Heat Wave at the perfect time

Since we just got our house, we've been doing numerous neglected maintenance issues to the place. Fixing doors, windows, securing the place better, weatherstripping (this is Chicago for christsake!), repairing lightbulbs / broken fixtures, etc. Lots of minor things just to make the place a little more livable and prepare for the changes we want to make. Jay has been making lots of little trips back and forth from our condo loading the Scort with tools, basic needs, and other odds and ends. Good thing our condo is only 3 blocks away!

But today we got a pleasant surprise... It is nearly 60 degrees out today - two days before January in Chicago!! Unbelievable! It couldn't have come at a better time as Jay took care of some much needed outdoor maintenance this week. Garage gutters were cleaned out after 8 inches of solid silt, twigs, and leaves were removed from the downspouts. Yech!

AND... it was a perfect time to remove the pile of garbage the Previous Owners (PO's) had left in front of our (at least) 50 year-old fence next to the garage. We need to remove this section to a) create parking space for NYE, and b) make room for a rolloff dumpster. Jay had to excavate quite a bit of dirt, but the fence came out with one strategically placed hammer blow.. Not much security there so we don't feel we'll be missing much.