Kingfisher Cove

Slogging

We were up late last night! Had a ball at the neighbors’ who hosted a fun cocktail party with other neighbors and some friends of theirs we met for the first time. It was interesting how the group evolved into all the women gathered together near the (ginormous!) Christmas tree and all the men at the hors d'oeuvres table. Later, after two of the couples left, the rest of us co-mingled at the hors d’oeuvres table and yapped our lips off for a couple more hours. It was one of those get-togethers when the time flies and everyone is having a ton of fun. It’s always interesting to hear of all their travels—these folks have (collectively) been all over the world!

This morning, John and Contractor-John were at it again with the excavator. They’d hit hardpan and were having a rough go at getting that area a little deeper and flatter. (However, it is certainly now the flattest spot on our entire property!) Our next-door neighbors (who had brought out the excavator from his equipment rental shop and partied with us last night) had to abruptly leave today because of a sudden illness in the family. Of course, soon after the neighbors left, John threw a track on the excavator and the tools to fix it are locked up in our neighbors’ garage. The Two Johns left a bit ago to make a trip into town to get a grease gun and a pry bar. (My John was a grumpy gus!)

Thing is, it’ll be dark in an hour. And even though I keep hearing how sunny and bright it is elsewhere, it’s been dark and gloomy here all day long. Grrr! I was soooo hoping for some color and brightness. It’s been one of the dreariest Decembers on record around these parts.

Sure looks different over there across the gully! (Again, click to embiggen—it will almost fill your screen with dirt, lol!)

Here’s how it used to look:

It’s not going to look pristine again in a long while:

On the Cusp

We’re at Harstine Island for the first time in over a month! I’d been rather dreading our arrival, knowing that I’d have to contend with a bowl of green salad I’d left in the fridge all that time! Ugh! (Can you say “stinky brown soup?”) Double ugh. John dispatched it (bless his heart) and then I had to wait for the hot water to heat up before I could wash the dang bowl.

Lots of tree branches strewn around—I know we’d had a few wind storms since we were here last—but the power hadn’t gone out. Unusual! Electronics are usually blinking when we arrive, regardless the time of year. Thankfully, John’s tarp installation over the trailer roof prevented any more leaks. (And managed not to blow off in the wind).

After we arrived yesterday, my friend Laura came to visit! Her dad lives on Harstine Island and she came down to see him. We hadn’t seen each other for several years and it was such a lot of fun to catch up!

And tonight we’re heading down to the neighbors’ for a pre-New Years Eve get-together.  I’m bringing my crab ball. (Oh num, they turned out so good!)

It’s quiet here (aside from dogs woofing at who-knows-what) and it’s cool/gray/drizzly, but John and Contractor-John are busy excavating the first foundation footprint of our house, after carefully surveying the area with John’s new laser survey tool. We hoped to sign the papers this past week for a full go on construction, but I’m not surprised that didn’t happen with the holidays. Bummer, because it’ll mean having to take time off from work next week to drive to Olympia to get that taken care of. It would have been so handy to be able to do it this week, since we are both off. (Nothing about this process has been a piece of cake, that’s for sure).

Looks a little forlorn around here with the seagrass all brown on the pre-beach. It’s going to be bustling activity beyond imagining in a short time.

This was taken right after Mojo climbed the big bird feeder trying to catch a bird! It’s been so long since he’s been here that he forgot the protocol!

They’re digging the hole for the foundation of the “box” on the far side that will anchor the “bridge” on that end. That box will also house some of the utilities and also provide storage for kayaks and other things. (See below—it’ll be quite a bit further back than it appears here):

And the sun is actually *trying* to shine! (Click any of these photos to view enlargements:)

Update:

I would say “groundbreaking has begun,” wouldn’t you?

Later:

That’s a lot of dirt!

Hysterical!! (cc: Helen!)

Thankfully, Mojo is not nearly so “emo!”

Wow! So THIS All Happened.

A blink of an eye (it seems) and it’s over and done. I was ever so thankful that John was able to replace and install the new dishwasher in time for company on Christmas Eve. We had fun, our little group of my brother, sister-in-law, and niece! Lots of food (lots left over, too), and presents! I got a new flat screen TV (19” – which is much bigger than the little 9-incher I had) for my get-ready area off our bathroom. And also a wet belt sander for glass! wOOt! John mostly got heavy-duty, work-outside, help-build-a-house clothing that should really serve him well. (Great site to purchase such things is Duluth Trading – excellent quality and top-notch customer service – highly recommend them).

Even though I didn’t put up the tree this year, it still looked quite festive:

Christmas Day, we headed to John’s folks in Tumwater for roasted duck dinner. (Oh, mmmmm). And get a load of this:

It was a White Christmas! The snow started right there at Tumwater and it sounds like points south (and in the Shelton area near—possibly on–Harstine) had quite a dumping. I honestly don’t recall having a white Christmas in these parts ever before. It’s definitely rare.

I didn’t take any pictures at John’s folks! His brother and his wife were there, too. I did think about it from time to time, but it just didn’t end up happening. It sure was a great dinner! I’m going to have to cook a duck one of these days. We like it a lot better than turkey.

We fell into bed early last night, mostly because we were taaaaard, but also because we had to get up pretty early this morning, because…the cleaning lady was due to arrive about 8:30. She comes every two weeks and we really prefer to not be here while she’s here doing her thing (typically we’re at work). So we left the house about 8:00 and went out for breakfast. We haven’t done that in ages, and it was nice!

And then guess what we did?

Yup, I said goodbye to my Bug! (I’m trying not to dwell on it too much because I’d have a major sad – I did truly love my Bug). But it was time, after 12 years and lots of recent headaches with it. I’d read that between Christmas and New Years was a good time to purchase a car, since dealerships are pretty hungry after a dead month of sales to meet their quotas. And we DID get a good deal! It’s a 2012 Subaru Impreza Sport, AWD, and it had been a loaner car so it has 14,000 miles on it. We had been considering Outbacks or Foresters (or even the Honda CRV), and I’d been reeling at the idea of spending $30,000 (or more) on a new car. It seemed that everything we researched ended up at that price. This was significantly less and very do-able. It’s not particularly fancy – I will miss the Bug’s leather seats and sun roof – but it’s peppy, plenty roomy, drives great, has heated seats, and it’ll get us up and out of our Harstine place when it’s icy or snowy (when we’re retired!) For now it will be my commuter car and I really wanted something that wasn’t too hurky since the parking lot at work has small spaces (plus I know that driving in Seattle on those narrow streets is terrifying with a big vehicle – it was when I had to drive the Durango when my Bug was in the shop).  So, this model is smaller than the Outback (and certainly the Forester). But still bigger than my Bug!

Did you know that my Bug didn’t have a CD player? I’m jazzed because this car does, plus I can also plug in my iPhone and play music from it. I did test out the CD player when I drove it up to the grocery store a little while ago. I’ve also studied all the controls and practiced with the lights, windshield wipers, heater, etc. I always feel like a dweeb for a while in an unfamiliar vehicle.

Heading to Harstine Friday for the weekend – we’re a little fluid with that, depending on weather. But we do have an invite at the neighbors Saturday night for a pre-New Years get-together. Should be fun!

OK, so now I need to STOP EATING ALL THESE NUMMY LEFTOVERS!!

Why Dachshunds Will Never Be Sled Dogs

LOL!!

 

That’s definitely Bailey in the front with the hound dog eyes and a squeaky toy!

Christmas Eve Day Delights

The dishwasher went kaput.

                    (Obviously not ready for company…)

 

After dealing with people at Lowe’s with the mental capacity of a box of rocks, followed by a few cuss words during installation (“manufacturers should have to install their own shit!”), we are back in business (whew!):

One. More. Day.

And then I’m on vacation until next year! You can’t even know how much I need a break. And here I am trying to cram a whole helluva lot of work-crap into these final days — man-oh-man, it’s nuts. (And my assistant has the flu!) I simply can’t wait until I walk out the door tomorrow night (who knows what time it’ll be?) and stop at Kinkos and hope to hell I don’t have to contend with those mouth-breathers (like I did last time) to drop off a HUGE, GIGANTIC project that absolutely must be done and final by then. I’m in pretty much of a panic knowing what all it will entail to get to that point. I’m at the mercy of so many other people, counting on them to do their part. Timely. It’s the complete lack of control of others that gets to me. I control myself just fine, thank you. (And yes, I always hated working in groups in school for this very reason).

If there is ever a time that I am bored when I am retired (2-1/2 years!), I will read back on these work rant posts and remind myself of how miserable the rat-race was. I envy people who truly “love” their jobs. I’m not one of them. I take pride in much of the stuff I do, and I like knowing that I make a productive contribution to society, but I question every single day if it’s worth it. It doesn’t pay enough for this hard, hard work and the constant, unending stress (and godawful commute). You don’t even want to know the details of my stomach problems.

Did I mention that I’m looking forward to my vacation? Eleven days, baby!

And Some Exciting News!

John took today off and ventured down to Olympia to meet up with our contractor, the structural engineer (to go over a few items on the house plans), and the bank. (He also stopped by to visit his folks who live in the vicinity!) All is good! Loan approval AND closing could very well happen next week! I’m not holding my breath about that because of the holidays, but for certain it will happen the first week of the new year. Not a single loose end—all systems GO!

YES, IT’S TIME TO TALK. NOW.

The following are quotes I’ve collected the past couple of days from various social media sites that perfectly illustrate my feelings in the aftermath of the horrific slaughter of 20 six- and seven-year-old children and their teachers and principal yesterday in Newtown, CT. 

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“If roads were collapsing all across the United States, killing dozens of drivers, we would surely see that as a moment to talk about what we could do to keep roads from collapsing. If terrorists were detonating bombs in port after port, you can be sure Congress would be working to upgrade the nation’s security measures. If a plague was ripping through communities, public-health officials would be working feverishly to contain it.”

~~~

“I am unwilling to accept that the price of freedom is the blood of our children.”

~~~

“If the 2nd Amendment says you're always allowed to own guns, the 1st Amendment says we're always allowed to talk about them.”

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“'Thoughts and prayers don't make anyone bullet-proof.”

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“The Second Amendment was never intended to permit mass slaughter.”

~~~

“How do you write an obituary for a 5-year-old? Then how do you write 19 more?”

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“It's easier to purchase a gun in America than register to vote. There's something wrong with that picture.”

~~~

“The Columbine discussion we deferred? When do we have that discussion? The Giffords discussion? Portland Mall? Aurora Movie Theater? When?”

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“9/11 was a terrible day to talk about airport security.”

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“ONE jackass tries to light his shoe & every American has to take their shoes off at airports. Mass gun violence & there's nothing we can do?”

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“We can't take a bottle of shampoo on an airplane, but somehow, it's crazy to think of regulating guns after 20 kids get shot dead.”

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“NRA just bragging on twitter that Florida now has 1 million concealed gun permits...chew on that.”

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“When the NRA is more important than the lives of our children, we as a society have failed. Every single one of us.”

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‎"Wayne LaPierre, President of NRA, should attend every one of those kids' funerals."

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“I won't politicize gun murder tragedies when the NRA stops giving money to politicians to prevent common sense gun legislation.”

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“The fear of a slippery slope leading from common sense gun regulation to the loss of hunting firearms is a fear that the NRA uses to sell its political agenda. It is false.” <--- excellent read, check it out

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“$1,000 per bullet. Tell me THAT won’t nip this insanity in the bud.”

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“NRA is the enabler of mass murders.”

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“Moral decay. School prayer. Mental health. Some want to talk about everything except the real problem: Guns, guns, and more guns.”

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“Why are conversations about mental illness and gun control mutually exclusive? …And for those of you who think now is not the time to talk about gun laws, I wholeheartedly agree. That conversation should have happened long ago. And it definitely should have happened before 20 precious children lost their lives.”

~~~

The Onion sums it up. (thanks, Kayakwoman)

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“FUCK YOUR GUN RIGHTS. KINDERGARTNERS HAVE A RIGHT TO GO TO SCHOOL WITHOUT BEING SHOT.”

~~~

So, you guys, THIS article from the NYT sheds the best light on the entire issue. Please read! If you have the least bit of common sense, it will resonate.

What Would Mojo Do? (!)

Just had to share this — I know Helen will be just as fascinated as I was!

(Note that as usually is the case, the HUMANS are annoying. Their voices are just inane while all this wonderfulness is happening. So, I recommend turning down the sound).

 

Tribute

My small tribute to my good friend’s husband, who lost his battle to lung cancer this week.

 

The Paint-Splattered Gray Hoodie

There is no cold vanity in a man who is good with his hands
Who is good with quiet matters of his heart
Who loves deeply,
Quietly.

Who is sometimes humbled at his fortune
Of landing that whip-smart tiny firecracker of a wife
And those daughters, those beautiful (whip-smart) daughters.

His girls, they bring on that fleeting smile,
His stories,
His take on things.
And they listen, they hear him.
They do.

In his paint-splattered gray hoodie,
(which he would have worn at his wedding if he could)
Who some say resembles Neil Young,
He dodges the superficial,
Spurns the small talk,
And embraces what matters.

He knows the structure of stairs.
He understands the art of stairs.
He is the master of stairs.

Stringer, riser,
Tread
Flight.

Sturdy, rough-hewn,
Connecting with his tools, with his work dust , with his lacquer,
At home in his paint-splattered gray hoodie,
At home.

Whatever path, journey, passage there is to heaven,
He built that stairway.