Spring 2012 Update

It's been a very long time, since we've been back to The Lakehouse. I didn't know how much I missed it. Our niece, Allison, has done a fine job keeping it up for us. All I had to do to re-bond with the house was break out the vacuum and suck up mouse poop and spider webs and poop from all the nooks and crannies. This process always makes me feel better.

Larry's brother, Bill, drove his riding mower over the other day, so yesterday Larry mowed the two-foot weeds down. Now the pups can walk anywhere they want. Those weeds were taller than they are. There are still many Mimosa baby trees around to cut down. Those trees spread like weeds and, also like the Wisteria vines, will take over the place if you let them. We've been gone long enough that it'll be tough to get them back under control, especially the Wisteria. Those vines are currently covering our 20-foot pear tree and many other trees. The stalks get so thick, even loppers have a hard time cutting through. For those I need the pruning saw. Keeping up with two acres in rural country is hard work when one lives here full-time. This past year, we only got back for a couple of very short trips, so there was no time to keep up the yard work. We'll have a little more time this trip, as we plan to stay until after Memorial Day weekend.

Larry's sister, Libby, has been dead a year. I realized when we arrived how much I miss her. Our house is full of items she put here and I keep thinking of things I want and need to talk to her about and to ask her. My heart aches. But, one bright note, is that the rose bush she rooted and we planted together has come back. I thought it was dead. I named it "Libby's Rose", and I really hope it blooms this year.

Our Oak Leaf Hydrangea is just lovely. It has spread very wide, but I see I didn't get all the Wisteria cut out of it. There are still a few very large branches poking out. I'll have to hone my sights in on them soon with the saw.

Lastly, the little White Star Jasmine vine is blooming beautifully. It smells so sweet. I thought it was dead a few years ago when large branches of the Red Bud tree it's growing up died and broke off, but it came back just fine. It makes me so happy to stop and smell the lovely little blooms each time I head to the dock.

As far as critters go, we've been visited daily in the house by little green lizards that change color depending on the wall they sit on. While vacuuming spider webs and poop out of window sills, I almost sucked one up that was grey and sitting on the window screen with a little lump of dusty-filled spider web hanging of his little paw. I said, "You bet scoot up high little buddy before you get sucked up for good!" As he scooted up the screen, I snatched the dust from his paw. He was very cute. These critters don't bother me at all.

One of the most interesting outdoor spider webs we have here is a tunnel web. The spider who makes them is pretty large and I have not yet been able to catch her on camera, but Larry got a good shot of one on our hose outside the front (and only) door. He wiggled the sprayer a little and got her attention. She scampered out to the top of the tunnel, only to realized his trick and before he could get a shot of her, she quickly scampered back inside. She didn't fall for that trick a second time.

The beavers came back and marked the pine tree next to the dock for cutting. They don't usually like pine, but we figured they cut down all the other good-tasting trees, and are just settling for the dregs of pine meat. They must be very desperate. And since this tree is mostly dead and has been earmarked for cutting proactively by us, we better get to it soon before they do, so we can control where it falls. It's about a forty-foot tall tree.

The heron are flying all over the place right now, and Jackson has been having a fine time barking at their antics. He and Mattie Grace just love the lake. Now that the lawn has been mowed, maybe they'll venture in for a swim soon. They turn into real country dawgs down here and love to go for long walks on the dirt roads.

The daytime temperatures have been in the low eighties this week with nighttime temps in the sixties. We've been grateful to be able to keep the windows open. This house gets very stale smelling with all the mouse urine that's probably under the dark panelling on all our walls, It can be stinky in here. Which leads me to our latest renovation plans for The Lakehouse.

Since we didn't make any money like we'd hoped from selling our Lexington, Massachusetts house, we now don't have any money to renovate the lakehouse like we'd originally planned. So, we're trying to find more basic ways to make it more comfortable and upgrade it. We bought three window air conditioners for each bedroom the other day. When I told my friend, Mary Pat, about this purchase, she immediately texted all her family and friends with excitement. They use the house when we're gone, and it can get pretty uncomfortable here in the summer months. We'll be here some this summer, and I'm spoiled with our central air in Rhode Island. Ceiling fans just don't cut the extreme humidity and heat of August.

We will still have to change the living room roof structure, which will be the largest investment. The flat roof on it now cannot be patched or fixed anymore. Larry has done a wonderful job patching it and stopping the leaks that badly stain the ceiling, but these patches will not hold much longer. It's time to think of a more long-term solution. Creating another pitched roof to match the one over the kitchen will be the way to go. All we have to do is consult with friends here who know somebody to do that work. Larry can stay while the work is being done and supervise along the way.

Once the roof is recreated, we can either pull off or just paint the dark paneling on all the walls, paint ceilings, and replace all the windows. We need a new screen door on the front, and Larry will create a second egress in the living room. We'll tear out the garden in the "L" of the house, and build a new deck onto which the new door will open. Then we'll get a power awning installed over it. The big thing here in the south is the need for shade.

We have to re-roof the pump-house and replace the current water system. Our water is high in iron and manganese. It turns everything orange and black. We change the multiple filters often, but I can't wash clothes here without replacing the system with a more reliable one. Larry has been doing research and has a plan for this. Once this has been completed, we'll buy a small, apartment-sized, stackable washer/dryer system. We looked in Lowe's and Home Depot, where they used to be, but none were on the floor. Hopefully, they are still sold online.

We're not sure how much this down-scaled renovation will cost yet, but it is in general cheaper to do construction down here. Hopefully, we won't have to drain our retirement too much to get it done soon. We're making do just fine as it is, but with some workers and sweat equity, we can make it even better. I'll keep y'all posted.