It was a long time coming, but it's done

One of the items on my To-Do List never seemed to get done - until yesterday. I've long wanted to redo the hardscape at the gable end of the house, beside where I park.  The old underlayment had dissolved over the last thirty or so years, and the space had turned into a weed garden. Try as I did, I couldn't keep up with it. It had to go! 

Yesterday, I moved six big flower pots, lifted out sixteen pavers using the John Deere, and gathered up all the other loose pavers I had scattered about. Then I used the tractor to rake the pea gravel out and away from the area. 

Today, I put down the new underlayment - woven weed ground cover from Grower's Solution - laid out the pavers for stepping stones and shoveled the pea gravel back in.

Yes, I shoveled it by hand. With a shovel. I have a blister, too. I asked the Lord of the Manor for help, and oh, yeah. He fucking helped, all right. 

I asked him to scoop up the pea gravel and then drop it in close to the house. He dug down and got dirt, the very thing I told him needed to be avoided. 

I didn't want any dirt going on top of the woven weed cloth that could harbor seeds and grow new weeds. I thought I was very concise. He just didn't want to help me, just like with the knee wall I built. 

Well, guess what? I got it done. I worked three hours yesterday until I lost the shade, and about four hours today. The hard work was finished by the time I lost the shade today, but finishing up was done with the John Deere, so working in the sun didn't affect me too badly. 

I'm going to spend the winter haunting the dollar stores for suitable pots, and next year, put the flower and herb-filled pots between the stepping stones. I want the plantings to look unplanned even though some planning has gone into it. 

It feels great to have the project finished and even better to have done it myself. Did I get angry with the spousal unit? Yes. I hate it when he looks at a project based on what he can't do instead of what he can do. You might think that's sad, but after thirty years, I'm out of patience with that mindset. 

Don't avoid a difficult project based on what you think you CAN'T do. You CAN do it, even if you need to break it down into stages and take several days to get it done.  YOU CAN!!

The Lady of The Hideaway

Holly Tree Manor, The Hideaway, John Deere 1023, gardening, home projects, do it yourself, DIY, pavers, empowerment, rural living, country lifestyle, a writer's life, hardscapes, flowers

Yes, I can

It's always good to push yourself beyond what is easy. Don't be foolish and do something that will get you injured, but take that one step past the "easy" zone. I've been taking my own advice since I retired in May 2022.

When I moved onto my property in 1981, I had a lot of help. My father and grandfather were living and they were willing. I worked side-by-side with them to clear an area to build my house. I learned to use and maintain a chainsaw and how to use a log splitter. Fast forward a decade and more, and the Lord of the Manor moved in with me. My little homestead is somewhat high maintenance, but he wasn't daunted. He'd always wanted to live in the country and do all the things we do. 

Time marches on and is not kind to everyone. He's now in a wheelchair and can't do all the things. That means if I want to burn firewood, I have to take the responsibility of getting it done. 

I have a couple of wonderful cousins who come and help me now. I love them and appreciate them, but I also like to be self-reliant. Earlier this year, the Lord of the Manor, a retired mechanic, swapped out the motor on the log splitter to a newer one that starts with a key. 

Last year, about this time, we took down two very large maples that had the potential to fall and land on the house. A lot of the wood was handled last year, but the large trunks were left to dry for a year in the hopes they'd weigh a bit less. I worked on cutting the trunks into rounds when I had the chainsaw out, and some of the rounds are upwards of thirty inches across. That's BIG.

I wasn't sure I could manage a round that large on my own, but I wrestled two rounds over to the log splitter and got them split. Now I know that if I have to split them without help, I can do it. 

But come October, I'm calling the cousins for a wood-splitting party. They'll get free firewood and I won't have to work so hard! 

The Lady of the Hideaway

Holly Tree Manor, The Hideaway, splitting wood, firewood, log splitter, rural living, country lifestyle, autumn jobs, empowerment, self-reliance, a writer's life, maple trees, chainsaw