A MAN'S HOME IS HIS CASTLE

     A landscaper has been working the past 2 days to excavate the bamboo from the backyard and to lay drainpipe running from each downspout in order to take rainfall away from the foundation.  We had a major rainfall yesterday filling the ditches with water.  The landscaper now must wait a day for things to dry up a bit before he can proceed. 

Digging a ditch for the drainage pipe

The back yard after the excavation of bamboo roots

While this house on Hawthorne Avenue is not yet our home, we are working diligently to that end.

See if you can follow this logic.....

Some castles are surrounded by moats.

If there is a moat, it might be surrounding a castle.

There is a moat surrounding my Hawthorne House.

My house on Hawthorne Avenue might be a castle.

The ditch on the south side of the house after a big rainfall

Our castle-to-be

THE SCENT OF SUMMER TO COME

     As we near completion of this project (understand that NEAR is a relative term.....we are NEARER the completion than a year ago but have a few miles yet to go) we have begun to look at the outside of the house and the landscaping.  Over the past few weeks we have entertained bids on the excavation work that must be done to eradicate the bamboo from the back yard.  We've chosen someone we feel is up to the task that this bamboo invasion entails.  He is scheduled to start digging out roots tomorrow.  As you might expect, I will be taking and posting a few photos.

'Tis the season for the new bamboo growth to rear its alien head.

 

    Over the past year I have sketched on a few scraps of paper some thoughts as to what the finished yard might look like.  I'd like to bring readers' attentions back to this post from last year.  

Part of my plan includes paying homage to the original landscaping of the area by maintaining a bit of honeysuckle and privet.   The advertisement back in 1906 describes the area as having

 Thousands of beautiful shade trees and miles of privet and honeysuckle hedges.

This time of year both the honeysuckle and the privet is in full bloom and Hawthorne Avenue smells so sweet reminding me of childhood summers in Norfolk, Virginia and playing barefoot in the backyard knowing summer is just around the bend.

Beneath this mound of honeysuckle is an old metal clothesline pole....now a support for the vine.

This privet has grown into a tree and pruned back it is rather lovely.

FENCE ME IN

    Once the fallen tree was removed (click here to read history) the new fence construction could resume.  These guys were back at Hawthorne Ave. 2 days after I called them,  digging post holes, hauling concrete, and setting 6x6 posts.

In 2 more days, allowing 1 day for rain,  our new fence is complete.  And I must say...

"It is GORGEOUS!"

Look past the dumpster and the house construction debris

See how the fence runs up to the old magnolias edging the property

Ultimate privacy along the back corner

    We are quite pleased, and these folks, whom I have used on Warren Road in the past, are A++ in my book.  (Thanks Bill, Scott, Spud and everyone who was patient with this project and worked diligently to make it happen.)

 

KUDOS TO BAMBOO

    Hurricane Irene has now past Virginia leaving us here on Hawthorne Avenue relatively unscathed but for lost electricity and some downed limbs.  I find myself in the position of offering KUDOS to the bamboo (something I did not anticipate since we just spent time, effort, and money preventing it from taking over our yard). 

    A mammoth  tree came down in our neighbor's yard during the winds of Irene.  The bamboo prevented thousands of pounds of tree from destroying our new brick wall.

As seen from our yard

As seen from neighbor's yard

As seen from neighbor's yard

The fallen tree has caused no damage to us thus far.  It will, however, certainly prevent the fence folks from beginning  construction today.

FROM UGLY TO BEAUTIFUL IN UNDER 2 DAYS

    We have had a great brick mason here on Hawthorne Avenue this past week.  (See yesterday's post )  He has worked so swiftly and well that we have hired him to construct a small brick wall to cap the concrete-filled ditch built to contain the aggressive bamboo.

An excavator dug a ditch 18 inches deep and 12 inches wide.  

After the ditch was filled with concrete it looked as if it were a lava trail.  Very UN-attractive. 

Using the garage foundation brick, a close match to the original, the mason has just completed a beautiful wall.

DASHING ALL THE WAY

      Yesterday the excavator dug trenches for the addition and garage footings and the retaining wall for the bamboo.

Concrete was poured in preparation for the foundation and fireplace.

   When I stopped by Hawthorne today, between errands and meetings, I was reluctant to leave because so much was going on and I hated to miss out on any of the action.

The mason and his crew were speedily laying brick, 

and, though the stucco guy was busy throwing dash, he was game enough to let me try my hand at a few tosses.  










I must say, stucco work is WAY more difficult than it looks.  Lewis, here in the photograph, is perhaps the last of a dying breed here in this city.  He learned his trade from his father and he told me he was certainly the youngest person he knows of in this line of work.

    Our house here on Hawthorne requires a LOT of stucco repair and I'm glad we found him. 

IT'S A JUGGLING ACT

    This renovation adventure requires someone, or several someones, skilled at keeping numerous projects in the air at the same time. A variety of jobs must be done either in preparation for an upcoming contractor or in conjunction with a current contractor. This past week has been a terrific example of keeping all the balls in the air.

    As the roofers continue to repair the roof,

  (shaping copper)

(replacing water damaged wood)

( applying underlayment and TPO)

    I purchase and prime replacement molding that they will install below the soffit.

  Meantime, Donnie removes the 7 foot windows leading to the rooftop in order to repair the sills so the roofers can make the roof water tight.

     Concurrently, Wallace clears out crawl spaces, relocates old brick to be used in the foundation work, and launches and attack on the bamboo (a story for another posting).

A ball was dropped when the roofers got soffits up before being primed.  Now we must get up on the ladders to protect the wood.

MY LATEST LOVE

I like tools.  To be specific, I like power tools.  This must be part of my genetic makeup passed down to me from my Daddy.  None of my friends (excluding Taylor and perhaps Julie) would have been excited to receive a power washer for her 20th anniversary and an angle grinder for a recent birthday (Thank you Lucius for the tip about that spark throwing tool).

I must say that my latest love is the reciprocating saw.  Not only is it moving this demolition project along more quickly, but I spent this sunny afternoon with it taking down monster bamboo.

ME OL' BAMBOO

While the mature bamboo provides some privacy

and a lot of entertainment,

 we require a fence, so I meet Bill this morning for an estimate to enclose the back yard.