Dec 5 - a good day

Oh my aching back.  I did continue with the railings.  The most difficult part, of course, is dealing with the 12' 2x8's.  I got them (and the 10' ones, and the 12' 2x4's and the 12' 2x6's) into the car, wondering if I was overdoing it.  Once home, Sandy helped me carry the mess into the backyard.  While she was away picking up Marda, I got the railings installed minus the 2x4's that go under, edge up, the 2x8's on the walkway railing.  The garbage is all out front as well; a big part of the job too because I had to cut it all up to make it palatable for the trash guys.

Some of this was fussy, like rebuilding the underpinning for the Corian counter.  I should really replace the sink and faucets, but that's easy.  It's just sitting in the hole in the counter at this point.

The poles aren't straight, which makes mating the 2x8's at the top of each pole along the walkway a bit fussy and not-so-elegant. Perhaps I need to put a cap on each pole ...

I'd have also done the 2x4's underneath the 2x8's except that it's well-nigh impossible to take each measurement by myself.  I suppose that I could have measured before I installed the 2x8 or if I had a tape measure with a hole in the end, I could attach one end an measure to the other, but my arms just won't reach 12'.  I'll get Sandy to give me a hand; measure them all and then I can start cutting.  Those 2x4's are simply to help stop the 2x8's from warping / sagging.

As I was getting close to wrapping up, Sandy got home with Marda.  Cassie because a nuisance because she was really rambunctious, acting like a puppy, no less.  After she was fed we went to the SYC for dinner.  Oh yes, before that or was it after that ? Sandy gave me my birthday / Christmas present - an espresso / cappuccino / all-that-stuff machine.  It's a nice one but it takes up a lot of counter space.  I'll try it out after I get back from Mass.

What else ... not much.  The weather continues to be great down here and warm up north.

Speaking of up north, I heard from Sandra Crowe that I have a tree across my driveway ... great.  I don't know which tree or where.  I guess that I'm now hoping that it doesn't snow before we get up there !  My first order of business will be well defined.  I may talk to Art to get an idea of what I'm up against ... or across ... so to speak.  We've carried our stuff down from the top of the driveway before ...

The 15 day forecast shows continuing warm and no significant snow through our arrival on the 16th. 

Onward ?