Poison Ivy, a Broken Leg and Winter, yet we persist!

The adventurous do-it-yourselfer in me is learning the hard way.

God has his own timetable, and perhaps is pleased to look the other way as I make one big mistake after the other.

Take for instance the poison ivy. It seemed to me that I am strong enough to haul cut-down tree limbs. Too bad I'm not smart enough to realize that the urisol oil from the poison ivy that grows around the branches lasts far longer than the green turn-reddish fall leaves. Here are the results!

I appreciate the websites with crazy information on treating poison ivy.
I've since learned that TECNU can be used to wash off the oil.

My favorite suggestion was 'cover the area in dry portland cement!' Too late for me though - I had to drink SlimFast for 8 weeks to keep my weight down while I took prenisone, wrapped my arm in a cloth soaked in milk, and burned the rash each day in the shower to numb the pain for 20-30 minutes. I'll be more careful next year, eh?

Come winter, I began to clear the forest, well bundled of course against oily tree branches. Thank goodness for my contractor's son, who was close enough to hear me call out when the bone broke!
My husband claimed it was a sprained ankle. I twisted it hauling branches into neat piles. Five days later I saw the Xray of my broken fibula. Eight weeks in a cast, and I still can't walk right in heels. Thank goodness it was winter and I could use weather as an excuse for not working on the house.

Now mom is back in town calling for bids, we've got our Dream Team, and the weather has finally warmed enough to want to spend weekends on our flip house.

The US Airforce Provided our Dream Team

In house flipping, the experts tell us to find a dream team. So after weeks of calling contractor ad and phone book listings and receiving overpriced bids from arrogant experts, we posted an ad on Craiglist and within 2 days found 3 wonderful AirForce military men who have construction experience, and some free time after their work on base. We call them our dream team.

Tony has landscape experience from his hometown in Long Island. Chad has worked construction alongside family most his life. And Will, who answered the ad online is renovating his own home, and wants to learn electrical. Together, we're brainstorming each next step of the project, starting last week with gutters and this week with siding. They've joined us on Saturdays and some weekdays after they're done with their gunsmithing for uncle Sam.

If you've seen the house, you know that we're all learning on the job. Will has a book on electrical wiring, and yes, we'll have the electrical inspected by a licensed 'expert'. But why pay an expert $65 an hour to drop lines from the attic into the walls and hook up outlets. We can do that.

We also feed 'em on the job which sometimes costs more than what they're being paid per hour!And they can bring their dog, or kids, chew and even drink beer while they are participating in their contract 'internship' in construction.

Grandpa says he don't think men will like working for women. These men seem not to mind at all. And we may even finish this house.

Many thanks to Uncle Sam!