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Carla’s Niche
Avalon Journal
Copyright © 2006 L/L Research
Thursday, November 3, 2005
Hotaru’s Journal
Happy Birthday to P, Happy Birthday to P, Happy Birthday to P … Happy Birthday to P!
It seems like just yesterday I was asking “Where did my week go?” and here it is NOVEMBER! Where did my MONTH go?? Good grief! Alright, where were we? Hmmm …
Much of the past three weeks has hinged on the weather. Shortly after Kathy departed, the weather turned cold, with nights near and sometimes below freezing. Days remained reasonable—in the 50s—but we had about four straight days of drizzle that made the campfire impossible.
It became necessary, almost immediately, for P to move into the Shack. He took over the bed, and I set up my sleeping bag and cot in the office. Most nights P would stoke up a campfire outside, next to which we would sit and talk until it burned itself down to coals. Those coals we would shovel into a galvanized bucket, and carry into the Shack for the benefit of their radiant heat. The plan worked very well, making our little Sugar Shack comfortable enough to sleep. But, oh baby, it was cold in the morning!
My primary project has been (and continues to be) heating the Shack. We had pulled the old rusted stove out … P disassembled it and set to work on the long process of wire-brushing it as clean as was possible. I then sprayed all the pieces with black, high-temp stove paint, and we waited for them to dry. These days, without the stove and needing the paint to dry, were of course the wet ones. Simultaneously, I had marked the wall in the Shack where the new chimney would exit. Bear and P cut the hole, threaded the thimble and insulated chimney through the wall, set the T and end cap, and secured the outside chimney pipe to the wall.
P also helped me pull the old flashing up and off of the floor, where it had been nailed down. It was a backbreaking project to get those old rusted nails out of the floor, and took much longer than we anticipated. That done, we screwed down a 2x2 “fence” around the perimeter of the new stove site. The concrete pavers that would go under the stove were, of course, square … and the Shack is most definitely NOT. So, I had drawn out the block pattern on the floor, determined the necessary allowance for our out-of-square walls, and once the “fence” was down, proceeded to actually lay the pavers.
Our pavers were actually stepping-stones, meant for outdoor casual use, and not all the same thickness. I dumped sand inside the fenced perimeter, and spent the afternoon trying to brush it out from under the thick ones, and pile it up under the thinner ones … until I had a nearly level surface. More sand was poured over the top and swept into the cracks as a loose “grout” that will hold and radiate heat while protecting the combustible floor underneath.
Site prepared and stove paint dry, we reassembled the—now beautiful—little cast iron stove. P used a black, caulk-type sealant on the joints of the firebox, and I followed up with stove cement to minimize smoke leakage into the room. Then, Bear helped P get the interior stovepipe fitted and affixed from stove to chimney. It was a devilish little operation, very snugly fitted, and a fair amount of muttering was heard before it was ready to be cemented and called “done.”
At long last, we started a small fire in the firebox. Stove cement must be exposed to gradually increasing heat, to properly set it. Thankfully, we had at last reached a sunny, comfortable day, and thus were able to throw open all the windows. Not only did the cement stink, but whatever coating was on the stovepipe also stank terribly during that first fire. The paint didn’t seem to be a particular problem, overshadowed as it was by the other stink.
WE HAVE HEAT IN THE SHACK!! Whoopee!!
Okay … there is of course more to the story …
In the midst of all of this, Bear found that—for personal reasons—he needed to move out of D’s house and down into Avalon proper. So all of his spare time was spent packing and moving boxes—mostly to the storage unit and some here to Avalon. Moving his things into the Shed necessitated moving the tools again, this time out to his trailer which was parked nearer the Sumai site. Still, even though the roof of the Shed has been insulated, we would very soon need to have heat in the Shed for Bear’s sleeping arrangement.
Also, the solar inverter, charge controller, batteries, etc., are set up in the Shed. Batteries don’t particularly like to be cold, and their charge capacity dropped way off, leaving us with precious little power to run tools or computers … yet another reason to get heat out there!
Throughout the summer, we have been extremely aware of the hydrogen gas emitted by those batteries. No open flame has ever been permitted in the building. But, now, with the cold, the batteries were not emitting any gas. We acquired a propane heater and tank, and Bear set up the Shed with enough heat to keep it quite comfortable. And, as soon as the weather permitted, he and P got the batteries insulated and boxed up, so their gasses will be vented out of the building without ever becoming a hazard.
WE HAVE HEAT IN THE SHED!! Yay!!
We had thought it was the cold that caused our modem to malfunction. However, it seems—now that we’ve been through the frustration of figuring it out and getting it fixed—that it was something else entirely. It turns out a second person was using our ID and settings for their satellite internet access. As long as they were on, we were unable to connect. As of this writing—November 3—we have asked for a new ID to be issued. Tomorrow, we should finally be able to access our email again.
I ran out of foamboard, about 1 1/2 sheets short of finishing the ceiling. We went back to Lowe’s, and discovered they no longer carry that particular type. Grrr … After much futzing about, we found it at Home Depot down in Louisville. Tonight, we will drive down there in Bear’s gas-guzzling truck to pick it up.
This past week, the weather has turned warm again. It’s in the high-60s and occasional low-70s (though the nights are still chilly), and we’ve been overrun by ladybugs. LADYBUGS! They’re everywhere! Not just the “two-spotted” variety, the “nine-spotted” variety, or even the “spotless nine-spotted” (go figure) variety … the majority of them are “convergent” ladybugs. Whatever that means. The darn things bite, and they’re quite rude. They are constantly bonking into you, crawling down your collar and up your sleeves. It’s nearly impossible to pick up a tool without having at least two of them in your hand. They adore warm places, and have clogged my windows and curtains. Thankfully, they’re also dumb enough to crawl right into the woodstove—a perversely satisfying occurrence.
The warmth has also awakened the wasps … I found two in my underwear drawer this morning. Oh joy.
And so, we are launched into November. November! Do you believe it?
Wednesday, November 9, 2005
Hotaru’s Journal
Personal entry
I had a good conversation with Mother this morning. She called at 9:00 AM like clockwork, and we covered the usual bases: Who’s on first, What’s on second …
At some point we got onto the subject of Trust. She asked if I trusted her. I had to say, “Mostly … you talk too much. I don’t appreciate walking into church with you (when I visit) and having strangers come up to me to ask about something of which they should, by rights, have no knowledge.” We discussed it, and it was extraordinarily pleasant to be able to be honest without repercussion. She took notes (“close mouth”), and declared this was an area she could work on.
When I asked if she trusted me, she said, “Ahhh …” LOL. There’s a “no” if I’ve ever heard one, and I said as much. She back-pedaled and tried to explain it was not a lack of trust but a feeling that she could not share things that were dear to her heart. These things are deeply Christian in origin and she felt I was offended by them.
As I said, it was a good conversation. I am not, in fact, offended by the Christian faith. However, I do get my nose out of joint when a Christian declares my beliefs to be “wrong” and tries to “save” me. I don’t try to convert them, why do they insist on converting me??? We talked about terminology, about angels and guides, about devils and negative greeting, about God and the Creator … aren’t we all, around the world, trying to touch, to engage with, the same Mystery, each in our own way?
My world is magical. For me—personally—there is something unbalanced about declaring that I am a wretch and only by the pure mercy of another may I be worthy. Yes, I have a shadow side—I own my shadow. But, likewise, I have a great deal of light. Not all that is worthy is outside of me. I, in my own right, am also worthy. The Creator with whom I have a relationship is one equally capable of chaos and order. Like a river, with both depth and shallows, with both stillness and whitewater, the energy of my life is to be navigated, not negotiated.
Interesting thoughts, going into winter and the holiday season.
It seems appropriate, once again, to post a poem I wrote a little while back …
A FOND RIPPLECTION
A pond’s reflection () upon reflection,
Reflects in ripples (each of us) the One Creator;
We reflect upon ((we fondly ponder)) Creation’s myst’ries,
All the while, the Mystery (((our mirror))) fondly ponders us.
Thursday, November 10, 2005
Hotaru’s Journal
It’s chilly this morning: about 42 degrees (Fahrenheit) at 10:30 AM. The sun is shining out of a crystalline sky, the insects are quiet, the leaves are mostly fallen … and the lady bugs are STILL trying to fill the Shack. Unbelievable.
Another week has blown by … and I’m delighted to say we’ve accomplished a lot.
We found more of our foamboard down in Louisville—enough to finish the Shack—so we spent the gas in Bear’s truck to make the one-hour drive. We finished the foamboard in both the front rooms, and even finished the hardboard in the bedroom. WOW! What a difference it makes! When the temperature begins dropping, just a lighted lamp or candle makes a noticeable difference.
Monday was my bookkeeping day at Camelot. We had lots to discuss, so the books were started late. However, being the second week of the month, they were swiftly dispatched. I stayed the night and, while my laundry was finishing on Tuesday morning, I got the oil changed in my car.
I arrived back at Avalon about 1:15 PM. My cats had kept P up all night with their antics (how typical) … he had found it nearly impossible to work through the fog in his head, so Bear set him up to nap on the couch in the Shed. Yes—Bear’s couch has been brought out of storage and installed in the Shed. They must have had a day of it—rearranging the Shed and hauling that very heavy piece. Anyway, Bear was in the process of finishing the hardboard in the bedroom.
I must begin using a different naming scheme. We’ve decided to make one room “my room” and the other “P’s room” so that each of us can have some semblance of privacy and our own space to work. Mine is the room off the porch (the former ‘bedroom’), his is the front room with the front door (the former ‘office’).
So, walls covered, this room is finished, short of paint—which is not a priority. Next we had to move as much as possible out of the front room—P’s room—so that we could tackle the soggy floor. I say “soggy” because most of the boards are rotted, and several are just plain scary to stand on. This project was owned mostly by the guys (I played gopher and helping hand). They pulled up the patchwork by the front door and discovered gaping holes underneath. They cut the worst of it out, leaving the beams. P crawled underneath the floor, examined the beams and the fallen foundation, and reported back. He and Bear arranged—with the help of hammer, jack, and crowbar—to shore up the Shack with concrete block and pressure treated lumber. That done, they cut and fit lumber to cover the hole and re-create the floor by the door.
Yesterday, we went to Madison to acquire enough plywood to reinforce the entire floor in P’s room, as well as enough hardboard to cover the walls. Since Bear moved down here, his little half-pint refrigerator has been hard-pressed to contain our food. We also picked up an Avalon refrigerator—mid-sized, power-friendly, easy-on-the-budget. (Chuckle) We also bought a baby-gate to keep my cats penned in with me at night so that P can sleep.
I spent the afternoon shifting things about, P put the floor down, and Bear fitted the new back door (going out to the porch). No more holes or broken panels! A little weather-stripping and we’ll be snug as a ladybug …
Left to do: insulating the ends and crevices of the Shed, installing sweep-plates under the doors, hardboard in P’s room, silicone in the perimeter of the floor (where we currently see daylight), insulate the door to the back storage room, figure out why my computer no longer speaks with my camera (I promise to add pictures to this journal as soon as possible) … the work continues.
But, first, I think that I shall go sit in the sun and warm up a bit.
Saturday, November 12, 2005
Hotaru’s Journal
It was 18° when I arose yesterday at 8:15 AM. Wow. Now that’s a cold snap. It makes it difficult to get motivated … you don’t want to get out of your sleeping bag, you don’t want to take off your pajamas, and you certainly don’t want to put on real clothes that have been cooling their threads on the porch all night. Brrr!
But, I was scheduled to work offsite all day, and thus I needed to do all of that and scrape the frost off my car. Thankfully, my stepfather kindly had the heater fixed in my car last winter. Funny thing about a Mustang … a $35 part costs over $400 in labor to install. Sheesh. Anyway, my car was warm, and I was MOST grateful.
Roman was here yesterday … it looks like the guys got all the remaining pipe installed in the access road. They also appear to have split a lot of wood down to woodstove-friendly-size.
It’s still early in the day today … we’re taking advantage of sunlight to process our email and get online for a bit. We expect to spend the afternoon finishing hardboard in P’s room and addressing the last of the issues in the Shed. We still need to vent the batteries and apply the final seal to their box, need to get insulation poked in the cracks where the walls meet the ceiling, and more insulation up on the end walls of the upper level.
Oh … the baby-gate seems to be working well to keep the cats off of Parnell at night. Neither of them is a jumper, so they—surprisingly—don’t just hop over. We can leave the doorway between rooms open to allow heat through, and still keep the cats penned. There’s something perversely funny about using a baby-gate with cats. LOL!
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