Does your home need some attention?

Does your home need some attention?

Joan, our dog Eldred and I love the home where we live. We are right on the river, have spacious park-like common areas, and have very good neighbors. In fact, as a good neighbor, I have cleaned out gutters for neighbors so the rain didn’t damage their house.

Recently with all the rain, my clients are experiencing damaged fences. For my clients, I have repaired or shored up several of their leaning fences. This interim work can bridge the need until a fencing contractor is hired.

I have also consulted on several different fence and gate needs.Someone needed an emergency escape gate from their backyard; otherwise, they’d be trapped in an emergency.

This made me think of a meter reader gate, such as that used by the utility company meter readers. This gate allows them to poke their head in just to see the meters and perfectly addressed the need for emergency safety. Of course, the emergency escape gate allows the homeowners to slip through to safety.

This seemed to be the most simple, cost-effective solution to provide the safety needed.

We hope to help you with your needs in a similar fashion. Just give us a call.

Our motto — Making Your Dreams Come True, One Fix-It Project at a Time. What dream do you wish to come true, one that we might be able to help along the way to make happen?

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Our new credo!

Joan, our dog Eldred, and I have a New Credo — “If it’s raining, go for a drive.”

In our area, it has been raining heavily, every few days. The soil is saturated with rain water, making walking across a lawn like walking through a marsh. Lately, Eldred does not know if she is a dog, a frog, or a turtle. Eldred needs to wear her coat to protect her from the rain, and we are deciding if Eldred needs rain boots.

So we have decided to go driving when it is pouring rain.

Recently, we drove through the back side of Moraga, toward Castro Valley. It has been years since we have been in the rural hills there.

The road is twisting and rural throughout the whole area. After the town of Moraga, there is very light development and few homes.

Surprisingly we drove through miles of Redwoods. The drive was heavenly with miles of mature Giant Redwood trees, moss-covered foliage, native oaks and Laurel trees, and my favorite, Lupine.

I thought a 5-hour drive to Northern California, Fortuna, was the only way to see Redwoods. I am blown away to find this special area deeply fulfilling.

Maybe you have a New Credo that you can share with us. We would to hear from you.

Give us a call if we can be of service. Stay dry.

Our motto — Making Your Dreams Come True, One Fix-It Project at a Time. What dream do you wish to come true, one that we might be able to help along the way to make happen?

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Cabin fever relief!

Joan, our dog Eldred and I are going stir-crazy, we have cabin fever. The persistent rains have kept us indoors. Even though Eldred and I walk several times daily; those outings do not overcome the cooped-up feelings.

We do go grocery shopping, get haircuts, and take small trips in town. Those chores do not satisfy. Plus, we are very aware there is still more rain to come.

To fight cabin fever, we are enjoying…. scheduled day trips. Driving to Vacaville for tacos at Villa Corona (in the pouring rain!), hiking at Big Break Park in Oakley, and visiting small towns in the Sacramento area like Dixon. Even though we drove through scattered rain showers, these day trips are a lot of fun and a great relief from cabin fever.

Joan, Eldred, and I love to eat Sofritas Chipotle burrito bowls with salad dressing, corn chips, and guacamole. Since we go so often, one of the few places we can get plant-based meals, I have talked to the staff and have grown to know many of them.

One former Chipotle employee shared that he was leaving Chipotle for an air conditioning job and needed tools to start the job. He knew I was an electrician/handyman. So, I combed through all my duplicate tools and gave him the extras as a good start. I am sure the wrenches, drill bits, hammers, putty knives, saws, etc. gave him a fast start on the new job. I was happily surprised to see him in line as a customer during our last visit to Chipotle. We had a wonderful time catching up with each other and getting food.

I chatted so much that I forgot to get the salad dressing — much to Joan’s dismay!

I get some cabin fever RELIEF on the job, too. Due to all the rain, I have propped up and repaired leaning fences, cleaned out clogged gutters, and installed GFCI outlets. These jobs are so fun to work on. 

Give us a call if we can help you with any of your maintenance needs. 

Our motto — Making Your Dreams Come True, One Fix-It Project at a Time. What dream do you wish to come true, one that we might be able to help along the way to make happen?

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Grateful for our travels

Dropping into your inbox to say “hello!” It’s been a while since I’ve shared what’s happening in the Silva household. This time I’m pleased to share that Joan, Eldred, and I finally got to travel!

Yes, Joan, Eldred, and I took two trips out of town for the first time in two years. The timing was great. We love autumn for its cooler temperatures, change of leaf colors, and abundant veggies; (such as butternut squash and pumpkins).

Plus, these trips were to celebrate Joan’s milestone birthday. She’s permitted me to say it was her 70th!

Our first trip to Half Moon Bay was perfectly timed. We missed the crowds for the big pumpkin weigh-in competition hosted there each year.  We stayed at an Airbnb directly next to a heavily wooded creek. The location had wonderful walking for the three of us and was only a couple blocks from downtown Half Moon Bay. Joan especially loves wooded areas.

The area was so fun for all of us to experience and explore. Squirrel holes for Eldred, quiet beach walks, and fresh, crisp temperatures. We all enjoyed Pescadero Beach and Pacifica Beach, although Eldred wasn’t too fond of the ocean!

Three days later, we changed scenery to Folsom Old Town. The Folsom Airbnb was a newly constructed one-bedroom unit two blocks from Old Town. It had brand-new granite kitchen counters and a large tile shower and was perched peacefully above the owner’s detached garage.

The isolation from the surrounding residential neighbors was quiet and private. The only sounds came from birds, a few barking dogs (yes, Eldred, too), and some chickens.

Some highlights in Folsom were walking the Johnny Cash hiking trail along Lake Natoma, eating delicious Thai food, having a few scrumptious pastries from their local bakery, and cruising the shops in Old Town.

These two trips sure energized me for my Autumn chores at home. When I got back, I cleaned the heater intake filter, cleaned the gutters for our home and two other neighbors, and changed all the batteries in the smoke detectors.

If you need any help doing your Autumn chores, just call us. Maybe you wish for some things to be fixed for the upcoming holidays! If we can be of help with anything around your home, just let us know.

Our motto — Making Your Dreams Come True, One Fix-It Project at a Time. What dream do you wish to come true, one that we might be able to help along the way to make happen?

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Are you ready to automate your lighting?

Are you ready to have your exterior lighting automatically go on and off?

Two of my clients asked me to install new exterior lights. They each wanted to update the look of their homes. Both asked, “How can I have the exterior lights automatically go on and off?”

I recommended they buy and install programable light switches to control said outside lights.  

The benefit is, that the lights come on automatically providing security lighting so you don’t have to remember to do it yourself every evening and morning!   

Joan and I like to have our exterior lights on from dusk to dawn. We get a sense of safety from being able to see what is outside, at any time.  

Until recently one of us had to remember to go downstairs to turn our lights on and off. That may not be a big chore, it is just the constant worry of “Did we or didn’t we turn on the lights?” It adds up over time.  

So, Joan and I installed a programmable light switch for our exterior lights. Now, since installing the new switch we have a sense of security knowing the lights do come on automatically. 

Joan just commented how nice it is to see the lights come on at our programmed time. I guess the world seems to be working better for us.  

What makes you feel more secure around your home? If adding lighting would help you, just give us a call. 

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