Then: January thru April 2008 Now: June 5, 2011

Then:  January thru April 2008

Now that we knew we had a source of water and where it was, it was time to get ready to move.  One of the first things I learned when we moved to Illinois is that the cost of living is lower compared to the Pacific Northwest.  I hate to pay full price for anything, so while we were there, I made the most of their after-Thanksgiving and after-Christmas sales.  I stocked up on linens, especially flannel sheets.  I bought lots of long underwear and socks.  I discovered a great used-clothes shop in a high-end suburb, and found lots of jeans and other clothes that must have been worn once at the most.  Some even still had the tags on them.  First prize in Fantastic Finds goes to the winter parka with a zip-out lining and tags still on it that I got on their half-off sale for $6!

We hit a Grand Opening sale of a Cabella's (one of my very favorite stores) in Indiana and went nuts.  At practically give-away prices, we got Carhartt winter coats, overalls, boots and hoodies.  Also picked up a camping shower enclosure and other such goodies.

We figured we would put the house up for sale the end of January and, hopefully, sell it within 3-4 months.  I could almost hear God chuckle again.  Even in that economy, our house sold in three weeks.  Okay, once again, time to refocus and switch into high gear.  We now had about 6 weeks to pack, find a good deal with a moving company, find a place for JB to stay until August, etc., etc.

Initially we thought we could rent a large U-haul and move ourselves.  Well now God was laughing with tears running down her face.  After calculating the approximate square footage of everything, we realized that we couldn't rent a truck that big.  I found a great deal with Allied Van Lines and we were set.  I had saved all our moving boxes and packing material from our move out that the company had paid for, only now we would have to pack it all ourselves.

JB rented a room from a neighbor so he was set, too.

We had already bought a train ticket for my brother, RJ, to come out from Seattle and drive the van back with me the end of March.  Since we didn't have to drive a van, that turned into an 8-day mini vacation for the both of us and a chance to pare down his bucket list.  RJ has done and seen a lot in his life, but taking the train across country was still on there, as was visiting South Dakota's Black Hills and Wyoming's Devil's Tower.  By the time we got to Seattle, all he had left was living to see his Grandchildren.

But when we left Illinois, it was without our beloved Greyhound.  She was 12 years old and had crossed the rainbow bridge in February.  The last of our pack of four.  As sad as it was, it was also perfect Universal timing as living on the mountain would have been difficult for a greyhound.

We met the moving van in Eastern Washington and put everything in storage.  I then stayed with RJ in Seattle until our road thawed and dried out in mid-May.  During that time I started the process for the building permit; met with our contractor; and generally tried to get as much done as possible off site.  This included spending hours at Lowe's and Ikea for final kitchen ideas.

Now:  June 5, 2011

More beautiful, warm weather.  RJ is up at his cabin this week so he came up for breakfast this morning.  The dogs usually get me up when it starts to get light out, which is about 4:30 a.m. now.  I let them out, start a fire in the stove, and when they come back in about 20 minutes later, go up to the loft and write on my blog.  That just wasn't going to happen this morning.  I went back to bed and got up for breakfast at 8:00!  That's why this is so late today. 

Yesterday morning we spent time sitting on the porch trying to identify a couple wild flowers.  I have found most of the ones I've seen with the help of the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Wildflowers, but there are a couple that elude me.  So when we realized that it was almost 11:00 a.m., we decided to wait til after lunch to work on sealing the upright on the cistern.  Time can pass to quickly and so pleasantly while we're sitting on the porch, in the woods, on the mountain. . .  Hey, we're retired!

We did get the riser sealed using a mortar caulking and, fortunately, we should be rain free for the 48 hours it needs to set.  Our water is once again sparkling clear.  I love well water.  There's just no comparison to city water.

Larry came up yesterday evening with his tractor and dug out the bank behind the house.  Took him 1-1/4 hrs to get up the road and only 1/2 hour to dig!  This was after a full day at work, and he was going back down to mow their very large yard!  Ah to be young again. . .

Today we can get the holes dug for the posts that will be holding up the deck.  The trick will be to get them to be exactly in line with the building.  We've never done this before.  One term we have come to use in describing our place is "rustic."  Whenever something isn't quite flush, or a bit off kilter, we just look at each other and say, "Rustic!"