Getting Too Ambitious?

Wow, I finally finished (sort of) the clapboards, and learned a great deal, maybe even getting too cocky along the way. Putting on the boards this time around was much more straightforward, having done it before, and nailing them in went pretty quickly, though I still wrestle with those damn corner boards. Life would have been so much simpler if they'd used standard board width, but perhaps there's a reason for why they did it. Either way, it requires a table saw, which I don't have, or asking the lumber yard to rip it for me, which they don't want to do.

The weather has been on my side, so I can't complain, though we're supposed to get a week of rain, so that's a bummer. I also have to move the wood pile, which is a monumental job, but one I have to deal with. Total bummer. Still toying with the idea of my chainsaw, and looking ahead to next year and where I'll get it. We'll see. I did get a stroke of good fortune and found the numbers of loggers that I thought I'd lost, so I'll get in touch with them.

Anyway, I really struggled with the corner boards, they broke my back. I couldn't seem to get them to align perfectly, which might not seem like a big deal, but you can really see the imperfection, and I'm not a trained eye. To an expert it must look like shit. Then again, consider the source of the work. I'm still learning.

After all is said and done, I decided to get cocky and actually move on to the next big project, even though there is still plenty to do. I still have to paint the south face of the house, as well as the trim, and move the plants on the perimeter away at least a couple of feet. Also have to look into the gravel, another big job.

But my big plan involves the north face, or front, of the house. I want to rip out all the shingles that surround the door and replace them with clapboards. Part of it is because the front really needs to be attended to in terms of rain exposure. I want to cover the plywood, make sure there's no rot, and then do the water and ice shield thing. It gets so much water.

The other reason is that it's sort of ugly. The shingles seem to clash with the clapboards, and I'm sure there's a reason they did it, maybe even an necessity, but I'll give it a go. I can always replace the shingles if it doesn't work, or suffer greatly for my brazenness. It wouldn't be the first time.

And then, of course, there's the barn. Until the next time, thanks for reading.