DIY Roof Ice Melters

diy ice dam roof ice melters on the roof during snowmageddon 2015

The ice buildup on the little roof above our front entrance hall is getting to be of epic proportions. It’s 6-8″ thick. And it’s not just our roof that looks like that – it’s EVERYONE’S roofs. The majority of our issues are on the driveway side of the house and are contained to our little entrance roof and the section of main roof right above it.

Cats in the Alcove – Part 6

birdie checking out the new living room alcove cat platforms

I apologize in advance – this is a very long and photo-heavy post! Last week I installed 5 new platforms leading from the alcove above the living room TV to Birdie’s downstairs hall platforms. Darwin was on board right away. But Birdie, not so much.

OMG Cold.

after sealing the master bedroom windows with plastic insulation

In early January the plumber came to the house because our living room was 47 degrees. He was able to bleed the system in the basement and get the air out of the pipes. The living room baseboards started warming up immediately! While he was there we had him look at the dining room/girl cave zone, which had never worked.

The Story of Us

me and jim on our deck overlooking the ipswich river

In honor of Valentine’s Day [our fourth!], I decided to tell the story of “us”. As in Jim & I. It’s been a fairytale romance from the start, with no signs of slowing down. Which makes us both SO happy!!! We’ve both suffered through years of bad relationships in the past, so we were ready for something good!

OMG Snow.

shoveling the front entranceway roof during snowmageddon 2015

My office was closed again today due to the crazy #@$% snow that keeps falling. There’s literally nowhere to put it anymore. I have no idea how much snow is actually on the ground – somewhere between 4 & 5′ I believe. The snowbanks are so high you have to heave your whole body to get the new snow up and over the top. It really sucks!

Cats in the Alcove – Part 5

darwin checking out the new living room and downstairs hall cat platforms

Success, FINALLY! The path towards getting Birdie access to the alcove above the living room TV has gone from Saturday’s botched attempt to a spackle-covered fresh slate to finally 5 shelves making a stairway from Birdie’s downstairs hallway platforms up to the alcove above the living room TV.

Cats in the Alcove – Part 3

darwin in the living room alcove

A couple weeks ago I got the cats access to the alcove above the TV by way of new cat tree and shelf. So far Darwin is the only one that uses it, and he LOVES it. He perches up there every evening, watching the world go by. Meanwhile Birdie has not even attempted to get up there, and has shown no interest in the new cat tree, either. Meh!

Facebook Photo Challenge

facebook photo challenge - red berries in winter tree

I originally posted these shots at the end of my Driveway from Helleth post, but I decided they deserved their own post. Last week my friend Law challenged me on Facebook to a 5 day Art Challenge: post 3 works a day for 5 days. Here are 6 original photos I shot this week with my Nikon DSLR camera.