Front-yard gridlock and more

My front yard is under occupation, and getting a bit crowded.

The well-drilling rig first appeared sometime between 12/12 and 12/18, and sat quietly until sometime this past week, when it had a spasm of activity.

First, the good news: they reached water. Then the bad news: they drew up so much, that added to the inch or so of rain that fell during the week, the front yard is once again a broad mud-slick. And the drilling rig still sits there, quiet but slightly ominous, poised to drill further. No sign of human operators, no word from the contractor about what’s going on there.

And a 20-yard dumpster/roll-off unit. When he requested the dumpster, the contractor said, “Tell them to put it parallel to the house, about 7 feet away.” Which I did, but of course there’s also a trash pile, a pile of gravel, and a giant well-drilling rig in the way (not to mention the pervasive mud). So I can imagine the dumpster guys backed it up as far as they deemed safe, and just dropped it there.

The roofing crew is scheduled to start on Tuesday, 12/26. I can also imagine the fuming and cussing when they discover they’ll have to dump the torn-off shingles to the ground, then wheel-barrow them to the dumpster.

Meanwhile, progress continues indoors. In a short but productive half-shift yesterday, I pulled the super-grimy exhaust hood from above the stove, and carved the rest of the shower-surround out.

Not to mention, I also removed the overhead cabinets off the kitchen peninsula and dollied them around to their likely future home at the end of the living room. I do love the layout of this house except for the sad fact that there’s almost no storage, so these cabs will do a good deed here, holding books, music, objets-d’art, etc.

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At the other end of the living room (photo on the far right) is an approximation of the new window that will go in where the fireplace used to be. Found the right size at the ReUse Warehouse in Mpls, brand-new in the wrapper and ready to go as soon as the guys build the framing. This will bring in the morning light nicely, methinks.

Finally: the finish materials are coming together!

Left: Flooring and the new countertop for the bathroom, seen here with an assortment of rocks from Paradise Beach (north of Grand Marais).

And on the right: how’s this for a backsplash for the kitchen? 3x6” rough tiles with a horizon line of the handmade green tile I featured previously. Oh, and a sparkly-red rock from up on the river, freshly split (by one of those handy Bobcats, I reckon) and looking right at home with the cheery holiday arrangement in a funky-swirly 1950’s candy dish.

Wish me continued luck on the deconstruction inside, and favorable weather for the builder-guys outside!