When I'm sixty - NINE!

When I was out west last May, Linda called and said Tina Turner was coming to Toronto. At any price, I said. And, it was worth it . To see the Queen of R&R still strutting her stuff was amazing. Her pipes put all the young ones to shame! Man, can she still get everyone stomping, clapping and singing along. I took my 13 yr old neice with us. She has seen Turner on videos and loves the dance routines (she is in dance classes 5 days a week) so it was fun to take her to see the pros at work. It was an interesting audience. Lots of white haired whites mixed with lots of varied aged blacks. Mostly women, I would venture. The "girls" behind us were very excited about seeing Tina and they were very entertaining. The props and the dancers were terrific. It was a real event and I'm glad we went and I'm especially glad that Katharine got to see her. I'm sure years from now this will be a story. And I love a story.

Birds and Water

I read a number of years ago that you can really attract birds to your yard if you provide clean water. I have used a special low voltage heater in the bird bath for many winters and it does bring them in (7 feeding stations helps, too!) and gives them much needed water through the winter. The heater prevents the water from freezing but doesn't make it hot. It will evaporate, however, so keeping an eye on the water level is important. As you can see, the cardinals really love it.

Habitat for Humanity

I thought about trying to sell the old patio door, the old outside door and the upstairs window. But my desire for getting rid of stuff quickly kicked in and I called the Habitat for Humanity reuse store in Hamilton and they came and took it all away. They determine resale value and send a tax receipt. Great way to make sure things are recycled and a personal gain as well!

It's Over!!!

The addition is finally done. No more strangers wandering through every day and no more mess! I was really starting to fray at the edges but I'm so glad we did it. The contractor, really, did a great job on getting it done as quickly as possible. He said we'd be done by Christmas and we are. We are really enjoying the new room, loving the new bathroom and shower and feeling like we are in the backyard all the time. We did our part for a "stimulus" package for the economy. Hope the idiots in Ottawa finally figure out that something needs to be done.

What is going now

Linda's brother is siding the garage (saves us some $) and I am the helper. Scrap is worth money and we might get $200 for the old siding. Fingers crossed.

More Progress

The house is a mess. The dust from the sanding of the drywall mud is not as bad as I experienced at my old house, but more than it should be. They could have done a better job of sealing things off. The fellow doing the siding has been on his own this week - the others are off deer hunting. He never cleans up but says they will at the end of the job. Silly little things need to be addressed. I want the thermostat moved as he put it in a major wall that should become a great place to display art. It can easily be put in a non-usuable wall and out of sight. Once again, they confess that they are "just men" and don't think about things like how the space will be used. Duh. However, they have all been good about changes and understanding why. We are putting in a ceiling fan and it doesn't have a light. When questioned about that, I asked how did they think I could change a bulb? I don't have a ladder close to high enough. Oops, they hadn't thought of that. The contractor wanted to put pot lights on the soffits - again I had to ask and how would I replace bulbs? Yes, I have an extention ladder but there is no where to place it because of all the glass. "Oh, yeah, I guess you're right" was the answer. Just a guy thing - my problem. These guys are not used to having the home owners around all day as Linda and I can be because we are retired (mind you I did play golf 2 days this week!) and we do keep an eye on what they are doing. Better to catch stuff early! Nonetheless, we are very pleased with the work and the progress.

Further Progress on the House

The drywallers were here Monday and did their job. Quite a crew working well together and got the place done in one day. The tapers and mudders are yet to come. Some of the windows and doors were delivered today (Wed) and Chris, Andy and Kevin installed them. Andy has also been continuing work on the deck while the weather cooperates. The 8' sliding doors are great. It really brings the outside in. The fixed 8' window for the middle is delayed as are the pieces for the upper part. But, they will be here soon.