Sharing a Sunset

One of my very, very favorite things to do is to watch the sunset at the cabin. Whenever I can, I stop whatever I'm doing and head toward the lake. Over the years I've probably watched hundreds of them but I never get tired of it. Usually the wind and waves have settled down for the evening and everything feels. . . calmer. Tonight, it was just me and the sunset, so I thought I'd share. You can tell by the glow of this bench that it's a great place to catch the last rays of the day. (The people at my last job gave me a gift certificate as a going away present and I used it to buy this bench. I've thought of them many times as I sit and enjoy the days here.) Going . . . (This is the view from the bench. Steve added 20' more feet of dock making it 84" in length but it didn't gain much in depth for the pontoon.) Going . . . (If you start your sunset viewing on the beach, you can watch the sunset and then quickly climb the stairs to the mid-deck...where at that elevation the sun will still be up. After the sunset on the mid-deck, run quickly up to the top of the hill for the third and final sunset of the night. Steve and I have done the triple sunset this year. We're such dorks and I'm sure if the neighbors are watching, they think we're nuts! Also, it's not what I'd call RELAXING!)
Gone. And then there's the afterglow. When there are clouds, the colors seem to hang around forever. Like I said...I never get tired of it! Hope you had a great day!

Moving again?

Not too far this time...just down into the basement. Steve's mom was over yesterday and we moved a bunch of stuff into the basement storeroom. There will be plenty of room to store most of our things in there once we get some shelving up. There is still one end of the basement piled high with all kinds of things I need to go through and organize into bins such as scrapbooking and crafts, decorating stuff, christmas things, etc. After moving some things out of the main basement area, we rearranged what was left of the space into a livingroom/bedroom/kitchen/office style one room living area. If it sounds"cozy"...well, it really is. I haven't got the kitchen area set up yet, but downstairs there is a drain for a sink so I may be able to ditch the slop pail soon. I think I'm getting spoiled!
Today's plan is to head over to the cabin (it's awesome that it is only 16 miles away now!) to meet up with Mom and Dad. I'm going to help them get their camper ready for the season and it's a sure bet that we'll have time for a bon fire and a few Blatz. Patty, my new up-north neighbor, long time friend and "twisted sister", is going to come over and hang out with us too! It should be a fun day of rest and relaxation!

On my way to the outhouse...

...this morning, I heard loud squaking/squealing noices coming from behind one of the out buildings. I thought it was either a baby crow getting fed or some other animal getting eaten. Just as those two thoughts were passing through my head, I heard the growling. It was coming from an animal standing at the edge of the woods looking at me. I'm guessing it was about 40 feet away from where I stood. It probably thought I was going to take it's recently acquired snack. I'm not sure if it was a grey fox or a coyote. Once I was safely in the outhouse, I stood up on the seat and looked through the vents as it was still watching me. If I would've had my camera, I could've gotten a picture of it---but I don't think I need to start bringing my camera to the Johnny with me!This is a grey fox. I had one as a pet when I was a kid so I now what they look like but that was a long time ago. This is a coyote. I haven't seen one before so I'm not sure how big they get. The animal I saw was the size of a small dog/large cat.
After looking at these pictures more closely, I'm leaning towards it being a grey fox. I seem to remember the coloring in the face - maybe a little raccoon like. Also it was pretty small but then again it did have a very distinct black tip on it's tail like the coyote but grey fox also have black on their tail. I'm not really sure which one it was so I guess I'll keep my eyes peeled for future sightings.

Another week comes and goes!

I thought I'd make a list of everything I did this week because it just seemed so busy...again. I'd like to start with Monday but I'll be damned if I can remember what the hell I did. I know I was at Jenny and Nolan's...I think. See what happens when you don't keep track of these things. Just another day lost I guess. I must have been sitting around eating bon bons again! No, I remember going grocery shopping, laundry, and mowing the yard on Monday. On Tuesday I drove to Danube for a visit and met Heidi and Paul's neighbors at a little pot luck party they had at their house. Everyone was very nice. I love the different salads people come up with for these things. I'm not much for making them myself so it's always a treat for me. I spent Wednesday just hanging out in Danube. Of course Tanner and I had our 2 hour snuggle nap in the easy chair...he naps and I snuggle him! I also watched him (and Sleepless in Seattle...love that movie!) in the evening while Heidi played golf and Paul and Steve installed central air at Hotel Nyquist. On Thursday I hit the road for East Bethel to play Bunko. I took the scenic route, stopping at Fleet Farm (bought me some kickin' cowboy boots) then hit the second hand shops in Elk River for THE FIND OF THE DAY...hot pink pleather pants. What would I need them for you ask? To make chaps for the Flamingo Rodeo party at Countryfest of course!! I gave a big WOO HOO right in the middle of the Salvation Army when I spotted them. To top it off, at the dollar store I found flamingo foam hats and glasses, flamingo plates and napkins, bags of hot pink shot glasses and inflatable flamingos. Yee haw! After all that, I barely made it home in time for bunko. Marcy and I went out for a drink after Bunko and I didn't get to bed until two a.m. Luckily I was D.D. so I didn't drink, therefore, no hangover to deal with. Oh yeah...at the bar I ran into Nolan and his neighbor. We laughed at a really drunk guy and a bachelorette party as they tried to pole dance. Yes...Route 65 Bar has a stripper pole on the dance floor...classy!
So it's finally Friday...and it's really crazy how much stuff you can fit into one day. I spent my morning cleaning and doing laundry, getting supper in the fridge, packing up our things and starting out for Barnum. (I'm really going to stay up there now...for real...that's where I live now...it's official!! But first on my way to Barnum, I stopped at Lowe's to finalize and purchace my kitchen cabinets and I stopped in Bethel to check out Cassie's garage sale/fundraiser. Now I'm here in Barnum...and they lived happily ever after. The end.

My most memorable moment of the week: On Thursday as I was on a quest for used cowboy boots, I stopped at a little store in Buffalo Lake called Buffalo Bill's. It turned out to be a second hand store selling a lot of denim stuff, boots, belts, etc. The lights were mostly turned off when I went in so the lady who was working turned them on for me. She told me she was busy getting things cleaned up before her daughter got home. "She could be here any time. I haven't seen her for almost two years...she's in the military...she's been in Iraq." I clapped my hand together and told her how excited I was for her. She was beaming. She's popped into my head a few times over the last couple of days. I imagine their reunion was wonderful!

I'm Back!

It's been a long time since I've been on line. I feel totally disconnected! It's been so busy that taking time to blog or even getting on Facebook seemed like more stress than it was worth. At the moment, Steve and I are staying with Jenny and Nolan until we finally go up north for good. I think we'll be out of here this weekend. We have a graduation to go to on Saturday, and then it's up to the lake for a day or two. After that, Steve has some work down in Heidi and Paul's neck of the woods so I guess I'll be hitting the road again next week. (Steve working there is really just an excuse for a Tanner fix!) After that, "going home" will mean going to Barnum. (so weird!) Oh that's right, I have Bunko next Thursday so I'll be around for that too!

So what have I been doing? My latest adventure has been planning my kitchen for the house in Barnum. I've decided to get cupboards ordered from Menards or Lowes. Actually I've already decided to get them at Lowes because they match whatever deal I can get at Menards...and Cassie works there...and they're really nice to me. It's taken me several trips to both stores to get a plan that's just right. Now that I have both companies comparing apples to apples...I'll get the best deal. Some people have suggested getting custom made cabinets from a local cabinet maker but for me, the extra money (and time) doesn't seem worth it. Seriously, for as often as I actually cook, I'll never wear out a set of cabinets in my lifetime...and I really love the kitchen plan I have for the new house. The only thing I have left to purchase is my range.

Besides the cabinet thing, I've just been chuggin' along...trying to keep up with the business paperwork, still getting the last of our stuff out of our old house, would like to get over to Sadie and Mike's to help finish up the kitchen remodel, planning for countryfest, on and on and on it goes! Gotta love it!