Different sore muscles

March 1, 2007 (6:01pm)
30º F, Yuck!, E wind 14 mph, gusting to 40 mph.

Good afternoon,

I started this at the noon hour break for lunch. At least I put the matrix up - then I took a nap. I have been moving snow all day. The weather continues. At present we are in the middle of another winter storm warning until 6:00 A.M. tomorrow morning. The bad stuff is still coming - freezing rain turning to more snow. So far we have gotten about 6" of new snow. The weathermen are predicting anywhere from 6-18" of snow, depending on which one listened to. I expect we will get a couple more inches before morning. No idea how much rain, but sure ain’t looking forward to it.

We finally got out of here on Tuesday afternoon about 3:30 P.M. Missed Bible study, but did go to Green Bay for some necessaries. We did cut it short though as we both were very pooped. Margriet found a shovel that fit her hands, so helped at the road end of the driveway, while I shoveled the driveway from this end. Lots of fun? The snow was so wet, that it really is tiring to move. I was surprised with the first shovelful that there was about 2" of ice on the surface of the snow, having frozen over night. From then on it was a process of "cutting" a chunk of snow, about the size of the shove, each time. Lots of work. Of course the plow had piled the drift into the driveway and in front of the mailbox on the other side of the road. Margriet got really grumpy about that! She hasn’t lived in the country during the winter to get the "hang" of how the snow plows work yet. It will come.

We have put our Environmentally Correct Armstrong Frozen Hydrogen-hydroxide Lifter/Mover to rest and replaced them with a White Spitter. With all of the snow we had and the forecast of more to come, and thanx to a favorable Euro/dollar exchange rate, we decided to get a snowblower. It was my intention to get one Tuesday, but I guess I had not made myself clear, so when we walked into Fleet Farm to get one, Margriet was totally surprised and had not taken enough money out of the bank for that kind of a purchase. I have been looking at them for the past couple of years, but really couldn’t justify the expense of one. One I really liked was at Fleet Farm, but when we got there - they were out of all snowblowers! Wonder if the current weather conditions had anything to do with it? Guess it was not to happen, for two reasons Tuesday.

Wednesday we went to the bank and got the necessary funds and headed for Green Bay to find a blower to buy. The weather really had much to do with supply. Every place we went - the were out except for very small power brooms. We stopped at a hardware store, one Dale had done business in years past, and they had the one I had been looking for. It was about $30.00 higher than Fleet Farm and the last one they had. We took it!
One thing about buying the last one, it is out of the box and set up. All I had to do was fill the gas tank and pull the starter rope. That was a big plus, since we would be unloading it at the end of the drive near the road. We could not drive into the house yet. I was able to unload it alone, thanx to my appliance store experience, and pay some attention to the details before gassing it up and spitting white.

Much to my surprise, it started on the first pull of the rope. Didn’t even have that happen on the machines I had set up a Dale’s most of the time. After letting it warm up for a bit, I headed to the house. It was the first time in the 10 years of FISKLAND, the quiet solitude of winter was broken by the snarl of a small engine. Feel a bit guilty about that as I really liked the idea of not having that happen. Oh well.

The machine is a White Outdoor Products manufacture (actually made by MTD) with an 8.5 hp. engine driving a 26" two-stage blower. It is probably the biggest walk-behind blower I have used and it sure do spit the white. It also has electric start (from a 110 v. extension cord) and a head light. Have not needed the electric start, but that may change with the weather turning colder. I do want to put a switch on the headlight as I really don’t need to use it during daylight. If I ever do use it at night, then I can turn it on. I did lower the wear skegs, but need to drop the more. It is interesting when the poplar leaves ball up under the front of the blower raising it up and causing it to climb to the top of the snow. I have not used the fastest 4 speeds of the 6 available yet, but expect when the snow is not 18" deep, that may change. The chute is really cool being controlled by a joy stick for elevation and rotation.

Over all, the White Spitter works better than I expected. It sure do work well. I have been on a learning curve to figure it out, but think I now have most of the quirks figured out. After getting home yesterday and the machine set up, I was able to clear the entire driveway. That is fast! I didn’t have a place cleared out at this end to turn the van around, so left it at the road last night. I did solve that problem today as well as clearing the additional snowfall. The wind is really causing havoc today.

I think all of the schools in this part of the state are closed. Expect they will also be tomorrow. The schools in Green Bay are closed as well as all of the colleges and technical schools too. There are a lot of folks enjoying a snow day or two - again. When we went downtown Tuesday, every block in the downtown district had a snow pile about 50' long and 8-10' high the full width of a parking space on each side of the street. Yesterday, most were gone. Expect they are back again today, but not as large. Many parking spaces were missing.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

No exercise equipment needed!

February 26, 2007 (3:06pm)
31º F, Light snow, NNE wind 4 mph.

Good afternoon,

It is still snowing! There has been a light snow coming down all night and morning. At the moment the snow depth is knee deep - about 18"! Still expect a couple or more inches before it is supposed to end tonight. The winter storm warnings came down a bit after noon. The snow is coming off of the lake and moving north. The storm warnings continue to be up for Door county and upper Michigan until 6:00 P.M. at least. Might be extended up there. The official snow fall in Algoma is 11.8", but here in the woods there is more. What surprised me, is that the snow is deeper on the ground than on the deck. Normally it is the other way around. Also the farther I get from the house the deeper the snow. Also the reverse of normal. The easterly winds instead of westerly winds make the difference.

The snow is extremely wet. If the snow had been the normal light snow we get, we would literally be eyeball deep in snow. Temperature has been hovering around the freezing point for at least the last 24 hours. It really makes for very tough shoveling. I have to take lots of breaks. Actually it seems like more breaks than shoveling. No exercise equipment needed in this place. Lots of cardiovascular activity right outside of the door. I suspect that each shovelful of snow is about 25-30# and there are a lot of shovelfuls! Since it is so warm outside, I don’t need to wear a jacket. I do wear a vest, but when I am in the process of shoveling I wish I didn’t have it on. On the walk to and from the point of shoveling, I do need it though. Don’t look good with blue skin.

I do waste some time while I am out though. It is so beautiful and quiet. I can’t hear the snowflakes falling, but I can hear a tree branch dropping it’s load of snow and occasionally a branch breaking under the snow weight, crashing down is what sounds like a controlled fall. The only other sound I hear on a regular basis, is the call of a crow off in the distance. I did hear a snowblower being used about a ½ mile down the road. Nothing else. Awesome silence is what really is nice. It is an deafening silence that can only be experienced in the woods. Reminds me being on a stand during deer season, only with a different purpose. Hope to get up nort’ again to enjoy the real woods.

Margriet was to meet one of her friends in Algoma to day for tea. Obviously it was called off. Molly thought that would happen, but objected to my offer of a shovel guaranteed to fit her hand. Don’t understand. Instead, the two gals talked on the phone for the better part of an hour. Guess the deal will be set for the middle of next week or so. Suppose they will have something to talk about?

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Snow day

February 25, 2007 (3:20pm)
28º F, Snow, E wind 8 mph.

Good afternoon,

The snow is falling and the guys are turning some fast NASCAR circles (actually D’s) in California. What more could a guy want?

It started to snow last night and hasn’t really stopped since. At the moment there is about a foot on the ground and reports are that we are to get anywhere from 3-6" more. About an hour ago, I decided to go out and do some shoveling. The snow had let up some, then it started to come again. Changed my mind. Guess I will be some busy tomorrow. I put the van at the end of the driveway, so at least we should be able to get out without too much effort. If the road is plowed. I put a tarp over the windshield, since the temperature is just below freezing. Either I will not have any ice on the glass or I will have the tarp frozen to the glass. Will find out tomorrow I think.

There is a pretty stiff wind when you are out of the woods, so everything is pretty much closed and at home. There was a road grader that went by about 9:00 A.M., but expect it is not noticeable any more. The interstate from Green Bay north is closed as is the other main road in the area, U.S. # 41. Highway # 29 west from Green Bay is also closed. The north/south interstate through a portion of the central part of the state is also closed. For several hours, roads from Madison to Milwaukee south and west were either closed or under restrictions. For most of the day, most of the roads in the state were snow covered and hazardous or worse, except a small portion of road up around Hurley all day. Have no idea why there were spared. The conditions are clearing some in the southern part of the state and working north. The UP of Michigan is now starting to feel the effects of the storm and will through out the night.

It really is beautiful out the windows. The snow if very wet and it is sticking to everything. Like a coat of frosting. Looking out the window to my left, toward the east, the pine trees are really beautiful. Kind of like the drawings you see on Christmas cards. Too bad my camera is in the van or I probably would take a few pictures. Not too sure why as the light is very flat. Maybe I could print them in black and white and things would look better. There are no color filters for digital cameras, so I have to play with the computer some. Never tried that in black and white.
Obviously we didn’t go to church today. Most of the churches in the area closed, but not ours. At least I didn’t see it reported anywhere. Seems crazy to me, but I don’t call the shots. We probably would not have been able to get out of the driveway in time, after the plow went through, anyway.

Margriet made some salmon patties with mashed rutabaga for supper last night - with dessert. We don’t normally have desserts, so that was a real treat. She made a dessert, Tiramisu, I first had at Astrid’s when in the Netherlands. Liked it then and still do. It calls for an Italian cheese and lady-fingers. We had neither, so she substituted cream cheese and vanilla wafers. Tasted very good and there still is some left - for now. The patties were very good too. We will have the leftovers of those with a dill sauce and homemade biscuits tonight. Dang but we eat good around here!

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

In-between

February 24, 2007 (1:02pm)
23º F, Over cast and windy, E wind 9 mph.

Good afternoon,

So .... The 1-3" of snow turned out to be less than ½". Kind of pretty and sweeping snow. The second batch is on the way however. The weatherman has raised the possible snow fall to 8-16" of snow. Up from 14" in last night’s forecast. They are also saying there is a 90% chance of snow! Looking at the weather map, the central and southwest part of the state is getting it at the moment. Waupaca to Madison got 6" last night and are expecting twice that today. This is supposed to happen during the high school basketball tournaments - not now. There is also some rain/freezing rain in the storm, causing some real problems to the southwest. Watching the Ag Report this morning when I got up, their weather guru is predicting another snowstorm for next weekend, similar to this one. Also about mid-week a really cold front reaching all of the way down to the Gulf coast during the middle of the week. Freezing rain as far south as southern Louisiana! That should cool my brother off! This is really a strange year!

The LP tank was filled yesterday. According to the ticket, he was here about 1:00 P.M., but we never heard or saw him. Just a ticket in the door when we went uptown. Oh yes, there were truck and foot tracks in the snow too. Probably good planning on the part of the company, getting in here before the storm and with our narrow driveway. It took a lot and much out of our wallet. We were doing pretty good on gas usage until the cold month came. Needed to keep the temperature a bit higher than normal to be sure the underside of the house is warm enough. This should be the last fill for the heating season. We hope.

I got one package of the beef soup bones from the freezer yesterday and built a pot of bean soup. There was a lot of meat on them too, so it should be good. We about died smelling it simmer though. Always a very good smell. One of the stores has fresh shoulder hams on sale for 89¢/pound, so while we were uptown, we picked up on that was about 10#. I cut it into three parts, the upper hock and then the rest into two large roasts. Should be some good eating, Margriet already has designs to make the hock with kraut. You think I will complain? Not likely.

Just finished off a bowl of the new bean soup. Pretty good, but it gets better with more cooking. Still, all-in-all - ain’t bad. Margriet is talking of some salmon patties for supper, that sounds good too. As always. She made corned-beef hash for supper last night. That was sure good too. Dang but we eat good around here.

Probably will park the van at the end of the driveway tonight. Just in case. Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Efficient trip

February 23, 2007 (7:17pm)
20º F, Dark and cloudy, E wind 13 mph.

Good evening,

The weather is the big story for the moment. We are supposed to get 1-3" tonight after midnight. Tomorrow is the real storm coming though. The weatherman is suggesting there will be 8-14" starting tomorrow night through Sunday night/Monday morning. We have been listening to the forecasts for the past few days. At first the weatherman thought it might be a good storm, but if it slipped a bit north of us we would be getting heavy rain, 1-3"! Now it is only snow predicted anywhere in the state. The central part of the state will probably get up to 6" of snow tonight, but we will take the brunt of tomorrow night’s storm, thanx to lake effect snow from the NE winds, strong winds, in the storm. Probably will park the van at the end of the drive tomorrow night, unless the forecast changes some. Sounds like the snow will be very wet too with the high temperatures.

Our ride to Milwaukee yesterday was probably the most efficient of any trip we have taken to the Immigration Service in the past. The route we "found" last time down really is a good one and easy to follow. Since the parking is at a premium, and we were later than normally we go there, we had to park a bit away from the office, in front of one of the Milwaukee School of Engineering buildings. The cost of the parking meter was costly as are all of them. There is no available un-metered parking within a couple of blocks of the office either.

When we entered the screening line, the officer on duty really looked over the letter Margriet got. I was a form letter for criminals having identification cards made up at the request of the FBI! I saw that some words had been crossed out on the letter, but really didn’t look that closely until after. The form letter was used to get Margriet there after an error had been made on the previous attempt of getting her fingerprints electronically recorded. The folks bent over backwards to get her in, done, and out. They succeeded! It was 24 minutes from the time I put the last quarter into the parking meter, until I was getting into the van again. There was a digital readout of the time on the meter, or I would not have known. Now if we could get a refund on the extra 36 minutes of parking I paid for. Not! Now we wait. Again.

Margriet has more or less recovered from her bout with a cold or what ever it was. She had a number of nose bleeds on Tuesday and Wednesday and I was determined that we would not go if they continued when she woke up yesterday morning. Fortunately, they ended and so did the fever she had. On the return trip, we stopped at a restaurant we spotted on the way down. It was on the intersection where we turned off from the interstate. I think it was the same chain that my brother and his wife, Bill and Mary, ate at a couple of years ago. The food was excellent and we had our fill. Probably will stop there again on future trips. We knew it would be good food when we walked in and saw the place with almost only senior citizens.

On the return ride I intended to stop at Cabala’s, a sporting goods store I had bought from by mail in years past, that I thought I saw a sign for. There isn’t one, or at least at the place I thought the sign said. As it turns out, the sign was giving directions to the store 30+/- to the west and which highway to take to get there. Oh well. I still want to actually go to one of their stores someday. I and the guys at deer camp bought some things we could only get there some years ago.

We did have a couple of pieces of good news the past couple days. Most importantly, Brenda and her Man will be getting married in March. It has been on the agenda for some time, but one thing or another has interfered with it. Would be nice if we could be there, but can’t. Since the place they are getting married, city offices, are on the square we watch on a website, Brenda said they would wave to us. We probably will start to watch the website non stop beginning the day before so we don’t miss it! We are very happy with the marriage and have been hopping it would happen sooner than later.

The other piece of news is that it sounds like within a couple of weeks the papers for the sale of Margriet’s house will be signed. That too has been a long and hard process. I know it has bothered Margriet a lot and now some of that stress can, and is, lifted too.

So .... we have been some busy and trying to keep out of mischief once in a while.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Drippy

February 20, 2007 (12:31pm)

37º F, Sunshine, E wind 0 mph.

Good afternoon,

My woman is under the weather and has turned into a drip. Yesterday she started to feel un-good with the sniffles, runny nose, and a fever. This morning it has turned un-good-er! I did get some decongestant for her yesterday and filled her with orange juice and liquids as much as I can. But there is a limit. This morning she really looked like she was sick, so after being up for a bit, she went back to bed and really slept for some time. I was surprised at how early she went to bed last night too. Not like her. Anywho, at the moment she has been able to eat some chicken soup (I knew it would be necessary when I made it last week) and while the fever still persists, the drippy nose has subsided some. She did have a nose bleed which took some time to stop. I think, and hope, she is on the mend.

While getting out the decongestant yesterday, as I took it down from the shelf, a whole bunch of stuff came out of the box. Didn’t expect that and at first thought it was the tablets. On closer examination, it turned out to be a storage place for a mouse at some point in time. Never been bothered with mice there before, so we never looked earlier in the year. Don’t think the mouse at any of the tablets, as they are in a foil package and it didn’t look like it had been bothered. Obviously, we didn’t take any chances with it and threw them out.

Much to Margriet’s surprise, she got a chat message from her brother Woelter from the hospital. They were able to chat online for some time. Good for both of them I am sure. From what he said, he will be confined to his hospital room for three weeks - isolation. His immune system is messed up with the treatments. He "sounded" much better today than the last time they chatted. The reason for his chat was to thank us for a card we sent to him. For once the mail system worked fast. We were afraid when we sent it, he would get it after he was out of the hospital.

Apparently, the hospital provides him with phone, TV and a COMPUTER with web access - without cost! Boy that is really nice. The computer with the access would seem to me to be very important. If I were there, the room would have to have padded walls after two or three days. I would be bouncing off of them, not being able to get out and about. Would drive me nuts for sure. I suspect he gets tired rather easily, so the computer is always there to stimulate him much more beneficially than most TV programs during the day, if there are as here. Margriet, and I, were very surprised and happy for him to have the computer.

We missed Bible study today. I let them know via email so they will not wonder about us. We also left a package of cookies there a couple of weeks ago for them to use. That week, we had way too much food to eat, so didn’t open them then. I really don’t like to leave Margriet home alone when she is not well. Not that I am that great at doing something, but still worry about her. I will go a bit later to vote and probably will stop at the post office to get the mail too. It was closed yesterday for President’s Day. Might stop at the library too and pick up some more DVD’s and/or videos too.

Finally, we have a day with the temperature at or above the normal high. It has been a month since that has happened. It is really warm at the moment outside. Almost makes one want to go skinny dipping again! Snowmobilers and skiers probably will not appreciate the temperatures much. Snowmobiles have had a tough year so far around here. The ice fishermen are some happier as the ice is rather solid now and will be for some time to come, in spite of the warmer temperatures.

I will make a macaroni (Lutheran comfort food!) salad tonight for the funeral tomorrow. All of the ingredients are in the cupboard, so is should not be a problem. It should chill for several hours, so overnight should be good. The gals want us to be at church early to help set up the tables and like that, so it looks to be a full day. We are expecting a very large attendance, so should have enough food on hand for it. Tomorrow is also Ash Wednesday, with a soup and sandwich supper before the service. I have a feeling we will probably miss those activities. Enough is enough. Besides I hope Margriet will be able to get some extra sleep for a couple of days.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Weatherman says, "Not cloudy and not sunny"

February 19, 2007 (12:12pm)
29º F, Semi-sunny, W wind 11 mph.

Good afternoon,

Guess it is time to get to getting one of these published. Been rather delinquent in this task for the past few days for some reason. Not too sure why.

So the van got repaired and really was a change in sound while driving. Thursday, we decided to make our Tuesday supply run finally. Got in the van, seat belts fastened, put the key in the ignition switch, turned it - ah quiet! Well it was a bit too quiet - the lights would not light, starter wouldn’t start, and the pistons didn’t either. Seems the battery was stone cold dead! I have no reason as to why. Called a wrecker to get me going again. That is a first since about 1998 when the fuel pump died on the Mazda (Rice Grinder) on a cold day in a snow storm. The wrecker carried a small jump start kit and the engine started right off. Drove to the station to get the electrical system checked out. Found nothing. Only cause we can think of is that I must have left a light on inside. I checked all the lights, while trying to start it originally, but found all of the switches off as they were supposed to be. I have no idea what the problem was, but it has not happened again since. Hope it doesn’t either.

I went up town to pay the bill today. The station said they would hold the invoice open, just in case it happened again and they could find out the problem. The jump start kit costs a bit more than the service call did, so I think I will check into seeing what they really cost and how they work. Sure would be handy to have one of those years ago when it seemed I was jump starting my vehicles every other day or so in the morning. I did try to check the electrolyte of the battery before calling the wrecker, but found that I must have dropped a hammer on it and broken the glass tube. So for 95¢ I picked another one up at Fleet Farm the same day.

We did eventually make it to Green Bay, but it was after lunch and we made a short trip of it. There really wasn’t anything absolutely necessary, but I didn’t have any black ink carriages as back up for the printer. That isn’t world ending, but a good excuse to "need" to go. Since we started out so late, on the way back we thought it would be a good idea to stop at Birchwood for their cheap chicken. Fortunately, they were closed for some reason. When we got home, Margriet made some liver and onions with fried potatoes. Boy it was a really good meal - no leftovers either! Thinking we would not be going, she had taken out of the freezer for supper. Glad the Birchwood was closed. A mighty fine meal.

Watched a pretty good Daytona 500 race yesterday. At least it was for most of it. The last part had a lot of accidents in it. The last lap was a very close finish, at least for the first two cars - the rest crashed it seemed like. At least many of them did. Pretty spectacularly too. One car finished the race on it’s roof and on fire. Officially 18th place I think. NASCAR sure has come a long way since the early days. Not too sure it wasn’t better racing then though.

One of the members (charter member) from church died Saturday and the funeral is on Wednesday. Ron has been fighting cancer for a couple of years now. It has been a real struggle for him. The cancer has spread to almost every part of his body. Noting seemed to work. At least now he has been healed. He leaves a wife and son behind. They too are totally exhausted from their efforts. In the long run, it will be a blessing for them. Ron was only 53 years old. They were very good to me when Joy left. Spent Thanksgiving with them that first year. It was greatly appreciated. We will be helping with the food after the funeral. Not too sure what we will prepare to bring yet.

Today, 4:30 A.M. our time, Margriet’s brother, Woelter, begins a treatment for his cancer using his own stem cells. It is not an easy task or without much discomfort. Obviously, we and a lot of other folks are very concerned about him. The stem cells were harvested from him some time ago for this procedure. That was not easy either. Margriet did have a chance to chat with him with instant messaging a bit ago and has been in contact with some of his children. Of course all of them are very worried too. Please keep him in your prayers - a lot.

The weather has taken a turn for the warm again. After nearly a month of below normal temperatures, way below, it now looks to be much above normal for a bit. They are predicting above normal moisture too - in the form of rain. Everything is dry here, but I don’t think rain is the good thing now. Snow would be better to soak in rather than run off. Sounds like it will be a mess around here for a while.

Margriet and I had a chance to instant message with Brenda for a time this morning. She was grumpy with the littlest handsome dude in her house. Apparently she bought some tomatoes for eating tomorrow and Kalle decided they needed to be taste tested! He took a bite out of each one, leaving a considerable mess too. Guess they are eating tomatoes today instead of tomorrow. I can remember the days with similar events. Of course Brenda, or Arnoud for that matter, never did similar things!

Enough for the moment. Have to finish getting ready for Bible study tomorrow. Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

De-squeaked

February 15, 2007 (7:37am)
-1º F, Sunny, NNW wind 2 mph.

Good morning,

Today we make our overdue supply trip to the big city after a bit of a delay. Sunday getting ready to go to church and warming up the van, I again heard some strange noises coming from the engine compartment. In the past, I thought it was the power steering pump complaining about the extreme cold weather at start up. It wasn’t that cold on Sunday. After lifting the hood, I could not pin down the source of the noise. Alternator, power steering pump, air-conditioner compressor, what? Decided to take it into my favorite repair shop and let them figure it out on Monday. One of the mechanics gave a listen and a feel, deciding it probably was the alternator or an idler pulley under it. He wanted me to bring it back the next afternoon so they could take off the belt and check the bearings of the various units. Tuesday afternoon, when the belt was taken off, it was noticeable the idler bearing was the culprit - but - the parts store didn’t have any in stock. While looking around at the other moving parts, he also discovered the tensioner was also showing signs of wear. He ordered both and I went back yesterday to have them replaced. Glad it was not the alternator or the power steering pump as this is some cheaper.

The fan belt, now called serpentine belt and more expensive, was also showing signs of wear. Since I carry one as a spare in the van, I had them put it on and will use the old one for a spare. Don’t plan to every use it, but - just in case. I am one of those old guys that has always carried some "extra" things along in the van - just in case. Occasionally I have need for them, but not as often as in years past when cars were much more prone to breakdowns. Vehicles are much more difficult to repair these days, but they don’t need any where as much repair either. Most of the van is still original after 10 years of age, almost unheard of back in the good-old-days.

We have had below normal temperatures now for about 3 weeks. Looks like it will be at least the middle of next week before the temperature will come close to normal again. Guess we are making up for the really hot first part of winter. We did get some snow Sunday and Monday this week. Most of it was lake effect snow. We had about 3½" here at FISKLAND, but more at the lakeshore. Two Rivers had 7¾"! There was a very stiff northeast wind, causing the east-west roads to really drift. It was a obstacle course driving from here to the highway on Monday. The snow was extremely light and fluffy, so didn’t need to shovel. Only swept off the ramp and deck. It really is pretty here in the woods, but the wind was really cold out of the woods.

Tuesday we had our breakfast with the Bible study group in Casco. Since were close to Otto’s meats, about 5 miles, we "had" to stop. Our freezer is well supplied again with some really good eats. Margriet almost couldn’t wait to have schweinshaks and kraut with dumplings for supper. That was the menu for Tuesday night. I think my center of gravity shifted - I ate too much. But it sure was good! We have many more good meals a-coming too.

Yesterday, Margriet got into the baking mood again. We now have a batch of hamburger rolls and cinnamon rolls to much on. I know for a fact that the cinnamon rolls are good - had to test them. I suspect we will be having hamburgers for supper tonight. I think the excuse for baking was to try out the new batch of flour she got last week. What ever the reason, the results were good.

Time to get the day a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

0+ = 2

February 10, 2007 (12:41pm)
12.6º F, Sunshine, W wind 8 mph.

Good afternoon,

Two nights with the temperature staying above zero! That has not happened for some time. This morning it really came close to 0º F, but it didn’t go below. The lowest was 0.2º F. Now I have to say that is close, but it didn’t go below. According to the weatherman, it should stay above or at 0º F as our low for the next week. I watched the Ag Report this morning and they predicted out 90 days. Supposed to be drier and warmer than normal. The next 30 days are supposed to be colder though. Not much that we can do about it - other than shiver or sweat.

For some reason, I didn’t sleep well last night. Was awake from about 3:00 A.M., and decided at 4:00 A.M. it was time to get up. One thing, it allowed me to watch the Ag Report. It is an interesting program which used to be on everyday an hour or two later. The Saturday show always has a restored antique tractor on. Those are neat and a huge expenditure of time and money to restore. Most of them are now being used again around the farm, mostly for light duty. This morning’s tractor was a 1925 Allis-Chalmers, made in Milwaukee. What really surprised me that their tractors of that era were painted John Deere green and yellow! Didn’t know that before.

One of the results of our Amish trip, was to resupply with "Mrs. Miller’s Noodles." So tonight we have some with meatballs. Margriet wanted to make them last night, but we had picked up some riblets on sale a week or so ago and I had a hankering for them. Margriet had made a barbeque sauce a while ago (I found the recipe for Applebee’s Honey Barbeque sauce on the web a long time ago), so I marinated them in it for a couple of hours before baking them in the oven. After the meat was close to done, added more sauce, and covered them to bake for another hour or so. They turned out VERY tasty and all disappeared. We feast again on some excellent vittles in the form of meatballs in mushroom gravy over noodles. We sure do eat good in this neighborhood!

The day before yesterday, I cut the chicken leg quarters into serving sized pieces. I cooked down the backs for soup started afterwards. There were 17 quarters I cut and it made more than the usual amount of starter. Yesterday I completely filled the largest pressure cooker we have with the liquid. There was too much, and I hadn’t added the pasta! Transferred it to a 5 gallon soup pot we have, then added the pasta and more water. We will be eating chicken vegetable soup for many days to come. I had to wait most of the day before taking the meat from the bones and adding it to the liquid. I had put the meat and the liquid (in two separate containers) on the porch over night. Both were frozen when I brought them in. It took nearly the entire day to thaw the meat out. As it was, the last few pieces were still frozen when took the meat off. It is hard to tell what is meat or what is bone when it is frozen!

Margriet has been making noises about going to Otto’s Meats again. Suppose that will be on the agenda one of these days. We do need to get some soup bones now that we have all of the bean soup mix made up. 22 packages! Think it will be enough for a year or two. Maybe more. We have also run out of potato sausage and other good things he sells.

When I went up town yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised to see the price of gasoline had dropped 2¢/gallon. It is still way too high priced, but I like the trend. At the moment it is cheaper here than in Green Bay. Not normal.

Just in case you thought I had forgotten about Bram with the pictures of Kalle yesterday, I didn’t. Here are a couple of him, with the help of some of his friends apparently, decorating a shade for one of the rooms in their home. He too is getting bigger and more like a young man than a boy. From the sound of it, both boys are well and being boys.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

A day changer

February 9, 2007 (7:48am)
2º F, Partly cloudy, WNW wind 2 mph.

Good morning,

I was surprised early yesterday morning when I opened the webcam for Enschede and saw a dusting of snow on the ground! While I had been reading about the snow parts of Europe was receiving via the BBC, I still didn’t expect to see it in Enschede. Then, a couple hours later, I opened the site again when Margriet got up so she could see - I was shocked - the ground was totally white with what looked like and inch or two of snow had fallen! While it was pretty, it just didn’t look like it should be there.

Yesterday afternoon, we got some pictures via email from Brenda of her boys. Two of them are here with Kalle in the backyard and the snow. Of course he is a handsome dude, but hard to tell with all of the winter clothes on. Thought you would enjoy them too.

It is amazing how our day and focus changes when we get emails like this - with pictures. We sit in front of the computer screen waiting and waiting until the email is received, then sit in front of the computer screen waiting and waiting until each image is downloaded. Then comes the ohhh-ing and ahhh-ing looking at each. Since they came into Margriet’s mailbox, she emails them to me to download to our memory stick and to print out. Of course there is more sitting in front of the computer screen waiting and waiting until each is downloaded and printed. Just about all of our conversation centers on the pictures. Looking at and discussing every little detail shown. For Margriet it is also a time to remember things that happened in that place in the past. It definitely is an education for me. We look at the pictures so much, I think the ink might be worn off from the paper from looking.

Anywho, there are few things in life that are more pleasant to talk about and share is family. We are so thrilled to get pictures and chat from them. Do wish it happened more often, but that would be the wish no matter how many or often we got them. It is so wonderful to have the web to do this.

Time to get the day a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

To Amish land and back!

February 8, 2007 (12:02pm)
5º F, Sunshine, W wind 10 mph.

Good afternoon,

I think the Amish "Lark Country Store" will have to close until they can be re-supplied. We brought a lot of their inventory home with us yesterday. We totally like going to the store, even if the prices weren’t so low. They also carry many things we have interest in, besides bulk food. Much we do not buy, but still interested. They have many parts and oil lamps, as well as gas lights. Wish I had a supply like theirs when I was still going up to deer camp. I know the mantels and other parts for the gas lights were more expensive, even years ago. Actually the lamps themselves are about the same price we paid for them 20+ years ago. They have one white gas table lamp I keep drooling over each time we go there. It is, believe it or not, made by Coleman, made of stainless steel, but costs about $215.00! Don’t think even Santa Claus will bring that for me.

The supply of kerosene lamps is rather big and varied too. I have a "love affair" with kerosene lamps which stems from the days when Dori and I would be the only ones up and prepare/eat breakfast by the light of a small kerosene lamp before she would go off to school on the bus. It was the time of "Little House on the Prairie" shows on TV! They have lamps of every kind, size, shape, and use. Very reasonably priced too. At least for this day-and-age. One style I have not seen on the market for years is a cast-iron, black, swing away, wall bracket to hold a table lamp. They are still the old-fashioned style from the turn of the century (19-20, not 20-21!) When I used their restroom, one was used to light it - if I had been there at night. Everything else in the room was modern though.

At the moment, the house smells wonderful! Margriet just finished a batch of granola (birdseed) from some of what we bought. The combination of vanilla and cinnamon really plays with my nose and taste buds. Our timing for the ride was perfect as I used the last of granola for breakfast this morning. Now I have new/fresh for breakfast tomorrow morning.

We also picked up a large supply of dry beans of many different kinds. Margriet will mix many of them together for a soup mix that we like very well. Suppose we will need to get some soup bones for me to make soup soon. Suppose I could use a piece of smoked sausage instead. Anywho, we eat soup most days for lunch during the cooler weather, so I have some practice making it. I suspect that in the near future there will be some baking for Margriet on the agenda too. We picked up several bags of flour since it is so cheap there. The only kind of flour they don’t carry is self-rising flour. We did pick that up at a "normal" store on the way home. She could make it too, but chose not to this time.

Of course we had to peruse the candy section too. I always try to pick up some of the old-fashioned candy to take to Bible study. I might have snuck a couple bags in for us to eat too. They really have a nice selection, all bulk, and those that I remember as a kid. They don’t make good candy like that any more. Well actually, the normal stores just don’t carry it.

Wish I had bought gasoline the day before though. Figured it would be cheaper in Green Bay, but was surprised to see that the price had gone up another nickle overnight. Now what pleased me much. The price is about 10-11¢/gallon cheaper than a year ago. Still too expensive!

Over the past couple of days I have taken apart all of the fans we use. Cleaned them and lubricated them, before putting them back together again and into use. Surprising to see how much dust is collected in/on them. One in the bedroom started to make funny noises, so it triggered the action. I need to change the filter in the furnace too. I also hope I will be able to lubricate the fan motor and blower too - now that it is warm outside again. I also sharpened most of our knives. We bought a few pounds of chicken backsides so have a task before me this afternoon, cutting them into serving pieces and the back ready for soup stock. Now if I can keep myself or Margriet from cutting ourselves! Always something to keep me out of mischief around here - even without a "Honey-Do" list.

In a grocery store, of all places, we have seen some remote "weather stations" for sale at rather reasonable prices. We picked on up yesterday. We will put the remote outside for now to see what the "real" temperature is here. Right now it is on the sun porch. The one we got can have several remote sensors, so plan to get another sensor and put it under the house. That way we will have a better handle on the temperature and prevent some pipes possibly freezing. At the moment I have an old indoor/outdoor thermometer. The kind with the bulb and a cap-tube connected to the ready out. It is very old, I think from the 50's that Dad had and gave to me. The real problem is that I need to stand in the closet with my ears between my ankles to read it. I really don’t trust it either. This should be a big improvement.

The ice fishermen are much more pleasant to be around now that the ice had thicken. They can drag their shanties out and also drive on the ice in many places. Not sure what the results are - at least I haven’t seen any fillets come our way. The snowmobilers have a different story. We have a shortage of snow, but we did notice some have been riding in the ditches - at least on the north/south roads. It has been very dry for the past couple of weeks, with high winds. The wind has blown most of the snow into the ditches as it has dried, along with a significant amount of top soil. The mix is about all they can ride on . Makes for much wear on the sleds, but I guess it is better than nothing.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

It's getting hot again

February 7, 2007 (6:46am)
-5º F, Sun is up, NNW wind 5 mph, -17º F wind chill.

Good morning,

The hot weather has returned! The temperature rose above zero yesterday afternoon for the first time since Friday afternoon. It got close a couple of times earlier, but never made it. Both the weather survey points in Algoma and Kewaunee showed temperatures of -.02º F, but not higher. Walking out of a store yesterday, I mentioned to Margriet that the temperature must have risen as it felt warmer. I was right, it had. The high’s are supposed to rise for the rest of the week and into next week, but the lows will stay about the same or lower. Still, it is below "normal" for this time of year here.

We didn’t make a supply run yesterday, but rather just went to a lumber yard that was having a "bag sale" with everything one could put into a shopping bag at 17% off. We picked up a lot of little stuff that is nice to have on hand. Like electrical outlets/switches, pipe fittings, saber saw blades, and like that. The profit margin I am sure is less than 17%, so probably lost money one me. We just stayed with those kind of things, not what is expected for folks to buy. I think we came out on the good side of the deal.

Today we are making the supply trip, with a detour to the Amish store. That is the major reason we didn’t get supplies yesterday. It takes too much time to go there on a Bible study day. Makes for too long of a day. Margriet has been mentioning going to the Amish store everyday for several days, her list is long, so off we go. We are looking forward to the ride and the store. Looked up a different way to get there which should be some shorter. In the past we would go west to Shawano then back east some miles to the store. This time we will try to go to the store without going to Shawano first. We don’t have any reason to go to Shawano.

Bible study was different yesterday. For some reason, almost everyone was there on time, but we got started later than normal. Not sure what we all talked about, but the time went by quickly. Then the study actually took less time than it should have. I really don’t like this study and the format. It doesn’t really allow for any depth of study. There is too much of "I" and "me" in the study and not enough of God it seems. At least for Margriet and my taste. I do a lot of research on each lesson, so do get the depth, but sure do miss the discussion on each topic. Also what doesn’t help a great deal is the workbook is printed in small type and in a gray tone rather than black. The hard part of the study is reading the book, not the meaning of the unit.

Fooling around on the web, I came across a site listing weather records. Turns out that Marquette, Michigan had the lowest high on record Sunday, -17º F. The previous record was in 1994 at 5º F above!. Monday and yesterday, there were a lot of kids with a day off. In northeast Wisconsin there were about 125 school districts closed because of the cold weather. Seems strange to me, as I cannot remember more than one day of school closing for cold in the years I taught. That day was the third day of -40º F and the school district could not get enough buses running. I don’t think any activities were cancelled either, until the shortage of buses.

Time to shake a tower and get the day a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Cool by the Puddle

February 4, 2007 (8:23pm)
-11º F, Dark wind, NNW wind 12 mph, 23 mph wind gusts, -32º F wind chill.

Good evening,

We were treated to some unusual beauty on the way to and from Algoma after church today. Ice fog! It often happens during every winter when there is very cold temperatures. The water is rather warm, compared to the air temperature causing fog to form above the water. What made this so different is since the winter has been so warm so far this year, there isn’t any ice along the shore line. Ice fog only forms over open water and normally that is ½-1 mile or more from shore. This time, we really got an up-close and personal look at the front wall of the fog. It was beautiful. It looked like a filagree of white lace fingers rising from the surface of the water. Some a few feet tall and others up to 100 feet. Each looked like it had been embroidered with a different pattern and texture. The color varying from pure white, to gray, to almost black with various shades of blue mixed in too. Gorgeous! Behind the front wall, the fog increased and rose up several hundred feet into what looked like a big fluffy cloud laying on the water. Really cool - in more ways than one.

It is definitely cool out. The coolest I saw was -16º F this morning after I was up for an hour or so. The high today was -2º F, but the wind had the wind chill in the -30º F or lower. Here in the woods, it again was very nice - out of the wind. It was a very nice bright day. There have been Weather Service bulletins up for the cold weather since early Friday morning. For our county, and the one north and south of us, the severity was dropped one level because of the warmth of the Puddle of Michigan. It was a lot colder overnight farther inland and to the north.

Apparently my closing of the vents around the base of the house worked and we have no frozen pipes. I did leave the furnace turned up a bit higher last night to maybe get more heat under there and left the water at the kitchen sink run at a trickle over night. I don’t want to take any chances. When the temperature goes down to -10º F or lower, I leave the water run a bit always. Just in case. Probably will happen again tonight, as it is to be colder tonight. Guess the cool will stick around for the next few days. One weatherman said today he thought the cool may stay for a couple of weeks!

On the way to church this morning, one of the flocks of turkeys was at the edge of the woods in the ditch line just down the road from the house, trying to stay out of the wind. As we came by, a couple decided to run across the road in front of us, one too close so flew right over the van. Glad it didn’t decide to dump a load as it went over. Just before we got to the highway, the other flock of about 50 was also in the ditch line on the north side of the road. They were keeping some warm in the sun, with their backsides in the woods there. They didn’t move too much. Their dark brown/black coloring I am sure helped absorb the sun’s heat some.

In a way, I was rather surprised the van started fairly easily this morning, even though it was -15º F as I turned the key. It did make some stranger than normal sounds when it did get running. The power steering pump was doing some singing for a bit until things got a bit warmer and lubricated. I let it run for about 20 minutes, then took a shower and like that, getting ready for church. Once it was moving down toward church, the van’s joints were very stiff and really didn’t want to move well. I took it very easy the first couple of miles until things got loosened up a bit. Took a long time for it to get warm enough to turn on the heater too. Same thing happened after church.

Our congregation turned into Eskimos this morning, judging my their dress. Everyone was bundled up. The little kids I think rolled out to the cars. Everyone was in a jovial mood though. Almost like they were enjoying winter! It has been a long time a-coming. I was responsible for the snacks with another gal today. Margriet built some cookies yesterday for the occasion. There were some left, so we gave them to a young bachelor who has many health issues. He was pleased. I made sure I made several quality control checks yesterday so I had a share of them then. After church we went to Penguin City for a bowl of soup and a grilled ham and cheese sandwich. Very good.

After starting the van this morning, I started to think of all the problems we used to have in years past getting vehicles to run in cold weather like this. This van doesn’t have an engine heater, but years past it was an absolute necessity to have any hope of an engine starting after being outside overnight. Also a lot of getting up and starting the engine every 2-4 hours all night long while living in northwestern Wisconsin. Also putting a canvas tarp over the hood with a heat lamp under the engine to add a bit of heat too. Equipment has sure gotten better over the years.

One time at deer camp, we had two vehicles at the top of the hog’s back when a cold snap hit at the close of the season. Took the batteries down to the cabin to warm by the fire for a few hours. We also drained out as much of the oil as we could from them and heat it on the barrel heater too. The oil was thicker than molasses in January, so was very difficult to get too much out of the crankcases. The oil cooled back to molasses before it could get back up the hill and poured back into the crankcases. Don’t think that made as big of a difference as the batteries getting warm did. After hooking both batteries to one vehicle we did manage to get it started then did the same to the other. Ah yes - the good old days!

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Nice weather - finally

February 2, 2007 (12:12pm)
1º F, Cool sun, W wind 9 mph, 26 mph gusts, -13º F wind chill.

Good afternoon,

Finally - - some decent winter weather for a change. It really is a beautiful day. The sun is out and the air is brisk - so is the wind. Actually, as long as I stay out of the wind, it is very pleasant outside. First time this year the longjohns came out of the drawer onto the this old body. Hard to really stay in the house with all of the layers of clothing on. Found the new boots work very nicely. I can put the wool socks into storage, probably will wear them with my "barn boots," but that is all from the looks of it. Maybe Margriet will have a use for them as she likes to walk around the house wearing them rather than shoes. Also think it is time to find the flannel shirts too.

Before nightfall, I plan to close up the vents underneath the house. With the extreme cool coming, I really don’t want the water to freeze up under there. I have some thin foam insulation in the shed, so will use that. Also want to add some fiberglass batts to the access opening door too. Just in case. It is not a very airtight access. Do wish we had more snow on the ground. Normally I would pile it up against the house to do the same thing. Actually, I think this might be easier.

The weatherman is talking of -35º F wind chill for tonight and on until Sunday. Real winter almost. Wind is supposed to stay up also. Driving into town this morning, there is a lot of snow blowing across the north-south roadways in the open parts. It is hard to tell where there is ice on the road or if it is just melted snow - looking like ice. No problems, but was thinking about it a lot.

While in town, we noticed the price of gasoline has gone up again. $2.199/gallon is the present price. Up from 1.969/gallon just a little bit ago. It really makes a difference now too. I try to run the engine on the van for at least 10 minutes before going anywhere when the temperature drops to 0º F or below. That uses a lot of gas and not doing the milage rate any good.

The main reason to go to town was to pay a couple of bills, pick up the mail, and stop at the library. Accomplished all. When we stopped at the library, I asked Margriet to get out before I parked up against the snowbank. Her door wouldn’t open from the inside! We have been having some problem with it for the past week or so, but thought it was just some ice frozen internally somewhere. When it warmed up, the door worked fine. I don’t really want to take it all apart in this weather, so hope we will make do until the weather warms some. Had the same problem in Green Bay a bit ago.

Yesterday we were talking of winter activities. One think led to another and ended up talking about cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Guess it must have peaked Margriet’s curiosity. Sounds like we will be looking for some snowshoes. Of course we probably have to go north to use them. Not much snow here! It has been many years since I was on snowshoes and the idea really intrigues me too. It is a pleasant way to travel in the woods. No noisy or smelly engine for power, only a quiet and slow way to really be a part of the surroundings.

Trying to get yesterday’s blog posted was a real adventure yesterday. For some reason it took a couple of hours after trying everything I could think of, it finally went through. When it did, I got a message from the blog site saying they were having problems so it had been down for a while. Wish I had known that beforehand.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><

Sun Snow Showers

February 1, 2007 (12:51pm)
18º F, Sun Snow Showers, SW wind 6 mph.

Good afternoon,

Nothing real exciting happening at FISKLAND today. The sun is out and it is a beautiful, but cold day. Every once in a while there is a snow shower, but that is it. There is probably a ¼" added to the ½" we got overnight. Just enough to clean up the sight out of the window and hid the tire tracks in the snow. The temperature is on the way down, so expect the weatherman is correct in saying that it will be cold tonight and a few more days to come. Think we might have some three-dog nights for a bit.

Got an email from our friend Sue in North Dakota this morning. She too is expecting some more cold weather. I have been tracking her weather and it really has been cold. Since their weather is back on track to end up here again after visiting her. She said they are expecting some -30 F temperatures in the very near future. We are too, but a few days down the line. Our weatherman has been saying we can experience those low temperatures about the middle of the week next week. Maybe history will repeat itself. Had -40 F while teaching in northwestern Wisconsin about 40 years ago. Think I might have to look for my long-johns too. Wonder if Margriet knows where her’s are?

When we pulled into the driveway coming home Tuesday, there were two very large does feeding at the split in the driveway. They didn’t stick around very long, heading west into the woods. Yesterday walking out to get the paper, I noticed they were feeding on the tall weeds along the driveway edge. The menu didn’t look very appetizing to me. While we have a lot of deer tracks around here, we have not seen too many of them on FISKLAND this year. They used to go through the pine plantation and head east from here. Have not seen as big of a "highway" from them this year. Something must have changed to change their eating and travel patten. They appear to be heading west more often this year for some reason.

There are a lot of rabbits this year. Tracks are everywhere. Margriet has a great time watching them out of the window while at the computer. I think the first thing she does after opening her eyes in the morning, is to see if any are outside of the bedroom windows. They are fun and interesting to watch that is for sure. I should get out the shoot gun and see if we could have a meal or two from some of them! Rabbit stew does sound rather good.

This time of year must also have been a rather quiet time in years past. From the paper in 1882:

"Joseph H. Fax has had one set of his pool balls recolored and the chipped balls in the set replaced."

Must be a very slow news week for the newspaper when they are talking about the condition of the billiard balls in the city’s pool hall! Another article from the 1917 paper was more interesting:

"Beginning next Sunday, Kewaunee will enjoy continues electric current as decided by the Light Commission. Kewaunee has had light six days our of seven and now, under the new ruling, the light switch will also respond on the seventh day."

I have no idea as to which day is the seventh, but must have been a large improvement. Actually, Kewaunee produced their own electricity (as did Algoma) until the mid-60's. If I have it right. They sold the electric plant to Wisconsin Public Service at that time and got out of the electric business. Algoma did the same about the same time, but still have their own power distribution system, buy their electricity from WPS, until now. It is some surprising that Algoma still does, as most of the "electric cooperatives" have long since ceased in all forms. Algoma’s old coal-fired power plant was torn down only a few years ago (since I have been here) and the property has been turned into expanding the park along the lakeshore/river bank.

One really sad (or good depending how you look at it) article came from 1932:

"Twelve persons appeared at the Algoma council meeting "Friday night asking for work. Most of them were young married men, they did not want direct city aid, but asked for an opportunity to work and make their own way."

I have no idea of the result of the meeting, but it is rather sad to remember the economic conditions of that time. It was good to see at least some folks wanting to work to earn their own way and not wanting just a handout. Sounds like they were capable of working and had a lot of pride.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><