Monday, June 22, 2009
I have my Massage License now
Woo hoo, I passed my Practical exam and submitted my application to the Massage board for my License. And I got my license. Now I am just looking for a place to hang my shingle. My dream had been to turn our land into a day-retreat. Get a hot tub, sauna, build some trails in the woods, create meditative places around the property and let people come up for the day, get a massage, hang out and relax. The county wants a bit over a $1000 for a conditonal use permit for a home occupation. And then there is the issue of getting people to drive all the way out here. We are 9 miles from the nearest town and over an hour from Portland. The last mile of road is gravel. I would have to offer some special attraction to get people to drive out here. For now I suppose that I should focus on building clientele wherever I can sink some roots down. The important thing is that I have completed the requirements to be able to pursue a career that I enjoy. Now to get in and do it.
Massage License Exams
As I believe I have mentioned here before, I graduated from massage school in December ('08). I have put off taking the Massage License exams long enough. I don't know why I procrastinated so long. Well, I do know why but I suppose I don't want to admit it. I believe that I have also mentioned here before that I miss terribly an old friend that I hiked with for many years. Next to my wife she was my best friend. We could talk about anything. Besides enjoying the beauty of the great outdoors and the feeling of wellbeing from the exercise, we were often engaged in long discussions about many things. She was a good listener and often helped me process my stuff, helped me get my thoughts straight before talking to my wife on various sensitive issues. My friend moved away a few years ago. I have been seeking such a friendship again but I am discovering that what I had seems to have been a once in a lifetime friendship. Other than hiking I don't have lot of interests that would involve meeting other people and I don't care for hiking with groups. I can foresee that in the future most of my contact with the public will be with clients. As an LMT it would be inappropriate for me to make friends with clients and that is probably the fear that I have let hold me back - that I might be tempted to allow myself to be friends with a client. Well, I took my written test the other day. I did not feel I was ready for it. Most of the classes I took were taken over a year ago. Kinesiology, Anatomy & Physiology especially were concerns. Pathology was a more recent class but still it was difficult for me to pull the info up while I was studying. Anyway my exam was scheduled for Friday the 13th (of this month) in Salem. Passing score was 630 and I got 810. I suppose that the top score was probably 1000 but could not find any place that indicated that. Those that know me know that I am not excitable and I am sure that from the outside I probably did not look excited but on the inside I was feeling pretty dang good about my exam results. I have found over the years that when ever I feel happy and excited about something there is most often another something that comes along and knocks me for a loop, something unexpected out of left field that catches me off guard. Perhaps that is why I don't allow myself to express my happiness but keep it bottled inside - some form of protection for myself. When I got my exam results I wanted to jump for joy and shout a big 'Whoo Hoo' but I just did a little jump inside my heart, thanked the examiner and left the testing center. I took my CPR class last night. I have to have that certificate to apply to take the Practical exam. Now I need to find others to practice and study with for the practical. I have been unemployed since last fall when the company I worked for shut down due to economic conditions. As I keep searching for work and I keep running into road blocks and 'sorry, we are not taking applications' I am realizing more and more that I seem to be being directed towards my massage practice. Once I get the license I can breath a big sigh of relief and can start focusing on building my clientele - if there will be anyone left out there that can afford a massage. I am sure that if I am meant to build a successful massage practice that it will happen - not without hard work I am sure. And I am sure that if I am meant to find a friendship like I had before that she will come along at the right time and place. I just have to continue convincing myself of that and keep on keeping on.
Entry for January 05, 2009
We survived the snow/ice storm of December. We were out of power, water, phone and cell phone for what seemed like forever. The batteries for the fireplace fans lasted for a few days then we had to rely on the wood stove for heat and to melt snow for bathing. We brought snow in and melted it in the tub for water to flush toilets. After the worst of the storm we cut the fallen trees from the driveway, chained up the 4x4 to force our way out to the road. You can see the photos at: http://hiker1956.multiply.com/photos/album/69/SnowIce_Storm_Dec_08
Entry for December 19, 2008
Massage school is over. I have graduated. Now all I have to do is to study for the state exams for my massage license. But I need to find a job in the mean time. It would be great if I could get my massage license and make a living with massage right away. I realize that it will take time to build up enough clientele to survive on right away. It seems the deck of cards is still flying through the air. I like things to be settled but I will try to be patient. Have a great holiday season everyone!!
Another Era at an end. November 21, 2008
So in my previous post I wrote that I had lost my job of 16 years at the RV dealership due to the economy. I got an email from a former co-worker that was also laid off that the company closed its doors for the last time last Friday at 3pm – November 14, 2008. The dealership had been in business for 23 years, had grown from a small shop and sales lot in town to a large 10 acre facility on the edge of town with 23 bays between two shop buildings. I had the privilege to have been there through many of the major growth spurts the company went through. We had sold a variety of Fleetwood and Monaco motor homes from low-end economy models to upper end 40-foot diesel coaches. We also sold Fleetwood and Northwood travel trailers, fifth wheels and sport utility trailers. We did the warranty repairs on what we sold and we did warranty work for anyone that came on our lot – that we were approved to work on. I really enjoyed my job even if it was very stressful at times. I felt I was the ‘go to’ guy. I got all the calls from customers that had technical problems. I was the one the techs came to if they had problems they could not solve or if they needed technical information and I would try to find the answers through data bases or talking with the manufacturers. I was the one the service writers contacted to get warranty authorizations on warranty repairs. I enjoyed problem solving and coming up with unique solutions to problems. Sure the paperwork sucked but it was part of the job. If it weren’t for feeling constantly behind on paperwork it would have been the perfect job. I started with the dealership in 1992 as a PDI (Pre-Delivery Inspection) tech. I was the one that went through a newly sold coach to make sure everything worked correctly before the new owner took delivery. I worked my way into a full tech position making repairs to all parts of a coach other than the chassis work. We had a separate chassis department for that. After I gained my technical skills I went mobile, I worked out of a mobile truck and made repairs on the road for customers that did not want to come in or that could not come in to the shop for repairs. I traveled as far northeast as an RV park at the base of Mt Hood, southeast to a few parks down by Eugene. West, over on the coast, I worked as far south as Waldport and as far north as Astoria and even across the Columbia river once into Long Beach Washington – and of course all points between. I enjoyed being on the road as a representative for the dealership. Often times the customers were upset for one reason or another – something was not working and they were inconvenienced and I was there to help them and make it right. Everyone was always happy with the dealership when I left. I had a lot of satisfaction with my job and helping people. I am confident that my presence in these parks also boosted the sales at our sales lot. The big company logo across the side of the truck generated interest in our company and I handed out a lot of business cards. Often I would roll into a park to make a non-warranty repair on someone’s coach, not seeing any of our RV products in the park and within a few weeks I would be going back to that park to do warranty work on coaches that we had sold. I firmly believe that the rolling billboard on the sides of the truck generated a lot of business and was one of the key reasons for the dealership’s growth. That and the Mission statement of the company of ‘Honesty, Integrity and Respect’ which I feel the company really tried to live up to. After several years driving the truck and representing the dealership out on the road I moved into the Warranty / Technical Advisor position which I did for 6 years. This is the position I held when I was laid off. I worked with the factories and appliance vendors to find solutions for problems, acquired authorization for repairs to be made and maintained a data base of warranty photos and product repair manuals for reference material. This is also where I dealt with customers, helped them solve problems and was the consumer advocate between the customer and factories. I really miss dealing with all my contacts in the industry and I miss using my knowledge of the products.
I drive by the dealership on my way to school. It is really sad to see the gate closed, see the for sale sign out front by the highway, see the customer coaches clearing off the lot more each day. I wonder how the management and owner are taking this. I wonder how my coworkers that stayed until the end are doing. I felt like I was part of a family. It was family. The owner and I had known each other for 16 years. He had hired me personally. Many of his family worked there. It was sad the day I left, saying goodbye to family. I knew why I had to go and I supported the decision. My hope for the company was that if eliminating the burden of my wages and the wages of the others that were leaving, that perhaps the company could rise up in the water and remain afloat long enough to weather the economic conditions. It is like watching the death of a friend and the friend has just passed away. It is difficult to imagine the dealership lot empty, that no one will be rushing around to serve the customers, that RVs will no longer be rolling through the shop getting repairs. In my mind, when I heard the dealership had shut down, I had hoped that they would just mothball the place until the market changed then fire everything back up again. When I drove by and saw the For Sale sign out front it felt like someone had hit me in the belly. The dealership was really dead and it would just be a matter of time before the sales lot would be empty along with the buildings.
To the owner: Dick; you had a dream, you created a beautiful dealership with great values from that dream. I am very proud to have been a part of your dream, to have been able to serve you and the company and also to have served our customers with quality products and service. Thank you for the opportunity to work for you. I am sorry that things had to end like this. I wish you and your family the best.
I drive by the dealership on my way to school. It is really sad to see the gate closed, see the for sale sign out front by the highway, see the customer coaches clearing off the lot more each day. I wonder how the management and owner are taking this. I wonder how my coworkers that stayed until the end are doing. I felt like I was part of a family. It was family. The owner and I had known each other for 16 years. He had hired me personally. Many of his family worked there. It was sad the day I left, saying goodbye to family. I knew why I had to go and I supported the decision. My hope for the company was that if eliminating the burden of my wages and the wages of the others that were leaving, that perhaps the company could rise up in the water and remain afloat long enough to weather the economic conditions. It is like watching the death of a friend and the friend has just passed away. It is difficult to imagine the dealership lot empty, that no one will be rushing around to serve the customers, that RVs will no longer be rolling through the shop getting repairs. In my mind, when I heard the dealership had shut down, I had hoped that they would just mothball the place until the market changed then fire everything back up again. When I drove by and saw the For Sale sign out front it felt like someone had hit me in the belly. The dealership was really dead and it would just be a matter of time before the sales lot would be empty along with the buildings.
To the owner: Dick; you had a dream, you created a beautiful dealership with great values from that dream. I am very proud to have been a part of your dream, to have been able to serve you and the company and also to have served our customers with quality products and service. Thank you for the opportunity to work for you. I am sorry that things had to end like this. I wish you and your family the best.
My Resume
At the end of September 2008 several of us at the dealership lost our jobs due to the ecomony. No one could purchase RV's due to the lack of available financing. On November 14 the dealership shut down completely and now the place is a vacant lot with just the buildings remaining.
My Resume follows:
Yamhill County, Oregon
If this applicant is of interest to you please contact applicant at mountainhiker1956@yahoo.com for a complete resume which will include employer and applicant names and contact information.
Objective: To work in a positive environment with potential for growth.
Licensed Massage Therapist, Lic# 16243
June 2009 - Current
Graduate of Oregon School of Massage December 2008
Local RV repair
March 1992 – September 30 2008, laid off due to lack of work. Company shut down in November due to economy.
-Service technician for 16 years all at same location
-Warranty/technical advisor for the last 6 years.
-Obtained technical information for technicians in shop from database of factory and vendor contacts as well as Internet sources.
-Used technical background to obtain warranty authorization from factories and vendors to perform warranty repairs.
-Developed a known reputation as a reliable contact as well as maintained solid relationships with factory and vendor technical/warranty support.
-Developed first documentation system for photos and categorized warranty information resulting in company wide researchable database and increased productivity.
-Taught instructional seminars on maintenance of RV’s to customers and general public. Topics covered included Sealant Maintenance, Winterization of the RV and Appliance care.
-Wrote monthly articles on "how it works" and maintenance of RV’s for industry related consumer publication.
-Fielded technical questions from customers to troubleshoot problems over the phone and via e-mail. Excellent technical phone skills.
-16 years experience establishing and maintaining contact with customers resulting in customer loyalty.
-Mobile technician for 5 years representing Local RV repair shop. Mobile Service coverage area included all of NW Oregon.
-Provided quality workmanship for mobile customers with no ‘come-backs’.
-Areas of knowledge include Appliance repair and maintenance, Sealant maintenance, Plumbing, -Electrical (12vdc and 120vac) systems, wood working/cabinetry repair among others.
-Worked in shop environment for 5 years before working as the Mobile Tech
-Industry RVIA/RVDA Trained and Certified technician.
-Factory Trained by several RV factories, Norcold, Dometic.
Local temporary Services,
September 1991 – March 1992
Experience in small parts assembly, inventory and quality control.
Local Bakery
July 1976 – August 1991
Shift Supervisor, November 1988 – August 1991
-Managed crew of 20 employees.
-Trained new personnel
-Adjusted formulas and directed oven changes as needed to maintain quality of product.
-Performed product quality checks.
-Logged freight received.
-Repaired and adjusted machinery for optimum performance.
-Forklift operator as needed.
Machine Operator – Packer, September 1985 – November 1988
-Supervised Packers.
-Trained machine operators on computer controlled equipment.
-Operated Manual & computer controlled equipment.
-Responsible for keeping work area safe
-Performed finished product quality check
-Machine maintenance
Machine Operator – Mixer, September 1978 – September 1985
-Operated dough mixer rated at 1500 lbs.
-Assisted other personnel with mixers as needed.
-Maintenance of production inventory stock.
-Responsible for keeping work area safe.
-Forklift operator as needed.
Shipping department, September 1976 – September 1978
-Load and unload Semi’s
-Move trucks, change trailers
-Deliver product to local warehouse weekly.
Sanitation, July 1976 – September 1976
-Maintain quality sanitation practices for entire plant.
Previous work, Summer 1974 – July 1976
-Drove school bus for the School District and drove truck during the summers for two years after high school.
Personal Mail Order business
-Developed contacts for product distribution.
-Did photography, typesetting, paste-up and distribution for business.
-Worked at several product shows.
-Dealt with customers in a retail atmosphere.
Personal Home building
-Designed and built 3600 square foot Log Home including Passive Solar heating system and full house wood heat system.
-Designed and built log-lifting equipment to move logs to building site and set logs in place on walls.
-Performed all areas of construction work including site design, concrete foundation, wiring, plumbing, framing, roofing etc.
-Worked with heavy equipment during construction process.
While in High School built a Motor Home from the frame up with father as well as rebuilt a ’66 Barracuda.
Personal Interests:
-Writing.
-Digital Photography.
-Hiking and being outdoors.
-Helping to improve the health and well being of others through Massage Therapy.
-Graduate of a Northwest Massage School taking evening and weekend classes. Passed the state of Oregon License exams and am a Licensed Massage Therapist.
My Resume follows:
Yamhill County, Oregon
If this applicant is of interest to you please contact applicant at mountainhiker1956@yahoo.com for a complete resume which will include employer and applicant names and contact information.
Objective: To work in a positive environment with potential for growth.
Licensed Massage Therapist, Lic# 16243
June 2009 - Current
Graduate of Oregon School of Massage December 2008
Local RV repair
March 1992 – September 30 2008, laid off due to lack of work. Company shut down in November due to economy.
-Service technician for 16 years all at same location
-Warranty/technical advisor for the last 6 years.
-Obtained technical information for technicians in shop from database of factory and vendor contacts as well as Internet sources.
-Used technical background to obtain warranty authorization from factories and vendors to perform warranty repairs.
-Developed a known reputation as a reliable contact as well as maintained solid relationships with factory and vendor technical/warranty support.
-Developed first documentation system for photos and categorized warranty information resulting in company wide researchable database and increased productivity.
-Taught instructional seminars on maintenance of RV’s to customers and general public. Topics covered included Sealant Maintenance, Winterization of the RV and Appliance care.
-Wrote monthly articles on "how it works" and maintenance of RV’s for industry related consumer publication.
-Fielded technical questions from customers to troubleshoot problems over the phone and via e-mail. Excellent technical phone skills.
-16 years experience establishing and maintaining contact with customers resulting in customer loyalty.
-Mobile technician for 5 years representing Local RV repair shop. Mobile Service coverage area included all of NW Oregon.
-Provided quality workmanship for mobile customers with no ‘come-backs’.
-Areas of knowledge include Appliance repair and maintenance, Sealant maintenance, Plumbing, -Electrical (12vdc and 120vac) systems, wood working/cabinetry repair among others.
-Worked in shop environment for 5 years before working as the Mobile Tech
-Industry RVIA/RVDA Trained and Certified technician.
-Factory Trained by several RV factories, Norcold, Dometic.
Local temporary Services,
September 1991 – March 1992
Experience in small parts assembly, inventory and quality control.
Local Bakery
July 1976 – August 1991
Shift Supervisor, November 1988 – August 1991
-Managed crew of 20 employees.
-Trained new personnel
-Adjusted formulas and directed oven changes as needed to maintain quality of product.
-Performed product quality checks.
-Logged freight received.
-Repaired and adjusted machinery for optimum performance.
-Forklift operator as needed.
Machine Operator – Packer, September 1985 – November 1988
-Supervised Packers.
-Trained machine operators on computer controlled equipment.
-Operated Manual & computer controlled equipment.
-Responsible for keeping work area safe
-Performed finished product quality check
-Machine maintenance
Machine Operator – Mixer, September 1978 – September 1985
-Operated dough mixer rated at 1500 lbs.
-Assisted other personnel with mixers as needed.
-Maintenance of production inventory stock.
-Responsible for keeping work area safe.
-Forklift operator as needed.
Shipping department, September 1976 – September 1978
-Load and unload Semi’s
-Move trucks, change trailers
-Deliver product to local warehouse weekly.
Sanitation, July 1976 – September 1976
-Maintain quality sanitation practices for entire plant.
Previous work, Summer 1974 – July 1976
-Drove school bus for the School District and drove truck during the summers for two years after high school.
Personal Mail Order business
-Developed contacts for product distribution.
-Did photography, typesetting, paste-up and distribution for business.
-Worked at several product shows.
-Dealt with customers in a retail atmosphere.
Personal Home building
-Designed and built 3600 square foot Log Home including Passive Solar heating system and full house wood heat system.
-Designed and built log-lifting equipment to move logs to building site and set logs in place on walls.
-Performed all areas of construction work including site design, concrete foundation, wiring, plumbing, framing, roofing etc.
-Worked with heavy equipment during construction process.
While in High School built a Motor Home from the frame up with father as well as rebuilt a ’66 Barracuda.
Personal Interests:
-Writing.
-Digital Photography.
-Hiking and being outdoors.
-Helping to improve the health and well being of others through Massage Therapy.
-Graduate of a Northwest Massage School taking evening and weekend classes. Passed the state of Oregon License exams and am a Licensed Massage Therapist.
Home Alone, July 05, 2008
My wife left for an extended trip sometime around the middle of June. I hate being alone yet sometimes it is nice to be on my own, feel a bit of independence - even if it is only for 3 weeks. I have been trying to find friends to do things with but everyone is busy. I went up to Collins beach, the CO beach on Sauvie Island last Sunday - it was a beautiful day (other than the bugs) and while it was very warm it was overcast so the sun was not overbearing. I enjoyed the day but left with bug bites all over me. Summer term started up while my wife was gone so I am back in school. It is nice to be back in the routine again and to have a diversion from work and the empty house. I should be studying but I am procrastinating. I am not ready to give in to the study cycle yet. Still hoping to find someone to hike with before the weekend is over. So far all I have heard is "if my plans fall through I will hike with you". Hmmm.
Talked with a gal that was looking for a place to park and live in her trailer for a bit. She came and looked at our place, said she liked it here - peaceful woods away from the city. She is wanting to get moved asap. As much as I wanted to tell her to move the trailer in I still have to have my wife's blessing and I have not been able to contact my wife since she left in mid June. My concern was that I would have to modify my Clothing Optional lifestyle but she said she was not offended by nudity. That's refreshing but I still have to wait for my wife to give the go-ahead. I am quite certain the gal will take the other place she looked at as it is a lot closer to her work. Besides, my wife likes her private resort and has not really felt comfortable with having people here in the past. It just gets awfully quiet here with just the two of us and lately just me; it would be nice to have another adult around to talk to. But then there is the compatibility issue. If we ever find someone that wants to stay here, both my wife and I would have to feel compatible with them. That has not always been the case in the past and it can be awkward. I think we would have to be friends with someone first before we ever talked about letting them live in the same house or even on the same property. I suppose we are spoiled living on an acreage out here in the wilderness and being picky about who we let close to us. I could never live in an apartment or even in town again. It would drive me nuts having strangers that close.
Speaking of which, Some time early last month my wife and I went and stayed at Beverly beach State Park down near Newport. The beach was very windy but beautiful. But talk about a Zoo. We slept in the back of her 'new-to-her' Highlander which was a bit cramped but not all that bad. With all the noise around us- kids screaming, dogs barking, people walking thru our space, horns blaring, radios blasting rap crap, people yelling until late at night - my wife and I looked at each other and said at the same time, " and we went camping, why?" It was like we had pulled the car over to sleep on the side of a busy city street. Other than being at the beach it would have been much nicer if we had just pitched a tent in our own woods. But then I would have been thinking about my nice soft, warm bed in the house.
I hope everyone had a great holiday.
Saturday July 5, 2008 - 03:35pm (PDT)
Talked with a gal that was looking for a place to park and live in her trailer for a bit. She came and looked at our place, said she liked it here - peaceful woods away from the city. She is wanting to get moved asap. As much as I wanted to tell her to move the trailer in I still have to have my wife's blessing and I have not been able to contact my wife since she left in mid June. My concern was that I would have to modify my Clothing Optional lifestyle but she said she was not offended by nudity. That's refreshing but I still have to wait for my wife to give the go-ahead. I am quite certain the gal will take the other place she looked at as it is a lot closer to her work. Besides, my wife likes her private resort and has not really felt comfortable with having people here in the past. It just gets awfully quiet here with just the two of us and lately just me; it would be nice to have another adult around to talk to. But then there is the compatibility issue. If we ever find someone that wants to stay here, both my wife and I would have to feel compatible with them. That has not always been the case in the past and it can be awkward. I think we would have to be friends with someone first before we ever talked about letting them live in the same house or even on the same property. I suppose we are spoiled living on an acreage out here in the wilderness and being picky about who we let close to us. I could never live in an apartment or even in town again. It would drive me nuts having strangers that close.
Speaking of which, Some time early last month my wife and I went and stayed at Beverly beach State Park down near Newport. The beach was very windy but beautiful. But talk about a Zoo. We slept in the back of her 'new-to-her' Highlander which was a bit cramped but not all that bad. With all the noise around us- kids screaming, dogs barking, people walking thru our space, horns blaring, radios blasting rap crap, people yelling until late at night - my wife and I looked at each other and said at the same time, " and we went camping, why?" It was like we had pulled the car over to sleep on the side of a busy city street. Other than being at the beach it would have been much nicer if we had just pitched a tent in our own woods. But then I would have been thinking about my nice soft, warm bed in the house.
I hope everyone had a great holiday.
Saturday July 5, 2008 - 03:35pm (PDT)
Family: Entry for May 17, 2008
My wife's family converged on our home here in western Oregon for about a week this past week. They came from various places around the country to celebrate my mother-in-law's birthday. The population in our home grew from two to ten last weekend with an influx of 5 more local family for meals and visiting. One of the ten that stayed was a 4 year old. Needless to say that since our children are grown and gone our home is not child proof. I spent a few frantic moments running ahead of the kids putting breakables up higher. When all the folks came in the door all the efforts of my wife to straighten the house for company were erased. The entry looked like the baggage terminal at the airport. Well maybe not quite that bad but there was a lot of luggage. Once we got everyone settled into their sleeping areas the luggage followed it's owners. All in all it was good to see everyone, to visit and catch up on lives in distant places, see the growth of little ones, be family again. Ours is a large home and I am sure that other people would think nothing of 10 people in a space as large as ours but we have become used to having it to just the two of us. Having an open floor plan with all these people was also a challenge. We built a folding screen for the shower so no one saw any bare buns. It is all quiet on the western front now that all the return flights have been caught and everyone is home safe and sound. My wife even drove her sister back to Washington so I have the house to myself for the weekend. The folding screen has been put away until the next crowd comes to visit.
It is peaceful here - hot but peaceful. I had thought about going up to the CO beach on Sauvie Island today. I would have taken my text books and study material, spread out my blanket on the sand under the shade of a cottonwood tree and studied. But I opted to stay home today and enjoy the solitude up here on our mountain. My wife encouraged me to go but it is a 2 hour drive to the beach and I hate going by myself. If the weather is nice again tomorrow perhaps I will go then. As I look out the window towards the west it looks like clouds forming on the horizon. Perhaps I missed my window of opportunity to spend a day at Collins beach this weekend.
It is peaceful here - hot but peaceful. I had thought about going up to the CO beach on Sauvie Island today. I would have taken my text books and study material, spread out my blanket on the sand under the shade of a cottonwood tree and studied. But I opted to stay home today and enjoy the solitude up here on our mountain. My wife encouraged me to go but it is a 2 hour drive to the beach and I hate going by myself. If the weather is nice again tomorrow perhaps I will go then. As I look out the window towards the west it looks like clouds forming on the horizon. Perhaps I missed my window of opportunity to spend a day at Collins beach this weekend.
Entry for March 15, 2008
We got a new kitten a few weeks back. What a kick it is to have a fresh new life in the house. The old cat is acting like a kitten again too. There is lots of laughter when the two are playing. It is especially sweet when the old cat pins down the kitten so he can give him a bath. It starts out all lovey with the licking then after the kitten squirms enough it turns into a wrestling match and then chase and attack. My wife spends a lot of time loving on the kitten and I suppose I give him my share too. I think the old cat gets a bit more attention now too. I suppose the lost sleep due to crashes in the night is worth it. We still have not figured out what some of the crashes have been.
I finished my 4th quarter at massage school this past week. At the rate I am taking my classes (2 a quarter) I am about half way through school now. Most of my classes now will be book learning until near the end. I have an A&P and a pathology class next quarter. I miss the hands on massage training I had the first 3 quarters. I enjoyed helping people feel better. I can still do practice massages but now that the big push to give 2 massages a week for class is over it seems harder to get people to bend their schedules for a massage. Everyone still wants massages but there always seems to be kids to get to soccer practice or some other obligation that people have.
I stopped and visited my mom in the ‘home’ yesterday. She was sleeping in the recliner in the main room when I got there. I sat there for a while watching her dance in her sleep as she moved her feet to some silent melody. She has always had music in her head. She awoke when the caregiver turned on some old music. She began singing along with the song. She may not know who I am anymore but she still knows music. I told her I loved her and she smiled. Mostly I talked and she smiled. Sometimes she would start to say something but then after a few words the thought was gone and she was left with a momentary confused look on her face and then the smile again. She seems happy not knowing about the world. I had not been to visit her in a long time. I am a bad son. I see myself in her place one day all too soon. My own memory feels all too fragile. I have little recollection of my mom when she was younger, all I can see in my mind is the old woman that smiles when I tell her I love her. It is amazing how people change from one end of their life to the other. I have seen old photos of my parents when they were young. My parents were a handsome couple. Now my father is gone and my mother will probably soon follow. Even though I feel the effects of fading memory at 51 I hope I don’t go like my parents. Dad had a long and lingering illness. My wife’s grampa died in his sleep. I hope that after a very long and healthy life I get to go like that. Perhaps I fear seeing my mother in her condition because it reminds me of my own mortality. I have a few old home movies of my parents. For some reason I can’t look at them right now. I know that once my mom has passed I will dig them out and spend time remembering their lives, our lives.
Saturday March 15, 2008 - 11:51pm (PDT)
I finished my 4th quarter at massage school this past week. At the rate I am taking my classes (2 a quarter) I am about half way through school now. Most of my classes now will be book learning until near the end. I have an A&P and a pathology class next quarter. I miss the hands on massage training I had the first 3 quarters. I enjoyed helping people feel better. I can still do practice massages but now that the big push to give 2 massages a week for class is over it seems harder to get people to bend their schedules for a massage. Everyone still wants massages but there always seems to be kids to get to soccer practice or some other obligation that people have.
I stopped and visited my mom in the ‘home’ yesterday. She was sleeping in the recliner in the main room when I got there. I sat there for a while watching her dance in her sleep as she moved her feet to some silent melody. She has always had music in her head. She awoke when the caregiver turned on some old music. She began singing along with the song. She may not know who I am anymore but she still knows music. I told her I loved her and she smiled. Mostly I talked and she smiled. Sometimes she would start to say something but then after a few words the thought was gone and she was left with a momentary confused look on her face and then the smile again. She seems happy not knowing about the world. I had not been to visit her in a long time. I am a bad son. I see myself in her place one day all too soon. My own memory feels all too fragile. I have little recollection of my mom when she was younger, all I can see in my mind is the old woman that smiles when I tell her I love her. It is amazing how people change from one end of their life to the other. I have seen old photos of my parents when they were young. My parents were a handsome couple. Now my father is gone and my mother will probably soon follow. Even though I feel the effects of fading memory at 51 I hope I don’t go like my parents. Dad had a long and lingering illness. My wife’s grampa died in his sleep. I hope that after a very long and healthy life I get to go like that. Perhaps I fear seeing my mother in her condition because it reminds me of my own mortality. I have a few old home movies of my parents. For some reason I can’t look at them right now. I know that once my mom has passed I will dig them out and spend time remembering their lives, our lives.
Saturday March 15, 2008 - 11:51pm (PDT)
Entry for January 01, 2008
I went on a long hike a week ago. It was a real test of my endurance. Elevation gain was about 2000'. We all got very wet as the snow was wet and sloppy, falling from the trees. It was a good time even with the weather and exertion. I will probably hike with this group again.
School has been out for a few weeks now for winter break. Starts back up next week. I don't have any classes that will require giving practice massages but I want to keep doing them to keep in practice. I also want to find someone to help me keep up with the Kines studies so I will continue to be familiar with all the muscles when it comes time to pass the board exams. I figure that by mid quarter I should be about halfway to completion of school. Even though I am enjoying the learning process I am looking forward to being able to help people feel better.
I wish everyone a happy new year.
Tuesday January 1, 2008 - 04:19pm (PST)
December 02, 2007
Only one more test before my third quarter is over at the Massage School. The break will be welcome although I am sure that full time students are suffering much more than I have been. I have really been enjoying helping people feel better and I have been getting a lot of positive feedback on my practice massages.
Had our first snow fall here at the 1000 ft elevation in NW Oregon yesterday then the rain and wind came last night and washed it all away. At least my ponds are full and the fish are happy.
Still looking for that elusive Second-best friend (my wife is my best friend); a woman that likes to hike and is willing to talk about almost anything while on the trail. Kind of a soul searching buddy. I had that kind of friendship once and I miss the connection we had. I am finding it difficult to find a friend like that again, someone comfortable enough to skinnydip with or talk about personal issues with, someone to let me talk and sort my thoughts so I can talk to my spouse clearly, someone to return the favor for, someone to help me with the female perspective. It has been about 4 years now since my old buddy moved away. I am beginning to think that what we had was a once in a lifetime friendship.
Had our first snow fall here at the 1000 ft elevation in NW Oregon yesterday then the rain and wind came last night and washed it all away. At least my ponds are full and the fish are happy.
Still looking for that elusive Second-best friend (my wife is my best friend); a woman that likes to hike and is willing to talk about almost anything while on the trail. Kind of a soul searching buddy. I had that kind of friendship once and I miss the connection we had. I am finding it difficult to find a friend like that again, someone comfortable enough to skinnydip with or talk about personal issues with, someone to let me talk and sort my thoughts so I can talk to my spouse clearly, someone to return the favor for, someone to help me with the female perspective. It has been about 4 years now since my old buddy moved away. I am beginning to think that what we had was a once in a lifetime friendship.
Summer's end - August 25, 2007
Still no major events happening in my life other than school and work. Nearing the end of summer L . Summer quarter at school is almost over as well J . This summer has been a bit odd. No work got done on the house or property, no fun stuff really happened like going up to Sauvie Island or hiking – just work and school. I have enjoyed making new friends at school. Some friendships may be lasting ones, some will drop away when I don’t see them anymore at school. There have been a few people that I really wanted to keep in contact with from last quarter but once the quarter ended and we no longer had classes together it seemed like there was no longer the connection and they faded away. I am finding that I need some common ground to keep a friendship alive and school is not enough of a common ground to keep the connection once the class is over. I have a few weeks off between the end of this quarter and the start of Fall quarter and I hope to try to cram a summer’s worth of fun into those two weeks. Hopefully at least a hike or two. Oh, that’s right, I will need to start studying for Fall when I get the letter from the school telling me what the first weeks homework will be. So that’s it, a summer summarized in a paragraph.
Saturday August 25, 2007 - 04:51pm (PDT)
Saturday August 25, 2007 - 04:51pm (PDT)
31st Anniversary & End of quarter, June 12, 2007
My wife and I celebrated our 31st anniversary today. I skipped lunch at work and left an hour early so we could go to a movie. Our daughter had given us some coupons for the movie theatre. We went and saw Shrek III. It was silly but fun. Another job well done. I am always amazed at the computer graphics in these movies. So realistic. In another life I want to grow up and be a graphic artist in the movies, see my name in the credits. It looks like a fun job.
Finished my first quarter at Massage school this past week. In all three classes I was at about 90%. I have amazed myself that I did so well under such conditions; sleepless nights studying, long work days etc. Now I can move on to my next series of classes only this time I will only take two. Two classes will be 6 hours a week and still be pushing my limits but I am told that these two classes are best taken at the same time. Besides I don't want to be a really old man graduating from Massage school. As it is I will be in my mid fifties. Is this a midlife crisis? Changing careers at my age? Or will I just be adding a career? It might take me a while to build up a clientele so I will probably be doing RV work for many years to come. I still have the dream of turning our lower level of our house into a day spa as well as the grounds. There would be a lot of work to make it presentable. I have also given thought to renting a room out to a boarder but finding the right match for our home and lifestyle would be tricky. We have done the boarder thing before but if we do it again I will be very picky about who I share my home with. Not that the people before were not nice but it was just not a good match. It is almost like having a spouse and if you are not compatible with the person, no matter how nice they are, it can be miserable.
Met some cool people at school this past quarter. Several are going in different directions with their classes so I may not see them again. I hope to keep in touch, the study times were fun. Most of my fellow students this past quarter were women and it was nice to be accepted as one of the gang. Since my good friend and hiking partner moved away several years ago it has been difficult for me to feel that I fit in with the opposite gender like I used to. Not having a best buddy to talk to like I had before, I have felt out of balance. It also did not help in the beginning of the quarter when in the hands-on massage class the women tended to gravitate toward each other and leave myself and the one other male in class to work on each other. I understand the reluctance to have a strange male learning massage on you but it did not help my self-esteem to feel what felt like rejection. If felt good when it felt they started accepting the guys. Also I had a few good talks with one of my instructors about some of the things I was going through. She helped me figure a bunch of stuff out. Anyway, moving on, meeting some new classmates and reuniting with some old ones in a few weeks.
I hope everyone has a safe and fun summer.
Finished my first quarter at Massage school this past week. In all three classes I was at about 90%. I have amazed myself that I did so well under such conditions; sleepless nights studying, long work days etc. Now I can move on to my next series of classes only this time I will only take two. Two classes will be 6 hours a week and still be pushing my limits but I am told that these two classes are best taken at the same time. Besides I don't want to be a really old man graduating from Massage school. As it is I will be in my mid fifties. Is this a midlife crisis? Changing careers at my age? Or will I just be adding a career? It might take me a while to build up a clientele so I will probably be doing RV work for many years to come. I still have the dream of turning our lower level of our house into a day spa as well as the grounds. There would be a lot of work to make it presentable. I have also given thought to renting a room out to a boarder but finding the right match for our home and lifestyle would be tricky. We have done the boarder thing before but if we do it again I will be very picky about who I share my home with. Not that the people before were not nice but it was just not a good match. It is almost like having a spouse and if you are not compatible with the person, no matter how nice they are, it can be miserable.
Met some cool people at school this past quarter. Several are going in different directions with their classes so I may not see them again. I hope to keep in touch, the study times were fun. Most of my fellow students this past quarter were women and it was nice to be accepted as one of the gang. Since my good friend and hiking partner moved away several years ago it has been difficult for me to feel that I fit in with the opposite gender like I used to. Not having a best buddy to talk to like I had before, I have felt out of balance. It also did not help in the beginning of the quarter when in the hands-on massage class the women tended to gravitate toward each other and leave myself and the one other male in class to work on each other. I understand the reluctance to have a strange male learning massage on you but it did not help my self-esteem to feel what felt like rejection. If felt good when it felt they started accepting the guys. Also I had a few good talks with one of my instructors about some of the things I was going through. She helped me figure a bunch of stuff out. Anyway, moving on, meeting some new classmates and reuniting with some old ones in a few weeks.
I hope everyone has a safe and fun summer.
Weekend retreat for school May 11-13, 2007
My massage school set up a teaching weekend at Breitenbush hot springs (click on link) in the foothills of the Cascade Mtns this past weekend. It was a great weekend - Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon. Even though it was only two days and two nights it seemed like it was a lot longer - but in a good way, there was just a lot packed into those two days. Even so, it was over too quickly. I could have stayed there for a few weeks - or more. (After talking to one of the staff and relating my technical experience he encouraged me to apply for a summer job) I learned a lot with our practice massages in the lodge. I also spent a lot of time between classes and practice sessions in the clothing optional hot pools out in the meadow. I, of course, took the option to be bare as did most others. It was great to be around other people that were comfortable with their bodies. I am not around people like that very often and it was a refreshing and pleasant change. A few people had difficulty with the nudity issues but they just stayed away from the pools and tubs. From a psychological point of view it was interesting to observe the different comfort levels and how the different people dealt with all of it. Most people got into the spirit of things by the end of the weekend but some did not and probably never will. I think that in this line of work that we are learning, working with the body, there needs to be a good comfort level with the body. I think that is what the school is trying to nurture. Nothing was pushed on anyone but the opportunity for personal growth was provided. Most took the weekend as a learning experience both personally and professionally and some just got the massage lessons. I am greatful for both lessons. I have learned a lot in both areas in the past quarter.
Back to the books, another test tonight.
A disclaimer: the photo is not mine, it is from the Breitenbush website
Monday May 14, 2007 - 12:04pm (PDT)
Entry for April 27, 2007
Not much to say, lots of homework, 2 practice massages a week plus a write-up. Lots of reading. I am learning massage strokes as well as names of muscles and bones. No time for fun stuff. Work is picking up now that our busy season is upon us. I will probably take fewer courses next quarter as I think I may have over done it this time. 3 -4 hours of sleep a night is getting old. Nodding off at the computer tonight and I still have a paper to write before morning. I am half way through this quarter, If I can just hang on to the end of it then I will back off on the course load.
Take care all.
Friday April 27, 2007 - 10:48pm (PDT)
Take care all.
Friday April 27, 2007 - 10:48pm (PDT)
First week of Massage School - Entry for April 07, 2007
Taking a break from homework to send off a quick note:
Well school has started. So has the homework. I have 9 hours of class a week in addition to my job. They said during our Orientation that we should spend 3 hours on homework for every hour in class. Starting next week I will have to start doing 2 massages a week - not during school time, be evaluated by the person I work on and then evaluate myself and my work. I am surprised at the weekly homework - a few papers to write each week, 50 pages to read in one text book and sections of a few others. After 30 years of being out of school I probably should have started off a bit slower with fewer classes but I want to be done with the process as soon as possible so I can make the transition sooner. One class is partly hands on. We will be working on each other, learning how to do the different types of massage. In one class I am the only male and the others it is about 3 females to one male. When choosing partners to work with in class it is kind of like being back in grade school and picking teams (I was always the last to be picked). No one wants to pick the only guy in class. There is a lot of body stuff to learn - names of bones and muscles etc and learning how to drape the body during massage to protect modesty. My dream is to open a Day Spa here on our land someday. It's not like we don't have the room here. The day light basement is only being used as storage and a spare bedroom. It could be made up real nice with a little work - well OK, a lot of work but it has potential. Before that I will probably have to work in a clinic somewhere to build up a clientele. Now that my spare time is spoken for I won't be online as much as I used to but please write if you feel the desire. Any words of encouragement would be appreciated. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment.
Of course I will need to find time for a hike now and then. I would go crazy if I did not do that. I have a hike in the morning if all goes well.
Saturday April 7, 2007 - 10:33pm (PDT)
Well school has started. So has the homework. I have 9 hours of class a week in addition to my job. They said during our Orientation that we should spend 3 hours on homework for every hour in class. Starting next week I will have to start doing 2 massages a week - not during school time, be evaluated by the person I work on and then evaluate myself and my work. I am surprised at the weekly homework - a few papers to write each week, 50 pages to read in one text book and sections of a few others. After 30 years of being out of school I probably should have started off a bit slower with fewer classes but I want to be done with the process as soon as possible so I can make the transition sooner. One class is partly hands on. We will be working on each other, learning how to do the different types of massage. In one class I am the only male and the others it is about 3 females to one male. When choosing partners to work with in class it is kind of like being back in grade school and picking teams (I was always the last to be picked). No one wants to pick the only guy in class. There is a lot of body stuff to learn - names of bones and muscles etc and learning how to drape the body during massage to protect modesty. My dream is to open a Day Spa here on our land someday. It's not like we don't have the room here. The day light basement is only being used as storage and a spare bedroom. It could be made up real nice with a little work - well OK, a lot of work but it has potential. Before that I will probably have to work in a clinic somewhere to build up a clientele. Now that my spare time is spoken for I won't be online as much as I used to but please write if you feel the desire. Any words of encouragement would be appreciated. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment.
Of course I will need to find time for a hike now and then. I would go crazy if I did not do that. I have a hike in the morning if all goes well.
Saturday April 7, 2007 - 10:33pm (PDT)
Changes: Lost family & friends, starting Massage School
Lots of changes the past few weeks, Four Elders (including dad) that were close to my wife and I have passed away. It has been interesting. So many have crossed over that it almost feels like an epidemic.
Something else new, I applied for and am starting Massage school Next month. I am nervous - an old fart like myself starting back to school again. The practical lessons won't be too hard but I am not looking forward to the anatomy and physiology classes. I never was good at memorizing technical terms. Even in the line of work I am in now I still call things I know and use every day 'doohickies' and 'whatchamacallits' - after 15 years of knowing what they are. With my memory problems I hope I don't wind up being like Mom. I don't want to get to the point I can't remember my own kids. Anyway, along with being nervous about massage school I am excited. I am looking forward to getting into a field that is a lot more relaxed and stress free. It will be 'trial by fire' for a while. I will continue to work full time at my current job during the day and go to school in the evenings. If I can handle the full class schedule I should graduate in June of 2008. After graduating I will probably continue to work at my current job and do massages in the evenings and weekends - At least until I get my clientele built up. I know others have done it, I am sure I can too.
Friday March 16, 2007 - 11:37pm (PDT)
Something else new, I applied for and am starting Massage school Next month. I am nervous - an old fart like myself starting back to school again. The practical lessons won't be too hard but I am not looking forward to the anatomy and physiology classes. I never was good at memorizing technical terms. Even in the line of work I am in now I still call things I know and use every day 'doohickies' and 'whatchamacallits' - after 15 years of knowing what they are. With my memory problems I hope I don't wind up being like Mom. I don't want to get to the point I can't remember my own kids. Anyway, along with being nervous about massage school I am excited. I am looking forward to getting into a field that is a lot more relaxed and stress free. It will be 'trial by fire' for a while. I will continue to work full time at my current job during the day and go to school in the evenings. If I can handle the full class schedule I should graduate in June of 2008. After graduating I will probably continue to work at my current job and do massages in the evenings and weekends - At least until I get my clientele built up. I know others have done it, I am sure I can too.
Friday March 16, 2007 - 11:37pm (PDT)
Goodbye Dad, I love you
End of an era, Dad passed away last week, or was it the week before. It has been a long interesting ride the last bit. I love my dad but I have never shown much emotion, never do at people’s passing. When I was a little boy and my grandmother passed my mother praised me for not crying, for being such a man. I have had my share of tears over the years, my share of emotional trauma. Seems heartless to say that Dad’s passing was not as traumatic as the other things. We all knew it was coming, his death. His health had been declining for a long time. We thought we had lost him several times but he kept bouncing back from the brink, just not bouncing as far back as before. He was a fighter, kept talking about all the projects that he had to finish before he was done. I suppose that it was a load off the mind that he was not suffering anymore when he finally did pass. He went like he wanted to; at home with family around. I was at work when it happened. I got a call from one of my sisters shortly after he crossed. All my sisters had been there when he crossed, he even waited for one sister to get there from eastern Oregon. I felt callous that I did not want to be there when he died, I felt callous that I did not want to go and be with my family until after the body had been removed. I timed it so I would get there after the body was gone. I wondered then and I wonder now, is there something wrong with me for feeling that way, for not wanting to be a part of his death? I miss my father, I do, but I don’t feel the depth of sadness that everyone else felt. At least not yet. I felt I was the rock that comforted others, let them cry. We all spent a few days together going through old boxes of photos, telling stories about growing up with dad and of course, making plans for the memorial. It was a good memorial, lots of people showed up. Dad touched a lot of people’s lives in a positive way. He was a gifted healer. There were a lot of touching stories told and funny ones too. Dad would have liked the laughter. Today I was listening to old phone messages and deleting them. Two were from Dad a few days before he died. In the last message he concluded by telling me goodbye. I knew the goodbye was just the traditional conclusion of the phone call but I could sense him here in the room telling me goodbye - forever. I played that message over and over and each time I heard him say Goodbye I told him “Goodbye, I love you Dad”. I think the emotional part is beginning to surface. He will be missed.
Goodbye Dad, I love you. Be at peace.
Sunday March 4, 2007 - 11:20pm (PST)
Comments(4 total)
Del…
Sorry for your loss. Everyone deals with death in their own way. Cherish your memories of him and live your life well to honor him.
Monday March 5, 2007 - 05:58am (PST)
Inspi…
Offline
Your dad is at peace and as you said, he touched many people's lives. He lived a good life and his spirit will continue to guide you. Many blessings to you!
Monday March 5, 2007 - 08:34am (PST)
…
Offline
How are you holding up? He is at peace and not suffering anymore. and yes you will always have the memories. Take care
Monday March 5, 2007 - 02:22pm (PST)
Hiker…
Offline
Thanks guys for your comments. I am holding up pretty good. My wife, however is not doing very well. Right behind dad's passing an important figure in her life passed away then she got a call that her uncle's life support was being removed so his passing will be soon. I think she thought she would be my 'rock' so now we will be each other's support.
Tuesday March 6, 2007 - 10:46pm (PST)
Massage school career preview and Hike
Saturday I went over to Salem to the Oregon School of Massage for a Career preview. It was an interesting talk and there was a short hands-on exercise. They talked about curriculum, the cost of school and what to expect after getting licensed. There was good information. Now I have to make up my mind which direction I want to take my life. Classes start in April. I seem to have a lot of support from my co-workers and some of my family. My sister thinks that my Naturist lifestyle will create problems if my potential clients were to hear about it. I think that anyone comfortable getting a massage would be more open to knowing of people that live like I do. Not that I would advertise how I live to the general public.
After the preview I had a few hours to kill, my wife is out of town for a few days so had no reason to hurry home. I found a park I had never been to, Minto-Brown Island Park For an urban park it was pretty nice, still could not escape the noise of the city though. It was over 800 acres with several miles of trails. I got a few miles of hike in, saw lots of wildfowl and even got some photos of them. I have the photos of the hike posted in an album at my Multiply.com photo albums. http://hiker1956.multiply.com/photos/album/53/HikeMinto-BrownIsland12707 I hope to get out for a real hike before this great weather goes and we get back to our typical Oregon winter again.
Sunday January 28, 2007 - 11:26pm (PST)
After the preview I had a few hours to kill, my wife is out of town for a few days so had no reason to hurry home. I found a park I had never been to, Minto-Brown Island Park For an urban park it was pretty nice, still could not escape the noise of the city though. It was over 800 acres with several miles of trails. I got a few miles of hike in, saw lots of wildfowl and even got some photos of them. I have the photos of the hike posted in an album at my Multiply.com photo albums. http://hiker1956.multiply.com/photos/album/53/HikeMinto-BrownIsland12707 I hope to get out for a real hike before this great weather goes and we get back to our typical Oregon winter again.
Sunday January 28, 2007 - 11:26pm (PST)
The Great Naked Hunter
We had a little excitement in our house this morning. For those of you that don’t know our place; we live in the foothills of the Coast Range of Oregon, timber is the main theme at our home. Timber in the logs and beams that make up the home and the standing trees that closely pack the land all around the home. The home itself is a lofty thing. When I drew up the plans it looked so small on paper that I kept adding inches which turned into feet in the finished structure. The main floor is logs and mostly an open room with a ten-foot ceiling, open in the center to the top floor. The top floor is all open bedrooms and bathroom with railings that look down to the living room, kitchen and dining room below. There are a few old office partitions that divide off the children’s side of the loft to give them privacy but everything is open to the vaulted ceiling that peaks at seventeen feet. Of course the kids are gone now so their rooms are a guestroom and my wife’s sewing/computer room. The only access between floors is through the three-story sunroom on the south side of the house. The upper two floors of the sunroom are open as one big room with the stairs leading between floors with landings. One of the characters in this story is our Black Cat, BC for short. He is quite the character and a good hunter – too good. During this cold weather we have little birds that flit from tree to tree digging goodies out of the bark to eat. My wife and I sometimes lay in bed on weekend mornings and watch them in the trees just outside our window. This morning when I woke up my wife was already up. I was lying in bed trying to get the courage to throw off the covers and face the chilly morning when my wife shouted from her sewing room, “There is a bird in the house!” Over the years we have had bats and mice find their way in, the mice usually brought in by BC as playthings. It has been rare that a bird comes in. My first thought was “That damn cat, bringing in another plaything”, then the next thought was to catch the poor thing before the cat did. The bird might not be so lucky the second time around. I jumped out of bed and was standing at the railing as my wife was coming out of her sewing room to stand at the railing on the other side of the opening to below. We looked at each other across the void and both asked at the same time, “Where’s the cat?” Obviously he must not have been curled on her lap in the sewing room and he had not been at the foot of the bed with me. He must be out in the sunroom. I had built little passageways for him to be able to come and go anywhere in the house or outside as he pleases. He is good about taking care of business outdoors so I did not want him getting trapped someplace in the house and making a mess. The only drawback of having these passageways is that we sometimes wake to an offering laid at the foot of our bed. This bird that we were now craning our necks for was probably going to be an offering but managed to escape. My wife spotted the bird on the chain for the swag light over the tub and the chase was on. The thought was to catch him when he flew into a window but after the second window he figured out what glass was and avoided them. My wife was yelling to open the glass door out to our bedroom deck to let him out but instead he flew down through the opening to the floor below. We raced out to the sunroom and down the stairs. BC was at the bottom of the stairs looking like he had lost something and tried to follow us into the main part of the house. We blocked him from coming in and began our search for the bird again. We found him perched on one of the top logs so I climbed up on the couch to grab him. He flew from log to log, light to light, always flying off before we could get up to him. I could tell he was getting tired as we were getting closer each time. One time he flew right through my wife’s fingers and I hollered in frustration, “Just grab him!” Then it was my turn and he flew through my fingers and my wife says with a hint of humor and sarcasm, “Just grab him Honey.” Back up through the opening to the loft he went so it was out into the sunroom and a wild dash up the stairs again. I can hear by wife beginning to laugh behind me. This time we opened the outside door to our deck and took up the chase again. The ceiling is a bit high to climb up on furniture to reach him so my wife gets the tall pole that has the duster ball on it. Round and round, back and forth we run waving our arms and brandishing the duster ball, all the while my wife laughing harder. I am just hoping we can catch this poor thing before the cat discovers what we are up to and beats us to it. Finally it flies out the door and I watch it until it is out of sight down by my shop. I slide the door shut to keep anymore of the 20-degree winter from coming in and turn to my wife. I ask, “And just what was so funny?” Suppressing more mirth, she says, “You would have had to have seen the same visual I did.” And she holds out her arms towards me like she is presenting me to an audience, “The Great Naked Hunter!!” I am glad I was able to provide a little humor in her day.
If you had been there with my wife, what would your reaction have been?
Told you to get dressed, you are embarassing me.
Laughed harder then she did.
schucked out of my clothes and joined in the fun
Told you to take care of the damn bird yourself and gone back to my computer
Let BC take care of the situation, after all, he started it. See results
Told you to get dressed, you are embarassing me.
0
Laughed harder then she did.
2
schucked out of my clothes and joined in the fun
3
Told you to take care of the damn bird yourself and gone back to my computer
0
Let BC take care of the situation, after all, he started it.
0 Cast My Vote
Sunday January 14, 2007 - 02:14pm (PST)
If you had been there with my wife, what would your reaction have been?
Told you to get dressed, you are embarassing me.
Laughed harder then she did.
schucked out of my clothes and joined in the fun
Told you to take care of the damn bird yourself and gone back to my computer
Let BC take care of the situation, after all, he started it. See results
Told you to get dressed, you are embarassing me.
0
Laughed harder then she did.
2
schucked out of my clothes and joined in the fun
3
Told you to take care of the damn bird yourself and gone back to my computer
0
Let BC take care of the situation, after all, he started it.
0 Cast My Vote
Sunday January 14, 2007 - 02:14pm (PST)
A new year on the horizon, December 30, 2006
A new year a few days away and time alone to reflect on what we have, what we miss and opportunities and paths we could take.
What I have is a wife and family that loves me. I have a home I love that my wife and I built with our own hands beginning with clearing the land to putting up logs and a roof. The events that passed under that roof have helped mold me to be the man I am. We have two great children who have known no other home but the one we built until they moved to their own homes. As a Naturist I think I am fairly comfortable in the skin I am in. Meaning only that I like who I am. I have the opportunity to live free of cloth when on our land and we have no guests.
What I miss is having the friends that were comfortable with that lifestyle, especially my old hiking buddy who moved away three years ago so she could go back to school. I truly miss our hikes, our long talks and the comfort level we had around each other clothed or not. For me, spending most of my life around people that are not comfortable with a bare body it was special to have my body accepted as normal and I deeply miss that. In the past three years I have found that finding a friend that is compatible is as hard as finding a life mate. In both cases I was lucky in the past. My loving wife of thirty years dropped into my life when I was 18 and it was love at first sight. I knew she was the one I would spend the rest of my life with. The same was true when I met my hiking buddy of many years. There was a chemistry from the day my wife introduced us. I have been looking for that since she moved. Perhaps the New Year will bring that kind of friendship again.
The opportunity I have is to take a divergent path in my career. Currently I work in a field where I enjoy meeting peoples needs but the stress level has left me feeling old before my time. My father was a Chiropractor and my father-in-law was a massage therapist. I was to follow in my father's footsteps after college but I chickened out before I finished premed. I have often thought I could fulfill my need to help people with massage. Now at the age of 50 I realize that if I don't decide soon it will be too late. Classes start next month at the massage school. I am trying to gather the courage to make the commitment to school. I know that women that get into massage have an easier time building a clientele then men and they can do very well. My fear is that after spending ten grand to go to school I won't be able to support my household and I will have taken a step backwards. I know that everyone I have worked on as a friend has supported me, told me I would be good at it. I think I would like the opportunity to practice on a few more people to see if this is what I would really like to do for the rest of my life.
So these are my ponderings on this thirtieth day of the last month of 2006. In a few days it will be a new year. Will I make any changes? Will I find that new best friend? Will I take a big gamble and hock my home to go to school, change my life for one of a slower, more relaxed pace or will I keep on keeping on the way I have. Only time will tell
Have a great new year!!!!
Saturday December 30, 2006 - 04:38pm (PST)
Our new Granddaughter, December 22, 2006
Another Christmas baby, well almost. We are grandparents for the second time. Our son and his wife had their second daughter early the morning of wed 12/20/06. She was 7 lbs 7 oz and 19.5 inches long. Older sister (3 yrs) seems to be a bit over protective, not wanting anyone else to hold her baby.
Monday, December 18, 2006
Power is back. After three days. Batteries held up for two days. Third day got cold but we had some heat from the wood cook stove. It was almost like camping indoors. I think our meals actually tasted better cooked over a wood fire. We brought buckets of water in from the pond to flush the toilet. Got the driveway clear of wind-fall late Sunday. A two day job of raking and pitchforking into the truck. Finished with two heaping truck loads hauled to the burn pile added to all that we hauled on Saturday. Now we can drive out without worrying about catching branches up under the rigs. We will wait for a rainy day to burn the pile. It should go fast with all the fir boughs. I talked to one of the utility crew Sunday afternoon as they were wrapping up the last of the down power lines out on the county road. I was expressing my appreciation for their work and that I was looking forward to getting a hot shower before going to work in the morning. He said I should be glad we don't have PGE as they still have many customers out of power. I knew that as I have co-workers on PGE and they were still out. Spent Sunday evening getting everything up and running again. That hot shower was good. I hope everyone has power by now and is warm and snug.
Monday December 18, 2006 - 11:55pm (PST)
Monday December 18, 2006 - 11:55pm (PST)
Batteries almost dead, December 16, 2006
The dozen batteries have held up better then I thought they would. Voltage was at 11 volts this morning and the fans were still going. I shut down the fans to conserve the power, allowed the fire to go out in the fireplace and switched to heating with the wood stove in the kitchen. We still had enough battery power to run the TV for the news then shut it back down. The only things running off the batteries is a lamp that my wife is reading by and my laptop. I can't imagine it taking too much longer to clear all the fallen trees and string new lines. But then I have no idea how much more there is for them to repair. Coming home the other night there were all the usual lights on the surrounding hills. Last night I went into town and bought block ice for the fridge and freezer. It seems to be keeping things cool but not frozen in the freezer. As long as the food does not spoil. Today we raked all the fallen branches from the driveway. I had hooked an old metal bath tub on the blade of the tractor and we hauled several heaping loads of windfall to the burn pile. The old bathtub worked pretty good. Like a bucket that I could raise and lower. Only drawback is that I can't dump it without getting off the tractor and unhooking it. Have to still do some manual labor. At least it is better then a wheel barrow and bigger too.
Saturday December 16, 2006 - 06:34pm (PST)
Saturday December 16, 2006 - 06:34pm (PST)
The day after
Still no power. In almost thirty years here we have never been without power for a full day. It looks like it might be a few days before they can get all the downed power lines repaired on the road to our place. When I left for work this morning the drive from our home to the county road was buried in brush and branches as was the county road. We live about 10 miles from town and the first tree that was down was only a half mile from home. It took down the powerlines and two poles, snapping one in two places. I was able to work my way around that one and the next but the third was fully across the road and was wrapped with the power cables. I had to back track and find another way off the mountain. The backup batteries are still holding up. The fireplace blower has been going all day. I am amazed they are still putting out power. We are catching the news this evening with the TV running off the batteries. We baked some pizza in the wood stove for dinner tonight. We are doing pretty good actually. The only thing we don't have is running water. That means no toilets. I've got a shovel though. We've got a few gallons of drinking water set aside. My next project is to get one of my RV fresh water holding tanks mounted with a 12volt RV pump so we can have 40 gallons of backup water. I hope everyone was safe lastnight.
Friday December 15, 2006 - 11:42pm (PST)
Friday December 15, 2006 - 11:42pm (PST)
Stormy December 14, 2006
wind is blowing hard, trees are bowing to the Wind God. Crashes on the roof. Will assess damage in the morning. Power is out again, operating off battery back up power. Finished wiring the 110 volt inverter circuit to the living room by flashlight an hour ago. We have a light and TV so we were able to catch the last few minutes of Survivor once the inverter power was switched on. I have a few 12 volt lights wired in around the house to give light where needed and the back up blowers for the fireplace are 12 volt also. They are a lot noisier then the regular blower but at least we have heat. Everything runs off a dozen deep cycle batteries and a 2000 watt inverter. Not enough to run the whole house but enough to keep a few lights on, provide a little entertainment and heat. This is the first real test. We will see how long the batteries hold up. Speaking of batteries, my battery meter on my lap top says that it is about time to shut down. I hope everyone is snuggled in and safe during this storm.
Thursday December 14, 2006 - 10:21pm (PST)
Thursday December 14, 2006 - 10:21pm (PST)
Sunday December 10, 2006
What a difference a few weeks makes. Last time I posted it was snowing and we had about half a foot before it was over. Now it is raining like crazy, pounding on the roof. All the snow is gone of course. Still have some leaks in the porch roof to track down. Still have to find a way to rappel down the south side of the house to seal the glass on the top level. The beams around the glass are getting water stained and with my knowledge of RV's and how quick they rot when not sealed properly I am concerned we might have problems soon if I don't figure out a way to get out there and do it. Lots of small jobs to finish on this place.
Still toying with the idea of opening our home to another boarder. Getting my wife to go along with it would be difficult after an experience in the past (personality conflict). We have gotten used to the peace and quiet of just the two of us. The last person we had here was pretty good but not really into our lifestyle and was not comfortable with naturism. She was a friend that needed a place to stay for a few months so I tried to be modest for her but I would not want to live like that on a regular basis. Finding someone that would fit and like being out in the boonies would be the hard part. We are kind of private, low-key people set in our ways. I can't see someone coming in here without making a bunch of changes. With our open floor plan, that I am not willing to change, privacy is not much of an option. For the right person I would be willing to give up some privacy but not the openness of the house. A further drawback is that with me being gone all day my wife would not be comfortable with a male boarder so it would have to be a female. That cuts what prospects there are out there in half. The area that we have talked about letting someone use is part of the walk-out basement. It has windows that look into the woods. It is part of a big open room that we have divided with office partitions. My office is down there as well as the utilities and our storage. There is no bathroom on that level and the shower is on the top floor so there would be stairs to climb on a daily basis. It would be roughing it. I check out Craig's list now and then to see what people are looking for when seeking shared housing. I don't see anyone looking to live out in the woods miles from anywhere in a log home where modesty is hard to find. Most people are looking to live close to public transportation and want a private bath. They wont find that here. I think finding the right boarder (and convincing the wife) would be about as hard as finding the hiking buddy I am looking for. Hmm, maybe the right boarder would like to hike too. Naw, that would be pushing it.
It has been a quiet weekend spent indoors reading and checking up on e-mail. Watched Pirates of the Caribbean last night. Watched several hours of the special features first on friday night to see how they made the movie then we watched the movie afterwards on Saturday. We had seen it in the theatre when it first came out but seeing it on DVD the way we did was great. We got to look for all the parts they talked about in the special features. What an undertaking. I was impressed.
I am still looking at the Massage school option. I still have a few weeks to decide. A big decision. What happens if I decide I don't want to or can't do it anymore after spending $10,000 on school. Any money spent on school would have to be borrowed. And could I actually make a living with massage? I know people that have (including my Father-in-law) but could I? And yet I know I can't continue on with my current job forever. I have to find something less stressful where I am helping people feel good. I do like sharing my knowledge of RV's, perhaps I should write a book on how to maintain an RV. Well that is enough rambling. If anyone is reading this, I hope you have a good week. If I don't write before, have a great holiday.
Sunday December 10, 2006 - 11:26pm (PST)
Still toying with the idea of opening our home to another boarder. Getting my wife to go along with it would be difficult after an experience in the past (personality conflict). We have gotten used to the peace and quiet of just the two of us. The last person we had here was pretty good but not really into our lifestyle and was not comfortable with naturism. She was a friend that needed a place to stay for a few months so I tried to be modest for her but I would not want to live like that on a regular basis. Finding someone that would fit and like being out in the boonies would be the hard part. We are kind of private, low-key people set in our ways. I can't see someone coming in here without making a bunch of changes. With our open floor plan, that I am not willing to change, privacy is not much of an option. For the right person I would be willing to give up some privacy but not the openness of the house. A further drawback is that with me being gone all day my wife would not be comfortable with a male boarder so it would have to be a female. That cuts what prospects there are out there in half. The area that we have talked about letting someone use is part of the walk-out basement. It has windows that look into the woods. It is part of a big open room that we have divided with office partitions. My office is down there as well as the utilities and our storage. There is no bathroom on that level and the shower is on the top floor so there would be stairs to climb on a daily basis. It would be roughing it. I check out Craig's list now and then to see what people are looking for when seeking shared housing. I don't see anyone looking to live out in the woods miles from anywhere in a log home where modesty is hard to find. Most people are looking to live close to public transportation and want a private bath. They wont find that here. I think finding the right boarder (and convincing the wife) would be about as hard as finding the hiking buddy I am looking for. Hmm, maybe the right boarder would like to hike too. Naw, that would be pushing it.
It has been a quiet weekend spent indoors reading and checking up on e-mail. Watched Pirates of the Caribbean last night. Watched several hours of the special features first on friday night to see how they made the movie then we watched the movie afterwards on Saturday. We had seen it in the theatre when it first came out but seeing it on DVD the way we did was great. We got to look for all the parts they talked about in the special features. What an undertaking. I was impressed.
I am still looking at the Massage school option. I still have a few weeks to decide. A big decision. What happens if I decide I don't want to or can't do it anymore after spending $10,000 on school. Any money spent on school would have to be borrowed. And could I actually make a living with massage? I know people that have (including my Father-in-law) but could I? And yet I know I can't continue on with my current job forever. I have to find something less stressful where I am helping people feel good. I do like sharing my knowledge of RV's, perhaps I should write a book on how to maintain an RV. Well that is enough rambling. If anyone is reading this, I hope you have a good week. If I don't write before, have a great holiday.
Sunday December 10, 2006 - 11:26pm (PST)
Entry for November 27, 2006
First real snow of the year and it is still coming down. I know it is not as much as our friends are getting up in Washington and over in the Cascade range but hey, it's still snow.
Today I went to the Massage school and talked to the admissions folks. Not much support coming from my wife but I am pretty sure this is what I want to do with the rest of my life. I have about a month to decide. I love my job but I need something with a bit less stress. I have always enjoyed helping others feel better. My co-workers say I have the touch and have encouraged me. The big fear, and probably my wife's too which would explain the lack of support, is that if I can't earn as much as I am now we will not make it. We are going in the hole a little bit each month as it is. What's another $10,000 against the home equity anyway? Now that I really think about it, who am I kidding. I am 50, am I really going to be able to support my household by massaging people? It would probably just be better if I got a part time job to suppliment my day job. That or rent out a room or two. I doubt my wife would be very happy having roommates again. I have always had a dream of using our daylight basement as a day spa, letting people come out from the city, get a massage, use the hot tub and sauna (note to self, I would need to get a hot tub and sauna) and walk in the woods, sit by our ponds and reflect on their lives as they watch the fish. It really is a nice dream but if I was going to do it I should have done it a long time ago. I was pumped up when I left the Massage school today, I stopped by the county planning department and asked what I would have to do to use part of my home for a massage clinic. The guy gave me a stack of paperwork, wrote the application fee of $978 on the top of the form, told me to fill it out and bring it back with a check for that amount. He then said that all the neighbors would be notified and given a chance to object to the request for a conditional land use application. That kind of dampend my spirits then my wife's reaction kind of finished off my enthusiasm. What else is there to say. Good night all
Today I went to the Massage school and talked to the admissions folks. Not much support coming from my wife but I am pretty sure this is what I want to do with the rest of my life. I have about a month to decide. I love my job but I need something with a bit less stress. I have always enjoyed helping others feel better. My co-workers say I have the touch and have encouraged me. The big fear, and probably my wife's too which would explain the lack of support, is that if I can't earn as much as I am now we will not make it. We are going in the hole a little bit each month as it is. What's another $10,000 against the home equity anyway? Now that I really think about it, who am I kidding. I am 50, am I really going to be able to support my household by massaging people? It would probably just be better if I got a part time job to suppliment my day job. That or rent out a room or two. I doubt my wife would be very happy having roommates again. I have always had a dream of using our daylight basement as a day spa, letting people come out from the city, get a massage, use the hot tub and sauna (note to self, I would need to get a hot tub and sauna) and walk in the woods, sit by our ponds and reflect on their lives as they watch the fish. It really is a nice dream but if I was going to do it I should have done it a long time ago. I was pumped up when I left the Massage school today, I stopped by the county planning department and asked what I would have to do to use part of my home for a massage clinic. The guy gave me a stack of paperwork, wrote the application fee of $978 on the top of the form, told me to fill it out and bring it back with a check for that amount. He then said that all the neighbors would be notified and given a chance to object to the request for a conditional land use application. That kind of dampend my spirits then my wife's reaction kind of finished off my enthusiasm. What else is there to say. Good night all
Wednesday November 22, 2006
Due to conflicting schedules we decided to have our Turkeyday gathering tonight (Wednesday). It was good to have the kids up for a visit. Now that our granddaughter is old enough to communicate it was actually nice to play with her. I think my son was jealous as I rarely played with him when he was young. Oh, and I got to visit my Subaru too. My son says that he has found an old Buick for $1000 and once he gets it licenced and insured he will be bringing my Subaru back. It can't happen too soon as the Ford truck needs work and I am tired of paying for the extra gas it takes to drive that beast back and forth to work. After dinner we all had a nice visit and I played with the grand daughter. After they all left it got quiet in the house again. My wife's sister and her partner will be here through the weekend. I like them both but they brought their dog and it is still a puppy at heart, tearing around the house, finding things to get into it shouldn't. I used to be a dog person and always had dogs until recently rotating two. When one died we always went to the pound as a family and picked another. After the kids left home and the last dog died we chose not to replace it; more freedom for us to go do things as the cats take minimal care. Besides, all our dogs were outdoor dogs and I never had to worry about them knocking things over in the house. It will be an interesting and long weekend adapting to having a big dog running around in the house. I will be sorry to see the humans leave but...the dog? The cats have the right idea. I had not seen anything of them when I got home until I went upstairs to my closet and found one sleeping in there up on a shelf. Good hiding place, I thought about joining him. Hope everyone has a good holiday weekend.
Wednesday November 22, 2006 - 10:54pm (PST)
Wednesday November 22, 2006 - 10:54pm (PST)
Sunday November 12, 2006
Wet and windy tonight. Lights have flickered several times. The weekend started out good. My wife and I cleaned the chimney and got some more trim metal on the south wall on Saturday. Last night I topped off the electrolite in the back-up batteries and checked the inverter to make sure it is operational. This morning I brought in about 6 heaping wheel barrow loads of firewood to the wood box. We should be ready for almost anything now. As I was lighting the fire this afternoon the first blast of wind and rain slammed into the house. My wife says she saw it snowing when she was driving home today. I think winter is knocking at the door. Stay warm and dry.
UPDATE, lost power at 10:45pm, did not get it back until 6am, slept down in the living room as there were too many things crashing onto the roof of the bedroom. Did not want to wake up with a tree across the bed. Local road shut down due to timber across road, severed power lines.
Sunday November 12, 2006 - 08:57pm (PST)
UPDATE, lost power at 10:45pm, did not get it back until 6am, slept down in the living room as there were too many things crashing onto the roof of the bedroom. Did not want to wake up with a tree across the bed. Local road shut down due to timber across road, severed power lines.
Sunday November 12, 2006 - 08:57pm (PST)
Sunday November 05, 2006
Lazy, rainy, wet weekend. The rain really came down all weekend. A fine excuse to stay indoors and read my book. I have been reading the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and I am in the middle of book 4, The Shadow Rising. I am not sure why I like them. I don't like films where I know someone is going to be emotionally or physically hurt. (yes, I know I am a sap) I will get up and leave the room until that part is over. In the books I will put them down when I come to a part like that but my curiosity always gets the better of me and I pick the darn thing back up and read it anyway. Mr Jordan really is a good writer and they are good books. He keeps my interest. Other then driving over to the neighbors to take them their mail (temp mail carrier can't read numbers on the boxes) and burning the brush pile it has been an indoor weekend. If I had had someone to hike with I would have braved the elements though. Have a good week.
After
We have most of the south wall finished. Always more to do but the bulk of the metal is up now. We just have some trim work and sealing of the windows to do. Took the rented scaffold back Saturday morning. We can finish the rest with what we have. I have been spending so much time on the house that I have not been hiking. I know that I have flaked out on a friend that wanted to hike. I hope I will be forgiven.
Now I need to find someone that can refresh my skills at rappelling. I need to rappel down off the roof to seal the sloping windows on the top floor. It has been thirty years or more since I last rappelled and I can't remember how I did it. Maybe I need to go to one of those indoor climbing places.
Sunday October 29, 2006 - 10:37pm (PST)
Saturday October 21, 2006
More work on the south wall. Got the top run of metal almost done but the flashing was not ready unit today and they called too late for us to drive to Salem. Monday we will pick it up and finish the top row. Then the rented scaffold can go back.
Saturday October 21, 2006 - 09:16pm (PDT)
Saturday October 21, 2006 - 09:16pm (PDT)
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Went down off the mountain this morning to the big town of McMinnville to rent scaffold to put on top of our scaffold. Don't normally leave the homestead on weekends unless I have something really worth doing elsewhere. Of course a hike is worth leaving for. We are trying to get the upper level of metal on the south wall so we can return the rented scaffold before it costs us too much. Once the top part is done and the rental stuff is taken back we will finish the rest at a more leasurly pace. After hanging around like a monkey putting two more levels of frame work up I actually hung some metal. It went fairly fast once I got the hang of it again. Years ago we had installed all the metal on the roof but I had forgotten some of the little tricks to it. Found several areas up near the roof line that will require maintinence. I am glad we sprung for the rental scaffold, it will be easier to fix those high places. My wife was leaving today when I came back from town. She was going to a meeting up in Washington state and wont be back until late tonight. She missed all the 'fun' of putting the scaffold up. I had forgotten how hard it was to put it up by yourself. I used a rope and hook to snag the sections on the ground and pull them up then hung by my knees to get them set. As much as my wife hates heights she will join me putting up the metal tomorrow. I was scheduled for a hike tomorrow but this has to be done. I hope my friend will forgive me for flaking out on her. I hope she will let me reschedule for a later date.
Saturday October 14, 2006 - 08:57pm (PDT)
Sunday October 08, 2006
Spent the weekend at the coast with my wife, her sister and her sister's partner. Kind a lazy weekend. We don't have cable here at home and we spent most of the drizzly weekend over there watching movies on cable that I would not have spent money on to rent a DVD.
Friday I picked up the standing seam metal in Salem. I need to anchor the top of the scaffold so the ladder I will use to reach the top of the south wall wont tip the scaffold over. My wife wants me to install the metal in the areas we can reach from the scaffold then tear the long horizontal run down and rebuild it vertical, build a platform across the front of the house to roll the tall scaffold on to reach the top of the wall. I don't want to take the time to build a platform strong enough to hold three stories of rolling Scaffold when we have the scaffold currently set up two jacks tall all across that side of the house that will give us a uniform level place to set the ladder. True, I would rather not work off a ladder on top of scaffold but I can't afford to rent more scaffold to get any higher. Maybe I will call the rental place tomorrow to see what it would cost to get some more scaffold. If it is reasonable maybe we could get the tall part done in a few days and perhaps it won't cost all that much.
Monday October 9, 2006 - 12:16am (PDT)
Friday I picked up the standing seam metal in Salem. I need to anchor the top of the scaffold so the ladder I will use to reach the top of the south wall wont tip the scaffold over. My wife wants me to install the metal in the areas we can reach from the scaffold then tear the long horizontal run down and rebuild it vertical, build a platform across the front of the house to roll the tall scaffold on to reach the top of the wall. I don't want to take the time to build a platform strong enough to hold three stories of rolling Scaffold when we have the scaffold currently set up two jacks tall all across that side of the house that will give us a uniform level place to set the ladder. True, I would rather not work off a ladder on top of scaffold but I can't afford to rent more scaffold to get any higher. Maybe I will call the rental place tomorrow to see what it would cost to get some more scaffold. If it is reasonable maybe we could get the tall part done in a few days and perhaps it won't cost all that much.
Monday October 9, 2006 - 12:16am (PDT)
Sunday, October 01, 2006
We have been spending our time putting up scaffolding on the south wall. Yesterday we drove to Salem and placed the order for the standing seam metal to cover the wood on the wall. When we got home we installed flashing to be ready when the metal order is ready. It should be all cut by next weekend. It will be Kelly green like the roof. Hopefully once it is installed we wont have to worry about up-keep as much. The south wall takes the brunt of the weather. Today I will go to our daughter's to help with her kitchen cabinets then to a family gathering at my father's. I was hoping to get a bit further with the flashing but it will have to wait. Actually I was hoping to get someone to hike with me yesterday. I could use a good hike again. Last weekend was a good hike but it was enough to remind me of what I have been missing.
Computers, can't live with them, seems I can't live without them. Someday it would be nice to afford a system that works all the time. This lap top (Compaq Presario 1277) was a gift from my son-in-law to take the place of my old IBM 380ED. It was used but had a lot of features the IBM did not have - a big jump in technology for me. I have been slowly upgrading since I first bought a pallet of old 1088's at a state auction years ago. Tearing into them gave me the bug so I bought a well used 386. I cut my teeth on that one, relying on others that knew more. Slowly it was upgraded to a frankenstien monster tower with a AMD K6 mother board. I know just enough to get myself into trouble. I bought the first Lap top so I could spend more time upstairs with the family. I still used the tower for storage, printing and scanning. I have also cobbled together a network that connects my wife's computer with the basement tower and the laptop. For some reason the laptop is the only machine that can commuicate with the other two. The other two can't see each other. My primary reason for the network is to backup data on the other computers. Someday I hope to afford to get the laptop set up wireless. Figuring out a way to get faster internet and more then one computer on-line at a time is also on the agenda but all I can afford is dial-up out here in the boonies. The laptop has always had a habit of re-booting itself in the middle of something important I am doing but only about once a week or so. Lately the keyboard is acting up, keys not working without repeatedly hitting them, and I have had to hook up an external mouse as the built-in mouse sticks. Since the new mouse has been hooked up I am getting a lock up problem where even control-alt-delete won't clear it. I suppose that the problem is a setting with the mouse but I am an RV tech not a computer tech. I have to admit that even with all the glitches I complain about I am grateful that I have been able to gather together a system such as this. I could never have afforded anything like it if I had bought it new. I am content with being one or two steps behind current technology.
Sunday October 1, 2006 - 12:56pm (PDT)
Saturday September 23, 2006
Had a great day today. Hiked on Sauvie Island to the lighthouse at the NW tip of the Island with a new friend. It was a good hike and good company. After I dropped my friend off so she could get ready for work I went back out to the clothing optional beach at Collins Beach and enjoyed a relaxing remainder of the day reading and napping. What a great way to wrap up summer. Seems the Yellow Jackets were being a pest so one of the women on the beach made a yellow jacket trap out of a clear plastic jug. She put two one inch 'X' cuts across from each other about half way up and pushed the tabs in enough so a bee could crawl in then she put some beer in the bottom to attract them. When I saw the trap at 2 pm the beer was full of bees with more trying to get in. I heard someone say that it reminded him of the song "Hotel California". Anyway, it was a good day and I am content. Hope Y'all have a good remainder of the weekend.
Saturday September 23, 2006 - 09:32pm (PDT)
Saturday September 23, 2006 - 09:32pm (PDT)
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Spent Saturday cutting another new trail around the hill we live on. Goes from below the shop around to below the house. This one will take a little longer as there is more dirt to be moved. I want the trail to be fairly level and wide enough for two people to walk together so I had to cut into the bank. The little tractor’s blade has hydraulic lift and pivots side to side but does not tilt. The angle of the tractor on the hillside is the angle of the blade. I have found that if I hand dig a trench along the topside of where I want the trail I can cut the rest with the blade.
Saturday night I went to Dad’s to check on him, make sure he is all right. This afternoon I unloaded the truck and packed all of the scaffold down to the south wall of the house. Now I have to get the scaffold set up on a sloping hillside. I think I am going to make some vertical and horizontal supports out of 2x6 then do some bracing down the hill. With three sets of double high Jacks I hope to space them out to have planks the entire 40 feet of the house and at least make it to the second floor. Not sure how I will get to the third floor but it will probably be ladders on top of the scaffolds. The T-1-11 siding between the rows of glass is deteriorating and I want to skin the non-glass areas with the same green standing seam metal we used on the roof. I hope it all looks good when it is done. Actually not many people will see that side of the house unless they take a walk on the trail I am putting in. That side of the house overlooks the wilderness and valley. No one can see it because of the distance and the trees. The metal will also help if there ever was a wild fire to come up the hill. This morning I finished up book three of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. Kind of like a Tolkien story but different land, different creatures, different plots. All good reading. Another Good against Evil plot, Light against Dark. So many different characters weaving in and out of the story that it was hard to keep track of them at first but there is a glossary that defines words and explains who people are. There is also a map of the land like in Lord of the Rings. With his descriptions of the different peoples and the behaviors I think he might be making a few tongue-in-cheek social statements. Stayed up late last night reading then read in bed until noon today to finish the book. These are not books I would normally read but the writer tells a good tale, concludes enough in each book to satisfy but leaves enough unfinished that you feel compelled to pick up the next one. I see there are 10 books in the series, not sure I will keep the interest until the end but then I said that after book one and found I picked up boof two when I got curious enough about what happened to the characters. My wife borrowed enough of the series from a friend to get me through book five then I am on my own to find six through ten. Have not been watching near as much TV since I started reading again. My eyes are suffering for all the reading but my wife thinks that is hogwash. When I get off line here I am going to grab a quick bit to eat, take book four and settle in for a few hours of reading. I have not read like this in years. I just have to remember to put the book down early enough so I can get up in the morning for work without being too tired. Have a great week.
Sunday September 17, 2006 - 10:36pm (PDT)
Saturday night I went to Dad’s to check on him, make sure he is all right. This afternoon I unloaded the truck and packed all of the scaffold down to the south wall of the house. Now I have to get the scaffold set up on a sloping hillside. I think I am going to make some vertical and horizontal supports out of 2x6 then do some bracing down the hill. With three sets of double high Jacks I hope to space them out to have planks the entire 40 feet of the house and at least make it to the second floor. Not sure how I will get to the third floor but it will probably be ladders on top of the scaffolds. The T-1-11 siding between the rows of glass is deteriorating and I want to skin the non-glass areas with the same green standing seam metal we used on the roof. I hope it all looks good when it is done. Actually not many people will see that side of the house unless they take a walk on the trail I am putting in. That side of the house overlooks the wilderness and valley. No one can see it because of the distance and the trees. The metal will also help if there ever was a wild fire to come up the hill. This morning I finished up book three of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. Kind of like a Tolkien story but different land, different creatures, different plots. All good reading. Another Good against Evil plot, Light against Dark. So many different characters weaving in and out of the story that it was hard to keep track of them at first but there is a glossary that defines words and explains who people are. There is also a map of the land like in Lord of the Rings. With his descriptions of the different peoples and the behaviors I think he might be making a few tongue-in-cheek social statements. Stayed up late last night reading then read in bed until noon today to finish the book. These are not books I would normally read but the writer tells a good tale, concludes enough in each book to satisfy but leaves enough unfinished that you feel compelled to pick up the next one. I see there are 10 books in the series, not sure I will keep the interest until the end but then I said that after book one and found I picked up boof two when I got curious enough about what happened to the characters. My wife borrowed enough of the series from a friend to get me through book five then I am on my own to find six through ten. Have not been watching near as much TV since I started reading again. My eyes are suffering for all the reading but my wife thinks that is hogwash. When I get off line here I am going to grab a quick bit to eat, take book four and settle in for a few hours of reading. I have not read like this in years. I just have to remember to put the book down early enough so I can get up in the morning for work without being too tired. Have a great week.
Sunday September 17, 2006 - 10:36pm (PDT)
Still no hike but I got my exercise this weekend anyway. I get more accomplished by procrastinating than by doing what I need to do. I cut a connecting trail from the driveway down to the trail that goes to my shop road. Now I want to cut trails everywhere. For my nature walks. What I should be doing is getting more scaffolds set up on the south wall so we can install standing seam metal like we have on the roof between the rows of windows. The T-1-11 has taken a real beating over the years and I know that water has to be getting in all the cracks. 14 years of working on RV’s tells me that there could be internal water damage in that wall from lack of sealant. Here I preach to my customers all the time about maintaining the sealants on their coaches and I neglect my house. I hope it won’t be too late if I get it covered with the metal before the rain hits this year. It is just going to be a difficult job trying to work on scaffold 3 stories off sloping ground. When we built the place all of the scaffold was built out from the window openings, all the exterior work was done before the windows were set which were the last things to go in. The 27 sheets of thermopane windows are glued in so it would be impractical to remove them.
Sunday September 10, 2006 - 08:19pm (PDT)
Monday (Labor Day) September 04, 2006
So far this has been a pretty good weekend. I have not had any need to get dressed since Friday night, as we have had no company up here. It has been wonderful to have that freedom after wondering most of the summer when the roommate would show up; I kept my shorts close by. I have been able to go about my business here on our land without even thinking about needing shorts. I guess that is my dilemma in life – I like it both ways but can’t have both at the same time. I cherish my time when I can be free of clothing – which means that there is no company here but I also like to have company sometimes to have some camaraderie in my life. We don’t get much company up here in the boonies but when we do most folks just usually meld in with the harmony here and take in the peace, the quiet and, like us, just leave the world behind and relax. I love watching people make that transition almost as much as I love spending my time free of cloth. Of course there are a few people that can’t stand how quiet it is up here and are glad to get back to the hustle and bustle of city life. I had a couple of hiking opportunities that did not pan out this weekend and perhaps I might get a call today from someone I had written to that had posted on Craig’s list. I am not going to get my hopes up though. Also had a guy write asking if I wanted to go on a nude hike on a popular trail but I won’t do that. I won’t take the chance of meeting and offending textile hikers. I might enjoy our land and the Clothing Optional beaches in the buff but the thought of someone being shocked or offended by my body goes against my desire to help people feel comfortable. The bulk of society is not ready for nudity – yet. Hopefully someday but not yet. Actually I have been on a few very liberating hikes with my old hiking buddy where I felt she and I were secluded enough to hike bare but we were out in logging country on overgrown old skid roads where there was no recent signs of human activity. If the probability of meeting someone is even fair I will keep my clothes on. As I was saying, it has been a pretty good weekend. I finished applying the Olympic wood sealer to the West Deck and we got the last of the firewood cut up, split and stacked in the shed. We still need to get some wood in for the following winter but I don’t like to go cut and gather wood in this heat. The fire danger is too high. I would rather wait until later in the fall when the fire danger is lower. It worked pretty good last year to get a log truck load but we need to scout a place that has a lot of scrap logs laying about – enough to make a load and not too far from home to keep the cost down. There has been plenty of time for relaxing this weekend too. Spent some time out by the ponds reading my book and watching the fish. I am really glad we put in the series of ponds. They just add to the relaxed atmosphere here. After a long day at work I love standing at the railing of the deck watching the water flow through the streams and ponds. The sound of all the water moving, splashing, washes the cares of the day away.Dad seems to be holding his own. Friday night I had just got home from work, tossed my work clothes over the back of the couch and was getting a bite to eat when Dad called saying that he did not think he was going to make it through the night. Dad has had some medical problems and is at the state where if anything else goes wrong he just wants to be allowed to go. He wanted someone there to keep him comfortable that night. I told him that as he was across the valley it would take me at least forty minutes to get there. He said that nothing was imminent and to get some food before coming. I grabbed my work clothes from the back of the couch and took them up to the bedroom, found some clothes and got dressed to leave. I could not find my car keys. They had been in my work pants but were gone. My sister called from Sherwood to say they were heading to Dad’s also and would meet me there. Finally, after searching everywhere I found my keys had slide behind a cushion on the couch when I had tossed my work pants there. I grabbed a can of olives, a chunk of goat cheese and a package of crackers to eat as I drove down to and across the valley. When I got to Dad’s my sister was already there, Dad was resting comfortably. Soon three more of the siblings were there, five of the seven of us. Having us there seemed to rejuvenate Dad. One of my sisters got Dad some food and he was his old self again soon, joking and telling stories of the old days. He decided that he would be OK for the night, that no one needed to stay with him. The last few days we have been taking turns calling him to make sure that he is eating and is OK. He and I are alike when it comes to food. I will often forget to eat until I get to the point I get the shakes then it takes forever for the food I do eat to kick in and get my strength back. Like right now. I need to go get something to eat.…… Besides I have written more then I intended and more than anyone will want to read.
Monday September 4, 2006 - 10:34am (PDT)
Monday September 4, 2006 - 10:34am (PDT)
Addendum to August 28, 2006
That was the worse pain I ever remember, glad that is over. Had the 'procedure' this morning. In itself it was not too bad but the air they left inside of me was killing me all the way home. On the way home my wife hit all the bumps and we stopped at a few stores where I sat in the car in misery while she did some shopping. I told my wife that it was the longest trip home in memory so she speeds up taking the bumps on the country road harder. My wife joked that couldn't be as bad as labor pains. I think she was enjoying it but in hindsight I know that she had been trying to take the bumps easy but then realized that it might be better to get home a bit quicker. Why hurry? Don't ask, you don't want to know. It is bad enough that I bring up the 'procedure'. Everything is settled down now and I have eaten and have my blood sugar back up where it belongs. Good news from the tests though, I have a fairly clean bill of health as far as my intestines go. Still don't know what is causing the dull pain on the left side of my belly though. I am sure the GP will go over all the test results with me soon. Probably tell me it is all in my head. That is fine but I want to hear that I have the clean bill of health so I can stop being concerned.
Old roommate stopped by today for a visit, wanted to know why I was not at work. Told her about the 'Procedure'. She said that it must be done different now as she did not have the same problem. I am sure that it is different for everyone. She caught me out by the ponds watering the ferns when she drove up. Almost did not get my shorts on in time. It was too nice outside to stay dressed when I got home and got my belly pain under control. She is doing well and is settled into her apartment. She just has to find a home for one of her cars she has up here still and she will be almost completely moved. Still toying with the idea of opening our home up to someone on a more permanant basis but then start thinking twice about giving up the freedoms we have out here in the boonies by ourselves. I doubt there is someone that could really fit in here. We are fairly odd compared to the norm.
Monday August 28, 2006 - 05:25pm (PDT)
Comments(1 total)
Inspi…
Offline
Yucky day for you!! I don't know about labor pains, but I know I've gotten some cramps so bad I've almost fainted when I was younger! Never had to have that 'procedure' done...yet. I wouldn't look forward to it, either - aint nuthin that is supposed to go IN that particular OUT! You are much nicer about the stops along the way home than I would have been - I would have bitched and moaned about it so much my partner would no doubt get me home asap before I drove them insane. Be glad it is over this time around, that's for sure!
Monday August 28, 2006 - 09:36pm (PDT)
Old roommate stopped by today for a visit, wanted to know why I was not at work. Told her about the 'Procedure'. She said that it must be done different now as she did not have the same problem. I am sure that it is different for everyone. She caught me out by the ponds watering the ferns when she drove up. Almost did not get my shorts on in time. It was too nice outside to stay dressed when I got home and got my belly pain under control. She is doing well and is settled into her apartment. She just has to find a home for one of her cars she has up here still and she will be almost completely moved. Still toying with the idea of opening our home up to someone on a more permanant basis but then start thinking twice about giving up the freedoms we have out here in the boonies by ourselves. I doubt there is someone that could really fit in here. We are fairly odd compared to the norm.
Monday August 28, 2006 - 05:25pm (PDT)
Comments(1 total)
Inspi…
Offline
Yucky day for you!! I don't know about labor pains, but I know I've gotten some cramps so bad I've almost fainted when I was younger! Never had to have that 'procedure' done...yet. I wouldn't look forward to it, either - aint nuthin that is supposed to go IN that particular OUT! You are much nicer about the stops along the way home than I would have been - I would have bitched and moaned about it so much my partner would no doubt get me home asap before I drove them insane. Be glad it is over this time around, that's for sure!
Monday August 28, 2006 - 09:36pm (PDT)
Entry for Monday August 28, 2006
Not looking forward to today. I am going in for a 'Procedure', a colonoscopy. I have been 'cleaning out my system' this past weekend in preparation for it. Man, am I hungry. I have not eaten since Saturday night and can barely move under my own power. We did get a project sort of done this weekend though. We replaced a deteriorated porch roof post on the southwest corner of the deck as well as a few punky deck boards. Then we cleaned the west deck and began spraying on the Olympic deck stain. Six gallons was enough to do half the west deck so we need to get another bucket to finish that side of the house. The railings took more of the sealer (and energy) then I thought they would. At least I got the most weather exposed areas protected - the rest can wait until we can afford the next six gallons. That is one nice thing about having a wrap-around porch with a roof on it - most of it is protected from the weather. Time to head off to the doctors; in my mind I am dragging my feet, kicking and screaming - on the outside I am calm, cool and collected. I will be glad when this day is over.
Monday August 28, 2006 - 08:24am
Monday August 28, 2006 - 08:24am
Entry for Saturday, August 19, 2006
It has been a long week at work, as they all have been this summer. Seems everyone wants to travel and few have patience when their travel plans are thwarted due to a break down. I had to turn someone away yesterday because of a lack of parts and manpower to make the repair. I called to some shops on down his path and the answer was the same. Everyone is busy. (Did I hear that there was a fuel crisis?) I really regretted to have to tell him he would have to proceed without hot water. He seemed to understand, shook my hand for trying and was gone. Seems this is my life, half the people I deal with I see often and the other half I will only see once or twice as they journey through the area. I sometimes wonder of their stories and the lands of which they come and of which they go.
It is good to be home this day. My beloved wife comes home tomorrow. It has been quiet here this week. I was thinking that I might have a hike today but so far the person that was going to come up to hike the trails around here with me has not shown up. I thought perhaps the numbers on the mailbox might be obscured by brush so I went down and cleared it. On the way back I limbed up several trees whose branches were encroaching on the road down to the house. By the time I was done I had a pile I could barely drag down to the brush pile. I would grab the bottom branches of the pile and pull until they pulled out then put them on top and find new bottom branches. Good workout. Had my heart rate up pretty good. I guess I better go get some stuff done while I wait. Summer is passing too fast and there is still much to be done.
Saturday August 19, 2006 - 11:24am (PDT)
It is good to be home this day. My beloved wife comes home tomorrow. It has been quiet here this week. I was thinking that I might have a hike today but so far the person that was going to come up to hike the trails around here with me has not shown up. I thought perhaps the numbers on the mailbox might be obscured by brush so I went down and cleared it. On the way back I limbed up several trees whose branches were encroaching on the road down to the house. By the time I was done I had a pile I could barely drag down to the brush pile. I would grab the bottom branches of the pile and pull until they pulled out then put them on top and find new bottom branches. Good workout. Had my heart rate up pretty good. I guess I better go get some stuff done while I wait. Summer is passing too fast and there is still much to be done.
Saturday August 19, 2006 - 11:24am (PDT)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
