Scubaddict

It’s interesting to me that I come up with some of my most creative ideas around 4am.  Wild ideas that weave themselves into my dreams becoming more and more real until I finally wake up with a happy, gitty glow wondering how far I am from my hot glue gun.  It’s so HARD to talk yourself into going back to sleep when you realize that you have all of the supplies on hand to create that one of a kind masterpiece.   I didn’t realize at the time what use I would have for those big metal washers or why I decided to spare the biggest Razor Clam shells from the trash heap.   But it’s all clear to me now… at 4:09 am!   Now I just need to figure out how to get the extra gold glitter off my fingers before I need to scratch that itch at the tip of my nose :0)

I love the Puget Sound area because of the moderate temperatures and lush, green landscapes from all of our rain.  So I’m sure you can understand why Ben and I are really tired of this arctic weather we’ve been having this week.  

It was warmer this morning when I left for work ~ 17 degrees.   Ben took a shower last night only to find that the plumbing system under the motor home is frozen solid when the water wouldn’t drain out of the shower.  There’s nothing worse than standing in your own dirty water! Yuck!!  He put one of the space heaters under the coach to thaw out the line but I didn’t stay up long enough to see if this solved the issue.  I think I’ll be taking my shower today at LA Fitness…

In hind sight, I guess I should have cleaned these brushes last weekend!

I’ve got two more days to wrap up several big projects at work so that I can spend most of next week with my Mom.  She and Nathan arrive on Monday night from Raleigh, NC.  It’s been 4 years since they’ve been home  ~ WAY too long.  But I guess time flies when you’re retired and have so many places to go and see.  This weather better warm up for them next week or I may not get them home again for a really long time!

12/09/09 Living Room windows

It was 11 degrees when I left for the office this morning!  Bbbrrrrrrr…. Ben spent most of the day yesterday re-wrapping our motorhome and wood shop water lines with insulation and a heating coil.   I had running water this morning to make my coffee so Ben did good!

I just got a call this morning from a good friend who needs my help later this week shopping for something very important.  Can’t say more than that yet, but I’m very excited!  I should have BIG news to share soon once the “secret” is revealed :0)

2009 Christmas Cards

I spent the last few evenings addressing 175 Christmas cards.   If you didn’t get one it’s only because I don’t have your current address (so email me your address!).  

In retrospect, I should have unwrapped and fired up the gas fireplace while I was writting.  My propane heater was soon out of fuel, leaving my fingers too cold to continue writing.  

We have a neighborhood party coming up this Saturday night called “The Walk Around The Lake”.  We will walk around the lake with 25 of our neighbors visiting 7 different houses, including ours, for snacks and beverages.  It should be a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to getting to know a few more of our Lake People.   I’m still trying to decide on what to serve… definitely Cheryle’s Smoked Salmon dip and maybe Bailey’s & hot chocolate.  The weather forecast says SNOW for Saturday but when do “they” ever forecast snow correctly in Seattle?

Thanksgiving Dinner 2009

Our Thanksgiving Dinner this year was a little  more interesting than usual.  The turkey was cooked on our outdoor smoker, sides were cooked on the camp stove and homemade apple pie in the motorhome convection oven.   It never stopped raining all day so we were glad to finally sit down inside where it was warm and DRY.

All 3 Jackson boys work on the wood shop

I’ve been meaning to do this for about… 2 YEARS!  My brother John was kind enough to get everything set up for me and all it took was a little insomnia to finally get me started on this photo project.

It looks like it’s going to be another cold Winter in the motor home.  Our water line to the coach froze up last night as the temperature dipped down to 22 degrees… Brrrr… 

11/12/2009 - the new shop door

11/20/2009 testing out the new boiler system

After spending 5 years remodeling our house in Tacoma, we’ve decided it’s time for our next challenge ~ to build a brand new house and wood shop on the shores of Lake Bonney.