The Farm Report
05-11-2022
A New Lid
 |
A new lid on the old house, that is!
See Annie's ears?
Normally they point straight up, like bat ears. We've had such
horrible winds and storms, they seemed to be blowing Annie's ears backwards. Twenty-five, Thirty, Forty, do I hear Sixty mph? For days at a time. Wow! |
 |
Huff and puff and blowwwww!!!! |
 |
Annie herds everything, including grain hauling semi trucks on our gravel road. She's a shepherd, so she really doesn't have any interest in going out to catch them or see where they're going, or bring them back to me. She'll just sit there all afternoon being watchful. The pictures don't show it well - how do you photograph wind? - but those clouds became storm clouds. |
So in the aftermath of what my sister calls Kansas Winds, we need a
new roof on Oakdale Manor.
There are lots of ways to make a living. That guy up there has taken his choice. It certainly wouldn't be mine! Plus, the
day he was up there - using just that one little ladder - it was
blowing 50mph winds again. While he was up there! He was surveying
the shingle damage so he could justify not paying very much for the claim damage. Apparently the shingles down on the ground don't count for much. He was gathering excuses as far as I am concerned. Insurance companies are lots better at
sending bills and collecting premiums than they are at following
through with the agreements and sending out checks.
The
Large Print Giveth; and The Small Print Taketh Away.
Annie and I had a hard time watching. My Grandpa always said, "Nobody
wants to see anybody get killed at the rodeo - but just damned near to it." Morbid curiosity I guess. See that little roof
section/overhang at the bottom of the eve? He was walking out across
on that! Nooooooooo way.
Annie couldn't look, so she walked away.
"Is our house going to blow away, Tim?" "Are we going to be safe in here with all that wind blowing outside, Tim?" "I'm afraid - a little."
"If I curl up real tight in my chair like this will I be safer?"
"I will feel safer."
"That dog worries too much. We'll be fine."
"If the house blows away, I'll be OK. Who cares? I really don't need any of you people anyway. Cats can take care of themselves. Living in here is just easier for me, so I put up with you all. Now, work on your crossword puzzle and leave me alone. I'm sleepy."
And that's how it is at Oakdale Farm.
So in the aftermath of what my sister calls Kansas Winds, we need a
new roof on Oakdale Manor.
There are lots of ways to make a living. That guy up there has taken his choice. It certainly wouldn't be mine! Plus, the
day he was up there - using just that one little ladder - it was
blowing 50mph winds again. While he was up there! He was surveying
the shingle damage so he could justify not paying very much for the claim damage. Apparently the shingles down on the ground don't count for much. He was gathering excuses as far as I am concerned. Insurance companies are lots better at
sending bills and collecting premiums than they are at following
through with the agreements and sending out checks.
Annie couldn't look, so she walked away.
"Is our house going to blow away, Tim?" "Are we going to be safe in here with all that wind blowing outside, Tim?" "I'm afraid - a little."
"If I curl up real tight in my chair like this will I be safer?"
"I will feel safer."
"That dog worries too much. We'll be fine."
"If the house blows away, I'll be OK. Who cares? I really don't need any of you people anyway. Cats can take care of themselves. Living in here is just easier for me, so I put up with you all. Now, work on your crossword puzzle and leave me alone. I'm sleepy."
Well, I hope your insurance company coughed up.
ReplyDeleteAfter applying the deductible, depreciating the existing shingles, accounting for the age of the building, and circling the broomstick handle three times one way and back around two times the other way, they sent a small check. Take it or leave it. I'll take it and go on. I'm putting on a new permanent steel roof this time!
DeleteThis year has been 65+ mph winds here in West Texas for more than two months and no rain going on 5 months...needless to say...a dust bowl every day. Trade ya.
ReplyDeleteNo thanks. I'll just stay here. Our weather has been very unpredictable this year - and we live in what the USDA calls the most changeable climate on the planet. Keeps the riff raff out, though.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I want – a permanent metal roof! I wanted it when we built the house and our contractor discouraged it; now we need to reroof and cost is an issue....
ReplyDeleteOne of the old 'saws' I live by is this: If you want to do something, you'll find a way. If you don't, you'll find an excuse. In my experience, contractors who don't want to work with metal can find a hundred excuses - reasons - why you shouldn't do metal and should do what they like to do. Been there done that! So now, seeing shingles blown all over the place in my area, and NO metal roofs damaged at all, including my shop and granary, I'm going steel!!!
DeleteHere in NY the roofers don’t go up on the roof if the wind is more than 30 mph. Stay safe and well. 💕🦋
ReplyDeleteI have a bumper crop of dandilions this year. My neighbors have few, and I'm sure they're PO'd that mine are seeding their yards. I have not sprayed then, though, because I don't want the wind to cause the 2,4-d to drift and kill their wind break trees.
ReplyDeleteAs a bee keeper, I love dandelions. Actually, it is my bees that love them. Still....
DeleteFierce wind is nasty and look what it did to your roof! My new roof was installed in 2019. Super insulated. Re-pointed the 3 stack chimney as well. To add an artistic touch, I included a nice slab of granite to protect the chimney tops from birds attempting to nest. Gotta love these big projects! Your steel roof sounds perfect. A great solution. Next up? Repave the driveway. Never a dull moment.
ReplyDelete