Whirlpool Spa and Deck Repair Completed (Finally!)

Put the finishing touches on the backyard project this past week.

Plenty of muscle soreness, but happy to say no re-injury or new problems related to my back surgeries. 

And at this point I think it's safe to say that there are homeowners more clueless than me.  I am surrendering my title as "World's Worst Carpenter".

Here are a few photos:

José placed 1/2 yard of concrete.  No more rotted redwood in the side deck.

Rough broom finish will help prevent slipping!

Painted the face of retaining walls and built a bench top for the planter.

Lattice privacy fence/railing and shade sail are the finishing touches.
(By the way, wood lattice is a real pain to paint!)

WTA Tennis At La Costa

We watched some quarter-final matches at the Southern California Open today.
The tournament, held at the La Costa Resort, is a shadow of its former self.  What was once a "Tier 1" event sponsored by Acura has been sold off to a foreign country.  Now we're left with a "Tier 3" tournament that is avoided by many of the top women players.

My pet peeve is the venue's "no outside food and beverage" policy.  Last year our friend had a bag of Skittles confiscated from her purse!  We called them the "food gestapo", and I'm not about to let them intimidate me!  So I walked to a Mexican restaurant in the shopping center next door for lunch, enjoying a pollo asada burrito with unlimited soft drinks.  All for a dollar less than the venue charges for one small bottle of water.

George poses with the tennis world's #4 ranked Agnieszka Radwanska

Footnote:
We were pleased that Samantha Stosur quietly and competently defeated one of the decibel queens of women's tennis.  Screamin' Victoria Azarenka went down in two sets in the final.

Screaming Women Who Play Tennis.  (Bring earplugs!)