Look real close at the picture. Not the cute little boys on their bikes. . . but what they are riding on. A driveway right? Looks black and smooth right? Look a little closer. . .
In Alaska it is a common summertime event to black top/resurface your driveway (it helps prevent cracking in the winter since your driveway is usually under a sheet of ice for SEVERAL months at a time). It is a simple process of pouring black tar-ish type goop on the current driveway and smearing it/painting it until it covers the driveway. Well, our first attempt at this has definitely been a learning experience. This is what we learned:
1. Do the Math! (We didn't. And ended up going back to the hardware store THREE times to buy a 5 gallon bucket of goop. I was home alone finishing the job when we ran out for the second time. I loaded the kids up, unloaded the kids and went into store, paid for the 5 bucket gallon, loaded the kids up to find out that they were all out in the yard, unloaded the kids for a refund, and finally called Eric who was golfing in Palmer and near a Lowe's)
2. Stick with the same Brand. (For the reason above we had to buy a different brand and if you look at the picture you can tell that it is a different color of black. I'm sure our neighbors love us)
3. Pray for good weather for several days. (We had gorgeous weather the first day and then a sporadic, monsoon like, rain burst which left some interesting patterns and deposits on the driveway)
4. Put out the fans. (We have a North facing house and there are parts of the driveway that don't get much sunshine. While I was gone trying to pick up the third installment, a neighbor's dog ran through the driveway, onto the deck, and into the garage making and leaving doggie footprints everywhere. Later that same day Sam had a temper tantrum and ran through the driveway leaving HIS footprints. After smoothing and scrubbing, the next morning a different neighbor came over and her THREE dogs. When I opened the door the dogs ran through the tar and INTO my house. What a nightmare and what a mess. That is when I brought out the fans. I was ready to be done with this project)
5. Have a sense of Humor. (Our driveway looks horrible. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. But it makes us smile. Next year we will do several things different, but in the meantime it isn't so bad having something that makes you shake your head and laugh.)
1. Do the Math! (We didn't. And ended up going back to the hardware store THREE times to buy a 5 gallon bucket of goop. I was home alone finishing the job when we ran out for the second time. I loaded the kids up, unloaded the kids and went into store, paid for the 5 bucket gallon, loaded the kids up to find out that they were all out in the yard, unloaded the kids for a refund, and finally called Eric who was golfing in Palmer and near a Lowe's)
2. Stick with the same Brand. (For the reason above we had to buy a different brand and if you look at the picture you can tell that it is a different color of black. I'm sure our neighbors love us)
3. Pray for good weather for several days. (We had gorgeous weather the first day and then a sporadic, monsoon like, rain burst which left some interesting patterns and deposits on the driveway)
4. Put out the fans. (We have a North facing house and there are parts of the driveway that don't get much sunshine. While I was gone trying to pick up the third installment, a neighbor's dog ran through the driveway, onto the deck, and into the garage making and leaving doggie footprints everywhere. Later that same day Sam had a temper tantrum and ran through the driveway leaving HIS footprints. After smoothing and scrubbing, the next morning a different neighbor came over and her THREE dogs. When I opened the door the dogs ran through the tar and INTO my house. What a nightmare and what a mess. That is when I brought out the fans. I was ready to be done with this project)
5. Have a sense of Humor. (Our driveway looks horrible. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. But it makes us smile. Next year we will do several things different, but in the meantime it isn't so bad having something that makes you shake your head and laugh.)
1 comment:
Oh man... that is just something I wouldn't know how to do at all. What a crazy adventure! Sounds to me like there are way too many dogs in Alaska. :) Next year Steph you'll have the most lovely driveway in all the land!!! You just wait.
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