037 HANDYMAN MY HANDYMAN

I want to preface this article by saying I am pretty handy when it comes to building things, or figuring out all those things that need doing around the house.  In my younger days I even wired, plumbed and dry walled the entire basement of my house in Surrey.  I’ve built lots of projects at the cabin including my new floating dock two summers ago.  Heck I even painted the entire outside of the old house when Dad was in hospital in 2011, in addition to repairing the stucco.

BUSINESS CARD

PREPPING CHANDELIER

CHANDELIER UP

Alas, my best days seem to be deserting me.  With my back in the shape it is in these last couple of years and a pair of arthritic knees, it makes things much more difficult to do and even played heavily into my decision to sell the old house.  But even they physical limitations can’t compete with the situation I am now in.  I have a ton of tools and have no idea at all, where they are buried in the myriad of boxes in my garage.  Think the final scene in the warehouse at the end of Indiana Jones and The Raiders of the Lost Ark.

PREPPING CEILING FAN

FAN UP. YES THERE ARE 2
WHITE BLADES BY RENEE'S
REQUEST

So when it came to putting up the chandelier and ceiling fan and mounting the large painting, I decided it was time to get someone else to do it for me.  I had referred to me a great fellow, a retired school principal as it turns out, who is now a home handyman.  He does everything, and no job is too small.  He just finished doing a major bathroom renovation for one customer and then on to my little job.  He is based out of Port Moody, but it seems he will do things mostly anywhere in the Lower Mainland.  His name is Don Nordheimer and he charges a very reasonable rate.

He came in this morning and two and a half hours later the three jobs were done and he was off to the next one.  It was great work and very professional looking results.  I’m certainly glad I had him hang the painting, because on a job like that I would have a real tendency to eyeball the results, with some not so good consequences.

MEASURING FOR PAINTING

PAINTING HUNG

This has really put the finishing touches on the house.  The chandelier looks great over the table and the fan moves a lot of air.  I can’t think of too much else that needs to be done.  A little bit more clutter to clear up and I definitely have to get busy straightening up the disaster area which is my office.  The only other things that come to mind is to remove the baby safety stops on the upper floor windows.  They only permit the windows to open only an inch and a half, and since there is no babies around here, they are coming off.

I also have to have someone come in and fit the windows and sliding door with screens for the warmer months.  I have already noticed a couple of mosquitoes flying around in here, and they must be stopped.  The management company has given me a recommendation for two different screen specialists that they have worked with before.  It’s probably a good idea to work with one of them as they would know whatever restrictions there are in working with the building.

I can kick back and start relaxing and enjoying the place even more now that mostly everything is done.  I can work on the garage in bits and pieces, although the faster I get it sorted out, the faster I can move the boat further back, which will allow me to park the truck inside as well.  That of course was one of my main wants when I bought was a garage big enough to at very minimum hold the boat but at best to hold both vehicles.  My boat must be so happy, it’s the first time in its ten-year life that it has lived indoors without a cherry tree dripping all its stuff on the covers.