It's woodworking, Jim...

...but not as we know it.

Barely had I taken breath to update on The Patient when we get about three hours notice that she's on her way home. So in three hours we had to move a load of furniture, dismantle and rebuild a bed, and sundry other preparations for Six Weeks on a walking frame. And verily, so it came to pass, and The Patient breathed a sigh of relief to be Home. 

I'm already missing hospital visiting. Certain People forget that nearest and dearest available (viz: two) do not equate to nursing and auxiliary staff on hospital word (viz: legion) and are inclined to line up the requests while the harassed ones are still trying to deal with the first thing...

However, that's by-the-by. Somewhat more pressing is giving The Patient access beyond one room; made a little tricky by the split-level nature of the house and the front-to-back depth required by the dreaded Zimmer. Now those steps are better than most, and in fact there's only one that's not deep enough, and here it is, stripped of it's concealing carpet and a dodgy bit of MDF - exposed to the world:

I know what you're thinking - is the plumber back. Nope, he was a couple of weeks ago. But I digress...

See that spirit level in the background? That revealed a slope in two directions, no less. Plus there's some very poor, loose cement work on the right hand side, with a little damp there too. However I've managed to find and cut to (a reasonable) fit a piece of 3/4" ply to extend the step to nearly two feet. Then I get to round its front edge and put some finish on it to dissuade the damp, while the Old Man replaces the poor cement with some better and tries to level the step off a little. Then back I'll come (so goes the plan, anyway) to make and fix a sort of open box to create the rest of the step, add shims as required to the existing step, screw the ply down and go on my way rejoicing, leaving him to sort out the carpet.

That's the plan anyway. Many a slip twixt cup and lip, of course... It is, I suppose, woodworking. Of a sort. Not exactly the sort I enjoy though.