First, some updated photos on the roofing project
Tony, working hard on the roof. He was up and down that ladder so many times. I can go up and down the ladder all day long, but can't really carry anything or do much once I'm up there. He's the man!
There will be a porch extending from the front that we haven't constructed yet, so that's why the rafters are exposed here. We'll be working on on that in conjunction with putting the metal roofing on
Yesterday, we were working and waiting on a truck to deliver some septic rock for the leech field. We heard and large truck coming up the road, and as we can't see the road from our house, Tony walked down the drive to make sure that was them. I heard the truck and heard a lot of talking so I walked out to see why the truck with rock hadn't come up the drive. It wasn't the rock delivery - it was the guys from GVEA (Golden Valley Electric Authority), AKA the local utility, to install our transformer. Sweet! Here are some pics from that operation:
You really have to wonder if these guys are really brave, or really crazy! I've always wondered that about electrical linemen.
Trucks like this amaze me. These guys drove 2 hours from Fairbanks to install this transformer, so it stands to reason they carry just about everything on these trucks.
Our septic rock did arrive an hour or so after the electrical guys left. Here is a pick of him dumping the load, and of our little rock pile. The guy had to make two trips, the first being heavier than the second. On the first trip, he promptly got stuck in the soft sand in our drive and Tony had to go down to the neighbor's house and ask him if he could bring his D40 that he carved our driveway out with to come pull out the guy. They managed to get him un-stuck and he came back with the second load and made it out okay.
Now, for the lighter side of things. Living out here like this has its ups and downs. The last few days have been very "up" for me. We went into Fairbanks on Saturday to order materials and get food and supplies. While all the transformer and septic rock business was going on, I decided to walk our property again. One of the first thing I saw were these little tracks. They have to be from a shrew, which is like a mouse. I put my hand next to them to give them some scale.
I knew we had low bush cranberries and rosehips on the property, but I was very pleasantly surprised when I found blueberries as well! I couldn't be happier. Wild blueberries are a hot commodity here in the Last Frontier, and I promptly spent the afternoon picking a bunch of them. Now I have the perfect excuse to get that new canner set-up I've been wanting! Here are some of the berries we have:
These little guys are bright orange and very small, about the size of a large pea. I've been told their poisonous though. Anyone know what they are?
These are the lowbush cranberries I mentioned. I hear they make a really nice jelly or jam.
These are rosehips. Most people use them in tea. They're supposed to be high in vitamin C and good for you. I actually found a recipe for rosehip pie I'm looking forward to trying as well.
Me with a just a few of the blueberries I picked. You can see more in a ziplock baggie over my shoulder, and I had put even more away. I am sooooo happy!
God bless whoever invented Bisquik. I love the stuff and you can certainly do a lot with it. I made blueberry muffins in our grill.
One of Tony's favorite jobs (not really LOL) is to get water. Our well was dug pretty early in the project, but we don't have a kitchen sink or faucets yet - just a big hose sticking out of the ground. Every day, Tony takes a couple of large water jugs to the hose and fills them up and we keep them close to the campsite and use that water for everything from cooking to cleaning to bathing.
The longer we are in our present surroundings, the more "bold" I get as far as cooking is concerned. Tony, I believe, has been delighted by this! Here is a sample meal, prepared on our propane grill with cooktop:
Cheese ravioli cooking in the pot
Tomato Basil sauce with mushrooms, beef, and garlic
A happy Italian!
Our grill has a gauge on it that is fairly accurate.
I fire it up and get it good and hot
And presto - cinnamon rolls! - with a little help from the Pillsbury dough boy, of course. I've even made pizza!
I have loved having time to read and do some of the other things I didn't have time to do before. It was a challenge, though, because the inside of the shed is kind of dark and it's hard to hold a flashlight while you're cross-stitching - it just doesn't work! I finally got the idea to get a headlamp while I was at the sporting goods store. Tony laughs but hey, it works!
On Saturday, we went into Fairbanks to the Golden Days Festival. I marched in the parade in support of Joe Miller's campaign. Here are a couple of pics from that:
Supporters lining up on a rainy morning. I purchased a plastic slicker but the sun came out just after we starting marching. It got really hot really quick!
Joe's H1 Hummer - sweet!
Joe was being interviewed by a lot of national press. I know the Washington Post was there. I always get a kick out of taking pictures of the press - I don't know why!
They strykers were there from Ft. Wainwright. Here are some pics of their vehicle and some of our fine men in uniform. If you see a military servicemember, thank them!
Joe's wife Kathleen and I just before the parade started. I really admire Kathleen - they have 8 beautiful kids and a wonderful family
Joe and I just before the parade
I saw these guys walking up the road after the parade and just HAD to get my pic with them - those of you who know me know what a sci-fi geek I am!
Finally, on Sunday we went to the 50th anniversary for Delta Junction. There were about 1000 people there and it was a great day.
The food line was long, but everyone was patient
Burgers and dogs!
There were a lot of people there, and the weather was awesome!
Well, until next time folks!
