Cooling Down? I Don't Think So

Things have gone down in temp over the last week or so....not so much during the day but at night, which makes the days much more tolerable. We are not in the 100's anymore, which means that the pool has cooled down as well, since I still do not have the solar heating system up and running yet. When I was cleaning the pool yesterday, it was down to 68 degrees from the 75+ it was last week when we were over 100.

I have been thinking for the last couple of days that I really need to finish the repairs on the solar heating system since it will add at least a month to the time that the pool will be comfortable to swim in. I decided today to just give the weather page a gander and found that we are going to be in the high 80s/low 90s with the exception of Tuesday which is supposed to be almost 100...perhaps that will warm things up until I can get the system fixed.

The drop in the temp has made it easier to keep things alive outside.

Lighting Adventures At The Bamboo Lagoon

Other than the pool light ordeal which is still not complete and is completely another story, I am working to get some auxillary lighting set up on the back porch, around the pool deck and in the mini office.

The pool deck lighting is going great, and I'll post before and after pictures as soon as I get it done. I am in love with my little Makita cordless drill, and it has made the whole project so much easier. Today, I am adding the additional lines to both ends I put in yesterday to get it to go just a bit farther around the deck. This way, even if I never get the pool light working (and I haven't given up on that just yet), we can still have some light in the pool area.

My mom purchased some decorative strung lights for the back patio and I hope to get those strung soon too.

Lastly, I finally pulled down the exhaust fan cover for the exhaust fan that was in the mini office, and measured it so I could get a light that would cover it completely (keeping me from having to deal with sheetrock and/or textured ceiling). I purchased the light and I have everything I need and I hope to complete it at the same time that I reconfigure the switch as well...then I only have to turn the power off once.

Pics to come.

Pool Light Attempt

I tried to fix the pool light today. It was an adventure to say the least. First off, I turned off the breaker in the house for both what I thought was the pool light and outlet on the deck and for the pool pump itself, just to be sure that all power going out to that area was off. I also flipped the breaker inside the pool house just to be triple sure. Something about getting into a pool filled with water and fiddling with an object that is connected to electricity made me want to be a little bit careful.

So while donning my new googles, I got in the pool and made my way to the deep end of the pool. As far as most underwater pool lights go, the light bulb sits inside a sealed fixture that is then screwed into a hole in the pool wall that is also sealed so it is possible to remove the light without having to remove the water from the pool. This is nice since we have a vinyl lined inground pool and removing the water is very bad for vinyl lined pools. If the light is installed correctly, it has a long electrical cord that allows you to lift the light fixture out onto the deck of the pool, and thankfully ours was installed correctly.

Laser Decor At The Bamboo Lagoon

Saw this cool decor item the first time I went to the Grower's Market with my cousin, but it took a while before I had the moolaa to get it. I absolutely love it and had the perfect spot for it. They have another bamboo design I might get later but those one was a must have.

Anyone that knows me knows that I love bamboo and I love dragonflies so this is a wonderful mix of both. I have it on the back porch near the deck door. We have my gecko on the front porch so I didn't want to overdo the decor there and this guy fits this spot perfectly.

BBQ At The Bamboo Lagoon

Recently we acquired a BBQ for our back deck at the Bamboo Lagoon. It isn't new...actually is my uncle's old BBQ but it is new to us and it is in super good shape. I was able to find new grates for the grill part from the manufacturer's website. Need to clean up some of the bottom trays and I have steel wool and some high heat black paint just for the job...

New Locks At The Bamboo Lagoon

After 5 years of renters and a not so great property management company, I felt it was wise to change out the locks on the house. I changed 2 doorknobs and 1 deadbolt and plan to add 1 more deadbolt to one of the doors in the back. It is nice to know that we are the only ones that can get in, and have only one key for all the doors. Next is to get the garage door opener working again...stay tuned.

Not Wisteria At The Bamboo Lagoon

Before this baby bloomed, I was absolutely sure this was Wisteria growing at the Bamboo Lagoon. But its not...it is Trumpet Vine.

We had 6 different vines of Wisteria at a house we owned in the past, and the leaves and growth of this one looked just like Wisteria, until those red beautiful trumpets bloomed. I am kind of glad that it is something different, just for the change, although Wisteria would have been beautiful over this arbor as well.