Day Three-eighty-two: deck the deck...

Today we picked up right where we left off on Wednesday. After about a month of distributing our two cubic yards of rocks all around the house the once formidable pile had dwindled considerably. With no other projects just now we moved this remainder out of the driveway.

Elsewhere we capitalized on a clear, sunny (if cool) day to get some more boards down on the deck. This is the easy part now--one measurement, one cut, and about ten screws for each board. There was a little fancy footwork to get the boards around the banister but nothing too challenging. The hardest part was maneuvering the mostly straight (meaning slightly bent) boards into place. Some 1/8-inch spacers and brute force generally did the trick.

Once the floor is in we'll cut an end piece with mitered corners and notches for the posts. Then we can turn to the railings and replacing the old stair treads. This deck is going to look like a million bucks.