putting together the porch swing

I carted the swing all the way to my mother’s house.  I fought roof racks… and rain storms… and fear of it blowing off the car.  But I made it.  It made it.  I was done.

Or so I thought.

Now came the task of helping my mom put it back together.  Mother without a partner…daughter must help.

I had the frame and the nuts and bolts.  My mom had the cushions.  What neither of us seemed to have was instructions.  I am sure this seemed simple enough when we took it apart…nearly 2 years ago ... so we might have assumed we would remember.  Or maybe she just can’t think of the place she has safely put the instructions.  Either way, we are now on the fast track to an engineering degree so that she can swing on her back porch.

We sorted….nuts and bolts and metal parts.  We made first attempts.  Then took them apart and made a second attempt.  Then took them apart again and put them together the way we tried the first time. 

This is where we ended in frustration at the end of day one:

Looks good.  Right?  Just lift the swing up and hook it in and be done.  Right?  Wrong.  The problem is that we know we have done something wrong because all the bolts are too long.  ALL.  Not some, with others being too short.  So our only thought is that it must all be put together wrong. 

So we stop.  And think about it.  Eventually I decide “Who cares?” if they are all too long.  Tighten them down and be done.  But my mom wants to get it right.  She is meticulous.  But eventually the handyman who has been helping her with other things agrees with me and just tightens everything down for us. 

Now all that is put together we must put the canopy on.  Which we attempt to do.  We pull and tug and brace ourselves against object we can.  We get it in the right position but just slightly off center of the screw holes.  We use a hammer.  We use a crow bar.  I ask for a sledge hammer but my mom says no.  We give up again.  At this stage:

It is not screwed in.  But it is just the canopy.  So we are willing to let it stay like this for a few days – until my uncle comes to visit.

Mean Mama