The last month was productive.  Weather, though hot, cooperated and allowed us to get a lot done.  Other things conspired to make sure we got them done.  For instance, the water line at the store building sprung a leak not far from the meter box, so we had to replace a segment of plastic pipe.  Hubby and I both detest plastic pipe, but after not waiting until all the water drained from the line (where did it all come from?) the first time and not getting a good seal, the second time worked like a charm, and we have a functioning water line.  This month’s water bill said that lush, green ditch in front of the property cost us $50 in water.

In better news, the west wall is looking much better — we have a color coat on all but the bottom three boards.  Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Hubby did a fine job reconstructing the top of this window frame:

Here’s the primer coat:

The first color coat going on:

Here’s what it looks like now:

The drip rail on the corner was not done correctly, so hubby is reworking it:

Dowels for stability:

And gets eased into position, awaiting primer:

We also applied some dirt to raise the level of the yard:

I sanded the badly peeling primer from the back of the garage in preparation for applying the new, better lasting primer.  This is on hold because the builders installed the boards upside down, and hubby wants to remove them and turn them upside up through the first-floor height. By installing them upside down, rain is channeled into the grooves, making the wood vulnerable to rot.  Had they been installed correctly, the lap of the board would have resulted in water being shed from the wall.  We’ll be installing wooden shingles on the second-floor wall (see second-floor of the house for example), so that isn’t as critical and the reason we only have to reverse the first-floor wall.

I’d like to put a coat of primer on the wall to protect it, but we’ll see what the boss says.

The downspouts we ordered for the shop arrived.  Hubby has been hauling music from the blue room to the shop and loading it into file cabinets.  Pretty soon, we’ll be able to set up the guest bed in the blue room.  Next time we go to Dallas, we’ll stop in an architectural antique place and look for a couple of hinges to allow us to hang the door between the blue room and what is supposed to be a bathroom (plumbed by no fixtures installed).  This is the one bathroom I would have done first instead of the one in the front bedroom upstairs, but I wasn’t doing the work of the previous owners.  I’m certain they had their logical reasons for doing what they did.

I forgot to bring the camera on my quick trip to San Antonio over Labor Day weekend, so I still haven’t gotten a picture of hubby’s driveway handiwork.  I’ve seen it, though, and it’s tremendous.

All-in-all, a pretty busy month.

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