I mentioned that my father and I are currently building a two-car garage and in-law suite. I am doing my best to chronicle the entire experience. This is episode four. Oh my, folks. There is never a dull moment with our project. My weekly updates continue to turn heads. Our lack of progress and foolish mistakes are still trending. We are slowly getting there, but everyone is questioning. Why didn’t they just hire someone? Yes. The entire neighborhood is watching.
We had some delays with our permits. It also didn’t help that my mates are super busy. My father was hoping to start sooner than later. But unfortunately, we had to push everything to late September. My pops now lives in California. And he has been with us off and on since the beginning. He has built a few homes in his day. Rough carpentry. But that was when he was much, much younger. Smarter. Better looking. Stronger. By now, you should see where I am going.
In the previous installments, I shared a few tales of our mishaps. Oh, it has been quite the adventure. The Spencer gals have completely lost their patience. Who frames a wall with an upside-down door? That pushed us back even further. The folks on YouTube make it look so easy. You can’t make it up, kids. We make several trips to Lowes each day. The customer service desk and I are on a first-name basis. This will be a three-year project. Maybe four.
Day 67. THE LL BEAN FLEECE.
I scored her in my senior year in high school. But this ugly blue jacket has been in my father’s closet ever since. I have hundreds of photos of him sporting it. He wears this fleece wherever he goes. It currently smells like tar and sawdust. Jim isn’t allowed to wear it inside the house anymore. Pops said goodbye at 5:45 p.m. He is driving back to California. Jim plans to drive south to miss the impending weather. He has a king-sized mattress and a pillow in the back. Big Spence tends to frequent a few Walmart parking lots.
He left his tools and trailer behind. Yes. I already called a few guys. Teach made him a cute little care package: trail mix and a case of Diet Pepsi. Jensen now thinks he is free of holding ladders and scrambling for nails. Believe it or not. We already miss him. Who knows when he plans on returning? Most folks track Santa this time of year. But we are now watching Jim Spencer as he drives cross country. He is wearing a LL Bean Fleece.
Day 84. THE TUB.
Big Jim is back in town. He drove all the way to California to spend Christmas with Mom. Spence purchased a one-way plane ticket, and we have no idea how long he is staying. Why do I have to ask him? Jensen and I are learning a great deal, but we want to throw in the towel. Our morale is at an all-time low. Plus, it is getting cold. Big Jim is our fearless leader, and he will never quit. Pops moves like a turtle, but he is doing great. You seriously can’t make this up.
There is no easy way to get a 75 x 80 x 36 single-tub unit into a house unharmed. New or existing. It’s tough. I hate to point any fingers, but Jim’s plan sucked. It was an absolute disaster. We were doomed from the start. Teach was crying, and the F-bombs were flying. We took some measurements. Nope. We removed a section of drywall and pushed. Negative. We banged out a few studs, but that only made things worse — two hours of total bedlam. Boards and drywall were everywhere. My brother-in-law pulled a muscle, and I was spent. Jensen threatened to call the township. There was no way in hell this tub was going in. WHY DON’T WE JUST REMOVE THE DOOR AND GO THROUGH THE ADDITION? It took us 10 minutes the next morning. And we spent the rest of the day fixing the hall. DUH. Two steps forward. Moonwalk back. That’s our new motto.
Day 92. RETAINERS.
Special thanks to Tim Bair from Bair Excavation. He is the only guy on this project who actually hits his deadlines. Big Jim and I just asked Teach for another extension. Tim has been a huge help from the very start. Today he finished our 5-foot FAUX retaining wall. Man. It looks sharp. Great stuff, brother. I appreciate your friendship, and I was dead serious about the I WILL MENTION YOUR NAME IN THE WEBB WEEKLY discount.
Day 107. HOLD MY LADDER.
We have pushed this off for the past two months. Our temporary tarps worked fine, but it was time to man up. We needed to sheath the gable end. Both Spence and I considered several different techniques. A few might have set up some scaffolding. The smart folks would have rented a boom. Heck. Most people would hire a professional. But that isn’t our style. We only needed Curt Wolfhope.
Curt was an absolute animal. He was such a big help. Watching him gave me the confidence I desperately needed. We were 30 feet in the air, routinely using our tool belts. We got her done. I didn’t fall. Those 8 x 4 zips didn’t have a chance. It worked. We now have the addition totally enclosed. But why did we wait until the freezing temperatures?
So, I am starting to get the hang of this building thing. No. I will not give up my day job and all my part-time gigs. Having my father around sure is grand. I keep telling myself that he means well. And we all appreciate his efforts. Big Jim is our hero. Yes. I sometimes complain. There is a four-inch difference between 2’1″ and 21″, but my dad is OK. Cheers.
