We're coming to the end of the season, and we still have a whole lot to do. We had plans at the beginning of the year to have the four way completed by fall, but between Jim's travel for work, and then COVID, we're a little behind schedule. So, the big push is now on...
Jim and Lowell are feverishly working on getting the electrical completed. This past weekend, the can lights in the loft went in - I am totally stoked! I think the biggest job with the loft was getting everything moved out of the way so they could actually get to the ceiling and run the wires... But, they got it done, and it's beautiful!
This next week, Jim and Lowell are going to be working on getting the septic system in. Jim has a plan to dig the hole over the weekend, and have gravel delivered in order to have the septic insert delivered and set in the hole. However, finding someone to sell us a load of gravel was a little bit of a challenge - and an amusing one at that...
You see, everyone in a small town knows everyone else and here's a story to confirm that!
When buying truck loads of gravel Jim found out that the trick is to buy it from a pit that is as near as possible to the cabin in order to keep the cost down. Transporting it costs more than buying it.
So, there's a gravel pit a few minutes north of Hatch or about 11 miles away from the cabin. Jim found out it was called the PCI pit. We never found out what that means. . . . But we did a little investigating. If you call the local coffee shop and ask the first person that answers the phone, she'll tell you that her "mom" has bought gravel from them, well sort of. She gives you a phone number and you call it. The lady on the phone says she has a phone number in her phone and she'll call Jim back in a few minutes with it. Thank you "Mom".
Well half an hour goes by and no phone call. So Jim calls back. Now a young man answers the phone and you explain the situation and he says his mom doesn't have any daughters, but wait a minute, he does know the girl at the coffee shop. Go figure . . . OK, now a few minutes later the original "Mom" calls back and tells Jim her name is Raquel. Now Raquel knows Phyllis and her husband knows Russell and he knows Curt and Bruce that works at the gravel pit. Really? Don't ask how Curt knows Bruce. So Jim calls Bruce and lo and behold Bruce is going to get his brother to deliver a truck load of gravel next Monday! Eureka! ! ! Jim was trying to explain the situation to me, over the phone, while I was at work, and, I couldn't follow it... But, the gravel is coming, and that's the whole story... giggle..
And, a sad story... we decided to sell Miss Beluga... She's been sitting down below the cabin for a couple of years, but, we felt it was time. We sold her to a waitress at a cafe in Hatch... she was looking for an inexpensive place, and this fit the bill. We made her a smokin' deal a couple of weeks ago, and on Sunday, Jim and Lowell delivered Beluga to her new home in Hatch...
And, here another visitor to the cabin... She didn't tell the guys her name, but I think it starts with an "SSSSSSSSS". I sent her picture around, to make sure she wasn't poisonous, and I've been told that she's a good snake - wouldn't harm a fly... well, let me take that back... she eats flies and bugs and stuff. So, we'll keep this one around. I don't ever want to see any other ones.. not welcome.
One of the projects over the weekend was:
1. Introducing Lowell to the backhoe
2. Placing the block for the retaining wall
3. Making sure Lowell doesn't have too much fun running the backhoe... giggle
Ok, #3 probably isn't in the list, but it seems that everybody that comes out to the cabin wants to play on the backhoe. So, Lowell got his chance and I think he liked it... ( I mean, seriously.. who doesn't like playing on the backhoe?) He learned fast and appears to have a knack for it.
Here's Lowell... so serious...
Now, doesn't that look pretty? Jim told me that when all is said and done, there are going to be about 200 of these retaining wall blocks holding back our mountain...
Monday morning: The truck with the gravel showed up, and we are now the proud owners of a load of 1/2 inch gravel. This will go in the bottom of the hole that has been dug for the septic tank.... it's a leveling thing... Jim calls this his.. "rock concert"... sigh... (engineer humor mixed with dad humor).....
This is the electrical that Jim was trying to figure out... and, haven't figured it out yet. It's for the three way switch in the loft. I guess it's ok.. and we haven't found the actual ceiling fan that goes into the loft yet, bur we're working on the wiring for that too. Jim says he thinks he needs some meter or something or another to figure it out.. and of course, the meter is here at the house in Provo...
The other night when Jim was closing up the cabin for the night, he saw a blue bird in the rafters of the loft. He figured that because he had all the doors open during the day, the bird must have flown in. The only problem was, he couldn't get the bird out. So, he locked up all the doors and went to bed, and in the morning, he opened up all the doors again, and, thank goodness, the bird found his way out. I asked Jim for a picture, but it was too dark at night, and in the morning, the bird took off before he could snap a picture. We have had a plethora of birds and bats spend the night with Jim... giggle...
I drove up to Ogden a couple of weekends ago for Bradley's birthday, and Melody gave me these pillows... I love them! She thought they would look perfect in the cabin and I so agree! I've taken a picture of the back and the front, so it's actually two pillows, not four!
This blog is actually going over 2 weeks not just 1, so this part is the 2nd week... so just go with it... COVID quarantine is playing with my head... not my lungs, just my head.
I picked up some brick a couple of weeks ago - I saw them on the Provo marketplace for free and they seemed to have a story... they are reclaimed brick, from an old, historic home in Provo that was being demolished. I picked up 40 bricks, but the lady didn't quite know the story, just it was from some old home from years and years ago. I hope they go with the bricks we have for the patio.... I would have liked the story...just wasn't available.
Remember how we started digging for the septic system...? Well, there is a story here... Part 1. The guys used the backhoe and dug and dug and dug trying to find the pipe that goes from the cabin to the septic tank, and it just wasn't there... so, they dug some more - still can't find it. We called a couple of plumbing companies to get their advice and we've had to set up an appointment with a plumber that has a line with a camera to figure out where the pipe went... We have come to the conclusion that the concrete guy broke off the pipe, and then put up the forms and cemented... so, the broken end of the pipe is buried under the basement floor. The plumber dude isn't able to come out for another week, so we are kind of in the lurch until he comes out... And, in digging the hole, it was at such an angle, it was no longer safe to have the backhoe balancing on its own, they had to chain it to the truck for stability... Kinda redneck, but it worked.
Part 2 - Jim found this pipe about 2 years ago.. didn't quite know what it went to, but he sure does now... it's the pipe we're looking for... yep, was snapped off... even though everyone is feigning innocence on this one...
Notice the crease in the pipe from a backhoe bucket.
Part 3 - And, while they were digging and digging and digging, a hydraulic fluid hose on the backhoe decided to burst, and the boys had to take a drive into town to buy another hose.. $75.00 in Provo; $126.00 in Panguitch... wow... When Jim sent me the picture, I immediately asked him, if he couldn't make it to the bathroom, or what? He didn't particularly think I was funny... He said his knee was leaking. (Mom humor this time, Jim wasn't funny at all)
Part 4 - Jim decided that he needed some outside advice and decided to call the people who oversee the mountain water system. He called Erik to see if he had a magnet or something he could run through the pipe that is inside the house, and then use a compass to track where the magnet was going to... that way, they will have an idea where to drill through the concrete to find the end of the line, without having to break up the whole basement floor... Well, Erik said he didn't have a magnet, but, he was a "Water Witch" and he would be there in the morning... excuse me? I'd heard of Water Witches before - but, didn't know they still existed... When I was a kid and we were building our house in Brampton, my dad had a Water Witch come to our property and find water for our well... I wasn't there, but apparently, he found water and the well was dug. This guy told Jim that if there is water, there, he'll find it. Who'd a thunk it?
Part 5 - So, Sunday morning comes, and the Water Witch shows up... he says there is water under the house, but according to his "witching stick" it is another 4 feet down... um... ok? Jim and Lowell have been digging this hole too long and just don't have the strength to dig any longer, and the backhoe can't dig on that hill angle, but this guy said he has a backhoe, and, in this next week, he'll bring his backhoe up (which has four wheel drive) and dig the additional 4 feet. Jim and Lowell had already poured about 10 gallons of water down the pipes to see if water would seep out somewhere around the concrete footing, and maybe this is what this guy is in touch with.. don't know... But, he's gonna show up in the city's special backhoe next week, and do us a solid. At any rate, we have kept the appointment with the plumber with the camera on the 13th, so, if the Water Witch doesn't find the line, we are hoping that the plumber will..
Sigh...
On another note, we had another load of retaining wall block dropped off, so the boys were playing with blocks again... I think they have one more load of block to get before purchasing the middle sections of blocks... I did learn that these blocks are just the top and the bottom sections, and if you want the wall to be taller, you have to purchase the middle section blocks... Apparently, I spent too much time playing with dolls when I was kid and not blocks.
And, every week, a trailer full of "stuff" is hauled to the cabin. Jim has started calling the one room downstairs "Cheri's warehouse"... I'm not sure if I particularly like this, but, it is fitting, I must admit. We have several storage buildings that have been housing our building supplies, and it's been my goal to get the biggest one closed out this year.. We are about 2 - 2.5 trailer loads left, and it's clear... I am stoked!
A couple of weeks ago, Jim was sitting on the couch in the great room, and a little "fuzzy body" poked it head out of one of the holes where a light is going to be set, in the hearth... Jim didn't know where it came from, but, it apparently was living somewhere in the floor joists. Well, last week, it made an appearance again downstairs, and Lowell got this picture of it... We are not sure if it is a large rat, or a squirrel, or what kind of rodent it is, but, it has vacated the premises at this point...
And, here's our Lowell... with his typical smile and good nature. I was thinking today, that it was just before my mother's funeral that we met Lowell, and we immediately liked him, and trusted him. Jim, Bri, Coy and I were going to the airport to catch a plane to Toronto for my mum's funeral services, and Lowell was driving us. He was going to drop us off at the airport and then drive back to Provo and drop off our van...... it was about halfway to the airport, with Lowell at the wheel, that we realized that we had met Lowell for the first time, 30 minutes before this, and we were giving him the keys to our little kingdom... and, we were really calm about it. Such an amazing addition to our family, an amazing dad to Coy, and an amazing support and partner to Brianne... So many thanks to him for all the help and work he's done on the cabin... been a blessing.
And, we close this blog edition with a beautiful sunset. It's been a crazy, wild ride and an incredible adventure. The roller coaster ride is something we won't forget.
The adventure continues.
Jim and Cheri
