My Time Machine?

I did get all but one of the planks on the deck  the one where many cuts will be made to make it fit around all the posts where the steps and handrails will go...Im not in as much a hurry to get to step 2 of this project next week probably....here is where I am now..

I swear I did prune back these azaleas they grew back already...time to trim again! Once the planks are seasoned  I have some stain to put on.

the old horse pasture is my back yard...it's yearning to have hooves in it again! On my list of 40 things was adopt a mustang so stay tuned!

at least I can walk out the door and sit on the deck!! I even moved my little umbrella and table out.  I did see some of the large market umbrellas on sale---maybe gotta think that over.  I had one out here for years don't know where it went?

...meanwhile on the screen porch I added some more seating (do you recognize my famous camp chair) and a couple of storage footstools, found those at Goodwill.  I already have my little bottles of fertilizer, and some yard hand tools stashed inside! 

my avocado tree is getting BIG- it really wants a bigger pot so it can become a grandpa!

...the chartreuse on these boxes matches my fabric almost perfectly!  I have yet to stitch  up my cushions but it's on the list.  And in the center of the photo you can see Mom's house we are literally a stones toss from each other...

Along the fence I hung a nest box, it was higher up on a tree and not one bird was interested it hung there 3 yrs and  so I moved it last winter and LOOK,  a Carolina Wren is sitting!

the wrens have already fledged one batch of new wrens...so very happy to provide them with a home...NOW I just have to watch out for black snakes!

And in case you thought I was kidding about the "ball" art--

I wasn't!! I want more--I have one ball that has split in half, I'd like to make a couple of Lady Bugs outta that one--stay tuned.  I tossed out about 10 bowling balls...darn-wish I hadn't been in such a hurry to get rid of them just imagine the possibilities....

AND bad stuff news the van window had a  major malfunction...so I had to go on an exploratory adventure and found the cause...A plastic gear is turned by the window motor....a braided steel cord is what wraps itself around this plastic gear -not good-think rock, paper, scissors-- and then 15 yrs later your window won't go up....I ordered the entire window regulator and its on its way....I have plans to go on a long weekend  Friday I don't think the part will arrive on time, so I have shoved the window up in closed position and jammed it with old towels to keep it up there...I am not planning to camp its just too hot and every State Park I checked on my planned route had big R's across the board??? How can this be? Personally I think they just put the R's on there to discourage walk in's.... but I sure hate the idea of Motel sleeping--if it should turn cooler, I may reconsider.  I don't have to pack my kitchen I can eat take out--just I will miss my coffee so I may pack that-

currently watching on Antenna TV-- THE BLOB (1983) I have enjoyed watching TV shows that are older than my son... before that it was Seals n Croft Year of Sunday on the record player 1971, I have literally gone back in time-I am living in a house I lived in back in 1977, listening to music from my high school years, and watching TV from the days when I was raising my son, and wondering why a van window from 2001 went screwy?? 

PEACE

Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.

out in the yard....

They say double digits by Saturday today was Wednesday...so I jumped out of bed to get started on my decking...if  you recall my son helped me rip the old decking off...and I've been doing a little here and there in bracing up the framing so it would be stronger but that's about it..this was taken a while back my "before" shot..

It is not just the decking that needs to be taken care of the awning has to be painted, and the light, and the storm door, I plan to remove that old brick plant bed on the far right under the window...eventually!!  And the azaleas are overgrown.

The deck posts were very weathered on the top 1/2 so I made the decision to paint them! (paint I had on hand) And these pricey little copper toppers will help to preserve the posts I hope. This is the only one I purchased I wanted to be sure I could use them and I like it. 

And here is a start on the decking...

I have to get to Lowes tomorrow for more boards!  Next spring maybe I will be concentrating on the lawn and getting the flower beds back up in the neglected yard... and getting the trees in shape..

I have planted a few annuals to at least make this one bed look some better...and look what I did with my sons old bowling balls..HAHA...I Like it! He said .........whaaaaattttttttttttttttt?

I recently found one of my X's golf balls in the edge of the woods Im gonna glue it on top of the short bowling ball,,,haha ModArt. whadda ya think??

Now it looks like pewter...something from outer space..I had some buckets in the barn that had holes in the bottom...so I made planters 

The fern is a 3rd generation of the fern shown below...... so this is a grandson...and this is WHY I have not reset this fern it has the potential to become a giant..and where would I put it then? It used to live in the porch sunroom, but it outgrew the sunroom, and it passed away in 2011....so happy I had started another one and my sister has a brother too!!

me with the grand daddy fern in 2005 

and finally I've been drying some Oregano from the garden...

Plan to send some to a friend who lives in CO she will like this little card Im sending along as she is a retired art teacher!

.... that's my week so far, I'll be sure to post some "After" photos of the deck when its complete, it may be a while!!

Time for a nice Lemonade

 

PEACE

Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.

little things make a house a home...

Our weather has been extreme lately...hot humid then torrential storms with all sorts of lightening and heavy rain...my plan was to have my deck back together by now....but it has to wait for the wood to dry out!  Will that ever happen? Meanwhile I figured out the issue of the mystery switch that turned on a light it was NOT wired to? HOLY HOT WIRE--batgirl....

So one of my "gifts" is to figure things out.  It means I'm a good tracker, I can look for signs and lead to conclusions, not always the right one...but 8 out of 10 yeah,  I'm channeling Sherlock...I dunno.    So the switch is one that has 2 switches in one box...shown here..

So the top switch turns on the overhead light in this is room, the lower switch turns on an exterior light.   So when I turned on either switch both lights came on!! WTHeck? So I tried hard to recall when I installed this switch...That's when I remember the insert card in the packaging and how it said in order for this switch to work  independently you must break out the little brass connector---DID I do that??

  

SO I took off the cover (after turning off the breaker) pulled the switch out far enough to see and there was the little culprit, so I wiggled it back n forth with needle nosed pliers until it broke off  I turned the breaker on and tried it before pushing it back in and it worked perfectly!! So that was an easy fix! 

Another project I was happy to get done is making a trap door that drops into place in the attic space.  no longer have the "black hole" in the middle of the ceiling!  I decided to not put in a attic ladder right now, since I can reach anything I need to by using my step ladder.  

I was happy to get that hole covered in! I had some big pieces of cardboard covering it but that did little to keep my conditioned air from escaping into the attic.  I glued some rigid foam insulation onto the backside of the trap door so it is now insulated and the difference is amazing! I probably should have put 2 layers of insulation come to think of it!! And I could spray glue some regular insulation to it as well 

A couple of other small inside projects is installing a wireless doorbell...people tend to sneak up on me....and some rollers for a trunk I keep in the bedroom, it needs to be painted and I want to put rollers on to make it easier to move around, and one of the ceiling fans needed a 3 speed switch...got that done.

The cabinet project in my bedroom is finished....there was so much oak in the room, the floor is oak, the night stand is oak, then an oak dresser and these 2 big oak cabinets SO I decided to give the cabinet and dresser a white wash to tone it down some..

before:

After 

I like this desert washed look. These cabinets are full of books, photo albums, and all sorts of memory albums I love to make...and since this "unit" would only work on this wall that means the bed ended up on the odd wall---with a window that is not centered due to the closet so I made up a window treatment to offset hopefully balance it 

used my crafting table for its first project...framing up 2 watercolors I made way back in 2010...about time they got frames...this table has a history! It's Vermont maple.  When I rented my unfurnished basement studio in Brooklyn, I had no furniture! The wonderful thing about NYC is people put all knds of things on the curb when they no longer want it...I found this table in that way.  I used it for the 5 years I lived in that apartment as my eating table.  I had it stored since my move back to SC...I'm so happy to bring this little piece of that life I had there into my life here.  

here is an old photo of it in that studio...I found the chairs too but did not bring them to SC...

PEACE

Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.

Hartsville

If  you notice poor quality in my photos blame Verizon...I reduced the pixels so I wouldn't eat up all my data when I upload photos!  Today we went for another Townies Tour...this time it's HARTSVILLE, SC.....near the same  area geographical we went to on our last Town visit.  Back in the Pee Dee region, crossing the Lynches River  we traveled into Darlington County (from Kershaw County) where we live.  Back in Cotton Country!!

Mom and I were so ready to be out and about we've had lots of rain, been hard to get anything done outside so I took advantage and did lots of little inside things to get my house in order--- literally.  To get there its a quiet drive through farmland  and lots of roadside stops for photos...so we don't get in a hurry!

the burbs around us are not exactly upscale...

Fritillary 

We stopped near the river to help a turtle across the road, then not far from there we came upon a field of wild flowers... full of butterflies...

Buckeye

We made a stop at Kalimara Gardens part of the Coker College Campus...there is an awesome boardwalk there and lots of birds,,,but Mom really can't do the steps to get down to the boardwalk anymore so we hung around the garden to see what was in bloom And we saw all sorts of nice things!!  I always feel so wonderful when I stand under a Live Oak, especially one with a Northern Parula singing his heart out in it...

Flickr ate my photo 

Kalimara

Northern Parula 

The big bloomers of the day were def the Hydrangeas all colors...

and more butterflies--an American Painted Lady Butterfly

Here's something you don't see everyday can you guess what it is?

Flickr ate my photo 

A pomegranate!

When I was a kid our bus used to stop and let us pick pears and pomegranates, we would go home with that red stain all over our hands, face, and clothes! "Not too funny when our mom's saw us"!! I don't think I've attempted to eat one since becoming an adult only a kid would be enthralled with one. 

This five lined skink scared us when he jumped out of the bushes!! They make a lot of noise as they slither around and it sounds like a snake... this one is about 8 inches in length!

Then Mom started to wimp out and we hadn't even seen the Town yet!! Soooo  

... there was only one thing to do --take her out for lunch!! :o)

This helped! ...we scarfed down a salad and some of the crunchiest onion rings we've ever eaten --->good stuff <---but neither of us liked the sauce they served with the rings...

...as we left the restaurant the waitress came rushing out waving her hands at us...
Holy Hysterics

She was holding my camera and Mom's pocketbook!! OKAY a couple of country bumpkins come to town...JEEZE we needed a little wake up call I reckon!

Once we recovered our possessions we headed one more block to "down town" proper...

Mom  waited in the shade while I took some photos of the town square...and a few other sights in Hartsville...named after the Hart's who were sort of the founding family of the town as far back as 1818

Flickr ate my photo 

and the Coker family also had a lot to do with the economy of this town...and the College as I mention in my last town post is a center for education in this area...

Flickr ate my photo 

hope you can read this...

here is the store it's an entire city block it has now been segmented  into various businesses...

Flickr ate my photo 

est 1865

It sure was nice to see the Blue Sky!!  More rain is expected by Friday so gotta enjoy it while it's here...like so many other aspects of life!

another wonderful experience with MOM in our Townies Tour! 

PEACE

Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.

One thing you can count on is...

SO  much can happen in such a short time....I got a bee in my bonnet and decided to move into my house. So I moved in last Sunday I can't believe its only a week seems like a yr. I don't know that this arrangement will be the best in the long run, will be permanent, or whatever....but for now its good! One day at a time eh? Mom is in full support of my decision...now I can have some space to prepare for my future whatever it may be...I love her God knows so I'm right here a stones toss away.  And now she has a spare room for the other sisters to pitch in and help out, and already that has happened much to my great happiness as we got a helping hand and a lovely visit from one sis this weekend. 

and there was light!

The electric has been shut off since 2013...finally it's back on.  

So all I've done is move stuff from point A to point B.  I'm probably the only person you know who moved using a garden tractor...LoL...it didn't make sense to use the van and trailer as I could bring the garden trailer door to door!! 

Good news --all my plumbing works...well  I haven't tried the dish washer yet as I am just happy its not leaking  I don't really cook I enjoy eating raw veggies--and I microwave a few things.. I have not  thrown the breaker on the cook stove yet...In case my wire repair sends me to  that old sparky home in the sky... so I have to purchase a new fire extinguisher first JIC. 

all I have is Antenna TV might get satellite when it's time for the Walking Dead 7 in the fall...or I'll watch it at Mom's she actually got to like it since I've put her through 6 seasons of it..lol but to be fair she put me through 10 yrs of Matlock, Bonanza and Virginian repeats. Her memory is such that she could watch the same episode every day and not recall it so it's always fresh and new to her. 

TV is not that important to me...I prefer music! And art projects so NOW I have place to do that.

 setup the 3rd bedroom as a multipurpose room for sewing, art, and other crafty projects. 

Found one problem with a switch that turns on a light it is NOT wired to...:o))?? Take it with a grain of salt.... will worry about that one later too...don't need that light right now.  I had all the rooms set up except the bedroom and that' s where I'm working now.  The bed is up of course and who knew I had so MANY books, CD's, Tapes, and such...The dogs are a bit confused but I think they will figure it all out in time...they can come and go between both homes so they are getting lots of exercise...LoL. 

I went with the blue green on the seat cushion. 

 I'm spinning my old LP's from the 70's its kinda neat to hear this old stuff again, eating veggies and  humus, and staying up late, (okay till 10:30 at least) and Mom can turn her Westerns up as loud as she wants them to be :o) --we got the medical alert thing for her and I pop in and out all day to make sure she is good and help with pills, meals, the cleaning, all that jazz you know. She is not to cook on the stove top but she can microwave the heck outta stuff...and today we cooked up a huge pot of her favorite Pinto Beans so she has only to heat and eat.  

It takes a village...this way the sisters can come and help out and have excuse as it has been there is on place for them to sleep and have a spot of their own for personal time and I completely understand that.  

It's impossible to be everything and have anything left over for yourself so this is to help me make it through the long haul, I need not explain that to y'all as I'm sure you can understand I need to get myself ready for the next stage of Mom's life the one where I am going to need more hands on deck.  I made the decision 10 yrs ago to move back to SC to help my mother, to buy my house back, and to eventually live in it..so this move is 10 years in the making--if I am nothing else, I never give up!

I still have a few projects to complete and soon work will begin on that and I'll update as I go along...

and we hope we can get back to our town trips...we need a break from all the work.

welcome home....

PEACE

Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.