They say the best way to get through a project is to picture the results. As I sit here looking at my family room, I can see the new paint on the walls and the new hardwood floor installed. I can see the reflections of the flames from the fireplace kissing the hardwood and making it look awesome. I can see new furniture in the fireplace room and imagine a winter of relaxing comfort.
I can see it all ... in my mind. Getting to that point is going to require a tremendous amount of work. I don’t mind that, because I am picturing the results. But, sometimes with me, it is a crap shoot. Have you ever seen “Christmas Vacation”? You know, that part where Clark brings out the whole family to see the lights and they don’t work. Then his mom says “Clark, I can see them in my mind and they are breathtaking!” Yeah, that is sometimes how my projects go.
I have to admit that I am both a little hesitant but extremely excited to start doing this. It is not my first floor, nor is it my first real project. I remodeled my own kitchen, and it looks nice. Floors, walls, painted the ceiling and put in new doors. Better than it was I would think. I have actually become a regular Mr. Fixit the last few years. But one can get cocky about these things.
So I approach my remodeling project for this fall with some respect for the difficulty, and some trepidation about the possible results. I mean, not even I could screw up painting the walls. The precise painting part the wife will do, so I know that will get done right. If I get the floor wrong, then I may need to pull it up and start over, but at least I have that tedious option.
I have clean-up projects for the fall as well that I am not looking forward to. Gutters need to be cleaned and repaired, the roof around the chimney needs to be sealed and there is a leak somewhere in the roof that is driving me nuts. So I have to find it and plug it. I’ll do what everyone else does with their roof; I’ll plug it and then worry about it in the spring. Maybe.
So what kind of projects do you have to get done before winter hits? Look, if you leave that stuff in the gutters, then the ice will eventually start melting behind your ice shield and into your house. If you don’t fix the gutters, then all of the run-off from melting snow falls directly into the foundation of your home, making it weaker. All you have to do is make sure you don’t plan on doing it Sunday morning before the game. This stuff never goes as planned and you could miss the game. Don’t take that chance.
The fall is the best time to do big indoor projects because it is still warm enough for paint and adhesive to dry right, but cool enough where you won’t pass out halfway through the project. The only thing you need to get is some motivation and, unfortunately, that is the one thing the home improvement store does not sell. Luckily for me, they do sell everything else there.
So get on the roof and make sure you are ready for the winter. If you see some missing shingles, replace them. If your gutter is barely hanging to the house, then fix it. If the downspout is disconnected, then reconnect it. A problem you do not see now may be building in to a big problem you will have to deal with later. Don’t give the weather the benefit if the doubt. Trust me; Mother Nature does not care if you cannot afford to get a new roof right now. If she wants to take your roof because you neglected it, she is taking it.
Winter is coming Lockport. Yeah, I know. I need to shut up about that. I love how people that have lived here all of their lives cower from winter like it won’t show up if you don’t talk about it. We are not giving winter some extra special powers by talking about it. It is happening. Not talking about it will not stop it. When it gets here you can either be ready, or be sorry. Up to you.
George N. Root III is a Lockport resident. His column appears every Wednesday. He can be reached at georgeroot@verizon.net.
George Root
Related Photos
-
George N. Root III is a Lockport resident. His column appears every Wednesday. Contact him at georgeroot@verizon.net.
The roof! The roof!
- George Root
-
-
ROOT: We should drop out of Electoral College
I find it hard to believe that, in this day and age of the Internet and message texting on every phone, that we are still sticking to the Electoral College and the misguided notion that the people in Congress work for us.
-
ROOT: The wheels have started turning
As the bike messenger careened down the middle of the sidewalk, he started to run down women, children and little yip dogs on long leashes. Oh, it was awful. At that moment, DenDekker knew what he had to do. He would force every bicycle bought in New York state to be registered for an initial fee of $25 and then a fee of $5 a year after that.
-
ROOT: The watchful eye of the Internet
Attention politicians and famous people: The world is watching you.
-
ROOT: The Clint Eastwood Factor
I post a Clint Eastwood quote on my Facebook page every day. Everyone asks me why.
-
ROOT: Fine, I’ll give my 2 cents
Maybe the high school needs $6 million more to make it just right. Maybe that $6 million should be spent on athletics. Maybe not.
-
ROOT: Tale of the Monkey’s Paw
I made a New Year’s resolution to keep my desk clean. So far, the desk is actually organized and I have the necessary materials to get the rest of it under control. But my office is a mess
-
ROOT: Thank you, Tom Golisano?
Will they sell? Won’t they sell? The Buffalo Sabres have been on the market since B. Thomas Golisano first realized that the team was worth more than he paid for it.
-
Surely you can't be serious
was all set to write my first of four Christmas column this week, and then it happened. When it happened, I was instantly transported back to the first time I saw the movie “Airplane!”
It was released in 1980, and I was visiting a friend in Seattle. My friend said, “Hey, let’s go see this new airplane movie they have out.” I asked what it was called and he said, “Airplane!” So, I went. I never laughed so hard in my life. Some of the jokes went over my head at first. It wasn’t until I was 10 years older that I understood many of the more adult jokes in the movie. -
The roof! The roof!
They say the best way to get through a project is to picture the results. As I sit here looking at my family room, I can see the new paint on the walls and the new hardwood floor installed. I can see the reflections of the flames from the fireplace kissing the hardwood and making it look awesome. I can see new furniture in the fireplace room and imagine a winter of relaxing comfort.
-
ROOT: Home improvement motivation
Most of the things the wife and I want to do to our home require a lot of work. Ripping up rugs, removing old wallpaper, putting up a coat of paint or taking down the lousy crown molding job I did 10 years ago cost little or no money, but they require a lot of effort and, well, there is a football game on television.
- More George Root Headlines
-
Raw Video: Gay Protest Blocked in Moscow
Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
Dozens of Children Killed in New Syria Attack
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes
