...waiting... waiting...waiting....

Well, the 2019 issue of the "Me and Manzanita" blog has just been published and here it is...  I love the scenery on the front of the book, and, Brea's little note of "I em hape" seems to reflect the tone of last year.  We were so happy that we got the plumbing done, and a whole lot of extras completed.  I feel this year is going to explode with a whole lot of good stuff!

Jammie, at Alexander's Print, does amazing work putting this book together for me..... She always goes the extra mile to make sure it is arranged perfectly, and Jason, our account manager, oversees the project completely to my satisfaction.  I would thank the guys in production who actually do the physical work, but I don't venture back there too often, so I don't know who to thank.. Anyways, thanks to all involved.  

We're at such a critical point in the year... we are so waiting to get back to the cabin to work, but, it's too snowy/wet to get up the hill.. and it's driving us crazy.  On top of that, with this Corona virus, we're mostly stuck in the house and unable to do anything cabin-wise.  So, it's more frustrating than usual.  Jim has been working from home, but, that's not really possible for me, so I am still going in to the office.  Jim says he understands something a little more clearly.. like.. why dogs chew furniture and why animals try to run outside whenever you open the door... and it kind of concerned me this afternoon when I saw Jim, looking out the back door at a squirrel... and, I just know he was wanting to bark at it... Giggle...  (not really, but, it makes a good story!)

Before we were in quarantine, we found this cupboard/hutch... I didn't notice it in the store, but, Jim brought it to my attention.  I love it, and it will fit perfectly in the loft bathroom.  Jim says that he can see it filled with fluffy towels, and I agree.  Now, to buy some big, over-sized, bath towels.. and maybe, some big, fluffy, over-sized white bathrobes.. and maybe a few...  (I don't think I should go on... Jim is going to have a flip.. he knows what a good shopper I am!) but cautions me to just wait.

The next piece we found was a futon for downstairs.  I thought this was great, and what caught my eye was the fabric - covered in moose and bears... and you know what a sucker for moose I am!  We are trying to make sure everybody has a place to sleep comfortably... and, we figured this would be perfect for a couple of grandkids!  We purchased the futon, and were going to pick it up the next week.. BUT, then Utah was quarantined, and we couldn't get it for a week..  no big deal because we can't get down to the cabin.. We were given an appointment time when we could drive up and pick it up.. The store was not open, but pick up was...  It's getting weird here in Utah.

I found this little child's bench seat this week also.  It is about 3' wide and 3' tall at the top of the back.. perfect for a child.  I loved that there were all these animals in the back piece - elephant/monkey/lion... perfect for a child.

And, I was looking for a couple of bird baths... this wasn't quite what I had in mind, but, I think they'll  work ok...

I have several people who look for things for the cabin... they are trying to grasp the concept I have in mind... These are two plant holders... different...  Um... let's just leave it at that.... Giggle.  The one on the right reminds me something from the cover of an Atlas Shrugged book... not sure about these pieces.  Jim's even more not sure. . .

I saw this image from WWII and I thought it was appropriate in these "trying times"...  I'm actually kind of tired of that saying.. can't they come up with something else?




Last Friday, I saw this folding table and I thought it looked interesting.... thought it would be a great idea while we are still building.  I don't know if it was a good idea or not.. showed it to the "game warden" that I live with, and he just raised his eyebrows at me.. I guess that's a good thing.. if he doesn't purse his lips, I'm in good shape..Couldn't love that sweet man more.  I think I saw him pursing the next day. . .

Our Brianne continues to improve and get stronger every day.  She got her results back from her biopsy, and her tumour was benign and we are so thankful... She is so strong and such a fighter, I am amazed and humbled by her drive and spirit, and am thankful that I was given the unique opportunity of bringing this amazing creature into this world.  She continues to teach me.... she continues to humble me... she continues to make me a better person... She has a lot of recovery left, and, it is my hope and prayer that her life will get easier and her recovery quick... She has such tremendous support from her partner, Lowell and fan club with Coy as President.  I can not thank them enough... Small blessing.. my cup runneth over.

On a personal note:  A sweet friend of mine lost her husband last week, and I have been reflecting on her situation.  He leaves behind his beautiful wife, and a 10 year old daughter, and even though she has expressed that he will always be with her, and she'll see him again, I guess I am selfish and I would prefer to have him with her.. NOW... Such strength and such courage she is showing to everyone around.  I have no doubt that she will be successful in whatever she does going forward, and her little girl will grow up remembering her daddy, just because of the heart and determination they both have to be amazing women..  My hat goes off to her, and my heart is full.... Please remember my friend in your prayers/good wishes/amazing thoughts.

The adventure continues..

Jim and Cheri

PS:  Today is our 13 year wedding anniversary... when this cabin project started, I had no idea it would bring such fun and joy and annoyance and a thousand other feelings into MY life... I tell people to follow their dreams, and not to let their dreams die within them...  This is OUR dream - a couple of old farts building a cabin on the top of a mountain.. It's been an amazing experience working with Jim... we bring a completely different perspective to the building process... I know what I'd like, and Jim has this amazing way of interpreting what I want and makes it a reality...  He has his ideas too.  Usually a little more down to earth.  Sometimes, however, he looks at me like I'm crazy and just says, "no.. won't work".. and, I always come back with something about the Laws of Physics.. giggle..  It's been an amazing project and I encourage everyone to start your own project ... take your time, don't go into debt and have fun... I have fallen so crazy in love with my sweetheart before and after this project - I can't begin to express what's in my heart...  So, Jim..here's to you, with love.  Cheri

..still snowed out!!!

Well, let's lead with a current picture of Cheri's Heart!  It's still covered with a little snow, and the mountain isn't green, but it's still one of my favourites!  Jim made a trip to Panguitch with the HVAC guy and the plumber, with the downstairs furnace in tow... and, yep.. snowed out!  (Cheri's Heart is to the right of the picture of the mountain... brown on one side/white on the other..)

The roads going to the cabin were clear..  BUT, that's where it ended.....had to hike up the hill to the cabin and there was no way they could get the furnace up the hill to the cabin..!

It's kinda pretty, but I'm glad I wasn't there!  Too cold!

The cabin is still intact, but a totally snow covered driveway...

If you read our blog a week ago, you saw that I had found for Jim a small Japanese meat cleaver.  We still don't know much about it or the history, but, I found another one.  This one is from Havana, Cuba.  It's about 13" long total with a 7" blade.  Again, we don't know the history, but it's pretty cool..  Maybe 100 years old.

I was in a little shop a couple of weeks ago, and, I saw this set of Star Trek tumblers.  Something about them really appealed to me - maybe, it's because I was feeling nostalgic or something, so I bought them.  I brought them home, and Jim thought they were tres cool.  I think these are going to go into the downstairs kitchen.

As many of you know, we have a crazy cat that we live with, named Mokie.  We've had Mokie for probably 11 or 12 years...  He has this long, coffee colored fur, and he has made it clear that it's HIS house, and we are guests to serve him.  Well, Jim has always joked he wanted a dog - a golden retriever to be exact...  I am barely accepting the stupid cat in the house, let alone get a dog - a big dog... Big dogs have big licks and big poops, and I just can't deal with a big dog.  Anyways, when I was out and about last week, I found this ceramic Golden Retriever puppy... couldn't resist.  I must admit, puppies are cute.. but.... this piece is going to go outside the front door!

Moving on, we were having a problem getting the Tyvek and the siding and the deck on the prow side and the loft side of the cabin.  The biggest problem is that the prow side is three stories high, and Jim doesn't like heights or ladders... go figure.  So, we decided that renting a bucket truck would be the answer.  In researching this through, we found that with the money we'd have to spend per day to rent a truck, it would be smarter to buy a used bucket truck.. So, Jim went on the prowl and found one in Duchesne, Utah.  We took a half day off work last Friday, drove out and picked it up!  So, we are the proud owners of a boom/bucket truck!  First it was a backhoe, now, it's a bucket truck!

Jim hasn't tried getting in the bucket yet - that's the next step.. But, he's been playing with all the controls, and figuring out exactly how it works.  We were supposed to take it down to the cabin last weekend, or maybe this weekend, and drop it off... BUT, the weather wasn't quite co-operating with us...  There is still too much snow, and we wouldn't be able to get the truck up the hill..  Still gotta wait a little longer!

We were in Habitat for Humanity this past week, and we found this sink that would be perfect for the downstairs bathroom.. It was still attached to a granite counter-top with broken taps.... didn't look really good.. But, Jim was able to detach it from the counter-top and remove the taps, and, the sink looks absolutely stunning now!  Totally stoked!  I think it's going to go in the downstairs bathroom.

I was looking at the marketplace online and saw these two brass sun dial garden snails.  They really appealed to me.  I thought they would be super cute around the Jacuzzi.

And, when I went to pick up the snails, I found a frog... had to have it also!  No, I'm NOT going to kiss it - already have my Prince Charming.




And, I found a couple of camp chairs for the kids... These are teeny, tiny little camp chairs.  I think Ben or Westley will love them.

And, I found this collection of rollings pins that I think would look perfect in my kitchen!

Coy and I found this soap dish... When I picked it up, Coy was totally enthralled with the little birds.   He was counting all the birds, and describing their colours and what kind of birds they were.  This is going to go into the loft bathroom.  I took the picture with a $5.00 to show the size.

We are super anxious to get to the cabin, and the waiting is just about killing us.  We'll keep you updated....

The adventure continues..

Jim and Cheri