May 2006

Ever since moving in we had been wondering what was under this ugly aluminum siding that didn't match the rest of the house. I was guessing that there might be some kind of foam insulation under it since we found no insulation in this wall when we did the demo inside. But no, there wasn't any insulation, just the original trim for the house. So why cover it up?

Oh, because it was mostly rotten and falling off? But still, would it have been that much harder or more expensive to repair instead of hide under aluminum? Well, since a lot of it is rotten anyway, we'll probably be replacing it.

Later in the day, it looks like we lost a window. Oops. Well, it was no big loss. The frame just about fell apart when I was removing it. I'm surprised it stayed in the opening. Probably the only thing holding it in was the caulking around the aluminum storm window.

I finally started framing the archway for the door to the den.

A little more support for the sheetrock.

Bending the sheetrock by wetting it worked OK. The seams at the points of maximum curvature made it easier to install. I hope it doesn't crack at those points.

The hot dry weather and grubs of the summer of 2005 were really tough on some parts of our yard. We decided to dig up the worst parts and plant new grass. Of course I picked the hottest day yet this year to start this project. At first I thought I might be able to do this job by hand, but there was no way that was going to work. What did work was a new toy.

A few yards of mulch

makes the yard look a little better.