A quick note: If I don't start posting what I've written of this, I'm never going to get caught up writing it. So here's the preliminary info about why we wanted to embark on this god-forsaken patio project.
We had this house built and moved in December 2003. Since then, we've been talking about what to do with the backyard. Another house we came very close to buying had this immaculately sculpted and landscaped backyard. It was a tiny, tiny yard (about half the size of our single-tiny backyard), but it seemed so much bigger, because it was useful. There were places to sit, flowers and pretty plants, lights, and a number of other things that would have made it a great place to relax on a Spring evening.
The backyard in the house we ended up building, on the other hand, is kind of an eyesore. First, our house sits higher than every other house on the block, and our back door is 3 feet above ground level, which means that every time we stick our heads out the door, our neighbors can see everything we do (ask Lori sometime about me running outside after the dogs, completely naked, before I remembered that), and we can see everything they do. Due to the elevation of the house, the yard slopes down quite a bit, both back from the house and from the right to the left side, with a dramatic dip in the rear left corner.
I've kept it mowed, and cleaned up after the dogs, and briefly attempted a garden, but that's the extent of what I've done in the backyard. I had a hammock for a while, but I broke it. I had help, both from other folks and beer.
So, cutting to the chase, we decided to carve out that depression in the rear left corner and put in a patio. It'll be a cheap job, we figured, and shouldn't take all that long. If you ever find yourself saying these two things before starting a construction project, stop and do a little more research. Your job will neither be inexpensive nor brief. More on this as the story progresses.
And finally, the last bit of background before I get started into the story: my last day of work was August 1, and my orientation for law school is was August 23. The time between is the timetable goal for the whole project.