Stressful Weekend, Continued Pressure

The lumber delivery was made well ahead of schedule Thursday morning – shortly after 9:00 as opposed to around noon as I was expecting. The quality of materials is good to excellent, but they did make one substitution I’m not happy with. I didn’t notice until some time after the delivery. Apparently they didn’t have the paint I asked for. What they sent is not the same, nor is it usable for my application. I’m not sure if it can be returned, nor whether I can get back there with it. If not, I’m out $45 for a can of paint I will never use.

Since the delivery was early, I was able to re-schedule my day again. I ended up going on that communications exercise. I helped to set up the portable emergency communications relay system (repeater), then proceeded to visit three of nine checkpoints along the race course (river) to test communications effectiveness using a hand held two way radio. I’m sure in April the communications personnel don’t have to fight their way through chest high ferns and other dense vegetation to reach the river bank! Communications were very good with this new location we tested. Although I was tense and anxious throughout, there was only one sticky moment when it became really uncomfortable. The person I was riding with wanted to stop for an ice cream on the way home. I was forced to decline, which he did not appreciate and that made me very anxious for a while.

I spent the rest of Thursday tearing old fascia boards off my house in preparation for replacement. Naturally, since I’d hired a contractor to redo the roof a few years back, the shingles were nailed into the fascia boards. They are not supposed to be. That created some significant challenges in removing the old boards. Since I had to lift shingles and pry nails from underneath, it is a good thing I got to this when I did – during what may be the last few really warm days of summer. That can’t be done in cool or cold weather.

My brother arrived early Friday morning and almost immediately went out to spend the day with friends. Being desperate to get some work done on my project, I set out for town to see if I could find suitable paint at the local lumber and building supplies place. That was quite a challenge. I’ve never been comfortable going there alone. I’ve done it two, maybe three times previously, but when things were going better for me overall. I had to stop several times on the way because I was too panicky to control the bike. I had a bad moment when I arrived at the store. I leaned the bike against a utility pole and as I started to walk away was overcome by an intense panic attack. Next thing I knew I was picking myself up from the ground, covered in dust and sand. Fortunately no one noticed my incident! I left and rode around some quiet streets for a while to settle down. Eventually I went back. Even though on the edge of total panic the whole time, I did succeed in buying suitable paint for my project. I count that as a major victory!

I put in nine hours of labor Friday and ten hours Saturday. I was very tired, bordering on exhausted, but was pleased that I had been able to put in so many hours. I found a number of previously unknown issues with my roof that need to be fixed. I will never, ever hire a contractor again! The roof I had put on a few years ago is poorly done to say the least. Materials around the edge were put on in the wrong order and poorly sealed, both of which lead to small amounts of water getting to the wood underneath. Even small amounts of water cause wood decay and will lead to major problems later on. I will attempt to patch up this mess in such a way as to prevent further issues, but it will be a tedious job.

The unexpected roof issues are causing some extra anxiety. I think I can patch them to prevent water from reaching wood, but I’m not certain. The only certain solution is a new roof which would be very expensive and time consuming. My mind keeps churning up the obvious questions. What if I’m not able to patch up the problems? What if I think I have them patched but small amounts of water continue to reach wood? What if they are such small amounts as to go unnoticed? The answer to any of these is that wood will rot and a few years from now I will have to not only replace shingles but also the wood and rafters underneath.

Having discovered those unanticipated roof issues, I headed back to the local building supply place Sunday morning. This trip went about as well as the first, with another panic attack. I was lucky a second time, as no one noticed me hit the ground. It seems my “parking spot” there is well chosen, as it is at one corner of the store, hidden by their delivery truck if it is not out on a run. I was very lucky in that neither of these full on attacks happened while I was inside the store.

I am again worried about Boo. His allergic rash has not yet returned but he has suddenly developed two small areas on his back which appear to be wounds of some sort. I am at a loss to figure out how he got them. I am keeping a close eye on them and will try to get him back to the vet if they don’t heal soon. It worries me greatly, since getting him to the vet entails at least a week’s delay due to transportation issues and needing assistance to call and set up an appointment. I hate being so limited!

I’m still feeling overwhelmed and under intense pressure. I need to complete my home repair projects as quickly as possible, before water finds a way to get to materials which are stacked under a tarp outside. Not to mention how late in the season it is. I still need to call about getting my septic tank pumped and inspected. If I don’t get that done this month, it will cost me extra. I’m worried that if I need repairs or replacement it may get too late in the season do do it. I’ve been trying to make that call since the beginning of June but have not succeeded yet. I need to call about having my furnace cleaned and serviced. Same story. I’ve been trying for months without success. It hasn’t been checked in four years due to my limitations.

I did manage to schedule an appointment to apply for winter heating assistance, only because this year they implemented a new system which allows scheduling those through a web site. Getting to the appointment will be an adventure, as it is 14 miles away with many big hills on the way. At 47 and out of shape that’s going to be one hell of a bike ride! Fortunately I have time to prepare. The appointment is the 23rd of November.