This Is What I've Been Up to Lately.

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The lift came in handy removing a couple of out-of-service mercury-vapor lights. I marvel that my father installed them from a ladder. They were probably 35' high.
 
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The lift came in handy removing a couple of out-of-service mercury-vapor lights. I marvel that my father installed them from a ladder. They were probably 35' high.
Your story reminds me of one of my dad. I remember my dad climbing 30' up the oak tree in our back yard to remove dead limbs with a hand saw. No ladder, no ropes, no safety belts. I was nervous for him as a kid, he was made out of tougher stuff than me.
 
Addendum for clarification - Are you guys taking the Summer off from working on projects?
In addition to 2 hobby projects (another bedroom shelf for my Donald Duck pocket books, and a custom trolley for my new BH13000 Bahco jack that is very near a "it's too big!"-reference), I have one more major project to do, where I am still waiting for the parts I need.

The garage roof is leaking badly, and I've decided to replace all the 20 year old nails (and ditto rubber washers) with new screws. This goes for both the garage and the house, with an estimate of 1100-1200 nails total to replace...one at a time.

I will do the garage first, as that has several points of visible water ingress that is already at the point of "if I don't anything NOW; I will need to replace some of the rafters soon". The following puddles during heavy rain are also starting to damage the concrete floor.

Unlike the house, the garage is not insulated, so it's much easier to check if I get all the leaks and track progress. But getting ahold of the screw length that I need turned out to be more difficult than expected! I've contacted the 3 major stores nearby, and none of them have the length that I need in stock.

Made the order for the screws 3 weeks ago, and checked delivery status yesterday, but it was still unknown. I am expecting snow in about a month, so I am seriously running out of time now.
 
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Looks good Chance, nice consciousness work(y)(y)
Thank you, orbital. 🤓 I appreciate the kind words of encouragement. Truth be told, after 54 days on this project, I'm kinda weary and a few things have started to permanently hurt. I've decided to press on due to the fact nothing is going to be easier next Spring when I'll be six months older. 😁

This was the only other gutter that needed replacing.
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There was some exposed wood behind the top of the gutter. It needed a ten-foot by three-inch strip of aluminum to cover it. The new cutoff saw was just the ticket.
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A clamp held the dowel on the left side. When it was time to rotate the bundle, I moved it to the right, rotated it, and then moved it back to the left where it was securely held allowing me to use both hands to hold the DeWALT.

The run is 15' 5" so I decided it would be easier to attach the high side, ten-foot section first. I installed the endcap, and splice using some rivets, and then predrilled the holes for the gutter screws before attaching the run to the house.
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I had three ladders aligned where needed so I didn't have to spend time moving just one. The ground adjacent to this side of the house took a serious pounding from the 50-foot lift, so placing boards under the ladders was a time-consuming must.

Being retired allows me to take my time and enjoy the process. I'm kinda proud of this orifice. :yellowlaugh:
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🤓 HUZZAH! 🤓

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Thank you, orbital. 🤓 I appreciate the kind words of encouragement. Truth be told, after 54 days on this project, I'm kinda weary and a few things have started to permanently hurt. I've decided to press on due to the fact nothing is going to be easier next Spring when I'll be six months older. 😁

This was the only other gutter that needed replacing.
View attachment 67142

There was some exposed wood behind the top of the gutter. It needed a ten-foot by three-inch strip of aluminum to cover it. The new cutoff saw was just the ticket.
View attachment 67143
A clamp held the dowel on the left side. When it was time to rotate the bundle, I moved it to the right, rotated it, and then moved it back to the left where it was securely held allowing me to use both hands to hold the DeWALT.

The run is 15' 5" so I decided it would be easier to attach the high side, ten-foot section first. I installed the endcap, and splice using some rivets, and then predrilled the holes for the gutter screws before attaching the run to the house.
View attachment 67144
I had three ladders aligned where needed so I didn't have to spend time moving just one. The ground adjacent to this side of the house took a serious pounding from the 50-foot lift, so placing boards under the ladders was a time-consuming must.

Being retired allows me to take my time and enjoy the process. I'm kinda proud of this orifice. :yellowlaugh:
View attachment 67145

🤓 HUZZAH! 🤓

View attachment 67146
It's important to enjoy what you do. When I was a child, my dad did a lot of DIY but my mother always wanted it done quick rather than right. He always had to rush things. I promised myself that when I grew up I would take my time and do stuff right. I've never regretted that.
 
It's important to enjoy what you do. When I was a child, my dad did a lot of DIY but my mother always wanted it done quick rather than right. He always had to rush things. I promised myself that when I grew up I would take my time and do stuff right. I've never regretted that.
My ex-wife was the same way. "You aint done yet?"

My current wife says "here, ya want a cold drink?" I reply "sure thing in few min..... yeah why not"?" Life's too short to kill yourself hurrying.
She's a keeper that Mrs Fixer.
 
It's important to enjoy what you do. When I was a child, my dad did a lot of DIY but my mother always wanted it done quick rather than right. He always had to rush things. I promised myself that when I grew up I would take my time and do stuff right. I've never regretted that.
My ex-wife was the same way. "You aint done yet?"

My current wife says "here, ya want a cold drink?" I reply "sure thing in few min..... yeah why not"?" Life's too short to kill yourself hurrying.
She's a keeper that Mrs Fixer.
My wife was a perfectionist. I would rarely complete a task to her satisfaction. It made doing the job a true chore.
On the other hand my father would often say... "Don't be too fussy. Just get it done. A man riding by on a fast horse will never know the difference."

As a child and young adult we always had different wood boats. We'd scrape the bottom, caulk it, and paint it one day, and the next throw it in the water, and take it for a ride. Other members of the club would spend four weekends prepping their boat before finally getting it in the water. I learned to appreciate my father's attitude.

My wife on the other hand, would tackle a project, and often, in order to make it perfect, it would take her so long that the task would often be left unfinished. IMO there has to be a balance.

When my car was twelve years old, the vinyl roof started to crack. I painted it with Flex Seal and a brush. It came out pretty good, and the thought came to mind that 'a man on a fast horse will never see the difference.' We laughed when my brother said, "There's no denying that you are my father's son!"

It only took me a few hours, and it held up for three or so years. Last year I gave it a second coat. If it hadn't been done, by now the vinyl would be all peeling back and look terrible. At the time the car had about 250,000 miles on her so she was probably worth only $1000. It would have cost that much to have a new vinyl roof put on. So for a $25 can of Flex Seal, and a $5 brush it was well worth it.
 
It's important to enjoy what you do. When I was a child, my dad did a lot of DIY but my mother always wanted it done quick rather than right. He always had to rush things. I promised myself that when I grew up I would take my time and do stuff right. I've never regretted that.
Guessing your dad used a ton of duct tape to hurry-up and finish a project just so he'd get some peace. Wouldn't blame him either.
 
My current wife says "here, ya want a cold drink?" I reply "sure thing in few min..... yeah why not"?" Life's too short to kill yourself hurrying.
She's a keeper that Mrs Fixer.

My fiancé is also a keeper. Her DIY skills started when the Mazda dealer wanted $150 to change the two air filters in the car. I told her to look up "mazda 6 air filter" on YouTube, watch it, and call me back. 10 minutes later she called me back, furious, asking how much air filters cost. "About $12 each". I ordered them for her and she replaced both of them in under 5 minutes (I timed it). Since then she's gone onto do all sorts of DIY projects. She even installed a new toilet by herself! I was willing to do it, but she insisted on doing it, so I just sat on the side offering assistance.


My wife was a perfectionist. I would rarely complete a task to her satisfaction. It made doing the job a true chore.
On the other hand my father would often say... "Don't be too fussy. Just get it done. A man riding by on a fast horse will never know the difference."
Internally, I am a perfectionist. But a realistic one. I shoot for perfection, but a deadlines close in, I become a bit more economical with the perfection. I don't hold others to the same standards as I hold myself to, thankfully. BUT, at the same time, there are a lot of perfectionist things I do which no one else will ever see...but I know it's there, and it's done right, even where people won't ever notice.
 
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