What's Happening Under My Patio, Part 4

SUCCESS!!!!
Here is (hopefully) the final chapter in the "What's Happening With My House" saga!
Here we see the porch steps starting to look like porch steps again.
Making the new steps fit with the old stuff
Almost there...
Wheww! New steps. Also notice the new shingle siding that is slightly different color than the old siding. The new stuff is just primed, but it's pretty close to what is there. The weather is currently too cold to paint, so we have to live with primer for a couple months and then I will paint things up myself. I got some good painting tips from John. (See below)
The new stairs in all their glory. Minus the hand rail--which is how this part of everything started. The railing will be put on in a few weeks, possibly by John and possibly by the company that will build the railing. The railing will look something like this: http://ballardiron.com/images/outdoor/rail21.jpg

And here is the doorway to our new storage unit/shed/garage underneath the porch. While it may not be pretty under there, it will be very functional. It's about 6' x 12' and I can stand up in it (I have to duck a bit under the new support beams).
The stairs bend around the corner of the front bay window. Here is a view from underneath showing the supports for the ends of the steps that extend around that bend.
Somehow, a lot of garbage was generated by all this. I'm going to digress a little now: You see, there is this this strange satisfaction with taking things to the dump. It's not politically correct, and it really isn't environmentally friendly at all! But there a great satisfaction when you get to chuck something over the ledge and into the pit at the dump and you know with complete certainty that it will never, EVER, come back. You don't need to worry or think about it any more because it's GONE! Completely, 100%, gone.

If you've done it, then you know what I mean--but you may not be proud to admit it...
King of the mountain!
It's finally done.

And now, as promised, painting tips for amateurs:

• Go to a real paint store, not just a general hardware/home improvement store.
• Use primer.
• Use good (expensive) primer.
• Use good (expensive) paint.
• Ask the guy at the paint store for suggestions.
• Don't paint in the cold or rain.