~ Retired and Starting My Future In The Foothills ~
- Thread starter gryeyes
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #692
We got the shed walls and doors up today. Now, if we were regular people, we might have gotten the roof on it as well, but ... well,... we aren't regular people. I'm not, and John certainly isn't.
Y'see, I have questions. And I ask them. I am an excellent obstacle, too, routinely moving directly into a space blocking John's next move. Not on purpose, it just happens. Or I set something down and it's not where it is most easily grabbed when needed next. And John, well, he's a meticulous craftsman. "Okay" is not how he finishes tasks. "It's always best to do it perfectly the first time," he has said.
Plus, I paused often to watch chickens. I talk to them, too. Quite a few of them visited our work site. At one point, Cagney (SLW hen) was watching over John's shoulder from the closest terrace, and walking forward slowly at the same rate he was laying down the bead of sealant on the platform edge. I wish I had my phone handy to take those pictures! But I set it down somewhere in the house in the morning and didn't find it until after John departed.
Anyway, the shed kit instructions are written for idiots. I mean, it even includes a screw bit which fits all the screws used in the kit, just in case the person building the kit doesn't have one. All the bags of parts are labeled with letter codes and there are pictures and diagrams for how these go together and in what order. Basically, put down the floor panels, screw them together, snap the tabs on the bottom of the wall panels into the slots on the floor panels, build the trusses but set them aside, put the doors up, put up the front and back gables, put up the trusses, lay the roof panels, then go back and screw it all together.
John laid two rows of silicone sealant completely around the platform, measuring exactly where they should go first (not in the kit instructions, it was what HE felt it needed), then screwed the floor panels to the platform instead of to each other. We put up the wall panels, screwing just the one screw into the very top spot to hold them all together. We built the trusses, John put them up. I was supposed to be "navigating" the instructions, and that was out of order. There was some discussion about "So, what's next?" and I had to flip forward several pages. Then flip back to find what to do sorta next. Then we had to talk about why the instructions had things in that order. ("If you've never built anything, these are good instructions. It makes you stage parts, put them together and then build from those piles. If you have built a flipping dog house before, following them is frustrating because you already KNOW what the next step will be.")
The kit has two "gap covers" to cover any .. wait for it: gaps! (duh!) at the top of the doors where they fit against the gable front. There were no gaps. I'm sure there were no gaps because John's measurements and work were spot on, no more than 1/8th of an inch off in two spots on that 8X10 platform. The kit allows for some tolerance; John does not. He wasn't happy about that 1/8th inch difference. He didn't like the "grab" of the door handle mechanism, and brought out a grinder to machine some screws and metal bits down until it worked smoothly.
We'll put up the roof tomorrow. He will also build an 8 foot ramp, necessary because the platform isn't right on the ground.
Y'see, I have questions. And I ask them. I am an excellent obstacle, too, routinely moving directly into a space blocking John's next move. Not on purpose, it just happens. Or I set something down and it's not where it is most easily grabbed when needed next. And John, well, he's a meticulous craftsman. "Okay" is not how he finishes tasks. "It's always best to do it perfectly the first time," he has said.
Plus, I paused often to watch chickens. I talk to them, too. Quite a few of them visited our work site. At one point, Cagney (SLW hen) was watching over John's shoulder from the closest terrace, and walking forward slowly at the same rate he was laying down the bead of sealant on the platform edge. I wish I had my phone handy to take those pictures! But I set it down somewhere in the house in the morning and didn't find it until after John departed.
Anyway, the shed kit instructions are written for idiots. I mean, it even includes a screw bit which fits all the screws used in the kit, just in case the person building the kit doesn't have one. All the bags of parts are labeled with letter codes and there are pictures and diagrams for how these go together and in what order. Basically, put down the floor panels, screw them together, snap the tabs on the bottom of the wall panels into the slots on the floor panels, build the trusses but set them aside, put the doors up, put up the front and back gables, put up the trusses, lay the roof panels, then go back and screw it all together.
John laid two rows of silicone sealant completely around the platform, measuring exactly where they should go first (not in the kit instructions, it was what HE felt it needed), then screwed the floor panels to the platform instead of to each other. We put up the wall panels, screwing just the one screw into the very top spot to hold them all together. We built the trusses, John put them up. I was supposed to be "navigating" the instructions, and that was out of order. There was some discussion about "So, what's next?" and I had to flip forward several pages. Then flip back to find what to do sorta next. Then we had to talk about why the instructions had things in that order. ("If you've never built anything, these are good instructions. It makes you stage parts, put them together and then build from those piles. If you have built a flipping dog house before, following them is frustrating because you already KNOW what the next step will be.")
The kit has two "gap covers" to cover any .. wait for it: gaps! (duh!) at the top of the doors where they fit against the gable front. There were no gaps. I'm sure there were no gaps because John's measurements and work were spot on, no more than 1/8th of an inch off in two spots on that 8X10 platform. The kit allows for some tolerance; John does not. He wasn't happy about that 1/8th inch difference. He didn't like the "grab" of the door handle mechanism, and brought out a grinder to machine some screws and metal bits down until it worked smoothly.
We'll put up the roof tomorrow. He will also build an 8 foot ramp, necessary because the platform isn't right on the ground.
I've been following but never posted.
First let me say you have a gorgeous piece of property.
Second, good luck on Friday.
and third Where did you get the shed kit? I love it.
First let me say you have a gorgeous piece of property.
Second, good luck on Friday.
and third Where did you get the shed kit? I love it.
- Oct 13, 2010
- 1,789
- 73
- 153
Tonight I can so relate to being right where he needed to work next, I have been hanging rain gutters and Christmas lights at my moms, I swear if there was a place I needed to step, she was occupying it today!
And no my gutters are not nearly as perfect as his! But when just one person is putting them up, the house is anything but level and plumb (130 years old) and downspouts have places that they HAVE to go, best I can do is make sure I have enough slope to drain, or a lot of slope and they will drain faster...lol
And no my gutters are not nearly as perfect as his! But when just one person is putting them up, the house is anything but level and plumb (130 years old) and downspouts have places that they HAVE to go, best I can do is make sure I have enough slope to drain, or a lot of slope and they will drain faster...lol
Just awesome! I love reading about this! And good luck with your court hearing...in four days! Ugh!
I've been following this thread from the beginning also. You are a fabulous writer and the pictures truly enhance "our" journey with you. Please know we are all behind you with the upcoming court date. I believe it's a slam-dunk in your favor given all the facts. Wish you the best.
Cheers,
suebee
Cheers,
suebee
- Thread starter
- #697
The shed is done, as is the ramp to get wheeled things up into it (such as my scooter). The interior shelves are something I will do by myself.
I was out on a feed run when John showed up to start building the ramp. I'd picked up a cup of coffee where I gassed up my RAV4 and finished it as I pulled up to my driveway. I said howdy, then filled all the feeders and took care of empty waterers. I also put out a small fake Christmas tree - battery operated on a timer - on top of the old wooden box covering the well. It's near the front fence and close to one set of drive gates. "Putting out a Christmas tree," I explained, ever quick to state the obvious.
"You have Christmas trees all over the place. There's one," he pointed, "and there's one, and there's one. You got 'em all over, Linda."
"Yes, but not with lights."
John always brings his own coffee. I can never get him one; he refuses all my offers. When I joined him at the shed, he asked me if I had had my coffee yet. Yup, got some on my feed run. "Oh." A couple minutes passed, with him measuring and marking wood, me standing there watching. Then he said, "Don't you usually have more than one cup?" Well, yes... I do. So I asked him if he wanted some. "No, I have my own. But wouldn't home baked cookies go better with coffee?" He turned back to his work van for something, then handed me a small bag with cookies in it.
"Oh, yes, MUCH better with cookies! Thank you!" So I got a cup of coffee to go with his cookies. He said he didn't need one as he test tasted them as soon as they came out of the oven. Sometimes he makes them with white raisins, sometimes with M&Ms. These had both raisins and dried cranberries.
My tasks were: hand him things, hold other things, navigate the instructions, pull down on the roof panels and hold them while John screwed them down tightly. I was also expected to pick up any screws he dropped. At one point, he held out the screwdriver and just held it there. "I'm out of screws." I got a handful out of the can he'd directed I use for the screws, then put one right on the end of the screwdriver. He looked at it, looked at me, used it, and held out the screwdriver again. So I "loaded" another screw onto the screwdriver. We got into a rhythm of this silly game, and continued it when the roof cap panels needed flat washers with the screws. I assembled the washer and screw and put them into his hand. Every once in a while, he'd clear his throat when I got distracted and didn't have a set ready for him. Y'see, there were chickens checking out the ramp....
The instructions had several notices warning against using power tools to tighten most of the screws, so he used a ratcheting screwdriver. Until he got annoyed with working upwards over his head and twisting his wrist so much. "Don't do this yourself," he said darkly, "I'm a professional." He picked up his cordless driver and explained how to use it without over-tightening the screws. "Start slowly and listen for the first change in the motor as it builds torque."
Zorro and Dooley came out to greet him and beg for cookie pieces from me. They were disappointed as I wasn't about to share any.
John shoveled the dirt excavated from the shed site into his wheelbarrow and wheeled it up the slope to fill in the parts of the trench where the water pipes ran from the well but hadn't been filled by the well guy. Oh, he'd kicked some dirt over the pipe, and there's been some chicken action to push more dirt into the trench, but John said he was worried about there not being enough dirt over them to keep them from freezing in winter. I shoveled the dirt out of the wheelbarrow into the trench while John moved it from low spot to low spot.
"I'll be back for my wheelbarrow tomorrow," he said. "What's next on the list?" he asked.
"Just a couple things you can catch another time: change out the porch light switch with the programmable switch I bought, hang those two bucket nest boxes in the coop, and repair the bench on the porch."
"Saturday okay for those?" Yup. "What time will you be home from work tomorrow?" No earlier than 7 pm. "May I bring your bill by tomorrow evening?" Sure. "Okay, I'll see you about 7:15 then."
Hehehehehehe. I wear MUCH nicer attire for work - for once, John won't see me in my grubbies!
I was out on a feed run when John showed up to start building the ramp. I'd picked up a cup of coffee where I gassed up my RAV4 and finished it as I pulled up to my driveway. I said howdy, then filled all the feeders and took care of empty waterers. I also put out a small fake Christmas tree - battery operated on a timer - on top of the old wooden box covering the well. It's near the front fence and close to one set of drive gates. "Putting out a Christmas tree," I explained, ever quick to state the obvious.
"You have Christmas trees all over the place. There's one," he pointed, "and there's one, and there's one. You got 'em all over, Linda."
"Yes, but not with lights."
John always brings his own coffee. I can never get him one; he refuses all my offers. When I joined him at the shed, he asked me if I had had my coffee yet. Yup, got some on my feed run. "Oh." A couple minutes passed, with him measuring and marking wood, me standing there watching. Then he said, "Don't you usually have more than one cup?" Well, yes... I do. So I asked him if he wanted some. "No, I have my own. But wouldn't home baked cookies go better with coffee?" He turned back to his work van for something, then handed me a small bag with cookies in it.
"Oh, yes, MUCH better with cookies! Thank you!" So I got a cup of coffee to go with his cookies. He said he didn't need one as he test tasted them as soon as they came out of the oven. Sometimes he makes them with white raisins, sometimes with M&Ms. These had both raisins and dried cranberries.
My tasks were: hand him things, hold other things, navigate the instructions, pull down on the roof panels and hold them while John screwed them down tightly. I was also expected to pick up any screws he dropped. At one point, he held out the screwdriver and just held it there. "I'm out of screws." I got a handful out of the can he'd directed I use for the screws, then put one right on the end of the screwdriver. He looked at it, looked at me, used it, and held out the screwdriver again. So I "loaded" another screw onto the screwdriver. We got into a rhythm of this silly game, and continued it when the roof cap panels needed flat washers with the screws. I assembled the washer and screw and put them into his hand. Every once in a while, he'd clear his throat when I got distracted and didn't have a set ready for him. Y'see, there were chickens checking out the ramp....
The instructions had several notices warning against using power tools to tighten most of the screws, so he used a ratcheting screwdriver. Until he got annoyed with working upwards over his head and twisting his wrist so much. "Don't do this yourself," he said darkly, "I'm a professional." He picked up his cordless driver and explained how to use it without over-tightening the screws. "Start slowly and listen for the first change in the motor as it builds torque."
Zorro and Dooley came out to greet him and beg for cookie pieces from me. They were disappointed as I wasn't about to share any.
John shoveled the dirt excavated from the shed site into his wheelbarrow and wheeled it up the slope to fill in the parts of the trench where the water pipes ran from the well but hadn't been filled by the well guy. Oh, he'd kicked some dirt over the pipe, and there's been some chicken action to push more dirt into the trench, but John said he was worried about there not being enough dirt over them to keep them from freezing in winter. I shoveled the dirt out of the wheelbarrow into the trench while John moved it from low spot to low spot.
"I'll be back for my wheelbarrow tomorrow," he said. "What's next on the list?" he asked.
"Just a couple things you can catch another time: change out the porch light switch with the programmable switch I bought, hang those two bucket nest boxes in the coop, and repair the bench on the porch."
"Saturday okay for those?" Yup. "What time will you be home from work tomorrow?" No earlier than 7 pm. "May I bring your bill by tomorrow evening?" Sure. "Okay, I'll see you about 7:15 then."
Hehehehehehe. I wear MUCH nicer attire for work - for once, John won't see me in my grubbies!
Ok Linda, I actually got mushy vibes from this post
Reminded of my hubby clearing his throat when I'm supped to be helping and I get distracted
Men....
This is too cool Linda, we'll be expecting an update after the bill gets delivered tomorrow night
I feel a dinner date is in the near future
ahhhh Linda? Cookies? Homeade cookies?
be sure and tell us how the dinner date goes.....
be sure and tell us how the dinner date goes.....
Quote:
Yep... its coming..
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