Today while putting in another 11-hour day, I heard Lisa doing work around the house, running the leaf blower, dumping loads of stuff into the bin, and so forth. It wasn't until the end of the day that I saw what she had been up to.
The area off the rear patio had been buried in junk, old plastic bags, and leaves and other debris blown in by the lake winds that are so prevalent here. I wish Lisa had told me before she started so I could have taken a picture of what it looked like yesterday.
As far as we can tell, this raised area must have been used for a previous owner's dog, based on the pet door located in the wall. There's a concrete pad but also wooden boards that are sagging. If we came into unlimited money, we'd pay to have a sauna installed here, putting it flush against the wall and installing a door into the hallway there. Just the thing for those cold winter nights.
Lisa has plans in the near term for this area, but I will write about them later should they come to fruition.