PROGRESS

I remember getting report cards growing up. It was never a time of a lot of stress for me (except trying to get higher than an A- in English). I do remember one report card in 5th grade that I got a C in Science, or something. I don't remember the particulars except that I was sick, or gone for some reason, when the class started growing seeds. Consequently I couldn't do the assignments and got a lower grade. It doesn't make much sense now that I am older, but for whatever reason I got a C. When I showed my parents I had to explain to them that I WOULDN'T copy anyone else's homework assignments, so I had to live with it.

Thankfully I don't get progress reports anymore. I just keep on keeping on! But, in conjunction with my recent flooding experience and clean up --- I think I am making progress!

DAY ONE (Thursday, Aug 20)

see A Fitting End post. Here are the pics of the window well. Digging WET dirt (AKA MUD) is heavy and now fun! I had to clean off the cement which made the water deeper. It STILL isn't completely drained :(


DAY TWO (Friday, August 21)

A dumpster dropped off in my driveway sure has a way of spurring me into work mode. Now I have to fill it. The missionaries helped me load all the moldy yucky furniture out of the house and onto the driveway. If I load it neatly enough I can get a lot more in there.

Which reminds me of a story (someday after a lot of posts I will have a great life story as many experiences remind me of OTHER stories in my life). So, it reminded me of when Coach Peterson (my softball coach at Southern Utah University) asked me, a Freshman, to pack the van for our softball trip. Although a bit nervous, I did it --- only to find that when she returned she ripped it all out saying it wasn't done correctly enough. The equipment couldn't rattle around and the luggage had to be tightly packed on top so we could easily get to it without it being EVERYWHERE. I was probably humiliated, but all I remember now is learning how to pack things REALLY tightly and REALLY well. I'm sure it was not a great experience THEN, but what I learned from it and use NOW in my life is priceless. I suppose that is the case with a lot of experiences.

Anyway...I drew it out to make sure I rented just the right sized dumpster. When it got here it was about 6 inches shorter on the inside than I had thought. So....I just cut off the end of the couch to make it fit the way it would be best.

(the empty dumpster...soon to be FILLED to capacity)

(the cut off end of the couch)

(neatly packed...so far!)

With my time I also chiseled out the crack in Jordan's room so I could put the cement putty/caulk in it.

(chiseled)

This was not as hard as I thought...but also not as easy as I had imagined. I got the hang of it pretty quick, but it was definitely a job for necessary breaks.

(and patched)

THIS part was easy.....squirt it in and then use a putty knife to smooth it out. Some places, like the top, really needed a lot of putty. And now that it is drying...I'll need to reapply some more...it is leaving in indentation where the main body of the crack is. No worries, I have LOTS. The guy at Menards told me to buy way too much.

I decided to use some expanding spray foam to seal the cracks of the window first. Better safe than sorry....and more reinforcement can't hurt, right! Looking at the picture, I will probably have to wash that wall...it looks pretty yucky. That is a project for another day.

I also boarded up the window from the outside. I was in too big a hurry as the rain was coming. Luckily it poured in town but we got NOTHING here on the south end of town. Still I did it alone and too quickly so it isn't straight. I didn't take the time to bolt it in....instead I used the wood I had in the wood pile to wedge it tight enough to let the adhesive adhere properly....hence, not level or straight. Oh well, I think it will work though, for the time being. I still need to seal around the edges.

DAY THREE (Saturday, Aug 22)

Right now I am cleaning out my basement -- filling that dumpster. Sorry, no pictures yet. Those of you that have been in my basement would say "GREAT JOB!" Those who haven't....would probably wonder how in the world THIS stage is clean. So, I'll save myself the embarrassment and post them later (MAYBE!!!!)

And now it is Sunday....my day off! I'm just glad that I am making progress. It feels good to get rid of stuff. It is also kind of nostalgic as I go through a lot of old things....memorabilia type stuff for me. EVERYTHING is attached to a memory. There's probably a song in there somewhere....sorting through life's memories as you clean out the old boxes of stuff. So I spent yesterday running down memory lane a bit while cleaning out the "junk."

It is nice to see improvement. It is nice to see a clearer vision of what I want my basement to look like. Yeah for progress!