Saturday on Stauffer
This Saturday is quite calm for Dennis and I on Stauffer. Yesterday as I stayed close to Mr. Moody, our carpenter, and I got some gardening done, Dennis outdid himself. Dennis mowed the entire acre as well as my usual mower pushing around the house. It all turned out great. I did follow behind with the weed whip where the large rider mower couldn’t go. With handyman jobs and items that had not been counted on, I was close to run errands in the event that Mr. Moody needed something we had not planned on.
All in all, having a stranger about the property doing our odds and ends is not too bad. Building a relationship with a total stranger can be difficult, especially when what I am asking of him is what Dennis and I would have done in a heartbeat in times past. Though we are paying him, that is not to say that it is not up to Dennis and I to make sure what we needed to get done is being done in the fashion that warrants the dollars per hour. As Mr. Moody was getting ready to leave yesterday, I did tell him I would appreciate it if he would give the peeks of our garage a second coat of paint before he felt he was done. With $43.00 per gallon of paint and it being a great paint that covers so well, I told him that I didn’t want to see any area that was not fully covered that could be seen by me standing on the ground. He took it well. I kind of think that the carpentry is what he enjoys more. The work on the corner boards went well and it is being done well. Oh well, he took the job . . . painting and all.
I think it was two years ago when Kevin and Kersten were here that we noticed the cement deer in the far Hosta garden had dropped one of his antlers. Kersten and I didn’t spare the rod in regard to the amount of glue that we used. It was a glue that I always have in my arsenal. It is something, something “600.” The best thing with cement lawn ornaments is to take them in each winter to keep the elements from getting into small cracks and freezing enough to eventually ruin the entire thing. This deer cannot be moved, he is doomed to hold his head up high come rain, sleet, and snow. I check on him every spring and he seemed to be holding his own as far as the antlers being secure. This year the Hosta have gotten very large and he is barely peeking out. It’s a good thing.
May everyone take Sunday easy as it is forecast to be extremely hot and humid. Rest up, watch clouds go by and know that a new week will soon be upon us.