Done And Done

Ta da!  Mike said let it be done and, lo, it was done!  We, and I do mean we, are ever so glad the deck project is finished.  The last brush strokes of sealer went down not too far before sundown yesterday, and Mike sat down for a well-earned rest and a cold beer.

At some point during the morning, I'd gone out and said, "Hey, Mike, you've got to see this!"  I opened the outside refrigerator and showed him an empty can of Mountain Dew with a large hole in the side I'd found a few days before.  No, it hadn't blown up.  From the droppings, he determined that a rat was making himself at home.  Ratso (Dustin Hoffman, Midnight Cowboy, 1969) had opened and drained another can, as well.  He was probably thirsty after a meal of Missy's cat food...turns out it was neither birds nor raccoons that were sharing her dish.  Coming back from his lunch break, Mike brought a can of some kind of foam stuff that he shot in the holes Ratso had made in the wall of the fridge.  Hopefully that will stop the latest freeloader.  In the meantime, there's a jazzed-up rodent with a bellyful of Mountain Dew running loose out there.  It could be worse, he could be drunk on beer.  Does it never end?

Stove had started huffing out smoke the last few fires and I knew the chimney needed sweeping.  This break in the winter weather isn't going to last and Stove's vacation will be over.  Mike's primary work is as a carpenter, but he agreed to help out with some of Helper Dude's stuff.  He'll be back today to take on the chimney.  Good man.

The sky hadn't been this spectacular when Michael and I had our last walk, but I saw the glow later and went out to catch this view.

I know what I'll be doing today, restoring the deck and cleaning the fridge.  At least I'll have the deck bench to sit on and take a breather.