Friday, August 23, 2013
Still waiting...
It is Friday, finally. Still no block layer. How hard can this be? We do have a line on a new one. We are waiting for an estimate. He is apparently available immediately so I hope the estimate fits into the alloted fianacial slot. Could we be so lucky?
The old guy is gone again. He is back in Montana, basically the same area, just a different fire. The one they went for is mostly contained and has been given to a Type 3 team for monitering. The were assigned to another, the Schoolhouse or the Lolo, I am not sure which or maybe it is both run together, but it got really big, really fast. It evidently went to crown with big wind. The have now assigned it to a Type 1 team and they will close out tomorrow. They are being staaged in Missoula for a day or two based on weather predictions for wind with dry lightening. So, nice beds, great food, laundry and, based on what he says, boredom. Nothing to do but wait. He is not a good waiter, nor the others, I bet. What they do is a bit of an adrenaline rush and they kinda like it, or they wouldn't be there.
If they get do not get a new assignment by Monday, they will probably disband and go home for a day or two to reset their clock and then come back for a new stint. Right now it is at a level 5 nationally. This means that they can be kept indefinately, for 21 days at least. The old guy will probably just hole up out there rather than come home. Coming home would mean 2 days to travel and then 2 more days to rest, in addition to the cost of tickets on a right now basis both ways. Most of the rest of the team are more local and they drive to and from, approx 2-3 hours one way so the 4 days he would use is far greater than any of the rest of the team. It would be much cheaper time and money wise to stay. But, as it is with this business, time alone will tell what happens. Mother Nature is absolutely in the driver's seat and she doesn't give out details of the trip she has planned.
I work all weekend so I will be busy at least. The gal next door has a birthday tomorrow and her husband is having a surprise party tomorrow night. I will probably go for a bit after work. We have really great neighbors. One downside to moving. The kids are good kids and keep my lawn mowed while the old guy is gone. They like the cash and I like that I don't have to wrestle the mower around. It is a win win situation.
This is the first year all 3 of the boys are in school. Kristi will graduate from nursing school in December. This has bee a trying couple of years for them but they seem to be bearing up pretty well. She is a good student and will graduate with honors, unless something unforseen happens. Her husband is so proud of her, and rightly so. I look forward to watching her graduate almost as much as our daughter in law a few weeks ago. She, too, graduated with an associate in nursing. She missed graduating with honors by about a tenth of a point. I was as proud of her as I could be. She did well and it was not an easy task for her. Going back to school when you have been out for years is not the easiest thing to do. Both will make wonderful nurses and both will continue on for their bachelors degree.
Well, I have certainly gotten off subject. But, like I said in the beginning, we are still waiting.
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Tuesday, counting down til Wednesday
This is gonna be a long week. You can tell when it seems like it should be the weekend and it is only Tuesday morning. Geesh!
No movement in the house area. Still looking for a block layer. This is turning into a nightmare. One of a minor type, but a nightmare anyway. There is nothing we can do at this time but wait. Yes, I know, I think I am a good waiter, but this is getting ridiculous.
On another subject, school has already started here. It is 2 weeks until Labor Day. What are they thinking? Summer is short enough without kidnapping the last 2 weeks. Yes, kids are getting bored by now, and it is not all that good for them to be away from school for 3 whole months, but... If they want to go to school all year round and give kids a month or 6 weeks every quarter, that would be different. That would be enough time for some good relaxing time and clearing your head time for both kids and teachers. Both of whom need it, by the way. Would you want 30 kids penned up in one room for a whole day in your charge? No thanks! Teachers are saints and we do not value them enough. Just sayin'.
But back to where I was. The way they do it now seems like no one gets time to do anything in the scattered days off thru the year and then the summer stretches just a little too long. We might really do better with a year round school schedule.
Oh well, off to pharm. Maybe it will not be a crazy day, although the moon was lookin' a little full last night. But that is another couple of paragraphs that do not belong here today.
No movement in the house area. Still looking for a block layer. This is turning into a nightmare. One of a minor type, but a nightmare anyway. There is nothing we can do at this time but wait. Yes, I know, I think I am a good waiter, but this is getting ridiculous.
On another subject, school has already started here. It is 2 weeks until Labor Day. What are they thinking? Summer is short enough without kidnapping the last 2 weeks. Yes, kids are getting bored by now, and it is not all that good for them to be away from school for 3 whole months, but... If they want to go to school all year round and give kids a month or 6 weeks every quarter, that would be different. That would be enough time for some good relaxing time and clearing your head time for both kids and teachers. Both of whom need it, by the way. Would you want 30 kids penned up in one room for a whole day in your charge? No thanks! Teachers are saints and we do not value them enough. Just sayin'.
But back to where I was. The way they do it now seems like no one gets time to do anything in the scattered days off thru the year and then the summer stretches just a little too long. We might really do better with a year round school schedule.
Oh well, off to pharm. Maybe it will not be a crazy day, although the moon was lookin' a little full last night. But that is another couple of paragraphs that do not belong here today.
Friday, August 16, 2013
Random Thoughts
Last night was a quiet night. I worked until 9 PM. When I came home, the old guy had a fire in the fire ring and we sat on the patio in the dark. Then I cooked and ate the last 6 marshmallows. Well, someone had to.
It sounded like fall outside. Locust, crickets, those buzzy seasonal night sounds that let you know that the season will change soon, even before the calendar gives you the same message. Autumn is my favorite season. As we sat in the darkness, it occurred to me that this is probably the last year we will be in this house. I had better enjoy the sounds of our backyard because next year they will probably, God willing, be different. Not greatly so, but different.
I want to put a bird feeder up now, so that the birds are ready for us when we are ready to move. I have always enjoyed watching birds. My mother loved her redbirds, as she always called the cardinals, and all the other birds of the skies. She even tolerated the owls that she swore ate an entire batch of kitties, one by one, when they were just wee little and just starting to get around. No one ever saw this occur, they just disappeared and that is to what she attributed their disappearance. Interestingly, she never really saw the owls at all but there was a barn in the back so there must have been owls.
My mother in law was a great bird watcher. She was the one that really got me back to it after we moved into the woods in Vinton County in the late 1960's. I have not been without a bird feeder since. All the children and most of the cats we have had have enjoyed them almost as much as we have. We have had unusual birds, regular birds, squirrels, chipmunks, hawks, flying squirrels, opossums, raccoons, skunks and deer at the feeders over the years. I wonder just what wonderment awaits us at the farm?
Still no news reguarding a mason to lay block for the basement. Until we have one, no digging will commence. It is going to be a little harder to arrange for a bit. The old guy is gone again. The assignment was made last night around 11 PM or so. We had covered the fire and come in and he was actually already in bed when the team announced the assignment on their Facebook page. Gotta love Facebook. It is out to the public before the phone even droids the message tone. He was gone by 9 AM, winging his way to Missouls via Chicago? Yep, that is how they sent him.
It was not an easy beginning. No boarding pass. Seems that, while they got the flights scheduled in almost record time, they forgot one teeny tiny part. No one paid for them. Surprise, no payment, no boarding pass. They got it all worked out, after a fashion. Believe it or not, they held the flight at the gate until they could load his luggage and he could get there. They said it was an emergency. He was, after all, going to a fire. He had plenty of time for connections and had no problems later. He did sit on the tarmack in Missoula for a bit because all the gates were full, but he made it without a problem. So did 2 of his 3 bags. Bummer. The missing bag has his boots and the Starbucks French Roast. He assures me that they will get there. They were inadvertenetly sent to Denver rather than Chicago and when they are recovered, they will "run them out" to him. Hope so, the boots are very expensive as they are custom made for him. And the camp runs on coffee.
Oh well, back to the beginning. I was very glad we had a quiet evening before all the controlled bedlam of later. Those kinds of evenings are hard to come by this time of year, what with bugs, heat, rain and work.
And it is after midnight. Happy Anniversary, dear heart. It has been a good long run, so far. I hope we have many more years together. And they said it wouldn't last. They were wrong.
It sounded like fall outside. Locust, crickets, those buzzy seasonal night sounds that let you know that the season will change soon, even before the calendar gives you the same message. Autumn is my favorite season. As we sat in the darkness, it occurred to me that this is probably the last year we will be in this house. I had better enjoy the sounds of our backyard because next year they will probably, God willing, be different. Not greatly so, but different.
I want to put a bird feeder up now, so that the birds are ready for us when we are ready to move. I have always enjoyed watching birds. My mother loved her redbirds, as she always called the cardinals, and all the other birds of the skies. She even tolerated the owls that she swore ate an entire batch of kitties, one by one, when they were just wee little and just starting to get around. No one ever saw this occur, they just disappeared and that is to what she attributed their disappearance. Interestingly, she never really saw the owls at all but there was a barn in the back so there must have been owls.
My mother in law was a great bird watcher. She was the one that really got me back to it after we moved into the woods in Vinton County in the late 1960's. I have not been without a bird feeder since. All the children and most of the cats we have had have enjoyed them almost as much as we have. We have had unusual birds, regular birds, squirrels, chipmunks, hawks, flying squirrels, opossums, raccoons, skunks and deer at the feeders over the years. I wonder just what wonderment awaits us at the farm?
Still no news reguarding a mason to lay block for the basement. Until we have one, no digging will commence. It is going to be a little harder to arrange for a bit. The old guy is gone again. The assignment was made last night around 11 PM or so. We had covered the fire and come in and he was actually already in bed when the team announced the assignment on their Facebook page. Gotta love Facebook. It is out to the public before the phone even droids the message tone. He was gone by 9 AM, winging his way to Missouls via Chicago? Yep, that is how they sent him.
It was not an easy beginning. No boarding pass. Seems that, while they got the flights scheduled in almost record time, they forgot one teeny tiny part. No one paid for them. Surprise, no payment, no boarding pass. They got it all worked out, after a fashion. Believe it or not, they held the flight at the gate until they could load his luggage and he could get there. They said it was an emergency. He was, after all, going to a fire. He had plenty of time for connections and had no problems later. He did sit on the tarmack in Missoula for a bit because all the gates were full, but he made it without a problem. So did 2 of his 3 bags. Bummer. The missing bag has his boots and the Starbucks French Roast. He assures me that they will get there. They were inadvertenetly sent to Denver rather than Chicago and when they are recovered, they will "run them out" to him. Hope so, the boots are very expensive as they are custom made for him. And the camp runs on coffee.
Oh well, back to the beginning. I was very glad we had a quiet evening before all the controlled bedlam of later. Those kinds of evenings are hard to come by this time of year, what with bugs, heat, rain and work.
And it is after midnight. Happy Anniversary, dear heart. It has been a good long run, so far. I hope we have many more years together. And they said it wouldn't last. They were wrong.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Waiting...
I am usually a very patient waiter. Most people who know me well will agree. I don't shake Christmas packages. I open gifts in an organized manner. I can sit in a waiting room for quite a while before I get too antsy. However, this is getting old.
It is hurry up and wait. We had the appointment with the County for the building permit last Friday. It went well. Permit in hand in less than an hour. Very good. The excavator can begin immediately. But... The block fellow can't begin for, oh, a couple months. The contractor is trying to get someone else. He has been promising a new estimate since last weekend. Still nothing. Is every single competent dependable block laying group busy? Apparently so. At this rate, it will be Winter before we get the building process underway. The driveway will not be happy. Neither will I. I say this has gone on long enough. I realize the block fellow could not just sit and wait for us to be ready, but 2 months? Really?
Enough whining. Maybe.
The old guy has flagged out a pond. It is supposed to be big and deep enough for fish. The grands will be happy, especially when they get to fish. For now, there are some trees that will have to go so the digging there is able to progress, when we get a block layer.
In the meantime, we went up last weekend with the excavator and staked out where the house will actually set on the hill. It is too close to the driveway for my taste. Fifteen feet is not far enough. If you consider the gardens that will certainly be put around the house, when winter comes and they plow the snow, driveway stones and stuff will be in the gardens. And maybe on the steps. I want it pushed back at least 10 more feet. I will see if he listens or if we simply progress the way it is laid out.
There are trees around the perimeter of the house that will need to come down, too. Ash is dying pretty well across the state right now and there is no fix for the pest causing the die off in sight. Anything that is close enough that, should it fall, would land on the house, will be taken out before the building begins. This is smart, and gives the old guy something to do while he is home and waiting. It will also make firewood for the syrup making in the Spring. For how long we will continue that no one knows, apparently there is a bug in the sugar maple trees, too. He also plans on clearing out around several dogwoods that will be close and maybe he can find a new sumac to replace the one that we lost earlier this summer. It was a very nice sumac, with lots of berries, or whatever you call them. Anyway, they were pretty.
For now, we will wait. I am sure that later in this process, there will be times I wish we had a little time to sit and wait. Just not right now.
It is hurry up and wait. We had the appointment with the County for the building permit last Friday. It went well. Permit in hand in less than an hour. Very good. The excavator can begin immediately. But... The block fellow can't begin for, oh, a couple months. The contractor is trying to get someone else. He has been promising a new estimate since last weekend. Still nothing. Is every single competent dependable block laying group busy? Apparently so. At this rate, it will be Winter before we get the building process underway. The driveway will not be happy. Neither will I. I say this has gone on long enough. I realize the block fellow could not just sit and wait for us to be ready, but 2 months? Really?
Enough whining. Maybe.
The old guy has flagged out a pond. It is supposed to be big and deep enough for fish. The grands will be happy, especially when they get to fish. For now, there are some trees that will have to go so the digging there is able to progress, when we get a block layer.
In the meantime, we went up last weekend with the excavator and staked out where the house will actually set on the hill. It is too close to the driveway for my taste. Fifteen feet is not far enough. If you consider the gardens that will certainly be put around the house, when winter comes and they plow the snow, driveway stones and stuff will be in the gardens. And maybe on the steps. I want it pushed back at least 10 more feet. I will see if he listens or if we simply progress the way it is laid out.
There are trees around the perimeter of the house that will need to come down, too. Ash is dying pretty well across the state right now and there is no fix for the pest causing the die off in sight. Anything that is close enough that, should it fall, would land on the house, will be taken out before the building begins. This is smart, and gives the old guy something to do while he is home and waiting. It will also make firewood for the syrup making in the Spring. For how long we will continue that no one knows, apparently there is a bug in the sugar maple trees, too. He also plans on clearing out around several dogwoods that will be close and maybe he can find a new sumac to replace the one that we lost earlier this summer. It was a very nice sumac, with lots of berries, or whatever you call them. Anyway, they were pretty.
For now, we will wait. I am sure that later in this process, there will be times I wish we had a little time to sit and wait. Just not right now.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
The logs are coming, the logs are coming.
We almost have the paper work done. The old guy meets with the County on Friday afternoon for the building permit. Then the work work may begin.
Dave, the contractor, is supposed to be contacting the excavator and the block layer. These are the next steps, apparently. The old guy will probably finally be able to line out the house on the hill so he can see if it is where he wants it to be. He is so excited. This will make him very happy. Once lined out and digging is scheduled, we can have the "ground breaking". And then the adventure will begin.
The logs are due for delivery the last week of August. This may be too soon and we may need a few more weeks to be ready for them. They have indicated they will hold them for awhile for us if we are not quite ready.
The old guy is home for a week or so for now. The team goes up again on Monday, I think, but they do not anticipate being called until late next week at the earliest. Then, again, this is purely dependent on the weather. He may end up going much sooner or not at all. 'Tis the way that stuff works.
The next week will be very busy here, as has the last. Funeral Friday, grad party Saturday. Today is grandaughter Emily's birthday. Next week is mine, our wedding annivesary, a good friends birthday, one of my favorite nieces birthday and a great nephew's also. Our next door neighbor has a birthday this month and they share our wedding anniversary. Other family memebers also have birthdays and anniversaris this month. I believe it is now our second busiest month, after February. I remember when I was little, the only birthday in August was mine. How things change.
Oh, well. Off to do the pack laundry so he can get it all loaded up for the next run and then off to work for the evening for me. Maybe we will have news regarding digging and block before the evening is over. That would be nice.
Dave, the contractor, is supposed to be contacting the excavator and the block layer. These are the next steps, apparently. The old guy will probably finally be able to line out the house on the hill so he can see if it is where he wants it to be. He is so excited. This will make him very happy. Once lined out and digging is scheduled, we can have the "ground breaking". And then the adventure will begin.
The logs are due for delivery the last week of August. This may be too soon and we may need a few more weeks to be ready for them. They have indicated they will hold them for awhile for us if we are not quite ready.
The old guy is home for a week or so for now. The team goes up again on Monday, I think, but they do not anticipate being called until late next week at the earliest. Then, again, this is purely dependent on the weather. He may end up going much sooner or not at all. 'Tis the way that stuff works.
The next week will be very busy here, as has the last. Funeral Friday, grad party Saturday. Today is grandaughter Emily's birthday. Next week is mine, our wedding annivesary, a good friends birthday, one of my favorite nieces birthday and a great nephew's also. Our next door neighbor has a birthday this month and they share our wedding anniversary. Other family memebers also have birthdays and anniversaris this month. I believe it is now our second busiest month, after February. I remember when I was little, the only birthday in August was mine. How things change.
Oh, well. Off to do the pack laundry so he can get it all loaded up for the next run and then off to work for the evening for me. Maybe we will have news regarding digging and block before the evening is over. That would be nice.
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