And I didn't even do all that much! I had to discontinue the anti-inflammatory, which was doing terrible, terrible things to my digestion, so I get pretty creaky.
Nevertheless, I had some heavy trash to dispose of, then worked with local ham radio guys, changing out the repeater that lives up at the North Campus -- and then home, to clean half the gutters and reseat the X-frame support that carries part of my ham radio antenna over the peak of the roof of my house. The thing has become lighter over the years, and some combination of wind and fallen branch caught it and turned it through 90 degrees! (It's due for a replacement and possible upgrade later this year, as is the "LineDragon" that carries the open-wire feedline up and over the gutter.)
Roof work at Roseholme Cottage is demanding, as the roof has a very steep pitch. Working right at the edge is slightly dangerous, a constant trade between sufficient friction to not slide off and getting a good angle to dig wet leaves from the guttering. I can still do the job but I can see that in a few years, I'll need to either get a tall stepladder to work from or hire others to clean the gutters. Maybe this should be the summer I install leaf screens.
With the worst gutter mostly clear and the X-frame back in place, I climbed down off the roof, put away the ladder, went inside, took off my Carolina Pole Climbers (calf-length lace-up linesman's boots, which need toeroom-stretching), sat down to watch a movie and kept dozing off. Roused myself to make a little supper and realized I was all rubber-legged and out of it, and still sleepy.
I finished dinner, started the dishwasher and staggered off to bed at 8:00 p.m. Ten hours later, the alarm went off and it felt like fifteen minutes.
Update
4 days ago
4 comments:
in the fall, my gutters never clog, in the spring... I never understood that.
I don't even have the maple tree dumping helicopters on my roof anymore.
Glad to hear the repeater is functioning again. Thanks for your time spent facilitating that. :-)
The steeper the roof pitch, the better the gutter screening works.
There are other mods you can make. A shepherd's crook with a garden hose taped to it will allow you to flush the gutters from the ground. Add as much extension as you need...
I must say that I was amazed at how easy and successful the shepherd's crook gutter cleaning attachment for my electric leaf-blower was. Safely from ground level. I've learned to wear clothing that I intended to throw away anyway, and safety glasses.
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