I used to like to keep updating progress throughout the day, on the same post, when I was doing a job that required a lot of motivation to keep going, but the edit time here is apparently only 2 hours, and this job is certainly not worth more than one post a day. Finished all but the 4 ceiling corners last night. That was probably a mistake, because where the corners meet you tend to mess up the previous one if it isn't completely dry. I think there is just no getting around a lot of waiting time on this, for a beginner. Out to the farm late this afternoon. Will try to get two of those ceiling corners done before I leave. Maybe they will be dry by late tonight. Many reviews on this green (mold resistant) drywall said the contrast in color was difficult to cover with paint. The only other 1/2" stuff they had was the lightweight kind, and it got terrible reviews. Not sure why the tape turned pinkish. Should be worried? First application 1:10 pm: Two ends done. . . .
A new visitor today. This may explain why the Eastern Kingbird hatchlings, in the nest in the rafters of the barn, mysteriously disappeared too early last spring. For scale, the mat on the floor is 4' wide. The first half of the video is 2x speed, so it's a little shaky, and it was was too dark, because of rain clouds. The snake eventually went up into the roof above the insulation. It didn't seem to notice me being there at all. (Better viewed on YouTube in wide screen)
Bea, look at the positive side. There have been no mice, rats, or squirrels in the barn for a couple of years. I hated losing the birds, because they were unusual ones, but they will have to learn. Wish I could count on a snake down at the cabin. The for sale sign will have to go up eventually. I like it in town also.
Speaking of birds, no hummers yesterday. I hope they left in time to get where they are going, ahead of the hurricane. And Carmen the spider now has two fig-shaped pods. I found out they are egg sacs. (time lapse video) This video shows them hatching, hundreds of them. They hatch in the fall, and it's too cold for them to stay outdoors. I don't like the looks of that.
Just finished the 2nd application of joint compound on the closet. Each takes at least a whole day, maybe two, because I do only one side of each corner at a time. It's easier to make it look neat that way if you don't know what you are doing. I'm not sure if it looks as good as it should at stage 2, or not. Procrastination paid off. The little hole in the wall with pink insulation sticking out was to be cut out to 2'x2' for an entrance to get back behind the wall, in case of an emergency. It just dawned on me that the likelihood of such an emergency is so small, I might as well just cover that hole with a plate, and cut out only when/if needed. That will save SO MUCH work right now, and the hole is not really wasted, because if I do need to get back there I can tell where to start cutting. Win, win.
This is a native dogwood tree in my front yard right up near the street, and close to the property line with my neighbor. You can see the corner stake at the base. It was there before I bought the house, 36 years ago. There used to be a large water oak beside it to the left, which I had taken down years ago. The ground is now sinking as the roots of the oak rot, and the dirt is washing off the roots of the dogwood because of that, and because it is sitting on a hump. I think the tree will die if I don't do something, and I kind of hate to lose it. Do you think it will survive like this? ..Would you try to save it? . .
I may have found my life's calling---putting joint compound on drywall. Seriously though, I rather like this job. Keep discovering better ways to do things. Next time would be easier. Just finished a coat tonight. Still not dry. Shine a light on it one way and it looks fine, then move the light to a different angle and you see flaws. Most areas of these walls are now as smooth as a baby's bottom. The 3-way corners are tricky to make neat, but there are only 6 of them. One more coat on the ceiling, and then some touch ups, and it would be fine I think. But after that I'll probably skim coat the entire surface so the difference in texture and color won't show up when it's painted. Every coat erases most of the previous mistakes, always creates a few new ones, but fewer than before, and less serious. And eventually all the remaining mistakes can be sanded away. Wouldn't it be great if life were that way!
Good idea. Looking at that picture again, it just occurred to me some of the smaller roots might freeze this winter. I covered the roots of another dogwood tree too deep one time and helped to kill it. I suspect this will be an ongoing project, as another sinkhole develops.
I thought lawn mowing was over for the year. The grass has gone to seed, and sending up tall shoots that are catching the first of the falling leaves. Otherwise a strong wind often blows them all away, not sure where. Yeah, I can mow one more time. Even the driveway. The riding mower is a fantastic leaf-blower. That was Friday. The only new visitor was an odd looking caterpillar, walking across the barn floor. Got the toggle button mixed up on the phone camera---it was off when I thought it was on---but found a better video on the internet anyway. Yellow Banded Tussock Moth Caterpillar (Halysidota tessellaris) Another coat on the closet ceiling and one light skim coat on everything else this morning. Sanded and touched up some spots tonight. I'd like to do one more skim coat. This part of the project should be finished by Tuesday night if I don't get lazy. It sands so easily I don't see how it stays on there. Maybe I better paint one coat soon? Rusty still likes those pear chunks. I've got at least 5 lbs of them. They thawed out and froze back again into one big brown mess. He even likes just the peelings. I've thawed a few, drying them in the toaster oven right now to see how that works. They are too messy to deal with otherwise. I believe he likes them better than ginger snaps! Silly goat.
Carmen has been at it again. Yesterday there were THREE egg sacs! I'm tempted to put one in a jar and watch it, but what would I do with them? A video of two yellow garden spiders mating. Not worth watching really, except get a load of the size difference! More stuff HERE. "Cocoons (egg cases) wall layers provide barriers against burrowing larvae of insect predators and ovipositors of parasitic insects, but wasps ...and ... flies ... lay their eggs in Argiope aurantia egg cases. In fact, one study found that in addition to A. aurantia, nineteen species of insects and eleven species of spiders emerged from A. aurantia egg cases." Also sad to learn that Carmen will die when the first frost comes, if not before. {sniff} First the hummingbirds, now Carmen. But the snake will still be around. I need to give it a name.
11:00 pm: Joint compound and touch up is finished. Used up all the "mud," except about a cup. Sanding tomorrow morning and then a coat of primer. You can sand that also. There is dust all over everything in the house upstairs. Major cleaning needed before going on. I think it turned out pretty good. If I start obsessing about flaws, all I have to do is look at the ceiling in a small utility room in my house, with the light hitting it just right, that someone else did. Some of the tape is even peeling off. I may redo this ceiling now. ps: I forgot to mark where the studs are.
Finished the primer on the closet earlier tonight. Still hate painting, even such a small room. Left and right sides, as you enter. The man in the YouTube video was right. You can make the result look as good as you want, depending on how much time you want to spend. Frankly the dust was becoming irritating, so I decided to wrap it up, and seal it. If I had it to do over, I'd have sealed off that bedroom completely from the other rooms. Learned a lot so far.