Updates

It has been a few days since I have written so I need to back up and give some updates. I took off Thursday and Friday of last week to so I could work on the apartment and shop. On Thursday I was able to fully complete all the tasks to allow us to attach the metal roof to the existing metal of the shop structure. It was a lot of little things that took all day to complete. We also went to purchase the metal which required a trip to Gainesville.


On Friday I got up pretty early and worked a piece of sixteen foot metal onto the roof and did the measuring to see how the metal was going to fit the structure. I had done some pretty close measuring so I was fairly confident everything would work out but setting the first piece is the most important step in a metal roof. As it turned out, I do not think I could have been more pleased.

I got thirteen pieces each of sixteen, fourteen and twelve foot pieces. That would allow coverage for thirty nine running feet. The apartment measures thirty nine feet almost exactly. So I knew I would be very close. When we started on the north end I did not want to allow too much overlap since I worried about coming up short on the far end. We came out almost perfectly in coverage as well in lining up with the walls and roof. I had to make one small cut to get around one of the metal uprights – that’s it. It made Grandpa think I really knew what I was doing.

Having taken all day Friday to get the sixteen foot pieces over the apartment portion – just Grandpa and me – we had to wait for help on Saturday. While we were waiting Grandpa and I dug the septic line from the apartment to the existing septic line. Digging trenches is not my favorite thing to do but it had to be done. We were near completing the line when Kaylen Cryer showed up. In fact we were taking a lunch break.

After lunch we got up on the roof and started on the fourteen foot panels. Those panels took the roof from the inside edge of the apartment to the ridge of the shop. Kaylen is one of the young men in our church; he is a good young man. He is not much for heights, but he worked the ridge and I worked the other three attachment points and we were done pretty quickly. He had time to stay and help with the twelve foot pieces that covered the east half of the roof. Within four hours we were done with the metal. The roof was covered. Grandpa was a little taken aback at the size of the building that was now more clearly defined. It was a major accomplishment for all of us.

Mama and I drove to Borger yesterday morning and I did not get into the office until after 1 p.m. For some reason it is a longer trip when Mama comes with me (we get off to a later start and make more stops along the way) but it is always a more enjoyable one. I told Mama yesterday evening that I did not even get my computer hooked up until after 3 p.m. because of people stopping me to converse. That is the reason I came, just to be available to talk to the people here, so it was mission accomplished as far as I was concerned.

My boss and I had a little discussion about the need for this trip and I asked him to trust me. His concern is that I do not have anyone here that reports to me. In his mind that means I have neither authority nor responsibility for the Borger office personnel. I assured him I do not need any authority. The people here are my friends. I felt it was very needful to take the time and show my face in Borger so that the staff here did not feel forgotten. My instincts were right. I have already talked with most of the people on this floor. It is a good thing that I came.

Mama has a very busy day today. She is meeting with our banker to get the paperwork started for Victoria’s car. She is going to get the car to the Ford dealer here to have the oil changed; we have been putting that off for several weeks now. She is meeting with Mrs. Patrick – just to visit; and for lunch. And this evening we are going to see if we can get together with a person that has done a lot of concrete staining and sealing to get some advice for the floor in the apartment. Several shopping stops after that and a short visit with Chase we will get to bed pretty late again tonight; which for me is after 9 p.m.

We will rest when we get back home.