Then: The 4th Week of July 2008 Now: June 14, 2011



Our visitor June 13, 2011





Building Rose Camp July 2008

Then: The Fourth Week of July 2008


The crew arrived Monday morning and started framing the floor, which they completely finished on Tuesday and started on the loft. It was so very cool to actually be able to walk on the floor of our house. This is really happening!

When I wasn't watching them, I was back to trimming trees, as usual. And going to town. I had to go three times this week for laundry, supplies, etc. If the crew needs anything, I go down to get it so the work doesn't slow down. They said the whole project should take about four weeks.

On Wednesday they framed in the windows, finished the loft and started building the trusses. It certainly will be interesting to see how they get those in place! On Thursday they put up the loft rafter, and the header against the west end of the house which we will use to attach the deck, whenever that gets built. They left late Thursday for Spokane as one of them had to be back for Friday.

One of the guys on the crew is a real city boy. I think this is his first time ever camping. I had warned them all of the wild life Up Here, especially the rattle snakes, as I've shot a couple more of them since my cousin's visit. Well, this crew member was being SUCH a city boy, that he was getting razzed by all of us. At one point I went for a walk up on the South ridge and shot off a round. When I got back to camp, he asked if I had shot another snake. "No," I replied. "That damn cougar is just getting too nosy, so I had to scare him back into the woods." I don't think I've ever seen anyone turn so white, so fast. I let him shake for several minutes before I said, "Gotcha!"

As I was getting into bed Thursday night, I heard a noise on the other side of the trailer where I keep all my clothes. I turned on the light, poked around and discovered a nest with 6 little baby mice! Mama was running around, very anxious about her brood. I got an empty plastic container and put the nest in it, stood very still, and soon Mama was in with her babies. I put a piece of screen over the top, and we all settled in for the night. I missed not having a pet - now I had seven of them!

Saturday I found that a chipmunk had moved into the empty birdhouse. I put peanuts and raisins in there for him and he would sit just inside the hole so I could watch him eating them. Almost like another pet.

Now: June 14, 2011

I should never have "adopted" the mouse family as they are so cute. I had a hard time in the winter setting traps for them in the house. At first I made JB set and empty the traps, but as the months wore on, I disposed of the dead mice down the outhouse hole. I couldn't just toss them out in the woods as Dinga would find them. I have also had to get used to her catching chipmunks. The first few times she did, I almost cried. In the past year, the chipmunks seem to have moved away from the area around the house and we hardly see them any more. The squirrels, however, are another story. They drive the dogs wild and so far have never been caught. I am very sure that they purposely tease the dogs, coming just far enough down the trees so the dogs can't reach them.

JB finished mowing yesterday morning and I continued weeding, which is a never-ending job. I am finding a lot more of the Devil's thorn than last year. It is a really nasty, miniature relative of the Devil's Club. It is a creeper and Elsie told me that the thorns can get hard enough to puncture a bike tire.  I can only imagine what they could do to a bare foot!

After lunch, JB started nailing each joist into its hanger. Hopefully he can finish that today.

And speaking of my city mind - yes I was, it's right there in the title of my blog. I cannot stand to see pine cones on the ground that the squirrels have eaten to the core. They look like someone ate a small corn-on-the-cob and just tossed it away. Litter. They are offensive to my visual sensibilities, which surprises even me! Obviously one of my very few city mind sets that remain.