Pergola Day 7 - Lumber Arrives & Changes Made

 So our J&W Lumber order arrived today. Cesar used the forklift to drop the lumber on the curb by our house.

Yes those are 20 foot pieces of lumber. The beams and lattice need to be 19 feet long so we had to go big.

The next step was to move the lumber to the backyard. I used our wagon to carry the lattice down the side walkway to the back gate. Once there, I carried the lattice into the backyard two boards at a time. The 4x6 posts and 2x6 joists were carried one at a time. Michelle helped me stack the wood along the fence.

Carrying heavy wood gives you time to think...and the first thought that crossed my mind was whether or not the existing posts could hold the load. I didn't have an appreciation for the weight of wood until I carried the last board in. I immediately walked over to the two remaining original posts. I dug down and realized the bottoms of them were dry rotted.

I want to build a pergola that lasts for 20+ years so I decided to play it safe and replace them. Michelle and I drove over to Home Depot and purchase two additional 10 foot 4x6 posts. We also picked up a sample can of paint that we plan to use on the beams and joists. We based the color off of the existing color used for the posts and the trim on our house. The post/trim color is below.

The color is a dark brown/black. See below for some renderings of what the pergola may look like when we are finished.

Michelle and I prepped the two beams and four posts for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will primer the wood in preparation for the final coat of paint. This will give us an opportunity to test our "beam" color out and see if we like how it looks.

Pergola Day 6 - Post Painting

Today we started applying the final paint to the posts we already have on site. The color matches the trim of our house.

Tomorrow we'll apply one more coat before doing the install of the main post on Friday. We also plan to go to the paint store to buy buy a second color that is slightly darker and will be used to accent the horizontal beams on the pergola.

Pergola Day 5 - Lumber Order

 Last night I updated our pergola design in Sketchup to contain the elbow braces required to support the roof overhang.

I put together a lumber order for J&W. We included the related hardware for framing the box on top. We are hoping to have the wood here by the weekend so we can continue construction.

We also ordered some paint to match the trim of the house. I plan on stopping by the paint store tomorrow to pick it up.

Pergola Day 4 - Post Prep

 Michelle and I started off the day by visiting J&W Lumber in El Cajon. The staff at J&W helped us with a lot of questions during our front porch project so we decided to work with them again on the pergola. 

I had a quick conversation with the sales manager about my design. I confirmed I could get the beams in the lengths I need and we had a really good discussion about how much overhang I could have on one corner without running into issues. I think we will use a couple of knee braces to help support the overhang. I'll post an image from Sketch Up showing our latest design.

My next steps is to create a materials list for the items we will buy from J&W. They have a flat delivery fee so I might as well order everything at once. I plan on putting together an order tomorrow.

Once we returned home, I finished some sanding and painting. Our pergola design uses the existing four posts, and requires one more. Yesterday I cut the new post to the length we need. Today I drilled the holes required to mount the post in the bracket, wire a light on the face of it, and bolt the beam to it once we get to that point in the project. I put two coats of primer paint on the wood. The primer paint is extra thick and will fill in all the little holes that were the result of the pressure treating. 

I'll probably put one or two more coats on tomorrow. 

The next step involved sanding and prepping the existing posts. I removed the remaining screws and bolts and patched the holes with wood putty.

One of the posts had a cosmetic crack in the wood on top. I used some wood glue and clamps to put it back together.

Everything was going well until I examined the two existing posts on the east side of the patio. After some poking around with a screwdriver, I determined the tops were rotted out.

My neighbors say the old pergola was installed back in the late 80's or early 90's. I want the new pergola to last at least that long. There is no point in cutting corners so I'm putting the project on hold until I can purchase two new posts. I'll just add the posts to the J&W Lumber order.

Every project always has unexpected additions. This is the first :)

Pergola Day 3 - Installing A Post

 Today I prepped for installing a third post along the east side of the patio. The third post will help support the expanded size of the pergola. The original pergola was designed to cover the jacuzzi. The new pergola will cover the entire patio.

I removed the plants along the fence, dug a hole, and used a concrete form to shape the footing prior to pouring in the concrete and installing the bracket that will hold the post. The pipe next to the footing is the existing wiring conduit that powers the lights and electrical outlet on the patio.

This photo shows the hole in relation to the existing post to the right of it.

The new post will line up with the two original posts along the fenceline. The next step is to visit Home Depot to buy some lumber.

Pergola Day 2 - Clearing Things Out

 Yesterday was pretty raining but I snuck out between storms to do a little tree trimming. There were some old branches that overhung the patio needed to be removed before we installed the pergola.  I tied a rope to each branch and used a sawzall to make the cut. Michelle held the rope and lowered the branch to the ground. See below for a before/after of the branches.

I saved the wood to chop up for firewood.

Later that day Michelle and I attended a presentation by the CEO of a group called Braver Angels. They are promoting healthy civic dialog. See below for a few slides from the presentation.

I'm interested in learning more about what they have in mind and will keep you posted if anything becomes of it.

Pergola Day 1 - Starting The 5th Project

My first retirement project was the construction of a deck on the front of the house. 

You can view the development of the deck through a series of blog posts found here. 

My second project was building a bench out of some remaining deckwood.

My third project involved installing and upgrading the outdoor lighting in the backyard.

My fourth project was to upgrade our "smart home". This project included installing security cameras, and implementing a Home Assistant server. A lot of work went into this project without any photos to share.

Yesterday I started my fifth project, a complete redesign of our backyard pergola. Our backyard had a pergola when we purchased the home in 2003.

After a while we removed the jacuzzi and expanded the patio area where it was previously located.

But after 25+ years, the original pergola was worn from the weather and termites. So it was time for it to go.

Our first step was to relocate the couches and plants from the patio area  to other areas in our backyard. You never really know how much of anything you have until you need to move it and this axiom applied for our patio. I underestimated how many potted plants we had.

I also had to move the decorative "window" we had on the patio. This window is the original dining room window from our house that was removed during the remodel 10 years ago.

The next step involved removing the existing light fixtures and outdoor speakers. By the way, the Infinity speakers in the wooden boxes still sound great after 25+ years so if you are looking for some outdoor speakers, you might want to check out this brand.

The next step involved removing the existing lattice and beams. I used a sawzall and impact driver to remove the screws and wood.

The posts are in great shape so I plan to re-use them.

I used the miter saw to saw up the wood into smaller pieces. I chopped up the boards that had less termite damage into cubes for use when we burn small fires in the solo stove on the front porch.

We burned some of the remaining wood in the larger backyard fire pit that night. 

We have enough scrap wood for at least 7 more fires. As always, Jack supervised the work taking place.

The next step is to lay some foundations for a couple of posts I need to install. More information to follow.

Flashback #1

It took 134 days since my retirement from San Diego Unified before I had my first work-related dream, and it was bizarre. Last night my brain decided to flash back a compilation of dozens of students I tried to help over 30 years. The dream made me feel an odd mixture of sadness and pride.

In my dream, I was a middle school administrator attempting to have a one-on-one conversation with a boy named Luis (Luis was his name in the dream, not in real life). I can remember his face and demeanor. He was like dozens of students I worked with: a little shy at times, wanting attention, loyal to his friends, mischievous, and in the school office because he was in trouble.

I was concerned with Luis' safety. I knew he had moved out of his parents' house and was living in a dilapidated apartment with yellow shingles and white trim. Earlier in the dream, I had made a home visit where I watched from a window as Luis sat on his bed surrounded by dirty clothes. He was huffing something out of a paper bag. We didn't speak, and I left the building. Now, I wanted to tell him what I saw, make sure he knew that I cared, and remind him I was willing to help if he wanted.

Luis and I were trying to have a one-on-one conversation, but we kept getting interrupted. For some reason, I didn't have my own office, so we were walking around the building looking for a space to borrow. Behind every door I opened was a different former student. In the dream, each student was a friend of Luis. In reality, the students never knew each other because they were from different years and decades. My relationship with them was the common denominator.

I used a strategy with Luis that I made up and utilized with dozens of students over the years. It basically involved inviting Luis into a conversation with agreed-upon ground rules. Each person would get to make a statement, and the other would respond with "yes," "no," or "pass." We would agree our conversation would stay in the space. I told him that I saw him in his apartment, that I thought I saw him getting high, and that I was worried about him. Luis said, "pass."

The crazy part was that the conversation took place in multiple pieces because as soon as we would start, we would get interrupted by another former student, and Luis and I would need to move to another space. At one point, I was interrupted by a teacher. The face of this teacher was a compilation of over a dozen old white male teachers that I have worked with over 30 years. The teacher was mad at Luis and insistent he be invited into the conversation. The teacher felt he deserved the right to know what Luis and I were talking about simply because he was an adult. I ended up arguing with the teacher and eventually directing him to leave, which he did in a huff.

Luis only made one statement to me. He said, "I think you are spending time with me because you care about me." I said, "yes."

In reality, no student ever said this to me, but I would like to believe they could have. Over the years, students I worked with would return to say hello. I'd like to think they came back to visit me because they valued and appreciated my commitment to them. Some of these same students were in my dream.

Every student in the dream had at one point in time been sent to my office for a problem they were experiencing. Every student in the dream was one who I felt connected to in real life and wanted to help. I can't remember the number of times I've asked students the following questions:

• What happened?
• How were you feeling at that time?
• What impact did your actions have on others?
• Knowing this, how do you feel now?
• How are you going to make things right?

Different years, different students, different scenarios, same questions, same order. At first, I carried a card in my pocket to remind me of the questions. Eventually, they became imprinted in my mind.

It's been 134 days since I retired from San Diego Unified. I began my career as a history teacher because I loved the content but soon realized I had a stronger connection to the students themselves. I became a middle school administrator so I could find students in difficult situations, listen to their thoughts, help them believe in themselves, hold them accountable, and advocate for their best interests when other adults would not.

Luis' statement to me in my dream was a bit of closure that my mind needed.