Final (?) Backyard Update

Just when you can't think of anything else that needs doing, someone shows up and does something really, really, odd.

As you know, the work in the backyard has been the bane / focus of my existence (aside from finding green grass during a drought) for the past few weeks.

I thought everything was done last week, but yesterday the boss-man of the backyard construction crew showed up with what I can only call a wheel-barrel. It was a barrel on its side with a handle attached so that you could roll it around. He filled it with water (is that legal under current water usage rules?) and then pushed it all around the new grass.

Okay.

I have no clue what this thing is for. Was it a lint roller? An iron (like for removing wrinkles from clothes)? An exercise program? I'm perplexed.

Once again I think this will be my last post about the backyard. But who knows, maybe someone will show up tomorrow with iron-on transfers and put them all around the lawn. Or maybe a UFO will hand and make crop circles in the grass.

I'll keep an eye on things for you.

Backyard Update 5

It's been a tough week. There is only one way in and out of the backyard now, and that's under the front gate. It's a tight squeeze for me, so I think it will hold back the cats and dogs, unless the cats decide to climb over. But since there isn't a giant litter box under the tree anymore I think the lazy cats won't bother.

Since Monday there have been people in the backyard nearly every daylight hour, so I haven't been back there much. Instead I've been working from the bushes on the north side of the front door. The Wi-Fi signal is very strong there.

Anyway, the wall and fence seem to be done. They even came and sprayed the fence with a liquid that makes it much darker. A bunch of bricks were piled near the base of the wall and then covered with dirt. Then a different color of dirt was put over the first dirt, and then grass was put in. At least I think it's grass. It's not very green or healthy looking. But I guess it will keep the dirt from blowing away.

The humans watered the dickens out of the dead grass last night. Thursday is their day to water and they made the most of it.

In summary, what used to be one of the best yards to raise a family in is no longer. The grass is all dead and is periodically flooded. Maybe things will be better next year.

Backyard Update 4

About 5:30 Friday night a bunch of guys showed up and did some work on the fence and on some pipes under the ground. It only took them about an hour and they were gone.

The boss man came by yesterday morning, just before lunch and left a trailer full of pieces of brick. He talked to the Gray One and they walked all along the fence. I heard the Gray One ask about putting some trim at the bottom of the front gate, but the boss man said he couldn't because it would hit the turf (I think that's grass) when you opened it. That's a relief because the gap under that gate is the only way in or out of the backyard unless you're tall enough to operate the latch.

I have to admit that I'm a bit worried about those brick pieces. I've seen those kids play and if something can be picked up and thrown, it will be. So far they've shown remarkable restraint about throwing things at me, but maybe that's because I'm so hard to see when I keep really, really still. And my zig-zag running makes me a hard target to hit.

Backyard Update 3

Apparently the Hispanics working in the backyard are also good Catholics because Sunday was a day of rest. If they worked, they weren't working here. Then again, they didn't show up Monday, either, and Tuesday only saw two of them show up late and work for only about an hour attaching one row of 2x6 along the top of the wall.

This morning started out looking like another slow day, but just after 11 the same two from late Tuesday showed up and got down to some serious work. Then, around 4 p.m. the boss-man showed up and there was an argument about the 2x6 that had been installed the day before. It seems to be called a "kick board" and the argument was about whether it should have been there. Conclusion: the 2x6 on the work order was a "top cap" (which is not the same as a "top hat"), not a kick board. I wasn't close enough to hear if the boss-man suggested that the workers should learn to read English.

The fence is almost done. The kick board stays because it would be too much labor to remove it after 150 feet of pickets have been installed. I'm guessing it will all be done tomorrow, though I don't know if that will include the staining (the Gray One and his mate chose "light", not "dark").

As I was watching the work I was getting really worried because there's no gap between the wall and the fence. That's good for keeping dogs out, but looked pretty effective at keeping me out, too! Then I saw a spot over by the garage where the wall drops down flush with the grass. That's where the gate used to be and it looks like they're constructing another there. There's about a 4 inch space under the gate that I can easily get through. Unfortunately, it might also let small dogs through. Luckily, there's still the crack between the chimney and the storage box — I can seek refuge there if a dog squeezes under the gate.