2 Freaking Weeks Until Hallowe'en - Fence Part 2

So, it's not like I've never built anything in my life. I took shop class in Jr. High. I built my raised beds. I've built stuff, ok?

I was clearly unprepared for this build. 

Oh, how I want to say that I threw this together like a boss. But alas, that was not to be. 

If you're ever interested in copying my fence, which is encouraged, I will highlight the items you should not do, for emphasis. Here's what I actually did.

1. I marked every 6 inches on the furring strips.
2. I sorted the 45 strips into 3 sets of 15.
3. I drilled a 3/4 inch hole at every mark. Every 6 inches. On 15 strips - 180 holes. Just in case you were not aware, math means that a 3/4 inch pipe will not fit into a 3/4 inch hole.
4. I tested the PVC to make sure it would go through the holes. It didn't.
5. I went back to Home Depot and got a 7/8th inch drill bit and opened up all of the holes. 
6. I tested to make sure that the PVC would go through. It did. Tightly. 
7. I thought, "Perfect!".
8. I strapped together two of the strips and used the first strip as a jig for the second strip.
9. I added a third strip, zip tied all of these together and numbered each set. Then, I drilled 7/8th inch holes in every other hole. This would be my top bar.
10. I started spray painting the PVC, because my wrists were sore from the drill.
11. My lovely husband (thank you!) cut all of the 10' PVC into 5 1/2 and 4 1/2 foot poles.
12. I then sanded all of the strips with the help of a friend (Chris, thank you!!!).
13. A friend (Troy, thank you!!!) heated the finials and added them to the tops of the 5 1/2 foot poles.
14. We started to put the PVC into the holes. It was too tight. WAY too tight.
15. A friend (Lydia, thank you!!!) and I dremeled out EVERY SINGLE HOLE. Just in case you're counting, 30 strips with 16 holes each and 15 strips with 8 holes each = 600 holes. Could I have been any less efficient? Don't think so.
16. Then another friend (Derek, thank you!!!) and I drilled out screw holes on the sides of the strips so that the whole thing would stay together.
17. I got the wrong screws (hex head) despite spending 20 minutes in the screw aisle and had to send Derek (see above) to the store to get new screws.
18. Two other friends (Erin and Justin - oddly enough my newest and my oldest friends - Thank you!!!) and one husband (thank you!) started putting them together. Finally.



They were such pretty holes, at first. 2 strips zip tied

19. I used all of the spray paint in Home Depot to repaint the poles (because they were completely scraped off due to dragging them through the holes) and the strips.

I now have 15 - 8 foot sections of fencing that are going up tomorrow. 

This is the pre-painted photo. You'll have to wait (AGAIN) for the fully painted photos.

This easily could have been a 12 step, rather than an 18 step process. Like a boss.

Utah, here I come!

So, this morning I am in a car, traveling with my dear friend Peigi, to Kanab, Utah, population 3,500.  I have always counted having been to a state by whether or not I have peed there.  Since I peed at the Salt Lake City airport on my way to Montana, I have technically previously been to Utah, but only that one time.

This time I am spending 4th of July weekend in Kanab and am looking forward to a small town celebration. One of the downsides of having been born and raised in L.A. is that I have never really experienced any small town community. I grew up in an incredibly diverse neighborhood in the North Valley, moved a little bit south to Reseda, then to Hollywood, then West Hollywood and now Burbank. I did that one stop at a kibbutz in Israel but that doesn't really count. No small towns in the bunch. Now I expect that small towns have their drawbacks. I would hate to live in a place where everyone knew everyone else's business!  But visiting for a few days is going to be fun.  I'm really looking forward to the parade! And possibly some visits with neighbors for good old-fashioned tricks of the jam trade.

I am so attracted to the idea of community, even in a big city, where people share resources and aren't competing for best, most, thinnest, newest. I have always been inspired by the people who are most generous with their knowledge.  L.A. Ell (Ellen) has always been super generous with teaching her crochet skills. Clemence from Gourmandise is incredibly generous with her knowledge of the business of baking. Kirk Anderson is generous with his knowledge of beekeeping. These are people with a passion for what they do and want to share it with others. Thank you!!!

Honestly, I also love a good road trip. Most of my road trips have either been to the Grand Canyon or up north to the San Francisco Bay area and most of them have been on my own. I love being in the car, watching the scenery, playing loud hair music, pulling over at truck stops for breakfast (no matter what time of day) and buying tacky postcards.  I love having no schedule and no one to answer to.

On the other hand, I have had so much fun on road trips with other people.  I drove from Amsterdam to Paris with an accidental stop in Germany and was glad to have someone to laugh with (and cringe with, to be honest) at that mistake. I have taken road trips to Yosemite, the Grand Canyon and Vegas with the Mr. and others along for the ride. It's especially nice when the other person can show me the ropes around a place I've never been before.

Promise I'll post photos when I return!