Catching up

I've been doing a lot of things around the house. Here are a few of them:

Screen door bracket:  The little piece of metal that connects the screen door to the mechanism that closes it broke.  It is just a small, shaped piece of thin metal with holes drilled in it, and two sides bent in. I was fairly certain that I could make a replacement. I hunted in our hardware hoard, and found a similarly-sized bracket, salvaged from a piece of particle board furniture. It just needed a few holes drilled into it.

Many people don't know that you can drill holes in metal with a non-electric drill. The drill bit does need to be of a material and temper that can cut into the metal, and it is important to get the bit well-tightened into the drill's chuck, to keep it from getting stuck in the metal. It helps to use a little oil to reduce friction, and to put a piece of wood behind it to drill into. I did still have a little trouble with the metal dimpling out on the back side as the drill was about to break through.

We're still going to have to buy a replacement bracket, because the one I made is far too strong; the door's most likely mode of failure is now that the holes for the screws holding the bracket will strip out. The manufacturer (famous window company that starts with "A") has thoughtfully provided for this by putting extra screw holes into the door and bracket, but that only will save us once.

Sewing machine cover:  My sewing machine has a clunky metal case, and I do not enjoy moving the machine in and out of it. Also, I often leave my sewing machine out for long periods. I used a laminated plastic bag from our last bulk buy of rice, and sewed a quick dust cover for my sewing machine. The machine was able to sew the plastic just fine, though I used more care than usual, just in case.

Transplanting grass:  For some reason, the grass here loves to grow in the flower beds, but hates to grow in the lawn. Plus I had a bit of bare ground from shifting the landscaping timbers around a little. I moved some large chunks that were very nearly rollable sod, as well as one smaller clump, to that bare spot. After planting, I gave them a good dose of water. So far, they are surviving.

Free greens:  My husband brought home some lamb's quarter weeds from his garden plot, and I fried up the leaves. They are edible only in moderation, because they contain some oxalic acid. We also have wood sorrel and purslane growing in the yard (unsprayed), along with dandelions, of course.