Saturday was moving day. 

September 15, 2013 – Sunday

55 degrees/rain/calm

Pentoga Road

It won’t be a long diatribe this morning. I was late getting out of bed. Lying next to Sargie, warm and secure under the blankets and listening to the rain hitting the metal roof overhead, I felt no hurry to greet the day. There’s a fire in the stove and since the temperature is forecast to drop to 29 tonight, I imagine it’s the first of many for this coming heating season.

Saturday was spent finishing the Dog Mahol. I trimmed, cut, painted, sliced, diced, stamped, stained, stapled, and completed the doghouse. What a chore. With rain and colder temperatures in the forecast, I wanted to finish so I could reclaim the shop and barn. Right now, the work area appears that a tornado blew through. In fact, the new four-wheeler has been sitting outside for the past several nights. There was no room at the inn.

Uncle Terry would have been proud yesterday had he been here to watch me paint the rest of the garage and porch. I gently dipped my brush into the paint, tapped it against each side of the can just like he taught me, then applied the paint in even one-way strokes.

Well, okay, that’s a lie. I tried the Uncle Terry method, but I wanted to finish the job before dark.

I dipped the brush in the paint, twirled it around eight or ten times, then slathered the stuff onto the surface. That's why Uncle Terry's a retired professional painter and I’m a schoolteacher.

The tractor and front-end loader were used to move the large pieces. I’m not sure what the complex weighs. It’s more than I can lift by hand.

It took sometime to level the house with the garage and front porch, but with enough muttering, it seemed to happen.

I paused every now and then to wash and hang out three loads of clothes on Saturday. It was sunny, cool, and windy. Perfect conditions.

The pieces were joined and level, but I had no clear caulk to seal the roofs and make the joints waterproof. I was ready to get off the place so I hopped on the four-wheeler and rode the ten miles to town. It was a welcome break.

Sargie arrived home before dark and pronounced the house as “cute.” CUTE? For cryin’ out loud, Brutus is a he-man bulldog. He shouldn’t be living in a Barbi and Ken house. It’s not cute, it’s adequate.

For those who’ve asked, Brutus will still be inside when we’re home. The house is only for when we’re away and he’s outside. Worry not, the pup’s not being banished to the wilds of Yooperland.

The interior... ready for Brutus to move in. Pictures and window dressings will follow at a later date.... not. 

Dr. Dan called yesterday saying he has his tadpole trike, the one I’m interested in purchasing, ready for me to try. Hopefully, I’ll get over to Iron Mountain in the next day or two.

Sargie’s off today. I hope she sleeps late this morning. She was off last Tuesday and her next day away from the Vision Center is next Friday. The girl has been putting in some long hours.

I’m going to begin cleaning the shop this morning and see how much I can accomplish before the NFL pre-game comes on at 11. The Packers play at noon. No doubt, Sargie and I will take our Sunday drive after.

Maybe we’ll make some chili for supper. That sounds good. And there’s that all-important Grandpa Sunday afternoon nap to take. I’m already stressing.

After all, a man’s work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road… 

There's a bit of resemblance in the structures. Brutus now has his own little house with a red roof on Pentoga Road.