Modern Facilities

Although we are living close to town, we have been able to maintain a somewhat simple lifestyle at least in regards to Facilities. This is because of what is known as a Grandfather Clause.
One of the Kinfolks once joked that we were the only people he knew with a mac computer and an outhouse.

But in moving out to the woods, we will ironically lose this Grandfather status. This means plumbing, and as Murphy's Law is still in effect, plumbing problems.
One of these involved the feed line to some of the new "facilities". Now The Fuzz has actually had to deal with plumbing in a somewhat under the radar manner, but he prefers to work with that PVC stuff that one simply cuts and glues together.
But the plumbing in trailers, it seems, is of a different type. You may have noticed, if you are the observant type, that the plumbing in question, is secured by some sort of crimped things.
Now The Fuzz had never had to deal with this sort of thing, but the Son-in-law knew just how to handle this situation. So it was off to the Home Improvement Store*. There they found all the things necessary for this important repair. There was this nifty white hose-thing that simply screws onto the tank inlet. And since the cut-off valve was not quite cutting anything off, we got one of those too. And to attach all this great stuff to the existing plumbing, this special tool** and the little rings for crimping it all together.
And so we put it all together and we are pleased to report that there are no leaks (at least here) and the floor is now quite dry. It would be nice if this were the end to our plumbing adventures but now we have to tackle the kitchen sink. But with all this experience, it should be a piece of cake.



*The Home Improvement Store was only a few minutes drive from the old place, but many miles from the "Woods".

**Very expensive

Coming Up In The World

Here is our new "hill".

This is at the "Landfill". And it has been pretty well "Filled". What we are looking at used to be a rather large hole in the ground. As you can see, it is nothing like a hole now.
We thought we'd check up on the Garbage Business, and got The Fuzz to sneak his camera into the landfill. (These things used to be called dumps and were good places to find stuff and shoot rats.)
This is a view from up on top. At one time this spot was actually lower than that pond down there. The Fuzz made this picture from a truck while making a deposit. You can get some idea of the scale from the utility pole down there. Anyway, that's a lot of trash.
Some years ago, they built a Dog Pound on top of one of the older "Landfills". It didn't work out. After a while, one end of the building started to sink into the earth. Eventually, they had to tear it down and build a new one in a different place.
This is a look in another direction. You can see the trestle over there, in fact you could say "Down there". That pile of stuff in front is a bunch of well composted wood chips. They use these to dry out the mud so the trucks can get in (and get out) in wet weather. In dry weather it makes a nasty dust that clogs the truck radiators and makes them run hot. Sometimes, like today, they must be cleaned out twice a day.
The Fuzz wonders just how high this will be before it's over. Already there's a pretty good view from the top. Maybe someday it will be a tourist attraction, and a great boon to the pitiful local economy.

Roofing & Shingles 3

Did we mention they were calling for rain?

This is the sky we woke to. At this point the roof is not finished yet. But first we needed to get things moving.
In situations like that, the traditional method works pretty well. Of course there were also stacks of pancakes, sausage and that local delicacy, Livermush.
And then, it was back to the task at hand. There were a few sprinkles, but we got a break, and the rain held off 'till the shingles were all installed. As folks began to hit the road, we finished up all but some chimney flashing.
And here is a look at the final product. Another job, well done!

And so we headed for home and a well earned rest.

Roofing & Shingles 2

About midnight more help began to trickle in, and in the morning we were back on the job. The edge boards were finished and some drip guards were installed. As more and more help arrived, the old shingles were stripped. This reveled a few more rotten spots which were then replaced. Here's a look at the "Naked Roof".

And here's an "Inside Look".

This is trippy to look at, but would not be much good under some rain. Rain was in fact being predicted.

All this hard and thirsty work could build up a good appetite. Fortunately, we had been well supplied with suitable refreshment.
Fortunately, those hard workers kept their beer consumption within "Up On The Roof" limits, and the entire roof was tarpapered before dark. There was also a good start on the shingles.
Finally it was kickback time.
Everyone had brought a contribution to the feast, and our host grilled some BIG FAT burgers. After a few of those beverages, The Fuzz risked his life, and climbed back to the roof for this shot of the neighborhood.

I am happy to report that he survived this foolishness.

Roofing & Shingles

We had a Family Gathering at The Son's House this weekend.

This is the house. You may notice what appears to be a bare strip at the edge of the roof. This is , in fact, the case. This "Gathering" was not strictly for fun and games, it was our way to assemble the Labor necessary for Roof Repair. This was not the first time for this sort of thing, and is one of the advantages to a large family.
The Fuzz got off of work a bit early Friday and drove over there to help get a jump on things. As the Son had removed some of the shingles at the edge, he had discovered some rotten wood. He determined that the best course was to replace this lowest strip all the way around. So after removing this, he and The Fuzz made the first of many trips to the Home Improvement Store. There, the appropriate wood was purchased. He decided to go with that "Treated" stuff because of the dampness.
Next, they went about installing these replacement boards. This was no simple task as the boards had to be first ripped to the right width, and then trimmed to the (uneven) lengths required.
Fortunately, this Son is well equipped for this sort of thing with a Table Saw which made all this ripping a (almost) simple task. They worked at this 'till dark, and then broke off for the evening, and a Delicious Dinner.
The next part of the job would have to wait for another day, and a lot more helpers.
These are some of those heavy shingles that would have to be carried up the rickety ladder on the morrow.

Cell Phone

Another Windmill Looking Thing

This is the local vineyard & winery mentioned in the last post. The Fuzz was passing by on his way out to do some work at the trailer and made a picture, just for all the loyal readers of this blog. Below is a closer look at this Fan Looking Thing. As you can see it was a cloudy day, and we were expecting rain, which we received a short time afterwards.

And here's a look at the rainy woods, looking out from the warm and dry interior of the The Fuzz's pitiful little truck.

That Windmill Thing

While the Air Force Daughter was here, the "Girls" got together for a "Girls Gone Wine" winery tour.

The Fuzz, not being a "Girl" was left out of this adventure. But his Sweetie did bring him some pix. This is one of the vineyards visited. Note that windmill looking thing out there. There is actually a winery here on the edge of town. We pass it often on our way up the country to work on the new place. There is a similar "windmill looking" thing there. The Fuzz has often wondered why it was never turning, even in a good breeze. But now, His Sweetie has found out the TRUTH! It seems that this is not actually a windmill, as in that green energy stuff, but a giant fan to be used when Jack Frost is in town. This is supposed to maybe save the crop under marginal conditions.

And so now, thanks to The Fuzz's Sweetie, this mystery has been finally cleared up.

Reclaiming Positions

"Reclaiming positions"

What is this "reclaiming positions" thing? Apparently, in this case, it means that teachers will be losing their jobs. "Reclaiming positions" is the local school board's terminology for lay-offs. And The Fuzz wonders why he gets confused about these things. But we thought we'd mention this so if any of our loyal readers runs into this terminology, they won't be as confused as we were around here. So beware if you boss mentions "reclaiming your position".


And now, here is the latest progress on our new trailer. In order to get approved by the county, we have to have porches (or the appropriate steps) by each of the (at least two) "Points of Egress" (doors) and underpinning.
So here is a look at one of our "Points of Egress" complete with a new porch and steps! The Fuzz took great pains to level everything up as you can see to the right. Of course, we'll still need one at the other "Point of Egress" but, one thing at a time. And there is still that underpinning as well. And we haven't even mentioned the extensive inside work. The Fuzz's Sweetie has been busy tearing out carpet and cleaning and scrubbing to get ready for painting and all that. But as we say around here, "One foot up, and one foot down".

Iguana's Chicken

I thought I'd give it a shot.

This is for that Lazy Iguana.

A Morning on the Road

The Fuzz went to pick up the Air Force Daughter.
It was a fairly long drive, so to avoid traffic, he left out pretty early that morning, well before dawn.

Around Sunrise, he found himself at this lake.
He had been just driving along, intent on the destination. It was a beautiful morning with the mist over the farm ponds and all. Several times he thought how "this would be a great picture". Yet despite having a camera, he foolishly drove on, thinking there was some reason to hurry. Finally, he came to himself and thought, "What am I doing? What's the big rush here? Why shouldn't I slow down and enjoy this beautiful morning?"
Shortly after, around sunrise, he came by this lake. And this time he did have enough sense to stop the car and make a few pictures.
Here's one.

Too Big

This from Fuzzy News.

A recent unsubstantiated* rummer that Walmart will be applying to Washington for a massive "bailout".

They are hoping to help get the economy rolling again by moving into the "Payday Loan" field.

When asked about Walmart being "too big to fail", there was this response from Mr. Billy Bob J---------

"Hell yeah, it's a big place. Naw, I don't want it to close down. Ever since Mom & Pop's Hometown Variety Store closed a couple years ago, it's the only place in town.

"Too bad Ma and Pa Jones couldn't get one of them "Bailouts" themselves. They was nice folks. My cousin married their niece. Too bad about them losing their house and all."

"But around here, if you need a "Bailout", call Sammy. Like they say, "When your Butt's in the can, Sam is your man". You should of heard him on the radio before them city folks took it over."

And there you have it, Fuzzy News, we report, you decide.




*"Fuzzy News" has been unable to verify this, and it may all be BS.

So Much Alike

They all look so much alike.

And they just go on and on and on.......

The Fuzz's truck is still sick, sorta. But we do have some leads. Since we can now read the codes, they seem to be indicating a possible problem with the Oxygen Sensor. In consulting an expert, it was discovered that there is a slight chance that this may be rectified by a good cleaning of the part in question. The operative word here is may. Well whatever, The Fuzz thinks it's worth a try.

And in other news, we hope to see Air Force Daughter soon. She will be passing though on the way to new and distant places. We are looking forward to it.

A Musical Interlude

A recent Musical Interlude

A bit of a duet on Guitar and Autoharp this passed weekend.

Not much going on around here but rain, and cold, today.
But like Scarlet said, "Tomorrow is another day".

The Cat at the Door

As you can see, the cat still wants in.
This one is a girl cat. The Lazy Iguana once told me that there are such things as orange girl cats. I was not sure about this. But this one is getting "fat" now, and that can only mean one thing, yes there are orange girl cats.
Actually, I think they are referred to as "Red" cats. Well, we won't argue about these things. Suffice it to say, that soon there will be more cats.

River Walk & and the Great Wall

We thought it would be a nice break to take a walk down by the River.

So we drove over to the Greenway to enjoy a Riverwalk.
When we got there we saw some folks fishing out there under the bridge. Never did see if they caught any.
The River was pretty high. That new puppy seemed to be scared of it though. I wonder if that Young Daughter has traumatized him on one of their walks down by the creek.
Well, it was a good morning for a stroll in the woods.
We met a couple parties on horseback. I wonder that those huge horses are so skittish around our shrimpy little doggies. Must be some sort of "predator" thing.
A bit later we saw these Turtles sunning themselves out there on some rocks. The Fuzz tried to zoom in on them for a few pix.Here's 3 of them out there.
While we were out there we must have walked up an appetite and got to thinking of Chinese.
That's when we thought about the Great Wall.Pretty impressive, but too far to go for lunch.
So we settled for the local "Great Wall".

It was a tasty treat. And so, we headed home to kick back for the rest of the day. The Fuzz tried to read a little, but fell asleep of course. Trying to read after a nice meal does it every time. Later we got out guitar, auto harp and the Sweetie's recorder for a musical interlude. We finished the evening off with a Netflix DVD of Arrested Development.

In other news, The Fuzz's truck seems to be running OK right now, but we're not sure why. And there seem to be some complications out at the trailer involving some plumbing. But we did cut the pump on and got our first taste of the water. It was excellent.

Chastened Investment Bankers

The Fuzz usually reserves his politics for other places, but he wanted to voice his disgust.

From US News & World Report-

"Today, Citigroup shows that whole "chastened investment banker" meme is basically a lie. According to Bloomberg, Citi gets $45 billion in taxpayer bailout money and decides its chief executive and top lieutenants should spend $10 million on new offices."


The unemployment rate here is 14.5%

We have to fill out our *tax papers on the kitchen table since we lack a $10 million office to do it in.

These people seem to have totally lost touch with reality.


*The taxes that are paying for these "Offices"

It Is So!

Springtime

These are our "Money Plants". Unfortunately it won't be the spendable type of "Money". Here in North Carolina our new governor wants to raise the tax on beer! The fuzz recently reported on this over in the UK. But now it seems to be headed our way.

"...a $1-per-pack increase on cigarettes and a 5 percent surcharge on all alcohol purchases..."

Makes one glad not to smoke. But Beer is a necessity. This is a low blow indeed.

And here's a look at some of our new Violets. Happy Springtime!

You have to apreciate the irony

This just in.

" Three global warming researchers stranded in the North Pole by cold weather were holding out hope Wednesday as a fourth plane set off in an attempt deliver them supplies."

You have to appreciate the irony.

Misfortunes Con.

Things don't seem to be going real well in the mechanical realm in regard to The Fuzz's little truck. He spent mucho dinero on repairs. Everything seemed OK at first, but then, troubles began anew. But he finally found a way to read the code himself using this nifty home made device he found on the internet.
This is one of those vehicles where the dash instruments will not blink the code using the old "Paper Clip" trick. But this device, consisting of a LED, a resister and some scrap wire, will, when plugged in to the right places, provide the needed information. It remains to be seen if this will help matters or not.

Cats and Rain

Say it Ain't So!

Do you think we've got it bad here? Check it out.

"Plans for minimum alcohol price

"The government's top medical adviser has drawn up plans for a minimum price for alcohol which would double the cost of some drinks in England."

Couldn't we just settle this over a pint?

Fuzzy News, we report, you decide.

Still Raining

A rainy morning

It was a rainy morning here. The Weather Service got it right this time. The Fuzz took Young Daughter out to the Waffle House for breakfast. It was still raining. When they came home, the dog pissed on the floor. It was still raining. Latter The Fuzz discovered this same dog in the "Dog Box" chewing Young Daughter's gum. It was still raining. They are calling for rain tomorrow. I wonder if this means the drought is over. It is still raining.

Mystery Pix Revealed

Ok, We've had some good guesses on this *Mystery Pix", and some strange ones. But unfortunately no correct ones. No, it is not the "Virgin Mary" or even " Picasso".
The Canuck was the closest with the "handle" part.
But the Fuzz said it was time to end all this suspense and show everybody the undisguised object itself. We found this fairly common item on our recent trip out into the wide world, but it could be found in many picnicy places. So here it is, our latest Mystery Pix, revealed!
Here, we're getting ready for a rather cold, wet weekend. So, no motorcycling I think, but a good time to hole up at the house.


*Found at Kinda Fuzzy, "Un-Snow Day", 3/9/09.

Snow Pix

Not much going on so The Fuzz wanted me to share these pix of our recent Snow Day.

Here's a look over across the railroad by the house.

Here's an early morning look at the snow on the trees.
The Fuzz and his Sweetie were out for a morning walk.

Still no luck on our Mystery Pix.

Gardens and Other Stuff

The Greentent

We finally got some spring planting done. This is our famous Greentent, used to give things a bit of a boost. It also keeps some of the hungry critters away.
The weather has been nice the last few days, hot even, but that is fixin' to change they say. Well it was nice to have a taste of Spring for a bit.
There was a bit of lull on our trailer project.
1 The Fuzz's truck was acting up.
2 The weather, of course.
3 We were out of town for a bit to take that College Student back to school. This also included a visit to Dental Victim Daughter. Unfortunately, The Fuzz is familiar with that sort of thing himself. Such is life.
But the truck is hopefully back in action and we expect to get back to work out there. The Fuzz's Sweetie has already started. Today we got our first mail out there. Still no mailbox, but the Mail Lady caught her out there. I guess now we'll need a mail box.
Tonight, we plan to watch "Gone With the Wind". That should pretty much keep us occupied 'till sometime tomorrow.

And don't forget about our Mystery Pix. There's still no winner yet.

Un-Snow Day

Last week we had the Snow Day.

Today, The Fuzz rode his motorcycle to work and was walking around in cutoffs, barefoot.
Ya gotta love it.
And now we present our latest
Mystery Pix.The Fuzz says he hopes this is sufficiently confusing.
I guess we'll see.

All About Navel Lint

Revealed: The secrets of belly button fluff.

This just in-

"After three years of research, Georg Steinhauser, a chemist, has discovered a type of body hair that traps stray pieces of lint and draws them into the navel.

"Dr Steinhauser made his discovery after studying 503 pieces of fluff from his own belly button."

It seems this has to do with Furry Tummies. If your twisted enough, you can avoid this curse of navel lint by shaving the belly. Apparently Body Piercing also works-

"...with belly button rings particularly effective at sweeping away fibres before they lodge."

You can read all about it here.

Fuzzy News, we report, you decide.

Snow Day

It was a weather situation. The North Wind was blowing. Then it rained and rained. Next it switched to snow. Then it got even colder.

This is the morning after. The Fuzz and his Sweetie took a stroll out there to enjoy the fluffy white sights. We don't see much of this around here. Of course there was no school, and no work.

You can see how the wind plastered the snow on this post. You may also notice the power lines back there. They weren't doing us much good at that point though. The power went out around 5 AM. The Fuzz called his Boss Man and was told not to bother coming in. He was satisfied to hear this and stayed in bed a bit longer.

After a walk in all this frosty beauty, it was time to think about some breakfast.
With our more modern kitchen equipment out of action, it was time to resort to the Old Wood Stove. Some folks claim food cooked on a wood stove tastes better. I don't know if this can actually be proven, but I will testify that breakfast was delicious. Later in the morning, the power came back up.

For some reason our internet was still down though, which is why we had to wait 'till now for this Exciting Post.

And regarding our latest Mystery Pix- Congratulations to "woodie" who seems to have hit it dead on. It is in fact a watering can. Many thanks to all who participated in our latest Mystery Pix.

Latest Mystery Pix & Misfortunes

It's finally here, our latest Spaced-out Mystery Pix.

So, all you spaced-out Mystery Pix fans, have at it.
And always remember, no cheating!

And now for the bad news.
First, let's go back, way back, to the inception of this amazing blog, all the way back to August, 2006. Back then, The Fuzz was struggling in a mechanical morass involving a malfunctioning mazda. After literally months of frustration, he thew in the grease rag, and towed the thing to the shop. And there, the repairs were made (at considerable expense).
But now, this very vehicle, is once more beginning to act in the same suspicious manner. There were the unexplained skips and misses, the same lack of power and the same sinking feeling.
A couple days ago, The Fuzz stopped at the auto parts store for a quart of 30 weight motor oil. In the next parking space, was a man pouring oil into a similar truck with a similar motor. This naturally led to a conversation regarding these delightful vehicles. When The Fuzz broached the subject, it was discovered the same repairs had been made as on this sister ship of ours. It would seem that this is a common failing of this particular arrangement of mechanical components. This other fellow had gone through the same frustrating process and arrived at the same conclusion, computer failure. The Fuzz's mechanical training is from the era of breaker points and carburetors. If this is, in fact, the situation, it is beyond our skills.
The Fuzz is not optimistic about this state of affairs. This is not a good time to have to deal with equipment failure on this scale. The weather is cold and our wood supply at the house is limited. It's not very pleasant riding a motorcycle to work this time of year, in fact, there is a call for snow tonight!
And so, that is how things stand here. We'll see how things go, or don't go as the case may be. Maybe we can get lucky yet.
But for now, enjoy our new Mystery Pix!