First the good news: the north wall of the barn
is completely shingled. Now for the “other”
(not fake) news: I cleverly cut the wrong end off all those 10⅝″ long
shingles yesterday and the NicoDerm CQ patch I put on the air compressor didn’t
work… she went back to smoking and sounding very sick (the original meaning,
not the new jargon) this afternoon. And
now the $100 (literally) Murphy’s Law question: when will the air compressor
finally die? Will it survive until the
west (and final) wall is shingled? Stay
tuned…
18 June 2019
Like magic, another 19 square feet of shingles
got put on the north wall of the barn today.
Two more courses to do to finish that wall! As there is only a ⅛″ difference east to west
in that wall’s height, used the radial arm saw to cut a whole bunch of
previously rejected shingles (‘cause they were blemished on what would have
been the exposed face) to 10⅝″ long (the length needed for the penultimate
course), thereby removing said blemishes and keeping up my reputation for being
miserly.
17 June 2019
Another 19 square feet of shingles miraculously
became attached to the barn’s north wall.
Air compressor continued to work perfectly. Go figure!
16 June 2019
Amazing what the prospect of being shot at dawn
does for one’s motivation to stay alive.
Not me; the air compressor… which worked perfectly all day. Another drizzly day; thank goodness for two
foot overhangs on the barn roof. Put
another 22 square feet of shingles on the north wall. What a great way to spend Father’s Day!
15 June 2019
Alas, I fear another funeral happening in our
near future! Late this afternoon the Bostitch
air compressor started making a very strange and disturbing noise, then copious
amounts of smoke (with a distinct aroma of burning electrical components)
issued forth from the top of the beast.
These are not good portents! Air
compressor no work = pneumatic staple gun no work. In spite of those tribulations, got another 45
square feet covered on the barn’s north side. The lake level finally is ½″ below the
top of the dock; the temperature is up to a very swimmable 67°.
14 June 2019
Spent time in the shop this morning crafting
some sturdy leg extensions for my step ladder and Little Giant so that the
ladders will sit fairly level on the significant side hill that exists between
the barn foundation and our driveway. Obviously,
should have done that little project years ago!
Over the next week will be working high off the ground on planking
running between those two ladders and the Kubota’s work platform… and have
already taken one swan dive too many off a ladder this summer. Then, using said planking, Chree helped me
put up the rest of the Slicker® on the barn’s north wall. Rain showers off and on all day. With a two foot roof overhang, working was
not too miserable except when I leaned over and stuck my rear end out past the
drip line. Now that will get your
attention! By quitting time, another 17
square feet of shingles were permanently attached to the north wall.
13 June 2019
Got a whopping 6.4 square feet (yes, that’s a
decimal point between the six and the four) of shingles applied to the north
side of the barn before the rains they come.
Early afternoon the raindrops abated, so put another 11 square feet of
shingles on the north wall. With the
cold front passage, the wind got quite brisk… as did the outdoor
temperature! June in Vermont: time to
break out the long underwear!
12 June 2019
With very helpful guidance from Chree, used our
1,100 pound lawn roller to flatten out the croquet court this morning; beaucoup
rain this spring, tree felling discombobulations, and the agricultural tires on
the Kubota all having lumped the back lawn something fierce. Then started work shingling the north side of
the barn, getting just under 22 square feet done before needing a strong
G&T some La-Z-Boy® time and prescription strength Ibuprofen.
10 June 2019
The east side (garage door end) of the barn is
all shingled. Put on just under 20
square feet today… every one of which had to be custom cut for the top two
courses. Found that cutting the shingles
to length right up on the staging using my battery-powered jigsaw to be much
faster that schlepping the shingles down to the shop in order to cut them on
the radial arm saw. Now have used
approximately 37% of the shingles and have sided approximately 40% of the barn…
so looks like I bought just about the right amount. Fingers crossed…
9 June 2019
Continued shingling the east side, getting
another 15 square feet covered. Sauna in
the evening, per our usual Sunday routine.
Lake still is ¼″ above the top of the dock, but my, oh my, does
the water feel good after spending some quality time soaking up 180° heat!
8 June 2019
7 June 2019
Continued putting shingles on the barn’s east
side, very cleverly using the work platform that fits onto the Kubota’s
forks. Got just over 20 square feet
done. Late afternoon dawn suddenly
occurred over Marblehead (that would be me) when I remembered that blocking for
the two exterior spotlights has to be put on the east wall before the
shingles go on. Fortunately, the two
locations where Chree says would be best for the lights have (just barely) not
been shingled yet. Whew!
5 June 2019
3 June 2019
Shlomo was laid to rest in our garden this
morning. Very sad! He was a great little doggie and will be
sorely missed. In some sort of omen from
on high, it hailed for a few minutes while Chree and I were in the midst of
filling in Shlomo’s grave.
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