Almost There...

July 14, 2018: How the front of the house looked late Saturday morning!

Finally, real progress! The front of the house in Mesa looks like it used to back in its glory days--except for needing a new roof, a new garage door, a new paint job, a new lawn, a new screen door, a new front window and screens, a new gate... But the point is, the rubbish is gone! 

July 12: A reminder of how it looked when I arrived on Thursday.

Alas, that's only true when viewed from the street. There is still some work to be done beyond the back gate, but I have such a huge sense of relief to see that this battle can be won and there is an end in sight.

The roll-off container was in place when I arrived.

It began with a phone call to Mesa's solid waste division on Monday afternoon to order their largest roll-off container and have it delivered on Thursday, the day I planned to arrive. That way, it would be ready for us to begin on Friday morning. I'd debated whether to get their largest, a 40-yard dumpster, which has eight-foot walls (the walls on the other two options were six-foot and four-foot). Did we really have enough trash to fill such a large bin?

Thank goodness I did, because it held only about two-thirds of all the trash left on the property. It was pricey, at $307.50 for up to fourteen days. However, I decided it would be worse to pay less but find we needed more space. And need more we did. In fact, today I called Mesa again, this time to request that the dumpster be emptied and then returned tomorrow to be filled once more. This time the cost will "only" be $252.50.

Our team on Friday morning: Maryhelen, Thomas, Jacob,

Elyssa, and Genevieve. Julien arrived to help soon after.

We were a little nervous about how much help we'd have. Clearly, it was too big of a job for Jacob and me alone, even over a rental period of two weeks. Especially for me, with my back, hip, and knee issues, plus the fact that I'd be in town for less than three days. I'd posted our plans online, with the dates we'd be handling this project and a request for volunteers, and there were a few responses, but we didn't know for sure whether anyone at all would show up.

Then, around 8:00 on Thursday night, I got a message from two of my nieces, asking for the address and saying they'd be here the next morning. We were so happy to know we wouldn't be alone! Genevieve and Elyssa arrived about 8:30 on Friday morning, followed not long after by their younger brother, Julien, who is Jacob's roommate (and the same age as my son Dylan). Then Mark's cousin Maryhelen and her thirteen-year-old son, Thomas, came over from the house next door, where Mark's Aunt Wilma lives. Now we had a full team!

I taped a big sign on the side of the dumpster to remind us of the rules

and what isn't allowed inside, like tires and batteries and such.

We began with gathering tile, block, and other rock-like materials, since the rules stated that they must be in the bottom of the bin, and no deeper than twelve inches. I helped gather block and load it in the wheelbarrow I'd brought along. I lasted for about twenty minutes before the knee began protesting. At that point, I grabbed my camera to chronicle the event. And, of course, I supervised and made helpful suggestions (at least, I thought they were helpful), while keeping the ice-cold water bottles available.

Genevieve, Thomas, and Maryhelen start in on the backyard.

It seemed like a slow process at first, almost insurmountable, but we gradually began to see results. I was worried about our crew being largely made up of young females, lifting heavy furniture in the oppressive heat and suffocating humidity (without a rain cloud in sight). Soon, though, I was less worried and more impressed by their stamina and determination.

Genevieve, Elyssa, and Jacob start out, one block and one tile at a time.

Genevieve and Elyssa carried their share of large items, but they also worked out a system for the smaller items in piles throughout the yard. Moving furniture isn't nearly as tricky as transporting thousands of small bits of junk. After two rickety but workable carts and a slew of crates had been unearthed, they used those to systematically move each pile to the dumpster. Once they got rolling, we really saw the improvement begin.

Jacob, Maryhelen, Genevieve, and Julien hard at work.

After most of the large items were in the bin, it was time to empty the garage. Unfortunately, the garage door was too badly damaged to open. It would have been a nightmare to move everything out through the broken side door, so I looked at Maryhelen and asked, "Where's your sledgehammer?"

Her eyes lit up. "Really?" The door was going to have to be replaced anyway, so why not?

Julien and Jacob take one panel of the garage door to the dumpster.

She and Jacob took turns waling on the door segments and soon had them broken free so the door could be dismantled and removed to the container. Once that was accomplished, the mounds of trash in the garage were quickly subdued. The garage wasn't entirely emptied on Friday, but it was finally possible to walk through without getting your feet snagged by trash. And all the large pieces of furniture were gone.

The roll-off container is starting to fill up.

While the work was ongoing for both days, several people driving past the house stopped to ask if we planned to rent out the house. I guess they assumed we were loading up the dumpster because we were moving out. Each one appeared to be disappointed when they learned the house wasn't available. At least I know I wouldn't have had much trouble finding a renter (or buyer) if Jacob hadn't moved in!

Julien empties the garage while Genevieve and Elyssa employ their system.

After a full two hours of hard labor, we called it quits. The heat was getting worse, topping out at 104 degrees that day, with 52% humidity and no rain to bring relief. But the property was noticeably less cluttered and on its way to being cleared. It was a great feeling when we all went out to Subway for an early lunch together. It was great, and I owe everyone so much for all they did!

Elyssa and Genevieve show their womanly superpowers!

When we were ready to start again on Saturday morning, the dumpster was quite full, thanks to having gotten nearly all the large furniture pieces loaded up. However, there were still many spaces between the large items, which we planned to fill up with the smaller stuff.

The dumpster is pretty full by the end of the day on Friday.

Again, we weren't sure if we'd have a crew for day two, so we waited nervously. My brother Jeff had said he could come over with one or two of his burly sons, and my nephew Justin had volunteered, as well. Since I hadn't heard from them recently, though, I wan't 100% positive.

Mark's Aunt Wilma looks on while Jeff, Marcus, and Brinley clear the garage.

We were so happy to hear a knock on the door at 8:00. It was Jeff with two of his sons, Marcus and Burke, as well as his second-youngest daughter, Brinley. Before too long, Jeff's firstborn, Justin, also drove up with his own son, Aiden, a youngster just five days away from his tenth birthday. After Justin arrived, my nephew Dallin (married to my niece Mariah) pulled up on his motorcycle. Another big sigh of relief. We had another great crew!

Jacob helps his Uncle Jeff load the roll-off container.

The heat was slightly less oppressive on Saturday, due to heavy cloud cover. (But still no rain.) The temperature topped out at just 102 degrees, with 45% humidity. Still not very comfortable, but any relief is welcome. The heat is particularly hard for me--especially when it's humid--because I don't sweat, which means my body lacks the capacity to cool itself well, leaving me prone to heat exhaustion. Every person there was literally dripping sweat, their clothes drenched from their hard work, while I had a bit of dampness inside my elbows and along my hairline. Except for Brinley, who may have inherited my lack of perspiration gene!

Burke, Jeff, and Jacob clear debris from the side of the house.

I am so impressed by my nieces and nephews. These are kids who know how to work hard, and how to do it effectively. On both days, each one barreled through the mess and made it yield before them. After just two hours on Saturday, the garage and side-yard were utterly empty of garbage and the backyard was more than half cleared. It felt almost like a miracle to see the difference.

Jeff, Justin, Aiden, Jacob, and Dallin bring more loads to the dumpster.

While working, members of our crews kept asking the same question: "How could anyone live in such filth?" It does seem hard to fathom. We found so many interesting "treasures," from a toilet and a urinal, to eight tires (each a different type and size). At the end of the day, the tires were stacked out by the curb, when a man driving by in a truck stopped and took two of them. He also asked permission to look in the dumpster, from which he took a few items on top. Jeff shook his head. "I can't even imagine what he could use that stuff for."

In the garage, amidst the rubble, we also found one of Mark's old high school yearbooks and a photo album that looked familiar to me. Inside were Mark's baby pictures and childhood family photos, which I'd put in the album when we were married and gave to him after we divorced. Thrown on the garage floor and buried in the rubbish. Go figure. I'm glad I could rescue them.

Aiden and Jacob deliver more stuff while Marcus mashes down trash in the bin.

I can never express enough how grateful I am for those who stepped up and helped us out in subduing the monstrous mess left behind by the former "tenants." It's no exaggeration when I say Jacob and I couldn't have done it alone. Each and every one of our awesome helpers is a hero in my book!

Burke and Dallin hand off to Marcus while Jeff heaves his over the side.

Unfortunately, the job isn't finished yet. As I mentioned, the largest-sized roll-off container was still not large enough to hold everything that needed removing, and it will be empty and ready to fill up again, starting tomorrow. I came home to my much-cooler, much-rainier mountain home on Sunday afternoon, but I will be driving down to Mesa again on Thursday evening. Once more we plan to tackle the final piles of junk on Friday and Saturday. We hope to be joined by more helping hands to get this job done, once and for all!

Dallin climbed on the roof to remove two tires and assorted rubbish.

And now, here are some before-and-after photos to show how much our teams accomplished:

The garage, right after we removed the busted garage door.

The newly emptied garage. (The carts and crates along the wall will

also be tossed this week, after we use them to haul the last of the trash.)

The side-yard, as it appeared when I arrived on Thursday.

The side-yard now, all cleared. (The dirt area is Wilma's property.)

The backyard, facing the house and the illegally-enclosed patio, in April.

That part of the backyard as it is now. Just a little more work to do.

It may well be that we can complete the remaining cleanup in two hours or less. There are odds and ends in the backyard that still need to be removed, but really only one big pile of trash by the pool that will need to be hauled by the shovel-load (see below). And we didn't even touch the patio (seen in the photos above, closed in with sheets of plywood--what were they thinking?). However, the patio is a relatively small space with less mess than the garage, so it should go pretty quickly.

I really do see an end in sight, and that's a great feeling.

The backyard area alongside the pool, as of April.

The backyard area alongside the pool now, with one big pile remaining.