Tag Archives: roof rafters

Tired

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1:32 p.m.

Working late into last evening, Attila’s arms gave out before he could finish installing all of the sheathing on the installed roof rafters. It was after 9:30 p.m. when he threw in the towel.

Yesterday was his big push day, and his arms bore the brunt of the big push. In the wee hours I awoke to find him up and about, the pain in his arms was sufficient to prevent him from sleeping. After taking a few Ibuprofen, waiting for 30 minutes, he returned to bed, and slept soundly through the rest of the night.

I arose as usual 5:30 a.m., and planned on awakening Attila at 8:00 a.m. However, the telephone rang at 7:30 a.m., a call from the dumpster company wanting to come and pick it up today. Well NO! Since Attila is handling the dumpster situation, I roused him to speak with the person on the telephone. They are picking the dumpster up on Monday, which is what Attila arranged with them in the first place. The woman was fairly aggressive about picking it up today, Attila wasn’t having any of it.

This morning the rest of the sheathing was installed on the installed roof rafters. If it rains, the joints of the sheathing can be closed temporarily with duct tape, which was my bright idea, Attila liked it. The taped sheathing will be far more waterproof than the old roof.

After finishing the sheathing, it was time to begin removing the last quarter of the old roof. It is early afternoon as I write this, 1:32 p.m., and Attila is hard at it with the Sawzall. He is hoping to have the rest of the old roof off by 5:00 p.m.

I have been finding anything I can to keep busy, and to keep from thinking about the roofing project. This is difficult, not impossible, but difficult. There is the constant whine of the Sawzall, buzzing its way slowly through the thick tarry layer and wooden boards. I also keep an ear open for uncomfortable noises, or silences, knowing that Attila is working all out on a roof, and on a ladder. No uncomfortable noises so far, and I don’t anticipate there will be, but my being listens carefully just in case.

There was filing to be done this morning, dishes to be washed, dried and put away, plants to water. Dinner will be cooked in the Instant Pot again, Sweet and Sour Chicken with Rice and Vegetables; I am very fond of all-in-one dishes. I’ve already been to the building centre with a list from Attila.

8:32 p.m.

Attila’s dream today, to finish demolishing the old roof by 5:00 p.m., was just that. He just brought down the last section of the old roof, just minutes ago. It was a gruelling day for him, operating the Sawzall for hours and hours, and dealing with 100 lb. sections of the old roof, which had to be taken to the dumpster. The last section of roof refused to come down. In the end, a winch was used to pull it down.

A quarter of the garage is open to the sky.

I congratulated Attila, and headed to the grocery store to buy him ice cream. That last piece was a milestone worth celebrating, the last piece of truly disgusting infrastructure was finally disconnected from Mist Cottage, and from our lives.

10:00 p.m.

After a big bowl of ice cream, Attila decided to take a bath. He has plans to go back out to the garage to work into the night, moving the last large heavy sections of the old roof into the dumpster. When that is completed, he will move as many of the water sensitive items as possible to safety under the new roof rafters and sheathing. The items that cannot be moved to the dry area of the garage will be covered with tarps.

Tomorrow, Attila will be able to start installing the remaining roof rafters, and sheathing. He might even get as far as installing the underlay and strapping for the metal roof. There is a possibility that the metal roofing might be installed on Sunday. He will be working in the rain for the next two days, but the pressure will be off once all of the rafters and sheathing have been installed.

I have pictures on the camera, but at this late hour I am not up to getting them downloaded and inserted into the entry.

I am off to my bed, Attila is soaking in the tub, most of the old garage roof is in pieces in the dumpster, all is as it should be. It was a good day.

Worldly Distractions

Weather

21°C
Date: 10:00 PM EDT Friday 22 June 2018
Condition: Mostly Cloudy
Pressure: 101.3 kPa
Tendency: Falling
Temperature: 21.0°C
Dew point: 11.2°C
Humidity: 53%
Wind: ENE 10 km/h
Humidex: 23
Visibility: 24 km

Tonight Increasing cloudiness early this evening. 30 percent chance of showers overnight. Low 15.

Sat, 23 Jun Cloudy with 60 percent chance of showers. Wind southeast 20 km/h becoming light in the afternoon. High 19. UV index 6 or high.
Night Cloudy with 30 percent chance of showers. Low 16.

Sun, 24 Jun Cloudy with 60 percent chance of showers. High 21.
Night Cloudy periods with 30 percent chance of showers. Low 13.

Quote

“Little by little, one travels far.”
J. R. R. Tolkien
1892 – 1973

Welcome Summer

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7:45 a.m.

Well, here we are, the first day of summer in the northern hemisphere, planet earth. Glad to be here to see it! If you are reading, glad that you are here to see it (or the first day of winter for those of you in the southern hemisphere, planet earth). Isn’t it wonderful that we are here on this beautiful planet!

After almost no sleep the night before last, I slept soundly for seven hours last night, a sleep marathon for me. I arose at 5:30 a.m., and got busy baking a batch of banana/pineapple/coconut muffins, while the hydro was at its least expensive. Two bananas were threatening to escape to the compost pile, but I captured them and turned them into delicious food. I feel like the goddess of the hunt.

This morning I have paid bills, and sorted out some filing. Morning coffee was enjoyed, with open windows, a lovely breeze, and a freshly baked muffin.

I feel I’ve welcomed summer in fine style.

Attila is still sleeping as I write, soon I will awaken him. This morning I will be taking a run to the building centre to pick up more Sawzall blades. There are a lot more needed than anticipated, sawing through tar based shingles and waterproof membranes destroys the blades quickly. About 1/4 of the old roof is still up there, to be removed today or tomorrow, or whenever Attila feels the need to do it. The saw blades will be at the ready, whenever that is.

6:30 p.m.

The weather today was as perfect as I could ever wish it to be. Sunny, breezy, warm but not hot, birds singing, and bees buzzing.

Attila is in his groove. He says he is now enjoying himself. He has installed three quarters of the roof rafters, and is almost finished installing the supports between the installed rafters. He plans on working until it is too dark to see, to celebrate the first day of summer. He might even cover the installed rafters with the roof sheathing tonight. That would be fantastic, because then it would shed most of the water should it rain. In fact, sheathing would provide better protection against the elements than the old roof ever did.

Tomorrow Attila hopes to remove the last quarter of the old roof, a truly miserable job, and begin installing the last of the rafters, and the sheathing. There is a 60% chance of rain on Saturday, so I hope he can accomplish this goal. If he can, the garage will not leak significantly if it rains, and he can work on installing the metal roof in the rain. Or he can take a break on Sunday, and work on installing the metal roof bit by bit, after work and on weekends… I doubt he will take a break!

When I was out on my supply run, to pick up the Sawzall blades, I ventured into the garden centre. Garden plants were 50% off, it is quite late to be planting them. I purchased Sweet Basil and Tomato plants, to plant in the area where the potatoes did not come up. When I left the building centre I headed for Canadian Tire, where I purchased a child’s water canon, a toy, which says it will shoot 30 feet. I plan on using this to discourage rabbits and squirrels from visiting the garden. I have added a few tablespoons of vinegar to the canon’s water reservoir, the smell of vinegar may deter them from choosing our garden as their restaurant.

Water canon The new water canon, shoots 30 feet. As Elmer Fudd might say, “Say your pwayers, wabbit!” The canon will be shooting harmless water, with a few tablespoons of vinegar added for objectionable aroma.

My afternoon was spent weeding the garden, we have a lot of bindweed to pull out, and preparing the to plant the Basil and the Tomatoes. I ended up planting the Basil inside the fenced in area, so that the rabbits cannot get at it. The Tomato plants were planted in the empty space in the garden, outside the fenced in area. I found bending down to work on the ground very, very hard on my knees and my back, but I managed it. I spent some time watering the new plantings, the climbing Beans and Peas, the Clematis, the Heliopsis, the Echinacea, the Nasturtiums, the Rose, and the Gerbera Daisies. It was lovely to rest in the shady, breezy back porch after all that hard work.

The Instant Pot came through again, this time a Cabbage Roll Casserole, using just the right amount of Rosemary, a pinch. It was delicious. Attila isn’t stopping to eat today, he is soldiering through. I notice he did sneak in to eat a huge portion of the Rhubarb Crisp, lots of sugar in that to keep him going. His portion of the casserole is waiting for him in the refrigerator. My guess is that it will be close to midnight before he gets to it.

Worldly Distractions

Weather

21°C
Date: 6:00 PM EDT Thursday 21 June 2018
Condition: Mainly Sunny
Pressure: 101.3 kPa
Tendency: Falling
Temperature: 21.2°C
Dew point: 5.8°C
Humidity: 36%
Wind: N 14 km/h
Visibility: 24 km

Quote

“She is a friend of my mind… The pieces I am, she gather them and give them back to me in all the right order.”
Toni Morrison
1931 –

I found this quite beautiful.