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The driveway sealer thread prompted this question...
What are the little or mid-level projects you can do -- or used to do -- that you've decided you're tired of doing or just don't want to do anymore?
Projects like doing the driveway, cleaning gutters, power washing, mulching all your flower beds, seeding, aerating, or mowing the lawn, painting, minor plumbing repairs, concrete repair, laying a few pavers, or whatever else you'd rather pay someone else to do. Heck, even having a housecleaning crew come in once a month,....whatever it is
For me it's clearing my 75 percent sloped hillside of brush, weeds, vines etc that grow in among the trees there. I did it for a few years -- sweating my behind off, sliding down the hill, and just decided "You know what, I'm not doing this anymore." I found a landscaper who brings in his crew and does it for less than 200 bucks. He has more and better tools, I was doing it with just hand clippers. He brings in his electric tools and goes to town. He's done in 2-3 hours.
Painting tricky walls, especially the two-story walls next to my stairs. Rotating my tires. Cleaning gutters (I have a very tall house and my excuse is I don't have a ladder tall enough to get up to my roof ). Cutting down trees--used to do this, but no more!
Anything that involves walking around on the roof. I am fine walking on a 2' wide path along a 1500 foot cliff, but the sloped roof 30' off the ground causes me to freeze up with terror. Not sure why.
sweating pipe - just not worth it. However now unnecessary.
Electrical service entrance.
placing/finishing concrete, except very small quantities
Cultured stone.
sheet metal ducting. Cuts up my hands too badly, Not worth it.
Change oil in my car or in the generator. Disposal hassle is not worth the cost to have someone else do it.
Oh, you should have asked for things I won't allow hubby to do anymore!
Anything that requires a ladder to the second floor, gutters, roof, etc.
No tree climbing! Once he went up our black walnut tree to cut down tentworm nests. He was at the very top, 75' in the air, swaying back and forth on the narrow branches of the treetop. I'm terrified of heights. Just watching him up there made me crazy!
Anything that involves walking around on the roof. I am fine walking on a 2' wide path along a 1500 foot cliff, but the sloped roof 30' off the ground causes me to freeze up with terror. Not sure why.
Fear of height is a funny thing. I can walk around on a roof all day long. It's the getting on/off the ladderI that freaks me out. Once I'm on the roof, I concentrate on the roof, not taking my eyes off the task at hand. If I dared to look around, I knew I would freak out and freeze.
I had to find a new job once because of my fear of heights. Getting to work required me to ride a long escalator with glass sides that went two to three stories up to the level with the elevators. I worked there for two years taking that escalator with no problem. Then suddenly I found myself gripping the sides every morning. I remember thinking to myself that someday this escelator was going to keep me from getting to work so I started job hunting before it got that bad.
Usually I can manage at high heights by focusing on the floor surface around me or closing my eyes. I'm nuts. I won't let it stop me. I'll ride chairlifts at ski resorts. I'll get on double decker ferris wheels. I might scream the entire time I'm up there (which has happened LOL), but at least I'm doing it!
The only thin I rather not do myself is something easy that is hard to screw up or something hard that is easy to screw up. I prefer to do things myself because I know corners won't be cut but when you get into something like pouring a 36*36 slab of concrete you're better off leaving it to someone that has a lot of experience. I have a very short list of people I'll use for such projects.
Anything that involves walking around on the roof. I am fine walking on a 2' wide path along a 1500 foot cliff, but the sloped roof 30' off the ground causes me to freeze up with terror. Not sure why.
I owned a coal delivery business and a coal truck has a dump that goes striaght up, I'd be walking around that coal and the edge of the box 20 or 25 feet off the ground and every so often it would hit me I'm 25 feet off the ground....
Fear of height is a funny thing. I can walk around on a roof all day long. It's the getting on/off the ladderI that freaks me out.
Heh, exact same thing here. The freaky part is actually only getting back on the ladder to go down. I get really weirded out every time, even with a very stable extension ladder.
There's less and less I would pay to get done. I need to get new shingles on the roof, not doing that myself. The driveway needs some repair, that is going to be beyond my capability. I had a tree removed when it was dying and large and close enough to threaten the house.
Fear of height is a funny thing. I can walk around on a roof all day long. It's the getting on/off the ladderI that freaks me out. Once I'm on the roof, I concentrate on the roof, not taking my eyes off the task at hand. If I dared to look around, I knew I would freak out and freeze.
I had to find a new job once because of my fear of heights. Getting to work required me to ride a long escalator with glass sides that went two to three stories up to the level with the elevators. I worked there for two years taking that escalator with no problem. Then suddenly I found myself gripping the sides every morning. I remember thinking to myself that someday this escelator was going to keep me from getting to work so I started job hunting before it got that bad.
Usually I can manage at high heights by focusing on the floor surface around me or closing my eyes. I'm nuts. I won't let it stop me. I'll ride chairlifts at ski resorts. I'll get on double decker ferris wheels. I might scream the entire time I'm up there (which has happened LOL), but at least I'm doing it!
Most other heights issues do not bother me. I ride a glass elevator 34 floors up to work every day. I love riding ski lifts and tend to swing my legs a lot to loosen them up. Like I said, hi altitude precarious hiking -no problem. However walking on a roof, getting back on a ladder, and waiting in line for that thrill ride on top of the Bob Stupid hotel in Las Vegas - sheer terror (the ride did nto scare me, but waiting in line on top of the building did.
Escalators too, but that is because as a kid, my shoelace got drawn into one at the top and tried to eat my foot, while people with suitcases were piling into me from behind. I am getting over that, but I still get a twinge in my stomach every time I get on an escalator (even though I do it at least 4 times a day).
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). Cutting down trees--used to do this, but no more!
