Home sweet home

We're starting to get settled. We have installed a new water heater; I've fought the bathtub's grime and iron spots and won (looks brand new!); Amy is making curtains for the bedrooms; we even got a TV and DVD player! Next thing will be to fix the sprinkler system.

It's turning green again. The temperatures are still on the cool side so the wood stove keeps us comfortable.

We did it!

Gosh I hate moving... Our house here in town was a mess briefly and I did my best to ignore it. I think I succeeded. We had ordered mattresses, a couch and whatnot so the place was a zoo (even though I've never noticed the few zoos I've been to as messy.) I was a bit anxious about the move. We had so many things to get together: rent a truck, get the new couch through the den's door; take down our son's super duper bunk bed with the help of its maker, Steve (this bed was built to withstand earthquakes, tsunamis, nuclear attacks, you name it, all courtesy of my beloved's somewhat irrational fears); deal with Evan's stuff in our living room (drum, CDs, consoles, amps, cables, books, shelves etc, etc.--no wonder his room seemed so small); a radiator, wine glasses, sheets, blankets, food and drink, and more (I'll spare you.)

I got the truck, picked up a super nifty old style pine table from our friend Nina-the-Supercool, went to bed, got up, went to our friend Sara-from-AR-who's-also-Supercool and picked up a fridge, chairs, a rocking chair, side-tables, lamps and more stuff. Finally we were on our way.

The moving party consisted of our family and our gracious friends Sara and Ted (unrelated to Sara but related to Amy; not mine, his. Are you still with me?) Ted's a talented large-format photographer I'm lucky to work with. Off we were. We had to drive through Mojave and Tehachapi to hit the new Home Depot there to buy a water heater (read below for background info.) Forget that shopping was an experience that I will not relate to my friend Brian, regional manager for the company (it's safe, he doesn't read my blog.) The hard part was incorporating the heater into the truck. Ted and I had the truck (the ladies and Evan smartly drove separately) and I believe we spent half an hour making it all fit back. In the end, the whole thing reminded me a bit of Escher's work: it looks weird but somehow it make sense.

Here's a photo of the truck at the Apple Shed, in Tehachapi, where we had lunch after we met up with the rest of the party.




Tehachapi is a neat place located at 4000 feet. They have four seasons and there were remnants of snow in the shady side of the restaurant and on the mountains all around. A few famous people live there. Among them John Doe of X and the now gone but still illustrious Jack Palance. A few infamous people like the Menendez brothers live there too but they wear uniforms with a number on it.

Moving on to happier thoughts, we drove on and got to the SSP. Unloading the truck and bringing things in was amazingly easy. Somehow, everything found its place quickly and happily. Work all done, we settled and had a beer and moved on to prepare dinner. I barbecued some of Jim's Market (in Woodland Hills) succulent marinated chicken breasts and Amy sautéed potatoes and cooked veggies. That and some vino made for a mighty fine dinner. We later had a tasty apple pie I had bought at the Apple Shed. Here's a pic of Ted settling down while dinner was being prepared:



After dinner several card games were played with the usual ooohs, aaaahs and no way! I enjoyed watching everybody have fun and went out to sit on the porch. Notice the beer bottle on the table (Ted's), the Mouton Cadet Rosé in the foreground (mine; not bad, just cool it and let it breath) and all the funny faces. Also starring is the super nifty country style pine table I was telling you about earlier and the chairs Sara gave us.



Eventually, we all started to feel the effects of a day full of excitement and made ourselves comfy. Here are Evan, Sara and her her new girl puppy Riley (a cute and very feisty three month old Taco Terrier.)



Eventually, Riley and Jorgy took over the couch and passed out on it. I think them watching us, or the air got the best of them. They look so cute.



I hung out on the porch enjoying the silence and starry night of a gazillion diamonds. A huge owl came and rested on a tree next to me for a while, checking out the new owners I guess. I called everybody over and it flew away. I guess our cat Penny won't be coming up. The lights attracted some neat looking moths. I don't think any were the Kern Primrose Sphinx Moth but I still find them pretty.



The next day Ted took off early to take some photos while Sara, Amy, the dogs and I went for a walk; upon his return we had a very nice breakfast; returned the truck to the rental place in Lake Isabella; attempted briefly to change the water heater but quickly gave up for lack of tools and skills. The rest of the day was spent relaxing on the covered porch, enjoying the views of the mountains around us. And then, it was time to go back to the city lights.

Rain, hail and snow

I went up this weekend to meet the appraiser from the insurance company. He came from Apple Valley near Victorville and amazingly enough, he found the place and was only two minutes late from his scheduled appointment. Edison did manage to get the right place this time so I had electricity and therefore water. I had lights, music, an electric radiator, a phone, a stove and oven. Save for the water heater that needs replacing, I was stylin'.

It was mostly sunny when I arrived, with many puffy clouds. This is the view when arriving from the creek road. A few low clouds, looking pretty.



Later in the afternoon the weather stayed the same and before I went to bed, I looked up to the sky and saw many stars. I thought for sure the storm would bypass the SSP. I woke up later in the evening with the sound of rain pouring on the roof. I didn't look outside but my neighbor later told me it even snowed at 11 pm.

The next day was a combination of rain, hail and snow, depending on I'm not sure what climate dynamics. One thing I do know is that it was cold and I was glad to have a roaring fire in the stove and my new and friendly DeLonghi EW7707CM Oil-filled Radiator with ComforTemp Technology.

I had met a neighbor the day before, Ernie, a nice man who's been coming up for twenty years and he invited me for a cup (or two, or three) of coffee in the morning. He was a friend of the man who built the cabin and knows everything about it. It's nice to meet people because as much as I love peace and quiet, I find it's better when it's shared. We spoke a while and I enjoyed his company.

When I got back, I took a shot of this interesting (to me anyway) pair of oak trees on the property. I call them The Two Sisters.



There was snow on the mountains in all directions. Here's looking west toward Breckenridge:



North:



Northwest:



South:



The creek on this property which I thought had been dry for years is actually alive and well:



I found a lovely winter landscape as I left:





It was an interesting drive back: the unpaved roads out of the SSP were muddy and slippery; I took the creek road to avoid any possible ice on the Lion's Trail and found a huge boulder had fallen on the road in the southbound lane; the road was flooded in many areas; hail in the Grapevine' and finally, approaching LA, buzzed drivers coming home from Super Bowl parties. I was glad to get home safe.

Weather permitting, we're moving furniture in next weekend!