This has been Day 6 through Day 13 without much change in the backyard.
Maybe that’s the other way around though. They will come and build it. Monday is scheduled as the first day of framing. We haven’t heard anything different, so we believe this to be so. No building supplies have been dropped off, but we still believe this to be so.
The concrete out in the backyard has hardened quite nicely. I don’t think the squirrels have exerted much pressure on it. I haven’t seen any signs of small footprints embedded in the cement. Sascha seems to like resting on the porch, which still doesn’t have a roof.
This week, Rich has been sick and trying to recover. There has been some sort of virus going around work. I assume that’s what he had. He ran a fever and has just been achy. Tuesday, we came home from work early. Neither of us felt well, but at least I didn’t succumb to the illness. Rich was home on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday, he braved it into work AND then to bowling afterwards. Recovery is continuing this weekend. He’s gotta be ready to smoke that bird on Thursday!
Sascha has been enjoying the cooler weather. She loves to lie in the yard and enjoy the temps. With weather like this, Rich takes her scootering or running with the bike. She’s very tired when she gets back, but she definitely enjoys the exercise. I try to take her walking on the days when she doesn’t get to run. However, Sascha just doesn’t know how to walk! She pulls me down the road until we arrive back at the house. I just slow her down, that’s all.
One of the issues with running Sascha is running the risk of damaging the pads of her paws. We tried to putting booties on her, but they came off too quickly. Rich found a cream that you apply to the pads to keep them conditioned. Sascha doesn’t mind too much having you apply the cream. But she would much rather eat it than wear it. She’s always trying to lick it out of the container. Rich believes it has helped. It’s called Musher’s Secret. We’ll see what happens as the temps cool down and they can go running more.
On Friday, I was looking out the back door in time to see a squirrel pushing his luck with Sascha. She was lying out in the yard. This squirrel was well within her circle of influence, which meant he was very reachable. He kept coming closer and closer to her. Sascha was crouched down and waiting for the moment to spring on him. He took no notice of the danger. I couldn’t help but watch this drama unfold out there. Just when I thought she might jump, he turned and headed away from her. Thank goodness! I didn’t want to have to take another squirrel away from her. Didn’t he know about this dog? Danger, danger, Wil Robinson!
Do you want to hear about my week at work? No? Here it is anyway. We finally hired a contractor who was willing to come and help us out. Karen was recommended by Jim and Diane. They had worked with her in the past. I trusted their judgment and she was surprisingly what I was looking for during the interview. This means I have someone to help with the workload, just as soon as she figures out what we do. Hey there, Karen. (I’m sure she’ll see this soon.)
All day Monday was spent off site at Jim’s house going over the work we had developed for this release. We were trying to see if you used the same terminology throughout and if things made sense. We found several things that we need to work on. This gave us an opportunity to start sharing information with Karen. Luckily, we didn’t scare her too much. She actually showed up on Tuesday for more.
The rest of the week was spent trying to show Karen what we do and who the people are that we work with. You never realize what your job entails and how much you know until you try to tell someone about it in a way that makes some sense. Karen seems eager to learn. I don’t think I’ll have to drag her kicking and screaming into this release. At least, not yet.
Thursday was our annual Thanksgivingfest. We have a pitch in dinner with the employees in the larger department. We ask everyone to bring a dish to share. This year, we got a ton of food and none of it lasted very long. My boss organizes everything. I help on the day of to keep things moving. This year, I had help as Karen jumped in to help us. Between us all, we kept dishes moving and adding the new ones as they walked in the door.
We had plenty of food. Everyone came into the conference room, loaded up plates, and sat down to talk and share. It was great. I think we even had to kick out a table of brand new guys who were talking well after everyone else left. I love Thanksgivingfest!
Friday was a slow day. My brain hurt from talking and sharing with Karen. I worked at home and slowly worked through the delivery for the next release. I’m not quite halfway through it, but it is starting to take shape. The process is really iterative as we start with the last release and make updates for the new release. I’m well on my way to a final delivery next November!
This weekend, Rich finished up the beam between the dining room and the living room. He had crafted plugs for the screw holes and glued them in. Today, he leveled them with the beam. I could then apply more linseed oil to the beam with the plugs in place. It looks really good. Climbing up and down the later took its toll, but it was worth the effort. I’ll probably need to add a couple of coats over time for it to stop drying out.
That very special day in November is coming soon. I’ve already pressured the guys into ordering my birthday and Christmas presents. It should be a good birthday. It seems unreal that I’m getting to be another year older. It’s just not possible. Of course, in my mind, I’m still in my early 20s. I just can’t be any older than that already. I guess I’ll just be young at heart for a long time. So 10 days from Monday until my special day.
