All the benefits none of the guilt (or $$)
Our weekend once again started very early as we had another 5K to time. Once again it was COLD with temps in the mid 40’s to start. The race was small with around 300 registered runners. Timing went well. We had a few issues but they were all related to human error during the registration process. It always amazes Ali and I how something that appears to be so simple as registration can get messed up as much as it does. Even with the race starting at 8am we were cleaned up and out of there by 9:30 which is great.
Once we got home I finished my post race processing, web site updating and equipment clean up. While Ali retreated to the bedroom for her customary post-race nap, I was ready to dig into installing the retractable screen door I bought earlier in the week.
I came to the decision to try a retractable screen door when I recalled that our neighbors had one. Originally I had plans to screen in the front landing of the house. The purpose was to allow us to open the front door and let air flow through the house. Both Jeremy and Randall said they didn’t think it would look great when they were over in January. Plus that option would involve considerable expense and effort to complete. A retractable screen costs a fraction of the money, is easier to install as well as being removable.
Installation of the screen was a bit of a pain in the ass for me. The main body of the unit that conceals the screen is held in place with two wood screws. The problem is they are like 1/4 inch from the top and the bottom. They are designed to screw into the trim around the door frame. Well attaching to the top was no issue but screwing into the bottom was for two reasons. The trim on the door does not extend all the way to the floor, there is a small gap that is filled with grout. The hole in the screen body line up right where the wood met the grout. So I drilled my pilot hole into half grout, half wood.
Secondly having the hole so low to the ground made drilling the hole and tightening the screw a pain in the ass because you could not get on the head of the wood screw straight on. In no time I stripped out the phillips head screw. I went into the garage and got one of my own high quality wood screws with a star head fitting. Using this sort of screw allowed me to get more torque and get the bottom attached. It was still less than ideal in my eyes but the assembly felt secure on the door frame.
I had a second issue when it came to cutting the track the screen slides on. The directions were not very good at all and I wound up cutting the track shorter than I should have because of the unclear picture. I was pissed since I knew that it wasn’t like I could go to Home Depot and just buy more tracks. After some reevaluation I came up with a way to still utilize the tracks without sacrificing functionality of the screen door. After overcoming that hurdle the rest of the install went well.
Then the big moment of truth came. I opened the front door and pulled the screen door across, and BAM instant big window! It’s awesome. At first glance it almost looked like there was nothing there at all. In fact when Ali awoke from her nap she was going to come yell at me for leaving the front door open until she realized the screen was in place.
I showed the dogs their new portal to the front yard. The weren’t sure what to make of it at first but I am sure over time they will enjoy having an unobstructed view out the front of the house.
Having the front door open in conjunction with the slider that leads to the lanai let a wonderful breeze flow right through the house. Both Ali and I were very pleased with the end result. Can’t beat it for $139.
We decided to continue to take advantage of the temps that had warmed considerably from their chilly 40’s in the morning. Ali and I spent a good portion of the afternoon working out in the yard. We weeded and harvested from our garden collecting lettuce, carrots, broccoli, beets and our first ever home grown peas. We also transplanted a number of things around the yard and Ali trimmed up a few of the landscape areas that were damaged from the cold temperature.
I also was able to do the final rearrangement of the sheds now that the lawn sweeper was out of my hair. Things look much better. However the very final step of the garage clean out will involve relocating the generator to one of the sheds. If the Moto Guzzi was history it would be a piece of cake. The bike has two strikes against it and is walking on thin ice.
After our yardwork session we wrapped it up nicely by enjoying an alcoholic beverage out on the newly resurfaced deck. We sat out there for almost 45 minutes just taking things in, appreciating how much we love our property. It surely isn’t fancy, isn’t spectacular but it is significantly improved from what we bought back in 2001, thanks almost exclusively to our own labor. We like our little piece of the planet, even after being there for close to 10 years now.
Sunday was another pleasant day. I had most of the housework done in the morning. The rest of the day we again enjoyed the weather and hung out. We noticed that our tax refund hit our account over the weekend. I celebrated by buying a couple items online I had been waiting on from cyberguys and Duluth Trading. I anxiously await my first pair of fire hose jeans. Since I appear to have improved our water quality the money can be directed towards a few smaller projects as well as possibly paying off a decent chunk of the remaining Camry loan.
Today Ali and I have another post work running date scheduled, should be fun.
Here is a view of the retractable screen door courtesy of my Trendnet wireless cam which is sitting in the dining room area today.