This morning I woke up feeling very well rested. After breakfast we all drove to Lake Michigan and enjoyed the “beach”. We were at a quiet little park and pretty much had the place to ourselves. Luke love playing in the sand and pouring sand on me. It was hot and sunny, but not uncomfortable. The water was a bit chilly for swimming though. We went to lunch at a wonderful sandwich place that we had been to before, in Montague. From there Liz, Luke, Becky and I drove to a little cherry market before returning to the farm. Luke played outside and then it stormed a bit. We pretty much just took it easy this evening.
First day in Michigan.
I woke up early this morning, but felt better rested than expected. After a late breakfast we went outside, then Liz’s cousin Ryan and his family came over. The girls brought their power wheels and Luke got a kick out of that. We all had lunch outside, then it was nap time. I had a great nap for the first time in months. This afternoon we went back outside to play some more. It was hot but a brief rain shower cooled things down considerably. We all ate dinner, then Luke went to the barn to see the horses before his bed time routine. Now he is on the toilet pretending to have to poop.
Back on the road.
This morning I left the cottage about five minutes before seven. I stopped at the roofer’s house in Manchester to leave a check, then drove on to Michigan. The drive was tiring, but uneventful. I did stop to rest for about an hour a little south of Indianapolis. I got a late lunch at Arby’s that I regretted. About seven I arrived at Evan’s house. Liz and Luke were there along with a lot of other people. We stayed until after nine and then came to Liz’s parents’ for bath and bed time. I am exhausted now.
Roofs.
I woke up a little before five this morning and left the house just after six. I got gas for the generator and then went to the job site, thinking that surely I would beat the roofers there. I was wrong. They were just starting to set up. One had found a way to maneuver his truck through the woods and up next to the house. They quickly started working. I moved some of the shingles to the second house, then went to Piggly Wiggly, then on to the cottage. I tried hard to take a little nap, but couldn’t. So I returned to the job site and cleaned a bit and then went to the Manchester Home Depot for some more shingles. I was glad to be in Liz’s car, so I could really zip down and back. I mostly hung around the houses until the guys finished at about 7:45 this evening. That was about a thirteen and a half hour day. I returned to the cottage, showered, and drove down to the Home Depot in Winchester to pick up my online orders. Everything barely fit in the car. I stopped at Food City on the way back to the cottage. Now I am washing clothes and preparing to drive to Michigan tomorrow.
Long, frustrating, and productive day.
This morning at 6:30 I got a call from the roofer saying that the materials and his guys were on the way. So I scrambled to get ready. A little later he called to say that just the materials were coming and that his crew would come tomorrow. So my dad and I went to meet the delivery driver and continued to work on the siding. It was a muddy mess but we were able to make great progress. We did focus on the first house since it was so much easier, and that is the house the siding is at. Mid-morning a guy came by and introduced himself. He was the husband of a woman who works at the bank, and he asked about a rock that I told her that she could have. I told him to come back at three and we would get it. We finished with the siding for the day around two, and I took the tools to the storage unit.
I spent some time organizing the job site, then Mike came for the rock. We hooked my flatbed trailer to his truck and the tractor was barely able to lift the rock onto the trailer. It did though, and I followed him to his house on Ridge Cliff. We got the rock set and then I returned to the job site. I briefly went by the cottage, then drove home via Fayetteville. There I filled up the bird feeders, grabbed a few things, ate some cherries, then started driving to the Mountain. I was in Tullahoma, almost to Chick-fil-a when I realized that I left my tractor, storage unit, and driveway chain keys at home. So after getting some fries and a milkshake I drove home, picked up the keys, and drove to the mountain on the interstate. I arrived a few minutes ago, at 11:30, and am pretty exhausted.
