Hi everyone –
It’s a beautiful day today in Boise. Amy and I are lazing about, reading, preparing the yard, I organized the cut offs in my micro shop (a long overdue task). For those of you outside of Boise, I’m sorry about your winter. Sounds rough. We have had a really mild one, and it looks like spring is here. I’ll probably see tulips this week or next. We’ll have our first spinach salad next weekend. I’ve been out hiking, as usual, when it’s dry. I will miss winter hiking in the desert though.
Winter Carnival
Amy and I went up to McCall a few weeks ago when the winter carnival was in its second week. We’d never been there for the event before – no reason to go. But we borrowed a condominium, and the weekend happened to coincide with the annual event – snow sculptures, a parade or two, who knows what. So we took a day off, wandered around town Friday, snapped a few photos of the sculptures, and promptly left the town center for the oncoming hordes of tourists. We had a dinner date on Saturday night and could not get onto the highway because of the crowds. I got a chance to go out on my skis, and was reminded how much fun it is. Below are a few of the better shots from the weekend. Imagine though, that every other image is accompanied by the whine of a snow machine and the odor of two stroke fumes. McCall is a year ‘round redneck paradise. The legislature is only seasonal.
The Crafts
I have been busy this winter on a couple of projects. The table below is an arts and crafts side table I completed a couple weeks ago. I really like it. Amy wants me to build another for the fall BUGS dinner/auction. I am currently waiting to see if I will be building a timber framed storage shed, or will start on the storm window prototype I’ve been scheming to build for a bit. We also need a new bed and a bigger sideboard. I’ve assembled most of the tools and ideas for the storm windows. I need to make one, find a glazer, and get the word out. I think I’ll be able to sell them to remodelers and homeowners here in the old part of town. They’ll be well made, attractive, and will increase efficiency without the need of replacing old windows.
The other craft I have begun is bread making. I have mastered the French style sourdough Levain. Here is a photo of one just out of the oven. I now pack them with seeds and grains. The absence of yeast has made a difference in Amy’s and my overall health too, I am convinced. I still get a lot of yeast from beer, though. That’s not likely to change. The next step, once we get some land, is to build a clay oven and wood fire it all year. I’m also making sourdough pizza crusts now.
The house is a little harder to explain. We are trimming the interior. The class I am in (National Certified Sustainable Building Advisor program) is teaching me a lot about efficiency, light, health, energy, materials… I have met a bunch of like minded people with a range of knowledge and expertise. I’m learning about permaculture, net-zero building strategies, HVAC efficiency, and passive solar design, to name a few. Combine this with the LEED project I am progressing through, and you can see that my skills are a-changing. Not only will it be the first LEED home built by students, but I am going to get the state’s first EPA Indoor Air certificate. My program partner just got a state grant to start a wind and solar power training program at the tech center. I’m going to get a thermal imaging camera that identifies energy loss in a building. Next year I’m going to try for LEED Silver, and install a solar hot water system.There’s more, as there always is. I can never remember it all. My surgery is all done. I’m wearing glasses full time now. The busy time of year is starting. Spring is here and just over its shoulder can see summer. Faint, hiding perhaps, but there none the less.
Portland
For those of you in the family – here is our itinerary for Maine. We’re flying into Portland on Thursday the 17th of June and will stay downtown. We’ll let you know where when we know. Our cabin rental starts on Sunday the 20th. We fly back on Saturday the 26th at 5pm.
I’ll leave you all with a few pics of the pets. Scott
