The hanging chad is no longer.
Repair made.
Hammered out the details.
Yesterday I told of how a week ago the Little Bitty had spit to the lawn a big slice of white trim from under the roof, and how the day had come for my dear wife Karen to hold the ladder so I could take a climb and bang it back into place.
Household repairs like that are always slightly more than they first appear to be.
Right again.
This big piece of sheet metal put up by a contractor by the name of Patrick some seven years ago was twisted and dented.
It took a smaller ladder for Karen to climb beside me to hold the heavier than expected trim aloft for me to correctly position it under the lip.
I had to move the extension ladder more to the left for better swinging power to my right side. Karen had to reconfigure the smaller ladder between the rain channel that’s build up from the land under the ledge. Then I discovered she was standing at the tippy top of a ladder that I knew was way too wobbly, and I wanted no part of that.
That’s just about when our Lovely Lorraine walked past and asked if we wanted to borrow their bigger ladder. And her husband Good Neighbor Tim came over from next door to look over the situation before bringing it over.
They both stuck around, helping Karen position their ladder and hold the trim and offering me suggestions on trim positioning and watching me hammer nails. After all, they’ve been doing stuff exactly like this on their matching house next door in the Syracuse city neighborhood of Eastwood for four decades. Before I knew it, Tim was handing me first an awl and then his cordless drill. All of it made my task easier.
While I was out there, I got some fall stuff done.
Hover over any gallery photo for a description. Click on the right photo in any gallery for an enlarged slide show.
It was time to cover up the outdoor workings of the split duct air conditioner. Do not say out loud or write in a comment, “You know that means it will hit 90 tomorrow, Mark.”
And I decided I won’t be grilling in the backyard until the spring thaw.
Our late bloomer.
I also enjoyed our late-blooming white rose in the middle of the hourglass garden out front and wanted to share that contrast amid the darker colors of autumn. Cherry Cherry sure is holding onto some green, too, though.
About an hour after I’d settled into my recliner, I got his this email message:
Height may make you uncomfortable, but you did really well. 🙂 Tim
Sweet.
How high up on a ladder have you climbed, and what did you do while you were up there? What do you need to cover up for the season, and do you need to tie anything down? What neighborly help have given or gotten lately?
Mark Bialczak 
Pingback: A Peck of Crated Peppers | rarasaur
Aww, Tim and Lorraine are awesome neighbors, as I’m sure you are Karen are> ❤
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We are all in this together, Rachel. 🙂
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That’s why I want to be your neighbor! 🙂
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You know what upstate New York is like, Rachel. 🙂
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When I was a child I would swing from grapevines across a creek bro Mark. When I was a teenager, I got dizzy looking down at the ground just standing up, I’ve had MS since age 9, so that is probably one of the cause factors, and a healthy fear of heights plays a huge roll in it. If God wanted me to fly, I would have sprouted wings between my shoulder blades as a baby, and then I could be on top of the world. As it is, it took me a month to go the distance to my window, and then only because it has only a half window. I can now stand at my “patio” window, full length, without fear, because it is supposedly unbreakable glass. I keep reminding myself of that.
I visited Natural Bridge with my ‘rents and baby sis several years ago, and while ‘Lainie walked to the edge and looked over, I wormed my way on my belly to peek carefully over the edge, then wormed my way back to the middle, and crawled to the trail again before standing up. Large bodies of water affect me the same way. Don’t know why, don’t really care why, I just avoid both. I do love my Ohio River though, mainly because there is a nice railing around my part of it.
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You know your limits best, sis Angie! I like that.
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Strangely enough, I’m more afraid of ladders now than when I was a teenager. Wisdom? Could be. That I’m getting shorter and it’s further up than it used to be? More likely.
Good job, Mr. Mark. 🙂
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Thanks, Linda G. The incredibly shrinking person factor must be taken into account as well. Good call, my friend. 🙂
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I climbed up to the crow’s nest of a tall ship once. I’m not usually afraid of heights, but my stomach crawled into my throat up there with all the swaying… as a consequence following my work’s “ladder policy” of having a spotter on even a 3-step ladder seems trivial.
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That’s quite a climb, Janelle. Ahoy, there, matey! I hope you followed the three-tough method up to the crow’s nest. Wow. Thanks for dropping by. I hope to see you again.
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I’ve climbed up a fire tower before MBM. Won’t do it again! And now I’m realizing how much I need to get done……
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That’s built for an expansive view, MBC, so I am jealous at the sound of it! 🙂
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I was scared witless MBM. I was very young. And cried. 😦 But I do indeed vividly remember the view!
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You just reminded me of all the outside work I need to do. Winter is coming, my friend.
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Yet this week will yield a day in the 70s here. Native American summer, I shall call it, Scott.
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The house looks perfect, hanging this emphasizes how nice you are, Mark: everyone pitches in. Your neighbors are nice and the ladder helped. Your white rose is like a beautiful autumn gift. Did Karen cut and put in a vase? 🙂
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Karen has been as busy as I of late, and the rose remains in the garden, Robin. Thanks for your very kind words, my great friend.
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People want to help and loan items to good friends and neighbors, Mark. We had one neighbor who never returned tools and my ex husband would tell me not to answer door to him. I just am not like that snd would say, “Please return this so I won’t get in trouble with Mike for loaning this out.”
By saying this he returned the items I gave him. Funny guy.
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You forced the issue. Good for you, Robin!
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Great job on the repairs!
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You can’t be too careful with a wobbly ladder, Mark. It’s best to play it safe. Good job! Personally, I’m afraid of ladders. The most I can do is use a step stool. Ha ha.
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I’m not afraid of the ladders, Amy. It’s the falls from them that scare me. Haha. You are smart sticking to the short ones. ❤
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We’re lucky to also have kind and considerate neighbours. I don’t clilmb ladders myself but we do have an extra long one since we have extra extra high ceilings with beams running across, so that makes for some very eventful painting.
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I bet your ceilings look great, Jay. I like those cathedral heights. Until painting time. Wow. Good luck, Sean!
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it takes a village – I’m truly horrible eat this things and am impressed that you accomplished it )
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Somebody has to do it, Beth, so now I am a somebody!
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Good job, Mark, and how wonderful that you have neighbors who are so helpful and considerate.
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I am very fortunate to have these folks next door, Merril. 🙂
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Yes, you are.
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My neighbor Mark helps me with home repairs. I allow him to store stuff in my garage. It works well.
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That’s a fair trade for both, Austin. Now stop going through his stuff when he’s not looking and using the power drill! 🙂
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Unfortunately, it’s more like bulky porch chairs and tables that take up a lot of space…
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Ah, a garage maze!
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Sorry the Mets came in second. They had a great run!
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Oh man, I love neighbor Tim, what an encouraging fellow!
Glad you got all your fall work done and that you and Karen came away unscathed from great heights and wobbly ladders! ❤
Diana xo
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My legs were wobbly on the extension ladder after the end of the project, Diana. 🙂 The more time spent hammering up there, the wobblier I was. ❤
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uh oh, well thankfully it all worked out without incident. 🙂
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Your garden looks beautiful. I’m glad your house is all ready for winter and your neighbours are wonderful.
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Thanks, Rachel. It’s never ready, though, you know that.
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you look like you are pretty prepared to me Mark. 🙂
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The leaves have yet to fall, Rachel. I’m staring at the rake, still. 🙂
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we have a few to rake here but they are way down the garden and I can’t see them from the house – still need to get it done but I keep forgetting.
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Out of sight, out of the way, Rachel. 🙂 Hey, I will visit your place soon, I promise. News: I started a new part-time job , 25-hours a week in addition to all of this previous work. This is my third week.
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I don’t do ladders, but hubby does. it scares me when he paints the house. The front and back aren’t too bad because the roof slopes down, but the sides are probably about 30 feet (maybe more) to the roof peak. He goes up our longest ladder and then uses a brush on an extension to get that last little bit of painting done. I had to laugh when our next door neighbor had her house “professionally” painted a few years back – her contractors missed the last half foot on the sides. You can clearly see the original yellow paint surrounded by the new brown paint.
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A “pro”fessional is self-“pro”claimed, CM. Obviously. Too bad for your neighbor. Ouch. Keep your hubby rooted at that last few feet, my friend. 🙂
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Thanks, Mark. I always hold the ladder for him when he’s up that high. But it still scares the heck out of me.
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I know the feeling. Empathy for the spouse is sky-high here, too.
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You were busy getting the place ready for winter! Terp is that a crawl space under the house? Gatorette
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That indeed is a crawl space, Gatorette. I put the outside cover over the vent yesterday as well. Great eye, my friend.
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Ah so that keeps some wind, etc from under the home away! I was thinking it would add coldness to the flooring above???
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It circulates some air in the summer to keep it cooler, but you don’t want that in the winter, so you cover the vent hole like I did. You got it exactly right, Gatorette.
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Makes sense-I thought most homes had basements up NORTH???
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Some of the less lavish ones built in the 1940s, like mine, were given crawl space basements instead because they were less expensive to build and sell, Gatorette.
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Ah, I see 0f course down here you never see basements! They’d fill with water pronto Terp! The Gatorette
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Yes, I understand that concept, Gatorette. Soil compostion is so different.
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-Water-Sea Levels, et cetera.Not much lead way sub-surface LOL
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I will climb up on the roof and scuttle about if The Mister holds the ladder. I do better with heights than he does. Long ago, he worked insurance claims, and climbed many a high-pitched roof, much to his chagrin.
I’m glad you got the trim fixed up.I like the kind of trim you have, with the rain channels, and wonder if that would work on our home.
Anyway, we’ll be having some guys out at the end of the month to clean the debris from the gutters. I can do it, we both can, but it’s worth paying someone else.
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It is worth paying someone else, roof scuttler Joey. It’s more dangerous up there every year, is the way I figure it! 🙂
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So nice of your neighbors to help you out like that. We have a handyman who lives next door. My sister got me a jewelry armoire, heavy small closet type of thing that hangs on the wall. We asked my neighbor to borrow some tools and the next thing you know…bang bang boom…hung!! It doesn’t get any better than that. He wouldn’t even accept our $20.
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You have a great neighbor, too, Marissa. The world can be a kind place sometimes, thank goodness. 🙂
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Kudos on paying attention to safety Mark. Sounds like you got a lot accomplished.
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I have to be safe, not sorry, Paul. At my age for sure. I got all I had on the list finished, too, my friend.
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Good man, not letting your wife stand on the tippy top of the ladder (I did not mean that in a paternalistic way; nobody should let anybody do that nor do it themselves, a gender-neutral exhortation). I am quite put to shame, as I rarely if ever undertake any repairs my own self. I am so NOT handy! I did do some deck and yard work yesterday, though, in the spirit of getting to the wine-drinking, movie-watching portion of the day sooner. Rock on!
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Thanks, Carolyn, for your kind words meant and taken in the proper spirit all the way around. Nothing quite like getting to the wine and movies as quickly as possible, in my book. 🙂
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Sounds like you and Karen work together on home repairs better than I do with MDH. But I am usually to blame for another strife.
I an it afraid of heights but my daredevil side has dampened after many knee and Achilles surgeries. Probably my worst transgression occurred in my early 30’s. My house has a vaulted ceiling with large pane windows so high a regular ladder won’t reach them to clean. I had a pretty good sized wooden table at the time so I did what any person with no sense of safety would do -I put the ladder on the table. My ex DH came home to find me teetering at the top of this pile and he completely flipped out. And rightfully so. That is a stunt I would not repeat today, I assure you.
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Stacking — in that situation — is a no-go, DE. Yikes!!!!!
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I was young and stupid.
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Now I just not young……
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You are plenty wise and still strong, DE.
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You’re a great neighbor, Mark. I see you’ve been very busy lately.
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Yes. Yes, I have, Ann. For instance, I am typing this in the work cafeteria/ break room. See you soon.
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Aw, don’t be such a ladder sissy. It’s not classified as a trauma unless you fall more than fifteen fett. Just kidding, I work in th ER and there are so many life changing falls from ladders.
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I’m not a ladder sissy, Beth. I’m just careful. 🙂
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And all the orthopedic surgeons and ERs in your area are glad.
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