Mentors

One of my life mentors passed away last Sunday.  Hard to believe Dr H is no longer physically here on earth.  He always comes to mind when I have a difficult case that I am ruminating over.  Some little piece of advice or comment from one of our after hours surgery conversions will come to mind and help me solve the problem.

This week he has been constantly on my mind.  I only knew him for about 35 years of his 85 years of life, but I was amazed to realize all the people and animals he touched in those years.  He was a brilliant asteroid that crashed into this pond called life.  I consider myself very lucky to have been hit by one the ripples he created.  I can't imagine what my life would have been without him.  I am grateful to his family for sharing him with all of us.  I know it was not easy for them.  The time he gave to others took a great deal of time away from them.

I know these last few years were hard on you, but I hope you were able to connect with the family that you missed out on in your younger years.  Sir, I will miss you greatly, but I rejoice in the fact that I knew you and that you are free to return to your brilliants.

I Bet Every Generation Thinks This

"May you live in interesting times."

Yep, I think we got that covered.

Safe For Another Day

Every morning I read the obituaries from a select number of sources.  You might think that is a bit strange for morning reading, but as the old joke says, "just checking to see if I am in them."  Actually I do it for geneology research.  This one in the Greensboro News and Record Newspaper for Artola "Artie" Marie Johnson Meyland really grabbed my attention.  Pretty much sums up life:

GREENSBORO Once strong hands now rickety with age Once keen eyes now wild with uncertainty and dismay A body once lithe, now pale and frail Such is life for the aged nearing the transition Like a wave rolling onshore reaches its high water mark And then slowly draining down the beach to rejoin the vast waters Flotsam of time. Artie was a native of Idaho when few people could make that claim. She was born in Payette County on January 20, 1921, and raised in the small farming town of Fruitland, a stone's throw west of Boise. She made her way to North Carolina after meeting and marrying a young B-29 navigator, A. L. "Gus" Meyland, during World War II. After a stint in post-war Chapel Hill, she and Gus came to Greensboro with a baby (daughter Sarah J. Meyland, J.D.) in tow and another (A. Leger Meyland III) on the way. She settled into family life in Greensboro and added a third child (Roger M. Meyland) to the pack while living next to other postwar couples in Kirkwood. She is survived by her children. For 71 years, Artie called Greensboro home, a happy place to live, raise a family and make friends. She played bridge in the bridge club, raised flowers in the garden club, cheered on the UNC Tar Heels and went to the beach. She switched her kids when they needed switching and hugged them when they needed hugging. She was a mother and a wife. She loved spending summers in the family's cottage on the shores of the Pamlico River and it pained her greatly when she could no longer make the trip down East. A member of the Mayflower Society, she outlived her husband and her many great friends, but never forgot them. She died on May 13, 2017. The family would like to thank the staff at Cone Hospital, Abbotswood and Beacon Place for the care they gave Artie. She was interred in Green Hill Cemetery at a private, family graveside service. Online condolences may be offered at www.forbisanddick.com. Forbis & Dick North Elm Street Chapel is assisting the family.

Besides her poor taste in college basketball teams, I think she is someone I would enjoyed talking to.  Rest in Peace Artie.

Here Comes Summer.......

House Site 6/6/2015

....and the house is completely under roof.  So much for taking showers in the house when it rains. ;-)
The guys finished all the sheeting and have most of it covered in roofing felt.  They still have some to do on the back.  As you can see they still have a little of the walls up by the eaves on the right wing to close in.  They also have the whole right far in end to close in but we are getting there.

While out walking with the dogs, we came across a very large old box turtle.  The 'child unit' calls them "Steve."  I don't know why, but all turtles get the name of "Steve."  I am pretty sure this one is a girl, so we will call her "Stevie."  I left her with a piece of my clementine.  When we came back a little later, she and clementine were gone.  She may have eaten it, or it may have been snatched up by one orioles that is in the area.

Stevie The Box Turtle

Hopefully next week they will get the house completely buttoned up and the roofers might show up.

Happy Memorial Day

Construction on the house is moving along faster now.  The left wing of the house is completely roughed in.  The decking and felt is completely covering the roof. The side walls are up to the eaves.

Left Wing Ceiling

Southeast End of House

  The concrete was poured for the garage and David and his guys were able to get it completely framed.

Framed in Garage

The significant other and myself finished taping all the seams on the outside of the house and got the baffles put up in the loft room. 

Baffles in Loft Room

Thing One and Two worked at testing suitability of the floor for sleeping.  One felt it was fine and the other felt it needed more padding.

Lazy Thing One & Two

House Site 5/29/2016

The plan for this week is to get the roof on the right wing of the house.  I leave you with some cute pictures of Tree Swallow babies.  By the time you see this, these guys are probably flying around the property with their parents

Five Baby Tree Swallows

Go hug a veteran.  They are the closes we can get to those that paid the ultimate price for the freedoms that we enjoy.

Next Comes.....

.......the roof.  The guys were able to put the decking on the trusses and got the tar paper put on the front section of the roof.  The back part of the roof still needs some decking and to be papered, which was readily apparent during a downpour this weekend.  They finished the front wall up the trusses on the front.

House Site 5/22/2016

The significant other got the mesh over the J Channels covered with concrete.  We also, made decisions on shingles, stone, and vinyl for covering the outside.  So we can get those things to the house site before the bridge closes.

Staged Materials for Bridge Replacement

 The power company came and put the lines up, so now the guys have electricity instead of having to use a generator.  Makes things a lot quieter at the house site.  Even the turkeys have returned with the quiet.

Turkey Under the Power lines

We have new Tree Swallow families starting life in our nest boxes. 

Tree Swallow Babies in Jeter Box

Tree Swallow Babies in Machine Barn Box

Hope you have a great week and the only vultures you have to deal with are those up in old dead trees.

Sunning Black Vultures in Northwest Scag

Drumroll Please..............

..........we have TRUSSES.  That is right!  We have most of the great room covered and felted, and now we have the left wing of the house trussed.  We also have power poles up to the house.  No wires but the poles are in place and the water line repaired.  Apparently, the power company does check before they dig. ;-)

Trusses Over Left Wing of House

Really feels like great progress was made this week.  Which kind of helps out with the news we got this week.  Remember the little, single lane bridge that we had to work around to get stuff to job site-turns out DOT will be replacing it this summer.  Luckily, we have about thirty days notice before it closes. So we can get things to the job site before the easy way is closed.  Of course once it is closed a trip from town that used to take ten minutes will take at least 45 minutes.  You got to love rural America.

In other property news, we had a death.  The mother Eastern Bluebird from the machine barn nest was killed.  The dad has been doing a great job caring for his brood.  I offered them food to try and help him out, but they are about ready to fledge and have reached that stage where they will have nothing to do with humans.
Also, predator guards don't do anything to protect nest-boxes from bears.  The Eastern Bluebirds in one of the other nest-boxes fledged.  I cleaned the box out several days ago and someone was already starting to rebuild.  When I went to do my rounds today, I found the pole with the box on it bent flat to the ground.  No bird eggs or babies for the bear but it looked like he got a lot of ant larvae from a pile of deteriorating logs that he torn into that was nearby.

House Site 5/15/2016

Toad at Old Cattle Waterier

Lather, Rinse, Repeat.

We seem to be stuck in a weather pattern that includes rain at the wrong time.  The guys were able to get some of the SIPs and the framing in to support them.  But not a lot of progress.

House Site 5/8/2016

We do have a new family starting on the property.  The Tree Swallows are starting to nest.  These two little eggs are in the nest box on the machine barn. I have also seen a Phoebe and some Barn Swallows flying around.  I will be interested to see who takes over the other nests in the barn.

Tree Swallow Eggs in Barn Nest Box

As of today, we have a Morning Dove Family, Bluebird Family and a Tree Swallow family in the barn.

The Weather....

...it hasn't does us a lot of favors.  We have had a lot of wind and rain.  I am trying not to complain because we need it but it is slowing down progress at the house site.  Mother Nature, I will make you a deal-you can rain all you want at night if you will be dry and not raining during the day.  I doubt she will take the deal. 

House Site 4/30/2016

The guys spent what time they could work erecting a pretty elaborate scaffolding system so they can start putting up the SIPs when the weather is good.They were able to start putting in some of the SIPs over the great room. SIPs are the things setting in front of the house.  They are a sandwich of 8.5 inches of Styrofoam between two sheets of plywood.

On a happier note, we have babies.  The Eastern Bluebird babies in the machine barn have hatched.  Mom and dad are working hard to keep them fed.  One fell asleep with a bug in his mouth.

Baby Eastern Bluebirds

Someone has a new house.....

....and it isn't us.  They were able to get four major beams placed in the great room and the side walls up this week.  Now that those are up, hopefully we will be able to move forward faster.

House Site 4/23/2016

Now the new homeowners are Eastern Bluebirds.  I had been making bird boxes for the Bluebirds and the Tree Swallows.  I was treating the outside with Tung oil in the machine barn before I put them up.  I left one drying a little longer than usual because I had ran out of mounting posts.  When I went to move it, I found someone had already made it a home.

Nest Box in Machine Barn

Bluebird Eggs

We already have a hatched clutch of five Bluebird babies in one of the nest boxes at the back of the property.  Glad I could provide a new family a home.  There is also a Morning Dove that has decided to nest in the machine barn.  When the Barn Swallows show up, the machine barn is going to be a crowded place.

Look wildflowers

It was another slow week at the house site.  It was windy and it rained.  We could use more rain but the wind is welcome to go somewhere else.

They finished putting the sheeting on the roof over the loft room.  That allowed them to put the ice guard and roofing paper on that part of the roof.  They used a lot of yellow head nails to put the paper down.  They are suppose to help keep the paper from blowing off.  This should be a good test case.  One of the major beams in the great room was placed, and they got the garage floor ready for a concrete pour.

House Site 4/16/2016

The weather was nice, so I went in search of wildflowers.  The cold of the previous weekend took out most of the blooms but there were still a few in bloom and pretty leaves.  Enjoy

Trout Lily Leaves

May-apple Popping Up

Blood Root Leave

Wild Violets

Rue Anemone

Hope the weekend weather carries into next week.

I thought it was Spring

Somethings got done on the house site, but not as much as I would like.  I would like the house done yesterday, but I realize that isn't possible.;-).  This week's lack of great advances was due to weather and supply chain issues.

We had snow this weekend, but before that was the wind that comes prior to the fronts.  David and his guys were going to work on roof over the great room this week, but the wind made it unsafe for them.  Completely understand, so I am glad they didn't risk injury.  Plus, the SIPs for the roof didn't show up until Friday.

So, they spent a day or so doing the little things that would allow them to be ready for bigger things.  They filled the wall cracks with foam and then tapped the joints.  David was joking with us that once this house is built we might have to go outside to breath.;-)  Well, at least we won't have to worry about the wind.

Foamed Panel Joint

Taped Panel Joints

Poured the concrete footers for the garage and installed the metal support posts.

Garage Footers and Steal Support Posts

House Site 4/10/2016

Thing Two is hoping for warmer, less windy weather next week.

Thing Two and His Pink Blankie

We have trusses

The guys finished roughing in the walls of the loft room and getting the support beams in place.

Framed in Loft Room

Then they were able to put up some of the upper trusses.  Not the whole truss system, but the ones over the loft room area.  The upper center trusses will extend out over the great room to the front wall.  There are a some problems with the design of the front wall and David and his guys are trying to work it out.

Part of Top Truss System in Place

They completed the back wall of the loft room.  They also started working on the top seal plate around the rest of the house.

Back of House

It was a very productive week.  It is coming together slowly but surely.

House Site 4/2/2016

Big Doings

House Site 3/27/2016

We have a loft room.  That means we are another step closer to getting a roof.

This week started by putting in some beams and the sub-flooring for the loft room.

Great Room Beams in place

Loft Room Sub-Flooring in Place

 The plywood decking was placed and by Thursday another boom truck was on the job site to place the walls for the loft

Boom Truck Moving Panel into Place

It is a heck of a view from the loft but unfortunately it will be covered up by roof.  However, before that happens, someone enjoys hanging out up there.

View From Loft

View Vulture Setting in Loft

The hopefully soon to be resident jack-legs (me and the significant other) got the last of the back wall rubberized.  Also, finished the drain system and covered it with gravel.  We like to have some skin in the game, plus we are cheap in some ways. ;-)

Here is to hoping that the roof trusses start going in next week.

A little disapointing

Well it doesn't look like there was a lot of progress on the house.  This week was dedicated to doing the detail work to get ready to do more big stuff. 

The dirt got pulled away from the back of the house, so they could put in the drain pipes and gravel.   Still have more work to do on that.  Part of the back wall was painted with rubber sealant to decrease risk of water infiltration. The footers for the garage were dug. Joints were taped, until they ran out of tape.  Not a usual thing, so tape has to be ordered.  The top of the concrete panels had some chips missing, so they had to do some concrete work on them.  The top plate and gasket for the loft got put in place.  Visually, it doesn't look like a lot was done but things did move forward.

Back of House

The power company also showed up and put a pole at the gate to raise the lines up to standard.  Hopefully, the next time we have gravel put on the road the raised truck bed will not take out the power to the neighbors.  Really sorry about that guys.  Still none up to the house but hope that will happen soon if the weather stays dry.

New Pole at Gate

I backed up 30 feet this week and got a better picture.

House Site 3/20/2016

Thing One and Two think this is going to be an OK place.