Thursday, April 7, 2011

Spring Cleaning Attack

Above is MM painting the privy.  We decided to put it back into service this year.  Still have to get some clear roofing to replace the ancient and rusted corrugated steel. 
And, we're putting some bright yellow on the inside walls and adding some much needed flooring.  Also some Snake Repellant!  :-))  I'll share pictures when we're done. 


And this is Elora and MM, cleaning MM's shop.  And I wish you could've seen it before we started.    You'll just have to use your imagination.   Suffice it to say that when I turned the shop blower on,  the cloud of dust was so dense I could not see out the door ten feet from me.  But it's clean now!  And MM was so grateful--truly--to now have a somewhat neater  place for woodworking and enjoying his "toys."

I guess you could say that out here, JOTOLR, we've had an "Attack of Spring Cleaning!"  We have both been whirlwinds of ceaseless activity these past few days.  Thank goodness for taxes today or we would be still at it this morning.  Instead, we're taking a break in deference to the approach of the dreaded April 15th tax deadline.  Gives us old people a chance to rest our bones for a day, never mind the procrastination.

We've also gotten a bunch of stuff gathered together for our semi-annual trip to the landfill.  I know, I know it's that dreaded trash problem, again...but we do better than most.  We can confine six months of trash (whittled down to things we absolutely cannot find a use for)(and yes, Vicki, weren't the old-timers resourceful at using up "stuff"!) to an 8-ft X 8-ft area on the porch.    That's not too bad.  Especially within the mantra of "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."

We've also been planting shrubs, and trees, doing some last-minute pruning, and, of course, making more lists!

Thanks to Barbara and a post she put up months ago on Folkways Notebook we have ensured our guests will no longer bang their heads on low-hanging supports at our picnic shelter.  Thank you, Barbara!!
 

By the end of the day, at this pace, we are both exhausted and welcome the last chore of the day:  milking Marigold.   Work is, indeed, its own reward,  and there is great satisfaction in seeing the sun set on simple jobs well done.

5 comments:

  1. Elora -- Oh that DUCK idea will do the job for you. Your sunset is gorgeous. You are on the same schedule as I -- taxes and spring cleaning -- neither of which I care for. But spring cleaning is in my DNA from my German mother and taxes might as well be -- as the gov't has instilled the practice in every adult person in the U.S. -- barbara

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  2. Two busy spring bees indeed! Love your duck sign. You may well be the only person I've ever heard welcome the opportunity to do your taxes - a very positive spin on things. Fortunately ours are largely done on an automatic system here and if there's anything over and above that it goes to the accountant otherwise I just check online later in the year to confirm the IRD's info they have on me and hopefully claim anything if that's what they've calculated. Have a great weekend. Julia

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  3. Love that spring energy flowing. As my husband says, in spring everything seems possible.

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  4. The warmer and longer days indeed spur us to work on. I loved the photographs and I will definitely make a duck sign. I have just the place for it.

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  5. Hi Elora and MM:

    Spring is definitely in the air now. We're doing much of the same things here at OOHF...general cleanup, hauling a few things away, pruning, preparing for the growing season, and of course filling the greenhouse with plants. We also managed to paint the house already and I'm hoping it will last 20 years and be someone elses problem when it needs done again. My wife an I painted it when we first moved in 10 years or so ago, and it still looked OK for the most part, but was starting to peel in some spots, particularly on the windward side of the house. Unlike last time, this time it was pressure washed, primed, calked, and then painted. I think that will make a huge difference in the longetivity of the paint.

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