Midsummer Madness

I think it pretty much goes without saying that my blog posts have been very hit or miss lately.  And it's not just because of Nick's presence in my life, but the load of work I've been doing around the house this Summer.  And truly, without his help, I would have long been overwhelmed by now and probably not be posting on the blog until Hallowe'en.

I've spent the last week or so trying not to have a meltdown in the heat and humidity, whilst still making some kind of effort to power wash both decks and the gutters.  I'm going to forget staining the decks--that hasn't worked and I'm tired of endlessly doing the same work over and over every damn Summer--so I'm going to try the Deck Over stuff which is sort of like paint and stain in one application.  The only bad thing is, the decks have to be super clean and any defects have to be fixed beforehand.  I have a few boards that will need to be replaced--according to Nick.  Frankly, I would just leave it, but he's too professional for that.  In the long run, I can see his point, but while my brain fries in the relentless heat, I find myself not giving a tinker's damn.

There are some splits in the gutters at three corner joints which have to be washed, wirebrushed and cleaned before I can apply the sealant, then the fascia boards will have to be sanded and repainted because the dripping rain (what rain??) has bubbled the paint under the eaves. Thankfully, the gutters that need fixing are easily accessible.  With no shade from the nuclear orb, I've been forced to work in the early or late parts of the day which means that project is dragging on and on.

And I'm still forging ahead with The Purge, though that's going much slower than I expected.  I mean, really, how hard is it to sort through closets, drawers and cupboards?  Very hard, as it turns out. When I finally get a good bunch of boxes and bags filled and stuffed into the car, I have to haul everything to the Goodwill.  The other day it was close to 100* and no one was manning the area where you drop stuff off, so not only did I have to load the crap, I had to unload it too.  A big bonfire in the backyard would work for me about now...except for the drought and fire danger.

Working while sweat pours down my face, soaks my shirt and makes me cranky is becoming normal these days--and totally not something I'm happy about.  Each task seems to take longer and be fraught with problems, shorting out my temper--and the will to live--while I dream of cooler days, chilly nights, flannel shirts and jeans.

Ah well...this too shall pass.  Right?