Maintenance Week

Charlottesville, Virginia
Sunday October 20 to Sunday October 27, 2013



I’m having a hard time with these recent blog posts.


I know it’s really already November 1st and I’m still behind.  But I’m getting caught up.  I’m finding these sitting still for a month posts hard to write.    We’ve seen a number of friends, have done all the doctor things, washed polished and waxed the coach now that our “campground” will allow it.   But none of that seems very interesting compared with our summer.   I’m having summer withdrawal I guess.  Especially with the temperatures here being in the 30’s at night.  Brrrrrrrrrr
The road is being repaired this week but now we are nearing the end of our stay here, we have too many things still on the list to spend time trimming the trees in order to move Winnona so the washing and waxing is done in town but at least it gets done finally.

Amazing how you discover one little thing after another that needs attention.

While polishing and waxing the coach, we discover this alignment problem.  David gets on the phone to the great Winnebago Tech staff and they sent detailed instructions for “whomever we get to fix it”.  Well that would be us. But we’ll wait until we install the MCD shades in the bedroom and do them both at the same time.  Assuming the shades get here in the next few days.  Something for next week’s post I suspect. 
Here’s the problem.  From the distant picture you can sort of see why we didn’t notice it.  Has anyone else ever experienced this with a slide?  If so please tell us your story.  We’re hoping this is not the start of a recurring problem.



  


The slide isn’t the only thing we discover.



The bigger problem we weren’t expecting is one at the farm discovered when the 20 year old refrig decided it was time for the freezer to quit freezing.  Might have been a freon problem but when an appliance is that old, it’s just time to replace it.  We need a refrigerator when we are here but since we aren’t here except for an annual stop by, a “new to us” refrigerator seemed the way to go given the cost of a new one.  SO out came Craigs list and for about a quarter of the price of a new one, we picked up a nearly new fridge from someone moving.  Of course we don’t have the big side by side and ice maker and cold water at your finger tips type but the old farmhouse isn’t a fancy refrigerator sort of place anyway with its two Hoosier cupboards rather than counter space and no dishwasher.  :-)
Those who have been following a while know that we aren’t going to sell the farm for two reasons, David’s illness and it’s the family homeplace and will one day be Carrie’s.  We aren’t renting it because of all the heirloom furniture in it and just the general difficulty of renting.  SO it waits for us and is checked on periodically by friends.  This has been working fine for us for over 3 years now so we’re just letting things be.  Who knows what the future holds.






But, things happen to old houses.



We’re thinking all is well and good with the refrigerator except when we go to replace it we find that this 125+ year old farmhouse has apparently developed a sag in the corner of the pantry which is the room in which the refrigerator was sitting.  No sense putting the refrig back without redoing the floor.  SO on a LONG day this week past week-end, David and his friend Brian replace the entire thing.  Brian is a contractor and has tools to make David drool.   This is the sort of thing David really likes to do but not enough time for him to do it alone. 

So they cut out the floor, scope out the problem, David gets all the materials with his 1986 truck which now has antique plates.  Does that mean Carrie is an antique too.  She was born before 1986.  And if so then boy are we antiques.  Antique house, antique truck, antique people.  Good grief!



The boys set to work.





Good thing it wasn’t TOO cool and it isn’t raining since they have their work room set up in the yard.  





Just look at this finished job.  Amazing isn’t it.  That’s the same corner.

THANKS BRIAN!!   

All that remains is to paint the walls and stain or paint the floor.  It was painted before so that’s probably what we’ll do again just for the ease of it.   But that’s for next week.

That’s about all for our week but I do have to show a picture of the gorgeous rosemary BUSH in the herb garden.  Isn’t it just wonderful???  It’s huge.  I just hope the rough winter being predicted doesn’t do it in before I return to see it again.  Over the years I’ve had 3 rosemary bushes and they all get enormous and then one year, the temperatures are just too much for them and that’s the end.  I should have put my foot in this picture to give an indication of its size.  Oh well.