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| Building Rose Camp, August 2008 |
Then: The 3rd Week of August 2008
The crew foreman is sure they can be all done building this week! We have moved in under the loft with a sheet of heavy plastic hung across to keep out the dirt and sawdust as much as possible. The crew is building the porch and finishing the ceiling. As soon as the porch is done, we move our big propane stove onto it and set up our kitchen.
We have decided to purchase our propane tank rather than rent it. That gives us the freedom of shopping around for the least expensive propane, rather than being tied to a contract. I am hoping that once we get the solar panels up next year we will only have to buy propane every two years at the most, and just to top it off.
Late Thursday evening as it was getting dark, JB was sitting out front with a small campfire in our metal container. All of a sudden, he yells, "Rose, get the gun!" Both I and the crew foreman come running with our pistols, and there, not two feet from JB's chair is a big rattle snake coming close for the warmth of the fire. I hand the pistol to JB and he gets his first snake. Of course his is about 3 feet long, where as mine have been a lot smaller. Now every time someone shoots one, I cut off and save the rattles. I'll probably send them to Ann for Christmas!
By Friday the crew is done with their work, and now ours is really starting. Next week JB and RJ will start framing the inside of our house. I have decided to get the kitchen cabinets and counters from Lowe's. They are nice looking and within our budget. We are actually getting most of our building supplies from Lowe's. Their people have been so very helpful and patient with me.
We went to the Humane Society on Saturday with the list of attributes our new pet would need. We really need to be specific for the dog's sake as living Up Here is so very different from Down There. It was extremely difficult, but for the first time ever, I left there without a pet.
Now: June 18, 2011
We were unable to get our solar panels up until the Summer of 2010, as we were caught in that Wall Street fiasco in the Fall of 2008 and lost more than 60% of our 401K's. It wasn't a fortune, but it was just about all the financial resources we had. We have had to cut back on a lot of our plans, and take time to save up for the ones we can afford. Fortunately we did have some land in another state that we were finally able to sell in January of this year. Without ranting, let me just say one of the main reasons we are up here and trying to be as self-sufficient as possible, is to be independent from our frustratingly inept and corrupt government on all levels. That said, on with the news.
Yesterday there was no wind, so we got the tipi put up. Unfortunately, a mouse had got into it during the winter, but there are only two little holes chewed near the bottom. Other than that and the fact that the poles are not Lodgepole Pine (not completely straight like they should be), it looks good. And it's good to have it up once again. By the time we were done, it was too hot to work on caulking the deck, so that's what we'll do tomorrow and get an early start.
On June 12 I mentioned a wren that had moved into our birdhouse during the Spring of 2008. We also had a pair of wrens last Spring and again this year. I like to think it is the same pair, but who knows? The male moved in about mid-May and began singing what must be his mating melody. He is the smallest but the loudest bird in our woods, second only in volume to the evening grosbeak (who has absolutely no melody that I can discern). The wren's song seems very intricate and is quite lovely. Once he finds a mate, his song seems to shorten a bit, but is still the prettiest around. He has had a mate for several weeks now, and with all the goings on the last two days, their eggs may have hatched. Last year when his mate moved in, watching her had me in hysterics. The first thing she did was throw out just about all the nesting material the male had put in there. I guess getting rid of the guy's things and remodeling the bachelor pad is not species specific!!
The crew foreman is sure they can be all done building this week! We have moved in under the loft with a sheet of heavy plastic hung across to keep out the dirt and sawdust as much as possible. The crew is building the porch and finishing the ceiling. As soon as the porch is done, we move our big propane stove onto it and set up our kitchen.
We have decided to purchase our propane tank rather than rent it. That gives us the freedom of shopping around for the least expensive propane, rather than being tied to a contract. I am hoping that once we get the solar panels up next year we will only have to buy propane every two years at the most, and just to top it off.
Late Thursday evening as it was getting dark, JB was sitting out front with a small campfire in our metal container. All of a sudden, he yells, "Rose, get the gun!" Both I and the crew foreman come running with our pistols, and there, not two feet from JB's chair is a big rattle snake coming close for the warmth of the fire. I hand the pistol to JB and he gets his first snake. Of course his is about 3 feet long, where as mine have been a lot smaller. Now every time someone shoots one, I cut off and save the rattles. I'll probably send them to Ann for Christmas!
By Friday the crew is done with their work, and now ours is really starting. Next week JB and RJ will start framing the inside of our house. I have decided to get the kitchen cabinets and counters from Lowe's. They are nice looking and within our budget. We are actually getting most of our building supplies from Lowe's. Their people have been so very helpful and patient with me.
We went to the Humane Society on Saturday with the list of attributes our new pet would need. We really need to be specific for the dog's sake as living Up Here is so very different from Down There. It was extremely difficult, but for the first time ever, I left there without a pet.
Now: June 18, 2011
We were unable to get our solar panels up until the Summer of 2010, as we were caught in that Wall Street fiasco in the Fall of 2008 and lost more than 60% of our 401K's. It wasn't a fortune, but it was just about all the financial resources we had. We have had to cut back on a lot of our plans, and take time to save up for the ones we can afford. Fortunately we did have some land in another state that we were finally able to sell in January of this year. Without ranting, let me just say one of the main reasons we are up here and trying to be as self-sufficient as possible, is to be independent from our frustratingly inept and corrupt government on all levels. That said, on with the news.
Yesterday there was no wind, so we got the tipi put up. Unfortunately, a mouse had got into it during the winter, but there are only two little holes chewed near the bottom. Other than that and the fact that the poles are not Lodgepole Pine (not completely straight like they should be), it looks good. And it's good to have it up once again. By the time we were done, it was too hot to work on caulking the deck, so that's what we'll do tomorrow and get an early start.
On June 12 I mentioned a wren that had moved into our birdhouse during the Spring of 2008. We also had a pair of wrens last Spring and again this year. I like to think it is the same pair, but who knows? The male moved in about mid-May and began singing what must be his mating melody. He is the smallest but the loudest bird in our woods, second only in volume to the evening grosbeak (who has absolutely no melody that I can discern). The wren's song seems very intricate and is quite lovely. Once he finds a mate, his song seems to shorten a bit, but is still the prettiest around. He has had a mate for several weeks now, and with all the goings on the last two days, their eggs may have hatched. Last year when his mate moved in, watching her had me in hysterics. The first thing she did was throw out just about all the nesting material the male had put in there. I guess getting rid of the guy's things and remodeling the bachelor pad is not species specific!!
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