After almost a year on order, my four new doors have finally been installed. I'm pleased with them. They have the satisfyingly solid 'thunk' in closing which signifies a good seal. The hardware in the colour I wanted (Venetian Bronze) is still on back order so they used temporary ones in a Brushed Nickle finish.
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| My new East doors. The old awnings need a good cleaning. |
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| The East Hall Door. |
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| I like it's beveled privacy glass. |
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| The East Kitchen door. |
The West doors are also vulnerable to our often gale force prevailing west winds. Here are the two new doors on the West side of the house.
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| The West kitchen door leads to an enclosed porch. |
The back porch door is inside the garage, up a small flight of steps. It's the one that I and visitors mainly use to enter and exit the building. It's glass is clear but I just didn't like the lack of privacy so applied a swirly patterned opaque film.
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| The West porch door. |
I mentioned to the installer that the east wind here can be very strong, with no buildings or trees to slow it down. He said that no doors are absolutely wind proof. Sure enough, the first strong east wind did slide in drafts, though much diminished, around the east doors. Disappointing but not altogether unexpected.
Since the installers live in rural areas nearby, I asked them about invasive Asian Lady Beetles. I supposed that being experts on sealing windows and doors, they would have thwarted the pests. But no!!!! They said the beetles also get into their homes. Well that was disappointing to hear. Still, I'm certain my new doors will at least help diminish the volume of the cursed little beasties.
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Glad Ellie Mae's vet visit is over with. She was dropped off in the morning to allow the vet time to give her a tranquilizer shot and allow it to take effect before she could be handled. She was given a parasite treatment and vaccines. The vet advised me that Ellie was over weight and asked what I fed her. I told the woman that I fed Ellie roast chicken in the morning and canned cat food in the evening as well as free choice kibble and cat treats a few times a day. The vet said, "Absolutely no more roast chicken. Limit her to 260 calories a day." (I didn't mention the cheese or the smoked oysters.) Ellie stayed away from the house and me for three days after her forced vet visit. Then she came and told me all was forgiven.
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My old wooden Adirondack chairs had reached their end of service. I had repaired them numerous times, but they had finally just disintegrated beyond rescue.
So I replaced them with ones that I'll never have to paint or repair again. (Say I, optimistically.)
They are made from recycled high-density polyethyene and fold for storage. It's just as well they can stay out in winter because they weigh a hefty fifty-two pounds each! I like that they are made in the U.S.A. so transport was not from the other side of the planet.
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| Sturdy chairs beckon, "Come, take a load off!" |
Another recycled product I bought was these rubber curb sections. They are four feet long, weigh ten pounds each and are manufactured in Canada. I can just imagine all those used tires and the miles they must have travelled in their previous lives.
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| I intend to partially outline my narrow drive. |
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Entertainment wise, I thoroughly enjoyed Good Omens, a British fantasy comedy released in 2019. It's showing on Amazon Prime Video. I loved the casting and the special effects and the theme music. (For my piano, I bought a copy of the waltzy, slightly creepy score.)
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| Good Omens' unlikely friends, Aziraphale and Crowley. |
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In the Nature department, Tree Swallows are back and are choosing their nesting sites. During the Spring nesting box cleanout, I was surprised to find absolutely no mice or their winter nests in any of my twenty-five boxes. Perhaps the electrical metallic tubing I used were just too slippery for little paws.
I've put away all of my bird feeders except for the Squirrel Buster model. It excludes heavier diners like squirrels and grackles but allows finches, nuthatches, chickadees and downy woodpeckers. It still has to be brought in at night because raccoons are just too resourceful!
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| Tree swallow lodgers for cottage Number Two. |
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| Flickers have been busy frisking my lawns for edibles. |
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| A male Downy woodpecker on my Squirrel Buster feeder. |
April's ice storm caused a lot of tree damage and for us, a day and a half power outage. I have lots of clean-up work ahead of me, making more brush piles in the process. My rabbits and Brown Thrashers will be pleased.
