Another Lifetime to go

19th August 2023

It was the Aldi shop run with the same annoying people getting in my way with their massive trolleys and ample bodies blocking the isles. Despite all that, we managed to get most things we wanted, we even looked in the meat section but chose not to buy anything, mainly because it was multi country sourced.

Then it was off to Natures market with buy the rest of our weekly produce. They of course have all the heathy foods, so we stocked up on those. This is the only place that give a discount for seniors, which is the main reason for Kelli bringing me along. I get presented at the checkout like a voucher, and “zip!” Ten percent off.

Kelli was determined to finish the latest dresser and I wanted to make a lattice floor for the drawer boxes I’m making for Elaine. This is to allow for air flow when storing fruit and vegetables. I had some oak that I cut into strips and laid them out in a jig, it took a long time to do, but it turned out okay.

We managed to squeeze in a bike ride, there was a breeze blowing off the lake that followed us around, no matter which way we went the wind was alway in our faces, funny that.

18th August 2023

There was the early morning dash to see if any eggs were outside the gate of the house on South shore. Luckily there was, I loaded up a fresh dozen into my panniers and engaged warp drive. I passed the same lady three times, once on the way there, my speed blew her hair backwards, then again on my return

This blew her hair forward, I bet she thought “bloody hooligan”.

I rushed inside with the eggs telling Kelli to pay for them, I then had to go to the corner shop for red potatoes which is where I passed the lady again, her hair was having a busy time.

There were many things to get done today, including a bike ride and priming another dresser. I continued work on the commissioned drawers.

I also had to drive to Menards to buy wood glue and epoxy resin, I was scraping the bottom of the barrel on both. I had extended the legs on the dresser but ran out of epoxy to bond the extension piece, that was the first job done.

We went out for an early dinner at New Holland, it was Kelli’s idea, we wanted to test out our new renewed taste for meat.

We both had a double cheeseburger, for me it had been five years since I had one, and it was like greeting an old friend. Kelli enjoyed hers although she didn’t eat the bun. She couldn’t eat all of it, her plate was covered in ketchup, it looked like roadkill.

Both of us were full and needed a walk with the dogs to settle our stomachs, it was a fun change to our routine, and I hope we can do it more regularly.

17th August 2023

It was a wet start to the day with a good old fashioned thunderstorm so we had to eat breakfast indoors.

We finally took the bar stools out of the truck. Kelli had called Larry about doing a repair to one that had a cracked tack welds.

I took it over, Larry was inside his barn puffing on a cigarette. Several months he had given up because he had been rushed to hospital with breathing problems. This had frightened him so much that he stopped smoking immediately, but he looked ashamed when I called him out on it. I guess he made his own decision.

He switched on his mig welder and after a couple of flashes, it was done.

I took them back and got some pictures and Kelli posted them, hopefully they will sell fast.

I got on making the drawer boxes for Elaine’s Florida kitchen. Because the sides slope I had to make sure that the angles were cut correctly, had one close shave, but everything ended up correct.

16th August 2023

After a terrible night where we both got about an hours sleep, we had to drive to Zeeland for Kelli’s doctors appointment. We both felt like death, but somehow got through it.

The sleeping problem is often associated with the condition that Kelli is going through, and her doctor is trying to balance her hormones.

There was a question that she didn’t want to ask, but it related to the whole red meat thing.

I had raised the topic with her after watching an interview with a dietitian who said that we need the nutritional benefits of meat, and gave an example of the North American Indians who ate every part of the animal they killed.

I have alway supported the way we chose to eat, although the smell of the barbecue always stopped me in my tracks, but if Kelli should have this nourishment she should consider it.

So she asked the question.

Her doctor’s eyes lit up, “Absolutely yes” he said, and listed off all the benefits it would give her.

Over time we had added eggs and fish into our diets because they had the nutritional advantages over supplements, so adding in red meat in limited quantities would help her more.

“It should be grass fed, not grain” he added.

This is because American grain is crap and laced with chemicals, another reason why we don’t eat bread.

This seemed to go down well with her, her daily intake of supplements is, in my opinion is excessive and it gets quite expensive.

So we stopped off at Natures market on the way back and found some grass fed ground beef that we could make into burgers, which is what we had for dinner. It’s going to take of re-adjusting but if it helps her heal and get back to normal it will be a good decision.

On a personal point, I was stung by a wasp. It has been years since I last had an encounter with a Jasper. I walked into the shed to find a piece of lumber when I was attacked and stung on the forehead. I had noticed a small nest developing in the doorway but I thought if they didn’t bother me I won’t bother them, unless the nest grew too big.

So with my forehead throbbing I destroyed the nest and cursed loudly, it hurt and I could feel a swelling coming on. I was scared that my Neanderthal ridge would expand resembling a character from Star Trek, thankfully it didn’t.

15th August 2030

Kelli had bought a couple of bar stools from an Italian person, we guessed he was Italian because his name was Giovanni. He wanted to meet at a storage facility in Holland, there are many places like this that have sprung up around Holland blotting the landscape.

He came to meet us at the gate by driving his vehicle right up to the wire, this caused the gate to slide open very slowly which was ironic because there was a warning notice on it warning of injury and death. Judging by the speed it went you could be bored to death waiting for it to open. We drove through following Giovanni to his lock up. He was a short, thin man with a strong Italian accent (we were right)

Front and centre were the two bar stools, one needed a bit of repair, so we will call on Larry to help there.

We loaded up and headed for the gate, it slowly opened, my life flashed before my eyes, then we were out, and heading back home.

Apart from those, the room was empty, hardly worth renting one unless he parked his vehicle inside and slept in it, which is a cheap place to live.

Kelli didn’t have a very good night, waking at five thirty, so she was not her best.

She managed to give a second coat of paint to the desk pedestals and helped me reassemble the desk parts. It is a vast improvement over the original, the owner should be impressed.

I stripped the top of a walnut dresser, but I don’t think I can save it as there is some sand through areas, so still thinking about that.

14th August 2023

Heavy rain was forecast for most of the day, I just managed to get a couple of hours on the saw cutting.

A neighbour stopped in to say hi, I had not met him before, but he had brought a piece of wood with him. He was a friend of Larry who lived across the street, so he must have directed him over to me.

This piece of wood came from a boat he was restoring, it had a bleached stain on it, and he wondered if I could suggest a way of getting it out. I said the best way was to run it through the planer, which I did. After a couple of light passes the mark had disappeared so he was delighted. He then went on to tell me about his kitchen and how it was a typical 1950’s style that he wanted to update. I gave him a few suggestions, but I didn’t expect it to turn into a project. All the time I was hoping that the rain didn’t start as I had a few more planks to run through the saw. Eventually he ran out of thing to talk about, but I’m sure he will be round again.

Kelli had the desk pedestals to prime, just as she started to spray, the sky opened up and the rain was torrential. This was needed, the ground was very dry, but couldn’t it be at night?

13th August 2023

It was a trip to the garden centre because it was their annual Pansy dollar sale. This is where customers can exchange the Pansy dollars they have built up with purchases throughout the year, in other words a loyalty scheme. We had built up quite a stash, so Kelli wanted to use some on new plants for the front garden. Now the system works like this, each customer has to spend money then this is discounted fifty percent with the Pansy dollars. So I had to spend a hundred dollars to save fifty, if I had stayed in bed I could have saved even more.

On returning home we had a customer collected the dresser that was posted yesterday.

After a bike ride to water the plants on Dave’s grave, we drove down to Elaine’s to go over the drawing for the doors and drawers for her kitchen in Florida.

We searched through her barn for timber that I could use to build all the stuff, and found lots of materials that were salvaged from old pallets that her late husband had stored.

I couldn’t wait to get home and run the stuff through the planer to see how good it was.

After several passes they looked great, and of course the dust bag filled up quickly, I can always tell because all the wood chips gets thrown back at me .

12th August 2023

Shopping day has come round again, we gave the dogs the last dregs of their food, and our meagre breakfast was a reminder that were were down to the wire. I think this is just perfect, no waste and no surplus.

It was a bit of a late start, the weather forecast was not good, so rather than getting wet, we waited, but the rain failed to materialise.

We wanted to get the latest dresser finished and on Marketplace today, that just meant screwing the knobs on.

We had someone on it straight away and will pick up tomorrow.

We had some pool time, but the water was colder than yesterday, I’m sure it’s good for us, but it takes courage.

I am quite pleased that the back lawn has survived all the dog piss that ruins most grass. I now watch where they go and drench it with water from the hose, this has worked, although the dogs are getting used to me walking behind them with the hose.

11th August 2023

There was more revealing information regarding Trumps involvement in the January Sixth insurrection, the main stream media are all over it gleefully dissecting every detail.

I have reduced my intake of them because the bias is so blatantly obvious. Another person has thrown their hat into the presidential race Cornel West is standing for the Green Party and this is causing all sorts of problems between the Republicans and Democrats “ We can’t have a third party” they cry.

We took a bike ride that took us past the deserted farm house, and surprise surprise work is starting on it. The roof has been stripped and a rotten deck has been removed. We will make a weekly trip to watch progress.

We sold the project dresser, and it was collected and out of here.

Kelli then started on the next one, this had a laminate top, so some masking and a paint job and that should it. I had made a new drawer for it using some scrap materials.

We also managed a dip in the pool, the water was cooler than we like, but we gritted our teeth and got in, it was great as long as you didn’t move.

10th August 2023

It was an eventful day, which meant getting up early for breakfast and out on our bikes.

Today the old James De Young power plant was due to be imploded. Built in 1939 it housed two coal fuelled boilers that supplied power for seventy eight years closing in 2017.

We joined the small crowd at Kollen Park, one of the closest viewing places waiting impatiently for the nine o clock event.

The time came and went, there was disappointment, I had shot a lot of video, mainly of peoples head with no idea when the action would happen. Kelli reminded me that she didn’t like standing, I explained that the English are used to standing in queues and to stop complaining.

After about thirty minutes it happened, no warning, just boom, and no video, a bit of an anti climax, but the demolition team had done a great job. By placing the explosives on one side they blew out the supports causing the building to fall on its side.

Now it was all over, and the crowd slowly dissipated, we got on our bikes and headed home, I couldn’t help thinking that with a bit more explosive they could have transported it into the scrap yard next door.

The rest of the day we spent trying to make the project dresser look more respectable. The top and side panels required vast amounts of filler to flatten out the dips and gouges. There were times when we almost gave up, we had to get more paint, but gradually the finish improved and so did our spirits, we had done the best we could.