Now that the front yard is on its way to nearly back all the attention turns to the back yard, where there are a bunch of projects that absolutely, positively must get done before the arrival of the real heat. I figure we’ve only got another month, so there is little time to lose. First up is the swimming pool, which, as a result of the very hard water we have around these parts, really needs to be drained and refilled every two years, and, every four years, given the acid wash treatment. And 2015 is the fourth year in the cycle so we’ll have the pool drained and acid washed, then refilled and ready for another pool season.

Which, BTW, is nearly on us – the water temp was 72 when it was drained yesterday. You get an ocean temperature of 72 off of, say, Plum Island, and the water is packed. A fresh water 72 in our swimming pool is still a little chilly for anything but a quick dip. That, however, wasn’t going to happen – the week before the pool gets drained I stop the chlorine and chemicals and just let it all sit, upon which it begins to turn a lovely soft green with the strong sun this time of year.

The one thing you need to know about swimming pools is that nothing about them in terms of maintenance is cheap. By the time we have the pool drained and acid washed, the pool light (which hasn’t worked for God knows how long) fixed, the vacuum replaced with something we hope will finally work, then the pool refilled with 10,200 gallons of pure Colorado River water and re-chemicaled you’re looking at about $1K total. But after everything we’ve been through this year what’s another grand between friends: it’s just money, right?

Once the pool is taken care of, the next tasks on the list are the washing down and repainting of the back patio. Between last year’s dust storms and the unrelenting afternoon sun, the patio is, frankly, disgusting. So a good washing and paint job will go a long ways to make it happy and hospitable again.

And then comes the job I truly dread – the re-thatching of the Tiki bar roof. I’ve got $500 worth of Tahitian thatch sitting in the garage just waiting to be cut, placed, and stapled on top of the thatch that’s already started falling through the frame of the Tiki bar roof. It’s not that it’s going to be hard work (at least I don’t think it will be) but it will be awkward work trying to lay everything perfectly so it looks natural. I’ve never done this kind of thing before, but if you’re going to own a Tiki bar outside in the Valley of the Sun, you better get used to having to replace your thatch once in a while. I’m sure you’ll enjoy the pics when the time comes!