Here's the update on October's Random Thoughts:
The new Nevada Barr Book is okay. She's experimenting with other writing styles, and this one is okay for folks who like this style. It doesn't have any of her incredible, descriptive prose of the parks and without that, the story leaves me wanting. It's also about how poorly the juvenile justice system works--or doesn't work--and that's always hard to read. I know we all need to stretch our wings and try new things, but Nevada: bring back that rascally Ranger Anna!
We have 6 homes lined up for the Whitehouse Library Country Christmas Home Tour and yours truly is off the hook! Yea! I'd really like to do it some time, so maybe next year. That is if we get the basement finished, the upstairs, and well--same old same old.
Speaking of birthdays (we weren't) I got Tom a new brad nailer for his birthday. And I got me a new chain saw--cool. Don't have time to use either one yet, because of Niece's wedding plans, but soon. Speaking of wedding plans, K2, the groom, isn't here yet. Yeah, that's stressful. If he doesn't leave Texas in the next 2 days, he'll miss his own wedding. Swell. It'll be a wonderful, small wedding and much nicer with him here.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Glass City Rollers
The Glass City Rollers--the new girls on the block. This is a flat track roller derby team from Toledo. Why am I interested? One of my nieces is the club president--that would be Sally Seam Rip-Her, whose number is 5/8. Get it? 5/8 inch seam allowance? Oy. Any who, we were really skeptical about "Sally's" interest in this. But it's turned out to be a lot of fun.
Flat track derby isn't nearly as rough as the old derby circuit. They have so many rules I'm really not sure what the girls can do--they can throw a hip, but no pushing, tripping, all sorts of stuff. The refs keep incredibly close track of what's going on on the track. A game is called a bout, and all of the skaters chose really horrid, punny names. I sat with my step-daughter, whom I'll call Betty Beehive, who sort of knows the rules. It took me all through the first half to get a grasp of the rules. Once you figure out how to watch and what to watch for, you start to see the strategy of it.
It wasn't gruesome, even though the bout was held on Halloween, and we'll be back for the next home bout. This was the Glass City Rollers (GCR) first home bout, and they only sold about 100 tickets before the bout. But they filled at least 800 seats, and the place was full. It really was fun to watch. I'm hooked.
Did I mention that the bout took place on Halloween? Crowds don't usually look like folks from the Rocky Horror Picture Show at bouts. In fact, I was amazed at how normal most folks in the crowd looked. I dressed up as Waldo, so people could find me. When I was Sally's age, I was directing a baton and drum corps for kids--good exercise, but not nearly as exciting as this deal. The next home bout for the GCR will be in December, and after the great publicity and fun at the last bout, I'm willing to bet the next one will sell out. Get those tickets early and see you there!
Flat track derby isn't nearly as rough as the old derby circuit. They have so many rules I'm really not sure what the girls can do--they can throw a hip, but no pushing, tripping, all sorts of stuff. The refs keep incredibly close track of what's going on on the track. A game is called a bout, and all of the skaters chose really horrid, punny names. I sat with my step-daughter, whom I'll call Betty Beehive, who sort of knows the rules. It took me all through the first half to get a grasp of the rules. Once you figure out how to watch and what to watch for, you start to see the strategy of it.
It wasn't gruesome, even though the bout was held on Halloween, and we'll be back for the next home bout. This was the Glass City Rollers (GCR) first home bout, and they only sold about 100 tickets before the bout. But they filled at least 800 seats, and the place was full. It really was fun to watch. I'm hooked.
Did I mention that the bout took place on Halloween? Crowds don't usually look like folks from the Rocky Horror Picture Show at bouts. In fact, I was amazed at how normal most folks in the crowd looked. I dressed up as Waldo, so people could find me. When I was Sally's age, I was directing a baton and drum corps for kids--good exercise, but not nearly as exciting as this deal. The next home bout for the GCR will be in December, and after the great publicity and fun at the last bout, I'm willing to bet the next one will sell out. Get those tickets early and see you there!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Project Yard Work
It's amazing, but the major portion of my yard plan is finished. The rocks in the front yard are just the way I want them. This includes a huge rock I actually purchased. It called to me as soon as I drove into the rock shop, and I tried to ignore it. But it came home to our house. I think DH even likes it. Pics soon.
And today I put the last, I hope, of the rocks/border around the back basement window. With those 2 projects, it just a matter of keeping things under control for now. I've pretty much given up thinking that the area under our deck will ever look nice or be "landscaped" so I'm content now.
Whew. Content and tired!
And today I put the last, I hope, of the rocks/border around the back basement window. With those 2 projects, it just a matter of keeping things under control for now. I've pretty much given up thinking that the area under our deck will ever look nice or be "landscaped" so I'm content now.
Whew. Content and tired!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Glowing October Days
The colors of the trees this year has been simply indescribable. The closest thing I can say is they glow this year. You just need to be here to believe it. I've taken several pictures, but they don't capture the feeling that comes over me when I'm out walking the woods. And since we've had very little sun, I haven't yet figured out why the trees are glowing! Very, very cool fall show.
Along those lines, there are very few pine cones and acorns on the ground. Last year when we walked the path in the back woods, it was like walking on ball bearings. And every morning when we came out, the yard was covered with cones from our white pines, no matter how many we picked up the night before. DH figures that the year before last the trees must have been stressed. The good news from that was the finches were here in record numbers. I suspect we won't see many crossbills and such this year.
I went berserk and bought some more rocks. This morning I loaded up 500 lbs of field stone into my car, then drove home and unloaded the things. I also shoveled the last of the river rock into the cart on the mower, so I can get those placed around the window well in the back. I spent several hours a couple of days ago beating back the weeds in my "back yard." This is barely more than a ribbon of grass around the back deck, but dang it! I want it to be a ribbon of domesticated, well behaved grass. The environmentalist in me is rather disgusted with the home owner in me that wants said ribbon of grass. We've got 3+ acres here, and most of it remains in it's natural state and I love that. But we have to grow domesticated, well behaved grass over the leach field, which takes up our whole front yard. And when one has grass growing, it needs to be cleared of the leaves in the fall, or it will cease to be well behaved grass. I bought a leaf sweeper that goes on the back of the mower, so DD can cruise around and sweep leaves to his little heart's content. And again the "green me" is yelling at the homeowner me about using so much gasoline to get rid of leaves. I guess October is just going to remain a month of my internal selves yelling at each other.
And homeowner me would dearly love for the spiders to either move back to the trees or at least stop pooping all over my porch. Can't a girl have a little space to herself that doesn't need to be cleaned all the time!!!!!! Is that asking too much?
Along those lines, there are very few pine cones and acorns on the ground. Last year when we walked the path in the back woods, it was like walking on ball bearings. And every morning when we came out, the yard was covered with cones from our white pines, no matter how many we picked up the night before. DH figures that the year before last the trees must have been stressed. The good news from that was the finches were here in record numbers. I suspect we won't see many crossbills and such this year.
I went berserk and bought some more rocks. This morning I loaded up 500 lbs of field stone into my car, then drove home and unloaded the things. I also shoveled the last of the river rock into the cart on the mower, so I can get those placed around the window well in the back. I spent several hours a couple of days ago beating back the weeds in my "back yard." This is barely more than a ribbon of grass around the back deck, but dang it! I want it to be a ribbon of domesticated, well behaved grass. The environmentalist in me is rather disgusted with the home owner in me that wants said ribbon of grass. We've got 3+ acres here, and most of it remains in it's natural state and I love that. But we have to grow domesticated, well behaved grass over the leach field, which takes up our whole front yard. And when one has grass growing, it needs to be cleared of the leaves in the fall, or it will cease to be well behaved grass. I bought a leaf sweeper that goes on the back of the mower, so DD can cruise around and sweep leaves to his little heart's content. And again the "green me" is yelling at the homeowner me about using so much gasoline to get rid of leaves. I guess October is just going to remain a month of my internal selves yelling at each other.
And homeowner me would dearly love for the spiders to either move back to the trees or at least stop pooping all over my porch. Can't a girl have a little space to herself that doesn't need to be cleaned all the time!!!!!! Is that asking too much?
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Random Thoughts, October Style, au deaux
I didn't get to my Nevada Barr book yet. I just know I won't put it down once I start, so I'm waiting for that perfect moment to curl up in my Big, Comfy Chair and read for hours.
The autism book addresses issues for younger children. And yes, we've done everything suggested. And the kids still have autism. Oh, yeah, they always will, damn. Now I need an encouraging book about young adults with autism.
Speaking of which, DD went to the Homecoming dance last night. He took his friend Allie, who has Down Syndrome. They've been buddies since they were 3 years old. It was a nice chance for them to do the other stuff that HS kids do. Fortunately, since I drove, they didn't go parking after wards. And boy oh boy, were the girls dressed up! Holy cow! My mom had a hard time getting us to dress up as teens, because it was going out of style--now it's back big time! Sheesh!
And a special shout out to Ranger Pi, who is now a travel writer in Quito, Ecuador. It's a dang shame that NPS lost this guy--we need more Ranger Pi's!!!!! Since Pi's a writer, his blog promises to be wonderful. Here 'tis: http://what-the-que.blogspot.com/ Adios!
The autism book addresses issues for younger children. And yes, we've done everything suggested. And the kids still have autism. Oh, yeah, they always will, damn. Now I need an encouraging book about young adults with autism.
Speaking of which, DD went to the Homecoming dance last night. He took his friend Allie, who has Down Syndrome. They've been buddies since they were 3 years old. It was a nice chance for them to do the other stuff that HS kids do. Fortunately, since I drove, they didn't go parking after wards. And boy oh boy, were the girls dressed up! Holy cow! My mom had a hard time getting us to dress up as teens, because it was going out of style--now it's back big time! Sheesh!
And a special shout out to Ranger Pi, who is now a travel writer in Quito, Ecuador. It's a dang shame that NPS lost this guy--we need more Ranger Pi's!!!!! Since Pi's a writer, his blog promises to be wonderful. Here 'tis: http://what-the-que.blogspot.com/ Adios!
Friday, October 23, 2009
Random Thoughts, October Style
Being back in Ohio means my mind simply isn't engaged enough. When I'm working out west, I barely have time for an original thought, much less totally useless thoughts. So here's this month's quick thoughts--though not the totally useless ones. I'll post those later.
1. Congrats to Raptor Ranger Lora of Acadia! She's pulled a perm job with FWS in CA, doing bird things! She's a great ranger and NPS will miss her! Another case of another agency getting really good staff from us.
2. Meringue is fun to make. But I should have timed this batch for a day that didn't rain and rain and rain! The humidity really does make a difference.
3. Oak Openings is one of the most beautiful places in the world in Autumn. I'll try to get some pics posted, but they don't do justice to the scene. It's as if we become part of the colors somehow. Even today, with rain and gray, gray skies, the trees are breathtaking. This is what I miss when I'm out west. In YNP, we talk about the beautiful aspens turning yellow. That ain't nuthin' folks! And New Englanders boast about their neck of the woods. Nope, again, the show there doesn't even come close the the show here. Y'all come visit.
4. Why, you ask, am I making meringues? Well, if Shannon doesn't need/want them for her wedding reception, I'll use them for Turkey Day and Christmas celebrations. They freeze wonderfully. And homemade ones can't be beat (no pun intended). I made coffee liqueur and amaretto ones this time around.
5. I'm back to around 50% thinking about opening our home for the Whitehouse Library Christmas Tour. If we can find 2 more houses closer to town, that would be better. We have 4 beautiful homes already.
6. I actually finally bought a book about autism. This is an exercise in telling myself that I've been right all along in how I've managed our lives for the past 18 years. And as it is with any child, the next 40 years are the scary ones. . .
7. Also bought new Nevada Barr book. This one is her third book that doesn't have Ranger Anna Pigeon in it. The first one was a "Gothic frontier western lesbian romance." Not a huge audience for that, as she points out. The other was a non-fiction work about her budding interest in religion, a very nice journey. DH is gone right now, so I can stay up all night and read the new book. Should be pretty scary-- and tonight really is a dark and stormy night. . . .
1. Congrats to Raptor Ranger Lora of Acadia! She's pulled a perm job with FWS in CA, doing bird things! She's a great ranger and NPS will miss her! Another case of another agency getting really good staff from us.
2. Meringue is fun to make. But I should have timed this batch for a day that didn't rain and rain and rain! The humidity really does make a difference.
3. Oak Openings is one of the most beautiful places in the world in Autumn. I'll try to get some pics posted, but they don't do justice to the scene. It's as if we become part of the colors somehow. Even today, with rain and gray, gray skies, the trees are breathtaking. This is what I miss when I'm out west. In YNP, we talk about the beautiful aspens turning yellow. That ain't nuthin' folks! And New Englanders boast about their neck of the woods. Nope, again, the show there doesn't even come close the the show here. Y'all come visit.
4. Why, you ask, am I making meringues? Well, if Shannon doesn't need/want them for her wedding reception, I'll use them for Turkey Day and Christmas celebrations. They freeze wonderfully. And homemade ones can't be beat (no pun intended). I made coffee liqueur and amaretto ones this time around.
5. I'm back to around 50% thinking about opening our home for the Whitehouse Library Christmas Tour. If we can find 2 more houses closer to town, that would be better. We have 4 beautiful homes already.
6. I actually finally bought a book about autism. This is an exercise in telling myself that I've been right all along in how I've managed our lives for the past 18 years. And as it is with any child, the next 40 years are the scary ones. . .
7. Also bought new Nevada Barr book. This one is her third book that doesn't have Ranger Anna Pigeon in it. The first one was a "Gothic frontier western lesbian romance." Not a huge audience for that, as she points out. The other was a non-fiction work about her budding interest in religion, a very nice journey. DH is gone right now, so I can stay up all night and read the new book. Should be pretty scary-- and tonight really is a dark and stormy night. . . .
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Housing Projects
When I'm out west, I miss that there are no house projects which need our attention--sort of. . . The apartment is small, which means no intense cleaning needed, but it's also pretty sterile. When I get home, I'm overwhelmed that there are so many projects that need my attention--sort of. . . I'm hoping that when the basement is finished (the end is almost in sight), that I can start indulging in more fun stuff--like taking a hike without being overcome with that old Protestant Work Ethic thing. All summer long, I tell folks that they should go sit on a rock and do nothing, but I fail to follow my own advice. I'm thinking of making myself take a walk in the woods every Wednesday. Check in with me to see if I do it. Maybe I just need peer pressure to do it!
I'd also like to get back to my sewing projects. It's good therapy for me. I used to say it was cheaper than therapy, but if I actually get my crafty corner fixed up in the basement, it could get costly again. I'll have room for my material stash, and all of you crafters know how dangerous that can be.
So today's project is to stain the front deck. DH did one section last May before he came out west, so it looks, once again, like poor white trash abide here. The new roof looks great, and the downspouts work, except that there are "splash guards" at the corners. They've turned into leaf catchers, so I called the company yesterday and asked them to come out and remove them. We did get the new door put in, complete with the electronic lock. Email me for your own private code number!
And I got one of the 1 1/2 tons of river rock moved. I have a plan for the rest of it, but I've got to get that stain on before the rains come again. Bring your paintbrush and come on over!
I'd also like to get back to my sewing projects. It's good therapy for me. I used to say it was cheaper than therapy, but if I actually get my crafty corner fixed up in the basement, it could get costly again. I'll have room for my material stash, and all of you crafters know how dangerous that can be.
So today's project is to stain the front deck. DH did one section last May before he came out west, so it looks, once again, like poor white trash abide here. The new roof looks great, and the downspouts work, except that there are "splash guards" at the corners. They've turned into leaf catchers, so I called the company yesterday and asked them to come out and remove them. We did get the new door put in, complete with the electronic lock. Email me for your own private code number!
And I got one of the 1 1/2 tons of river rock moved. I have a plan for the rest of it, but I've got to get that stain on before the rains come again. Bring your paintbrush and come on over!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Life on the Big Sandy
One of the downsides of living on a huge sand dune is well. . . . I miss rocks. Really. I have a thing for rocks--river rocks, granite, scoria, rhyolitic, knife river flint, petrified rock, you name it, I miss rocks. So yesterday, I bought another couple of tons of rock. 1.5 tons of it is river rock, the rest is field stone. And when one buys rock around here, one will be shoveling rock for week. Dang. At least I've finally got a plan for how I want the "foundation" plantings around the house to look. The bad news is that there's a lot more (expensive) rock in my future. And surprise surprise, no one wants to come over and help me shovel it. Humph.
Upcoming events include Shay's arrival from Texas and her wedding shower Sunday afternoon. Wedding is in 2 weeks. It'll be a nice family affair at the Lodge. DH and I had our reception there (along with several other fun parties) and K8 got married there also. It'll be loverly! Another fun thing to add to our list of fun November things.
Upcoming events include Shay's arrival from Texas and her wedding shower Sunday afternoon. Wedding is in 2 weeks. It'll be a nice family affair at the Lodge. DH and I had our reception there (along with several other fun parties) and K8 got married there also. It'll be loverly! Another fun thing to add to our list of fun November things.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Old School Rangers
Thank goodness for old school rangers. We had our monthly luncheon today with retirees from DH's Park District. It's nice to share some of the old stories, but most importantly, we all see the need to make changes in order to serve now. Since the moron who was the last director of the district finally left (YEA!) the new director has recognized that institutional memory is a good thing. He knows that we can't go back to the old ways, but understands that there are many, many parts of the old ways that are good and should be re-incorporated into the goals of the district today.
So lift one for the old guys and gals, and wish success to new rangers. Cheers!
So lift one for the old guys and gals, and wish success to new rangers. Cheers!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Sons and New Technology
My older son, FTD, purchased a new laptop computer this afternoon with money he earned from his summer job. What a step in growth--sort of. His primary use for it is to watch pokemon shows and upload game cheats. Okay, so he's not going off to college to earn his way in the world. But he did use good consumer skills to pick this thing out. That's an achievement right there. I'll take this as one of life's bigger successes for him--even though right now he's sitting next to me watching an incredibly dumb and inane show called Dragonball.
The boys are re-registered for school. What a gigantic pain in the seat. After the gracious and thoughtful welcome we received at West Yellowstone, the beating we took at AW was ridiculous. We had to prove we actually live in the district--where we've owned a home and/or other property for 30 years. We were told we had to produce 2 utility bills to prove we live here. Not our IDs, not our pay stubs showing where our money is sent (including the one the school district sends to DH to work for them), not even the public online records showing what we own and how much we pay in SCHOOL TAXES, but 2 utility bills. I said (very loudly and adamantly, I must say) no way. What a load of crap. At West and in Medora I just had to say, I work here. "Okay, when can the kids start and how long can you stay with us?" was the reply. Upon reaching the HS today (after last week's scene at the Board Office--they won't forget me anytime soon--we had to go through the whole rigmarole to pick classes again. FTD actually perked up at one science class that is offered. When his special ed teacher came in, she threw every wet blanket she could think of at him. No wonder he pretty much hates school. I'm really surprised that he chose to go back to AW instead of the vocational HS. He'll go there next year.
And the final upshot regarding his schedule is that he'll exercise his Senior option which is to skip 2 class periods a day. He'll skip 1st and 2nd. Except for the fact that I'll have to drive him in every day, this will work better around here. DD will get up and go, and FTD can get up in his super-slo-mo fashion. DD will be getting on the bus at 6:35, and I'll leave home with FTD at 9. That will give me a reason to get up and moving, too.
Nobody ever said life would be easy, but it shouldn't be spent on inane things like we did for the past several days. And yep, this this boondoggle won't stop me from moving back west next summer. . . I hope.
The boys are re-registered for school. What a gigantic pain in the seat. After the gracious and thoughtful welcome we received at West Yellowstone, the beating we took at AW was ridiculous. We had to prove we actually live in the district--where we've owned a home and/or other property for 30 years. We were told we had to produce 2 utility bills to prove we live here. Not our IDs, not our pay stubs showing where our money is sent (including the one the school district sends to DH to work for them), not even the public online records showing what we own and how much we pay in SCHOOL TAXES, but 2 utility bills. I said (very loudly and adamantly, I must say) no way. What a load of crap. At West and in Medora I just had to say, I work here. "Okay, when can the kids start and how long can you stay with us?" was the reply. Upon reaching the HS today (after last week's scene at the Board Office--they won't forget me anytime soon--we had to go through the whole rigmarole to pick classes again. FTD actually perked up at one science class that is offered. When his special ed teacher came in, she threw every wet blanket she could think of at him. No wonder he pretty much hates school. I'm really surprised that he chose to go back to AW instead of the vocational HS. He'll go there next year.
And the final upshot regarding his schedule is that he'll exercise his Senior option which is to skip 2 class periods a day. He'll skip 1st and 2nd. Except for the fact that I'll have to drive him in every day, this will work better around here. DD will get up and go, and FTD can get up in his super-slo-mo fashion. DD will be getting on the bus at 6:35, and I'll leave home with FTD at 9. That will give me a reason to get up and moving, too.
Nobody ever said life would be easy, but it shouldn't be spent on inane things like we did for the past several days. And yep, this this boondoggle won't stop me from moving back west next summer. . . I hope.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Cleaning Time Again
For a house that hasn't been fully lived in for nearly 3 months the place is a mess. Yep, there were dirty clothes and linens to be washed (even tho DH said he did them all), and little annoying stuff had to be done--like put the dish ware back where it belongs, ditch the 4 month old food in the 'fridge and so on. But alas, I repeat myself.
So yesterday and today was work on basement and outside day. I could barely move when I went to bed last night. But my alleged flower beds are weeded, some of the pine needles are raked up, and most of the camp boxes are back where they spend the winter. Well, all but DH and FTD's boxes--they are definitely cut from the same cloth--both oblivious slobs. Ah, well. . . .
And I know why 'taupe' is such a popular color for houses--it's the same color as fly and spider poop. Dang for such little critters they sure can pile it up!! And why oh why do they have to use my front porch when there's 4000 acres of real honest to goodness woods out there!?!?!?
I'm also trying to get caught up on upcoming projects--basement of course, and the Whitehouse Holiday Home Tour scheduled for Dec. 13 this year. If my next door neighbor opens her home for the tour, I'll do ours also. That means I have to get rid of my entire family for a week, so that could be tricky. We'll see. Last year's event was terrific. Good fundraiser for the local library.
So back to the yard--I sure know why condos are sooooo appealing! The downside would be having to share the view from my front porch. . . hm m m m .....
So yesterday and today was work on basement and outside day. I could barely move when I went to bed last night. But my alleged flower beds are weeded, some of the pine needles are raked up, and most of the camp boxes are back where they spend the winter. Well, all but DH and FTD's boxes--they are definitely cut from the same cloth--both oblivious slobs. Ah, well. . . .
And I know why 'taupe' is such a popular color for houses--it's the same color as fly and spider poop. Dang for such little critters they sure can pile it up!! And why oh why do they have to use my front porch when there's 4000 acres of real honest to goodness woods out there!?!?!?
I'm also trying to get caught up on upcoming projects--basement of course, and the Whitehouse Holiday Home Tour scheduled for Dec. 13 this year. If my next door neighbor opens her home for the tour, I'll do ours also. That means I have to get rid of my entire family for a week, so that could be tricky. We'll see. Last year's event was terrific. Good fundraiser for the local library.
So back to the yard--I sure know why condos are sooooo appealing! The downside would be having to share the view from my front porch. . . hm m m m .....
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Home Again, Home Again. . . and exhausted
We've arrived "safe-home" once again. And as usual, I'm whipped. DH said last June before he left for Wyoming that the laundry was all done, etc.. When I got home yesterday, I realized that his idea of "laundry all done" and mine don't match. So not only did I have 5 days worth of traveling clothes to wash, there were several baskets of last spring's laundry also. Yuck.
Each summer someone different has lived in our Ohio house. And each year I come home and can't find stuff. The most annoying part is that the kitchen stuff always gets moved around. This summer wasn't the worst, but it's still a pain.
The good news is that the basement floor is done--including being stained. It's just the way I wanted it, which was tricky since I ordered it via email and phone conversations from 1700 miles away! The down side is that the basement didn't get aired out, so last night we had to turn off the heat and open the windows. Even though it's in the upper 50s, it feels much much colder than the 50s we're used to out west. It rained a long time yesterday, and then the wind blew and blew all night. There's several sassafras branches rubbing the roof, so all night I was either awake and cold or awake and wondering what was making all that racket. DH got several of the branches cut off this afternoon, but there's still one that he can't reach. I'm hoping for a good night's sleep tonight.
Other news is that the TVs are on the fritz, so no boob tube again tonight. I'm so tired that I just want to completely veg out in front of completely useless, inane tv shows for the evening. Dang.
Later on, I'll write about our trip home--very different from our unusual trips. And speaking of which: DO NOT drive Rt. 287 south of the park this winter!!!!!!! We were in 4-5 inches of mud for miles and miles!!! What a mess! I'm thinking it was beautiful scenery, but since I couldn't take my eyes off the road, er ditch we were in, I'm not sure. Pictures to follow.
But for now, the pumpkin pie is done, and the big, fat roasting chicken is in the oven, so all is calm. Ah, dinner at home, with room for all 4 of us to sit down and eat together at one table. Sweet.
Each summer someone different has lived in our Ohio house. And each year I come home and can't find stuff. The most annoying part is that the kitchen stuff always gets moved around. This summer wasn't the worst, but it's still a pain.
The good news is that the basement floor is done--including being stained. It's just the way I wanted it, which was tricky since I ordered it via email and phone conversations from 1700 miles away! The down side is that the basement didn't get aired out, so last night we had to turn off the heat and open the windows. Even though it's in the upper 50s, it feels much much colder than the 50s we're used to out west. It rained a long time yesterday, and then the wind blew and blew all night. There's several sassafras branches rubbing the roof, so all night I was either awake and cold or awake and wondering what was making all that racket. DH got several of the branches cut off this afternoon, but there's still one that he can't reach. I'm hoping for a good night's sleep tonight.
Other news is that the TVs are on the fritz, so no boob tube again tonight. I'm so tired that I just want to completely veg out in front of completely useless, inane tv shows for the evening. Dang.
Later on, I'll write about our trip home--very different from our unusual trips. And speaking of which: DO NOT drive Rt. 287 south of the park this winter!!!!!!! We were in 4-5 inches of mud for miles and miles!!! What a mess! I'm thinking it was beautiful scenery, but since I couldn't take my eyes off the road, er ditch we were in, I'm not sure. Pictures to follow.
But for now, the pumpkin pie is done, and the big, fat roasting chicken is in the oven, so all is calm. Ah, dinner at home, with room for all 4 of us to sit down and eat together at one table. Sweet.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
What I Should Be Doing
1. Letting my family treat me to breakfast.
2. Staining front porch.
3. Packing.
4. Finishing laundry to pack.
5. Packing office stuff.
6. Packing sewing stuff.
7. Packing daily use stuff.
8. Packing important documents stuff.
What I Am Doing. . .
Playing with new camera. Biggest issue: how to upload to iPhoto first. Hmmmmmm.....
2. Staining front porch.
3. Packing.
4. Finishing laundry to pack.
5. Packing office stuff.
6. Packing sewing stuff.
7. Packing daily use stuff.
8. Packing important documents stuff.
What I Am Doing. . .
Playing with new camera. Biggest issue: how to upload to iPhoto first. Hmmmmmm.....
Saturday, May 9, 2009
T - 52 Hours and Waiting for Canon
Trailer is checked and rechecked. We've got most of the "camp" boxes in, and I'm getting DD's clothes washed. He doesn't own enough clothes to pack some and leave some. When he stops growing an inch a day we might get caught up.
I have to do the sewing box and finish the office boxes today. I think my clothes are ready, and the linens are, but they go in last since I need to get them out first. I have this little obsession about getting the beds made as soon as we get there. At least we can sleep. My supervisor checked our apt earlier this week and it should be a-okay. I just hope the new staff that arrives this weekend doesn't help them selves to the furniture that's in there. After all, I had a tough time appropriating it last fall! It sort of all matches. We're going with the NPS Ranch Oak style. I'd steal our DR table if I could figure a way. We also need another chair, as there are 4 of us and only 3 DR chairs.
When we left last fall, there was a 3 drawer dresser in the "Master BR" (lol!!) and an end table between the boys beds in their room, and I think there's at least one, maybe 2 coffee table things in the LR, along with a love seat and sofa. I think there's a floor lamp and a table lamp, too.
Packing with the trailer has been very 'refreshing' in that my worries about how to cram stuff in the car is gone! We can take all the lawn chairs we want! This year we're going to make better use of our "storage" locker, too. And we can leave junk in the trailer, since we can park it right in front of the apt. Yeah, not my third-bedroom-on-wheels, but still good. We even have room for sleeping bags and the tent. What a concept for spending the summer in a National Park!
DH and FTD are off to help another Scout with his Eagle project. It started out as repairs to a dock at a living history place and has turned into a 24 foot long floating, fully accessible dock. The place that needs it has sort of taken advantage of a couple of really nice folks on this one, imho. Anywho, the director was supposed to provide a dozen 55 gallon barrels for the floats and produced nary a one. And he wanted it launched today. Last night we got a note from the Scout asking if we had any clues where to get cheap barrels. DH went to McDonald's this morning, where the old farts from Swantuckey hang out, and low and behold, free barrels. He's gunna get us a couple for rain barrels. Yea.
I was hoping to get our front porch stained today, but it's raining again. Drat. On other house news, the roof is now 3/4 finished. It didn't take the crew long to get the bedroom wing done on the back since it's long and straight. But we counted boxes of "shingles" out there and they're way short. Apparently they are also hard to get because they've become very popular all of a sudden. Great.
We're also having a few days of house weird heating/cooling. In the spring, the geothermal doesn't quite know what do to. It has an outside sensor, so it tries to read that and extrapolate info to the system. But around here, humidity makes a huge difference. Yesterday was one of those days when the temp wasn't too bad, but the humidity was awful. When the temp hovers day and night around 70 degrees, the system just can't make up its mind.
We also have fun news. Last year we wanted to get a new, bigger, badder camera. But the market for them was one extreme or the other and we're middle of the road types. We've had a nifty Kodak PHD (Press Here Dummy) camera for 5 years but the charging dock for it died. Last spring we bought another, somewhat bigger Kodak which totally sucks when being used. It turns out nice pics, but it's a crapshot as to what we'll get because the quality of the live view and viewfinder stink. And the battery situation was awful.
So we've bit the bullet and ordered a Canon T1i. Canon and Nikon both realized that there are amatur pros out here who like a good camera, but don't need true professional stuff. Nikon has just introduced it's D5000 for our market, but we went with the Canon because it has better video capabilties. I've had fun with the imovie stuff, so that was the deciding factor. No one in our area had either of these in stock we we ordered one. If it gets here before 2 pm on Monday, I get it. If not, I take the older Kodak and Tom tries to STOP THE PRESSES!!!!!! AT THIS VERY MOMENT, THE NEW CAMERA ARIVED!
Bye!
I have to do the sewing box and finish the office boxes today. I think my clothes are ready, and the linens are, but they go in last since I need to get them out first. I have this little obsession about getting the beds made as soon as we get there. At least we can sleep. My supervisor checked our apt earlier this week and it should be a-okay. I just hope the new staff that arrives this weekend doesn't help them selves to the furniture that's in there. After all, I had a tough time appropriating it last fall! It sort of all matches. We're going with the NPS Ranch Oak style. I'd steal our DR table if I could figure a way. We also need another chair, as there are 4 of us and only 3 DR chairs.
When we left last fall, there was a 3 drawer dresser in the "Master BR" (lol!!) and an end table between the boys beds in their room, and I think there's at least one, maybe 2 coffee table things in the LR, along with a love seat and sofa. I think there's a floor lamp and a table lamp, too.
Packing with the trailer has been very 'refreshing' in that my worries about how to cram stuff in the car is gone! We can take all the lawn chairs we want! This year we're going to make better use of our "storage" locker, too. And we can leave junk in the trailer, since we can park it right in front of the apt. Yeah, not my third-bedroom-on-wheels, but still good. We even have room for sleeping bags and the tent. What a concept for spending the summer in a National Park!
DH and FTD are off to help another Scout with his Eagle project. It started out as repairs to a dock at a living history place and has turned into a 24 foot long floating, fully accessible dock. The place that needs it has sort of taken advantage of a couple of really nice folks on this one, imho. Anywho, the director was supposed to provide a dozen 55 gallon barrels for the floats and produced nary a one. And he wanted it launched today. Last night we got a note from the Scout asking if we had any clues where to get cheap barrels. DH went to McDonald's this morning, where the old farts from Swantuckey hang out, and low and behold, free barrels. He's gunna get us a couple for rain barrels. Yea.
I was hoping to get our front porch stained today, but it's raining again. Drat. On other house news, the roof is now 3/4 finished. It didn't take the crew long to get the bedroom wing done on the back since it's long and straight. But we counted boxes of "shingles" out there and they're way short. Apparently they are also hard to get because they've become very popular all of a sudden. Great.
We're also having a few days of house weird heating/cooling. In the spring, the geothermal doesn't quite know what do to. It has an outside sensor, so it tries to read that and extrapolate info to the system. But around here, humidity makes a huge difference. Yesterday was one of those days when the temp wasn't too bad, but the humidity was awful. When the temp hovers day and night around 70 degrees, the system just can't make up its mind.
We also have fun news. Last year we wanted to get a new, bigger, badder camera. But the market for them was one extreme or the other and we're middle of the road types. We've had a nifty Kodak PHD (Press Here Dummy) camera for 5 years but the charging dock for it died. Last spring we bought another, somewhat bigger Kodak which totally sucks when being used. It turns out nice pics, but it's a crapshot as to what we'll get because the quality of the live view and viewfinder stink. And the battery situation was awful.
So we've bit the bullet and ordered a Canon T1i. Canon and Nikon both realized that there are amatur pros out here who like a good camera, but don't need true professional stuff. Nikon has just introduced it's D5000 for our market, but we went with the Canon because it has better video capabilties. I've had fun with the imovie stuff, so that was the deciding factor. No one in our area had either of these in stock we we ordered one. If it gets here before 2 pm on Monday, I get it. If not, I take the older Kodak and Tom tries to STOP THE PRESSES!!!!!! AT THIS VERY MOMENT, THE NEW CAMERA ARIVED!
Bye!
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Counting Down
T - 88 hours till take off.
Gotta fix bizarre electronic problem with power seats in the Trailblazer. Gotta learn to pull trailer. Ah, heck, I'll just get on the job training for that on Monday. Gotta pack. Gotta go to TNA chicken BBQ tomorrow night. Gotta not go insane any time soon.
Gotta fix bizarre electronic problem with power seats in the Trailblazer. Gotta learn to pull trailer. Ah, heck, I'll just get on the job training for that on Monday. Gotta pack. Gotta go to TNA chicken BBQ tomorrow night. Gotta not go insane any time soon.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Roof 52% Done
At one point yesterday, I was clearly outnumbered: the carpet cleaning guy was in the family room, there were 3 guys on the roof, and 2 guys in the basement--all making a huge racket!! In reality, the 6 of them weren't as noisy as my 2 sons and husband.
Today, the roof is officially half done. They also got half of the back torn off and put the underlayment materials down. Got it buttoned up enough to stand the light rain from today. The weather forecasts for the next 3 days are all over the map, so I don't know if I'll see them again or not.
In other news, Channel 11, WTOL came out to interview FTD and I for a segment called "Good Newz." Cute. Anywho, they also filmed a good deal of the COH, so that will be nice to see. It will air Tuesday, May 12, in the 5:00 pm show. Of course, DD and I will be somewhere in Minnesota by then. We'll get a motel that night with wifi so we can look it up somehow. They're going to try to remember to burn a dvd for us.
Today, the roof is officially half done. They also got half of the back torn off and put the underlayment materials down. Got it buttoned up enough to stand the light rain from today. The weather forecasts for the next 3 days are all over the map, so I don't know if I'll see them again or not.
In other news, Channel 11, WTOL came out to interview FTD and I for a segment called "Good Newz." Cute. Anywho, they also filmed a good deal of the COH, so that will be nice to see. It will air Tuesday, May 12, in the 5:00 pm show. Of course, DD and I will be somewhere in Minnesota by then. We'll get a motel that night with wifi so we can look it up somehow. They're going to try to remember to burn a dvd for us.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Miracle of Miracles! Pics added
My fingerprints cleared! I don't think they were actually "read" but that I received dispensation from the gods. Who cares, I get to work on schedule!
In house news, the front roof is nearly done, just need to do the area around the chimney where each piece has to be cut. Then they'll start the back. I might maybe be able to see the final product, but I'm not holding my breath.
And in other exciting news, the boiler is in for the basement heating project. They'll be back to mess with it some more tomorrow, then it's up to us to get the styrofoam down and the wire mesh. They'll run the pex, then the concrete goes in. I'll just be surprised next fall when I get home.
In house news, the front roof is nearly done, just need to do the area around the chimney where each piece has to be cut. Then they'll start the back. I might maybe be able to see the final product, but I'm not holding my breath.
And in other exciting news, the boiler is in for the basement heating project. They'll be back to mess with it some more tomorrow, then it's up to us to get the styrofoam down and the wire mesh. They'll run the pex, then the concrete goes in. I'll just be surprised next fall when I get home.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Packin' Time/ Train Show/ My son the Hobo
So now it's time to pack. But first, we decided to buy a trailer. No, not my third bedroom-craft room-office-guest room on wheels, but a 10 year old 5x8 Haulmark cargo trailer. I'll pull it out with me, using the gas-guzzling Trailblazer. So I now have one week to get comfortable driving a trailer. Drat. But in the long haul, and this one will be, it's for the best. I can take all the kitchen gear, all the bedding, a couple of small shelf things we bought, and all the electronics. DH and FTD will need only bring their e-gaming gear, all fishing tackle, and our mattress. Oh, they'll need clothes, too, I suppose. DD told me today that he's not going to wear shorts this week because he's getting ready to go back to winter in YNP. Too cute.
Yesterday was National Train Day in Toledo. DD's club set up all three displays (tho O gauge just brought half their stuff). Really well attended and lots of fun. Amtrak brought in a brand new superliner and dining car so people could tour it. When we arrived, they had to back it up about 50 yards so we got a train ride. DH came out at lunch time to relive me so I could come home. Around 4 I got home from some errands and DD is on the answering machine saying, "Call Dad and tell him I'm on the Amtrak Train and we'll be back in about an hour." Okaaaaaay. Now mind you, this is my 16 son with autism. . . . . I called DH's phone which of course went straight to voice mail and delivered the message. When Tom called me back he said he wondered about that, because DD went down to get a last look at the train before it left. Surprise! It left with your kid!!!!!
We weren't too worried, and knew that if for some reason he was the only passenger that the staff would take good care of him, or if there were lots of folks he'd be okay too. We live life on the edge. Turns out one of the adults from the club was with him. They went across the Maumee River, which is a big one, switched the engine to the back of the train and came back. What a hoot. My little hobo is growing up.
I'll be working on a youtube video of the layouts. I use AnnaDuv2 for my posts and DD uses Amtrakkid. But with all the packing I need to do, meetings I have this week, and girl friends I need to have lunch with, who knows when I'll get around to it. I'll edit this post when I get the pics.
7 days till take off, but who's counting?
Yesterday was National Train Day in Toledo. DD's club set up all three displays (tho O gauge just brought half their stuff). Really well attended and lots of fun. Amtrak brought in a brand new superliner and dining car so people could tour it. When we arrived, they had to back it up about 50 yards so we got a train ride. DH came out at lunch time to relive me so I could come home. Around 4 I got home from some errands and DD is on the answering machine saying, "Call Dad and tell him I'm on the Amtrak Train and we'll be back in about an hour." Okaaaaaay. Now mind you, this is my 16 son with autism. . . . . I called DH's phone which of course went straight to voice mail and delivered the message. When Tom called me back he said he wondered about that, because DD went down to get a last look at the train before it left. Surprise! It left with your kid!!!!!
We weren't too worried, and knew that if for some reason he was the only passenger that the staff would take good care of him, or if there were lots of folks he'd be okay too. We live life on the edge. Turns out one of the adults from the club was with him. They went across the Maumee River, which is a big one, switched the engine to the back of the train and came back. What a hoot. My little hobo is growing up.
I'll be working on a youtube video of the layouts. I use AnnaDuv2 for my posts and DD uses Amtrakkid. But with all the packing I need to do, meetings I have this week, and girl friends I need to have lunch with, who knows when I'll get around to it. I'll edit this post when I get the pics.
7 days till take off, but who's counting?
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Eagle Scout Court of Honor
Since there's no fingerprint news, no basement news, and very little roofing news, here's the fun news!
FTD's Court of Honor was nice. This troop usually just does really simple ceremonies, so this turned out to be a huge deal. I couldn't believe how many of our friends turned out. The best surprise was that my very bestest friend Ginny, her husband Bob, and Eagle Scout son Ryan came down from Midland Mich. So excellent to have them there! Once when we were visiting up there, Tommy announced that he was going to be an Eagle like Ryan. Cool.
We weren't able to get any photos ourselves, so I'm hoping folks will send me the pics they took. I heard lots of "shutter clap" and saw lots of flashes, but haven't seen any pictures yet!!
FTD's troop is going to attend the District Camporee this weekend, but it will be the first one he misses! DD's train club is setting up all day tomorrow for National Train Day on Saturday, so that shoots all of DH's Dad time. And I'll be packing, so I can't go with the troop.
My Son, Eagle Scout!
FTD's Court of Honor was nice. This troop usually just does really simple ceremonies, so this turned out to be a huge deal. I couldn't believe how many of our friends turned out. The best surprise was that my very bestest friend Ginny, her husband Bob, and Eagle Scout son Ryan came down from Midland Mich. So excellent to have them there! Once when we were visiting up there, Tommy announced that he was going to be an Eagle like Ryan. Cool.
We weren't able to get any photos ourselves, so I'm hoping folks will send me the pics they took. I heard lots of "shutter clap" and saw lots of flashes, but haven't seen any pictures yet!!
FTD's troop is going to attend the District Camporee this weekend, but it will be the first one he misses! DD's train club is setting up all day tomorrow for National Train Day on Saturday, so that shoots all of DH's Dad time. And I'll be packing, so I can't go with the troop.
My Son, Eagle Scout!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Basement Man Cave
How could I forget the Man Cave??!! Actually it will be the Dad cave as he's made it clear that my younger men are to keep out. Fine with me.
Currently the storage area for foam
Since the house is'V'shaped, the living room upstairs and now the Man Cave downstairs are 5 sided. Once Tom gets all his junk out of the living room and moved down, I might go so far as to post some pics of the LR. Then we'll play compare and contrast with our LR in the Wyoming apt. In an interesting twist, our apt. building is 'V'shaped also, and only about 1/3 bigger than our home.
More than one person has asked us what the hell's wrong with us to move from a big beautiful home to a teeny tiny apartment. That's easy for me. Bison in the front yard. Gotta love it.
Currently the storage area for foam
Since the house is'V'shaped, the living room upstairs and now the Man Cave downstairs are 5 sided. Once Tom gets all his junk out of the living room and moved down, I might go so far as to post some pics of the LR. Then we'll play compare and contrast with our LR in the Wyoming apt. In an interesting twist, our apt. building is 'V'shaped also, and only about 1/3 bigger than our home.
More than one person has asked us what the hell's wrong with us to move from a big beautiful home to a teeny tiny apartment. That's easy for me. Bison in the front yard. Gotta love it.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Global Youth Service Day, Jr. Ranger Day
Wow. Two posts in one day.
DD and I spent the morning with a really fun family from South Toledo picking up trash on the Fallen Timbers Battlefield as part of Global Youth Service Day. NW Ohio did a nice job of engaging kids in the program. Metroparks had lots of kids out. The good news is that there wasn't a horrible amount of trash to be picked up.
Getting Ready
Big Brother
Little Sister
Fearless Leaders, Janet, Trina, Randy
Hardest working young lady and my honorary grand-daughter, Little Miss Avery
The biggest thing we found, which I kept, was about 3/4 of the original FT Project house sign, complete with an arrowhead icon and the Mparks oak tree icon. Sheesh.
Hopefully, the days of finding this type--or any type of trash--in the Mparks is over. With new leadership, we sincerely hope that the District will return to its roots and not spend any time trying to earn awards that no one gives a hoot about--like the Baldridge award. Before the last regime took over, Mparks earned tons of awards just doing what they are supposed to do. The amount of time, effort, and capital spent in the past 8 years on idiotic stuff like this was totally unacceptable.
Now that Mparks is facing a financial hernia in the next few years, let's hope the new administration puts the parks first. They need to treat the staff with dignity and respect, something that hasn't happened for 8 years. Were the parks perfect prior to the last administration? No. But were they in horrible shape, both physically, morally, and even spiritually? Again, no.
It's time to get back to doing what we do best.
DD and I spent the morning with a really fun family from South Toledo picking up trash on the Fallen Timbers Battlefield as part of Global Youth Service Day. NW Ohio did a nice job of engaging kids in the program. Metroparks had lots of kids out. The good news is that there wasn't a horrible amount of trash to be picked up.
Getting Ready
Big Brother
Little Sister
Fearless Leaders, Janet, Trina, Randy
Hardest working young lady and my honorary grand-daughter, Little Miss Avery
The biggest thing we found, which I kept, was about 3/4 of the original FT Project house sign, complete with an arrowhead icon and the Mparks oak tree icon. Sheesh.
Hopefully, the days of finding this type--or any type of trash--in the Mparks is over. With new leadership, we sincerely hope that the District will return to its roots and not spend any time trying to earn awards that no one gives a hoot about--like the Baldridge award. Before the last regime took over, Mparks earned tons of awards just doing what they are supposed to do. The amount of time, effort, and capital spent in the past 8 years on idiotic stuff like this was totally unacceptable.
Now that Mparks is facing a financial hernia in the next few years, let's hope the new administration puts the parks first. They need to treat the staff with dignity and respect, something that hasn't happened for 8 years. Were the parks perfect prior to the last administration? No. But were they in horrible shape, both physically, morally, and even spiritually? Again, no.
It's time to get back to doing what we do best.
New Roof, Days 2 & 3
After two warm, dare I say hot, days, the front section of the roof is coming along nicely. On Day 1, they got most of the front torn off, a much faster process than putting the new roof on. The new panels are about 4x2 feet each. They are all crimped to all other adjacent panels. It's sloow going. Since the front has gables, valleys, breaks, and a chimney, there's a lot o' cuttin' and pastin'.
Here's the progress so far:
End of Day 2
End of Day 3
And the ever growing pile o' scrap metal. 6 months ago it might have been worth something. . .
Speaking of things with no worth, here's DH's pet project. Eventually, this is supposed to be re-created as a dock at the lake. Too bad the pontoons have holes in them. . . .
And it looks so loverly sitting in the front yard. Really gives the neighborhood some class, ya know?
Tomorrow is the Eagle Scout Ceremony, and the next day is packing day #1. Yahoo!
Here's the progress so far:
End of Day 2
End of Day 3
And the ever growing pile o' scrap metal. 6 months ago it might have been worth something. . .
Speaking of things with no worth, here's DH's pet project. Eventually, this is supposed to be re-created as a dock at the lake. Too bad the pontoons have holes in them. . . .
And it looks so loverly sitting in the front yard. Really gives the neighborhood some class, ya know?
Tomorrow is the Eagle Scout Ceremony, and the next day is packing day #1. Yahoo!
Thursday, April 23, 2009
New Roof, Day 1
The roofers started today. They got the galvanized roof off almost all of the front. The Insulspan panels are a very different color from the stick built sections of the roof. I called the company and they'll send someone down tomorrow to be sure the integrity of the panels is okay. 
Beautiful, yet not 100 year old roof--it rusted from the inside out!
ABC Siding and Roofing move into the front yard.
First section of sheet metal comes off.
The darker sections are the stress-skin or structural insulated panels (SIP). In the roof we have 8 inch panels, the walls are 6 inch panels. One of these days I'll post the old pics of the construction process.
The lighter and brand spanking new looking sections are the stick built add-ons. They show no wear or tear at all. We're hoping the discoloration on the SIPs is from maybe the tar paper baking to the panels or something. But the guy from Insulspan has to check before any more of the roofing ice guard and tyvek go on.
We'll see what the morrow brings.
On an Earth Day note, the boys and I joined a few members of the HS Environmental Awareness Club to help pick up trash on the school's floodplain trail. There was a surprisingly small amount of stuff. I also dropped off out-grown clothes for the textiles recycling drive contest. The load I dropped off should put FTD's Junior class ahead.
FTD also took in the newspaper articles with Uncle George's pictures the day they first sprayed that miracle chemical ddt. Long post on that some other day. I'll try to scan part of the article.
Been a long day!
Beautiful, yet not 100 year old roof--it rusted from the inside out!
ABC Siding and Roofing move into the front yard.
First section of sheet metal comes off.
The darker sections are the stress-skin or structural insulated panels (SIP). In the roof we have 8 inch panels, the walls are 6 inch panels. One of these days I'll post the old pics of the construction process.
The lighter and brand spanking new looking sections are the stick built add-ons. They show no wear or tear at all. We're hoping the discoloration on the SIPs is from maybe the tar paper baking to the panels or something. But the guy from Insulspan has to check before any more of the roofing ice guard and tyvek go on.
We'll see what the morrow brings.
On an Earth Day note, the boys and I joined a few members of the HS Environmental Awareness Club to help pick up trash on the school's floodplain trail. There was a surprisingly small amount of stuff. I also dropped off out-grown clothes for the textiles recycling drive contest. The load I dropped off should put FTD's Junior class ahead.
FTD also took in the newspaper articles with Uncle George's pictures the day they first sprayed that miracle chemical ddt. Long post on that some other day. I'll try to scan part of the article.
Been a long day!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Earth Day re-incarnated
On the first Earth Day, we skipped school and went to the University of Toledo, where students buried an internal combustion engine. I walked or rode my bike when ever I could, turned lights off, and with the kids at school, started the first environmental awareness club of Perrysburg High School. We named the club:
Clean and
Remove
All
Pollution.
And the acronym is. . . . yep, CRAP.
Remove
All
Pollution.
And the acronym is. . . . yep, CRAP.
The truly amazing part of this story is that the school administration let us. There's even a picture of us with our monogrammed trash can in the yearbook. Ah, 1970--the wild days.
Going greener is a bit tricky for us--we're way greener than soooo many people, including sadly many close friends. We recycle the tiniest bits of paper, metal, glass, and plastic, we're replacing light bulbs as they burn out, we're trying to work on 'vampire' appliances, I only use the electric dryer for about 1/3 of the laundry (less than that out west), we have a geothermal heat pump, R-50 or so in the walls and ceiling panels, our water comes in one side of the house and out the other so we're really careful about what goes in the drain and how much we use, we buy a huge portion of our clothes at the Goodwill, we have cloth bags for Christmas and birthday presents, so that leaves pretty much one more area to work on: We need a new car. Dang.
Our Ford E150 van got better mileage than our Chevy Trailblazer. And of course, Ford doesn't make this type any more. We've been trying to find a newer van. Since we pack up and move twice a year, we need space in our vehicles--since we didn't buy my trailer last year. Living 4 miles from the grocery store makes walking to the store tricky, but we make an effort to combine trips. The big waste of gas for us is taking DD into town to watch trains.
We've been working on being green for over 30 years, and we've got a long ways to go. And if you've got a Ford E150 for sale, let me know!
Going greener is a bit tricky for us--we're way greener than soooo many people, including sadly many close friends. We recycle the tiniest bits of paper, metal, glass, and plastic, we're replacing light bulbs as they burn out, we're trying to work on 'vampire' appliances, I only use the electric dryer for about 1/3 of the laundry (less than that out west), we have a geothermal heat pump, R-50 or so in the walls and ceiling panels, our water comes in one side of the house and out the other so we're really careful about what goes in the drain and how much we use, we buy a huge portion of our clothes at the Goodwill, we have cloth bags for Christmas and birthday presents, so that leaves pretty much one more area to work on: We need a new car. Dang.
Our Ford E150 van got better mileage than our Chevy Trailblazer. And of course, Ford doesn't make this type any more. We've been trying to find a newer van. Since we pack up and move twice a year, we need space in our vehicles--since we didn't buy my trailer last year. Living 4 miles from the grocery store makes walking to the store tricky, but we make an effort to combine trips. The big waste of gas for us is taking DD into town to watch trains.
We've been working on being green for over 30 years, and we've got a long ways to go. And if you've got a Ford E150 for sale, let me know!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Makin' a List
It's sort of like an obsession with me--making lists. I always start any list the same way:
1. Make List.
When I have the list done, I can at least cross one thing off my list. Yea, I know--flimsy! And of course, I couldn't stop at just one list--there's a list of what goes in my car and what goes in DH's, what each person gets to stash clothes and or toys in, what "furniture" we'll take, and on and on. This year I'm going to purchase some stuff out there to round out my traveling kitchen. Makes leaving Ohio and arriving in Ohio easier at least. The leaving YNP part is the trickiest. We have to plan meals that don't require any cooking or utensils, etc.. And since the nearest restaurant is 14 miles away, that isn't an option. Since we know where and what our kitchen is and looks like, the arriving there part is much easier. I'm trying to get a little bit of food together now, but it's not crucial. We'll have our first couple of meals in West since we'll still be in "traveling" mode. We really, really don't have any space to take food, and we also won't have any room to pick stuff up on the way. Our first few items will have to be purchased in West, which has a nice, but sort of expensive selection. My first lieu days will involve a trip to Bozeman to stock the 'fridge and cupboards. It's only 90 miles one way to Bozeman, so it's not too bad. Unless it's snowing or raining or there's construction or . . . . Arg.
This is the stage of the game when I'm wishing I'd have bought my trailer last summer. Or I'd even be pretty happy with van like the one we just sold, but 12 years newer. Anybody got a Ford Chateau conversion van with fewer than 50,000 miles on it for sale? Ours got better mileage than the Trailblazer I'm driving now. And waaaaaaaay more storage space. Ah well.
On another note, the Mountain Bluebird seems to have flown the coop. There have been no sighting for a day and a half. By sheer dumb luck, I'm apparently the last person to have seen him. I hope to see him again soon--in his natural habitat!
DD and I will leave for YNP 3 weeks from today, but who's counting?
1. Make List.
When I have the list done, I can at least cross one thing off my list. Yea, I know--flimsy! And of course, I couldn't stop at just one list--there's a list of what goes in my car and what goes in DH's, what each person gets to stash clothes and or toys in, what "furniture" we'll take, and on and on. This year I'm going to purchase some stuff out there to round out my traveling kitchen. Makes leaving Ohio and arriving in Ohio easier at least. The leaving YNP part is the trickiest. We have to plan meals that don't require any cooking or utensils, etc.. And since the nearest restaurant is 14 miles away, that isn't an option. Since we know where and what our kitchen is and looks like, the arriving there part is much easier. I'm trying to get a little bit of food together now, but it's not crucial. We'll have our first couple of meals in West since we'll still be in "traveling" mode. We really, really don't have any space to take food, and we also won't have any room to pick stuff up on the way. Our first few items will have to be purchased in West, which has a nice, but sort of expensive selection. My first lieu days will involve a trip to Bozeman to stock the 'fridge and cupboards. It's only 90 miles one way to Bozeman, so it's not too bad. Unless it's snowing or raining or there's construction or . . . . Arg.
This is the stage of the game when I'm wishing I'd have bought my trailer last summer. Or I'd even be pretty happy with van like the one we just sold, but 12 years newer. Anybody got a Ford Chateau conversion van with fewer than 50,000 miles on it for sale? Ours got better mileage than the Trailblazer I'm driving now. And waaaaaaaay more storage space. Ah well.
On another note, the Mountain Bluebird seems to have flown the coop. There have been no sighting for a day and a half. By sheer dumb luck, I'm apparently the last person to have seen him. I hope to see him again soon--in his natural habitat!
DD and I will leave for YNP 3 weeks from today, but who's counting?
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