BlueDragonfly
Senior
- Location
- Florida
So pretty!
Our version of retirement: Living a childhood dream
- Thread starter Gary O'
- Start date
RadishRose
SF VIP
- Location
- Connecticut, USA
A wonderland.
Well, seems now that winter has established itself, I can plot my course
Mainly, tomorrow is burning day
Got a pile all tarped and ready
Pushing four years of poop
Straw, pine needles, and dry poop will go pretty fast, I imagine
Took a few pics today after raking the roof;
woody takes a break from trees
glad I tarped the Jeep
and wood piles
Folks down the path chided me on not cutting limbs back
I don’t mind fighting them a bit in the ice and snow
They provide such wonderful shade in summer
And, hey, we’ve all got the taker offer
Nobody seems to have the putter back oner
not sure why I tarped this
but
the bird houses I made seem to be doing their job
sorta
Mainly, tomorrow is burning day
Got a pile all tarped and ready
Pushing four years of poop
Straw, pine needles, and dry poop will go pretty fast, I imagine
Took a few pics today after raking the roof;
woody takes a break from trees
glad I tarped the Jeep
and wood piles
Folks down the path chided me on not cutting limbs back
I don’t mind fighting them a bit in the ice and snow
They provide such wonderful shade in summer
And, hey, we’ve all got the taker offer
Nobody seems to have the putter back oner
not sure why I tarped this
but
the bird houses I made seem to be doing their job
sorta
more pics;
the sunroom I mentioned will be at the edge of these trees
my decapitated 55 gal drum top is ready to receive a few rounds, snow or no
on the other side
an art piece fashioned by ol' man winter caught my eye
graphic (unpostable) thoughts flowed rapidly thru this decrepit mind
just calling it 'Frolic'
moving on
I'll be banging out pic frames in the shop
the sunroom I mentioned will be at the edge of these trees
my decapitated 55 gal drum top is ready to receive a few rounds, snow or no
on the other side
an art piece fashioned by ol' man winter caught my eye
graphic (unpostable) thoughts flowed rapidly thru this decrepit mind
just calling it 'Frolic'
moving on
I'll be banging out pic frames in the shop
There’s just something about after a new snow, and the freshly flocked pines framed by the bluest of skies
Causes me to stop doing whatever I’m doing
Have yet to regret the deliberation
Even an old snag is enhanced
Maybe that’s why it contains an avian room with a view
Causes me to stop doing whatever I’m doing
Have yet to regret the deliberation
Even an old snag is enhanced
Maybe that’s why it contains an avian room with a view
Thanks, SB
She’s rather aggravated at being limited
And has a few jabs of pain from time to time (‘to be expected’)
But, marked improvement
Meantime, we’ve never had whiter whites since I took over the laundry dept
I attribute this to the simple fact of my newly introduced knuckle scrubbing technique
…and that we actually have no whites
Heh, the deep set dark lines in my calluses have mostly disappeared
'nother week or so and I'll be doing commercials (mover over, Madge)
BlueDragonfly
Senior
- Location
- Florida
I love the snow........ in pictures....... from Florida. 
'tis, sir Jim
Last pic of the rick of rounds before I start pulling from it
Wood in is a nice feeling
…and laundry done (behind the stove)
The dried up plant doing an impression of a praying mantis is called mullein
The leaves can be smoked to cure a cough
Better yet, the flower part can be brewed into a tea
Good to see snow on the mountain…finally
Just as good to see smoke from the chimney after a long trek
Just the vision of a warm cabin coming within sight can heat up a soul after hiking in 0°F temps
a fire is kept all winter
Last pic of the rick of rounds before I start pulling from it
Wood in is a nice feeling
…and laundry done (behind the stove)
The dried up plant doing an impression of a praying mantis is called mullein
The leaves can be smoked to cure a cough
Better yet, the flower part can be brewed into a tea
Good to see snow on the mountain…finally
Just as good to see smoke from the chimney after a long trek
Just the vision of a warm cabin coming within sight can heat up a soul after hiking in 0°F temps
a fire is kept all winter
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Silly boy! :lol:
I never tire of seeing your pics Gary. You have a knack for capturing things most people wouldn't see including myself.
I bet that stove throws some serious heat. The stove I had at the old NH house was a Dutchwest with a catalyst, I could get that thing firing at over 1500 degrees. It would average 800 to 1200 degrees on a regular burn and run for a good 12 hours without any fuss. It could hold 4 to 5 21" logs depending on the girth. The stove was in the basement and there was a 3 x 3 capture hood above it with a standard heating grate in the floor above. It would heat the entire house which was 2000sq ft. Some days I'd have to open a window or two because it got too hot. I looked forward to firing that thing up on a Friday night when I got there and just relaxing with a cold beer in front of it. Sometimes sitting there watching the flames would mesmerize me.
This was the stove I had.
I bet that stove throws some serious heat. The stove I had at the old NH house was a Dutchwest with a catalyst, I could get that thing firing at over 1500 degrees. It would average 800 to 1200 degrees on a regular burn and run for a good 12 hours without any fuss. It could hold 4 to 5 21" logs depending on the girth. The stove was in the basement and there was a 3 x 3 capture hood above it with a standard heating grate in the floor above. It would heat the entire house which was 2000sq ft. Some days I'd have to open a window or two because it got too hot. I looked forward to firing that thing up on a Friday night when I got there and just relaxing with a cold beer in front of it. Sometimes sitting there watching the flames would mesmerize me.
This was the stove I had.
Might be due to being slower of foot
wait til you retire, Jim
(Retirement; no hurries, no worries)
Man, you got that right
That ol’ earth stove rocks this tiny cabin.
Bought it from a guy renovating his house
Beat out a guy from Alaska
Two hundred bucks, and a beast to move
It’ll take a 16” depth ways, and would imagine 21” width ways
I give it a belly full right before goin’ ta bed
Three or four med rounds, or five or six splits
It’s still firin’ when we get up, or when we get back from town (50 mi away)
The damper behind, and the fine tuning control on the side, get it where it’s comfy
If we keep it turned up, we’re opening doors and windows in very few minutes
Or, running outside, naked, gleefully making snow angels
It’s -10°F right now
Thankful to share the room with that beast
And yes, watching the flames turns us both into fixated zombies
aaaand, it’s our cook stove in this season, let alone heating our water
Funny, off grid cabin folks go a bit nuts with all kindsa tubular devices around their stoves to heat water
We just slap on a pot; hot water in moments
That stove was a steal at $200. There's something much more comforting to the soul when using a wood stove for heat. Even though handling and moving the wood was a fair amount of work, I miss it greatly.
A happnin’ lady expressed concern in a rep comment about the wood too close to the stove
Folks in other forums have expressed that same concern
Cabin folks, backwoods, cabin folks, know you can stack wood all around the stove, no worries
Some even lay unseasoned wood right on top, to dry out
But, a legit concern to those with conventional power
...and from 'authorities' that overthink most everthing anyone wants to do...in the name of building codes and practices
Insurance companies love it
I don't have cabin insurance
Sumpm happen, I'd just build another one
Folks in other forums have expressed that same concern
Cabin folks, backwoods, cabin folks, know you can stack wood all around the stove, no worries
Some even lay unseasoned wood right on top, to dry out
But, a legit concern to those with conventional power
...and from 'authorities' that overthink most everthing anyone wants to do...in the name of building codes and practices
Insurance companies love it
I don't have cabin insurance
Sumpm happen, I'd just build another one
'twas
The guy in Alaska wanted to wire $300 to hold it
The guy selling it wanted it gone...'now'
I complied
Used pipe laid horizontal to roll it onto the cabin floor before I put the walls up
Handling wood, along with drawing water, is my winter gym
'There's something much more comforting to the soul when using a wood stove for heat'
you won't get an argument from me
BlueDragonfly
Senior
- Location
- Florida
I've been reading through this thread from the beginning. I really enjoy your writing and love the pictures! You and the Mrs have carved out a good life there. And - I'm jealous - always wanted to see Crater Lake!
Wy, thank you, BD
Crater Lake is still here...waiting for ya
'course you'd need to stop by the cabin
Wife and I seem to be counting the days more and more lately, but we still got a ways to go. I just turned 55 last week. Uncle Sam says 67 is the age for us, but 65 is our goal and it's looking good to reach it. We are planning on purchasing our retirement home in 4 or 5 years in either Maine or New Hampshire, but most likely Maine, we just love it up there.
Funny you should mention Maine
Back in the early ‘70s my lady and I would thumb thru the United Farm catalogues.
If I recall correctly, Mississippi, North Dakota, and Maine had the most reasonable properties
Of those, I centered on Maine
100 acre properties were quite reasonable
Liked the looks of the terrain, and no poisonous snakes
And that was huge for me, as I have a deep aversion to snakes, any
But we settled on property in my home state
And, heh, this property reeks of the look of snake domain
However, none are here
Not due to cold winters (of which helps some), but due to the pumice content of the soil makeup.
Snakes hate pumice
And I love pumice for that very reason
And salute Mt Mazama (Crater Lake) for it
Gotta import soil to grow anything, but I’m good with that
So, sir Jim, yer 55
I suggest getting serious with the purchase of your haven if you have thoughts of building yer own place yerself
Took us ten years of pecking away at this property to get it livable
And, it was a weekend getaway for those ten years
Of which, we’ve pretty much gotten totally away now
….and not goin’ back
Well, my little paradise just took a bit of a turn
Paradoxical?
Maybe
Or just part of the deal
My pump froze
I’ve attended to the lore that just a bit of heat, a small lantern, will keep things unfrozen
Thought I’d overkilled that notion with a very small propane heater on 24/7
Not so
-10°F for two days can prove otherwise
Took three hours of high heat, via a large propane heater, to get water flowing again
This evening, at 8:30 pm
Other than the angst of a tree falling on the cabin, a water well gone south is king of any anxiety that may plague my mind in regard to living out
Or, of course, wildfire
It's the reason I know I'll never be smug about things
Living out in the sticks is a day to day thing
Tonight, I go to bed knowing the well water flows
Tomorrow?
heh, that's tomorrow...given to no one
especially here
Maybe that's why the present is so vivid, and not just something to get through
Guess I'll just have to wait and see what else winter has for us
Paradoxical?
Maybe
Or just part of the deal
My pump froze
I’ve attended to the lore that just a bit of heat, a small lantern, will keep things unfrozen
Thought I’d overkilled that notion with a very small propane heater on 24/7
Not so
-10°F for two days can prove otherwise
Took three hours of high heat, via a large propane heater, to get water flowing again
This evening, at 8:30 pm
Other than the angst of a tree falling on the cabin, a water well gone south is king of any anxiety that may plague my mind in regard to living out
Or, of course, wildfire
It's the reason I know I'll never be smug about things
Living out in the sticks is a day to day thing
Tonight, I go to bed knowing the well water flows
Tomorrow?
heh, that's tomorrow...given to no one
especially here
Maybe that's why the present is so vivid, and not just something to get through
Guess I'll just have to wait and see what else winter has for us
Aunt Bea
SF VIP
- Location
- Near Mount Pilot
Gary,
If you fill a couple gallon jugs with water and store them under the bed I can almost guarantee that the pump will never freeze again.layful:nthego:
If you fill a couple gallon jugs with water and store them under the bed I can almost guarantee that the pump will never freeze again.
layful:nthego:Gary,
If you fill a couple gallon jugs with water and store them under the bed I can almost guarantee that the pump will never freeze again.
thanks for the tip, AB
the critters under there will be grateful