December 4 - 9, 2024 - Awning work, Wall Repair, Cupholders, Potluck, St. Pete's Seafood Festival, Awnings & Wall Finished - GC Decorated

 My Blog Reflection

Nothing is as powerful as gentleness.

Anita Roddick

December 4, 2024

I scraped and washed the hurricane awnings prepping them for painting. We then went to Sherwin-Williams to get a quart of paint of the type recommended by the fellow that painted the house next door. I couldn’t believe that it was $27.70 for a quart of paint. One quart should do it.

I made some biscotti but it didn’t turn out very well - crumbly. I followed an old recipe I had. Next time I’ll go back to the newer recipe

The interior wall project continues. I thought I had addressed all loose veneer but found another spot. It is glued and wood filler applied.

In the evening I went to the Theater Club meeting in advance of the Christmas Party on the 15th. I still don’t know what I will be doing. I hope to find out at the dress rehearsal on the 14th. The club president is all upset about the inability to attract new members. I commented that membership is a major problem for all clubs across the country. The next generation is not interested in clubs and our generation is aging out.

December 5, 2024

This morning, once the dew dried off, I went out to paint the awnings. Here is a picture of the three scraped and washed awnings waiting to be painted. In looking at the stripes I don't believe they have ever been repainted before.

Lots of bare aluminum showing. Once I started painting it was obvious they were going to need a second coat which means I have to buy another quart of this precious paint.

While I was painting the awnings two board members came by to review my request for a permit to install a golf cart driveway next to the carport. They approved my request and said that if I could wait a week or so to start they would get someone there to grind out the stump from the palm tree that went down during the hurricane.  Hurray! This will save me a lot of work on the golf cart driveway project. The palm tree on the other side of the house blew down as well and they will have it ground out at the same time. We were so lucky that two palm trees went down and neither one hit a house. We are all happy they are gone.

Due to the sun being in my eyes I will wait until tomorrow morning to put on the second coat of paint on the awnings.

December 6, 2024

Upon the dew drying off I put the second coat of paint on the awnings. The maroon stripes still bled through a little so I'll do a touch up tomorrow.

The new cupholders came for the golf cart so while I had my old clothes on I mounted them. I had to drill new holes to mount them and they look great.

This evening there is a pot luck supper scheduled in the clubhouse. A potluck is held each month. A member of the Women's Club takes it on and decides what meat to cook. Pat and her husband, Marv, were in charge this month and asked several ladies "cook" hams. Actually the hams are pre-cooked and the ladies just needed to heat them up in the oven. Kelly volunteered to warm up two hams. She also volunteered me to help Marv slice up the hams in the late afternoon and then to sell 50/50 tickets at the door. It took Marv and I a little over an hour to slice up the six hams. Fortunately we had electric knives for this task. The sliced ham was kept warm in Nesco roasters. Kelly volunteered to serve ham.

There is no charge for attendance but everyone is expected to bring a side dish to feed at least six people. Here is a picture of the table of side dishes. Lots of yummy choices.

Celina served rolls and Kelly served ham. They look happy performing their task. LOL.

Ron and I sold 50/50 tickets prior to the meal being served. Someone snapped this picture of us hard at work. We sold $144.00 worth. More than expected.

To limit the chaos once the meal is ready, tables are called by number to come up and help themselves to all of the side dishes and be served the meat. For dessert they call the tables in the opposite order - the last called goes first, etc. It works out great.

There were about eighty in attendance and everyone enjoyed all of the side dishes and the ham. There were lots of compliments on the ham, which I will say was delicious.

For the 50/50 they decided to have two equal prizes. Each winner would get $36.00. The club's half of the money is used to purchase meat and other supplies for the next potluck, etc. 

I took the ticket basket to a random guy I didn't know sitting nearby. He drew MY NUMBER for the first prize. Our neighbor, John, won the second prize and donated it to the Women's Club. (I kept my money. LOL)

After the meal was finished the clubhouse had to be cleaned up and the tables and chairs rearranged for upcoming events early in the week. Upon request a number  of people stayed around and helped with this task, which made it go quickly. Here are Celina and Kelly working at cleaning up the kitchen.

We were back a the house by 6:30 p.m. Not bad at all. It was an enjoyable supper and I didn't mind helping out at all.

December 7, 2024

I put a final coat of mud on the wall repair in the living room and then went outside and added a third coat of paint to the maroon striped area the awnings. 

It wasn't even eleven yet. Kelly said she wanted to go to the "St. Pete's Seafood Festival" down on the waterfront in St. Petersburg, which featured blues music. I showered, changed clothes, and off we went. 

Not knowing what to expect we took chairs. Upon arriving we found that it was really a farmer's market. There was row after row of every kind of fruit and vegetable, items to buy, food vendors, etc. BUT NO SEAFOOD! Interesting. I was hoping to get some large shrimp to grill. There was quite a crowd. This is a picture of the line we were in to pay for vegetables. We bought a melon and some bananas.

I spotted a vendor with pulled pork sandwiches that looked different but good. The pork was piled high on a nice bun with no BBQ sauce on it. He drizzled au jus on each side of the bun then loaded it with pork and lightly grilled onions. I bought one for $7.00 and we took it to a table and seating area where a band was playing. A few people danced.  

We enjoyed the music for a while then headed back. Kelly wanted to buy an African pie at this booth. 

We bought a small multi-berry pie. It will make a great dessert one day soon. Also on the way out Kelly purchased some hand-crafted note cards.

Once back home I found that the paint was dry on the awnings so I put them up. They aren't really hard to put up but they are aggravating. The front awning rubs hard against the porch rails and post. The middle awning is partially over the AC unit making it difficult to reach the bolts. We are happy with how well they look with new paint. The awnings are over the living room, bathroom, and master bedroom windows.

I then sanded and put a small film of mud on the wall in the living room. In a back corner of the shed I found a half gallon of the wall paint. The paint can lid had rusted and I had a devil of a time getting it off. Once I did it was clear that it wasn't going to reseal. The only thing I had available to put the paint in was a gallon milk jug. I touched up a spot to see how it will blend in. I think it will be acceptable. I hope so because I don't have enough paint for the entire wall. Tomorrow will be the final sanding and painting.  

December 8, 2024

I did a final sanding and a coat of white paint for a primer. 

Of course when I took the curtain rod down to paint the bracket pulled out of the wall. A plastic molly and a new screw resolved that problem.

December 9, 2024

This morning I started medication for my sinus surgery tomorrow. After that I put two coats of paint on the walls and the washed curtains were put back up. Turned out fine. Painted blended quite well.

Tomorrow is the annual shareholders meeting. Since I was scheduled for surgery by proxy today. 

Since I may be out of commission for a few days after the surgery I got busy and decorated the golf cart for the Golf Cart Parade on Sunday. Here some pictures. There are 100 LED battery powered lights along with the garland. Kelly will blast her Bose speaker with Christmas Carols as we ride around. A Christmas Party in the clubhouse afterwards.

I started taking all of the pills for the surgery tomorrow. Then in the afternoon I received a call from the doctor that my insurance, UNITED HEALTH CARE, has not approved the surgery yet. I called the insurance company and after a twenty minute phone call the lady advised that the paperwork had been filed November 27th and she had no idea why it wasn’t approved yet. In the meantime the doctor called and cancelled the surgery. They hope to get me back on the schedule by the end of the month.

Once it got dark I took some pictures of the golf cart lights for the parade. We have a bright street light out in front of the house. 100 LED lights work off of three AA batteries. Crazy. It will be interesting to see how long they last.

Due to the surgery that won't happen I had nothing scheduled for this week. It is a good time to end this blog.