Like any 'previously loved' (my wife's a Real Estate Principal Broker. This means someone else lived here before we did) home, it needed some work. We didn't know just how many times it had been "loved" before we bought it, until we talked to our neighbors. Turns out, a lot of families, with a lot of kids moved in and out of here in the 22 years before we did.

We've done some painting and a couple of roofs. One thing the previous owner didn't tell us when we were in the process of buying the house was, if it rains pretty hard, the basement leaks, a lot. 4 times it leaked on us to the tune of 6 to 8" of water in the entire basement. That's bad if it happens to anyone, but I'm a musician. My music room is in the basement and so are my instruments. Many, many instruments.

One of the things the house had when we moved in was an aluminum awning over the patio. We enjoyed sitting out under the awning and having evening cocktails and the occasional cigar. Eventually, we bought a fire pit, a couple propane heaters, and Sharon made some weather proof curtains to hang around the awning. This made the patio a year 'round enjoyable place to be. We even had a Kegerator out there with not one, but two of our favorite brews on tap.

Ok, back to the basement flooding for a moment. We had talked about making the patio into something a little more weather proof and secure, but like most couples, we had to use our shekels wisely. We'd really had it with never knowing when or if the basement was going to flood and possibly ruin thousands of dollar$ worth of instruments and equipment.

Yes, the smart move was to invest in fixing the flooding issue. We put the patio upgrade on hold and had a company come out. They dug up our entire yard, dug up around the entire foundation of our house. They did a lot of high-tech drainage material. It was amazing to watch and took the best part of a year to complete.

They poured a lot of concrete, and while they were pouring concrete anyway, I had them add four feet to the patio, knowing that someday, we were going to do something special out there.

Well, that was a couple years ago, and last summer (2025), Sharon and I decided to pull the trigger on a 'Sunroom'. We batted around some ideas. Eventually, we kind of had an idea what we wanted, I drew some sketches. Instead of looking like something with screens and plastic it looked like a room. When we thought we were getting close, we called a couple contractors to get their thoughts and possibly a bid. We went through four, but most didn't get what we were after and one of them kicked my dog.

Frustrated, we ended up at the local pub one night. Our good friend Derek showed up, and as it happens, he used to be a contractor, but he sold all of his gear and is semi-retired at this point. He told us that a guy who used to work for him had bought most of his equipment and gone into business for himself.

We gave Derek's guy a call, and the rest is basically history. Pedro Zarate from Z Rios Construction (971-533-9011) is just outstanding. He built the room we've wanted for years. He offered ideas about color and materials and was spot on with every suggestion. He is a pleasure to work with and oh yeah, he came in on time and on budget.

A project like this requires several permits and several inspections. Every inspector that came to look things over made a point of letting me know, Pedro and his guys were doing a fabulous job.

The room is finished, but we still have some decorating to do. It has been an adventure for sure. Stay Tuned!

February 27, 2026 Update