Our NEW Sun Room

Windows during construction

We finally started on the “Sun Room”. We had 6-3 foot by 5 foot windows installed and french doors installed on a new wall that divides the sun room from the screen porch. We plan to install beadboard on the interior walls and I am in the process of re-installing the lap siding on the outside walls.

Granny Grumps is working hard cleaning and moving “junk”, I mean nick knacks, while I am working to install wiring, repair the tongue and groove ceiling and replace the lap siding on the outside.

Although we plan to put a split-system air conditioner in, we are supprised how cool it stays by just leaving the den door open.

We are doing most of the finish work ourselves so it may be several months before we complete the work, but that hasn’t stopped us from moving in.

More pictures to follow.

It Just Ain’t My Day

Well, this morning around 7:00 I decided to go fishing.  Thought I would put in at the free launch and just fish Bayou Cannok for a while.  No big or long trip, but it turned into a nightmare!

When I launched the boat, it drifted out to the end of the bowline at which time the bowline decided to break.  The boat was drifting away,but there were 2 fellow fishermen preparing to trailer their boat and they pulled/pushed my boat back in to shore for me.  Of course when trying to reach the boat, I slipped on the muddy bank and fell on my butt, skinning my shin in the process of wetting and muddying my clothes.  After retying the bowline I finally boarded the boat and pushed away from shore.

After cranking the motor I was backing away from shore when I kit something submerged, it must have been a chunk of concrete because unbeknownst to me, it bent the prop pretty badly.   Then I began to notice the water slowly filling up the boat!  I had forgot to put in the plug!!!

No problem I figured, just plane out the boat, let it drain, then put the plug in.   Nope, the evil sprites had other ideas.   With the badly bent prop the boat wouldn’t plane so I had to quickly ——- very quickly turn around and beach the boat before it sank.

Putting the boat onto the trailer wasn’t a problem, it glided on the trailer just as it is supposed to, but of course I couldn’t let that happen so I slipped again and got soaked while skinning my elbow.  After I waited about 20 minutes for all the water to drain from the boat, I got back in the truck.

Bloody, muddy, skinned up, mad at myself, and fishless, but alive!!

Nope, just wasn’t my day to go fishing!

Only Memories Left

After twenty-three nights, sixteen states, forty-two hundred and ninty-seven miles, one flat tire, hundreds of pictures and millions of memories, WE ARE HOME!

Pictures and stories to follow

More of our Trip

Saturday 9/20 – A nerve racking 405 mile trip up and down 6% to 10% inclines and hairpin curves, we finally make it to Denver!  Evelyn wrinkled the leather in her seat and it took me 30 minutes to get blood back in my fingers after the butt squeezing and white knuckling mountain drive.  Although it was a hard drive the scenery was wonderful, and I am glad we decided to go through the Black Hills National Forest.

After the worst of the mountains, we filled up in New Castle, WY and headed south on Highway 18/85, then we saw the sign “No Services For 61 Miles”.  After going 18 miles we passed an older couple walking north, they had a flat and planned to walk for help!  Walter was a history professor and had NEVER changed a tire so as Evelyn and his wife chatted, I put his spare on and after about 30 minutes we were on our way again.   I don’t think I have ever impressed anyone with a $19.99 tool before, but he was impressed with my 12volt-impact wrench from Harbor Freight.  He said he had hit a little bump and soon after the tire went flat, but when I pulled it off the rim had 2 dents in it.  Whatever he hit, he hit hard!

(This is Evelyn.  I am still feeling road movement and can’t think of anything else to say.)

The rest of the trip was uneventful.

We arriver in Denver late Saturday and spent a lovely 3 days.  Ken and Lisa are doing well, as are the “blond kids” .  We took them out to supper Sunday night and had great steaks at Ken’s house Monday night.  Lisa has decorated the house so good, and I must admit Ken’s woodworking skills surpass mine.

Today (Tuesday 9/23)  we drive ti Russell, Ks as we begin the long trip home.  Should arrive in Saraland Saturday afternoon.

Just a little of the trip

Friday 9/5/08 – Day 1 – Although we left home at 8, we had to turn around 20 miles later and return home to get the laptop.  So I guess we really left at 9am.  Nice trip to Lake Eufaula, we arrived about 3:15.  Ate supper with Sonny and Suelane, then returned to camp about 8 and in bed by 9.  We slept good except for the honkt tonk band that played until 2am, and the fact that  I left the remote control for the tv at home.  Day one totals – 289 miles, 6 hours driving, bought 17 gallons of gas.  Lazy day scheduled for Saturday.

Day 2&3 – Up at 6 and 2 cups of coffee as II sat on the edge of Lake Eufaula and watched the sunrise.  Evelyn slept for a while then we had a good breakfast and more coffee.  I don’t knnow if we brought them with us or if we picked them up from the campground, but we were almost taken over by little “sugar” ants.  We went “Walmartin” and picked up some ant spray and A UNIVERSAL REMOTE CONTROL”.  At last I can change channels on the satellite box.  We ate steaks with Sonny, Suelane, and Julia Ann then came home for a nap.  Rain and wind around 4pm, a supper of casadias, a little TV, and in bed around 9:30.  Overall a very  nice, relaxed day.

Day 4&5 – A short drive to Roanoke Alabama to visit Lynn for 2 days.  When we arrived, she had “Mr Damn, Mrs Damn, and the whole Damn family” over for a dove shoot and fish fry.  A little repair to the propane gas tank and lots of time to visit with my sister.

Day 5&6 –  A drive to Lynchburg Tennessee to visit with Bill and Nancy Jackson, we haven’t seen them in 20 years and they are such good friends.   We toured the Jack Daniels Whisky distillery and  had steaks with Bill and Nancy.  A Great stop.

Day 7 – A day of driving and a nice stay at a roadside RV park in Littleton, Illinois

Day 8 – A LONG day of driving and a night at a lakeside camp, nothing special except lots of good scenery.

Day 8, 9, 10,&11 –  Plover Wisconsin!  Robert found us a great camping site on the Wisconsin River and only 3-1/2 miles from his house.  He had a good “Launching” of Tapestry and we have enjoyed being a part of it.  I have been fishing with Robert 3 times, caught a few fish, missed a lot of fish and seen some of a beautiful river.  We have eaten lets of good food from a great taco salad that Pam fixed to a great lunch at Christian’s Bistro.

Day 12 – 400 miles to Worthington, MN and a great campground!

Pictures and more to follow

What Now?

With Gustav, Hanna, and 2 low-pressure areas following, we don’t know when to leave Mobile.  As it stands now we plan to hunker down for Gustav and run from Hanna.  If worst comes to worst we can leave Mobile as late as Monday, September 8 and still be in Wisconsin for the Tapestry planting.  Cross your fingers for us.

A Camping We Will Go!

The September Trip

Well, next month’s bills are paid, our travel plans and reservations are made, the trailer (still got to name it) is ready, a through PM has been preformed on the truck and we are almost ready to go.  All that is left is for us to pack our clothes.

We plan to visit Lynn, Bill and Nancy Jackson, Robert and family, Mount Rushmore, Ken and family, and lots of points of interest along the way.  Since the truck only gets about 11 MPG when pilling the trailer, We also figure we will spend most of the kid’s inheritance along the way.  We will stick to US highways and state roads most of the way, just getting on interstates when we have to.  Hope to see more of the country that way.

Granny Grumps and I have been married a long time, but we figure that if we can stand a month in the trailer together, we will make it forever.

A Post for Sara

A SPANISH Teacher was explaining to her class that in Spanish, unlike English, nouns are designated as either masculine or feminine.

‘House’ for instance, is feminine: ‘la casa.’
‘Pencil,’ however, is masculine: ‘el lapiz.’

A student asked, ‘What gender is ‘computer’?’

Instead of giving the answer, the teacher split the class into two
groups, male and female, and asked them to decide for themselves whether computer’ should be a masculine or a feminine noun. Each group was asked to give four reasons for its recommendation.

The men’s group decided that ‘computer’ should definitely be of the feminine gender (‘la computadora’), because:

1. No one but their creator understands their internal logic;

2. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else;

3. Even the smallest mistakes are stored in long term memory for possible later retrieval; and

4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself
spending half your paycheck on accessories for it.

(THIS GETS BETTER!)

The women’s group, however, concluded that computers should be Masculine (‘el computador’), because:

1. In order to do anything with them, you have to turn them on;

2. They have a lot of data but still can’t think for themselves;

3. They are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time they ARE the problem; and

4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that if you had waited a little longer, you could have gotten a better model.

The women won.

Ding Dong the Deck is Done!

The last deck board has been screwed in place. After $300.00 in lumber, 10 pounds of screws, lots of help, and lots of work we are finished with the floor.

Granny Grumps did everything except screw the boards down. She picked up scrap lumber, held boards for me to cut, helped me lay out and hold the boards for screwing down, kept me in coffee and cokes, and in general kept me working. Ken and the kids helped rebuild the fondation and John kaser helped me build some supports. All that is left is for us to build and install the built-in seats along the long side.

Can’t Sleep

Well it is 12:00 pm and I have just gotten back up for the 2nd time.  I am trying chocolate milk as a sleeping aid.  Looks like it could be a long night.  Floyd is sleeping fitfully.  He has RLS (Evelyn’s diagnosis) and until the leg stops jerking, I am up.  🙂  Can’t blame it all on him though.  I have been trying to figure out the facebook stuff and it has the old brain excited.  According to some research I read this could be good for old people.  Helps prevent dementia (can’t spell that alz word).  I quess it is a mental excercise thing.