There's No Place Like Home........

Dog toothed violets carpet the forest.  First flowers of spring.

Just some random thoughts on coming home to our cabin here in North Park.  First, I wanted to use some pictures on my cell phone but I can't seem to figure out how to get them to my computer!  Because our house is sitting in a hole , it is difficult to get cell service here but also ATT is absolutely useless all over North Park (except on our airport hill) but you can't message or send photos from there either.  Apparently, ATT doesn't have an agreement with Verizon and that is the only tower anywhere near here!  I even tried emailing my pics from Danny's house in Nebraska but I never received them so that was out.  Then Brent and Erin tried to hook up the phone to my computer.  (My Kindle cord worked)  But then it asked for me to put in my CD that came with the phone.  I couldn't remember where I put it but I knew it was here somewhere--oh well, it was time for them to leave when Erin found it still in the car where I hadn't finished unloading!  Too late for them to do it but I figured it would be easy to do.  Today I tried.  No dice!  I tried everything including support and help menus and it didn't work.  I finally put my model number in for a search and Samsung couldn't even find it on their list!!  What a bunch of nonsense!  I can't use any pictures I take.  ATT you suck!!!  As well as Samsung!!!  OK, I got that off my chest.

The useless phone.  It has a great camera but I can't get the pictures off it!  HELP!

Next,  there are many things we needed to do when we got home.  The first was to turn on the pump and hot water heater.  Well, that turned out badly......  Shortly after Bob turned on the pump, I started to get dinner and noticed water pouring down the wall behind the sink!  Our trusty Maytag valve finally rusted out and water was pumping into the machine and couldn't shut off.  It overflowed for awhile until the floor was soaked and finally came pouring down the wall.  We got the water shut off and I tried sucking up water with the shop vac.  Not too effective with the bunk bed, washer, dryer and dressers all in the way!

The Blue Room, pre-flood.

Pre-flood view.  Notice the lack of space to suck up the water .

  Kenny, Tony and Levi were coming out on Sunday 4 days later and offered to help move the bunk bed.  Each day I messed around but water kept coming out from under stuff.  It was smelling very sour by Saturday and I began to think we would need to tear up the rug and subfloor and start over.  It wouldn't be that bad, I would get a new wood laminate floor that would be easy to install and easy to keep up too.  We got the bed taken down, I got my laundry done (another frustrating story) but still we needed to move washer and dryer.  Oh well, Erin and Brent would be here on Tuesday to help!  Still pretty sour smelling but parts of the floor were getting drier as I shifted to using the Bissell but still not very good.

Bunk bed is gone and we can finally get that floor dry!

Erin tried her hand at "Bisselling"

She was much better at directing the clean up!

So was I !

Wednesday morning Brent was up early ready to start moving stuff.  We got the washer out and moved the dryer.  We sucked up more water from under these appliances and decided to let things dry for another day.  The next day we shampooed the rug and let it dry--the smell was going away!!!!  Finally the floor was dry, there was no smell and we could move around the furniture!  I sure am glad everyone showed up to help us out.  We even found a working Maytag (from Wendover) out in the shop so I am back in business!

Looking and smelling good!

The room seems so much bigger after we got the furniture back in place minus the bunk bed!  I need to move the mattresses on the floor under the window in the big room in here!  Sorry, Paul.

By Saturday I was ready to go over and check out the fishing.  I headed out for our little bridge over the rushing creek and here is what I found!

 

A project for later in summer.  At least we have plenty of logs to support it!

I did catch 2 fish and one was pretty big.  I froze it and want Danny to smoke it in his new Big Green Egg knock off.

Everything wasn't a disaster.  We got the hot tub set up and filled without incident although the rusty water (Brent described as hot tubbing in warm tea) did not clear up until after they left, but it is crystal clear now!

I LOVE hot tubbing even in summer up here!

  The TV's both work after calling to get them rebooted, our internet connection works just fine (Yea Wildblue!), and the light over the sink is now working after buying just one replacement bulb!  I found the pictures I was looking for to upload onto Facebook for West Wendover's class of 2001 reunion,

Some of my colleagues at West Wendover High School in the first few years of the school's existence.  Maybe around 1998.  We sure had some interesting experiences--didn't we, ladies?  But where are Patty Ekland and Heidi?

Up at the head gate.  It needs opening!

we got the ditches opened and did some hiking.

Trying to decide how we are going to pry that old thing up.

Erin and Brent even hiked all the way up to Aqua Fria in the snow on June 5!

Aqua Fria, buried in snow the first week of June.

Proof that they made it all the way up there!

  I got a new puzzle going, made some bread and baked brownies and peanut butter cookies!

A very rare picture of all three Corkle boys together!

Despite all the woes of getting organized for the summer, I am sooo glad to be home and able to swing on the porch,

sit in the sun and drink my morning coffee,

go out and fish while watching the beaver try to chase me away,

Look at the snow on the mountain!  Rare to have that much in early June.

 soak in the hot tub while reading my Kindle, hike up to the thinking rock,

I'm not sure why we love the Thinking Rock but it seems we all do!

ride the 4 wheeler up to airport hill, and yes, looking forward to picking some rhubarb for pies, cake, and cobblers!  Ahhhhh!  I LOVE  summer!  Now, I can look forward to mosquito season.  I am looking forward to entertaining guests, too.  I hope some come to visit!

Brothers and cousin plus Brent all together in one place! 

  Maybe I ought to plan an open house for this summer........  Anyone want to come?