Barn roof blues

I've always had a hatred of rain. It's an evil necessity but it, like, messes up my hair and gets my socks wet. It's such a drag. Anyway, we've had a serious bout of rain over the past few weeks and all I can say is I'm glad I don't live along a flood plain. Easton, PA? Under water. Trenton, NJ? Under water. New Hope, PA? You guessed it: under water. From DC to upstate New York, there are a lot of people working like mad to try and save their property. Luckily we've fared pretty well.

The somewhat dilapidated slate roof of the house – which was painted with aluminum roof coating by the previous owner and has a lovely metallic sheen to it – held like a champ. The biggest bummer was that the leak in our barn roof is worse than I thought. One of the large support timbers has obviously taken a serious beating over the past few years as a result, and on last inspection I could poke my finger right through the thing at the lower edge. In a good steady rain the leak is just streaming water. We have a bunch of scrap tin catching and routing the water to a tub, but it's a pretty futile effort. It needs to be fixed.

The sucker is high, it's big, and it's gonna be a pain. The leak is right along a seam, where another section was added years ago. Someone at some point just slathered asphalt roof coating all over to try and stem the leak, but it obviously hasn't worked. Now that it's dry I'll need to get up there and determine whether it's something I can do myself or whether we'll need to call in the big guns.

Progress in pictures

OK, I've finally been able to produce some photographic evidence that we are indeed working on things home and garden related. First, a shot of the garden, which in this picture looks embarassingly small. I assure you, it's plenty for two people:

Next, some cabbage and a few onions on the right:

At the advice of Great Garden Companions (a great resource for you gardeners) we planted some marigolds around the border of the beds. Apparently many pests dislike the strong smell.

Finally, here's a shot of the front of the house. I had orderd 4 cubic yards of compost to redig the neglected flower beds, and so far this is the only one I've completed:

Those with good eyesight will notice the second floor windows are badly in need of repair. Hopefully at some point soon I'll be able to pull them, replace the glass, reglaze and repaint them. All things in time.

Progress amidst the rain

After a weekend of rain – steady, persistent rain – we were finally able to get out and mow a portion of the lawn yesterday evening. Two thick ribeyes were waiting in the fridge for dinner, so Gina handled the large portions with the riding mower while I followed with the trim mower. As I was trimming around the garden, I noticed an explosion of broccoli rabe in one of the plots -- a perfect complement to a steak grilled medium-rare! After mowing, I went out and clipped off a good bunch and then sautéed them with some garlic for dinner. There's nothing like fresh produce for dinner.

Speaking of the garden, I've been remiss in posting pics of our progress, which has been coming along nicely. There are seven plots, each about 4' x 8'. What started off as somewhat tenuous – we had a run of dry, hot weather in early spring – has developed into a nice spread of goods. We have six tomato plants, a few rows of broccoli rabe, two cabbage plants, six kale plants, a row of onions, some thyme and basil, a bunch of newly-sprouted beans, and some beets. Oh, there's some cauliflower in there, too.

This weekend we got 4 yards of compost delivered and I intended to work on the flower beds around the house. But since the rain sidelined any outdoor projects, I was able to paint the ceiling in the bedroom – something that has bugged me for months. The ceiling is rather low, and an astute reader (thanks, Laurie!) advised us to paint the ceiling the same color as the walls to give it a bit more height. Man, did that work wonders (again, pictures to come). Not only does the ceiling look better, but it gives the appearance of space around the tops of the windows. I rearranged the furniture in the room, too, since most of it was out the hallway while I painted. The new setup takes great advantage of the long, narrow room.

And yes, I still have heaps of exterior painting to start.