BEFORE AND AFTER

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January 19, after roto-tilling the yard.


January 19...before seed


March 19 after one month of seed

March 19, one month after dropping seeds

Remember, we have no sprinkler system.

Kathy and I did all the watering by hand

Newly planted Croton

This new croton sits on the opposite side of the garage door.

click for a better view

Today, before dropping seed out back

Another view of the back yard before seeding.

The dock and canal are to the right, behind the trees and hedge

Home in Port Charlotte
High of 80, beautiful days

Spring has sprung in Southwest Florida. The weather has been perfect. Clear cool mornings, warm sunny afternoons. We haven't had heat or A/C on since the freezes in early January. The front yard grass has come in very nicely and we seeded the back yard today. I actually mowed the front yesterday, then fertilized today. Many, many neighbors are driving by or walking by and complimenting us on the lawn renovation. Above are some before and after pictures, as well as some new shrubs we planted in front of the house. I also included pics of the backyard as it sits today, freshly seeded.

Kathy found a leaky pipe in the kitchen sink and upon further investigation we determined the sink strainer had coroded and sprung a leak. We considered filing a home warranty claim but after consulting my handy dandy DIY home repair books my Dad gave me, I headed for Home Depot and got what I needed for less than fifteen bucks. The home warranty co-pay would have been fifty. The job should have been less than an hour but nothing that starts with DIY ever comes easy for me. Long story short, the tail pipe flange was too thick and couldn't be secured to the strainer. After going back to Home Depot and exhanging the plastic tail pipe for a stainless one, the job was complete. Just call me Bob the Builder. NOT!

Friday night, after we had come home from the Keys, Kathy and Stephanie and I started up the boat and took her out for a little canal cruise just to stretch her legs. It felt good to be out there, even though it was for less than an hour. I flushed the motor out, just like I'm supposed to. I hope Rolando and I can go fishing soon. It's been since early January that we went.

Stephanie had a great time on Spring break and she's now back in Phoenix. She and Billy will return to Florida after school gets out and stay a few more weeks with us.

I leave Monday night for Palm Beach and three days on the road. Kathy is going to drive over and join me on Wednesday and we will meet an old high school friend of hers for dinner at RA, the sushi bar.