Construction work

This weekend, Rob worked on the greenhouse.  He's replacing a door with a window.  It's a very practical project.  I, on the other hand, spent my time trying to make a drawer work in a cabinet that's always been in the greenhouse.  All I needed to do was repair the drawer so it would function, but it ended up taking all my work time for the weekend.  Was it worth the whole weekend?  Probably not.  But it was a "must win" project.  I had some setbacks at work last week and I needed something to go right, and that dang drawer ended up being it!  

Syd seemed to enjoy her first week on the new job.  In my opinion, they're asking her to do more than they're paying her for.  Normally, I'd have a problem with that, but this is her chance to move from heavy labor/night shift jobs and break into a day job in an office.  I think she's going to be much happier with that, but only time will tell.  Everyone is not built for that kind of structure.  I'm just looking forward to her first paycheck when she can start kicking in on the groceries.  She seems to be trying to make up for time spent broke and eating Ramen by buying the most expensive things she can find in the grocery.  We decided not to say anything in the store yesterday, but we'll be sure to remind her how budgets work when she has money to spend.  She'll also be paying rent that we'll keep in a savings so she has it for deposits when she moves out.  Again, letting her know just how much (little) money she's going to have tp spend when she's on her own.  

I'm spending as much time as possible in the garden.  So much is in bloom.  These three pictures show the garden off well.  

From inside the garden, on the stone path, looking left.

And, looking right.

Further down, from outside the garden

Just a few months ago, that was all dirt and mulch and one rosebush.  I love perennial gardening.

This is what Rob has done inside the greenhouse.  We had a French door at this end so it would let in a lot of light.  But, in the winter, when we needed more light, there's always been a greenhouse that blocked the door.  And, in the summer, that door had to stay open for the breeze, so the door itself was always in the way.  A window is going to be a much more practical idea and there will be shelves below it and shelves around it to hold gardening stuff.  

Next up is starting to paint.  We're going to paint to match the gray color of the house (Dorian Gray by Sherwin Williams) and the floor color is a dark charcoal.  After it's painted, we'll replace the roof with new corrugated plastic with a gray tint.  We cut down a tree last year and the greenhouse gets too hot and the gray roof should help shade some of that.  Rob has a new ventilation plan (no more ceiling fan) and new lights.  Taking out the fan makes more room for hanging baskets.  He's also replaced some bad siding and the floor is new...I wasn't careful enough about the trays I used under plants and one winter, I kind of let a spot start to rot.  Oops!  Now, it's plastic trays all the way.

I bought this cabinet many years ago and I like it.  But, the drawer runner had gotten broken and the drawer wouldn't function and got jammed when I'd try to open it, so I took the old runner out and built new runners.  When I put the drawer back in, I realized how off square it was (probably why the old runner broke), so I creatively took care of that and now, it works great!  But, it took me all weekend.  It's an old cabinet, but still very solid and I think it's going to be great with new coat of paint.  

So, that's our update for the week.  A little work, a little play, a little laughter, some good food and a little success.  That's what it's all about, right?  

Everybody have a great week!  Adversity is not all there is.  Sometimes you have to let fun, laughter, and success be what it's all about.  

Lane