Phase I - 2nd Deck

 

Song:  Losing My Religion

Group:  REM

Today was the beginning of Phase I of the second deck.

I have a lot of work to do...

but, it is all a labor of love.

Men...

in general...

love to improve things around the house.

We get a special pleasure of planning things out...

putting those plans into action...

and then of getting satisfaction with the results.

I woke up feeling much better...

so...

 after breakfast...

I gathered my tools and began Phase I.

My breakfast consisted of green curry.

An organized set of the right tools is a pleasure to behold.  :)

My mission for the day was mostly preparation.

I first had to remove the old satellite dish from the second deck.

(I don't use it...and in the future if I do...it will be Starlink).

The day was beautiful.

I had just removed the mounting screws.

I started taking this mounting bracket off...

but as I would have to lean over the railing too much...

I retightened the screws...

as I decided I would just leave it mounted.

I would later retrieve the satellite dish.

I then prepared the caulking gun with silicone caulking to seal the holes

left by the mounting screws.

The sealant will do until I put another coat of waterproofing on the deck railings.

I severed the transmission wire to the dish...

and carried the dish to my car.

Tomorrow (and Saturdays)...

for limited hours...

they have a trash transfer station in Cripple Creek.

You may dispose of objects too large for normal trash disposal.

I will go there in the morning.

I have this nifty caulk end seal...

with a smoother built in.

Having staged the old satellite dish in my car for tomorrow...

I then laid out some tools I would need to prepare the carpets 

for the next stage.

I had temporarily tacked down the carpets to keep them in place during storms...

until I could begin Phase I of the carpeting of the second deck.

So...

my next step was to remove all of the staples I had used...

so I could then rearrange the carpets to where I needed them.

I then used a section of carpet to cover the entrance area to the stairway leading 

to the first deck.

I made cuts around the post so I could fit the carpet just over hanging the stair landing...

with just enough overhang so water will drip straight down.

I will later be using waterproof friction tape...

and raised foot pads to keep people from slipping

(I ordered some for the five stairs leading to the upper driveway.

I will be ordering more later on for this stairway).

I laid out the section of carpeting to cover the whole stairway landing.

After I fully tack down all of the carpeting on the second deck...

I will then seal around the posts with silicone seal...

and then...

add some footing to ensure water doesn't collect around the posts.

I staged some of the carpet in the area it will be used.

These were the staples I had pulled up.

My next step was to blow off the deck to remove the tiny rocks that 

invariably get stuck to my boots and then drop off on the deck.

As the wind began to pick up...

and the temperature began to drop...

I called it a day.

I still feel under the weather some...

and I didn't wish to push it.

I hope to get most of the carpet laid tomorrow.

I just staged my tools inside until then.

After resting a bit in bed...

I got up to make a quick meal of eggs for egg sandwiches.

It was fast, easy, and nutritious.

My body still aches...

so...

again, after I type this article up...

I am going to take NyQuil...

and then get extra sleep.

Winterized Japanese Maple

 

Song:  River Flows In You (cover)

Original Composer and Performing Artist:  Yiruma

Performing Artist:  Piano_Man

As I was still feeling a little under the weather today...

I just pulled a bag of weeds...

and I then winterized the Japanese Maple.

For the rest of the day...

I just took it easy.

I am sipping from a large mug of my peppermint tea as I type this...

after which I will take a dose of NyQuil (cold and flu)...

and then go to bed early.

I started the day with a large bowl of beef ramen and some kimchi

(I was going to make beef udon...

but I all of a sudden felt like beef ramen).

The spices and the hot liquid made me feel a lot better.

I then went to the ACE hardware store in Cripple Creek.

They had just what I needed to complete the job.

I first surrounded the tree by wrapping the plastic around the support posts...

as a major wind break.

I then weighted down the Western facing side...

as this is from where the majority of strong winds come

(I weighted down the other side as well).

I then thoroughly soaked the soil.

I brought up a bag of wood mulch to act as an insulator for the top soil

surrounding the tree...

as well as for part of the trunk of the tree.

I then placed the empty bag over the tree branches 

(with openings at the bottom to allow moisture to escape).

I weighted down the bag on one side...

but left plenty of space around the other sides to allow airflow.

Trapped moisture could lead to rot.

That is a major reason I didn't place any insulative material too high.

It would retain moisture and be in direct contact with the tree...

which could lead to damage to the branches...

or to the tree itself.

Now...

when it snows...

even the snow will act as an insulator...

and slowly release its moisture around the tree.

I will still water the tree occasionally during winter...

but not nearly so much as during warmer weather.

The tree will mostly be in a dormant state during cold weather.

I will have to see how the plastic holds up during a blizzard.

It should do okay...

as although the wind sometimes has wild gusts...

for the most part...

the winds are gentle up here.

----------

If I feel up to it...

I will work on the 2nd deck tomorrow.

Taking It Easy / Illness

 

Song:  Kashmir

Group:  Led Zeppelin

A couple of days ago...

since there was a light rain in the evening hours...

it had set my deck project back another few days.

However...

as I love listening to the rain and feeling the cool fresh breeze as I lay in bed...

I had fallen asleep with only a light covering...

and with the window and the blinds open.

While I usually leave the windows open at night...

as I love sleeping cool...

I close the blinds so I don't receive a direct breeze all night long.

I felt so good with the cool mountain breeze blowing across my face

while I was in bed...

I had fallen asleep without first closing the blinds...

so as to divert any airflow to the sides and down from the windows.

As a result...

as the temperature continued to drop...

after only a few hours of sleep...

I had awakened at about 3:30 AM...

curled up into a ball underneath only one thin comforter.

Since that night...

I have been having increasing body aches...

and other symptoms of a cold or flu.

Last night...

I couldn't fall asleep until the sun rose in the morning.

As I have been very tired...

I have been taking it easy.

I am glad I had cooked all that beef.

I had made myself roast beef sandwiches...

and for the past two days...

I had either beef udon...

or beef ramen.

The hot soupy mixture felt good.

My peppermint tea arrived today.

I made a special tea shelf for it.

Although I am still awaiting the arrival of my electric tea steeper...

I couldn't wait to try my favorite tea.

As I hadn't a steeper...

or even a tea strainer...

I just put in one tablespoon of the tea into hot water in a cup...

and let it steep for a couple of minutes...

I then placed a paper towel over my drinking cup and poured it in...

and it worked out fine.

The tea is the same as I had in the tea house earlier in the week...

but theirs was stronger.

I will try adding more tea...

and letting it steep for longer next time.

However...

even though it was weaker...

I can still feel the coolness it generates in my mouth as I breathe.

It was so good to sip on the tea as I sat in my recliner...

planning out the wrapping of my spear.

I put on the fireplace as I felt a little chilly.

I had to move the chair back from the fireplace some...

as it throws off so much heat.

But...

it kept my tea warm.

I cut a length of para-cord and melted the ends.

As I sat in the recliner...

and began wrapping the spear...

I felt my energy dropping quickly.

It was the combination of my illness...

and the warm comfort from the fireplace and the recliner...

as well as from the delicious hot peppermint tea...

that had made me so drowsy.

I decided to just put away the spear...

enjoy the fire a little more as I finished up my tea...

 type up this article quickly...

and then head off to bed

(I will first close the blinds).

I will also take some cold medicine so I may get deeper rest tonight.

-------------

Tomorrow...

so long as I feel up to it...

I will go to the hardware store for plastic sheeting

to winterize my Japanese Maple.

I had tried winterizing it earlier today...

but the plastic I had was too thin...

far thinner than is kitchen plastic wrap.

--------

I still have one serving of beef left.

I am looking forward to having beef udon in the morning.

I will keep this short...

as I am headed off to bed now.

Roast Beef For Several Meals

 

Endless Love

YouTube Channel:  April Yang

The other day...

on my way back from Yellow Mountain Tea House...

I stopped in at Safeway to do some food shopping.

I had picked up these roasts on sale...

and so...

today...

I made roast beef.

I bought about 6.5 lbs of beef...

almost 3 kilos.

My roasting pan.

I cover it in foil...

not to make the cleanup a breeze...

but so I can just throw away all of the oil and fats into the trash can...

instead of it going down the sink drain

(which should never be done).

All I use is olive oil, salt, and black pepper.

I first coat the meat with the olive oil.

I then cover them in salt...

...and black pepper.

They are all ready for the oven.

I heat the oven to 380 degrees...

and roast the meat uncovered for approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes.

I first quartered the meat...

...and I then trimmed off the fat.

I then cut one section of the roast into thin slices...

...so I could make roast beef sandwiches.  

I had a couple of cheesecake danishes for dessert.

I then put away the rest of the meat for later meals.

I will make beef quesadillas...

and beef udon with the rest of the meat.

When I cook...

I usually cook enough for many subsequent meals.

------------

The next few days are supposed to be sunny.

I let the deck fully dry out today.

I hope to start covering the second deck tomorrow.

Today...

I ordered enough post covers to finish up the rest of the decks as well.

I also ordered special waterproof friction stair covers...

as well as raised friction mats to put on top of the waterproof stair covers.

Besides the waterproof cover protecting the wood...

the raised surface open weave friction mats will allow the water to drain...

and then should ice form...

I will still have good footing on top of the raised portion.

Not too long ago...

after a night of light rain...

and then with the temperature dropping below freezing...

the 5 stairs leading from the second deck to the upper driveway

were covered in ice.

I hadn't thought much of it until I slid down those steps on my side...

after having my feet slip out from underneath me.

-----------

I plan to winterize the first Japanese Maple tomorrow.

I must also soon start preparing for the second tree planting by digging the tree hole...

and mixing in the soil...

as the second tree is supposed to arrive within the next two weeks.

I will be sure to take photos of tomorrow's Japanese Maple's winterization...

and of my progress with the second deck.

------------

Addendum:  

As it is very early on the following morning...

even though starting today it is supposed to be sunny for the next four or five days...

it had rained last night...

and so...

I now must wait another two days before I may even consider 

covering the decks.

I must ensure that the wood is fully dried.

However...

I received my para-cord yesterday...

and so...

I can at least wrap my spear...

and I should be able to winterize my young Japanese Maple.

----------

The sun has yet to rise this morning...

and so...

I am thinking of slicing some of the roast beef...

and making a large hot bowl of delicious beef udon.