Covid19 Spare time

aseibel · July 19, 2021

Last winter I finished a 275 SF room in the basement for my wife to use as a home office and exercise room. We liked the LifeProof LVP enough to use it down there as well, with a thin underlayment to gain a little bit of padding/insulation over the concrete. My wife took the kids to visit her family for a weekend and I spent Friday afternoon and most of Saturday & Sunday alone just installing the floor and putting in the baseboards. You can score them with a utility knife and snap it. So the ends aren't terrible. But the long walls that need to be cut along the entire length are a pain.

If I had to do the entire living space like you are thinking, I would try to remove the furniture and pull the baseboards before the crew arrived. Depending what your existing flooring is, removing that would save considerable labor time as well. I'd save the skilled labor for installing the new floor. But I can still deal with getting up off the floor all day with only a 6-pack as my pain reliever.

Grumpy Bear · July 19, 2021

Today was pressure washer day. Front deck needing some luv. 3 hour job that wasn't to bad. Made Sugar Bear a happy bear. I like happy bears.

Donstar · July 21, 2021

Keeping Sugar Bear happy involves some basic universal strategies. I know most of them as I've lived with Mrs. Donstar for 45 years. She/they typically takes great delight in a clean nest and are quick to point out our shortcomings in this area . However, they are strong on positive reinforcement when we put extra effort into cleaning or our personal appearance! My brother and I have the same anniversary day one year apart. His wife passed away two days ago and of course the impact of a long and strong marriage bond are front and centre. I also know many will or already have experience(d) this final part of marriage. I remember hearing XM radio's Dr. Laura talking to a caller complaining about her husband not hitting the laundry basket with his dirty clothes. The radio host had recently lost her husband and told the caller one thing worse than having a husband not hitting the laundry basket....

Grumpy Bear · July 21, 2021

55 minutes ago, Donstar said:

Keeping Sugar Bear happy involves some basic universal strategies. I know most of them as I've lived with Mrs. Donstar for 45 years. She/they typically takes great delight in a clean nest and are quick to point out our shortcomings in this area . However, they are strong on positive reinforcement when we put extra effort into cleaning or our personal appearance! My brother and I have the same anniversary day one year apart. His wife passed away two days ago and of course the impact of a long and strong marriage bond are front and centre. I also know many will or already have experience(d) this final part of marriage. I remember hearing XM radio's Dr. Laura talking to a caller complaining about her husband not hitting the laundry basket with his dirty clothes. The radio host had recently lost her husband and told the caller one thing worse than having a husband not hitting the laundry basket....

Sad news indeed about your brother and his wife. (A pause for them both).

We have 30 years logged and for the most part it has improved nicely with time as we learn each other and watch each other change. Something newlyweds and younger people usually do not consider. It ALL changes with time. Every aspect changes. Some for the better. Some for the worse. All taken in stride. Yes, there are worse things than missing the basket....constantly....consistently.....

I've found in my case that those things that drove me round the bend as a younger me are now "whatever" and a smile and a wink. Although willful stupidity will still get ya a :idiot:

:crackup:

Donstar · July 23, 2021

It takes time for a loss in the family to settle and have you resume a previous path. My brother lost his wife this week and my wife and I are looking at each other like a deer in headlights. It is all part of life and nothing unique about the feelings. It certainly makes any flooring decisions seem miniscule or whether to do at all! Maybe time to look at the flooring on a cruise ship!

KARNUT · July 23, 2021

1 hour ago, Donstar said:

It takes time for a loss in the family to settle and have you resume a previous path. My brother lost his wife this week and my wife and I are looking at each other like a deer in headlights. It is all part of life and nothing unique about the feelings. It certainly makes any flooring decisions seem miniscule or whether to do at all! Maybe time to look at the flooring on a cruise ship!

Sorry for your loss. Wife and I just had our 47th. I’m 65 she’s 63. Yes married in high school. Wife’s an army brat. Step father got orders for Germany. I flat told her family she wasn’t going. They signed the papers. Luckily we had half days at school and I worked after. We had our kids early wanted to be young grandparents. Imagine at 16 and 18 knowing what you wanted. I’ve never been alone, her either. Can’t even imagine. There isn’t a day we don’t look at each other without knowing we’re blessed. We certainly don’t sweat the small stuff. Probably the biggest thing we learned there’s times you agree to disagree. Doesn’t happen often. Of course the biggest lesson to learn is happy wife, happy life.

Grumpy Bear · July 24, 2021

13 hours ago, Donstar said:

It takes time for a loss in the family to settle and have you resume a previous path. My brother lost his wife this week and my wife and I are looking at each other like a deer in headlights. It is all part of life and nothing unique about the feelings. It certainly makes any flooring decisions seem miniscule or whether to do at all! Maybe time to look at the flooring on a cruise ship!

How does one reply to this? I've lost my mother, brother, aunt and a nephew and niece. So far... Another brother nearly so recently. All that means is I share the experience of "loss". Grief however is deeply personal and unique to the person and situation.

Things of the mainstream experience do in deed seem 'miniscule' in the shadow of such an experience.

I can not say, "I know what your going through". I don't. But I can say....I grieve with you...in my own very human way because it hurts you...it hurts me. I hope that translates.....

My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

Donstar · July 24, 2021

I appreciate that grief is personal and I apologize for letting mine spill on to this page. My intent was more to put other struggles into perspective. My wife and I had a reality check and our overly inflated importance placed on choosing the right flooring (as a example) was put in the proper order. Yesterday, we made a product choice, returned the samples to their respective stores then went for a drive and stopped for ice cream. The latter two events were far more significant than the first two!

Grumpy Bear · July 24, 2021

3 minutes ago, Donstar said:

I appreciate that grief is personal and I apologize for letting mine spill on to this page. My intent was more to put other struggles into perspective. My wife and I had a reality check and our overly inflated importance placed on choosing the right flooring (as a example) was put in the proper order. Yesterday, we made a product choice, returned the samples to their respective stores then went for a drive and stopped for ice cream. The latter two events were far more significant than the first two!

It was actually refreshing Donstar. We have other emotions than internet bravado. I thank you for your candid self.

No apology required.

txab · July 24, 2021

I agree with Grumpy. Your subject matter in the post was perfect for a reminder to us all. As Grumpy knows I lost my wife 6 years ago, still working on that.... 6 weeks ago I lost my 87 y.o. mom. I had been watching over her for the last 10 years, but for the last 5 she was living with me due to health issues. Then with Covid, after I finished one project I was on, I stopped working to stay at home full time, so as to limit her exposure to outside people coming in and to limit my exposure to the virus and not to bring it into the house. Her health issues finally got the best of her, mainly because get normal health care has been much more difficult over the last year and her Primary Care Doctor that was more interested in Covid than just managing regular patients.

For sure, being isolated as we were required to be didn't help things either. She had really perked up after she got the vaccination and was able to have people to the house for Bible Study and return to church. Going to bury her ashes tomorrow

So I've got tons of projects to do now, repairing, emptying out and selling her place. Plenty of maintenance on my place to be done. Plenty of downsizing to be done, furniture and vehicles to part with. I'm already far behind.

Donstar · July 25, 2021

Today I'm replacing a foundation vent to my crawl space. A neighbour reported seeing a rat run across her deck so I'm making sure all access points in my home are secure. The existing vent is attached over vinyl siding so I thought I'd take a Youtube refresher on working with vinyl siding while having my morning coffee. I was astounded by the DIY junk on this and related topics! Just because a person can post to Youtube, it doesn't mean every home repair experience sets an example to be shared! DIY videos can be entertaining and most can be helpful. I just feel bad for the novice lacking the experience to discern the crap from the good!

KARNUT · July 25, 2021

Years ago I needed to replace the inside door handle on my Tahoe. Just by chance I asked my phone and several videos popped up on how to. Never imagined the step by step process shown was the way to proceed. It was fast and easy, I didn’t break anything. Even if I think I know how. I look before I leap now days.

Grumpy Bear · July 26, 2021

Hundreds of tools and many more than 50 years old. Today I took from the box a small pair of Channel Lock pliers to tighten a pesky hose fitting and....it resisted my efforts to move to the size I needed. Not broken just neglected, corrored and a bit sad. Soooooo.....to the shop with them for a good wire brushing, polishing, cleaning and oiling and....work like new again.

Now I put them in their place and the shine like a new nickel in a bag of old pennies. Raaaaaaats!!!!! Now I have another project. And literally hundreds of them.

Donstar · July 28, 2021

Old tools are a weakness and over the past year or so I've tried very hard to overcome this issue. I once thought I was so blessed when my relatives and friends bequeathed me their tools. I now think I was doing them a favor! Until recently, I could not think of one person who would appreciate inheriting my treasures. Now I have a 14 year old grandson who is showing an interest in building things. I wonder if he'd appreciate boxes of surplus tools to follow him around for the next 50 years??

Grumpy Bear · July 28, 2021

12 minutes ago, Donstar said:

Old tools are a weakness and over the past year or so I've tried very hard to overcome this issue. I once thought I was so blessed when my relatives and friends bequeathed me their tools. I now think I was doing them a favor! Until recently, I could not think of one person who would appreciate inheriting my treasures. Now I have a 14 year old grandson who is showing an interest in building things. I wonder if he'd appreciate boxes of surplus tools to follow him around for the next 50 years??

Maybe!

I toss stuff all the time that proves to be inferior or duplicate. Then there were small 'sets' of things you only needed one in the set and no use for the others. Some tools purchased for a once in a lifetime job and a special tool that only fits one model you sold decades ago. Tools you bought for hobbies you no longer enjoy. Projects you wish you would have never taken on. In the end a massive pile of stuff you only have need for a fraction.

It is only this small fraction that is getting the TLC they deserved all along and never got. Bad habit tossing tools on the bench at the end of a rough job telling yourself you will get to it tomorrow and never do. Over and over again.