Friday, April 5, 2013

71st Birthday party


On April 2nd, Daughter Helen and hubby James hosted a small gathering to celebrate what would have been Joan’s birthday.  As it was thought to be her 70th we invited  a gathering of our close friends to celebrate her birth date.  Joan’s sister Dorothy brought us back to earth when she informed us that Joan would have been celebrating her 71st birthday, not the 70th.  On reflection Dorothy was correct.  Joan died on 25th February and her birthdate was April 2nd.  She was 68 when she left us and it has been just over two years and that is how we miscalculated.  It was a great afternoon with much laughter and storytelling, just as she would have wanted it.
There was plenty of food and drink; so much so that I never got to break out the ‘Little Boys’.  Little boys, is a recent term for cocktail Franks.  I will leave you to work out why they are called little boys.


I am nearing the end of my garage ceiling repair job.  One part of the repairs necessitated me climbing an extension ladder to get on my roof and remove terracotta tiles giving access to cornice which has to be attached to the brick wall with a special cement. Shouldn’t be doing that at my age especially when I have already experienced a nasty fall from five metres, dislocating my shoulder and breaking a piece of bone off my rotator cuff requiring two operations and months of recovery.  That accident happened some 11 years ago and I should not ever go roof climbing again.

Props holding the last piece of cornice  whilst I get up on the roof to cement it to the brick wall.
              I knew there was a use for heavy old computers.

6 comments:

Richard said...

KL .... Our next door neighbour is the director of emergency medicine of our large (105,000) central. Victorian city's hospital.
She says NOBODY past the age of 50 --- man or woman --- should be up a ladder.
As you've already taken one tumble please, please get a tradie in to go up the aforesaid ladder and fix whatever needs fixing.
Our neighbour has witnessed numerous deaths from falls, high up, by elderly citizens.

Kev said...

Richard

thanks mate, can't help myself though. Done it all my life. I will probably died off a ladder....probably with a rope around my scrawny neck.

Kev

Anonymous said...

Kev, It was a great afternoon. Many laughs, Joan would have loved it.Do not climb any more ladders, Kev. You are needed here. Marg

Lue Madson said...

Roofing is kind of risky especially if you're not well-versed. If you have roof problems, you can always hire professional roofers to do the repairs for you. Allowing them to do the job for you will assure not just quality, but your safety as well.

Hugh Dinatale @ Roof Xperts said...

I tip my hat off to you for still having a go at the roof at your age, especially with your past experience. If it was a fairly easy job that didn't require you to go and up down, like a quick sweep of a gutter, then I'd take the risk. But for a delicate roofing job like what you tackled, I would have opted for a professional's service. Like Lue said, not only do you get quality work from it, but you're also kept safe.

Unknown said...

I must agree with these two guys. It's practical for you to do the job, but with regards to your condition, it might give you back pains. The better way is to consider seeking the help of the contractors for that matter.

#Adolfo@PrestoRoofs.com