10 is a PITA.

1KIKI

Saturday, July 11, 2020 2:24 AM

Well dang but the Argentinian ants came back a couple of months ago. At first they were at very low levels and tolerable, but since then their numbers have increased and they've created significant ant trails to the kitchen sink and trash (they haven't found the cat food yet).

For years - YEARS - I would try different things to block or clean away their chemical trails. I've tried cinnamon and cloves, dish detergent and carpet cleaner, aspirin and diatomaceous earth - I've probably tried 50 things by now if not more, and every single one has failed.

But I recently tried something that works! HAND SANITIZER! They sort of flinch away from following their trail when the hand sanitizer is wet, and after it dries, they just won't cross that line.

AHA!!! Take THAT! Argentinian ants.

THG

Saturday, July 11, 2020 2:34 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Wow, this has been a hard, hard year for gardening. Last rainy season started out early and promising; October 2013 we got a couple of good rainstorms and then .... nothing. Nothing. More nothing. Which dragged on to the historic drought.

Usually my water usage goes down during winter, but not last winter. I had to water the garden areas every week, and the lawns twice a week (one of the reasons I'm xeriscaping) just to keep them alive. I took special pains with the two avocados and the camellias because they're the grandparents of the backyard, planted by the previous owners sixty years ago. I soaked them deeply at least once a month. But despite my best efforts, the plants still suffered - not from lack of water, but possibly from high salt buildup or basic soil ... the older avocado and camellia leaves took on a pale bronzy color, and needles on my canary island pines were just beginning to turn yellow.

In addition, the tomatoes were crippled and the eggplant killed by a horrible infestation of spider mites. Last year, I gave away almost thirty pounds of homegrown tomatoes and had all of the eggplant I wanted. This year, I was lucky to have enough fresh tomatoes for a weekly salad, and just a few eggplant before they gave up the ghost. The spider mites went on to attack a few more plants (which fortunately I didn't care so much for). My Italian flat beans- which I've never grown before - and my sunflowers (which I HAVE grown before) were spindly and unproductive. Same seed source. I wonder if the seed was good. At least the corn came up OK.

Two of my recently-planted sundrops died, I only have one left. This is a good representation of what the survivor looks like in my garden

and one of my verbena lilacena died, I only have two left ... another good representation

For no reason that I can see except they really, really didn't appreciate such hard wellwater. And then, the summer was hot and humid - tropical, even - and some native plants which are adapted to cool wet winters and hot DRY summers responded with a fantastic case of mildew. I broke down and got some Neem oil so that next year I'll be prepared for the onslaught.

I have NEVER failed with so many plants all in one season! This was a gardening year I was happy to close the book on, and I now have a much MUCH greater appreciation for the commercial farmer, who lives or dies by whether plants produce or not.

-------------
But in order to be a gardener or a farmer, one must be an optimist, I guess. I've been buying my xeriscape plants mostly in onesies and twosies because I really don't know how they'll grow, or what they'll look like ... or what I want ... and the reality is that I'll still have a surprising amount of bare space, even when the plants mature.

So I took out several of my CA native/ xeriscape gardening books, and just looked at the pictures and figured out what I respond to, and what I hate, and the principles behind both. And I just ordered a crap-ton of plants: Spanish lavender (because it looks most like the Great Basin sagebrush that I like, which won't grow here because the winters are too warm),

penstemon BOP which looks like a micro boxwood when not in bloom

white monkeyflower

blue-eyed grass

and Indian rice grass

to go with the germander sage, Dusty Miller, red autumn sage, and the creeping Oregon grap

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1KIKI

Saturday, July 11, 2020 2:41 AM

I take it you find the complete reality to be too much for you, and consider a complete set of actual facts to be trolling.

Do you prefer 5-word fantasy snippets that tell you want you want to hear instead?

THG

Saturday, July 11, 2020 2:46 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
I take it you find the complete reality to be too much for you, and consider a complete set of actual facts to be trolling.

Do you prefer 5-word snippets that tell you want you want to hear instead?

Trolling was the intent. It's why comrade sig posted such a whopper. I'm glad you agree she was trolling the thread she posted it in. Good for you comrade kiki. Good for you.

T

Stupid people don't know they're stupid, and they certainly don't realize how obvious it is to others.

BRENDA

Saturday, July 11, 2020 3:38 AM

Back from my errands. Seizure meds topped of for another month.

Had lunch at the little hot dog/hamburger place in the strip mall next to the pharmacy. People there had orders coming out of their ears. Pretty big ones too. It was good to see them busy.

1KIKI

Saturday, July 11, 2020 4:26 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by THG:
Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
I take it you find the complete reality to be too much for you, and consider a complete set of actual facts to be trolling.

Do you prefer 5-word snippets that tell you want you want to hear instead?

Trolling was the intent. It's why comrade sig posted such a whopper. I'm glad you agree she was trolling the thread she posted it in. Good for you comrade kiki. Good for you.

T

Stupid people don't know they're stupid, and they certainly don't realize how obvious it is to others.

SIGNYM

Saturday, July 11, 2020 6:48 AM

Well, I managed to make it out early enough to walk the dog and do more yardwork. I planted a succulent - rock purslane - a few years ago. All of the specimens in the neighborhood are polite, pretty-flowered plants, but these turned into monsters! So I clipped the flower stalks which were looking very messy, trimmed a bunch back and actually dug one up, as well as pruning back a bush from the driveway. Another righteous bin filled!

Then we had a long and sharp discussion with the retirement people about what the heck they were doing. The person that we spoke with, who prolly felt somewhat ambushed, promised to have the research group look into it, and we should get a call next week.

After that, it was kitchen-work and making dinner. Now, I need a nap!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Saturday, July 11, 2020 7:53 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Well dang but the Argentinian ants came back a couple of months ago. At first they were at very low levels and tolerable, but since then their numbers have increased and they've created significant ant trails to the kitchen sink and trash (they haven't found the cat food yet).

For years - YEARS - I would try different things to block or clean away their chemical trails. I've tried cinnamon and cloves, dish detergent and carpet cleaner, aspirin and diatomaceous earth - I've probably tried 50 things by now if not more, and every single one has failed.

But I recently tried something that works! HAND SANITIZER! They sort of flinch away from following their trail when the hand sanitizer is wet, and after it dries, they just won't cross that line.

AHA!!! Take THAT! Argentinian ants.

Yeah, but it's just a temporary wipe away of their pheremone trail though. If they found something they like, they'll keep coming back and making new ones as long as they're alive.

Not sure about Argentinian ants, but they sold this 5 pack of indoor ant-bait at Menard's that couldn't have cost more than $4 by me and that killed all trace of whatever ants were in my house around 3 years back. They had gotten so bad by that point that if I fell asleep after eating a bowl of cereal I would wake up with about 300 in the bowl and a solid line to and from wherever they were coming from. One bait trap and less than a day later they were gone. Except for the ones that decided it was a good idea to swim in it, they had the decency to bring it back to their hive and kill everybody there and not leave trails of dead carcasses all over my floor too.

Good luck. I'm not afraid of much, but after my previous problems I'm a 40 year old man that has an irrational fear of ants.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Saturday, July 11, 2020 8:04 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
SIGNYM:
Well. Here it is July 7th and I still haven't gotten my rear in gear. All I've managed to do was little piddly stuff: We always do "safe and sane" fireworks for the 4th, which we did again this year. Went with hubby and dd while they went to see the doctor. As I mentioned, replaced a couple of thermostats and put up and indoor/outdoor bluetooth weather station. Repaired a couple of hose ends so I could insert trigger grip nozzles, helped sort wire and screws, walked the dog and yada yada. Small stuff.

But I have plans for tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, so I think I just needed a break. I feel like my energy might be coming back, and after a nice rest most of my aches and pains have throttled back.

So here's hoping I get a good night's sleep and wake up ready to roll tomorrow.

SIX: It's hot by you, ain't it?
Don't hurt yourself.
Thanks SIX.

Managed to get out early enough to walk the dog, do yardwork yesterday and have a righteous bin of yardwaste to show for it. Also helped hubby sort out more stuff in the garage.

DIDN'T manage to get out early this AM, so contented myself with walking the dog, watering the flower garden and watering and harvesting the veggie garden (cucumbers, zucchini, and avocados galore), and tracking down the fuckups that hubby's retirement plan managed to create, as well as grocery shopping (yet to do).

But tonight I'm going to irrigate the whole property in prep for weeding over the next few days.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Just make sure you take some breaks if it's too hot by you still.

It's actually going to cool off to the mid 80's for a few days here, so I plan to take full advantage of that. I'm going to attempt to jack up that front porch overhang tomorrow. I've gone rediculously overboard on supplies and materials. I've got 4 pole jacks that can lift 20,000lbs each when fully extended (38,000lbs if not extended), a couple of insanely long 4"x4"'s, cinderblocks, piles of wood and screws and brackets for any repairs I'll need to make, and 100sq ft of chicken wire to keep the raccoons out if I have to expose a lot of stuff underneath before jacking.

Would be nice to have some assistance, but it looks like I'm on my own again for this one. Slow and steady wins the race.

In any case, just got back from my brothers and a long day of mostly driving. It was a little hairy there at first because of the damage done by the previous botched attempt at a repair by my old man, but I was finally able to figure everything out and my brother's scooter is in working order again. I also had to teach him a lesson about inflating tires, since the front tire only had 11.5 lbs of pressure in it, and the back tire that is directly below where he sits had a scary 3.5 lbs of pressure in it.

I also had to stress on multiple occasions that he's going to need to retrain himself on riding that bike now as if it were a new one, since his top speed is likely to be much greater than it was before and leaning to make turns is going to be a lot easier (and easier to just tip over) if he tries to do it like he had to when they were that low.

There might be other issues with it, but there wasn't enough time to look into it now. Strange knocking noise it makes on occasion and couldn't for the life of me figure out what was making it. All the bolts are tight everywhere though and I'm about 99% sure that nothing should fall apart. I let him know that I didn't think anything going on would put him in any danger other than leaving him a few miles away and needing to walk it back home if something went wrong, but to be careful until I can come back for a few days and spend more time on it.

We also managed to fix his dual recliner couch that he was convinced we were going

1KIKI

Saturday, July 11, 2020 4:15 PM

Quote:
Originally posted
Yeah, but it's just a temporary wipe away of their pheromone trail though. If they found something they like, they'll keep coming back and making new ones as long as they're alive.

Not sure about Argentinian ants, but they sold this 5 pack of indoor ant-bait at Menard's that couldn't have cost more than $4 by me and that killed all trace of whatever ants were in my house around 3 years back. They had gotten so bad by that point that if I fell asleep after eating a bowl of cereal I would wake up with about 300 in the bowl and a solid line to and from wherever they were coming from. One bait trap and less than a day later they were gone. Except for the ones that decided it was a good idea to swim in it, they had the decency to bring it back to their hive and kill everybody there and not leave trails of dead carcasses all over my floor too.

Good luck. I'm not afraid of much, but after my previous problems I'm a 40 year old man that has an irrational fear of ants.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

So far with the hand san, so good.

I've done lots in the past to wipe away the trail (alcohol, bleach, ammonia, vinegar, carpet cleaner, dish detergent, laundry detergent ...), and it hasn't worked.

The hand san has both glycerol and polymer in it to give it body, to keep the alcohol from evaporating too quickly to kill pathogens. It seems like the stuff that gets left behind after the alcohol evaporates is unpleasant for the ants. It's been over a week and they still haven't crossed the line.

Yeah, I tried all the bait products from the hardware stores, but no such luck. The Argentinian ants don't go for it.

6IXSTRINGJACK

Saturday, July 11, 2020 8:25 PM

It's good for your mind to not see them for sure, but that doesn't mean they're not in your walls or floors and wreaking havoc behind the scenes. If you haven't been able to kill them, you really need to know if they've actually left or if they're just not going for your food anymore.

What I read on ants during all of my research when I was having the problems is that they will make shelter that doesn't need to be anywhere close to a source of food if they feel the place is good enough. (Something crazy like one or two miles away even, if memory serves) A closer source of water is much more important to them, but even that doesn't have to be merely a few feet away.

Maybe I should send you a few pictures of what they did to my back porch just to make sure that you're taking the situation seriously. They're absolutely terrifying to me now.

I really wish I had started taking videos back then like I do now. As bad as the story of the milk bowl was, if you saw what I had seen that same year in a 4" exposed area by the wall in a corner by the shower base in my unfinished basement, you'd probably have nightmares about it. There were literally thousands upon thousands of them walking both ways that were so "thick" it looked like a black pulsating Lovecraftian horror from far away.

All I had on me at the time was totally-not-safe-for-indoors poison, but since I didn't have kids or a dog and didn't go down there much, I sprayed it around that area immediately.

Did you ever try that Amdro ant block?

It claims to take out Argentine ants.

https://bit.ly/3fqGtEE

https://thd.co/2C3Tsxt

(I used Bitly to shorten the links because they were making my post runoff the side... First one is Menards, second one is Home Depot)

That stuff has worked fantastic outside for me.

My two problems with it are that it's pretty much no good after it gets wet because it breaks down the food bits they attach to the poison, and that it's far too expensive to fill an entire spreader and do my lawn with it.

The huge $15 bottle says you can treat the entire perimeter of (the average) home 5 times.

I don't use it that way anymore though because of the water issue and the large amount of rain we always get around here. (Actually, since you're in California it might not be the worst idea if you do as long as you have reason to believe it will be quite a while before any rain).

Now I alternate spraying the perimeter of the house and garage every 3-4 weeks with two different types of poison by using 4 gallons from my 2 gallon Round Up sprayer (Sigs will tell you how nice those are).

Then, in between sprays if I ever happen to see any ants anywhere near the house, such as on the concrete patio in the front, I will just drop about a table spoon or two of this around the activity and the next time I look there aren't any.

Back before I had beaten them away from the perimeter and the activity next to my house was fierce, I would drop it right on their trails and when I'd come back the next day the trails had gone cold and I'd see anywhere from dozens to hundreds of them lying dead around the pile.

I just want to make sure that you're giving the possible outcomes of a bad ant situation the seriousness it deserves. Before I had lived with it firsthand, if somebody told me what ants were capable of doing to a house if left unchecked I never would have believed it.

And good luck.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Saturday, July 11, 2020 11:37 PM

Out for a walk in a bit.

BRENDA

Sunday, July 12, 2020 9:49 AM

The rain arrived before supper time.

SIGNYM

Sunday, July 12, 2020 12:39 PM

Quote:
SIGNYM:
Well. Here it is July 7th and I still haven't gotten my rear in gear. All I've managed to do was little piddly stuff: We always do "safe and sane" fireworks for the 4th, which we did again this year. Went with hubby and dd while they went to see the doctor. As I mentioned, replaced a couple of thermostats and put up and indoor/outdoor bluetooth weather station. Repaired a couple of hose ends so I could insert trigger grip nozzles, helped sort wire and screws, walked the dog and yada yada. Small stuff.

But I have plans for tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after that, so I think I just needed a break. I feel like my energy might be coming back, and after a nice rest most of my aches and pains have throttled back.

So here's hoping I get a good night's sleep and wake up ready to roll tomorrow.

SIX: It's hot by you, ain't it?
Don't hurt yourself.

SIGNYM: Thanks SIX.
Managed to get out early enough to walk the dog, do yardwork yesterday and have a righteous bin of yardwaste to show for it. Also helped hubby sort out more stuff in the garage.

DIDN'T manage to get out early this AM, so contented myself with walking the dog, watering the flower garden and watering and harvesting the veggie garden (cucumbers, zucchini, and avocados galore), and tracking down the fuckups that hubby's retirement plan managed to create, as well as grocery shopping (yet to do).
But tonight I'm going to irrigate the whole property in prep for weeding over the next few days.

SIX: Just make sure you take some breaks if it's too hot by you still.

Yes, we've been in the mid-90s lately, but unlike you (I think) we don't get high humidity so it's not as bad.

I've learned to drink a bottle of water BEFORE I go out, and whatever I do outdoors in the summer is done by noon at the latest. Having to water the vegetable and flowe garden every day lately, and gave the Haas avocado - the one that's so stressed with mites ... a two-hour leaf-rinse and soaking. Also managed to dig up a half-bin of weeds ... not as much fun as pruning but definitely necessary! Once I get the big ones out, the flame thrower goes into action!

Quote:
It's actually going to cool off to the mid 80's for a few days here, so I plan to take full advantage of that. I'm going to attempt to jack up that front porch overhang tomorrow. I've gone rediculously overboard on supplies and materials. I've got 4 pole jacks that can lift 20,000lbs each when fully extended (38,000lbs if not extended), a couple of insanely long 4"x4"'s, cinderblocks, piles of wood and screws and brackets for any repairs I'll need to make, and 100sq ft of chicken wire to keep the raccoons out if I have to expose a lot of stuff underneath before jacking.

Would be nice to have some assistance, but it looks like I'm on my own again for this one. Slow and steady wins the race.

It sounds like you're planning a lot of heavy-duty hard labor at your end. So I'm going to bounce your advice back to you: stay hydrated, and take plenty of breaks!

Quote:
SIX: In any case, just got back from my brothers and a long day of mostly driving. It was a little hairy there at first because of the damage done by the previous botched attempt at a repair by my old man, but I was finally able to figure everything out and my brother's scooter is in working order again. I also had to teach him a lesson about inflating tires, since the front tire only had 11.5 lbs of pressure in it, and the back tire that is directly below where he sits had a scary 3.5 lbs of pressure in it.

I also had to stress on multiple occasions that he's going to need to retrain himself on riding that bike now as if it were a new one, since his top speed is likely to be much greater than it was before and leaning to make turns is going to be a lot easier (and easier to just tip over) if he tries to do it like he had to when they were that low.

There m

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SIGNYM

Sunday, July 12, 2020 12:48 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Well dang but the Argentinian ants came back a couple of months ago. At first they were at very low levels and tolerable, but since then their numbers have increased and they've created significant ant trails to the kitchen sink and trash (they haven't found the cat food yet).

For years - YEARS - I would try different things to block or clean away their chemical trails. I've tried cinnamon and cloves, dish detergent and carpet cleaner, aspirin and diatomaceous earth - I've probably tried 50 things by now if not more, and every single one has failed.

But I recently tried something that works! HAND SANITIZER! They sort of flinch away from following their trail when the hand sanitizer is wet, and after it dries, they just won't cross that line.

AHA!!! Take THAT! Argentinian ants.

Well, I missed this bc of THUGR's trolling.

Good deal!

Have you ever tasted hand sanitizer after it's dried? I have. (Don't ask.) It's very very bitter. I don't know if that's what they're reacting to, but if I were an ant I wouldn't cross it!

We used to have a nest of ants living under the track of a sliding glass door, and unfortunately that was right at our kitchen. It had rusted out and created a hole thru which the ants could come and go as they pleased, and until I tracked them down and found their nest and destroyed it, we ALWAYS had ants in the kitchen. But what used to work for me was ArmorAll. Not sure what was in it that the ants found so distasteful but they hesitated to cross it. It sounds like hand sanitizer works even better!

*****

Definitely going to keep that Amdro in mind, tho. Seen two red ants in our yard lately, could be fire ants, so I definitely want to keep an eye on that!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Sunday, July 12, 2020 10:11 PM

Yes. Stay hydrated. I'm glad you're doing it.

I need to start. I drink way too much coffee and have since I stopped drinking. It's not a problem during the winter, but it becomes a problem during summer. Even though I have the A/C and doing any work inside the house is now pleasant enough and I rarely break a sweat unless I'm in the attic, yardwork and any of the other outside and in the garage stuff can be pretty brutal when I've had a pot of coffee. I have started chilling water in the fridge and it's been a life saver.

And yes, it's the humidity that's a problem here. Despite the fact it's only rained twice here in 3 weeks and not all that much when it did, it's regularly 50 to 75% during the day and even higher at night. Yesterday we did have an hour long storm in the afternoon and it was super humid, but at least it was relatively cool compared to the last few weeks so it wasn't that bad.

That being said, it did put a bit of a damper on my planned work yesterday. Taking apart what I need to in order to be able to put jacks in the correct places while also not damaging aluminum and not being able to reuse it is terribly slow, and maybe impossible. I got stuck on one thing late yesterday and decided to call it quits and go into it today with a fresh mind. I'm still not sure what I'm going to do...

But at least I was able to check my roof patches yesterday. I won't breathe a true sigh of relief until we get another 3 inches in an hour, but it did rain fairly heavy there yesterday and it's bone dry inside.

Cooler day today. Hopefully I can at least get those jacks up so I can start working on the fascia sub fascia replacement and get one step closer to getting those gutters installed.

Good luck with your work today.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Monday, July 13, 2020 7:50 AM

We're jacked.

I actually lifted the overhang quite a bit more than I intended to in one day, but once I knew what was really going on I expected this to happen once I detached the columns.

The funny thing is that I could have detached those columns last year when the problems were first visible without any jacks underneath it. The overhang wasn't sinking. The concrete slab did over the years and was using the columns to pull the damn roof down with it. The overhang is an inch higher than it was this morning. I actually had to raise my jacks to keep them tight as I removed the bolts holding the columns into the frame.

This should at least put an end to any new damage. I'll take my time jacking it up to level and then work on fixing the damage and getting ready to have the gutters installed.

Even got the lawn mowed today.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Monday, July 13, 2020 9:57 AM

Just been a lazy Sunday here.

BRENDA

Monday, July 13, 2020 11:37 PM

Bright sunny day here. Out for my walk.

BRENDA

Tuesday, July 14, 2020 3:28 AM

Well, I went and bought a small laundry hamper and turned it upside down to use as a writing table of sorts. Still not really high enough, so might have to get something else to add to it.

6IXSTRINGJACK

Tuesday, July 14, 2020 5:51 AM

Sprayed for bugs and weeds for the fourth or fifth time this year. Neighbor yesterday asked me how the hell I don't have any weeds yesterday when I was talking with her and her old man.

Tore down all the fascia in the front but one 4.5 foot overhang. The board under that is bad and will need to be replaced, but I'm leaving the aluminum up until I get to it so it doesn't draw any attention.

The rest of it is fine, which is nice. 35 to 40 or so feet that I just needed to scrape, sand down and paint today.

Also gave another turn to one of the jacks since the overhang went back up just a little more on that side enough to loosen it. :)

Time to shower. Got to do some shopping.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Tuesday, July 14, 2020 8:08 AM

Nice. Just did my math and I'm going to be able to return over $200 worth of stuff I overbought for the job. :)

Already got my next jobs planned out and that will easily cover the next part.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 6:35 PM

Decided to hold off on buying any asphalt and concrete patch for the driveway and the garage slab. I want to research both processes and get an idea of the proper stuff to buy for the job rather than just buy a bunch of stuff since I was already there and had a large in-store credit burning a hole in my pocket.

I did buy the self leveling caulk though to fill in the two concrete slabs up against my house, and some extra backing rod in case I didn't have enough. It's nice having it on the ready, but that's something else that I can't do until other things are done first. Not only will I be patching the two places that I know water is seeping in the basement, but I'm going to trench down a few inches around the peremeter and clean it off good so I can paint it all back with the roofing/basement tar that I used after fixing the wall under the porch last year. One year later and that area looks fantastic. Just that clean black stripe under the bottom of the siding is going to be a huge upgrade to the curb appeal. Once that's done I can powerwash and use the caulk seal on the slabs.

Today, hopefully, we're getting slammed with a big thunderstorm. I got about 1/4 of an inch of rain the other day and the attic was bone dry, but I really need to have a storm where it hits as hard as those spring storms to get a good idea if my patch is good or not.

Meanwhile, I recently found out the place I bought all of that expensive paint from during the first year I lived here is still open. I drove by it yesterday while running my errands and still couldn't find it. It's in the middle of this town square place that is always super busy and the parking is right on the street so it's hard to be looking over at the storefronts while also keeping an eye in front of you so that nobody pulls out and backs into you. I'm going to call them today.

I'm hoping they still have my name in the system and a record of which colors I bought. I have two of the old cans, but it seems that I threw one of them out after emptying it all those years ago, so I have no clue what that color was and I don't want to damage my walls to get a color match.

Without getting a discount, a pint of that paint is $14. The gallons cost me $57 with the discount and the store's normal price was $62. I only have a few dings to patch from furniture in the master bedroom, and in the 2nd bedroom there were a few cracks under the windows because I let water get in when I didn't have windowsills. The paint is supposed to be able to go on with touchups and blend in seamlessly, so rather than paint the whole rooms again, I'm hoping the paint lives up to the hype (and the price).

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 11:02 PM

Another sunny day here where I am. Out to do things.

1KIKI

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 11:20 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Well, I went and bought a small laundry hamper and turned it upside down to use as a writing table of sorts. Still not really high enough, so might have to get something else to add to it.

Hi Brenda!

IDK how expensive or cheap this kind of thing might be, but have you considered ordering something like this?

If you want to do some internet checking, after looking around a bit, the name for this category of furniture is called

drop front desk

SIGNYM

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 11:30 PM

Sounds like you're making excellent progress, SIX!

Just OOC, what do you intend to do with the sunken part of your foundation, if that's what's going on? I'm sure you don't want to take that portion all apart, re-pour the footer and rebuilt the block wall. Or maybe you do? Or is there a simpler fix to raise the foundation so your sill plate is even?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

SIGNYM

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 11:31 PM

Happy sunshine day, BRENDA!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 11:32 PM

Those aren't cheap, even on the low end (around $200 at Walmart and Target). And that one looks to be at least middlingly fancy with quality wood.

If a laundry hamper is what you're trying to use right now Brenda, you could probably find a bar stool at the local goodwill for under 5 bucks.

I'm assuming it's not just the cost that is prohibiting you from getting a proper piece of furniture, but also the ease of being able to bring something home with you as well. A bar stool is lightweight and easy to move around.

You could even get a small piece of plywood cheap and bring that home with you and either drill or glue that to the top of the bar stool. If it has padding, just remove that to affix it to the bare wood.

And if it turns out to be too high for you, all you need to do is saw off the four legs to the length you want it.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

SIGNYM

Wednesday, July 15, 2020 11:35 PM

That's a sweet-looking desk, KIKI. If I didn't have a houseful of furniture... some of which I'd like to get rid of... I'd get one!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 16, 2020 6:31 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Sounds like you're making excellent progress, SIX!

Finally getting around to important things instead of doing arts and crafts projects.

Quote:
Just OOC, what do you intend to do with the sunken part of your foundation, if that's what's going on? I'm sure you don't want to take that portion all apart, re-pour the footer and rebuilt the block wall. Or maybe you do? Or is there a simpler fix to raise the foundation so your sill plate is even?

It's not the foundation that sunk. It's a concrete slab porch in the front of the house that goes out about 5 feet from the front door, and 21 feet wide. The overhang extends 4 feet from the siding (3 feet more than the roof overhang on the rest of the front of the house) and is around 20 feet wide... about 19.5 feet wide from column center to column center.

I'm thinking this has probably gone on for many years and had never been addressed, possibly before I even moved in. I know the gutters didn't help, and other things like the ants and moles probably contributed to it. I think putting that blower in the window of the overhang on a heavy wooden table and having that rattle around 12 hours a day all summer last year didn't help... in fact, I didn't get any drywall cracking in the attic until after I was doing that.

Just as I suspected after opening things up, the columns were never supporting any weight to begin with. They were simply decoration. Decoration that was bolted to the slab, and then further bolted into the frame of the overhang. As the slab sunk, it was pulling the overhang down with it, and that was messing up my entire roof.

How did I verify that? Well it did exactly what I thought it would do and my pole jacks that were up tight became loose as I unscrewed the 3 heavy duty hex screws out of the header that went through the columns. I had to continually stop unscrewing that so I could lift my jacks up tight again.

All in all, the overhang went up about a full inch without any help from the jacks.

I'm going to wait a few more days before I jack them up any further. This process will be slow since you don't want to rush it and break stuff. It's hot and humid out, so this is the best time of year to be doing this, but slow and steady wins the race. I can't say for sure how much it needs to be jacked up, but it's got to be at least level. Otherwise the gutters won't work in the front after they're installed on the sides that go out perpendicular to the front door. I might even choose just to put them just a tad higher than level just to slightly future proof any further sinking of the porch slab.

In the mean time, I've got to consider how I'm going to put it back together. I'd like to get more substantial columns for one, since they actually will be supporting weight this time. I want to do a better job of waterproofing them too, since even with the gutters installed they will get wet toward the ground, and ants are not afraid of tearing into green wood that will eventually rot if exposed to water all of the time. I'd also like to put everything back together so it's an easy task to get back in there instead of a 2 day project that requires extra care not to damage things you want to reuse.

My foundational issues are in the back of the house. There is a broken patch under the bathroom window that's just letting water in when we have these heavy rains. That's going right down to the floor and seeping out under the cinderblocks. It's why I had to mop up nearly 200 gallons of water to save the basement that day my brother was here and the city sewers weren't working.

90% of that should be remedied when the gutters are installed, but if I don't patch that all up properly I'll still get water in the basement even with the gutters if we keep having progressively worse springs like we've hat the last 5 or 6 years.

We've

SIGNYM

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:22 AM

Quote:
SIGNYM:
Sounds like you're making excellent progress, SIX!

SIX: Finally getting around to important things instead of doing arts and crafts projects.

SIGNY: Just OOC, what do you intend to do with the sunken part of your foundation, if that's what's going on? I'm sure you don't want to take that portion all apart, re-pour the footer and rebuilt the block wall. Or maybe you do? Or is there a simpler fix to raise the foundation so your sill plate is even?

SIX: It's not the foundation that sunk.

Whew!

Quote:
It's a concrete slab porch in the front of the house that goes out about 5 feet from the front door, and 21 feet wide. The overhang extends 4 feet from the siding (3 feet more than the roof overhang on the rest of the front of the house) and is around 20 feet wide... about 19.5 feet wide from column center to column center.

I'm thinking this has probably gone on for many years and had never been addressed, possibly before I even moved in.

That may have something to do with that intermittent underground stream that KIKI suggested was running under your home. It CAN move ... and remove ... a fair bit of dirt

Quote:
I know the gutters didn't help, and other things like the ants and moles probably contributed to it. I think putting that blower in the window of the overhang on a heavy wooden table and having that rattle around 12 hours a day all summer last year didn't help... in fact, I didn't get any drywall cracking in the attic until after I was doing that.

Just as I suspected after opening things up, the columns were never supporting any weight to begin with. They were simply decoration. Decoration that was bolted to the slab, and then further bolted into the frame of the overhang. As the slab sunk, it was pulling the overhang down with it, and that was messing up my entire roof.

How did I verify that? Well it did exactly what I thought it would do and my pole jacks that were up tight became loose as I unscrewed the 3 heavy duty hex screws out of the header that went through the columns. I had to continually stop unscrewing that so I could lift my jacks up tight again.

All in all, the overhang went up about a full inch without any help from the jacks.

I'm going to wait a few more days before I jack them up any further. This process will be slow since you don't want to rush it and break stuff.

So I've heard!

Quote:
It's hot and humid out, so this is the best time of year to be doing this, but slow and steady wins the race. I can't say for sure how much it needs to be jacked up, but it's got to be at least level. Otherwise the gutters won't work in the front after they're installed on the sides that go out perpendicular to the front door. I might even choose just to put them just a tad higher than level just to slightly future proof any further sinking of the porch slab.

Gutters need to be angled slightly downward toward the downspouts, correct?

Quote:
In the mean time, I've got to consider how I'm going to put it back together. I'd like to get more substantial columns for one, since they actually will be supporting weight this time. I want to do a better job of waterproofing them too, since even with the gutters installed they will get wet toward the ground, and ants are not afraid of tearing into green wood that will eventually rot if exposed to water all of the time. I'd also like to put everything back together so it's an easy task to get back in there instead of a 2 day project that requires extra care not to damage things you want to reuse.

So basically the answer to the sunken (sinking?) slab is to put in taller columns, right?

Quote:
My foundational issues are in the back of the house. There is a broken patch under the bathroom window that's just letting water in when we have these heavy rains. That's going right down to the floor and seeping out under the cinderblocks. It's why I had

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6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:28 AM

I made a few remedial pictures while you were writing that response regarding the overhang issue. Forgive me for making something that looks like a 3rd grader did. I don't have a proper CAD program, and I'd be about 20 years rusty on it if I did.

I think it conveys the point though...

Do Right, Be Right. :)

SIGNYM

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:34 AM

Managed to get out my three bins of yardwaste, and dug into the tax statements and banking records to figure out ONE of hubby's retirement fuckups. That one is a simple fix even tho it involved two institutions making several mistakes in a row, it only left a problem on the 1099. Not sure about the other one, but I did manage to explain in detail to the research team what happened with the first problem.

Have been helping hubby sort things and put the garage in order. It's been my mission to sort and label all of his wood screws. machine bolts, eyebolts etc and he has a crap=ton! An 8'X16" shelf-full!

Heard from an ex-colleague of mine that one of the former souce testers has fourth stage pancreatic cancer. That's terrible news. I didn't really like a lot of people that I worked with, I thought most of them were just amoral, but this tester was a real standup kind of guy, and didn't mind crossing TPTB to get things done. I'm trying to write an email to him, but I don't know what to say.

Other than that, I'm just keeping on keeping on. Nothing special or big going on. Need to get my rear in gear on the legal aspects of our daughter's future, and do some concerted work in that direction.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

1KIKI

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:49 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
That's a sweet-looking desk, KIKI. If I didn't have a houseful of furniture... some of which I'd like to get rid of... I'd get one!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

It's not something I'd get because I have different intentions for a desk. But it seems like it might meet Brenda's needs. It's small(ish) and fits almost anywhere, and you can get your knees under it while seated at a standard-sized chair, and it fits a laptop. And it's a permanent legitimate piece of furniture, which I think is something Brenda might possibly appreciate after living unsettled for so long in a temporary jury-rigged setting. It could take some internet searching, but there are even places that have solid pine unfinished furniture for sale that's relatively cheap. She might find something like that, if the idea appeals to her.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do is find the correct search term to use with google! So if it appeals to her, hopefully I've cracked some of the code to use!

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:51 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Whew!

Yeah. At least it seems the foundation of the house itself was built well. I have some fixing that needs to be done, but unlike the porch addition they knew what they were doing on the house.

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That may have something to do with that intermittent underground stream that KIKI suggested was running under your home. It CAN move ... and remove ... a fair bit of dirt

It's possible, but now that I know more about the area it's probably that it's just constantly wet soil around here unless we've got a drought. The ditch across the street that is supposed to take care of a lot of this was up to the top all spring long, and when I say "up to the top", that looks to be about 5 feet higher than my first floor. We've gone almost a month now with hardly any rain and my grass is still growing like weeds and hasn't turned brown, even though its' been in the high 80's and 90's nearly everyday and sunny.

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Gutters need to be angled slightly downward toward the downspouts, correct?

Yeah, but you can do that by angling the gutters themselves and probably shouldn't rely on a bad pitch of your roof and structure to do that work for you.

Plus, if you look at my pictures, I don't know how many downspouts should be installed and exactly where. I'll let the gutter guy decide that one for me. But if I put two of them on the right side of the overhang that's probably overkill and will look dumb, since it's only about 4.5 feet either way. But if I put it on the back corner and not at the front of the overhang on the right side and the angle is downward away from the house, it would simply pool up in there and start dumping over the side of the gutter when it rained heavy.

Quote:
So basically the answer to the sunken (sinking?) slab is to put in taller columns, right?

Maybe? I'm hoping the sinking issue is going to be mostly remedied after the gutters are installed. I'm going to be jacking the overhang up quite a bit to get it level, so there is now going to be a lot of downward pressure on the front of the slab that hasn't been there for a long time. I'm going to see if I can do any meaningful research before I do anything. I think I'm going to get wider columns that look fancier and have more surface area on contact with the slab too.

Quote:
That must be some crack! And some underground stream!

It's cinder block walls, so not a crack per sa... A mortar joint deteriorated at some point below the window, and idiots who lived here before did a horrible patch job on the surface that cracked at some point because that's what happens when you take shortcuts and do things the wrong way. I'm just hoping that it doesn't go down much more than a single layer of blocks or I'm going to be in for a lot of digging.

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Er... that's what climate scientists say. Warmer air lofts more water, leading to more precipitation. Except for the extreme southwest, where much of that lofted, wrung out air sinks and dries things out.

I'm not going to argue that. Lake Michigan is where our water is supposed to eventually go but it's not going anywhere because Lake Michigan is past max capacity.

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It's hard to believe that you'd get 200 gallon from off your roof. Not sure of the configuration of that area of your house. I thought that the full-height part of the basement was in the back, so are you talking about a crack that could potentially extend deep into the soil, or is just at the soil surface?

I'm hoping it's just at the soil surface. The last few years around here, the backyard is a freaking marsh after these 3" rains because there's so much water everywhere that never evaporates. At least we're having our first hot and relatively dry summer in 5 years, so at least there's that.

But given the amount of water everywhere that reall

1KIKI

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:58 AM

I've been struggling to stay awake, and dozing off sitting up all day, despite lots of coffee in the AM.

That is NOT the way to get things done!

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 16, 2020 8:59 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Managed to get out my three bins of yardwaste, and dug into the tax statements and banking records to figure out ONE of hubby's retirement fuckups. That one is a simple fix even tho it involved two institutions making several mistakes in a row, it only left a problem on the 1099. Not sure about the other one, but I did manage to explain in detail to the research team what happened with the first problem.

Have been helping hubby sort things and put the garage in order. It's been my mission to sort and label all of his wood screws. machine bolts, eyebolts etc and he has a crap=ton! An 8'X16" shelf-full!

Heard from an ex-colleague of mine that one of the former souce testers has fourth stage pancreatic cancer. That's terrible news. I didn't really like a lot of people that I worked with, I thought most of them were just amoral, but this tester was a real standup kind of guy, and didn't mind crossing TPTB to get things done. I'm trying to write an email to him, but I don't know what to say.

Other than that, I'm just keeping on keeping on. Nothing special or big going on. Need to get my rear in gear on the legal aspects of our daughter's future, and do some concerted work in that direction.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Sounds like you've got the work under control too. I envy your husband for even being able to think about spending time organizing bolts and whatnot. I'd imagine if I were still here five years from now I wouldn't be able to find the time to do that. I know where all of my tools and materials are now, but I've got a huge "junk drawer" of sorts with those kinds of things in it, and although it might take me a while to find what I need, it hasn't failed me yet.

I actually was unpleasantly surprised this year when my new license plate sticker came and was actually a new license plate. I had forgot how difficult it was to install the new one last time since everything on the back of my car there is deteriorated and rusted out.

I couldn't even tell you what I did this time since that was a month ago and it's a hodgepodge of a job, but that new license is tight and isn't going to move for another 10 years. I think it will last longer than the car does at this point.

But it sure is nice to have that junk drawer full of nuts and bolts and other odds and ends. I got a ton of them when my parents moved south, and I've always kept any extra bits and pieces from things I've bought and/or thrown away with the hoard. Never throw away a good nut or bolt or washer.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 16, 2020 9:03 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
I've been struggling to stay awake, and dozing off sitting up all day, despite lots of coffee in the AM.

That is NOT the way to get things done!

You're probably not sleeping well.

With all the house stresses on my end, and everybody and my brother needing things from me too, I've been getting about 3 to 4 hours of sleep every night for the last month or so. I can't unwind at night and sleeping after I eat isn't working like it used to. I end up looking at the clock at 4AM and realizing I went down another YouTube rabbit hole and wonder where the night went.

Took the opportunity of a rainy day today to catch up on sleep, but now I'll probably be up all night again.

I think I need to consider my own coffee over indulgence. It goes way beyond an AM thing here.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

BRENDA

Thursday, July 16, 2020 9:29 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 1KIKI:
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Well, I went and bought a small laundry hamper and turned it upside down to use as a writing table of sorts. Still not really high enough, so might have to get something else to add to it.
Hi Brenda!

IDK how expensive or cheap this kind of thing might be, but have you considered ordering something like this?

If you want to do some internet checking, after looking around a bit, the name for this category of furniture is called

drop front desk

I can't order anything on line but looking for something better wouldn't hurt then maybe when I can get some help, I can get it.

BRENDA

Thursday, July 16, 2020 9:32 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Happy sunshine day, BRENDA!

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake

#WEARAMASK

Thanks. Suppose to rain tomorrow. I missed the weather on the local news tonight. So will have to check out the weather site I go to.

BRENDA

Thursday, July 16, 2020 9:36 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Those aren't cheap, even on the low end (around $200 at Walmart and Target). And that one looks to be at least middlingly fancy with quality wood.

If a laundry hamper is what you're trying to use right now Brenda, you could probably find a bar stool at the local goodwill for under 5 bucks.

I'm assuming it's not just the cost that is prohibiting you from getting a proper piece of furniture, but also the ease of being able to bring something home with you as well. A bar stool is lightweight and easy to move around.

You could even get a small piece of plywood cheap and bring that home with you and either drill or glue that to the top of the bar stool. If it has padding, just remove that to affix it to the bare wood.

And if it turns out to be too high for you, all you need to do is saw off the four legs to the length you want it.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

You are right. It's not just the cost but my ability to get it home. I was looking for that at Walmart but they don't have any in stock right now. I'm thinking about checking out my local Salvation Army Thrift store in the next couple of days for something better.

1KIKI

Thursday, July 16, 2020 9:41 AM

I've figured out it's due to the heat even tho the bedroom has AC, and the fact that my mattress heats up too much where I'm laying down on it. I figured it out because I can sleep elsewhere, but I'm EXTREMELY uncomfortable in bed because ... as cool as I keep the room I still sweat, and for whatever reason I'm ultra-sensitive to the sensation of sticking to the linens.

So today I ordered a polymer random mesh made for boats that you put under your mattress. The original onboard intention was to allow for air circulation underneath, to keep mattresses from molding (because, on ships, mattresses are placed on solid plywood and never get a chance to dry out underneath).

It was cheap, and I think it'll allow for cooling.

6IXSTRINGJACK

Thursday, July 16, 2020 9:41 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
You are right. It's not just the cost but my ability to get it home. I was looking for that at Walmart but they don't have any in stock right now. I'm thinking about checking out my local Salvation Army Thrift store in the next couple of days for something better.

I'm wondering if possibly you could have WalMart deliver something to you if you paid for it with cash in the store.

I've never tried that, but it might be worth looking into if you find something you feel is worth the price but getting it home is a deal breaker.

Do Right, Be Right. :)

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