New Stuff by the End of June

Somebody broke into our garage (actually, crawled under the main door that was partially open to let it cool down and I forgot to close it), and stole my new snow blower and stole my camera from the landcruiser. Thus, a new camera was required. It has lots of buttons and thingies and seems very complicated, but takes very nice pictures so far with many adjustments possible. The manual makes for interesting reading. It is an Olympus E3. All the previous lenses work with it.






Max is ready to go check it out, says "let's GO"







The kitchen counter tops are in. The island will require custom legs to support the overhang. The copper sinks look great, and the soapstone has great looking green
veins running through that look almost like jade. The island slate has the green grey hue that contrasts very well with the black highlight island cabinet. Unfortunately, everything has a thick layer of sawdust on it at the moment so you won't be able to tell, but trust me, it looks cool.





The carpenters have been slowly working on the trim work, building the "built ins" in the study, dining room and mud room. The study should be impressive, if I say so myself.



The study above. The back wall will have a desk top for the computer, shelves and cabinets. The ceiling has cross beams with can lights between and a spot for a ceiling fan in the middle. Below, the wall opposite the entry with shelves with a wood surround around the in wall studio fireplace.



Below, the dining room. On the left wall a built in cabinet with serving counter and sink. The fireplace also has a wood surround and will have a stone top hearth. To the right, window frames to hold (eventually) etched glass.



The front door and sidelight have been stained. There are about 5 coats of stain and several coats of polyurethane over that. I think they applied one coat per day. Lori helps give perspective to the size of the door (she's 5ft 1 in). The hinges will have to be well oiled, this thing is heavy!



And finally, the porches have been poured. We had the front smoothed in anticipation that we may eventually stain it. They look good, and for the front the facing will be finished with stone.




Above, the back patio under the main deck. Below, under the master deck.

Goodbye, Chapman

Once a dog has entwined himself round your heart
he is not only yours for life, but you are his.
When he is gone, his place is forever sacred.
Other dogs are just as precious
but they all have their allotted spot in your
affections kept for them or their memory.
A heaven without one's dogs
would not be the heaven we hoped for.
A dog is always man's best friend.
Written By: anonymous





Our little guy died a couple weeks ago. His appetite was fading and he was eating less and less, but he still was fairly active with us. On his last day he just couldn't wake up fully and arouse, and we had to take him in.
He sure was a trooper. When we first took him home, taking him in from a Brittany rescue, he had a limp and was taking some arthritis medication. That unfortunately just got worse and he needed a hip surgery half a year later. But it made a world of difference. He was relieved from what must have been a lot of pain, and got very active again. Like almost all dogs, he loved walks with us, our trips to the mountains where he ran all over and explored, the lot by the new house where he ran all over and explored, and especially the ride back and forth. He would share the window with Max, stick his head out and let his tongue flap. Sometimes the side of my vehicle was covered with slobber! He didn't like kids though, and almost got us in trouble a couple times by taking some "nibbles".
2 years ago he went blind and had a metabolic/hormonal disorder that slowed him down quite a lot. He adapted well, and learned his way around the yard and house. It was funny how well he could find his way quickly to the deck and door when he was called to eat.


He still loved to go for rides, and even though he was blind and sometimes even though he was out back in the yard, he knew when we were getting ready to go somewhere and wanted to go along. Unbelievably, if it was a weekend and I was home, both dogs knew to anticipate a trip to the new lot. Although Chapman couldn't run free, he seemed to liven up when guided on the leash and didn't want to stop. We had to settle him down and put him in back of the SUV just so he wouldn't wear himself out completely.
Chapman gave us many fine memories of his joy and companionship. Lori was very devoted to him, and returned the favor with incredible care and devotion, and Chapman continued to return the favor until the end. We miss him.



"If there are no dogs in Heaven,
then when I die I want to go
where they went."
Will Rogers, 1897-1935