A Post About Working!

Finally I can write a post about working on the house. Tomorrow Pete is coming over and we will jack up the back porch roof, take out the columns and replace the decking.

I asked to borrow Pete's Sawszall so I could take out the railings, he said he'd drop it off when he came to get my heat gun. When I came home at noon from work, the railings were already removed!

The porch looked a lot more open:

With that already done I decided to see how much it would take to remove the steps. I have always hated our back steps, everyone does. They are pitched at an odd angle and the cement pad they rest on is so badly dipped that it collects over 4 inches of rain every time we get any precipitation.

I remember leaving via the back porch one night back in April of 2005. We didn't live here yet, and were in the process of emptying the house. Most nights I would come over after the girls were in bed, usually about 9 PM and work until 2 AM, go back home, sleep four hours and get up to go to work. As I was leaving I tripped on the damned stairs and recall the thought going through my head as I was pitching into the dark, "Dammit I've done all this work here and I'm going to die of a broken neck without ever having the opportunity to enjoy the place."

Luckily I sprawled into the yard and was unhurt.

Anyway I got out my big-ass pry bars and set to work. Here is the beast, tipped on it's side.

After I finished my neighbors introduced me to their electrician who had worked on my house when Mick and Helen lived here. He asked for a tour, so I showed him around. He was very impressed with our work. As I showed him out the back I said to be careful, as I had pulled the stairs out and they were set back in place without anything attaching them to the porch. His comment was that he couldn't count the number of times he'd been here and seen groundhogs go under the porch as he approached.

I know why the steps were so damned crooked.