February 16, 2015 Community & Trespassers

A deer we saw on our hike.

Rocks we moved off the road.
(They are larger than they look.)

Friday 2/13. Sometimes I think how much easier it would be to live Down There and be taken care of.  Down There you simply trade your money for security of a sort.  Fire Department, Police, utilities.  You pay others to keep you safe and comfortable.  Up Here it is more of a barter system.  We trade our time and energy to help ourselves and our neighbors, which is much more personal.  A smaller sense of community, and one I prefer, even though it puts more responsibility on our shoulders.

With rain in the forecast, I drained more water out of the cistern.  The dogs and I took a nice, leisurely morning walk in the sun that had popped out early on when the cloud cover began to break up.  Then I just collapsed for the day with an intestinal bug I must have picked up on Tuesday, Down There, which would explain my very low energy day yesterday.  Occasionally that happens on the third day after going to town.  I just need to be more careful about washing my hands as soon as I get home.  

JB arrived back home about 2:00 pm with a beautiful bouquet of tulips for me, and I just napped.  Did wake up for a light dinner and to watch more Castle.

Saturday 2/14. It was 40, overcast and breezy this morning.  Looks more like April outside than February.  No rain though, and the forecast has changed to cooler but dry weather for the week.  The high temps for Down There have been almost 20 degrees above normal.

Wow!  Do I feel better this morning.  Those little 24-hour bugs are weird.  And with blue sky and sun by late morning, I got bit by another bug.  The Spring Cleaning bug.  So before lunch I cleaned out our bedroom closet and a couple of my dresser drawers.

After lunch we drove Miss Kitty down the road to our deer-season gate (about 1/2 mile) to clear some rocks off the road (see photo above).  Then we left Miss Kitty there and walked another 1/4 mile or so further to the wood spirit.  There is an old, steep logging "road" there that goes up and, for some time now, I have wanted to check it out.  So today Dinga and I did.

We all enjoyed the outing.  We have had too few this foggy winter.

Sunday 2/15. It was 33 with clear, blue skies this morning.  I was still in bed at 8:00 am when the dogs started barking and whining.  I heard JB go out on the porch and yell, "Hey, this is private property!"  It seems there were two "joggers" coming down our south ridge!  They turned around and went back the way they came.  To have arrived there, they would have had to go over/through several fences/gates.  Do people not realize that a fence indicates private property, or do they just not care?!

I called Randy after our late breakfast.  I figured that with all the problems he has been having at his place, he would not appreciate being woken up early.  On top of everything else, he hasn't been able to get a hair cut in four months and says he looks like a wookie!  Nene and I both want a photo!  Actually he probably just looks like the rest of his northern Idaho neighbors.

It was such an incredible day that the dogs and I went on a long hike up to the peak, then north along the east fence line to where it makes a 90 degree turn to the east; then up, up towards Erno's; down to his road and up to the top of his property.  Looked for antler sheds, but didn't find any.  We finally headed back down his road and up our driveway.  Because it was below freezing last night, most of the mud was hard, so it wasn't a sloppy hike.  Lots of snow mold though, and by the time we got home my nose was running and my eyes were watering.

No eggs today.  I think Sunday is their day of rest.

Monday 2/16. It is 30 with mostly blue skies this morning.  JB is making hot cereal for the girls as I write this.

Regarding a reader's comment, yes, we have heard of Berkey filters, but we actually purchased a Katadyn TRK Drip Ceradyn water filter.  I think it is a step up from Berkey.

Thought for the day:

February 13, 2015

The dogs enjoying the sun in our bare grove
on Thursday.

Wednesday 2/11. A good day for reading newspapers and magazines, and taking a long nap.  Fogged in all day.

Yesterday at Costco I purchased LED light bulbs.  JB checked them out against the guidelines in Home and Power magazine, and they passed with flying colors.  It seems that at the moment there are no laws governing what manufacturers can claim for these light bulbs.  The lamp bulbs are great.  However, I am not so sure that getting new vanity lights for over the bathroom mirror was such a great idea.  That old lady staring back at me seems to have aged 10 years in such bright light. . .

The girls only gave us one egg yesterday, which means that one of them was taking the day off.  But we did get two eggs today.

We finished season four of The Walking Dead last night.  Decided on something much lighter next, and started watching season six of Castle.  Always so much fun.

Thursday 2/12.  We started the day at 40 and overcast.  This morning we now have more bare ground than snow covered.  Blue sky soon showed through cracks in the clouds, and by noon the sun was out in all its glory.

JB drained some water out of the cistern before he and the dogs went on their morning walk.  It had filled almost to the top, and the water leaking in now seems less murky than it has been.  Our son researched water filters for us and I purchased one on line.  Not one that attaches to our water system, but one that stands alone, with a ceramic filter.

After bringing in the firewood and having to pull the sled across bare ground, I laid more wood (large pieces of thick bark) in the mud to extend a couple of paths a little bit.  I gave the girls more pine shavings in their nesting boxes that I bought on Tuesday.  Then the dogs and I ambled out to the north ridge, and up to the south ridge where I sat on the bench and soaked up some sun.  Oh, my!  Did that feel good!  Our high for the day was 48.

Friday 2/13. It is mostly cloudy with a temp of 38 this morning.  JB is going Down There for gas and some errands.

Thought for the day: Sometimes the most profound of awakenings come wrapped in the quietest of moments. Stephen Crane

February 11, 2015 Spring in February

(Too slow of an internet connection for a photo today.)


Monday 2/9. Drizzle, drizzle. .  pour, fog, drizzle. . . fog.  And so the day went.  Another good day for working inside, including inventorying the pantry and re-organizing it a bit.

Jane called today and we had another great chat.  She and her husband gave up wheat and processed sugar three weeks ago.  The act itself amazes me, but not the fact that it was Jane who did it.  That's just the way she is.  Her husband has already lost ten pounds!

Nene called yesterday and we confirmed our plans to go back to Bonner's Ferry, ID, this summer.  Our trip will either be in June or September in order to miss the heat.  Am so looking forward to it.  It will be good to see Claudia again, and finally meet Randy face to face.  Nene and Randy have become quite the email buddies.

Still made time to read our books today.  I made cinnamon-orange muffins.  JB started all the vehicles.

We left for Larry and Elsie's about 6:00 pm.  The road was equal parts ice, slush and mud.  Had another great evening playing marbles.  First game went to the ladies (we tromped them), but the guys just squeaked by with one roll of the dice to win the second game.  At that point Larry didn't want it to be just a tie, so we played a third game and the ladies' luck completely ran out.

Tuesday 2/10.  The forecast sun was shining when I left for Down There at 8:30 am.  Such a beautiful morning!  And it turned into a warm, Spring day that I thoroughly enjoyed, even if I did have to do the laundry.  I took my coat off as soon as I got to the laundromat, and just soaked up as much sun as I could.

I went to Costco with the full intent of ignoring all sugary foods.  So much for intent.  There were sample tasting tables set up all over with a Valentine's theme.  However, the chocolate I bought is a dark chocolate covered cranberry/oat crunch.  I really have backed off the sugar, though.  Just have to stick with a little chocolate most days.

Finally was able to convince the vet that Dinga needed more ointment for her eye, even though I can't get her in for a check-up.  So that was my last stop for the day.  Whenever I come back from Down There, I let Larry and Elsie's dogs out while I am transferring everything from the Jeep to Miss Kitty.  They loved getting out in this Spring day.

JB forgot to check for a high temperature today, but it according to NOAA it was 58 at the airport, although I'm sure it reached at least 60 in town.  Our high Up Here was probably pushing 50.  JB and the dogs went on two long walks, one looking for antler sheds along the east slope.  Didn't find any, but they all enjoyed the sun.

Just relaxed with The Walking Dead this evening.

Wednesday 2/11.  We are once again fogged in this morning with a temperature of 38.  At least we are supposed to have dry weather with clear skies for the rest of the week.  Sounds like Boston is getting all our snow.

Thought for the day: A society of sheep must in time beget a government of wolves. Paul Valery

February 9, 2015 A White Landscape Turning Brown

Our melting path to the north ridge.

Friday 2/6. Rain fell during the night, but the wind blew all day so we had no fog at Rose Camp for a change.

I used the morning to finish The Face by Dean Koontz.  He never fails to entertain and amaze.

The girls gave us two more eggs today!  That's six eggs in four days.  Yes, Randy, I think they have figured out the meaning of the words "stew pot".

It had just started raining when we were ready to get busy outside at 1:00 pm, which is when we start our outdoor projects in the winter, but we forged on out.  Had to re-direct a melt stream away from the propane tank, then it was on to the south ridge to angle the panels up.  Much more difficult than moving them down.

Then I measured for a little roof to put on the girls' nesting boxes.  We got than cut and ready, but will install it at a later date.  With these cloudy days, it is obviously dark enough under the boxes for them to lay their eggs in the straw on the ground.  Once we put a roof on the boxes, they won't be able to roost on the box walls at night like two of them are doing.  Don't want to upset their routine and disturb egg production.

My sinuses were really bothering me, so today I tried putting tea tree oil in the boiling water I was inhaling.  It worked!  And rather quickly.  Thank you!  Thank you!

By the time the sun set, the sky was clear except for a huge bank of dark clouds over the mountains.  Outside was still a warm 45 and the wind was gusting to 15 mph.  February is often mild and it looks to be so this year.

On most days now, I find myself reading a little from either Proof of Heaven or A Map of Heaven, both by Eban Alexander, MD.  I began reading about and researching into NDE's (near death experiences) and OBE's (out of body experiences) decades ago when Raymond A. Moody, Jr.'s book, Life After Life, came out.  Although I have had neither of these specific experiences, I have had several others which simply confirm and are confirmed by these experiences of others.  Dr. Alexander's books brought new perspective and more confirmation to that which I already believe.  To that which I know.

The direction of my political rant yesterday was a big step for me in using the work "evil".  I had never been one to believe specifically in evil, but rather an absence of Light.  Not so any more.

Saturday 2/7. It was 40 and foggy when I awoke at 8:00 am.  When JB got up at 6:00 am, it was raining, but stopped around 7:30 and the fog moved in, of course.

I began reading David Baldacci's The Sixth Man, which is very good.  He is another of my favorite authors.

I plan to go to town for laundry and shopping on Tuesday, so I started organizing my lists.  As much as possible, I like to list the items in order which I find them in the stores.  And I make of list of places to go with the shortest routes possible.

At 1:00 pm we started undoing the wires from the generator to the well pump.  Just finished when we felt rain drops.  Oh well, at least we got that part done.

It is amazing how many little things I can find to do around the house when I want to be busy, and I usually do want to stay busy when we are fogbound.  With such a small home, I am always finding ways to re-arrange items on shelves, in cupboards and in the loft to create more space.

Just after we came inside, the wind started gusting up to 23 mph.  The rain stopped.  The sun popped out.

I am making notes for a summer project to create better drainage and keep more rain and melt water away from the house.

The wind was gusting to 29 when we left for our afternoon walk, but the sun was shining in a blue sky and was worth putting up with the wind.  Our high for the day was 44.

Who is the S.O.B. that wrote that horrible episode in season four of The Walking Dead?!!  Well, at least the Governor is dead. . . really dead and gone.

Sunday 2/8. It was 38 and overcast this morning.  JB made hash browns and a cheese omelet with our fresh eggs.  So good!

After a relaxing morning, we finally got the generator moved back by the battery shed.  Rather a long, muddy project.

No rain today, but it was a typical grey, Seattle day.  Our high was 43, and our white landscape is quickly turning brown.

In talking with Larry on the radio this evening, we made plans to drive down to their place tomorrow evening for some marbles and pool.  

It was pouring with rain as we got ready for bed at 10:00 pm, and it seems like it drizzled most of the night.

Monday 2/9. It is 40 with a low overcast, so we may spend the day in the clouds.  There is sunny day in the forecast for tomorrow, but I'll believe it when I see it.

Thought for the day: I never met a strong person with an easy past.

February 6, 2015 Eggs, Mud & A Political Rant

The two eggs we received on Wednesday!
(I think the smaller, lighter one is from Blondie.)

Wednesday 2/4. Even if it means going out into the weather shortly after getting out of bed, I really enjoy feeding the girls in the morning.  Don't even mind cleaning out their hen house, although it is easier when their poop is frozen.  The girls gather around me and I talk to them.  I try to touch them, too, but they're still pretty skittish about that.

The snow stopped falling around noon and only the fog remained (of course).  Our high for the day was 35.

I had a very low energy day, as if the fog were sucking it right out of me.  I need the sun.  After so many years of living west of the mountains in the rain, I have now become very dependent upon the sun.  The Wenatchee River Valley claims 300 days of sun every year.  I doubt they are going to live up to that this year.  Well, the only thing I can change about this situation is my attitude, so I better get with it.

The girls gave us two eggs today!  That hasn't happened in more than six months.  Maybe Betty and Belinda aren't just picking on Blondie, but rather encouraging her to lay her share.

We watched the first three episodes of season four of Walking Dead this evening.  It seems darker than usual.  Would be nice if they had some good news, other than just 30 days without an "accident".

Thursday 2/5. It was 32 and foggy this morning.  We had about an hour's worth of rain beginning at 9:00 am, with more rain and warmer temperatures promised through Sunday.  That means mud, but possibly also more melt water seeping into the cistern.  We'll take it any way we can get it.  At least the rain pushed the fog down.  With its absence, the sun shone bright enough through the clouds for enough power to run the water for washing our hair without using the generator.  However, for the rest of the day the fog to the south played tug-of-war with the fog to the north.  Our high for the day was a very sloppy 40.  Sloppy, slushy and muddy.

We reorganized our refrigerator white board today with special, thin tape.  Oh, the things we have time for when we are retired.

With the revelation that the problem lies in the well pump or its wiring, we plan to move the generator back to where it was by the battery room.  Well, as soon as the rain and fog clear up.  Of course that may be March or April. . .

We spent a lot of relaxing time reading our books today.  JB cooked up a pot of ham and split-pea soup, which made the house smell so good.

We were in between tugs-of-war between the two directions of fog when we left for our afternoon walk.  Arriving up on the south ridge we could see the part of Mission Ridge that wasn't hidden by clouds and into most of the canyons, but within two minutes we were enshrouded in fog.  As if the heat of our bodies caused it to race towards us.  By the time we arrived back home about 15 minutes later, we were in the clear.  Go figure.

When I encounter someone who supports The Imposter, I feel both very angry and very sad that they could be so easily duped.  Never before have politics caused such a reaction within me.  But this is not simply politics.  This is Evil.  An Evil so subtle, and yet so obvious.  It is not merely the greed and power-mongering that we, sadly, have come to accept, but rather his desire to rip apart the basic tenets upon which this great nation of ours was founded.  And, yes, here I go ranting.  But the current situation in which America finds itself frightens me.  It rocks my very foundation.  It enrages me.  Especially because I feel so very helpless to know that all I can do is express my fears, vote, and pray.  Thank God we still have our freedom of speech.  So many of our other freedoms are being eroded away right under our feet.  Our Constitution is being defiled.  Americans are being bribed into complacency by a welfare-supporting government.  Never before in our country's history has the threat been so great.  The Civil War.  The Great Depression.  They pale in comparison.

Friday 2/6. It is 40 and overcast this morning.  As I sit here in the loft, I am watching the valley fog form and rise.  Oh, goody. . .

Thought for the day: The deterioration of every government begins with the decay of the principles on which it was founded. C.L. De Montesquieu

February 4, 2015 Eggs, Future Generations & A Birthday

The sun just breaking through the fog on our
Monday afternoon walk.

A hot pad holder that Nene gave us for
Christmas, along with a matching towel.

Monday 2/2. I know I said that I couldn't wait for Spring, but that was mainly because of all the fog and low clouds in which we have been encased this winter.  It began to snow about 9:00 am, and I enjoy that, but just get rid of the *&!!@# FOG!

One of the girls gave us eggs on Friday and Sunday.  I think it was Betty.  In the past couple months her comb has doubled in size and she is much bolder than she has ever been.  The only way to tell her apart from Belinda is that Belinda has darker tail feathers.

Today we had about 10 wasps in the loft.  The few that got in last Fall must be starting to wake up.  This winter we have only had about one or less a week, thank goodness.

JB worked for a while on his new computer.  Seems like he managed to download a virus along with Google.

The snow stopped falling about 12:30 pm and the fog moved back in.  We got another 1-1/2", which helps.  The top of the fog doggedly remained at the tops of the trees, teasing us with glimpses of the blue above.  Finally, during our afternoon walk, a breeze arrived and blew the fog back down into the canyons and valleys where it belongs.  By sunset that breeze had grown into a wind gusting to 20 mph.  Our high for the day was 35, and that was from the warm front that the wind blew in.

We finished watching White Collar, and it's on to Walking Dead after a movie tomorrow night.

Tuesday 2/3. This morning was overcast and 37 with low valley fog.  It was a good day to defrost the fridge and catch up on the filing.  With some help from our son over the phone, JB got his computer back to normal and all set up.

Some who read this on the internet may wonder why I get so detailed with all the little things in our daily life Up Here.  I am writing this blog mainly as a record for our family.  Our grandchildren and their children.  I have always been interested in family history and have some fascinating letters from Grandparents on both sides dating back to around 1910.  I can only hope that our family will be as interested in our life 100 years from now.  However, it bothers me that generations in the future may be in awe of how good we had it.  Hopefully they will be amazed at how good we thought we had it.

The overcast skies began to break up mid afternoon and by the time of our walk, we had lots of blue.  Our high for the day was about 38 and a lot of yesterday's snow was melting.

Got another egg today!  And it looks as though Belinda and Betty are starting to pick on Blondie again.

Through a phone call to an RV dealer, we were told that the problem with our generator is an electrical one and we should take it to an Onan repair shop.  That means a trip to Yakima or Seattle.  It will probably be Seattle, so JB can stay there until it is repaired rather than make two trips, so that won't be happening til April or May when our road is passable with such a load.

Also our game cam is toast, so we will have to replace that.

Looks to be an expensive year between the generator, the well pump and my tooth. . .


Wednesday 2/4. It is 30 and snowing this morning - through the fog.  A very Happy 40th Birthday to our Son!!

Thought for the day: What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best days of our lives haven't happened yet. Guideposts Feb 2015

February 2, 2015 Mardi Gras, A Pump & A Football Game

Dinga sitting on our rimed north ridge.

Friday 1/30. It was very frustrating watching the sun warring with the fog, and I thought for sure the sun would win.  It didn't.  We were enclosed by fog all day and the temperature only got up to 35.

I invited ourselves to Larry and Elsie's to watch the Superbowl and Elsie was gracious enough to say, "Yes, of course!"  It's not hockey, but JB says he'll go anyway, as long as Mother Nature isn't in a bad mood.  I hope she isn't, because even more than the SeaHawks, I want to see the Clydesdales.

We tried JB's idea with the generator but it did not work.  Not sure what our next option is.  Thank goodness for the melt seepage.  If we didn't have murky water, we wouldn't have any water at all.

One of my favorite magazines is Farm Show.  It's not that is has so many ideas that we can use, but I just love reading about American farm ingenuity.  So many clever and amazing inventions that farmers have come up with.  It really boosts my faith in the human spirit.

One of the girls gave us an egg today.  I am thinking that since we rolled the tarp up off their roof, it may be too bright in there as they are laying the eggs under the nesting stand.  We may put a little roof over the nesting boxes and see if that helps.

As the sun sank behind the mountains, the fog sank into the canyons.  The stars twinkled in a clear sky, and the moon lit up Rose Camp as bright as the foggy day.

We are watching the fourth season of White Collar now and quite enjoying it.

Saturday 1/31. It was 29 and mostly cloudy with valley fog.  Today the sun seemed to easily win the battle that it had so miserably lost yesterday against the fog, even the clouds dissipated a bit.

Our son called at 7:30 am our time to tell JB that Staples had the type of computer we wanted on sale at our price.  He has been helping us look for one on-line and found one at our local store.  He was on his way to a meeting of his Mardi Gras organization, as their parade and ball are this weekend in Mobile.  He gets to ride on a float and throw out beads and other goodies.  JB came back to bed and looked on-line a little later.  He called to be sure our store had one, then left about 10:00 to go buy it.

At the rate we are going, we will be out of branch wood long before we run out of split fire wood.  That's a good thing as there is always a lot more downed branch wood and it is so much easier to gather.  Our split wood may last us through next winter!

I started reading The Face by Dean Koontz.  Just finished another J.A. Jance novel.

We found a tick on Jesse, which is quite unusual for this time of year.  Going to have to check them both from now on.

Less than an hour after JB returned home at 1:30 pm, fog sneaked up from the same direction, as if having followed him from a discreet distance.  The sun was having none of that, and soon forced it back down again.  But as the sun began its final descent toward the mountains in the west, the fog took full advantage and moved back into Rose Camp.

I baked a banana-chocolate chip coffee cake to take to the game tomorrow along with some other snacks.

About 5:00 pm Larry and our on-grid neighbor arrived in Larry's UTV.  Gridder used to install well pumps and they came up to see if they could help with ours!  After more than an hour of testing this and that, it seems that the problem lies with the pump itself.  Not quite sure how we are going to deal with that.  The pump is not that expensive, it's getting someone to pull it up 600 ft and install a new one.  Our other off-grid neighbor just had a pump installed in her 600-ft-deep well last summer, so we will ask her who she used.

Sunday 2/1. It was 30 and once again we were fogbound.  Snow started falling about 11:30 am.  JB fixed a German pancake for breakfast.  Yum!

It was still snowing when we left for Larry and Elsie's at 2:30 pm, but we had barely received 1/4" of snow.  What a great game!  Of course it would have been a lot better had we been Patriots' fans.  I loved the one Budweiser commercial with the Clydesdales, but wish their other ones had had the horses in them also.  I also loved the seven-layer dip that Elsie made!

We weren't celebrating on the drive home, but it was a beautiful, moonlit drive and we were home by 8:00 pm.  Haven't watched a Superbowl game in probably fifteen years and it may be another 15 before we do it again, but it was a fun evening shared with good friends.

Monday 2/2. It is 25 and we are in the fog again.  It is February and I am so ready for Spring. . .

Thought for the day: It doesn't matter who is playing in the Superbowl, I always root for the Clydesdales!