Sunday, September 22, 2013

Concrete

Entry walk from the sidewalk on Renton Avenue S in September 2013.

Entry walk across the front & down the side of the house in September 2013.

Front porch, which is actually on the side of the house in September 2013.

Back porch & stairs to garage in September 2013.

Retaining wall with very little space left for planting in September 2013.

New building across the back alley in September 2013.

By the end of September 2013, concrete for the walks & porches had been poured.  There were stairs down from the street, in front of the house next door.  The walk to our front door curved around the critical root zone of the ash tree in front of our house, crossing in front of the neighboring house, which seemed an invasion of their personal space.  The front porch was a pad of exposed-aggregate concrete.  The back porch was a much larger pad of smooth concrete, which left very little room (about 3 feet) for planting on that level.  However, there was much more room for patio furniture & pots than expected.  The kitchen island had been installed & some of the cabinets had been mounted. The interior walls had been painted a color that was not quite gray & not quite beige.  The floorboards had been laid on the ground level, but not upstairs.  The bathrooms were far from finished.  We were giving the date of October 31 for closing the sale of the house, which seemed quite an inconvenient date for moving out of the apartment.  The construction of the new building across the back alley had advanced at a rapid pace.