4 P.M. Thursday
It’s 4 pm . . . is it bedtime yet? There are some days when the work around our yard is similar to finding a trail of jelly beans. You take up one bean and oh, look . . . there is another one, etc.
After I came back from my walk, Dennis had our small stepladder out next to the bathroom window. Of all of our windows the bathroom two windows are the only two that need to be done from the outside. Yesterday Dennis washed the house and it then follows that the windows would be next. I do not let Dennis up on a ladder, no matter how slight the height. Windex, rags and me with Dennis at the side of the ladder and those two windows did get done.
We have taken the sump pump off of the underground tile and have a heavy black hose taking the water to the street. The area around the underground tile was a huge swamp. That swamp was now a divot with a hard crust around it as the water evaporated. It needed to be raked to let the air get to the soil That was my next task as Dennis was determined to get lawn chairs out of the potting shed. It is getting nice enough to sit on the patio and catch one’s breath. We have realized that the plastic chairs have a knack of allowing cobwebs to catch on the underside of the seat. Where there are cobwebs there are spider eggs. It has happened to me to have spider bites on my legs. Dennis had plenty of soap to put through his sprayer and he went to work getting the chairs ready to enjoy.
The lilacs have signs that we will have beautiful blossoms. When I looked at the deep purple bush, I noticed that there were Night Shade plants around the base of the bush. Those plants get nasty and vine to twine themselves to the Lilac branches. I started on finding their bases and began untangling. Their roots are very shallow and easy to pull out. Those nasties plus a huge amount of dried pine needles that pile up next to the sidewalk and small branches are now in Dennis’ burning ring. The front yard has been tidied.
I kind of thought we had a good day . . . Dennis disagreed. Out came everything in the pickup garage and the pickup was left in the driveway. The garden hose needed to be drug through the car garage and the plan became to scrub and wash the pickup garage floor. There had been an oil leak that has now been fixed on the pickup. Kevin had given Dennis several gallons of pink degreaser. Some of that went into Dennis’ sprayer and away we went cleaning the concrete floor. The city always sprays down Stauffer Avenue twice a year for dust control. I think it is calcium chloride. That muck drags into the garage on the tires. Over time with snow and ice dripping off of the tires and gravel that stick on to the tires . . . it almost makes the perfect confection for a hard clay. The floor has been brush scrubbed, ice scrapper used on the hardest of spots and rinsed, rinsed and rinsed. All is drying with lots of air going through the garage.
Again . . . let’s call it a day. Not. The plants that have been in the patio porch are now out on a shelf of two 2″ x 6″ planks over the west end of the Koi pond. When I came in, I was assured Dennis was not going to tackle any more for the day. Dennis has been on a role this spring, but caution still needs to be adhered.
Yup . . . whether it is acknowledged by Dennis, bedtime will be sweet.