At the Park – Days 61 – 67

Well, once again, not a whole lot to report.

I got a call early in the week from Victor, the septic specialist stating that he had been to the property and taken the necessary samples, but expected it to be another 2-3 weeks before he would have the septic system permit documentation ready for me.  After 30 or so minutes of allowing myself to feel down and frustrated with the delay, I changed my focus to determine how to minimize the impact the delay would have on my overall project timeline and how to maximize my productivity on projects over the up and coming holiday weekend.  I decided the first construction project would be the carport by the house, not the one for the RV’s some distance away.  I had a number of the construction details in my head, but not down electronically, so I started documenting the construction details of the carport and putting together a materials list needed for construction.  At some point, I decided to go from single slope roof to a standard gable roof using trusses.  I then once again spent a fair bit of time mulling over whether to build my own trusses or buy them pre-built.  At this point, I am leaning toward buying pre-built trusses.  I also added to the schedule the construction of a hoop house/barn to store construction material out of the sun and weather.

Thursday evening was my usual run to Douglas.  Nothing interesting to report on there.

Friday evening was the potluck.  The resident here at the park who is retired from the home construction business was not at the potluck as I had hoped so I could pick his brain.  After the potluck, I started my online search for “local” building supply and truss manufacturing businesses.  One of the building supply businesses I found didn’t have a website but they did have a facebook account.  On their facebook account they mentioned that they would be at the home/business expo at the mall in Sierra Vista on Saturday.  What fortuitous timing.  Given I am looking for “local” businesses that sounded like a good place to start and I’ve been telling myself that someday I needed to go check out Sierra Vista, I changed my Saturday plans from working on the property to going to Sierra Vista.  For what ever reason, I was not in the mood to sleep Friday evening, so after adjusting my plans and updating my todo list for the weekend, I started watching movies.  I watched movies way too late into the night.  After my 2nd or 3rd movie I decided I had better force myself to try to sleep.  It didn’t take long.

For as late as I was up Friday night/Saturday morning, I woke up way earlier than I had intended Saturday morning.  I should know better.  Body used to getting up around that time, so it wakes me up, regardless of how little sleep I’ve had.   So kind of it.

Breakfast, dishes, doing some research on drones and continuing to debate with myself as to whether to spend a sizable amount of money on one, reviewing what businesses were in Sierra Vista that I wanted to go to while I was there, then preparing to leave took most of the morning.  After a stop in Portal to drop off recycling, and a stop at the property to clear out a number of things from the back of the truck so I could fit stuff I picked up in Sierra Vista, I was finally on my way.  Once in Sierra Vista, I spent much of the day driving in circles.  Not because I was lost (thanks to GPS), but because I had not mapped out my stops and because this was my very first trip into Sierra Vista, I didn’t know where all the businesses were at in relation to one another.  Sierra Vista reminds me a bit of Portage Michigan where there is a main business road that stretches for miles where many/most of the businesses are at.  Without exaggeration, had I wanted to drive from one end to of town to the other repeatedly, I don’t think I could have planned it any better.  After I was done at each stop, the next stop I wanted to make was at the other end of the business strip.  Started the running off with a stop at a local coffee shop, then to the Mall for the business expo (popped into Best Buy while I was there – this was the one exception where I didn’t run back across town), then to the Food Co-op, then to the Ace Hardware store, then to La Casita Mexican Restaurant, then to Sierra Vista Building Supply to fill the back of my truck with free pallets.  Stopped at Walmart and the gas station on my way back through Douglas.  Finally home to take Sasha for her evening walk, take care of a few groceries, then finally drop into bed.

Sunday.  Well, didn’t do hardly anything on my list nor did I do anything that I had previously planned to do.  After making some scheduled changes for work, I researched outdoor video cameras trying to decide what to get.  Finally made a decision on the camera, along with the drone package I wanted.  Added an outdoor Ubiquiti WAP to the order and hit order before I changed my mind again on the drone.  The big boy toys are coming.  Then started searching craigslist for anything that I could use/justify.  Spent hours going through craigslist and mulling over various items available for sale such as a 26′ covered cargo trailer as well as a few other smaller dollar items.

Finally, I forced myself to turn to my to-do list, pulled some weeds until dusk from the camp site that I had torched Friday afternoon.  Came inside and started working on the blog entry for the week.

Before I close for the night, I’d like to share a somewhat humorous story from a few weeks back.  For the second time I did laundry, I needed to buy quarters, so I went and bought some from Rusty at the office.  Once back at the trailer I laid them down and proceeded to get everything around to go to the laundry room.  Once I got everything around, I went to pickup the roll of quarters.  Where did I put them?  I searched high and low in the trailer.  Bedroom, kitchen, couch, chair, back to the bedroom.  The trailer is not that big.  Where the heck did I lay them down at.  I look at Hersey as he is laying on the bed watching me search.  Presumably laughing at my elevating level of frustration.  I remove all the laundry from the basket to see if I put/dropped them in with the clothes – nope.  Why can’t I remember where I put them?  Why didn’t I put them someplace I could easily find them?  I’m losing my frick’n mind.  Just as I was about to give up, swallow my pride and go buy another roll of quarters from Rusty, I found them.

I found them right where I put them.  I did put them someplace easy to find and where I would easily see them knowing I would likely forget where I laid them down at.  What I didn’t count on was Hersey laying on them then laughing at me as he watches me tear the trailer apart looking for them.

Ok.  That is it for me tonight.

Night all.