Building The Love Shack

Yup, it’s that time of the year again, out comes the checklist or the dream list of Spring. Every Winter we sit and talk about what is going to get done in the next Cottage Season and every Fall we say well that gets moved to the next year because something else came up. And then in the next Spring, we make another list.

So let’s start with the running joke… My inside kitchen. Every year we say this year it’s going to get done, and every year it gets pushed aside because something more important needs to get done… And guess what… it got pushed again last year and it’s getting pushed again this year.

Now I am getting a new kitchen, it’s just not going to be in the house. You know the old original deck we have in the back, well it’s not doing so good. As a matter of a fact, it has become the patchwork deck because it’s rotted through in so many places it has boards over the boards to hold it together. And it’s now time to say goodbye.

On the upside, by replacing that deck, we can join it to the enclosed porch and I’ll have a wrap-around deck. Oh wait, not I, Romeo and Juliette will have a wrap-around deck. This deck will have higher side-railings like the front and the new deck on the back which they won’t be able to jump over and we can worry less about them being out on the back deck.

Now the other bouns of this is, the barbeque and smoker will have a built-in home and the garbage will have its own storage. We also brought the bar from home and it is being rebuilt for the cottage.

The back decks will be the bar and cooking area. The closed-in porch is perfect for dining and the front has the chimenea and deck chairs. Oh my, this is starting to sound like a cottage!

For the next two things on the list, I’m thankful to say someone else is doing the work.

At the end of the season, we were approached by a cable company that is running fiberoptics in our area. I gave the yes and told them to run it to our house. The satellite is fine for the TV which gets watched in the morning and the late evening, or on a rainy day. But, to get internet I’m on a waiting list for up to two years.

When we first got the cottage, I said we don’t need internet and I wasn’t concerned about it, but with me graduating from school in three months, my new job will have me doing a lot of computer work and for that I need internet.

Why will I be working from the cottage you ask? Last year, we spent over half the summer at the cottage. This year I plan to spend even more time there.

This brings me to the next project of this year, Central Air!

For six seasons we have tried every way to beat the heat. Two air conditioners and a ceiling fan can not bring that cottage down to a comfortable temperature when it is over 100 degrees outside. Unfortunately, this seems to be the new normal for our area. Can we say Global Warming?

Last year we put in a ductless air conditioner in Julies and Gary’s place and their cottage is just as comfortable as home. So I’m giving in to yet another comfort of home. I have an appointment in three weeks to meet the guys at the cottage to discuss where it will best be placed and when they can put it in.

The bonus of this unit is that it is also a heating system. Now you say why would you need that? Well…. We found out this Winter that the Cast Iron Stove has a battery in it and when the battery died, our pilot light went out and we can not restart it without the battery.

There is a team going up to do an inspection and to put the new battery in and restart it for me this next week. So a backup heater now sounds like a good plan. You know in case we should run out of propane, or we have a high wind night that blows out the pilot lite, or say the battery dies again. Oh, the things we keep learning!

There is still work to be done on the enclosed porch. The doors need to be hung. The fireplace needs to be built in and the electrical, lights, and ceiling fan still need to be installed. Shelves need to be hung and I’m sure I’m missing some things on that list.

The garden needs a few smaller boxes for herbs and a trellis needs to be added as some of the Warriors decided last Summer that we need grapevines.

The waterlines need to be added to the other side of the cottage for easier watering of the gardens and to have water for the outside shower( you don’t want to know and not this year).

And the list just keeps getting bigger every year as the Warriors spend more time there they come up with great new ideas.

I have heard whispers of needing a bigger freezer and a pizza oven! But first, we still need that second shed (also not this year).

I keep saying not this year as the honey to-do list came with rules this year. We started them last year but the disaster in the Warrior’s Cottage pushed them forward to this year. Work starts at 10 AM and must stop at 5 PM.

After six years of the cottage being a full-time job of repairs and builds, it really is time to play. So the most important thing to do on the honey to-do list this year is, swimming, barbecuing, entertaining and finding new shops and restaurants, and golfing for the guys. And for the girls, I found a wonderful new spa and restaurant just down the road for us.

The work will get done. It will take longer. But the fun will come first on this years honey to-do list.