Two Inside Projects Done

We've got lots we're working on in the barn to prepare things for LuLu's upcoming labor and delivery.  She's one of our Jersey cows that will be calving in July.  While we wait on her to calve, we figured we'd knock out some inside projects.  We had moved a big bookcase/cabinet from the east wall of the den to the west wall.  Tricia was tiring of the "orangish" look of all the wood in the den and wanted to change things up and paint it.  

I offered two objections as soon as this project was proposed.  First, it will make a heck of a mess, because we'd have to sand the entire thing.  This would send dust from the polyurethane and wood all over everything in the den.  Secondly, what if you don't like it?  It's hard to move from wood to paint, but next to impossible to move back from paint to wood if you don't like it.  My objections were overruled.

Time to get busy.  We emptied the piece of furniture, taking pictures of how everything was positioned so we'd know how to reload it once painted.  We used painter's tape to tape off the walls.  We sanded and sanded and then used the shop-vac to clean.  Then we primed the bookcase.  Of course we laid down makeshift drop cloths to protect the floors.

Tricia selected a pretty blue color and we put two coats on, let it dry and then reloaded the bookcase.  Here's the finished product.  Tricia said it was a little too blue, but had heard that when you make changes, give it three weeks to grow on you before making any decisions to change it.  Fortunately, three weeks passed and the blue "grew on her."  Oh happy day.

The next project was in the kitchen.  Our home was built 26 years ago.  The balusters on the staircase were wooden white balusters.  Even though they don't look bad, it was time for a change.

We purchased 38 cast iron balusters from a local hardware store.  The plan was to alternate a baluster with a twist followed by one with a double twist.  Some 3/4 inch holes had to be drilled with a paddle bit up above in the railing and down below on the stairs.  The balusters were 44 inches long, so each one had to be measured and shimmied into place.  Each measurement differed and numerous cuts had to be made.  Before putting them in place, I applied some epoxy in the holes above and beneath.  I had to protect the balusters with blue painters tape and taped the foot up until the epoxy had cured.  Then I'd drop them and tighten in place with a set screw.  And the job commenced...

In a little bit, we had the first portion done and the balusters on the landing removed.  I borrowed an oscillating tool from Benjamin to cut out the old wooden balusters.

It didn't take as long as I thought before the job was done.  I get overwhelmed by jobs like this because I'm not a carpenter and don't want to mess anything up.  But you can learn how to do most anything on YouTube, and I watched several instructional videos before deciding that I could do it.  Besides, if and when I mess it up, it can be fixed by a professional.

Overall, we're pleased with the new look.  I should have done it sooner!

We can mark two more projects off the list.  Next we'll shift to an outside task.  We need to get the barn ready.  Our milking parlor, specifically, needs some repairs and cleanup.

A Trip to Corpus Christi

We were out of pocket for a couple of days last week and didn't get to post Thursday night.  We don't have cows or goats in milk so it seemed like the perfect time to take a little trip.  Dad and Mom graciously agreed to come check on the animals and feed and water them, gather eggs, and generally make sure everything was okay on our little farm.  We left Thursday morning on a 6 hour drive to Tricia's hometown to visit her Mom and brothers that live there.  We stopped for lunch west of Houston at one of the two Czech BBQ joints we like to stop at - Mikeska's and Pracek's, and stopped on the way back at Bucc-ee's, of course, which is famous for it's clean bathrooms and snacks.

Tricia grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas.  It's really not a bad drive, west on I-10 through Houston and then south on 59, then south on 77 right into Corpus.  There's always lots of wind off the gulf and driving into Corpus, there are numerous windmills generating electricity.  It's wild to watch all those turbines spinning.  Corpus Christi is beautiful city sitting right on the bay.  It's now home to the USS Lexington, a naval air station and they just got a brand new harbor bridge.  You can see it in the distance in the photo below when the boys and I drove out to Cole park and walked out on the pier.

Corpus Christi was also the home of Farah Fawcett.  Who can forget Farah?!  The famous singer Selena was also from Corpus.  Freddy Fender, a singer I really liked from my youth lived in Corpus Christi as well.  He sang, "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" and "I'll be there before the next teardrop falls."  But the most important thing in Corpus is Tricia's Mom.  She's 88 and in great health and Tricia tries to go visit as often as she can.  This time, Russ and Benjamin and I accompanied her for the visit and I'm glad we did.  We enjoyed visiting with Mrs. Garcia and two of Tricia's brothers, Albert and David, as well as Albert's wife Janice and their kids, Michael and Celeste.

We laughed, played games and visited and had great fun.  In our neck of the woods, cooler weather is also called "gumbo weather," and we eat a lot of chicken and sausage gumbo and shrimp and okra gumbo.  In the Hispanic culture, there's another dish that's eaten, and we were introduced to menudo.  Tricia's brother, Albert is a good cook, and worked hard in the kitchen to make menudo.  Menudo is a soup made with chili powder, cumin and other spices along with hominy and tripe.  Tripe is the stomach lining of a cow.  In Mexican-American culture (as well as Cajun culture), when an animal is butchered, nothing is wasted.  Menudo is good and spicy and we enjoyed it!

We drove by the T-heads and watched the shrimp boats come in and admired the beautiful water.  Corpus Christi, despite being on the coast, has a water emergency.  They're running out of it, and water rationing is in effect!  They do get less than half the rainfall we do, averaging only 31.7 inches a year.  The reservoirs are low, but that's not the primary reason for the shortfall.  Industry is gobbling up most of the available water usage.  There is talk of water desalination plant construction, but the cost is high and prohibitive.  What are they going to do?  It reminds me of a line from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, that says, "Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink."

Russ & Benjamin

We like to work on projects while we're there.  Russ is a plumber and was able to take the reins and help install a new washing machine to replace a 1992 model that had worn out.  Actually, it was still working, but the selector switch had broken and parts are no longer available.  I'd say Mrs. Garcia got her money's worth out of it - 34 years!  Wow.  We talked about the fact that my brother still has an old International Harvester deep freezer that my grandmother had that still works.  To the best of our knowledge, that thing was manufactured in the late 40's or early 50's!  Things used to be made to last.  Unfortunately, in a disposable society, those days are gone.  Back to the washing machine, we made a quick trip to Home Depot for some new water lines and had the new or gently used washer in place in no time.

While at Home Depot, we picked up some paint for our next project.  We repainted Mrs. Garcia's shed.  We first applied some Ospho to eat away at some rust spots and then we put two coats of exterior paint on the shed.  It was like Mark Twain's "Adventures of Tom Sawyer" where Tom fooled Huck into painting the fence.  In this case, however, it WAS a privilege to do so.  The three of us tackled the project and had great fun in "quality control," pointing out spots that each other had missed, teasing and harassing each other relentlessly.  We actually ran out of daylight and painted the first coat by the lights from the head lamps of our SUV!  The next morning when the dew burned off, we quickly got the second coat on.  While not professional painters, by any stretch of the imagination, the finished product looked good!

The Painters (Benjamin and Russ)

Fueled by several cups of strong coffee along with egg, potato and chorizo taquitos for breakfast, we were adequately caffeinated and energized and got the second and final coat on in surprising speed.  We'll see how our work holds up to the test of time.

 

The painters and Mrs. Garcia

Tricia's mom was pleased with the completed work, but we were more pleased to be able to do something for her.  I snapped this photo of Tricia and her Mom in front of the freshly painted shed.

Mrs. Garcia and my bride

At half past 11 AM on Saturday, we loaded up and said farewell to Mrs. Garcia and Tricia's brother, Albert.  I tried my best to get Mrs. Garcia to come and stay with us for a while, but she said, "Maybe later."  We'll keep trying.  Hopefully, we can get her to come visit us soon.  Now, we're back home and have a lot of projects here on Our Maker's Acres Family Farm we'll be discussing with you in the upcoming days.  Happy New Year to all of you!  What type of projects do you have going on?  We'd be interested in hearing about them.