Oh, I Almost Forgot . . .

You might want to make a mental note to yourself. If you ever need to dig a trench and you think to yourself, "no big deal. It's not that far. 2 feet down is not that deep. I have a shovel.", take that moment to punch yourself in the face and rent a trencher. Seriously. You DO NOT want to dig it by hand. Especially in winter when the ground is freezing and thawing in turn and the soil is 75% clay. It is a bad idea and you will cry.

The trench from hell. To China. Those are the electrical lines down there. They will soon be joined by water and gas.

Knock on Drywall

Looking from the living room into the guest bedroom

A view of the kitchen (and Matt!)

I am happy to report that by the end of the day all the drywall will be up! I am not going to post any more photos of the drywall because the rest of the rooms are small and all you see in the frame is just a shot of gray. Big whoop. There is no way a wall of gray in a photo can possibly convey what it really means to see it in real life. The inside of the house has skin on bones!

Look!!!!

Behold our completely sided Sister House presented in both sunlight and shadow for your viewing pleasure. The house is completely covered in siding and all the doors and windows are in and wrapped! The only thing left to do on the exterior is to lay down the decking wood and build stairs and railings to the porches and decks. The wood for that was delivered yesterday. I had to take a picture of the bundle because the label made me laugh. How's that for small town delivery info?

Insulated From the World

We are now insulated! Take a look out the windows and you will see that it happened just in time for the snowstorm!

Everything is starting to happen really quickly! I can't keep up on the blog. I am lucky to get pictures taken before the next contractor arrives.

It Snowed. Again!

I am almost embarrassed to make this post. Just spoke with my Mom yesterday and she and my Dad are digging out of a truly major snowstorm in Utah. These pictures are from last week. Our snow is gone now and we are enjoying some nice, sunny skies!

Beam Me Up, Matty (Ugh. Sorry bout that one)

Here we are putting in the post and beams that divide the living room from the kitchen. Tom and Kathy's friend Mick was also here to help but I somehow managed to crop him out of every shot! Sorry Mick!

Sorry about all the fairy dust in the picture. We had sawdust floating everywhere.

With Love to My Friends and Family

This has absolutely nothing to do with life here in Eggtown. But believe me when I tell you that I WISH this took place in my backyard! Thx to Jezebel for directing me to this post over at LiveLeak.

The Existentialist

Too much Sartre and Nietzsche perhaps?

Entering the Land of TMI

I believe I have mentioned in posts past that Audrey has the major hots for Russell. She seeks him out wherever he is and snuggles and licks him until he loses his cool and howls at her. As much as she likes Russell, I submit it is Quinten's legacy that she is carrying on. Audrey is a hunter extraordinaire. She has spent much more time outside over this cold and messy winter than the other cats combined. Now that the snow is gone we can count on at least one mouse a day from her. Here is the TMI part: This morning I was checking my email when I heard frantic squeaking coming from my slipper sitting on the floor by my computer. I looked down to find a panicked mouse on its back. Audrey spent the next 10 minutes or so batting and tossing it until the squeaking stopped at which point she ate everything but the heart and lungs. Quinten didn't eat that part either. I wonder why? Also TMI? The fact that we let her do this in the living space. You may call me nuts but I am kind of proud about what a good hunter she is. I like to encourage cat-like behavior in my spoiled brood.

Sheep, Sheep, Elk

The mail route was kind of beastly today. That is a joke. See, the mail truck was late and the mail volume was heavy and that made the day, how shall we say? Beastly! So to keep my spirits up while I was delivering I made a special effort to enjoy the "beasts" I met along the way. I must be out of my depression. A depressed person could not laugh at that joke. And yet, here I am chuckling as I write. Anyhoo, today I found these sheep particularly charming. Sometimes when I go past this property the owners have sheep dogs in training so naturally the sheep are running to and fro. Today they had some leisure time.

A little farther along on the route I came upon the neighborhood elk herd. They hang around on South Military and Roth road. We see them pretty regularly. Today they were right up near the road which is unusual and, although they spooked a bit when I stopped the car and aimed my camera, they didn't run, also unusual.On the next road I saw 2 bald (that's for you Drew) eagles circling over a field. Seeing bald eagles will never get old. I don't have a telephoto lens so there was no point in taking a picture. I have tried that before and only end up with smudges on a watery blue background. So, come to WA to visit and maybe you can see one too.

Just Because

Norah would like to know how your fingers taste.

Audrey would like to kill you in your sleep.

Who is That Blowing Gently Into My Ear?

Who is that blowing gently into my ear as I scrub mold off the Sister House ceiling with bleach water? If you guessed it was the house itself, YOU ARE RIGHT! We have electricity and a running heater in the house now! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS??? It means this time when I clean the mold off it will stay gone. It means that I can now stain and varnish the interior window sills. It means that the plastering of walls can begin soon. It means our funny little project that, if I am really truthful, I was starting to lose faith in, is moving along. It means the carefully assembled 2x4's and 2x6s that are sitting in the yard looking kind of house-like are really and truly a HOUSE! Praise be.

Clinically Eeyore

In no particular order, here are some things that both you and I missed while I was wallowing in depression:

Sunrise behind Mt. St. Helens taken just this morning as I was on my way to the dentist

Fog! We were socked in for 3 days. I took this on my mail route way up on a hill that would normally be well out of fog range, especially by noon when this was taken

The shingles going up on the house. We are farther along than this. I will post again when this section is finished

Our heating beast. All the ductwork is in now. As soon as I finish digging the trench for the electrical connection we can hook up and heat the house!

The great snow of 08, compressed, frozen and sliding off the roof destroying gutters on it's way. These pics were taken at 6:30am and after I took them I went and knocked the snow down so the gutters wouldn't get too mangled. It looks like the snow would just fall off when hit with a broom or shovel but it hung on and I really had to beat at it to get it to break!

South Military Road during the storm

South Military Road after the storm. Not many snow plows around here! These roads were a mess for many days.

Wilma! Created by Kathy and waiting to greet me when I got home from Utah on Christmas eve.

Raccoon visitors!

Stuck in Tom and Kathy's driveway on Christmas Day. My car wasn't high enough to clear the snow.

The burn pile awaiting the appropriately rainy day to go up in flames

Fraq buried. While I was in Utah, Tom came over and spent a day scraping snow off the driveway with the CAT and cleared off the mail car. Then it kept right on snowing and I ended up getting stuck in my own driveway the Saturday after Christmas.

Before we went to Utah I found a bat in the Sister House. This bat wasn't right! Matt and I took some video of it before we, uh, put it to sleep. With all the cats around it just isn't a good idea to let a sick bat run loose.

Speaking of cats, Lily was just diagnosed with FIP. This is BAD news. It is incurable and there is no way to know how she contracted it. It is possible that she may have caught it from the kittens or it may have been hanging around inside her dormant. It is somewhat infectious so we are now worried about the rest of the cats. The Vet suggested that we bring her in for euthanasia but we just haven't been able to bring ourselves to do it yet. Crap.

Western Washington is Buried!

I haven't downloaded any picture yet to share. Just wanted to mention that, instead of leaving Utah on Christmas Day like I planned I left on Christmas Eve. The forecast for Christmas Day in SLC looked awful and I couldn't risk getting stranded and not making it home for the mail route on Friday. I wasn't the only one desperate to get from SLC to WA. Check out this story. Drew found it and laughed out loud and the lengths people go to either get out of SLC or into WA. You decide which.

Douglas Charles Conrow

Most people who read this blog are already aware that Matt's dad passed away on Dec 17. We just finished writing the obituary so I thought it would be a good idea to post it here. Thank you for all your kind messages. I will be returning to WA on Christmas Day and returning to UT for the service on Jan 3. Matt will be staying in UT until after the service. I don't have much time to spend on the computer here in UT so I will write more about the experience once I am home.

Douglas Charles Conrow
Park City, UT

Doug was born January 26th 1936 in Big Timber, MT the son of John Moore and Ruth Ryan Conrow. He was raised in Butte MT and attended the Universities of Montana and Utah where he was a member of Sigma Chi fraternity. In 1964 he graduated with honors from the masters program in social work at the University of Utah and then returned to Montana to provide public welfare services and receive a promotion to the state director of training for the Department of Public Welfare. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) his career led him to working with families of the Shoshone and Bannock tribes on the Ft. Hall, ID Indian reservation where he founded the Ft. Hall Boy’s Club and left a piece of his heart with the people there. In 1969 he was recruited as Assistant Director to help found Weber County Mental Health Center in Ogden. In 1977 he became the Executive Director and for the next 11 years Doug was respected for his innovative programs, creative problem solving, and dynamic work environment. He was selected to be one of 25 mental health administrators (from 2000 applicants) to participate in an advanced training program offered by the National Institute of Mental Health. He held the title Diplomat in Clinical Social Work. In 1990 he moved with his family to Salt Lake City, UT where he continued his mental health calling through private practice psychotherapy and the development of programs at Valley Mental Health and the Utah State Department of Corrections. He was especially effective as a counselor in the mental health and women’s facilities at the Draper Prison. The common thread throughout his professional career was his belief in leveling the playing field and honoring the value of all humanity. In 1998 he retired to enjoy his family and friends as a resident of Park City, UT.

Doug’s way of divining the contents of a person’s heart and the careful and compassionate wisdom he offered as a mentor will be sorely missed by each and every person who knew him. Rare was the encounter with Doug that did not include his quick wit, easy laugh and generous hug. He had a great passion for lively discussions with friends and family and held to the belief that everything is better when complemented by unusual food and exotic creatures.

Doug was a restless and eternal questioner who delighted in the process of critical thought and in continually challenging conventional wisdom. He retained a sense of wonder and excitement at the world around him until the very end.

Doug passed away gently in his sleep at his home in Park City on the morning of Wednesday, Dec 17 2008. He was surrounded by family who sent him on his way filled with love.

A lively, old-fashioned, Irish wake was held at the family home on Saturday, Dec 20. He was well attended by family and friends, gathered to celebrate his life.

Doug leaves behind his wife, Nancy, three sons, John Conrow (Big Fork, MT), Mark (Jovita) Conrow (Ogden, UT), Matthew (Michelle) Conrow (Winlock, WA), and daughter Kate Conrow (Salt Lake City, UT), grandchildren, Tairah, Ashlee, Jace, Paige, Bryan, Damon, Chandler, Javier, Omar, Lance and Austin, and 5 great grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister Linda (Pat) McKissick and brother Steve Hancock, esteemed family member Dar (Win) Jensen, a circle of lifelong friends and his special feline companion Bronwyn. Doug is preceded in death by his parents.

The family would like to give special recognition to all the people who gave such extraordinary care and attention to Doug during his years of unexplained illness and his final battle with pancreatic cancer.

A memorial service will be held e on Saturday, January 03, 2009 at 12 noon at Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church, 4595 North Silver Springs Drive, Park City, UT 84098

In lieu of flowers, and to honor Doug’s commitment to research and helping others. the family requests any donations be made to Huntsman Cancer Institute www.huntsmancancer.org

It was the little things in life that made him larger than life.

Good Riddance 2008

I am going to go on record as saying that 2008 was not the best year for me. Sure wonderful, new, interesting experiences were had but, as the year draws to a close, I feel worn out and thin. As I write this Matt is in Utah with his dad who was overtaken with an incredibly fast moving pancreatic cancer. It was discovered the week after Thanksgiving and we are all fearful that he doesn't have much time left. And by not much time I am speaking mere days. So, between Grandpa's passing, Doug's failing health and some other things I don't feel like sharing, the last quarter of 2008 blows. I guess it is coloring my mental review of the whole year. I should go back and read the blog from earlier days to remember that there were jollier times. I plan to fly to Utah in the next day or two, weather permitting.

Here is a video that makes me laugh. I am going to be reciting the following over and over: I am the penguin. I am the penguin.

Here Come the Contractors

In September 07 we bought this tub. It is now finally installed in our master bathroom! The plumbers were here last week and we are now rough plumbed. Next step is heating. Installation of our heat pump begins Monday.

Pipes mean that someday I won't have to fill a pan with hot water from the shower so I can do dishes on the table and then dump the pan out in the yard. Today I did the dishes pioneer style because something is wrong with the shower and I can only get warmish water so I had to boil water for my dishes. Someday soon I will have a real kitchen sink! Yay to the tenth power.

And what of the siding? We are still working on it. Here is a shot I took this morning:

Thanksgiving in Toledo

Walker waits.

The family waits.

Our hosts, Tom and Kathy, slaving away.

I did not take any other photos of the day! It was exactly as a Thanksgiving should be: family and friends visiting while lovely aromas drift from the kitchen. This was our first Thanksgiving in Washington. The last 3 we were in Utah. I hope all our Utah families had a wonderful holiday. You were missed and loved.

Audrey & Norah Like to Wrestle (All Day. All Night)

The cats themselves are quiet, just a few meeps here and there as they try to tear each other's ears off or de-fur one another's tails. What is not quiet is the bang-clanking they do as they rip around the house trying to pop their spay stitches. They slam into the basket of cans for recycling. They climb through stacks of magazines sending them splatting down on the floor. They do their level best to tear down the shower curtain. They flip over and inspect every shoe and boot in the hopes of finding a left over mouse or shrew to lord over a rodentless opponent. And on and on and on. They are currently each "sleeping" with one eye open.