Well its hard to believe this was the last day of June, wow where did this month go. We have been here in the mountains for 6 weeks and the last couple days like today was a work day all except for after supper when we took a golf cart ride to the top and visited with Norm. He still isn't doing well with his health, plus he is still mourning the loss of his wife this past winter. I reassured him if he needs help to call me and he said he would. Anyhow after a 6:30 wake up it was downright cold at 51degrees so I hurriedly closed all the windows and donned a long sleeve shirt. Yikes that's winter in Florida. Nancy was all bundled up like it was Alaska. After my quiet time and the last buckwheat cake with a banana on top I headed out to check on the gardens.
There was no damage but the ground was still quite wet from the 4 inches of rain the day before and the heavy dew from last night. I checked the basement floor and it seems the bonding agent is holding the paint to the floor so that's a go. I got ready to head up on the scaffolding for what I hope is my last day for quite a while. It really is a life saver but does that ever tire you out climbing up and down and breaking it down several times a day as you move about. I finished about 3 PM and was it ever starting to get hot and the basement felt good to chill out in for awhile at 60 degrees. I finished up all of the stain and lacked just one corner of the cabin completing the job. That will have to wait for a week or so.
Nancy and I headed down stairs to put the basement in order; removing much of my tools to the shed, paints, etc. were moved to beneath the front porch storage area and of course my garden tools, buckets and water cans to the shed as well. We are just about ready for guests except for the safety fence around the deck area and of course weed edging and mowing which I will do on Saturday.
George Redman came by for a visit about 5 and then Carson and Carter came by as George was leaving. Finally Nancy got a chance put a delicious supper together of fettuccine Alfredo with grilled chicken and broccoli, man was that ever good and I licked the kettle clean. After the cleanup I headed down to the lower garden with the rotor-tiller to run through a few rows of plants as the rain really had the ground packed hard. Afterwards we took off on the golf cart. There was no hike today but we more than made up for that by going up and down on the stairs, the yard and the scaffolding. LATER
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Wednesday
What another work day and I'm whipped. The day started with a 6:30 get out of bed to such stillness and cool air coming into the cabin, 60's. After my quiet time and a couple left over buckwheat cakes with a little molasses I headed out to check on the gardens before heading to the basement. The lock-down had dried so I gave the areas where I had spread the bonding agent another coat of grey epoxy floor paint(the third time). By the evening I checked the area I had repainted and noticed no bubbling or separating so maybe this is what I needed to keep the paint on the floor, anyhow after our guest's leave I will repaint the basement floor again but first paint it with lock-down, a bonding agent.
I got ready to work on the upper side of the cabin; first with cedar stain, then black paint on the spacers and finally green paint for the windows. What a busy day as I had to work off the scaffolding. The up and down is a wear but so much easier than working off a ladder, especially on this uneven gravel drive. We had a nice salad for lunch then it started to get pretty warm in the sun so by 4 o'clock I was ready to hang up the brushes. I headed to the lower garden which was in the shade and started loosening up the soil with a hoe around all of the plants. The heavy rains the past 24 hours really compacted the soil so no oxygen good get to the roots. Nancy was in the process of frying up some yellow squash as our main dish for supper along with a baked potato. I added 4 herbs to my squash; thyme, cilantro, basil and red pepper. What great compliments to fried squash. We usually can make a meal just out of that. Neighbor Gerald came by and we indulged him with some as well.
After supper we headed out to the top of the mountain for our daily walk and stopped to visit with Joe and Jetta before heading back down. I started a great campfire then burned the garbage and setting my plastic garbage can on fire as well(I set it to close to the fire which was very small at first and while I was off doing something else it started to melt). Oh well luckily I have a metal can as well. The temps have really started to fall with temps already down into the low 60's. Tomorrow is another stain and painting day and will probably be the last until after our guest leave next week. LATER
I got ready to work on the upper side of the cabin; first with cedar stain, then black paint on the spacers and finally green paint for the windows. What a busy day as I had to work off the scaffolding. The up and down is a wear but so much easier than working off a ladder, especially on this uneven gravel drive. We had a nice salad for lunch then it started to get pretty warm in the sun so by 4 o'clock I was ready to hang up the brushes. I headed to the lower garden which was in the shade and started loosening up the soil with a hoe around all of the plants. The heavy rains the past 24 hours really compacted the soil so no oxygen good get to the roots. Nancy was in the process of frying up some yellow squash as our main dish for supper along with a baked potato. I added 4 herbs to my squash; thyme, cilantro, basil and red pepper. What great compliments to fried squash. We usually can make a meal just out of that. Neighbor Gerald came by and we indulged him with some as well.
After supper we headed out to the top of the mountain for our daily walk and stopped to visit with Joe and Jetta before heading back down. I started a great campfire then burned the garbage and setting my plastic garbage can on fire as well(I set it to close to the fire which was very small at first and while I was off doing something else it started to melt). Oh well luckily I have a metal can as well. The temps have really started to fall with temps already down into the low 60's. Tomorrow is another stain and painting day and will probably be the last until after our guest leave next week. LATER
Tuesday
Rain, rain, hail and more hail with lightning popping around the cabin, what a day for wet wicked weather and in between there was brilliant sunshine, yikes!!! Crazy, the southwest in burning and the north Midwest is flooding and Florida finally got some of the wet weather. Well the day wasn't completely awash(no pun intended) as I managed to get a little painting done after my quiet time and mountain breakfast of buckwheat cakes with a banana and red raspberries in the batter and a couple home grown cackleberries on top, wow the yokes are so orange in color.
I headed down in the basement after checking for deer damage and thankfully found none. I'm still having some of the floor paint peel so I mixed up a soapy water with degreaser after taking a putty knife and scraping the raised paint pockets. Its strange how some areas the paint is fine and other areas its peeling, anyhow I scrubbed those areas after vacuuming up the lose paint chips then coated those areas with a product called LOCK-DOWN. That is supposed to bind any paint to the floor,; we will see and if that doesn't work then its indoor-outdoor carpet next year.
The sun was shining brilliantly so I headed out onto the deck to paint the spacer boards black and paint the high end(on the top of the scaffold) window on the upper side of the cabin. Notice how everything is mention as either upper or lower and nothing level; well that's the way it is here, nothing level unless your in the cabin or on the porches. Well I finished painting from the 3rd level of the scaffold so after lunch Nancy helped me break it down, now the rest of the painting will be from the second tier or lower; sure am glad that high ordeal is over.
The afternoon saw storm clouds building and wasn't long we we unplugged everything and all"-ell broke lose". Yikes lightning was flying everywhere and the arrestor on the electrical box in the basement was cracking and popping and the lights blinking. Luckily we never lost total power just momentarily but lightning did strike a concrete well cover on top of the mountain that we know of. On a later hike around 4:30 we noticed the concrete well encasement was split and laying open. We will have to notify someone on Wednesday as its unoccupied. We barely made it back to cabin ahead of another storm with the same scenario; thunder, lightning, hail and a "gully washer" of rain down pour.
We managed to fix supper in between the storm and its voracity as we were scheduled to play Sequence with neighbors Grant and Shirley at 7 at their place. There were several of her family and friends there so we headed down driving the truck in a gentle rain by now after 1/2 hours of rain. The little creek by their place was roaring and up to the banks, earlier large rocks were being washed through their culvert making a noise so loud it was heard inside the cabin. Anyhow the gals with Nancy playing a "Harvey Hand"(remember the white rabbit no one could see) as we were one gal short as play goes around the table so they whupped us(guys) 6-0. We finally called it an evening and headed home around 9:30 or so.
I was whupped not only from Sequence but from painting and starting the day out before 6 AM. Up and down the hill, scaffolding, in the basement and on the ladder had we worn to a frazzle. So after a hot shower I was asleep by the time my head hit the pillow. We had over 4 inches of rain in 24 hours, LATER.
I headed down in the basement after checking for deer damage and thankfully found none. I'm still having some of the floor paint peel so I mixed up a soapy water with degreaser after taking a putty knife and scraping the raised paint pockets. Its strange how some areas the paint is fine and other areas its peeling, anyhow I scrubbed those areas after vacuuming up the lose paint chips then coated those areas with a product called LOCK-DOWN. That is supposed to bind any paint to the floor,; we will see and if that doesn't work then its indoor-outdoor carpet next year.
The sun was shining brilliantly so I headed out onto the deck to paint the spacer boards black and paint the high end(on the top of the scaffold) window on the upper side of the cabin. Notice how everything is mention as either upper or lower and nothing level; well that's the way it is here, nothing level unless your in the cabin or on the porches. Well I finished painting from the 3rd level of the scaffold so after lunch Nancy helped me break it down, now the rest of the painting will be from the second tier or lower; sure am glad that high ordeal is over.
The afternoon saw storm clouds building and wasn't long we we unplugged everything and all"-ell broke lose". Yikes lightning was flying everywhere and the arrestor on the electrical box in the basement was cracking and popping and the lights blinking. Luckily we never lost total power just momentarily but lightning did strike a concrete well cover on top of the mountain that we know of. On a later hike around 4:30 we noticed the concrete well encasement was split and laying open. We will have to notify someone on Wednesday as its unoccupied. We barely made it back to cabin ahead of another storm with the same scenario; thunder, lightning, hail and a "gully washer" of rain down pour.
We managed to fix supper in between the storm and its voracity as we were scheduled to play Sequence with neighbors Grant and Shirley at 7 at their place. There were several of her family and friends there so we headed down driving the truck in a gentle rain by now after 1/2 hours of rain. The little creek by their place was roaring and up to the banks, earlier large rocks were being washed through their culvert making a noise so loud it was heard inside the cabin. Anyhow the gals with Nancy playing a "Harvey Hand"(remember the white rabbit no one could see) as we were one gal short as play goes around the table so they whupped us(guys) 6-0. We finally called it an evening and headed home around 9:30 or so.
I was whupped not only from Sequence but from painting and starting the day out before 6 AM. Up and down the hill, scaffolding, in the basement and on the ladder had we worn to a frazzle. So after a hot shower I was asleep by the time my head hit the pillow. We had over 4 inches of rain in 24 hours, LATER.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Monday
Well another busy day with lots of different scenery. The morning started with a 6 AM wake up. The birds were singing and the dew was dripping from the bump out onto the main roof before finding its way into my flower beds. It was 60 degrees with just a little chill in the air. After my quiet time and a bowl of oatmeal with blue berries, cinnamon and a really ripe banana I headed out to check on the gardens. Luckily the deer scare fence is still working as there was no damage once again. We had planned to go to Virginia to pick black raspberries as they were in and needed picked so we headed out about 9:30.
This was our third year to pick berries at Linda's place, she is the sister of our good friends the Crouse's from Sparta. Her farm is just immaculate with berry vines that look like a vineyard. Well we picked 2 gallons in about an hour and a half then headed to Galax to do some shopping and have lunch at Subway. It was nearly 2:30 before we ever got back to the cabin. We decided since the freezer bags we used for the berries were leaking that we would just go ahead and make up 1 gallon into jam; the other gallon we divided up and froze into cobbler size bags. I think we got enough for 6 cobblers in the future. The first gallon made 21 jars of jam with a couple jars the half size. Yumm is all I can say about this special berry. Nancy also picked a pint of red raspberries for her oatmeal in the morning.
I grilled a couple bone-in pork chops along with a fresh salad and a can of peas for supper. After the cleanup we headed over to Eddie and Kimberly's farm to see their new colt that was born yesterday. He is a cutie just like the one we saw at Mechelle's farm yesterday. I also gathered up several 5 gallon cans of horse manure for my compost pile. We got back to the cabin about 8 PM then I decided to do a little work in the basement. A major thunderstorm with severe lightning and a downpour happened for about an hour. The lights popped on an off but we never lost power completely of course we had to unplug everything for fear of lightning damage. The lightning arrestor in the basement cracked and popped several times. Well I finally came up to watch the Ray's as they were on prime time T.V. and the Reds smoked them 5 to zip, bummer. Well tomorrow is another busy work day, Later. Enclosed are a few pics from today.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sunday
Well the day started out around 7 when I finally drug myself from the warm covers as it was once again down to the high 50's. There was dew dripping from the roof top otherwise it was very still except for a couple of mockingbirds. After my quiet time and bowl of oatmeal with blue berries and a banana I headed out to check on the gardens. There was no deer damage and I noticed several more small green tomato's as well as a couple small cucumbers starting to form. I even saw a couple very small Zucchini squash forming. I lost a yellow squash plant as well as my parsley the other day I think the heavy rain then wind broke them off. Not sure what happened but they were both broken off at ground level. I noticed my beets are starting to take off and hopefully by next week we can add some leaves to our salads.
We headed off to worship at Cornerstone about 9:30 and never anticipated it raining as the skies were blue with bright sunshine. After church we hooked up with Mechelle and Kathrine Dalton and headed over to where one of their mares was in with a stallion. There were 5 other foals already in the field so we ogled them before heading over to their farm where one of their paint mares gave birth to a colt(male)just this morning. He is such a cutie and already standing and moving around albeit a little shaky. We stopped and picked fresh lettuce from their garden on the way out of the pasture in front of a pretty good rain storm. It rained all the way home.
We had a quick late lunch then I headed out to do a few minor jobs like; cut out and paint the newly replaced pulpit by the fire circle as it was starting to pit and large holes had formed, then screwed the newly made hangar for my garden hose to the well house, and finally tied up my wine berry bushes as they were spreading out of bounds from their designated spaces below the gardens and over the septic. This kept me busy until we made arrangements to head over to the Galax, Va. area in the morning to pick black raspberries. Seems they are ready and they make the best jam ever so we will pick enough for 2 batches as we give most of it away to our family and friends. We will then head on into Wal-Mart for some needed items and to gas up while there. I need some black paint for the spacer boards on the cabin as I still have the scaffold in place as its much easier painting from it than from a ladder.
After a lite supper of grilled chicken breasts on a salad we took off for our hike of the day. We walked down to Grant and Shirley's and visited with them for awhile before stopping off at Russ and Linda's cabin. Our neighbor "Nub" was there doing some electrical work and he said he was going to start building on his cabin shortly as they presently live in a camper trailer. LATER
We headed off to worship at Cornerstone about 9:30 and never anticipated it raining as the skies were blue with bright sunshine. After church we hooked up with Mechelle and Kathrine Dalton and headed over to where one of their mares was in with a stallion. There were 5 other foals already in the field so we ogled them before heading over to their farm where one of their paint mares gave birth to a colt(male)just this morning. He is such a cutie and already standing and moving around albeit a little shaky. We stopped and picked fresh lettuce from their garden on the way out of the pasture in front of a pretty good rain storm. It rained all the way home.
We had a quick late lunch then I headed out to do a few minor jobs like; cut out and paint the newly replaced pulpit by the fire circle as it was starting to pit and large holes had formed, then screwed the newly made hangar for my garden hose to the well house, and finally tied up my wine berry bushes as they were spreading out of bounds from their designated spaces below the gardens and over the septic. This kept me busy until we made arrangements to head over to the Galax, Va. area in the morning to pick black raspberries. Seems they are ready and they make the best jam ever so we will pick enough for 2 batches as we give most of it away to our family and friends. We will then head on into Wal-Mart for some needed items and to gas up while there. I need some black paint for the spacer boards on the cabin as I still have the scaffold in place as its much easier painting from it than from a ladder.
After a lite supper of grilled chicken breasts on a salad we took off for our hike of the day. We walked down to Grant and Shirley's and visited with them for awhile before stopping off at Russ and Linda's cabin. Our neighbor "Nub" was there doing some electrical work and he said he was going to start building on his cabin shortly as they presently live in a camper trailer. LATER
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Saturday
Well it was another busy work day when the only fun time was on our mountain hike after supper. I started the day around 7 with a couple leftover buckwheat cakes with molasses after my quiet time. Man those cakes are the best and keep me fueled until lunchtime when Nancy made a great fresh garden salad; only it wasn't from my garden except for the basil and green onions. After a check of the gardens for deer damage which thankfully there was none, I headed out onto the deck to finish staining the rest of the lower deck side.
That side took me up until almost lunch time, while Nancy made the salad I broke down the scaffolding and carried it around to the other side of the cabin where after eating Nancy helped with setting it up again. That is a job itself especially when you on the third level and the bottom supports are in Nancy's flowers. I chose the flowers that were to be destroyed with care but at the same time I needed to be relatively close to the wall and finally after seeing how high I was she felt the loss of a few flowers temporarily were worth my safety. I worked on getting the very top painted and then worked down until I ran out of stain, by then it was going on 4 o'clock and time to call it a day.
I fired the grille up and did a couple nice rib eye steaks medium rare while she microwaved a couple potatoes. The spuds were super with real butter,fresh green onions, fresh hot red peppers(for me only), sour cream and a little fresh cilantro. That was a great meal and after the cleanup we got ready for our daily hike to the top of the mountain. There was a nice breeze with the temps down into the high 70's and no humidity. We stopped and visited with Jetta for awhile until the gnats started to bite so we headed down to give the new transplants a drink and to wet down the grass seed I sowed a couple days ago.
Well I'm watching a little Wimbledon and checking on Ray's baseball, yea tomorrow is a day of rest as I need one from this paint brush. Nancy took a couple pics of the the staining on the upper side as it was a couple feet higher from the ground because the scaffolding was on the ground and not the deck.LATER
Friday
Well this was a busy, hard work and fun day. It all started after a 6 AM wake up, my quiet time and a hearty mountain breakfast of buckwheat cakes with a banana in the batter and loaded up with butter and molasses(thought I would venture from the norm). I took a trip around the gardens checking for deer damage and I'm delighted to mention there was none. The 1/2 runner beans are starting to send out runners once again and are climbing the beans poles I erected in a tee pee fashion. The black eyed Susan's we transplanted are holding their blooms high, so just maybe they will survive the transplant as the daisy's we transplanted last week are just magnificent and very regal looking. Gorgeous is the way to describe these flowers.
I headed to the top of the scaffolding around 9 AM and yikes it was at first a little "hairy" especially as a the wind began to blow. Sure made for interesting paint as I'm clinging to the roof with one hand and trying not to look down to the ground below the deck but I got use to it and the nervousness went away so before long I felt like a monkey climbing around on it. I guess that why its called something like "monkey bars". I thought of my oldest grandson Samuel as he is a climber and would love to have these bars in his back yard. The staining went well and I managed to give the fascia board 2 coats before dismantling the scaffold. Today(Sat) I hope to finish the shade side of the cabin and then move the scaffold to the other high side and maybe do the " hairy part" as the sun moves to the deck side. Its tough painting with the sun beating down on your back and surface your painting, anyhow I knocked off about 3 PM from painting and then loosen up the soil around the plants in the lower garden(which was by then in the shade). It was a bright sunny skies at 82 but with a nice breeze(the gale winds had subsided since I got off the scaffolding) and we got ready to head out to the RELAY FOR LIFE event being held at the football field in Sparta.
What a beautiful setting as we were surrounded by magnificent mountains, green trees and grass and I can't describe how delicious the air smelled. There was a good crowd and much recognition for the cancer survivors and those who fought this vicious battle against this most oftem deadly illness. I was participating in the corn hole tournament as a fund raiser. I was asked by our good friend Andy Dalton to be his pardner and we were lucky and won the tournament(beginner's luck for me as he was a proven winner). We met lots of super nice folks and renewed some old acquaintances. It was nearly 10:30 before we finished up and headed for the cabin. We had some good eats from the various churches who had set up food booths and there were all kinds of different activities from drama, music,dances(Zumba in the infield)and crafts for kids. This was a family affair.
Well the Ray's won again last night and today(Sat)looks like another busy day, LATER
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Thursday
Well it was another busy day with a 6 AM roll out. It was quiet with grey skies and about the time I headed over to our " mountain moms" place after my quiet time and a breakfast of poached eggs and grits it was sprinkling; but eventually slacked enough to saw up a downed limb. After leaving her place I headed back to work in the basement until the rain quit then we took off on or daily hike to the top of the mountain. We stopped at Joe and Jetta's to pick up some shorts she took in for Nancy then headed on back down to a lite lunch.
After lunch we headed out to the mailbox then came back to transplant some wild black eyed Susan flower we found growing along the road. I dug up some cone flowers and a Russian sage which had grown out of the flower bed so I potted them up then dug up 6 petunias that weren't doing too good and re-potted them. I then potted up some daisy's and other flowers before digging up some iris and moving them out of the front flower bed as well.
Nancy fixed fettuccine Alfredo for supper along with fresh broccoli, yumm was that ever good. I worked on setting up another 6 foot section of scaffolding so now I'm 18 feet up next to the roof peak, doesn't sound like far but yikes it sure is especially when the deck is probably another 12 to 14 feet above the ground. Hopefully the weather will hold nice tomorrow and I can get these 2 high sides out of the way before our guests arrive next Sunday. After eating I brought out the refurbished corn hole boxes that Andy had no longer any use for so Nancy and I had a throw off. Hopefully I can throw this well tomorrow evening in Sparta at the tournament competition with Andy as my pardner. Well its been a busy but fun day, LATER
After lunch we headed out to the mailbox then came back to transplant some wild black eyed Susan flower we found growing along the road. I dug up some cone flowers and a Russian sage which had grown out of the flower bed so I potted them up then dug up 6 petunias that weren't doing too good and re-potted them. I then potted up some daisy's and other flowers before digging up some iris and moving them out of the front flower bed as well.
Nancy fixed fettuccine Alfredo for supper along with fresh broccoli, yumm was that ever good. I worked on setting up another 6 foot section of scaffolding so now I'm 18 feet up next to the roof peak, doesn't sound like far but yikes it sure is especially when the deck is probably another 12 to 14 feet above the ground. Hopefully the weather will hold nice tomorrow and I can get these 2 high sides out of the way before our guests arrive next Sunday. After eating I brought out the refurbished corn hole boxes that Andy had no longer any use for so Nancy and I had a throw off. Hopefully I can throw this well tomorrow evening in Sparta at the tournament competition with Andy as my pardner. Well its been a busy but fun day, LATER
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Wednesday
Well the day started out around 7 AM. It was so quiet and the dew was about the only sound as it dripped on the tin rood from the bump out, so still and the air was just absolutely fresh and clean. After my quiet time, a cup of hot green tea and a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries and a banana I headed out to check on the gardens. Once again the deer fence worked as they stayed away. Did I mention that sometime around midnight the rain woke us up with a hard downpour of about a 1/2 inch.
We got ready to head to Galax for some shopping. I gassed up at 3.21 a gallon which is the lowest I've seen in quite awhile. We headed to Lowes for a bathtub drain stopper, a new dill plant and a begonia. I also priced a new cordless 18 volt reversible drill as my old one was 10 years old and worn out. We headed to Wal-Mart for some goodies for the grand babies who will arrive in a couple weeks, groceries and I found the exact same drill for 20 bucks cheaper. Now that was a savings. After a couple hundred spent there we stopped at R&L pizza and subs restaurant in Galax for lunch, seems every time we go by there its packed with cars and now we know why; absolutely the best pizza I've ever eaten. We had a 14' supreme and we were out the door for around 15 bucks, very good eatin'. We stopped at Horton's market for some fresh veggies before headin' back to N.C. and the cabin. It sure looked like rain when we headed out around 10 AM but the road showed no new rain while we were gone.
After putting away the goodies neighbor Gerald came by to give me a hand setting up his scaffolding on my deck so I can re stain the cabin walls from out under the porches. Yikes is that high when looking down from the deck. Oh well that should keep me busy for several days. I was able to get in my garden enough to loosen up the soil around my plants but for only a couple hours as there came another thunderstorm with hail, lightning and heavy rain for about an hour. We received 6/10ths of an inch is this latest rain. We need a couple days of just nice dry weather with out any thunderstorms.
Well Nancy fried up the last of the deer tenderloin for supper and my was that ever tasty, there is no better eatin'. Well better get out of here and see if the Ray's are playing ball, LATER
We got ready to head to Galax for some shopping. I gassed up at 3.21 a gallon which is the lowest I've seen in quite awhile. We headed to Lowes for a bathtub drain stopper, a new dill plant and a begonia. I also priced a new cordless 18 volt reversible drill as my old one was 10 years old and worn out. We headed to Wal-Mart for some goodies for the grand babies who will arrive in a couple weeks, groceries and I found the exact same drill for 20 bucks cheaper. Now that was a savings. After a couple hundred spent there we stopped at R&L pizza and subs restaurant in Galax for lunch, seems every time we go by there its packed with cars and now we know why; absolutely the best pizza I've ever eaten. We had a 14' supreme and we were out the door for around 15 bucks, very good eatin'. We stopped at Horton's market for some fresh veggies before headin' back to N.C. and the cabin. It sure looked like rain when we headed out around 10 AM but the road showed no new rain while we were gone.
After putting away the goodies neighbor Gerald came by to give me a hand setting up his scaffolding on my deck so I can re stain the cabin walls from out under the porches. Yikes is that high when looking down from the deck. Oh well that should keep me busy for several days. I was able to get in my garden enough to loosen up the soil around my plants but for only a couple hours as there came another thunderstorm with hail, lightning and heavy rain for about an hour. We received 6/10ths of an inch is this latest rain. We need a couple days of just nice dry weather with out any thunderstorms.
Well Nancy fried up the last of the deer tenderloin for supper and my was that ever tasty, there is no better eatin'. Well better get out of here and see if the Ray's are playing ball, LATER
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Tuesday
The temps were into the low 60's with sunshine for the biggest part of the day until it was time to get ready for my pickle ball match with Deputy Ted. Well the skies opened up once again and the thunder and lightning was everywhere so once again we had to cancell. Maybe next Thursday we will try again, anyhow I had a busy and full day with painting and doing some small jobs.
After rolling out about 7 AM I did my few quiet moments then had a bowl of oatmeal with a banana before heading out to the gardens. So far the deer scare fence is working as they haven't been back since last Friday. Everything looked good and there is a chance the lettuce may develope. I don't know why its so hard to grow head lettuce here whereas Florida it grows so readily. Must be the clay soil here compared to the sandy soil that drains so well in Florida. Nancy came out and we transplanted the tall daisy's we dug up from Kimberly's. The soil at their farm just grows things so great as it once was a cow pasture. The flowers looked good after transplanting and the rain this evening was a plus even though we watered by hand. The temps really cooled down from a middle 80's to the low 60's after the rain.
We did our daily hike just before lunch as it was really getting hot on top so we cut through the woods and stayed on the back road in the shade most of the hike. We came back and had a lite lunch of salad and the last of the smoked chicken, YUMM!!! What a super lunch. Afterwards I headed down into the basement to paint and give my pickle ball paddles a coat of polyurathane. It was rather warm outside and the basement felt great.
Nancy fried some fish for supper along with some wild rice and buttered carrots. We invited Gerald and Gabriel up to play dominos with us after supper and we played until 9:30. Well tomorrow is a trip to Galax day for some goodies and a few musts; blinds for the downstairs(basement) windows and to see if I can make a repair to the drain stopper in the first floor shower. LATER
After rolling out about 7 AM I did my few quiet moments then had a bowl of oatmeal with a banana before heading out to the gardens. So far the deer scare fence is working as they haven't been back since last Friday. Everything looked good and there is a chance the lettuce may develope. I don't know why its so hard to grow head lettuce here whereas Florida it grows so readily. Must be the clay soil here compared to the sandy soil that drains so well in Florida. Nancy came out and we transplanted the tall daisy's we dug up from Kimberly's. The soil at their farm just grows things so great as it once was a cow pasture. The flowers looked good after transplanting and the rain this evening was a plus even though we watered by hand. The temps really cooled down from a middle 80's to the low 60's after the rain.
We did our daily hike just before lunch as it was really getting hot on top so we cut through the woods and stayed on the back road in the shade most of the hike. We came back and had a lite lunch of salad and the last of the smoked chicken, YUMM!!! What a super lunch. Afterwards I headed down into the basement to paint and give my pickle ball paddles a coat of polyurathane. It was rather warm outside and the basement felt great.
Nancy fried some fish for supper along with some wild rice and buttered carrots. We invited Gerald and Gabriel up to play dominos with us after supper and we played until 9:30. Well tomorrow is a trip to Galax day for some goodies and a few musts; blinds for the downstairs(basement) windows and to see if I can make a repair to the drain stopper in the first floor shower. LATER
Monday, June 20, 2011
Monday
Well it was a blustery day until the early afternoon when the clouds lifted and the wind subsided. It looked like rain all day until then. The morning started out the usual with a 6:30 roll out and after my quiet time and a bowl of oatmeal I headed out to check on the gardens. Seems the bags, pie plates and twine that I strung up around the lower garden worked, so far.
I ventured into the basement once again to work on the ceiling then I painted the support poles and the edge of the the ceiling. I glued a chair by then it was after 11 AM so we headed to the top of the mountain for our daily hike. We ran into Joe and Jetta and visited awhile before heading home for a lite lunch. After lunch I cleaned off the corn hole boxes, sanded them and gave them a coat of polyurethane. While they dried I potted some marigolds and Zinnias.
We had an early supper of leftover smoked chicken on a bed of lettuce then we got ready to head over to Eddie and Kimberly's. We met up with Mechelle and Katherine as they were interested in their horses. I scooped up Tommy droppings for my garden then dug up 3 large clumps of Shasta Daisy's. We got back a little after 8 then Jodi, Gerald and Gabriel came up. We played 2 games of Spades and the girls won both for a change. They headed out about 10:30 so its nitey nite, LATER
I ventured into the basement once again to work on the ceiling then I painted the support poles and the edge of the the ceiling. I glued a chair by then it was after 11 AM so we headed to the top of the mountain for our daily hike. We ran into Joe and Jetta and visited awhile before heading home for a lite lunch. After lunch I cleaned off the corn hole boxes, sanded them and gave them a coat of polyurethane. While they dried I potted some marigolds and Zinnias.
We had an early supper of leftover smoked chicken on a bed of lettuce then we got ready to head over to Eddie and Kimberly's. We met up with Mechelle and Katherine as they were interested in their horses. I scooped up Tommy droppings for my garden then dug up 3 large clumps of Shasta Daisy's. We got back a little after 8 then Jodi, Gerald and Gabriel came up. We played 2 games of Spades and the girls won both for a change. They headed out about 10:30 so its nitey nite, LATER
Sunday
Well to all those fathers out there Happy Fathers Day. It was a busy fun filled weekend with lots of laughter, hugs and down right good eatin'. The morning started out with getting ready for church after our few quiet moments and a boring bowl of oatmeal; but after all the rich food eatin' the past day or so I'm sure the oatmeal helped erase some of the fat globules from the innards, oh well!!!! We headed out to Cornerstone to witness the graduation of 6 men who spent 39 weeks of their life in preparation for the rest of their life and what it means to be a Christ follower. We heard some super stories about their families, community and just a strong bond of forever relationships this group of men developed. One of the graduates was the son of a fellow named Rick that I met and played pickle ball with just last week; its a small world.
After church we headed out to the Dalton Farm to see a couple of their new horse rescues and to pick some fresh garden lettuce that makes some great salads. I'm having a difficult time of getting lettuce to grow this year, anyway we headed home to eat a lite lunch as we were being taken out to supper by our "mountain mom", Helen for Fathers Day later in the evening. Well we just chilled with phone calls to Nancy's dad and from Amy until it was time to pick up Helen. On the way to the restaurant we took a side road in search of a waterfalls we had heard about. Well the road into the area was very narrow and steep and only enough room for one vehicle but we saw the river but since it had recently rained the walk back to falls was a muddy path so we headed back out. Its a very beautiful but rugged place so we aren't sure if we would take the little ones there when they come to visit in July, I think we will just head to Grant and Shirley's creek in the 'hood for them to play in ifs its hot.
We ate at the Pines eatery in Sparta; thank you Helen for the treat. On the way home we stopped by the grocery and Dollar General for a few items before getting back to the cabin. We then headed down to neighbors, Gerald and Jodi for some card games; Nancy won Hearts and the boys won Spades. It was close to 10:30 as we headed up the drive and called it a day. LATER
After church we headed out to the Dalton Farm to see a couple of their new horse rescues and to pick some fresh garden lettuce that makes some great salads. I'm having a difficult time of getting lettuce to grow this year, anyway we headed home to eat a lite lunch as we were being taken out to supper by our "mountain mom", Helen for Fathers Day later in the evening. Well we just chilled with phone calls to Nancy's dad and from Amy until it was time to pick up Helen. On the way to the restaurant we took a side road in search of a waterfalls we had heard about. Well the road into the area was very narrow and steep and only enough room for one vehicle but we saw the river but since it had recently rained the walk back to falls was a muddy path so we headed back out. Its a very beautiful but rugged place so we aren't sure if we would take the little ones there when they come to visit in July, I think we will just head to Grant and Shirley's creek in the 'hood for them to play in ifs its hot.
We ate at the Pines eatery in Sparta; thank you Helen for the treat. On the way home we stopped by the grocery and Dollar General for a few items before getting back to the cabin. We then headed down to neighbors, Gerald and Jodi for some card games; Nancy won Hearts and the boys won Spades. It was close to 10:30 as we headed up the drive and called it a day. LATER
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Saturday
I was awake at 6 AM as we had to get 2 large birds(chickens) ready for the smoker for lunch. We had family driving down from Woodstock, Va. for short visit and lunch. I was fixing beer-in-the rear birds and they need about 4 hours plus especially if they are over 5 pounds and these were about 5 1/2 each. I loaded the smoker with dried apple wood and they turned out a golden brown with some incredibly juicy meat.
After my quiet time I headed down to the lower gardens and discovered a couple deer had a midnight snack with my 1/2 runner beans last night so I rigged up a line around the garden and hung several pie pans as well white grocery bags on the line. Hopefully this will scare them away. The beans took a real hit as they left several plants even with the ground. oh well I knew it would happen sooner than later.
After rigging up the "scare fence" I headed into the basement to try and sort through some of the stuff I've collected in the basement over time. I worked on that until our family arrived and we got ready to eat a large lunch. Nancy made a squash casserole, pinto beans and biscuits to go with the chicken and Dee brought a potato salad and chocolate pie for dessert. Wow was that ever some good eatin' and we sat around listening to Paw Paw tell stories about our relatives from yesteryear. He has a mind for names, dates and places and ready gets tickled at himself when he tells stories of his youth and our ancestors.
Dee and Mike drove Paw Paw, Adeline and Kelly and Ms. Helen our mountain mom came as well. We had a grand time and really enjoyed seeing everyone. They left about 3:30 just ahead of a nasty thunderstorm that had winds, heavy rains(got 1/2 inch) and thunder & lightning. After they left we got ready for our 6:30 get together with Gerald & Jodi, Gabriel, Ray & Audiene and Carson and Eddie and Kimberly. We just had snacks with them as Nancy made salsa, Jodi made stuffed jalapeno peppers and Kimberly made layered taco dip and Audiene brought oatmeal chocolate cookies. The night was young when the gals went up by 4 games so we played on and we tied it up at 5 games each so the tiebreaker was won by us in a close game but we prevailed for our first win of the season. Guys Win!!!!
Its nearly 11 PM and I'm fading fast as it been a non-stop day, LATER
Friday, June 17, 2011
Friday
Well it was another beautiful morning with a temp of 58 about 6:30 AM. It was overcast most of the morning but by the early afternoon the sun was shinning brightly and had warmed up close to 80. There was a breeze which kept it quite comfortable. After my quiet time and a breakfast of farm fresh eggs, grits and ham I headed out to check on the gardens. I hand watered then headed down to the basement to work on the ceiling. I managed to finish it by about 4 o'clock then did a little cleanup as we were having the Dalton Gang for supper.
Nancy made potato salad and sauteed green peppers and onions while I did Italian sausages on the grill and the Dalton's brought wilted lettuce salad from their garden and Kay brought a fruit dessert. It sure was good eatin'. Afterwards we headed out to play several games of "corn hole" with Kay, Gerald, Andy, Caleb and myself. The girls all took off to the top of the mountain on the golf cart while we guys played the game of corn hole. The bugs became so bad after about 5 games that we decided to head in and play Sequence.
Well that was another story as we guys really got smoked by a score of 4 to zip. That's right it was a smack down as Nancy, Mechelle and Kay whupped us like the candy "good and plenty". Tough night for games but the food was good and the laughter was plenty as well. Well the Rays lost a tough game to the Bosox last night and are now about 5 games back of them for first place. We are looking forward to seeing Paw Paw and Adeline as well as sister Dee and her hubby Mike and their daughter Kelly tomorrow for lunch as they will drive down from Woodstock, Va. LATER
Nancy made potato salad and sauteed green peppers and onions while I did Italian sausages on the grill and the Dalton's brought wilted lettuce salad from their garden and Kay brought a fruit dessert. It sure was good eatin'. Afterwards we headed out to play several games of "corn hole" with Kay, Gerald, Andy, Caleb and myself. The girls all took off to the top of the mountain on the golf cart while we guys played the game of corn hole. The bugs became so bad after about 5 games that we decided to head in and play Sequence.
Well that was another story as we guys really got smoked by a score of 4 to zip. That's right it was a smack down as Nancy, Mechelle and Kay whupped us like the candy "good and plenty". Tough night for games but the food was good and the laughter was plenty as well. Well the Rays lost a tough game to the Bosox last night and are now about 5 games back of them for first place. We are looking forward to seeing Paw Paw and Adeline as well as sister Dee and her hubby Mike and their daughter Kelly tomorrow for lunch as they will drive down from Woodstock, Va. LATER
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Thursday
Well it wasn't quite as chilly this AM as it's been the last couple of days; we went from 45 to 58 today and it reached the upper 70's by late afternoon. It looked like rain until mid-morning then the clouds dissipated and bright sunshine took over. After an early morning rise around 6'ish I had a bowl of oatmeal with a peach, blueberries and a banana after my quiet time. After eating I headed out to check on and to water the gardens. Its been since last Saturday since we've had any real rain.
I headed to the basement to get started on hanging the Styrofoam 4X8 sheets to help with covering the insulation in the ceiling. It started out nice but quickly changed when I discovered the walls and ceiling are not squared to true, so I have some seams and a few ugly pieces that are not as I would like but the ceiling is getting covered. I doubt few people will ever see my basement. We took a break for a bowl of soup for lunch then headed out on our hike for the day to the top of the mountain. It was a little chilly in the shade and no humidity which made for a great hike. We came back and continued hanging until nearly 5 o'clock. We decided to call it a day in the basement and started getting supper ready. I put a couple bone-in pork chops on the grill and Nancy made a salad and peeled fresh carrots. We had a visitor(Carson) while we were getting ready to eat but he declined to eat and settled for a Dr.Pepper.
After supper we took the golf cart out to the mailbox and picked up our weekly newspaper then I hand watered the new seedlings in the veggie and flower gardens. It was 8:30 when I finally called it a day outside. I have the Rays playing the Red Sox on the Internet and once again they are losing in the middle innings. They lost last night as well to the Bosox. The Bruins won the Stanley Cup last night over the Canucks and they were the team that beat our Lightning by one point in the 7 th game of the finals. Sure made us(Lightning) look in a different light as the team that beat us won it all. Well not much else as this coming weekend will be a busy one with something going each day and night. I will post some basement pics another day. LATER
I headed to the basement to get started on hanging the Styrofoam 4X8 sheets to help with covering the insulation in the ceiling. It started out nice but quickly changed when I discovered the walls and ceiling are not squared to true, so I have some seams and a few ugly pieces that are not as I would like but the ceiling is getting covered. I doubt few people will ever see my basement. We took a break for a bowl of soup for lunch then headed out on our hike for the day to the top of the mountain. It was a little chilly in the shade and no humidity which made for a great hike. We came back and continued hanging until nearly 5 o'clock. We decided to call it a day in the basement and started getting supper ready. I put a couple bone-in pork chops on the grill and Nancy made a salad and peeled fresh carrots. We had a visitor(Carson) while we were getting ready to eat but he declined to eat and settled for a Dr.Pepper.
After supper we took the golf cart out to the mailbox and picked up our weekly newspaper then I hand watered the new seedlings in the veggie and flower gardens. It was 8:30 when I finally called it a day outside. I have the Rays playing the Red Sox on the Internet and once again they are losing in the middle innings. They lost last night as well to the Bosox. The Bruins won the Stanley Cup last night over the Canucks and they were the team that beat our Lightning by one point in the 7 th game of the finals. Sure made us(Lightning) look in a different light as the team that beat us won it all. Well not much else as this coming weekend will be a busy one with something going each day and night. I will post some basement pics another day. LATER
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Wednesday
Brr it was 45 this AM and stayed pretty much in the low 60's for the day with little sunshine and none after lunch. The morning was much the usual with a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries, peaches and a banana after my quiet time. I headed out to the gardens after eating to check on any deer damage but saw none. We were heading off Galax for a stop at Wal-Mart and then onto Lowes for some material to close the ceiling in the basement.
We got home around 1 PM and had a bowl of leftover soup from last night for lunch then I unloaded the material into the basement. I jumped on the mower and finished mowing the yard in the back woods and by then our lunch had setted so we took off on our hike of the day to the top of the mountain. We cut the hike a little short as we decided to take our "mountain mom" a nice large bowl of last nights soup. I decided to throw a fishing line in her pond while we there but the bass had lockjaw to begin with but while we were there loosen up a little just before we decided to head out. I caught a small 10 incher then hooked a nice pound or heavier but it threw the hook just as I brought it up onto the bank. I decided not to keep the single bass so I didn't have to clean any fish. It began to rain so we decided to try again another day with real fishing worms and hopefully we will have better luck.
It was nearly 5:30 before we got back to the cabin, so we decided to start some supper. We had thawed out a deer tenderloin that Andy had fixed us up with last fall so Nancy fried it like fried chicken and I made a milk gravy from the dripping and we put that over white rice. Wow was that ever good eatin' and we licked the platter clean. Its overcast and in the 60's so its stay in the cabin where its warm. We have all the windows closed and Nancy is in sweat clothes.
Not much was accomplished today except for the trip to town, so tomorrow I will start on the basement ceiling. I almost forgot to mention the Ray's beat the Red Sox last night in baseball, LATER
We got home around 1 PM and had a bowl of leftover soup from last night for lunch then I unloaded the material into the basement. I jumped on the mower and finished mowing the yard in the back woods and by then our lunch had setted so we took off on our hike of the day to the top of the mountain. We cut the hike a little short as we decided to take our "mountain mom" a nice large bowl of last nights soup. I decided to throw a fishing line in her pond while we there but the bass had lockjaw to begin with but while we were there loosen up a little just before we decided to head out. I caught a small 10 incher then hooked a nice pound or heavier but it threw the hook just as I brought it up onto the bank. I decided not to keep the single bass so I didn't have to clean any fish. It began to rain so we decided to try again another day with real fishing worms and hopefully we will have better luck.
It was nearly 5:30 before we got back to the cabin, so we decided to start some supper. We had thawed out a deer tenderloin that Andy had fixed us up with last fall so Nancy fried it like fried chicken and I made a milk gravy from the dripping and we put that over white rice. Wow was that ever good eatin' and we licked the platter clean. Its overcast and in the 60's so its stay in the cabin where its warm. We have all the windows closed and Nancy is in sweat clothes.
Not much was accomplished today except for the trip to town, so tomorrow I will start on the basement ceiling. I almost forgot to mention the Ray's beat the Red Sox last night in baseball, LATER
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Tuesday
Well can you believe it was 48 degrees this morning and it stayed just super nice all day long, I don't think it got much over 70 for the day. The morning was much the routine as I rolled out around 6:30, did my quiet time and poached a couple cackleberry's(fresh eggs from the Dalton Farm) and ate the last buckwheat cake with a piece of fried ham. This held me until we got back from our hike to the top then I finished the left over spaghetti for lunch. Wow does this cool weather work on my appetite.
I had to wear a long sleeve flannel shirt as it was that cool while transplanting some lettuce into the garden then I headed into the basement to give the fridge a second coat of paint before we headed out to the top for our hike of the day. We saw Ms. Helen outside working in her yard so we stopped and visited awhile as it was the first time we had see her since last November. She seemed thrilled to know we were back on the mountain for the summer. After leaving her we headed on down to the cabin and had lunch. After eating I headed back up the mountain on the golf cart as I saw some straight small pine saplings that were dead and I wanted to use them to hold the shower curtains I was going to install in the basement around the commode and shower area; as the basement is wide open so this will give a little privacy for those who use the basement potty. I peeled, sanded and stained the saplings then cut them to size. The area will be much like a hospital room privacy curtain.
Nancy fixed a large pot of pasta fagioli with the left over ham bone and wow was that ever good and tasty so we invited neighbor Gerald to eat with us as he was here alone. After he headed out I weed whacked and edged the yard then climbed on the riding mower and mowed the yard,it was just starting to get dark as I finished and the temp had already dropped down to 64 so I started a fire and burned the trash as well as some dried wood scraps. Wow did that heat feel good. Well Nancy was out with her camera once again so I will post a few pics(if blogger will allow me too), LATER
Monday, June 13, 2011
Monday
Days like this are why we invested in mountain property in 1992. Wow is all I can say!! The morning was pretty much routine as I rolled out of the sack around 6:30. There was enough dew on the roof we could hear it dripping from the bump out onto the main tin roof. It was so quiet and still and except for a lonesome crow off in the distance there was no noise. After my quiet time and a leftover buckwheat cake I headed out to check the gardens. Since we had no rain Sunday evening the gardens had started to dry but was really to wet to attempt any hoeing.
I headed over to our "mountain moms" place to help her to smooth out her gravel driveway. It seems since all the rain and runoff there were ruts, gully's and a washboard effect. I loaded a large wooden pallet and a chain into the truck then headed over to see what affect dragging the pallet behind her garden tractor would have on the driveway. Well it was almost like having a tractor with a blade as the affects were great, plus she wouldn't have to hire someone with a tractor to scrape her drive. We filled in the ruts and smoothed out the washboards immediately as she drove her tractor and I raked and kept the pallet in the road. That only took an hour or so and then I headed home to work in the basement.
I gave the camouflaged extra refrigerator in the basement a base coat of white paint then headed out to loosen up the soil around the bedding plants. It was getting close to lunch as Nancy was finishing up hanging 2 loads of laundry. Wow is that a comfort sight to me with having laundry on the outside clothes line. I remember as a kid we always washed on Monday and it was my job to build a fire under a black kettle that we heated the water for the ringer washing machine. I grew up where we had no running water or a water heater or any indoor plumbing in the house and of course no clothes dryer. What an experience but I never gave it another thought.
I had received a call from a fellow pickle ball player I introduced the game to last summer and he called about having a foursome around 5:30 at the Roaring Gap Country Club so I had a large lunch with lots of carbs(leftover spaghetti)as I knew I would need the energy and I did as we played for 2 solid hours outside. The sun was hot but it was a splendid day with just enough coolness or dryness in the air to make for some great play. Wow was there ever some great rallies and close games, it was non-stop action!!!
I got back close to 8 PM and Nancy heated up the leftover chicken stir fry, green beans and some pasta, Yumm!!! I almost forgot to mention neighbor Gerald arrived in the early afternoon from Raleigh for a day or so and then Carson(Rays grandson)visited a couple times during the day. Well that's about it except for some basement work. LATER
I headed over to our "mountain moms" place to help her to smooth out her gravel driveway. It seems since all the rain and runoff there were ruts, gully's and a washboard effect. I loaded a large wooden pallet and a chain into the truck then headed over to see what affect dragging the pallet behind her garden tractor would have on the driveway. Well it was almost like having a tractor with a blade as the affects were great, plus she wouldn't have to hire someone with a tractor to scrape her drive. We filled in the ruts and smoothed out the washboards immediately as she drove her tractor and I raked and kept the pallet in the road. That only took an hour or so and then I headed home to work in the basement.
I gave the camouflaged extra refrigerator in the basement a base coat of white paint then headed out to loosen up the soil around the bedding plants. It was getting close to lunch as Nancy was finishing up hanging 2 loads of laundry. Wow is that a comfort sight to me with having laundry on the outside clothes line. I remember as a kid we always washed on Monday and it was my job to build a fire under a black kettle that we heated the water for the ringer washing machine. I grew up where we had no running water or a water heater or any indoor plumbing in the house and of course no clothes dryer. What an experience but I never gave it another thought.
I had received a call from a fellow pickle ball player I introduced the game to last summer and he called about having a foursome around 5:30 at the Roaring Gap Country Club so I had a large lunch with lots of carbs(leftover spaghetti)as I knew I would need the energy and I did as we played for 2 solid hours outside. The sun was hot but it was a splendid day with just enough coolness or dryness in the air to make for some great play. Wow was there ever some great rallies and close games, it was non-stop action!!!
I got back close to 8 PM and Nancy heated up the leftover chicken stir fry, green beans and some pasta, Yumm!!! I almost forgot to mention neighbor Gerald arrived in the early afternoon from Raleigh for a day or so and then Carson(Rays grandson)visited a couple times during the day. Well that's about it except for some basement work. LATER
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Sunday
Well it was another cool morning with lots of wetness left over from last evening storms. The clouds stuck around most of the day and just after lunch we got a shower but nothing like the last couple of days. There was a little thunder and deep rumblings in the distance but as of now we have held off for this day. I think we've had 5 plus inches since Friday afternoon.
The morning started out around 7 AM and after my quiet time I had a leftover buckwheat cake for breakfast. Nancy was putting together a large pan of spaghetti that she was going to bake with cheese on top for the Relay For Life fund raiser luncheon after church this morning, wow was that ever a large pan and we served less than half of it. There was so much food leftover that we gave some to our Dalton friends and our mountain mom Helen and we still have enough for another meal or two. It was good but does that ever expand once it hits the tummy.
I got home in time to watch the Ray's beat the Orioles on channel 640 and they came away with 2 out of 3 game wins. The Red Sox and Yank's are leading the division but the Rays are still in the hunt. We took a walk to the top of the mountain after a snack for supper and although it was overcast and looked like rain it stayed dry. After getting back I managed to loosen some of the soil around some of my bedding plants but it's still pretty wet in the garden. We could use a couple days with out down pours.
Well not much else is going as tomorrow I'm heading over to scrape Helen's driveway as there are deep gully's caused by the excessive rain runoff. LATER
The morning started out around 7 AM and after my quiet time I had a leftover buckwheat cake for breakfast. Nancy was putting together a large pan of spaghetti that she was going to bake with cheese on top for the Relay For Life fund raiser luncheon after church this morning, wow was that ever a large pan and we served less than half of it. There was so much food leftover that we gave some to our Dalton friends and our mountain mom Helen and we still have enough for another meal or two. It was good but does that ever expand once it hits the tummy.
I got home in time to watch the Ray's beat the Orioles on channel 640 and they came away with 2 out of 3 game wins. The Red Sox and Yank's are leading the division but the Rays are still in the hunt. We took a walk to the top of the mountain after a snack for supper and although it was overcast and looked like rain it stayed dry. After getting back I managed to loosen some of the soil around some of my bedding plants but it's still pretty wet in the garden. We could use a couple days with out down pours.
Well not much else is going as tomorrow I'm heading over to scrape Helen's driveway as there are deep gully's caused by the excessive rain runoff. LATER
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Saturday
Well today was a fun day with no really work or chores other than our morning hike to the top around 10 AM after our morning quiet time and a mountain breakfast of buckwheat cakes, ham and eggs. After getting back to the cabin we chilled until it was time for a sandwich before heading out off the mountain around 12:30.
While leaving the cabin the temp's suddenly dropped down to 74 as we noticed dark clouds rolling in from the west. We learned the area had severe weather with hail, high winds and rain to the amount of 3 inches while we were gone. We met that storm in Clemmons around 5 PM and saw the rain all the way back to the cabin and at times it was heavy with heavy wind gusts.
We first headed to Wal-Mart and then headed to Sam's Club where we stocked up on goodies for when Bobby and family come for a week on the 4th of July. After leaving Winston, we headed to Clemmons for the graduation party of Corrine Carlson(wow that is hard to believe). The temperature was 94 but luckily it clouded over and we got a nice rain which quickly cooled things off. We had a great visit meeting several of Jenny's family and renewed a friendship with her dad, Gary. The food was good and plentiful. We headed out a little after 6 as we wanted to be back on the mountain before dark especially since it was raining. It was good to be back after a great day meeting new folks and renewing our friendship with the Carlson Family. LATER
While leaving the cabin the temp's suddenly dropped down to 74 as we noticed dark clouds rolling in from the west. We learned the area had severe weather with hail, high winds and rain to the amount of 3 inches while we were gone. We met that storm in Clemmons around 5 PM and saw the rain all the way back to the cabin and at times it was heavy with heavy wind gusts.
We first headed to Wal-Mart and then headed to Sam's Club where we stocked up on goodies for when Bobby and family come for a week on the 4th of July. After leaving Winston, we headed to Clemmons for the graduation party of Corrine Carlson(wow that is hard to believe). The temperature was 94 but luckily it clouded over and we got a nice rain which quickly cooled things off. We had a great visit meeting several of Jenny's family and renewed a friendship with her dad, Gary. The food was good and plentiful. We headed out a little after 6 as we wanted to be back on the mountain before dark especially since it was raining. It was good to be back after a great day meeting new folks and renewing our friendship with the Carlson Family. LATER
Friday, June 10, 2011
Friday
Well it was another cool morning with 60's and it eventually reached 84 before we had a torrential rain with almost 2 inches in an hour or so along with the lightning and thunder which caused us to unplug everything. I guess from now on when we want rain I just need to make a date to play pickle ball which is what I did. This was the first time I've made any attempt to get a match, but we really needed the rain.
The morning was pretty much routine except I ate 2 fresh farm eggs with grits for breakfast after my quiet time and before heading out to check on the gardens. Everything looked good except for the fact it has been awfully dry the last 2 weeks. Anyhow by now I was ready to do a second coat of paint on the basement floor while Nancy spread dried paint chips in the wet paint. I used a roller for the second coat which saved my knees and back and it took about an hour compared to the 4 hours for the first coat with a brush. I wanted to be sure to work the paint in as this floor has been "green" since the day it was poured in '95. It was awfully dirty and this new epoxy grey paint made the basement so much nicer and the paint chips really classed it up.
After the second coat we headed to the top for our hike of the day. We took the reverse course which means all the hard climbing is during the first part of the hike and eventually evens out to where we only have a couple low grade climbs at the end. We stopped and visited Joe and Jetta as they were out working in their yards. We came back and had a lite lunch.
I piddled around and took it easy with just a few little odd jobs as I was saving myself because of the heat and the thought of a pickle ball match at 6 PM. Nancy was making a pot of spaghetti not only for supper but for a pasta dish to take to Cornerstone on Sunday for a luncheon fundraiser. Wow was that ever a great smell as she used my fresh basil and oregano in the sauce. I could smell that delicious aroma drifting down below the deck where I was working. It seems like all of a sudden it clouded up and the skies opened up with severe thunder and lightning. After it subsided we decided to go ahead with a plate of spaghetti as I felt sure there would be no pickle ball and it was a rain out.
After eating we just sat at the table and read as the rain poured and the lightning flashed until nearly 7 PM. I was just about finished this blog when the Skype icon came on and our niece Arianne who lives and teaches in Miami was on, so we chatted and saw her for nearly a 1/2 hour. She looked stressed as today was her last day of school. She teaches music at a Catholic School with a predominance of Cuban students. Well will close for now, LATER Here are a few pics from the basement floor.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Thursday
Well the day started about 6:30 with the usual quiet time and a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries, peach and a banana. After eating I headed out to check on the gardens before heading to the basement. The floor had finally dried due to the dehumidifier and a large fan running all night. I got down on my hands and knees and started with a 3 inch brush. I managed to finish all except where I had the appliances sitting before lunch and then moved them back to their original places and painted those areas by 2 PM. Man was I ever glad to see the end of that job. Tomorrow I will give the main areas a second coat but with a roller while Nancy spreads paint chips on the wet paint to give it that finished look.
It finally clouded up and thunder was everywhere in the area but no rain except for a sprinkle or two. The temps stayed pretty nice because of the cloud cover and Nancy even put a long sleeve shirt on. We just chilled around the computer and a book and played 3 games of checkers. I whupped her the first 2 games then took pity and let her win the third game. Well you would have thought she won the lottery the way she carried on, even put her win on Facebook.
We baked some frozen beer battered fish and had black beans and rice for supper along with a small salad. After the clean up we headed out on our hike to the top even though it looked like rain we got nary a drop. We saw no one except for Zeke the dog who walked awhile with us. Well not much else is going on except we are thinking of doing a rain dance as I'm watering the gardens daily, LATER
It finally clouded up and thunder was everywhere in the area but no rain except for a sprinkle or two. The temps stayed pretty nice because of the cloud cover and Nancy even put a long sleeve shirt on. We just chilled around the computer and a book and played 3 games of checkers. I whupped her the first 2 games then took pity and let her win the third game. Well you would have thought she won the lottery the way she carried on, even put her win on Facebook.
We baked some frozen beer battered fish and had black beans and rice for supper along with a small salad. After the clean up we headed out on our hike to the top even though it looked like rain we got nary a drop. We saw no one except for Zeke the dog who walked awhile with us. Well not much else is going on except we are thinking of doing a rain dance as I'm watering the gardens daily, LATER
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Wednesday
Well today was one of those days where you worked busy all day but saw little accomplishment. After a 6:30 wake up I did my quiet time and then made a breakfast of poached eggs, grits and left over fried ham. Man was that ever good eatin'. I headed out to check on the gardens then headed to the basement.
I finished removing everything that made contact with the floor except for the washer, dryer, fridge and my large workbench. I borrowed neighbor Gerald's hand cart which made for moving these items so much easier.I swept, scrubbed and then rinsed the floor then added some muractic acid to the water for some extra cleaning and etching of the well worn concrete floor. I finished just before noon and set the fan as well as the dehumidifier but its still not completely dry, so I will leave both on over night and hopefully I can get at least one coat on tomorrow.
We took off on our hike for the day just before noon because by then it was 82 and eventually it reached 90 again, wow that is unusual and no rain, anyhow we were whipped when we got by from the hike. Nancy had made a nice salad for Tuesday which we passed on because of those fresh mustard greens so that's what we had for lunch. Did that ever taste good and refreshing. There wasn't much I could to do speed up the drying process so I read for awhile and Nancy crashed on the bed for a nap. The cabin was quite comfortable despite the heat as a nice breeze kept it bearable. After she awakened we took the golf cart out to the mailbox then stopped off at the creek(Grant and Shirley"s). We played along the bank then did some swinging and finally played a game of horseshoes before heading back. Along the way I picked up a load of big rocks from the road and hauled them to a washed out spot in the lower yard.
We sat on the back porch(shade side of the cabin) and read, had our glass of vino and talked about what we were going to eat for supper. I picked some cilantro, thyme and hot red peppers for my baked potato and along with fresh broccoli and salmon cakes we had some scrumptious eatin'. After the cleanup we both headed out to work in the gardens as the sun was covered with what we thought was thunderstorm clouds, but there was only some rumbling in the distance. Once again no rain so I took the hose and hand watered all the gardens. The evening gnats where terrible so I built a fire and the smoke helped somewhat but they were dive bombings into your ears and eyes and their biting was annoying. I carried a green branch which I had to keep flicking back and forth when not near the fire and the smoke. We eventually gave up and headed inside before 8 PM. Its still looks like it could rain but I think we are in for another rainless evening.
I almost forgot to mention the deer we saw on our hike and the wild turkey which came for a visit to the lower garden. Last evening Amy called to say Ava was swinging Sam and forgot to get out of the way and he knocked her into the corner of the concrete table. She suffered a deep cut as well as bruising to her forehead so Tyler took her to the E.R. for her first stitches but seems the doc decided to use an adhesive instead. That was good for Ava as she doesn't like needles, LATER
I finished removing everything that made contact with the floor except for the washer, dryer, fridge and my large workbench. I borrowed neighbor Gerald's hand cart which made for moving these items so much easier.I swept, scrubbed and then rinsed the floor then added some muractic acid to the water for some extra cleaning and etching of the well worn concrete floor. I finished just before noon and set the fan as well as the dehumidifier but its still not completely dry, so I will leave both on over night and hopefully I can get at least one coat on tomorrow.
We took off on our hike for the day just before noon because by then it was 82 and eventually it reached 90 again, wow that is unusual and no rain, anyhow we were whipped when we got by from the hike. Nancy had made a nice salad for Tuesday which we passed on because of those fresh mustard greens so that's what we had for lunch. Did that ever taste good and refreshing. There wasn't much I could to do speed up the drying process so I read for awhile and Nancy crashed on the bed for a nap. The cabin was quite comfortable despite the heat as a nice breeze kept it bearable. After she awakened we took the golf cart out to the mailbox then stopped off at the creek(Grant and Shirley"s). We played along the bank then did some swinging and finally played a game of horseshoes before heading back. Along the way I picked up a load of big rocks from the road and hauled them to a washed out spot in the lower yard.
We sat on the back porch(shade side of the cabin) and read, had our glass of vino and talked about what we were going to eat for supper. I picked some cilantro, thyme and hot red peppers for my baked potato and along with fresh broccoli and salmon cakes we had some scrumptious eatin'. After the cleanup we both headed out to work in the gardens as the sun was covered with what we thought was thunderstorm clouds, but there was only some rumbling in the distance. Once again no rain so I took the hose and hand watered all the gardens. The evening gnats where terrible so I built a fire and the smoke helped somewhat but they were dive bombings into your ears and eyes and their biting was annoying. I carried a green branch which I had to keep flicking back and forth when not near the fire and the smoke. We eventually gave up and headed inside before 8 PM. Its still looks like it could rain but I think we are in for another rainless evening.
I almost forgot to mention the deer we saw on our hike and the wild turkey which came for a visit to the lower garden. Last evening Amy called to say Ava was swinging Sam and forgot to get out of the way and he knocked her into the corner of the concrete table. She suffered a deep cut as well as bruising to her forehead so Tyler took her to the E.R. for her first stitches but seems the doc decided to use an adhesive instead. That was good for Ava as she doesn't like needles, LATER
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Tuesday
Well I was awake at 5 AM and layed around until 6 when I no longer could stay in bed. It was another 60 degree morning and with such quietness it was a pleasant morning. After my quiet time and a bowl of oatmeal with blueberries and a banana I headed out to check the gardens for animal damage. Something which I believe may have been a turkey dug up a cabbage plant but did no real damage to it so a replanted it. The reason I think it was a turkey is just about dark I saw one at the edge of the lower garden and when it spotted me it took off up the hill and into the woods. Nancy did her rather good original turkey imitation so maybe that really will keep it away. We got ready and headed out to the big city of Galax, Va. around 9:30.
We made a trash stop, then a gas stop, next was a Lowes stop and finally a Walmart stop before we stopped at Subway for lunch. On the way out of town we stopped at Hortons for some produce and I headed next door to the green house to check on bargains and I found 4 wave petunias for a buck. I moved them up into larger pots and fed them a little miracle grown. Wave petunias are out of sight in price at Lowes so I once again did okay even though it will take a couple days for them to fill out as they were root bound.
We got home about 1:30 so I headed down to the basement once again to move as much stuff out so I can clean the other half of the basement tomorrow. I worked down there until after 4 PM before calling it a day. There were thunder storms all around us but just a small sprinkle was all we managed. Ms. Helen left us a nice sack of mustard greens she had picked from a neighbors garden as well as some fresh green onions. Nancy got the greens ready to boil along with a sweet potato and fried ham. Those greens were excellent and we had just enough leftover for a small bowl tomorrow.
After supper I burned trash and picked up some twigs and small branches in the back woods yard and added them to the fire. We saw a huge deer on neighbor Gerald's property as we walked the back road. It was rumbling in the distance and Nancy was afraid we would get caught out in a storm, so we cut through to the top and held our walk to about 3/4 of our usual hike.
We got a phone call that Ava had fallen unto their outside concrete table gashing her forehead so Tyler was taking her to the E.R. to see if she needed stitches, seems the doctor just close it with an adhesive. We are thankful she will be fine, LATER
We made a trash stop, then a gas stop, next was a Lowes stop and finally a Walmart stop before we stopped at Subway for lunch. On the way out of town we stopped at Hortons for some produce and I headed next door to the green house to check on bargains and I found 4 wave petunias for a buck. I moved them up into larger pots and fed them a little miracle grown. Wave petunias are out of sight in price at Lowes so I once again did okay even though it will take a couple days for them to fill out as they were root bound.
We got home about 1:30 so I headed down to the basement once again to move as much stuff out so I can clean the other half of the basement tomorrow. I worked down there until after 4 PM before calling it a day. There were thunder storms all around us but just a small sprinkle was all we managed. Ms. Helen left us a nice sack of mustard greens she had picked from a neighbors garden as well as some fresh green onions. Nancy got the greens ready to boil along with a sweet potato and fried ham. Those greens were excellent and we had just enough leftover for a small bowl tomorrow.
After supper I burned trash and picked up some twigs and small branches in the back woods yard and added them to the fire. We saw a huge deer on neighbor Gerald's property as we walked the back road. It was rumbling in the distance and Nancy was afraid we would get caught out in a storm, so we cut through to the top and held our walk to about 3/4 of our usual hike.
We got a phone call that Ava had fallen unto their outside concrete table gashing her forehead so Tyler was taking her to the E.R. to see if she needed stitches, seems the doctor just close it with an adhesive. We are thankful she will be fine, LATER
Monday, June 6, 2011
Monday
Well I slept in this morning until nearly 7:30, I feel like I lost half of the day by turning over at 6 AM but the last hour was delicious, anyhow after our quiet times Nancy made a ham omelet for breakfast with homegrown eggs, Yikes was that ever tasty. I headed out to check on the gardens and then transplanted some Zinnias, black seeded Simpson lettuce and cosmos(flower). I then watered the veggie and flower gardens as we were passed by on the rain last evening.
We decided to take our hike before lunch so off we headed to the top of the mountain. It was a nice 60 degrees this morning but by late afternoon we hit a mild 80. The hike was uneventful and we only saw Fred as he and some workers were closing in his carport. We headed down and had a lite lunch of cantaloupe and an apple. I then headed to the basement to continue getting the concrete floor ready for a painting. I used some muratic acid to help clean and etch the concrete as its been raw(unfinished) since about '95. There was lots of stains and dirt buildup over the years and I want to be sure this epoxy paint sticks.
Ray Todd came by for a visit and stayed close to an hour. I think he is bored now that he no longer has his own place on this side of the mountain. We had a good visit. After he left I finished half of the floor as I will have to paint it in shifts because of all the stuff we have accumulated and now store in the basement. Bobby and his family along with another family are scheduled for a week visit over the 4th of July.
Well we had deer taco's for supper and I must say that is the best meat ever. There was not one speck of fat in the pan or on your plate. That was absolutely the best tasting meat I've ever eaten. That was the last of the ground deer but I still have a pack of tenderloin and can hardly wait until Fall deer hunting season. My good friend Andy knows how to kill, dress and process the meat to where its the best ever. If I had access to deer year round I would never eat beef again, its that good.
After supper we headed out to the mailbox on the golf cart then rode up to the top of the mountain and down the back way. It was such a beautiful evening with temps in the low 70's. After getting back we got to see Bobby,Jill, Annsley and Gabe on Skype. Gabe is downing 11 ounces at a time and is cutting 4 upper teeth. He has really grown and Annsley was a little shy at first but eventually warmed up to the web cam and was telling us all kinds of stories. Well not much else is going on as we are heading to Galax tomorrow for shopping, LATER
We decided to take our hike before lunch so off we headed to the top of the mountain. It was a nice 60 degrees this morning but by late afternoon we hit a mild 80. The hike was uneventful and we only saw Fred as he and some workers were closing in his carport. We headed down and had a lite lunch of cantaloupe and an apple. I then headed to the basement to continue getting the concrete floor ready for a painting. I used some muratic acid to help clean and etch the concrete as its been raw(unfinished) since about '95. There was lots of stains and dirt buildup over the years and I want to be sure this epoxy paint sticks.
Ray Todd came by for a visit and stayed close to an hour. I think he is bored now that he no longer has his own place on this side of the mountain. We had a good visit. After he left I finished half of the floor as I will have to paint it in shifts because of all the stuff we have accumulated and now store in the basement. Bobby and his family along with another family are scheduled for a week visit over the 4th of July.
Well we had deer taco's for supper and I must say that is the best meat ever. There was not one speck of fat in the pan or on your plate. That was absolutely the best tasting meat I've ever eaten. That was the last of the ground deer but I still have a pack of tenderloin and can hardly wait until Fall deer hunting season. My good friend Andy knows how to kill, dress and process the meat to where its the best ever. If I had access to deer year round I would never eat beef again, its that good.
After supper we headed out to the mailbox on the golf cart then rode up to the top of the mountain and down the back way. It was such a beautiful evening with temps in the low 70's. After getting back we got to see Bobby,Jill, Annsley and Gabe on Skype. Gabe is downing 11 ounces at a time and is cutting 4 upper teeth. He has really grown and Annsley was a little shy at first but eventually warmed up to the web cam and was telling us all kinds of stories. Well not much else is going on as we are heading to Galax tomorrow for shopping, LATER
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