Chris and Steve have begun a new project – landscaping. It will take a few hours a day for the rest of the summer. I am only an interested, opinionated*, bystander.
The first wave of this project involves diverting water away from the foundation. With the gutters gone, water rolls off the roof and onto the ground below which splashes dirt onto the walls and makes a ditch in the dirt. And it can eventually pool under the foundation. None of this is good.
You can see the old stone walkway between the newer, lighter stones. There's a french drain** underneath these stones. The water will flow through the cracks between the stones into the drain.
The rocks came from a pile on the side of our house that I have wanted to make go away for a long time. We have another, bigger pile of thinner stone that will find a new home somewhere at Chris and Lorna's. Good! I want them gone from the side of my house!
There is going to be interesting concrete poured in other areas around the house and I'll show you that as it happens.
In quilting news, here's a new video. The first videos I uploaded were a little dark. Youtube offered to lighten them for me and I clicked OK. Shouldn't have done that. If you watched a video and the lighting was bad please do watch it again. It shoud be better now.
*The decking boards on the side and back decks are really slick when wet. One of my recent opinions is that the boards need to be power-washed and then painted with gritty porch paint. This is an idea that generates work that I don't have to do but that both guys agree needs to happen. Safety first and all that. I did volunteer to help with the painting…
**Did the French really come up with 'french drains'? And what about 'french doors"? I could google it but I think I'll just assume that, yes, the French did indeed come up with these ideas.
Did you know that we have the French to thank for silverware and oh-so-many other civilized items that we use all the time? I for one am very happy that the people of France have come up with so many things that make my life better.
Piece O Cake Blog 
I always learn the most interesting things from you Becky. I am hoping to watch the videos this weekend, after a movie date with our Granddaughter!
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was there always a french drain in this area? or did the guys install it lickey split…. and where does the pipe take the water? I have hot and sweaty just thinking about the labor involved….
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Thanks for the video tutorials. I love appliqué and found it very useful. I am trying to buy the template plastic you showed on video 1 but not sure where to get it in Australia.
Also enjoy your life updates & all the non quilting projects. Thanks!
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Susan: Chris and Jeff installed the French drain a few years ago, after Chris and Lorna had been in the house a year or so – bad drainage on that side of the house. The water goes out to the street, through the curb. Cutting a slot through the curb was an adventure, but the rest of the project was not too bad, and it works.
The French also gave us Pasteurization, which I am sure has saved many thousands of lives over the years. Go Louis Pasteur!
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I watched the video on your recent post – it was fine, very informative. Is this a new one as I can’t view it because of this: The Adobe Flash Player or an HTML5 supported browser is required for video playback.
What changed?
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Wikipedia says French drains were developed by Henry French in Concord, MA and are not from France! I learn something every day. Thanks!
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