My Back Porch

There were very few modifications that needed to be made to my house when I moved in: a little ramp at the front door, cutting out the cabinets under the bathroom sink so I could pull up to it, and installing the Barrier-Free lift system in my bedroom and bathroom. Of course, my dad did all of these modifications for me... in two days. Yes, he's that awesome. 

It was nice to find a home that had been well cared-for by its previous owner, and it already had wider doorways and hallways and spacious rooms. There is also a sliding glass door in the guest room that opens to the back patio and yard, with a pretty big step down to the patio, but I told Dad we should save further renovations until the spring. So, when he returned in May, he set to work. 

Instead of building a ramp down to the concrete slab, he built up a wooden deck, that is flush with the door threshold. He also built wooden fencing on the sides of the deck, for some shade, and strung lights around the top of it. My mom got me a little table and two chairs, so my friends and I can sit out there at various times of the day, with various snacks and beverages. My friend Regina gave me a cute little solar yard ornament, so I put that beside the deck, too, and it glows in the twilight. 

A few weeks later, I decided to get an automatic door opener system for the glass sliding door. There were so many times, especially in the long summer evenings, when I just wanted to sit outside, and if no one was with me, I couldn't. Vocational Rehabilitation is going to set up an automatic front door for me (eventually, someday) but they will only do one door, so I figured I could use some of my savings to do the back door this summer. My friend, Del, (who reminds me a lot of my dad, actually) came over one Saturday and got it installed, and Kevan helped me figure out how to set it up to just tap a button on my phone to open and close the door.  

A couple more weeks later, my friend Lisa and I figured out that if my afternoon caregiver brews some tea for me and puts it in my cute little pink thermos, it will stay hot for hours. This is great, because around 7pm when I'm alone most evenings, I often wish I could just have a cup of tea and a little treat, a cookie or something. 

So the second day I tried the hot tea experiment, I actually took my thermos outside on my back deck and just sat there sipping my tea and watching the sun dip behind the trees. (In Fort Wayne in the summer, sunset doesn't happen until 9:30, when I am usually getting into bed, so sunset watching and enjoying the twinkle lights will have to wait until later in the season.) I've made something of a habit of this now, whenever I have the time. It's mostly quiet and peaceful, except for the occasional obnoxious motorist on the main road nearby who revs their engine unnecessarily. 

I really love my little back porch, as a place to escape by myself as well as a place to welcome friends. I'm excited to see how it will be used over the next few months and years!