MIA since April 4, 2012 - Gerry Trims the Patio Tree

Gerry decided to trim the backyard patio tree to clear out the branches broken by the strong winds so they didn't fall on me or Fred.  Notice all the junk piled up around the tree truck for storage--bricks, rocks, scaffolding, a drill press, etc.

 

He's trimmed this tree since we moved into the house over 20 years ago.  He just gets right up in it.  Remember this photo from 2010 when he re-routed the cables from the back of the house to the trailer when we first started the remodel.

There are narrow paths on the three sides of the tree so we can get around it when necessary.

 Unfortunately, on April 4th, the branch he was standing on broke.  He fell vertically legs/feet onto this east-side path, narrowly missing the stuff you see in the picture:

He had a radical, compound dislocation of his right foot.  (When he looked at his foot, he thought he had "lost" it and so did one of the paramedics.) Luckily, he did not hit his head and he had his cell phone with him (I was at work), so he was able to call 911 himself.  He was taken to the Harbor UCLA Medical Center trauma center for surgery.  This was taken 8-9 hours later after surgery, in the recovery room.  He was in the hospital for 4 days.  The doctor was most concerned about infection in the bone because it had been exposed to the dirt.  (That's his good foot in the picture!)

 The doctors were surprised he could move his toes right away.  he had this soft wrap while he was in the hospital.   When they sent him home, they put on a regular plaster cast.

He could not put any weight on the foot/cast since there were pins protruding from his heel which had completely dislocated 180-degrees from his leg.  Surprisingly, he broke no bones!  He had to use a walker to move around.  They did not want him to use crutches for fear he might fall or slip...especially with all the construction paths around the yard. 

I set up an air mattress in the shop.  The trailer was too small, with steps, for him to safely move about.  Fortunately, the shop already had a TV and toilet hooked up, and he could get a wireless connection for his laptop.  Fred was very happy to have Gerry home.

He had to stay off that foot for 11 weeks so I bought a wheel chair.  Fred liked going for rides, too.

After several weeks, Gerry started to move around more and more.  He made a "scooter" so he could manuever around the house with the bad foot up on the scooter pad.

He went in for a follow-up visits with the surgeon every week for the first 6 weeks.  They were very concerned about infection since the bone torn through the skin. This is his foot on one of those days when they removed the cast and the 4 pins were still in his foot.

  

After 11 weeks, the pins were removed (with a cordless drill and pliers!) and he was given a walking boot.  He still uses the boot because he can't risk twisting his foot/ankle while he working around the house.  He can use a slipper for short walks in the shop but he has to be careful since he has no feeling on the bottom or right side of that foot.  The surgeon said it could take a year before that nerve heals.

March 5, 2012 - What's Been Going On For The Past 2 Months?

Sorry it has been a while since I updated this blog. We've been busy, but most of the activity has not been "picture worthy."


Gerry has installed all the purchased windows in the house.  The window for the master bath shower will be custom made with a leaded glass window.


These are the two single-hung widows on the west wall in the great room:

 

The two sliding glass doors and transom windows in the great room:

 The fireplace will be to the left of these doors on the diagonal wall.

 

This is how they look from the backyard:

 

These are the windows in the master bathroom as seen from the master bedroom.  The spa tub will be on the left under the large square window with the round window at the foot.  The french door leads to the brick patio under the large tree in the backyard.  The small window to the right will be between the two sinks (not really sure if I like this).  The large opening into the bathroom will be a pocket door with embossed glass.

Window between the sinks in the master bath:

Spa tub area:

 

View of the master bath from the backyard:

This three-foot wooden window was a Habitat find!  It is installed on the west wall of the dining room at the front of the house.  The pop-out windows are just to the right.:

This wooden window below is also a Habitat find. It is installed in an unusual place over the cook top which Gerry set it up so I could visualize the layout.  However, when Gerry brought out the matching stainless steel range hood and hung it up over the window, it did not work as planned.  We have to re-think the window and/or the style and size of the range hood.

Gerry wanted a window on the kitchen's outside wall and this was the only available location.  There are two skylights just overhead so maybe we don't need the window after all.

Last, but certainly not least....many people have asked about Fred.....

Yes, he is now ours!  He doesn't come in the trailer often but he just had a bath so we let him come in for a few minutes and sit with Gerry.  Surprisingly, he doesn't try to come in the trailer when we open the door and his bed is just a couple feet away.  Fred still has separation anxiety when Gerry is out of sight for too long, but we're working on it.  It's difficult because Gerry is usually home all day and takes Fred almost everywhere he goes.  Tomorrow, Fred has a BIG day scheduled at the vet!

January 5 - Windows Were Delivered

The windows and sliding glass doors for the house were delivered today!

 

Gerry immediately installed the window in the front of the garage:

 

On Friday, he installed the garage window that faces the neighbor's driveway.

 

He removed the plywood from the two side windows in the dining room to prepare for the windows:

 

Saturday & Sunday, the dining room windows and 3 transom windows were installed:

 

We also re-covered the trailer with new heavy duty plastic sheeting to keep the rain off the patio and give the trailer added protection against leaks:

We tied one end to to a rope that was thrown over the top of the trailer.  I pulled it over as Gerry fed it up the side and onto the top.

Then he went all around the perimeter and screwed it down to the frame he built.  The last step was weaving a few ropes across the plastic to keep the wind from pulling it up.

January 1, 2012 - Happy New Year!

Gerry took down the white 10x20 tent he was using first as an office and then to store tools--that's what the shop/studio is for!  So, you can actually see the entire back of the house.

He got approval from the inspector to wrap the shop to prepare for the siding.  Gerry's doing the shop first "for practice" so when he gets to the house, he'll have made all his mistakes on the shop.

Back of the shop:

West side:

 

The front of the house still looks the same, but......the windows are on order and due to be delivered January 12th!

Dec 25th - Our First Christmas in the New House

A couple days before Christmas it was decided the family would come to our "house."   We pulled out a few decorations from the storage unit and made the great room festive.

 

Our Christmas day picture...with Fred!

 

And the family photos:

Paula, Raymond, Sheila, Robert & me

The Fortner Family: 

 

Robert's Family:

 Russell (Duke), Caitlin, Karrell

Robert & Cathy

Paula's Family:

Veronica, Paula, Vincent

This was our 2010 Christmas picture. We're also in the great room but in a slightly different location!  We had another little tree like this one in the trailer this year, too.

December - House Update

I've had these picture loaded but never had time to complete the page before the holidays!

Several weeks ago, Gerry mocked-up the two shallow steps from the kitchen hallway area to the great room.

And we moved a ping-pong table into the master bedroom.  Don't you have a ping-pong table in your bedroom??

 

We also bought my new spa tub which has both massage jets in strategic places and effervescent air holes that encircle the bottom of the tub.  Here it is in the master bath where it will be installed.

 

Then we took it outside and tested it per the manufacturer's instructions before it gets installed. I wanted to put hot water in it and jump right in!  I thought the air bubble mode would be really quiet but it's not.

Fred got his first bath and he did really well.  We filled several buckets with warm water and bathed him in a shallow bucket. No barking or fussing.  We think he actually liked it.

Dec 17th- Update on Fred

The lady that called about Fred never came to pick him up.  Gerry called the number and left a message but no one returned his call.  I followed up with the Torrance Animal Control to find out what our obligation was to find his owner.  They said after 5 days, they either adopt-out a dog or send it to the shelter.  As far as they was concerned, we no longer had to try to find his owner, especially after I relayed the series of phone calls.

Here he is playing with Gerry & his new Santa Sock Monkey.