Homefront Rehab! Oy!

I'm home for a bit, as lake life slows and life here picks up with appointments and gatherings. But in the midst of summer, life on the homefront was (at least for Rick) a mess. At least for Rick! I, on the other hand, was enjoying the lake and missed much of this!

 

It all started out when the wallpaper was removed from the wall to fix some moisture. The moisture had been around for a bit and -- well, ignored. (You know -- doesn't seem bad at the time!) It may have been helped along by when the tree fell on Rick's roof during the tornado. The holes were patched but it was some time before the actual repairs took place. Boy, was it damp! The wood had rotted from water and carpenter ants. A builder came in to repair this, building a false wall of studs to support the ceiling until new studs and wood could be put into the wall. Then came the dry wall.

 

And then, time to paint! But before painting, moving out every book, photo, trinket that was displayed; every piece of furniture, every CD.

 

Why not just tarp it over? Because the floor is a wood parquet floor and had many loose tiles to be put back together and glued down. Painting had to be done before the floor was repaired and refinished. This is just a tiny sample.

 

Fortunately, Rick enlisted the services of son Greg who has a good deal of experience in interior painting and all the right equipment!

But first came washing the walls and cathedral ceiling of both the living room and kitchen which "run into" each other.

 

Then repairing ceiling cracks and finally, painting. 

 

Next came the floor. The room, as you can see, is quite large. The floor is parquet, made of blocks that contain individual tiles. It covers the living room and around the corner down the hall.

 

For Rick, that meant gluing down every section of the floor.

 

Some of the tiles had come up and that meant putting them back together. 

 

It was like a large jigsaw puzzle with no photo to work from but every tile, though it looked the same, was individual, and did not fit into just any old place -- they had to fit just right. 

 

Then he had to pull up old asbestos material before gluing them into place.

 

Next up, a floor fellow came in to sand and varnish it. It took some time to cure enough to handle weight, and now Rick is in the process of moving back the rug, furniture, rehanging art and putting books and items  back in the cases. I'll post the finished room soon!

 

The builders also had to reinforce the overhang in the front of the house with a cement post, being uncertain of moisture in an area that could not be accessed or dismantled. It was quite the project!

 

Also on the home front, my neighborhood has some of the worst potholes in the city and my street was right up there. I've considered planting flowers in them, or taking a dip after a rain.

 

When I got back from Art Camp, the road was blocked to all but local traffic and they had started repaving. 

 

FINALLY! A street that you can cross without worrying about stepping into a hole and drive down without wondering if your suspension will make it!

Things are looking up!