Shedding Season

Ah, the honey-do list.
The never-ending list of summertime chores that compete with the desire for family summertime outings, and more often than not, winning out in the end.
Sometimes I envy those who embrace the condo lifestyle.  Let it be someone else's problem.
But for now, I digress.
My wife and I bought our current home in the spring of 2009, shortly before the birth of our daughter.  Going in, we knew that there were going to be some things that would require some adaptation on our part.
One was the garage.  Built in 1966, at a time when the closest the American family would get to an SUV would be an Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser, there was limited space between the floor and ceiling of the garage.
This would limit our vehicle choices in the future.  My Dodge Dakota barely cleared the door jamb, and Margie's Jeep had to get used to life outside.
No worries.  Jeeps are built for the outdoors, right?
When you're my wife, that gets very old very quick.
So where Margie's Jeep would normally stay, the garden tractor took up residency.
Then earlier this year, Margie decided it was time to trade the Wrangler Unlimited in for something else.
The Honda CRV she took ownership of fit nicely in the garage.  So guess where the tractor went?
Backyard and under a tarp.
Then one day, Margie asked me if I wanted to see a shed she was interested in buying in order to store the tractor.  I liked it, but decided we needed something larger to store it...it's a vintage 1975 commercial-duty Gravely, and is way bigger and heavier than your average purchase from Home Depot.
While these places are more than happy to sell these things to you, they're not always willing to do the prep work needed for it, especially after you learn that there's more to it than you ever imagined.
First was getting the site level.  No you can't just set it on bare earth.  Or lay down plywood without building an elaborate frame around it.  And it all has to support more than half a ton.
Enter patio stones and construction sand.  Lots of raking and shoveling.  Endless leveling.
Finally, it did get done.  After one do-over.
That happened after my best friend and I got it put together, only to find that it was grossly "un-level".
I spent my Father's Day correcting it.  Now all that's left is some finishing touches.
Yesterday was my make-up day for Father's Day.  We spent it at "Wine Time" at Penn's Colony.
And today I'm paying for it...make-up day for everything I didn't do yesterday.
Grass cutting, shed finishing, boat cleaning, laundry folding, and probably other things I haven't thought of yet.
When does it end?
Someone with the answer, please let me know.  I haven't yet a clue.


NEXT WEEK:  Up on the Roof