More Renovation

Sunday I found 2 red/pink cone flowers on sale at Lowe's and thought they'd be perfect in front of the shed. I was at Lowe's because I burned out the motor of my 30+ year old drill so I needed to replace it. I burned out the motor by wire brushing the rust off my six patio chairs. They were languishing in the shed because they were too sad looking to be used, therefore, in cleaning out the shed, it was time to get rid of them or rehab them. 

Rusty, dusty old chairs.

That's better - derusted, primed, and spray painted charcoal grey. 

Why did I need to rehab them? One of my much loved, red Adirondack chairs finally gave out - four pieces of wood cracked to the point of being unable to hold a person safely. I want to fix it, but that will take a long time, in the basement, where I'll need to make copies of the pieces of wood. In the meantime I'll replace them with the metal chairs and a table. 

My activities this week have definitely reminded me of the book If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, as one job has lead to another, and another....

Bricks weeded and re-layed; flower beds started. I see I need to power wash the bricks...

On my way home from Lowe's, I spotted an estate sale in very nice neighborhood, so of course I stopped to have a look. It was a six bedroom sprawling home that was like a museum of the past 60 years. I couldn't stop thinking about the woman? couple? who inhabited this house as their entire lives were on display. They threw nothing out. Every kind of camera, video projector, endless sets of fine china, knickknacks, art, sculpture, furniture and clothing were on offer. It was as if they just walked out the door and left their lives behind. I'm guessing that is what death is like. I picked up a couple of items to purchase, but by the time I was finished, I was just so overwhelmed by the amount of things these people had accumulated. I put down the items, bought nothing, and was determined to continue simplifying my own house. 

Now to my next challenge. One of my biking group friends suggested I join the IronStrong Challenge so I did.  It is a small group of 84 participants located in 10 different states. In two weeks time we need to bike 112 miles, run/hike/walk 26 miles, and then swim or kayak 2.5miles or 6 hours. We started today with a 26 mile ride before it got too hot. We have three 90+ days to deal with, so the activity needs to begin early and today it was 8 am. 

Ready to start the IronStrong Challenge!

26.5 miles later on a hot hazy day. 

I have another bike ride tomorrow morning, so I'll have a good start on the 112 miles. 

I have a family reunion this weekend with my 6 siblings so that will take a chunk of time out of attaining the goals, but I'll at least knock a good number of miles off before I go. 

Comments

  1. MargaretJuly 29, 2025 at 12:40 PM

    Yes, I'm finding that one thing definitely leads to another. I've learned that I need to go with that because I eventually lose interest/energy, so the more I can get done at my peak, the better. That sounds like a hefty challenge! Love the chairs, they're very similar to mine.

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