I visit the local lumber yard regularly and take my dog whenever possible.  It is a good socialization activity for him, but I never realized that bringing him along had the potential to be a great conversation starter.  Usually I go there during the week in the course of my work day to pick up supplies for jobs.  I went last week on a Saturday to get some stuff for my personal use and discovered that Saturday is amateur day at the lumber yard.  It was me and 7 guys standing in line at the sales desk and every one of them struck up a conversation with me about my dog or their dog.  The conversations were light and fun with no awkward moments.  If I were single I could probably have walked away with several phone numbers!

The local lumber yard is a lot smaller than Home Depot or Lowe’s and provides an opportunity to hang out and talk with the other guys standing in line.  If you are a woman who is normally uncomfortable at a lumber yard bring your dog.  If you don’t have a dog, borrow one from a friend.  It helps if it is a big dog that guys can relate to easily like a German Shepherd or Labrador Retriever.

Guys are less inclined to take you seriously if you have a dog in your purse!

Remember, Take Risks and Have Fun!

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1.  Finish painting exterior trim (started 4 years ago)

2.  Repaint railing and floor of front porch

3.  Rebuild door to shed

4.  Clean mildew off rear deck

After completing the list I recheck it to see if the items are listed in priority order.  Priority for me is decided by whether or not the project needing to be done involves protecting my home from the elements:  wind, water, sun.   My list is in good priority order so I move on to the second phase.  I go outside my house and do a thorough examination looking for any damage that occurred during the long winter months.  I’ll be looking for things like this;

1.  Missing or damaged roof shingles

2.  Missing or damaged downspouts and gutters

3.  Rotted wood trim or windowsills

If I find any additional items I add them to the list in the appropriate priority order.   When I look at my list and realize I have about 7 months to complete these projects  I don’t feel completely overwhelmed.  I just try and chip away at the list each year, always getting the most important jobs done before I move on to the fun stuff, like planting more iris!

I realized it was time to upgrade my dryer vent to a rigid vent that is much less likely to accumulate lint since there is no place for it to get caught on the smooth inside of the rigid vent material.  Rather than purchasing a long section of vent pipe,  I purchased 5 two foot long sections that come in a flat piece with a crimped end and a smooth end.  When you roll the two sides together they catch in a groove and make round, 2 foot long segments that fit into each other.  I also purchased two 90 degree elbows one of which would come off the dryer and go straight up, the other would make a turn about 3 feet off the ground and head toward the wall.   The final material I purchased for this project was aluminum duct tape.  This tape is not the duct tape we are all familiar with and use for multiple, creative uses.  That duct tape actually does not work on ducts!  The heat that travels through dryer vents and heating ducts will dry out the familiar duct tape and render it useless over time.  So, be sure to purchase the aluminum duct tape for this project.

Tools required included a pair of metal snips for cutting the vent segments to length  and a pair of scissors for cutting the duct tape.  That was it.  I moved the dryer out from the wall, cleaned the gross floor that was underneath it and got started.  After removing my old dryer vent and being appalled at how dirty the inside was  I got to work.  I measured the length of my two segment (up from the floor and over to the wall), and cut the necessary segments.  I attached the segments of rigid vent material to each other after taping the seam along each side.  Then I taped the segments together.  This helps the whole thing stay together better and seals the joints which prevents hot, moist air from leaking out of the vent.

I attached the first elbow to the opening coming out of the dryer vent with a pipe clamp (this usually comes with your dryer), and the second elbow at the top of my section coming up  from the back of the dryer.  I attached the long section which connects to the hole in the wall, and when I was sure it all fit together snugly, I taped the elbows in place.  I slid the dryer back into position, did a final adjustment on the connection at the wall, plugged the dryer back in, and I was done.  It took me about an hour and cost about $30.

I purchased a full sheet of AC exterior grade 3/4 inch thick plywood.  I had a half sheet already.  My plan was to set the two pieces of ply wood on top of my existing table extended to its fullest length, connect to the two sheets at the seam, support the four corners with two by fours and cover the whole thing with a padded table liner.  I covered the existing table with my smaller table liner to protect its surface from the rough plywood.  Then I set both pieces of plywood on top of my table.  I connected the two pieces together, under the seam where they joined, with some flat angle brackets I had lying around, one T shaped and one L shaped.   Then I measured up from the floor to the bottom of the plywood out at the corners and cut four pieces of 2 x 4 to length.  My legs were 27 1/2 inches tall.  I place the legs just inside each corner and screwed down into them through the top of the plywood with 2 1/2 inch long sheetrock screws.  The table was very stable as my 14 year old daughter discovered when she sat on it!

I purchased a long sheet of table padding from the fabric store and taped the overlap to the underside of the plywood with duct tape and we were good to go!  My table was 12 feet long, 4 feet wide and allowed plenty of room for 15 people and all the fixin’s!   Taking it apart was a breeze.  I just unscrewed all the screws, with a little help from one of my guests and the whole table was disassembled and back in the garage in less than 15 minutes.