A Final Opus... or Perhaps Nothing More than a Swan Song

Day 1 - May 31,  2023

Following some dithering about whether or not to commence this project, I decided to jump in... meaning get started before winter sets in.

After some fiddling around with a piece of 2 x 6 scrap left over from a years-ago project, I soon discovered that the floor of my envisioned add-on would never fit snug agains the existing base... unless the bottom row of the old shingles was removed.

The logical way to remove a bottom row of cedar shingles is to remove every row above it... meaning all the shingles on the back wall of the existing structure this planned addition is to be attached to. 

I had no desire to remove anything from the existing shed other that what I deemed would be necessary for sensible for new construction.

Employing a Japanese hand saw, which cuts on the pull rather than the push, I cut off the lowest course of cedar shingles, which had been double-laid as the base row. This task took a while in spite of employing a sharpened wood chisel for assistance.

During the morning hours I lost the shade while the temperature climbed to 85, but I got the planned task done before lunch. I'm not as young as I used to be and my joints don't bend the same they did before. I got the message, so I ended my work day here.

The bottom row of cedar shingles has been removed.
For the curious: that wire mesh is to keep rats and other rodents out, all of which are nuisances in this city as well being persistent unwanted trespassers around here.

Day 2 - June 01, 2023

The framed foundation for the new addition has been assembled and attached to the foundation of the existing structure, however, this new part has yet to be levelled and shimmed. In spite of appearances here, that concrete base is cracked and uneven.

The dimensions are 6ft in length by 35 1/2 inches wide. The required setback from the property line is half a metre, so I went with 20 inches.

The materials used are 2 x 6 pressure treated lumber... perhaps a marketing disguise to make the SPF resemble cedar.

Day 3, June 03, 2023

I got wind that Jonah would be coming here for a visit for the weekend, so I chose to leave the next step for him, and a task I thought would be right up his alley.

Nonetheless to have everything ready for him, I shimmed and levelled the base in advance.

Jonah busy nailing down the flooring.

The material used for the floor was 1 x 6 pressure treated fencing which comes in 6ft lengths, and perfect lengths for this framing.

Jonah relaxing on his new but temporary mini-deck.

What has astonished me most in making this tiny bit of progress was the cost of materials, and not so much the time required to do the work.

Day 4, June 06 2023

Framing a wall should be easy and fast, which it was, but afterward a certain amount of finagling was needed to ensure the wall shall remain square as well as firm; hence the diagonal bracing.

The completed framed wall set aside and waiting for the next step.

Although images were not recorded, the entire afternoon was spent cutting the rafters. After that task was done, I scrounged through my shop for scraps ofsuitable materials for the splice-bars. 

If I've lost you now... my plan is to add extensions onto the protruding ends of the rafters of the existing structure. This should give the roof of the addition a a seamless and matching same slope.

Time shall tell...

Day 5, June 07, 2023

A busier day with a little more progress...

The framing for the tiny back wall was accomplished quickly, but the one hiccup I hadn't planned for was having to remove a vertical strip of the cedar shingles on the existing shed. Therefore I had another session with my Japanese saw and a chisel

That afternoon, the back wall frame was squared and plumbed, and then nailed to the floor as well as the back wall of the existing structure. 

Afterward, the already squared side wall was plumbed and Attached to the back wall. Following this, rafter No 5 was bird-mouthed (notched) and then installed. I'm old enough to know now that whatever works perfectly on paper doesn't work the same way with wood, thus some additional minor fiddling was required.

Two walls up and one rafter extension in place

Day 6, June 08, 2023

Rafter No. 1 in place above the framing for the new doorway.
Obvious from this image, is the poor state of the shingles on the existing shed.

Day 7, June 09, 2023

Rafters No 2 and No 3 have been installed. Rafter No. 4 to follow.

Framing beneath Rafter No 5 has been added. The framing under Rafter No 1 was soon to be done too.

Day 8, June 10, 2023

After Rafter No. 4 was in place, 1 x 6 pressure treated fence boards were laid out and nailed down on top to form the base for the soon to be added new shingles.

The new shingles are 36 x 12 inches, which of course did not align with the old shingles in metric. As fas as I'm concerned, metric-sized shingles are a poor choice for structures made with lumber dimensioned in feet and inches... something I learned the hard way the first time, because constant shingle trimming was required for each course.

Stopped here because I ran out of shingles...started with a partial bundle left over from re-shingling the work shop two years earlier.

Day 9, June 13, 2023

Ran out of shingles a second time. Signs of the previous night's rain

Boards on the walls started. Same 1 x 6 pressure treated boards as used for the floor and roof base. They're easy to bring home, easy to handle and work with, and a much better material than chipboard.

Day 10, June 14, 2023

Back wall closed up

Side wall closed-up too

In spite of the iPhone lens distortion here, the new wall is indeed plumb, and the doorway corners are at 90 degrees... and some days so was the temperature.

Day 11, June 15, 2023

Began installing new cedar shingles on back wall

Day 12, June 16, 2023

Started shingling the side wall. There is a right way and wrong way to lay wooden shingles on exterior corners to keep water out, and the correct way does require some trimming using a chisel and plane.

Door end closed in... except for door of course.

Day 13, June 17, 2023

Finishing off the upper courses, which does necessitate each shingle being trimming to fit.

Day 14, June 20, 2023

Day 15, June 21, 2023

Day 16, June 29, 2023

Roofing completed.

Cedar shingles completed too

Day 17, July 10, 2023

This past Saturday, July 8th, Kie and I visited Home Depot to buy the materials I needed to construct a door as well as the hardware needed to install the door.

Surprise, surprise! Or perhaps no surprise at all, but the milled wood I required was in limited supply. Worse, what little remained in stock was suitable only for firewood. Instead, I went with Plan B and purchased a slightly more expensive milled, tongue and groove material. 

Smart choice!

The slightly more expensive milled pine boards were straight and true, and every board in pristine condition both sides.

Here's the assembled door levelled and weighted as the glue dries.Later, screws will be added in the corners for strengthening.

Day 18, July 11, 2023

Door installed!
And no finagling or jimmying was needed to make it fit and swing true.

Inexpensive gate hardware makes for a good latch.

Day 19, July 12, 2023

Adding this hook was the finale.

At this point one might be wondering what the purpose of this hook is.

Glad you asked even if you didn't.

Have you ever seen what the wind can do with an unsecured open door?

The hook holds the door open while access to the shed is required. 

Day 20, July 17, 2023

Oops!

Almost forgot this part, one which I consider a crucial, especially because I have an ongoing war against the local rat and mouse populations. As fas as I'm concerned, the only good rodent is a dead rodent, and I do my best to make that happen... and with no apologies whatsoever to the animal rights nuts.

Lining the perimeter with 1/4th inch grid wire to keep rodents out.

So... what's next?

I have no idea, but it's about time I get last year's news posted.

The Oddblock Station Agent

Back to School

Labour Day, falling on Monday September 02, 2024, seemed to arrive early this year, because the following day meant back to school for the young people.

Audrey and Louise seemed gung-ho and ready to return to school on Tuesday.

Jonah was ready to go, and looking forward to seeing his classmates.

Kiera too seemed ready, but perhaps a bit more ambivalent about the return to classroom life.

My dear grandchildren, learn what is necessary while rejecting the useless... but unfortunately, you'll be subjected to too much of the useless, and too little of the necessary.

"The Lord bless you and keep you:

The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you:

The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace."

The oddblock Station Agent

Another Day in a Life of Going Nuts

The downside of this unusually mild and almost snowless winter that doesn't seem like winter, is that the urban wildlife is more active than it would normally be, and the rodents go out of their way to make sure I’m aware of this. 

So here’s the latest…

February 1, 2024

 

"The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men, gang aft agley.” wrote Robert Burns.

 

Believe it or not, this half-comprehensible Burns line is in a poem titled, "To A Mouse."

 

A rodent of all things. But why?

Well I never knew this line belonged to a poem until two days later when I read through the verses for the first time ever… and?

I have no idea what Burns was writing about.

 

Unfortunately that Burns line was updated and made understandable by John Steinbeck, with, “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry."

I think not understanding "gang aft agley" feels better than "often go awry" which I do understand.

 

After all these years I think I figured it out... there’s a difference in nuance between the best laid plans and the best plans laid, because the best laid plan may not have been the best plan to start with.

 

So why am I writing about this?

 

That Thursday afternoon I thought I heard something run across the roof, and my first thought was the denial, "It can't be."

 

Minutes later, and certain this time, I heard whatever it was run back across the roof again, "What? How? It's not possible."

 

Nonetheless, I went outside for a look at the roof from the ground, and sure enough a black squirrel was up there looking down at me. This one is grey, but it's the same headache.

You're not Cute,
You're not Funny,
And you're definitely not wanted up there or anywhere else around here.

I went back inside and asked Kie to come out for a look. She came out, saw the squirrel too, and confirmed I wasn't hallucinating. And I kinda wish I was.

My adjoining neighbour (I live in a semi-detached home) has no meaningful trees near his half of our shared building, so when I made what has now become my best laid-to-waste plan, I never considered his side might also be part of the problem. But... and I deserved to be kicked in the butt for these buts... his neighbour on the other side has a row of cedar trees nearly as tall as the cedar I had removed... but I never considered those a possible route... but obviously the squirrels did, and found the I-295 to the roof.

 

Anyway, I went over to get a close-up perspective, stood right beneath that other cedar tree, and looked up. Sure enough and worse, the upper branches of that tree are nearer to that corner of our roof in common. I hadn't expected this.

 

Complicating the situation is that my neighbour’s neighbour is an absentee owner, and that dwelling is vacant, and it’s been vacant for at least a dozen years. I have no contact information for the owner, so I have to wait until she makes one of her rare appearances and obtain permission.

 

So in the meantime…

 

I’m cursin’ from the ground, just cursin', from the ground,

Not a glorious feeling, another squirrel’s around.

It’s sitting up there, looking down at me,

I’m shaking my fist, got to cut me some tree.

 

This stanza matches that famous tune, Singin’ in the Rain, but I won’t be dancing around with an umbrella in the backyard any time soon like some kind of a… nut.

Is it any wonder that I’m feeling like Donald Duck tangling with Chip ‘n Dale in those original old Disney cartoons?

 

After all, we share the same first name... and troubles with rodents.

The Oddblock Station Agent

Days in a Life of Going Nuts

Do I hate rodents?

Does the sun rise every morning?

So now ladies and gentlemen, I shall present my case...

January 16, 2024

About 1/4^th of an inch of powder snow fell overnight, and in the morning these footprints were at and around my front door. A rat had come calling.

January 23, 2024

Another one of those overnight 1/4^th of an inch of powder snowfalls sneaked down, and in the morning these footprints were all around the house, front and back. I’m fairly certain they’re from a skunk rather than a raccoon. 

I like when these overnight 1/4^th inch dustings of snow arrive, because they’re kind of reminiscent of those days gone when the gossip pages in morning newspapers tattled on who did what the night before… in this case meaning footprints reveal whether friend or foe visited. Believe it or not, skunks fall into the friend category because they do hunt rodents. 

 

No rats, cats, foxes or coyotes visited during the night, and they’re the regulars, but squirrels had already been about before I got outside.

On the subject of squirrels, later on in the morning one of these nuisances appeared on my roof. 

Don't allow cute-looking be deceiving

At first I thought the pitter-patter was the youngster next door running around like he often does... but when the sound of little feet shifted to coming from overhead, I went to the window for a quick look. A tiny black head was peeking down over the eavestrough. 

Oh groan, not again.

 

Seconds later as I was on my way down the stairs to get outside and try to scare off the Black Plague, from another window I saw it make the jump into the cedar tree… that airborne leap must’ve been at least three feet or more from the roof to the tip of that lower branch the pest grabbed. I'm somewhat doubtful it got up on the roof using the cedar tree, so I suspect the enemy may have infiltrated via the neighbour’s walnut tree. Some branches of that tree have grown near, but quite a way above the roof. Regardless the route, squirrels were now visiting the roof.

Can bad get to worse?

 

When I got out the front door, Public Enemy Number 1 showed, up… that red squirrel in its winter coat masquerading as a grey squirrel.

 

Rightly described by others as "6 ounces of nastiness"

Public Enemy Number 1 was busy chasing two black squirrels out of the cedar tree, and when the nasty little pill came down, it raced under my car and jumped up into the engine. I went over to the car, banged on the hood, but that didn’t scare the critter out like usual. Next, I popped open the hood, and that didn’t work either. Annoyed, I started the car and drove it around the block… and while doing so, I heard some squeaks… and not from engine trouble but trouble in the engine. 

 

Instead of returning, I parked the car on a street away from my home. A few hours later I went back, started the car, and no more squeaks. Problem solved… but this thing is like the Terminator in that movie and keeps coming back.

 

Do I hate rodents?

Let me count the ways.

My neighbour feeds them,

I’m the one who pays.

 

Yes, my neighbour next door does indeed put out peanuts to feed the squirrels, and guess what?

Back in September 2022, we started having internet and phone issues worse than a child playing on and off with a light switch. For two days the cable provider kept telling us there was no problem, but reality said differently. Having one of those Charlie Brown moments and muttering “Rats”, I went outside for a look, and… 

Good grief!

Sure enough, several inches of shield and the cable too were both gnawed away, and those copper threads were barely holding. That outside shield is tough, can’t be cut with a knife, and difficult to cut with shears. Curious as two why a rat would chew this down, I soon found out why. A squirrel had hidden an unshelled peanut down the tube.

And if that wasn't aggravation enough, discovered only last October was this un-commissioned work of modern art...

That was the air filter from my car, destroyed by a rodent of course, and most likely the work of Public Enemy Number 1 which I chased out of the car's engine several times prior. Replacing the filter plus the other repairs needed in my vehicle cost me over $300.00, and not including the air conditioning because that repair job can wait until spring.

Enough of Browning’s suggestion of recounting the ways of rodents.

 

I hired a tree removal service to take down the old cedar tree nearest the house, and also to prune back branches of the neighbour’s walnut tree that are overhanging my house.

January 25, 2024

 

The tree removal service arrived early at 8:10, and the two guys began setting up right away to remove the cedar tree. Within minutes of starting, this guy had just about finished limbing the trunk and was about to cut off the crown. In case one might be curious, I took this through an upstairs window from the safety of being inside.

Gone in 20 minutes was about 35 feet of cedar tree that had taken 50 or more years to grow to that height.

 

I was sad to see the tree gone, but this wasn’t the first time it served like an I-95 highway for roof-bound rodents. The tree originally had two trunks, and the other was nearer the house. 15 or 16 years ago we came home from a week away only to discover squatters of this kind had moved into the attic. They’d gnawed holes through the corners of the eaves. How thoughtful.

 

The next morning when I was certain the varmints had gone out for the day, I cut down that half of the tree. It was smaller and thinner then, and I was younger too. For a week one of those evicted squirrels kept climbing the bricked sides of the house to get back up, but was foiled by the vinyl siding… and so in reference to Regis, that was my vinyl answer.

 

Those clusters of cedar cones that appear in autumn are a major food source for red squirrels, thus the other reason I chose total tree removal. Public Enemy Number 1 would sit in the tree for hours eating the seeds and dropping hundreds, maybe thousands of tiny cone scales on the driveway, or covering the car when I’d forget not to park under the tree.

About 30 minutes later… 

 

Out on a limb on the walnut tree, and this guy was way out from the trunk as well as way, way up. Much like a squirrel, he went from branch to branch and removed every branch and twig in the upper reaches of the tree overhanging the roof and driveway. All the larger cuttings were tied and lowered rather than allowed to freefall; a sensible way to avoid an accident or prevent damage.

No one could ever convince me to try this

Have you ever experienced what it’s like to almost drift off to sleep only to be jolted awake by a large bang on the roof? If you haven’t, then you haven’t missed out on anything.

 

Come next October, I won’t be hearing those nocturnal random bangs on the roof made by falling walnuts. Yeah… I know... I’m counting my chickens… but I keep coming up with zero because I don’t have any.

 

By 10:15 these guys had finished, cleaned up and were gone.

 

While there wasn’t enough walnut cuttings worth keeping, I did ask for firewood lengths of most of the cedar’s trunk, which those two guys moved and piled nicely in the back.

 

Thus ends my latest rodent saga, and at least this one didn’t involve nuts if I leave myself out.

The Oddblock Station Agent