September 2011 Archives

Awake: 6:56am       Temp 58      sleep 7+22      cloudy -- sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

After the KK meeting, K & I went back to our house & noticed that the Bassett guys are down to (1) mason & a helper; it's slow but they do a nice job. On the other side of our house, the Zernick guys are noisy & very active. Here you can see some of the fascia & soffit if you look close. What's slowing these guys down is the fact that they have to saw & chisel about 4" off of the brick from the "soldier" pattern due to a blooper by the masons who installed it too low. The extra 4" of space is needed to fasten the ledger board to the brick wall, upon which will sit the deck trusses. Back in my workshop, I took apart the box heater that we've used for a few yrs. The motor was noisy & the power was low; it was a great heater so I'm hoping to revive it. Kathy joined me in my workshop & wanted to open some of the BIG boxes; among many other things, she discovered: Zack's Castle from High School.                                  Do you still want this treasure Zack?

I opened (4) more boxes this afternoon & sorted most of the items into various drawers.

Close to quitting time, the building team were getting a load of treated lumber to continue building the deck. Kathy surprised me with our wine time & treat: chicken egg roll with sweet & sour & hot mustard sauces.

Dinner: New England clam chowder, oyster crackers, Como bread & local pears from a nearby tree.

Lights out:11:37pm. .

Awake: 6:21am     Temp 65     sleep 6+41     early rain ....afternoon sunny    overnight @ Nicktown.

The Bassett guys arrived on their 7:00am schedule; pondered the rainy weather & then left to finish another job elsewhere.

Meanwhile, the entire Zernick team was here this morning & after some measuring & studying & putting up some scaffolding, they started the fascia & soffit building under the dormer on the back side of our house.

I spent a lot of time this morning trying to get our Juke Box working; finally I realized that one of the tubes was not lighting up & so I went in another direction, the coin box. After I found the correct key, I opened the coin box & there were a few dollars worth of quarters inside.

In the afternoon, I continued opening boxes & slowly, my workshop is actually beginning to look like a workshop. Kathy continued opening boxes & organizing upstairs.

Dinner: pork chops, peas, fried noodles, & applesauce.

Lights our: 11:34pm.                  

Awake: 6:20am      Temp 63      sleep 6+23      sunny       overnight @ Nicktown.

At the KK meeting I took a show & tell item & introduced it to the massive crowd. It was my Marksmen sling shot that I've had since the 60's. Most of the guys haven't seen one of these for a long time.

The Bassett masons continue the bricking on our front entry. Apparently they were getting low on sand so in comes the Long Barn truck.               Sky, the mason's helper, knew exactly where he wanted that load of sand. I spent a lot of time in my workshop today opening boxes & starting to assign certain tools to certain drawers. I finally uncovered the far end of my workshop where I was able to get my homemade trash can carrier out & running. We used this cart weekly in Alaska to run our trash out to the road for pickup. While I was downstairs, Kathy was opening boxes, organizing & doing laundry upstairs.

Dinner: Talapia fish, Quinoa & whole grain brown rice, spinach salad, & Como bread with olive oil & Balsamic vinegar dip.

Lights out: 11:40pm.

Awake: 7:20am      Temp 61       sleep 7:02      sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

After my coffee, I went outside & spent over an hr on trouble-shooting the lack of power of the compressors. On nice days, I'll continue doing this checking or/and make another call for help @ the Newell company.

                          Meanwhile, I visited Kathy & she was relaxed & smiling. She had just finished picking up a lot of the cardboard on the main floor that was dirty & dusty, vacuuming & damp mopping the now exposed floor.

She accumulated those cardboard strips into a pile near the French doors so that I could simply throw them out & then drag them to the burn pile.

      Before this, she cleaned off the table & made it look like: "dinner will be served shortly." Around 3:30pm, Kathy suggested that we should visit Cy & the gang in Kirsch Town; Trish & Brian will be returning to Maryland later this evening so it would be nice to spend a little time with them & Jan. "Ok!" I said & gave Cy a call.

He was watching a football game but he said to come on down anyway. When we arrived, Brian, Trish & Jan were out shopping somewhere but were scheduled to be back by 4:00pm. Well, Cy offered us a glass of wine & also joined us so we sat & talked for quite awhile & had some good laughs with some good story telling; but after (1.5) hrs went by, I thought perhaps Cy would be eating the dinner they bring him & we would be out of place. So, we apologized for not getting together earlier & went back to our house & got rid of all those cardboard sheets. After walking the path numerous times, the cardboard didn't last long due to a few gusts of wind. Later, I took the hall tree that I made in Alaska & brought it into my workshop for repairs; it was also damaged during our move from Alaska. Dinner: BLT's with chips.

We finished watching: "Roseland" with Theresa Wright, Lou Jacobi, Geraldine Chaplin, Helen Gallagher, Joan Copeland, etc. Trilogy set in N.Y.C.'s venerable Roseland Ballroom examines bittersweet lives of people who gravitate there. First story is the weakest, but other two are absorbing & beautifully performed, with Copeland & Skala as standouts. 1977.

This story might be better for older seniors rather than us young people.

Lights out: 11:57pm.

Awake: 7:02am     Temp 55     sleep 6+25     sunny     overnight @ Nicktown.

When I woke up this morning, I saw lights on in our house; Bob & Nathan were not scheduled to work today so who was in there? I quickly changed clothes, went to the house & here was Bob & he had all the switches on the backsplash by the sink removed. He also had the wiring for the wine cooler receptacle apart....looking for a clue as to WHY our Fisher Paycal dishwasher had no electricity. He told us that thinking about this problem was causing him to lose sleep; he had watched the guys wire this dishwasher up & wanted to resolve the issue himself, maybe if he did, he would sleep better!

After the KK meeting, we checked on Bob & by gosh, he had found the problem & it wasn't an easy fix. First, he had to remove several items from under the sink, the Waste King disposal, instant hot water, & Culligan water filters, etc, in  order to thoroughly trouble shoot. He found a wire going to the supply source through several thin walls but then...no wire. The intended wire was wedged between two cabinets. After drilling another hole & fishing the wire thru he was able to plug it in to the intended receptacle. This is the 2^nd time that Bob found an electrical glitch. Bob is very careful & good @ working with the electrical sources.

My project today: find the problem with our M.H. air supply. I gathered my tools, got some foam to kneel on & took a good look @ what I've been doing. When Jimmy from Newell told me I had it backwards, I did not quite understand, so today I took the air system apart again, studied it more carefully & finally realized what he really meant. I reversed the unit & then tightened the air lines. When I started the engine, the air pressure kept on climbing & by golly, it's working like it should. My compressors however, still have a problem, so that is next on the list.

Dinner: leftover tuna & noodles with peas & chips.

K & I attended 6:00pm vigil Mass & afterward found a good table so Theresa & John could have some pizza & beer with us.

Late movie: "Roseland." We watched ½.

Lights out: 11:50pm.

Awake: 6:40am      Temp 62      sleep 7:01      gentle rain off & on       overnight @ Nicktown.

The Bassett guys are cutting up bricks this morning; not a good time to sleep late...but Kathy did until the noise.      They have to shave a few bricks off To brick the Ark (half moon) above the front entry;         Our front entry was closed all day, thus we used the rear entry to enter our house. We stayed around our house all morning...& had the cell phone nearby, on guard for my 1st cousin Cy to give us a jingle so we could help him unload his trailer this morning. Well, he was just a little late as he backed his trailer into the storage facility;     He didn't have many heavy items so we were finished unloading & storing within (45) min.                            I believe we spent more time chatting then working.

The remainder of the afternoon & part of the evening was spent in my workshop until Kathy gave me a call for dinner, which consisted of: tuna & noodles with peas & broccoli.

Later Melissa called & told us that the fever Gregory & Matthew had was a one day thing. She also talked about the changes that will be made on Face-Book soon; info regarding her per phone book club with 2 friends, one in MO. & one in AK, & she invited us to IUP's homecoming parade & activities next Saturday.

Late movie: "The Power & the Glory with Spencer Tracy, Colleen Moore, Ralph Morgan, Helen Vinson. Considered by many a precursor to CITIZEN KANE, Preston Sturges' script tells rags-to-riches story of callous industrialist (Tracy) in flashbacks. 1933. Most interesting; how many people hated him & many people loved him.

Lights out: 12:17am.

Awake: 5:35am      Temp 63      sleep 5+50      rain began @ 6:15am ...lasted until 11:00am. overnight @ Nicktown.

Pete, the Bassett temporary boss, arrived shortly after 7:00am &, due to heavy rain, left shortly thereafter. Bob & Nathan arrived @ 7:00am & worked on the bar cabinet, my work bench, my workbench top & a number of other items.

This is my patched up workbench with lots of drawers & electrical outlets.....& tool holders. Here is another angle of my workbench; as you can see, I am starting to get some of my equipment & tools out that I can use. Oh yes, this cute number just recently showed up; what is it? It's a miniature outhouse of course. And my mini metal lathe; I have been missing my tinkering over the yrs, especially when touring season is unfavorable. Kathy continues to organize the bedrooms, & the big hex.

Dinner: tomato soup with hamburger & salad.

We watched all of the Republican debate tonight.

Lights out: 11: 39pm.

Awake: 6:17am      Temp 59      sleep 6+56      overcast       overnight @ Nicktown.

After our KK meeting, we visited Bob & Nathan in our house. We discussed the bathroom lights above the medicine cabinets, & the utility cabinets, & my drawers & electrical setup.

Meanwhile, the Bassett guys were busy doing their bricking. We are happy to see them each day. Because of many angles on our house, the guys have to cut quite a few bricks during a day's work. Then K & I motored to Ebensburg & the Sears store to pick up our small bar refrigerator... plus some groceries @ Wal-Mart.

Back @ our house, Bob & Nathan unloaded the refrigerator & we unloaded the groceries...some in our house & some in our M.H.

Next, we motored to the Foote Castle to spend time with the boys & let Melissa go to her weekly check-up with the doctor. After introducing myself to the boys, Nathan, Andrew, Matthew & I went down to the basement where Matthew & I unsoldered many parts off of an old 50-60's TV circuit board & a more current printer board.

He's wanted to use the soldering gun for a long time so I let him handle it himself while I wiggled parts away from the circuit board. Matthew held the trigger on the soldering gun so long that all of a sudden the gun itself blew up & melted some of its heavy plastic case. That was the end of our unsoldering for today. Andrew & Nathan had each been busy with different projects, but perked up & were quick to check out the soldering gun.

While we were downstairs, Kathy stayed in the living room with Gregory, who was running a fever & was sleeping on the couch. After he woke & got some cuddling from Grandma, she read him a story while he ate some lunch. Upon Melissa's return, it was time to get the sand into their sandbox.

 Here Kathy demonstrated how to get the heavy bucket of sand out of our Suzuki & onto the wagon:just slide the bucket carefully out & into the wagon. Nothing to it!           Then Matthew demonstrated how easy it was to dump the sand into the sandbox. This is the sandbox that Kevin built & each night they cover the sandbox with a tarp. He made it big due to (4) active boys need their space. Today, we celebrated the feast day of St. Matthew (Matthew's special saint; his name day) with a delicious chocolate chip cookie & an ice cream cone for the occasion. Many months ago, I watched as Andrew practiced riding a bike; over & over he tried his best, but I didn't know if he really did catch on, so I asked him today. "Yes!" he told me. Then he got his helmet & bike out from the storage building & away he went...like a pro. .                               Now Nathan is practicing to be a scooter pro. Kevin came home from work so we had some time to chat with him also. It was a fun visit.

Dinner: Leftover bean taco from Melissa's kitchen.

Lights out: 11:45pm.

Awake: 5:25am       Temp 58      sleep 5+34      fog...mist      overnight @ Nicktown.

The Bassett guys were here on time &, according to Simon, they will continue bricking our house until it is finished; not counting rain delays. Bob & I discussed having drawers for my workshop; all these yrs I just didn't take the time to build them myself. I did get all (9) slides done for the drawers but never finished.

Kathy & I both are having a tough time finding places for our stuff, so here is Kathy's answer: stowing her homemade baskets on top of her China cabinet.                And my answer for the FedEx mugs can be seen high up in the cabinets. . Now that we have the keys for the Juke Box, here are some of the electronics from the 50's & 60's. UPS delivered (2) lights for my bathroom; (1) above the medicine cabinet & the other (1) above the utility cabinet.They also delivered lights for the Jack & Jill sinks, & a sink & faucet for the bar.          By the end of Bob & Nathan's work day, they had a good start on my (9) drawers.        Oh- oh- soon our front entry will be blocked...but that's OK. We have another key. Dinner: Hamburger & a salad.

Nick called us again while driving home from work; by gosh, we covered quite a lot about Nick's job & his responsibilities & about the family in (15) min.

Lights out: 11:21pm.

Awake: 6:35am      Temp 50      sleep 6+34       partly sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

We had some special people with us @ the KK meeting this morning, & we stayed an extra ½ hr. Kitty & her 1st cousin Jim, were the honorable guests. When the meeting lasts longer, that's usually a sign that we could sit there all morning with talk & laughter.

After the meeting, Dave, an outstanding member of our KK, backed up to our entry door of our house with his truck & we got rid of a lot of our flattened cardboard shipping boxes. During the fall of the year, Dave uses that cardboard to light a small fire just to take the chill off their their home. 

We moved a lot of our breakfast food from our M.H, to our house this morning. Here is our typical breakfast for Kathy & me. Early afternoon, my 1st cousin Max & his wife Diana visited & we gave them a grand tour of our home.

                         Bob & Nathan are close to having the bar cabinets finished. Before they left for the day, I asked Bob if they could make drawers for my workbench. Bob asked me a few questions & then said: "Yes we can." All these years & my workbench did not any drawers; I am really looking forward to filling those boxes up with my tools.

Dinner: Garden fresh tomato soup with Ono fish, rice & oyster crackers.

Nick called us while driving home from his work tonight. For the last 8 ½ years, Nick has walked to & from work, but the company has relocated to a new building farther from his house necessitating that he drive. This deprives Nick of his daily exercise, but we like the (15) min. call.

Lights out: 11:51pm.

Awake: 7:28am      Temp 49       sleep 8+02       sunny overnight @ Nicktown.

Kathy finished laundering some of my clothes... in storage for (10) or more yrs. So, I took them to my armoire & filled most of the spaces that were for ties, socks, pants, sweaters, tee shirts, swimming suits, etc.

                Here are my (42) pairs of socks that Kathy pointed out the other day.                       Kathy found (3) more...not counting the socks in our M.H.

Mid afternoon, Kathy ordered (4) more lights for our powder room & my bathroom. Shortly after her computer transaction, we motored to Bryan's house & had a nice tour from his wife, Tina.                               He also is having geothermal heating & cooling. Back to our M.H, we ate a dinner of BLT's with olives & chips.

Late movie: "Two Way Stretch." We watched 2/3rds.

My sister Mary Jo called from California; we updated each other & she reported that all is well with her & her family & her grandson. Always nice to hear that!

Lights out: 11:59pm.

Awake: 6:24am      Temp 47      sleep 6+39      partly sunny       overnight @ Nicktown.

This morning @ our KK meeting, I brought a show & tell story that I recently found from the archives about our first daughter Melissa...getting married to Kevin.
The theme of which was biking, since that's how they met.

Melissa asked me to somehow make small bikes that she could use as favors on the tables at the reception. This was her 1st rendition of a bike.                                       and...this was her 2nd. Hmm!                    I went to work on this project & came up with a better looking bike.... but it took so long to make one. Then I figured out how to make a lot of these bikes without spending too much time on each bike. Using my metal lathe, & blocks of aluminum, I routed & grooved out the parts that was necessary for building a bike out of copper wire. I showed our family how to make the parts of the bike which they did while I was going on FedEx trips & when I would return home from the trip, I would solder the parts to complete the bike. When we asked Melissa how many bikes she would like to have, she told us: "about a hundred." Oh my gosh!                                              So we had to get serious                  We came close to that number...90 some. Final picture not available Anyway they are still riding bikes & their last big trip with (4) boys & a dog was over (200) miles.

The KK members seemed to enjoy a different show & tell story.

After our breakfast, I put all my FedEx mugs high up in the kitchen cabinets. Next, we went separately, Kathy upstairs & I down stairs & took showers in our house.

Then motored to Barnesboro (Northern Cambria) & attended 4:00 pm vigil Mass @ the Prince of Peace Church, & then attended my (53rd) High school reunion @ the Contres Greer building in Spangler. (Northern Cambria).

We had a good time & I enjoyed seeing some of my classmates & others. Class of 1955 through 1962 were included. Kathy & I did a lot of talking & dancing also.

Lights out: 12:34am.

Awake: 5:24am       Temp 42      sleep 5+16       sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

After our KK meeting, K & I visited Byron & Herm @ the hardware store. 1st, we wanted to buy a few nails & washers, & then to pick Herms brain about the vinyl decking.

Herm, Byron & our young friends in Saint Augustine have vinyl decking with few complaints, & that is after some 6-8 yrs of use. I've been pulling out some of the little hair I have left, trying to decide on decking material. Maybe this close-to-home-idea will be the simple solution. K & I did tour Herm's porch, noting flooring & the hand rails & it looked good to us.

Back in our house, I spent most of the remaining morning & afternoon in my cluttered workshop putting the puzzle work-bench together. This will be the 3rd time I've done this; counting the original building of this bench in Memphis, Tennessee. I dismantled it & flew it to Anchorage, Alaska; then reassembled it there. I used it there until son Nick & I dismantled it (14) yrs later, & now I'm reassembling it (10) yrs later. (1) board was cracked on arrival so I got out the epoxy, the clamps & the heat lamps to give it about (4) hrs of curing.

                                                Kathy did more laundry today; & reminded me that she counted (43) pairs of my socks; not counting my socks in the M.H. I could not believe that until I witnessed it in person. Sure enough, that was the count. Wow! And they are all in good shape. Around 8:00 pm, I drove over to the Nicktown Bar & waited for the gang to show up for our boys night out; I didn't wait long, as they poured onto our favorite table.

My brother suggested a BIG pitcher of beer & that lasted us a long time. Tom had some funny jokes every now & then, & my brother had some interesting stories of yesteryear's business adventures. And Pete, well, he & I supported the laughter community, mainly to keep the stories coming.

The big Pizza we ordered filled our tummies & made the (3) hrs almost a perfect evening.

Lights out: 11:45pm.

Awake: 6:48am      Temp 55      sleep 7+36      rain-wind-partly sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.
No Bassett brick layer's this morning; but the afternoon was nice.The Zernick guys, as always, were right on time. Bob & Nathan continued constructing the 1st cabinet & had it finished before noon, save for the door.                               Now they are working on the 2nd & 3rd cabinets. They also pulled in some electrical wiring to provide outlets behind the bar for whatever we wanted to use them for as well as to plug in a small refrigerator & light up the mirror. Kathy was a busy gal this afternoon: (4) more loads of laundry, (1) more load of dishes using the Miele washer & she opened & emptied (7) more large boxes. I spent some more time connecting the parts on my workbench. Early evening, John B. & his older son visited our house; John knows our house pretty well by now so I suggested that he give his son a tour instead of me.

After the tour, John & his son looked over the (30) yr old freezer that we tried to fit into the too small hallway cubical. We asked around if anyone was interested in having a free freezer, but no serious takers, until John mentioned it to his son. So they used our hand truck to move it onto John's truck & away they went.

We will casually look for another freezer for that cubic space. After John & son left, I went back to my workbench & continued putting more parts together.                                        Dinner @ 10:00pm: Chili with elbow pasta.
              
                                                    Lights out: 12:08am.

Awake: 6:05am      Temp 63      sleep 6+42      overcast      overnight @ Nicktown.

After attending our KK, Bob showed us his idea of a cabinet behind the bar which we agreed to have done. Later, I called Bassett & talked to the secretary; she gave me Jim's cell phone # & I spoke with him about our house being left out of the picture so many times. He told me that they need to finish up on our house by next week. I hope that statement is for real.

My brother Don called & wanted to have a boys night out on Friday. "I'm all for that idea," I told him.

Meanwhile, Kathy motored to the Foote Castle to baby sit the (4) boys while Melissa had a check up with the ob. doctor; only (1) more month to go!

This time, Kevin wasn't home to help dump the sand into the sandbox, but Matthew came up with an idea which they followed. Kathy put each 5 gal bucket from the car onto the wagon, Matthew pulled the wagon into the backyard, backed up to the sandbox & with a "heave-ho," Kathy pushed the bucket off the wagon, into the sandbox...one dump complete; this was repeated 2 more times.

During her absence, I continued opening boxes & putting things anywhere & everywhere. I did spend some time getting my workbench out in the open & slowly starting it's Phoenix. Later, I called Newell & talked with Jimmy; I explained to him what I accomplished in reference to the failed air system. Then he told me that I have the system upside down! "Can't be" I said. "Just reverse it Monte & call me later." Well, I did & nothing changed. I will call back later after I study some more.

Dinner: BLT's with red grapes, cole slaw & chips.

Lights out: 11:12pm.

Awake: 5:12am      Temp 59      sleep 5+29 a (15) second burst of rain @ 5:55am & that was it.     overnight @ Nicktown.

The Bassett gang didn't show up today either. Yesterday, boss man Simon, told me their other customers were very pushy & that is why we are hit & miss. I let him know that: "we were 1st." I can see that we too, will have to be pushier.

Today's project: finish the ice maker & then start on a cabinet or (2) or (3), including the sink cabinet behind the bar. Bob & Nathan reversed the door & built a small stand so the ice cube maker would fit in nicely & also have the water drain out. Kathy spent some time looking @ bathroom lights & then, she filled up (2) buckets of sand for the sand box that Kevin is building. I did my duty by carrying & lifted the buckets into the Suzuki.

Then she motored to the Foote Castle to baby sit the (3) older boys while Melissa took Gregory for his check up & an immunization. Kevin unloaded the sand when he came home for lunch.

My plan today was to open more boxes that have been marked: "Work Shop" on them. I did that for a while & then realized that today is nice outside & the Bassett boys are not coming over; maybe a good time to try & fix the air system on our M. H.

I spent close to (4) hrs hooking everything up as I was instructed by the guys in Miami, Oklahoma. Then I made sure all circuit breakers were on & started the engine. Within min, I knew the problem continued. Tomorrow I will call Newell for more help. Too many circuits, but I won't give up yet! Kathy returned from baby sitting @ 6:15pm. She has another baby sitting job tomorrow so I helped her load up (3) buckets of sand &, together, we carried (1) bucket at a time as they are heavy.
Dinner: Crab soup with oyster crackers, & bread.

Lights out: 11:23pm.

Awake: 6:02am       Temp 56      sleep 6+01       sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

This morning @ 7:00am, both the Masons & the Zernick workers were here. Bassett had (4) Masons bricking & only (1) mason helper. Sky was a busy guy throughout the day.

What Bob & Nathan did today was to follow our wishes; they moved the pool slate from the game room into the mud room, then they relocated the helicopter game to the other side of our game room to where the pool slate was setting.                        Up stairs, they lifted the China cabinet onto the China base; & moved the switchboard closer to the wall. Then in the basement, they took the 3rd pool slate from my workshop & brought it over to the mud room. That will give me more space to rebuild my workbench. After the workers checked out for the day, K & I continued opening boxes; she on the main floor & I in my workshop.

Later, after carrying our aluminum ladder upstairs, I took some time to place a few mementos in the high cabinets. Dinner: Chicken stroganoff.

Lights out: 11:43pm.

Awake: 7:07     Temp 59     sleep 6+09     fog....partly cloudy      overnight @ Nicktown.

We started early going to our house & opening boxes this morning. After a long day, Kathy had organized quite a bit in the hex; got rid of boxes, vacuumed, & rearranged things, making more room.

It is difficult for me to organize in my workshop as I have no table or cabinet or chairs. Therefore, whatever I take out of a box, I'm stuck with where to put it. Recently however, I have been getting more serious about making space to get my big workshop table put together, that would help a lot. Today,

Kathy did a lot of dish washing; the new dishwasher is A-OK. She also did (3) loads of laundry, mostly clothing from storage & she cleaned my airplanes.

Dinner: sausage with peppers & onions, red grapes & bread dipped in olive oil & Balsamic vinegar.

We finished watching: "Party Girl" with Robert Taylor. Surprisingly enough, both Kathy & I realized that we had seen this movie before, but it was so good, neither of us admitted to one another until near the finish. So...if you want to look up the details, go into the archives for March - 25, 2010. Are we running out of good movies to watch?

Lights out: 12:01pm.      

Awake: 6:02am     Temp 62     sleep 5+28     rain...later partly cloudy     overnight @ Nicktown.

After our KK meeting, we asked our neighbor, Barry, if he would come over & check our ice-cube maker at his convenience. He said he could be at our house in about (15) min. So we returned to our M.H., changed clothes & went to our house. When Barry saw our ice-cube maker, he said he used to work on them during the 70-80's timeframe. Within minutes, he found the problem but had to make a part to be able to fix it.

Meanwhile, we picked up the unused tile & granite in our house, motored to Johnstown & Home Depot to returned (3) granite tiles, (3) glass mosaic tiles, & (5) granite bars. I like these places that give you your money back for what you don't use. Then we did what Bob & Nathan asked us to do; got a 2-ft long threaded pipe so they can hang a ceiling fan in our entry way on Monday.

Next, we visited the Market Basket for some grocery shopping & then returned to Nicktown. We checked on our ice-cube maker & Barry had fixed it & tested it twice. Nice! Thanks Barry.

Early dinner: Reuben sandwich with chips. K & I attended 6:00pm vigil mass &, after, we met with Theresa, John, & Bill at the Nicktown Bar. A nice evening of relaxation & good stories.

Lights out: 1:08am.

Awake: 6:38am      Temp 66       sleep 6+52      misty....then rain ..lots of rain overnight @ Nicktown.

   1st thing this morning, Bob & Nathan finished hanging my Hunter ceiling fan. I like it a lot. Today we focused on getting legs on some of our games. Unfortunately I wasted time trying to find the keys to fit the Jukebox, & the helicopter game to no avail.

According to my packing notes (10) yrs ago, the keeper of the keys are in a box. I just haven't opened that box yet.

But the baseball game needed no keys. This 50's electrical mechanical game is heavy; but with some good ideas & strength, from Bob & Nathan, they brought it up on horses & from there, Kathy wanted different bolts to fasten the legs (the old ones were too long & stuck out too far). Bob went to Krumenacker's Hardware store & within mins, the baseball game had respectable legs.                      Bob & Nathan also lifted the helicopter game to fit the legs on it. Upstairs in the front entry, the guys were measuring the ceiling span to hang another Hunter ceiling fan but, they needed a pipe about 2-feet long to bring the ceiling fan down a bit. We will put that on our list for tomorrow.

Dinner: Crab cakes, corn on the cob, rice & mango.

We watched ½ of: "Party Girl."

Lights out: 12:36am.

Awake: 5:15am       Temp 61      sleep 5+39       mostly cloudy       overnight @ Nicktown.

During the morning, Bob & Nathan started putting (2) Hunter fans in our master bedroom. Kathy had some concerns regarding the color of the motors & are they matching or not.

She kept me busy, chasing downstairs & looking for a certain color to match a certain color ceiling fan. Then to bring that fan up only to find out, it wasn't the right color. These old ceiling fans weigh some (50) pounds, so I had plenty of exercise already this morning.

The workers had us & themselves looking for screws, nuts, proper fan blades & other parts. We thought we had every fan in place & ready to hang, but the colors changed everything.

Kathy was also busy doing laundry (3) big loads using our new washer & dryer). Those clothes she washed were our clothes in storage. She also washed a lot of silverware, glasses & plates...but not in the laundry room. She washed them in the Meile dish washer.

Bob & Nathan did get the (2) Hunter fans in place in the master bedroom in the morning (forgot photo)
                                    & during the afternoon, (3) in the hex,                                                  & (2) in the game room; ......all looking good with proper color. A very productive day for our workers. I actually had some time to open a few more boxes that had my name on them....until, close to quitting time; the workers figured out a way to have a fan in my workshop. Hip...hip. That I will like. Dinner: corn on the cob from my cousin, Florentz, & a BLT sandwich with tomatoes from Maria.

Lights out: 11:46pm.

Awake: 5:05am     Temp 56     sleep 5+45    rain...constant all night according to Kathy    overnight @ Nicktown.

Around 11:15am, the rain subsided but with heavy clouds & short bursts throughout the day.

We did support our new priest, Fr. Chad, & attended 8:00 am Mass. We think he will be a good pastor, already different than Fr. Job, but very likeable & personable. He likes to sing & does; pretty nice voice, too. So far, he's not quite the fantastic homilist that Fr. Job is, but we'll see.

Meanwhile, our (2) workers started to hang our Hunter fans in the visitors bedrooms. After they had the two fans put in place, Bob checked the dimmer switches to make sure our dimmers would work on these old fans. He told us to keep the fan setting on medium & then the fan will be able to change speed using the dinner switch. I was a little skeptical, so I tried it & here the dimming switches made no difference what-so-ever. Oops! Our fans are old fashioned & though the speed can only be changed by pulling on the dangling cord, the fan can be turned on/off using the wall switch.

We've been wondering about our deck plans; so Bob told us that Bernie will be measuring our deck & letting us know next week what we can expect for cost & labor on a specific deck or maybe several types. Bob also recommended that we talk to Paul at the Long Barn in Ebensburg regarding composite decking, vinyl decking, etc. So we motored to Ebensburg & spent a good hr with Paul, discussing deck choices.

After we finished there, we checked the West End Market for veggies, apples, etc.

Back in our motorhome, Kathy got on her computer & started looking at numerous comments that people have made after they have chosen a deck type. Most, I mean most of these comments were not good; it was either a fading problem or a moldy problem or shrinking/expanding problem.  What should we do?

Dinner: leftover chicken & noodles. Our entertainment for the evening: watching the Republican Candidates debate for (2) + hrs.

Lights out:  11:36pm.

Awake: 5:55am      Temp 55       sleep 6+22      rain..gentle, but continuous overnight @ Nicktown.

Early morning, the Basset truck came in & loaded a lot of scaffolding & planks into their truck & left us for the rest of the week. Too much rain I suppose. Meanwhile, K & I attended 8:00 am Mass this morning; our priest, Father Job, will be leaving us today. After (10) yrs of being our pastor in Nicktown, he will go on a 3 month sabbatical to the Trappist Monastery in Berryville, VA. where he will be discerning what God has planned for him. We will certainly miss him!

Most of us in the community really liked him & people from distant towns have, for years, patronized our church services & Catholic School.

After Mass, we invited Charlie & Ellen from Ohio to join our KK meeting & afterwards, we thoroughly toured them thru our house & had some good talks with laughter along the way.

In our spare time, we continued to unpack boxes throughout the day. It's not exactly like Christmas, but we have had & will have many more moments of delight when finding stuff that was long forgotten.

Also, during the picnic on Sunday, my cousin Maria asked about a tour for this evening & so, she & her daughter, Lydia & her twin sister Marca, were given a grand tour with the lights on...because it was nighttime. They didn't have to patronize, but they did give us home grown tomatoes & salsa & (2) Macintosh apples + flowers. Wow! Thank you guys!

Dinner: Chili with elbow macaroni & Doritos.

Lights out: 11:20pm.

Awake: 5:22am     Temp 65     sleep 6+24     light & heavy rain     overnight @ Nicktown.

K & I attended 8:00am Mass & afterwards, my cousin Norm asked me if he & his wife could have a tour of our house today.

Yesterday at the picnic, one of Chuck's daughters, who was leaving on Tuesday for her home in Amsterdam, asked the same question, so we scheduled a tour for them between 9:30 am & 10:30am. Norm & Barbara were included. We had (10) adults all together; Kathy led the tour on the main floor & I sort of led the tour in the basement ...& it was fun.

The remainder of the day had us busy but we better not talk about it now.

Lights out: 11:33pm.

Awake: 8:22am      Temp 70       sleep 8+52      rain forecasted      overnight @ Nicktown.

Wow, another long stretch of sleep for me. Corinne arrived @ 9:30am & the Foote family arrived @ 9:55am. Kathy notified the Foote's about this free sand so Kevin brought a few containers & a shovel for the occasion. He quickly filled his (2) containers & let the boys play in the sand for awhile.

Then Corinne & I walked to the church hall & stood in line @ 10:20am. At that time, the line stopped @ the end of "the Hole in one" game. We were there for quite awhile & didn't move because the doors were not open yet. About (15) min later, Kathy & the Foote family arrived & the line was moving.

When passing the ticket booth, I bought our gang & my brother & Josie's tickets. Like always, we planned to meet Don & Josie fairly close to the entrance due to their church services, but this time, for whatever reason, we were early & at the door, no brother or Josie. We didn't know what to do; sometimes small children can be patient & sometimes not. I told the guys @ the door that I had tickets for (2) more people whom we are expecting soon but that didn't go over so well. As it turned out, we felt bad that we missed having them with us; I even ate less at the table & left early to find them, & I did. But I think we should have waited. If there is a next time, I'll have my cell phone & we will be more organized.

The remainder of the day was filled with meeting people we hadn't seen for awhile or just happily getting in with a small crowd & telling stories or listening to: "what's happening?" "What's new?" Etc.

With the threat of rain, mid afternoon, I walked back to our M.H., & brought back (2) umbrellas just in case.

Kathy was enjoying the grandsons & all their attempts at winning prizes in the kids' tent, the mouse game, the dime pitch, & the basket booth. It was quite warm so to cool off snow cones were their big treat.

Somewhere close to 4ish, the Foote guys were ready to do something else...like play with the trinkets they had won while Melissa was taking a tour of our house. Take notice of the sand pile to the right that the boys were playing in earlier. Kevin was watching the boys so after Melissa's tour, Kevin & I toured the house a little & then the boys started rooting in the burn pile, finding cardboard train tracks & other neat stuff.     These guys know what is best; Here is Andrew carrying some railroad tracking & a brick.                                           Even Gregory got in the act. After the Foote family left for their castle, K & I returned to the picnic grounds via our Suzuki & visited the beer tent. By this time, the tent was stuffed with bodies & one could barely hear himself speaking. Kathy finished her beer & left the tent; I stayed for awhile & talked with my cousins.

Later, I found Kathy & we each had a hamburger with peppers & onions & talked with Theresa & my cousin Lou. We found out that about (1658) meals were served today not counting those free for the shut-ins. Not too bad for our small Nicktown community.

Darkness was soon upon us & the clouds were spitting a little rain so we left & headed for our M.H. Shortly after we were inside, a heavy downpour came through the area. Later, there were fireworks but we were happy to be indoors.

We started watching the movie: "The Leathernecks" but my mate couldn't keep her eyes from closing.

Lights out: 10:58pm.

Awake: 4:40am     Temp 67     sleep 5+55    mostly sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

Tomorrow is Nicktown's Annual Homecoming Picnic & today my job starts @ 8:30am.

For the past (4) yrs, I've been working with a crew who puts up the tarp between the pavilion & the church hall. That's never just all we would do; we help everyone who needs help. Well today, my boss...so to speak, asked me to do something different. In lieu of climbing up & down the ladder & untying knots, etc, Jim asked for help in his hamburger stand: wash & clean the table covering all around the stand; bring in several types of soda & water to fill the refrigerator; set up tables & chairs in between the pavilion & the church hall; move benches outside so people can sit down in lieu of standing in line so long.....etc, etc.

Mostly I worked with Ted, a cousin & a fine individual I might add. Around noon time, Jim made some very good hamburgers with peppers & onions & we got to eat 1^st. That was my work for the day.

Kathy started her job @ 9:30am & was working inside the church hall as a "dipper." After dipping the partially cooked chicken in melted butter & oil, she & her partner seasoned the chicken breasts, legs, & thighs with salt, pepper & paprika before their final cooking. Actually all that chicken was for the shut-ins. Then they seasoned raw chicken to be put in the cooler so that tomorrow's first chicken cookers for the picnic would have some chicken ready to cook.

We attended the 6:00pm vigil Mass & then joined Barry, Theresa, Ernie &, later, Bonnie & Todd at the Nicktown Bar. We not only enjoyed ourselves with laughter & stories but also liked the pizza & beer.

Tonight's movie: "7 Days in May." We watched ½.

Lights out: 11:30pm.

Awake: 6:33am.      Temp 67       sleep 6+49      mostly sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

Shortly after 7:00am, we visited Bob & Nathan making shelves in the pantry. Then Kathy motored to Carrolltown & the doctor's office. She has been coughing for over a week now & usually sleeping on our sofa so she won't wake me up with her barking. Let's hope the medicine will bring her back to normal s-o-o-n.

The Basset guys are working today on the front of our house; here you see Sky cutting a brick so as to get the half-size to match the other low bricking half size of the 1st layer of the front of our house.                    These guys are good masons & they are also personable as well. Simon, the boss man, left early to get a trailer & load up on sand that was delivered in the beginning of the bricking process, & then nixed because it was of the wrong color. Now that sand color is perfect for something else that Simon wants to build using this sand & the price is right. About 5:20pm, K & I motored to Spangler & attended our 5th or 6th annual cousin's reunion. It's always good to see our cousins & find out what's new or exciting; the covered dish food is always a treat & we usually have a lot to talk about.

                                    This is the beginning of the food line.                                  Here we see the Foote Family & Kathy.                                     And some of my other cousins And more of my cousins....wait a minute, who is that funny guy making strange faces? As from the beginning, my sister Corinne led the entertainment for the evening and did a marvelous job of it.

Lights out: 10:45pm.

Awake: 6:27am      Temp 64       sleep 6+42       morning rain & TRW's.

Bob visited to ask about the pantry shelves & the spacing; then in our closet...the shoe storage. Meanwhile Kathy was rearranging our master bedroom, getting ready to locate my big desk in the corner & then maybe a bed frame.

However, before the move, I found a few loose screws & a bent nail that should be fastened down on my desk. So, I got my epoxy out & my long clamps & my hot lamps to cure the epoxy for a few hrs. Down stairs, Levy was back working on my fireplace & also upstairs working on Kathy's kitchen backsplash & Kathy's laundry room sink.

Mid afternoon, Chuck, the boss & his son Nathan arrived; they worked together to install the glass door on the Jack & Jill shower.

                                       Hard to see but it looks good to me. About the normal quitting time, all of these projects were getting finished by Levy, Chuck & Nathan. After they checked out for the day, Kathy & I returned to our M. H. for the night. Inside our minds, we were hoping that Byron would call us & help move our remaining things from the storage facility.

At 7:00pm, Byron did call & we were very elated; even though it was getting late, we had hopes of finishing up for good tonight. We had (10) items to move into our house that would finish our quest; the quad-runner, Shopsmith, our outdoor grill, some more metal lathe parts, a big & heavy roll of commercial mine rubber etc. It took (4) trips back & forth but we made it happen.
                  Here is Byron with his forklift carrying the Shopsmith, & outdoor grill               .....................and who is he pulling on the quad-runner?                                                           Yours truly. One more trip & we were finished. We couldn't thank Byron enough. We will of course, try & settle the score but it might be tough to do; he's already mentioned quite a few times, " ah, don't worry about it!"

Late dinner: bacon-bit burgers smothered with onions, & baby spinach salad.

Lights out: 11:44pm.

Awake: 7:21am       Temp 60      sleep 7+38      sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

Today, we had (2) Zernick workers scheduled to be here but we didn't know that (1) tile worker would also be here to finish up the odds & ends of the tile projects.

                      Levy spent most of his tiling time on (3) projects: my fireplace; Kathy's backsplash in the kitchen sink but no photo just yet. & the tile work in the laundry room sink. Chuck, the boss man, brought in the glass door for the Jack & Jill shower but did not work on it today. Kathy was busy checking with Bob & Nathan on her pantry. Then mid morning, she motored to Indiana for grocery shopping & to baby sit while Melissa had a doctor's appointment.

Turns out, the appointment was canceled, so they all walked to the Indiana Fair where they checked out the cows & goats, played in the kids' tent, watched the model train exhibit, & played on the playground. They then walked over to the IUP campus where they met Kevin & Kathy treated all to ice cream cones.

Back @ our house, I made a few decisions regarding Kathy's pantry that Bob wanted to know. Kathy called in @ 5:50pm & returned @ 6:25pm.

Dinner: Crab cakes, broccoli, & rice with golden raisins, cherries & red grapes.

Lights out: 11:45pm.

Awake: 6:32am      Temp 50       sleep 7+14       sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

After our KK meeting, I rolled up my red hose &, for now, placed it in the small trailer. Then, in the game room, I took some packing paper off some of the items that Kathy didn't finish.... & tried to organize & clean the floor.

Later I carried & moved some more heavy boxes to make an aisle making it easier to bring the packing paper & cardboard to the burn pile. One of the boxes was especially heavy so I opened it up & found (4) more boxes inside the big heavy box. Wow! Next, upstairs, I had to move some more heavy boxes to make a spot for the file cabinet. Kathy has been washing some of the cabinets, dresser, switchboard, my desk & also my file cabinet.
Dinner: Pork chops, fried noodles, red grapes & a salad.

Lights out: 11:43pm.

Awake: 6:02am       Temp 50      sleep 6+27      sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

After our KK meeting & breakfast, I spent some time in the house moving boxes upstairs & downstairs, getting the Hunter fans lined up in the proper rooms. We saved these fans from our Memphis house just in case we might build our own house some day.

During this time, Bob & Nathan showed up & asked us what we needed done. We talked about our closets: we need poles for hanging our clothes & racks for our shoes + Kathy had some good plans for her pantry shelves & we have two doors that need door stoppers.

Meanwhile, I noticed Mason helper Sky getting scaffolding down & loading their truck with boards & the metal scaffolding.                               Then I perused the masons working on the piers;                              they told us the piers would be finished today & that was good news...because, that opens the door for Zernick Construction to start building our deck & once the deck is finished, we will be able to "live in our home" for the 1st time.

               Meanwhile, Kathy washed the China cabinet from top to bottom; big job. Late afternoon, I carried a lot of paper shipping wrappings & cardboard out to the burn pile.

Dinner: Ono fish, broccoli, rice with golden raisins,& Waldorf salad on spinach.

We finished watching "The Search" with Montgomery Clift. We watched this movie on September 16, 2008 but it was so good, we watched it again. To read more about it, go back to the archives.

Lights out: 11:18 pm.

Awake: 6:00am      Temp 65      sleep 6+08       overcast...windy      overnight @ Nicktown.

K & I attended 8:00am Mass & afterward, we stopped @ the storage facility; made us feel so good that we have all of our (19) crates empty now. These were the last three. Not all of our things have been taken back to the house yet: like this quad-runner, the Shopsmith, our outdoor Grill..... and some some more metal lathe parts, etc. We hope to have these things in our house this week sometime. Back in our motorhome, Kathy made a veggie omelet for our breakfast this morning; 1st time in ages because we have gotten hooked on our cereal & berry breakfast for a long time now.

After breakfast, I talked Kathy into taking a relaxed walk around town. For whatever reason, there were few people to be seen in town so we came back to our house. I also made a motion to declare this day a "do nothing day."

After our walk, we visited our house & took a few photos. A picture: the cluttered hex.                                            And a photo of the game room. Back in our M.H., we had dinner: leftover sausage with pepper & onions + a salad.

Tonight's movie: "The Search." We watched ½.

Lights out: 11:35pm.

Awake: 6:18am     Temp 62     sleep 6+16     overcast     overnight @ Nicktown.

Kathy went grocery shopping @ 8:00am & returned @ 10:45am. After breakfast, I thought I could handle the sofa in the basement & bring it into the main floor; with Kathy's help, we got it onto the red truck, but it was too heavy to get it into the main floor entryway.

Our close neighbor, Eric, volunteered to help us if we needed it...so I made a few calls to get Eric's cell # & by gosh, he showed up within mins. The sofa was wrapped up to begin with & I didn't realize it was a "hide-a-bed" until unwrapping.

Eric not only helped us bring in the hide-a-bed but he offered to use his long trailer to bring over some of the heavy stuff. He said he was good for (2) hrs & then he had a commitment.

He tied down (7) items....like my (3) ton jack, a heavy metal drawer loaded with tools, the drill sharpener, pressure washer, etc. Thank you Eric; that was a "well done load" for those (2) hrs.

Our lucky day: later around 5ish, Byron called & wanted to know if we were ready to get some more things out of storage. "Oh yes!" I told him. "We will meet you @ the storage building." I don't remember how many forklift trips back & forth we made but it was after 9:00pm & dark when we quit for the night.

Dinner: leftover tuna salad, chips, red seedless grapes, & Triscuits.

Lights out: 11:52pm.

Awake: 6:10am      Temp 57      sleep 5+36      sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

We spent some time on our computers this morning before going back to work; we wore ourselves out yesterday & both of us were weak when starting @ 12:03pm.

The last (3) crates all have heavy items in them, so we will wait for help from Byron & his forklift. Using the red truck, I made (3) trips to the house & unloaded by myself. Here are some rock & roll paraphernalia. I had to have Kathy help me with some of my workshop parts loaded on this trip. The red truck really came in handy. Did I mention that before! Dinner: Crab cakes, rice with golden raisins, & cantaloupe.

Lights out: 11:58pm.

Awake: 8:32am      Temp 66       sleep 8+48       rain...heavy @ times...TRW's, then sunshine.

I must be aging over this work project. I can't remember sleeping this long ever. Anyway, the Masons are here working on the backside bricking the chimney. Good thing they have roof covering; but Sky, the masons helper, is braving the weather like there is none.

K & I struggled to move the heavy items from our garage into the game room today. We had to remove the door in the hallway                                     to get the Helicopter game through. Then (2) table tops; we thought they were slate for the pool table because of the weight, but no, just heavy table tops. Of course, we are using the dolly & skitters & they do help out, although not always. Then the phone booth: the skitters & dolly couldn't handle it, so I arranged (4) 1.5 inch pipes & we rolled the phone booth on cardboard into the game room. When a pipe came out the back end, I would start it over again in the front. That worked great. We tried up righting it but for us: no way. Then we had our late breakfast. Afterward, we drove over to the storage building & spent from 2:00pm until 8:00 pm getting boxes out of crates:
                                Kathy is getting better @ opening the crates;               Here are some of the heavy items we handled this evening: diesel generator,                                        Shop-Smith with attached band saw, & grinding machine that had a broken pedestal. (1st real broken item). I had to pump air into the diesel generator's tires to be able to get it out of the crate & the small quad-runner as well. We completely emptied (1) crate but the other crate had a heavy buffet inside which we couldn't handle.

Dinner @ 9:30pm: Tuna salad, Triscuits, & cantaloupe.

Lights out: 12:34am.

Awake: 6:50am      Temp 60       sleep 7+46      overcast & windy      overnight @ Nicktown.

I talked Kathy into eating breakfast in our kitchen this morning. It was kind of nice since I've had the temperature locked @ 73 degrees for about a month now and wanted to get better acquainted with the kitchen. Mid morning, Bernie visited our M.H. & talked about the piers being built, & deck talk. This mason is building a pier which is the start of the deck. We haven't selected a composite material for the deck...yet. We are waiting on cost & labor figures.

Kathy made a deal with me that if I cleaned out my closet of boxes she would clean & vacuum my closet. "Easier said then done," I responded. My closet has been stacked with books & stuff ever since we started moving our things in; but my armoire is sitting in the master bedroom...just feet away, so I fulfilled her generous offer fairly quickly.

As luck would have it, the high-tech guys, Randy & Ted, were here today. They were testing the security system: shrill sounds could be heard throughout the rooms & basement for a good (40) min; every door, every window, opened & closed & every motion detector programmed. Then they gave us a good (45) min of schooling on the system. Before they left for the day, they did us a BIG favor by helping us move that armoire into my clean closet. Back in our M.H., Byron called @ 6:40 pm to move more of our heavy things into our house. From 6:55 pm to 9:15 pm he made (3) forklift trips to our house; 1st floor & basement.

Dinner: Italian sausage with peppers & onions.

Light out: 11:44pm.

Awake: 6:48am      Temp 49      sleep 7+01      sunny      overnight @ Nicktown.

After our coffee, Kathy went to the basement & took all the wrapping off the one arm bandits; they still look good but will they work good?                          This is what the vinyl looked like before Kathy's cleaning.                       And this was after Kathy cleaned with her special solution. Meanwhile I was on the computer most of the morning. The brick layers were busy all day with building the piers. They told us they would be finished with the piers by the end of this week.
                                     Here we have Sky driving the Skidder.                                    At lunch time, here is Sky relaxing. After finishing breakfast @ 11:35, the UPS truck drove in & delivered my box of parts from Newell to, hopefully, get our air system working on our coach. Kathy went to the Bookmobile @ 11:30, & when she returned, I drove the red truck & Kathy drove the Suzuki to the storage building.

I wanted to get the medium quad-runner, the pressure washer & the air compressor out of storage today but when I started pushing the quad, the low tires added a lot of friction. On 2nd thought, why not check all units that have blown up tires before taking the air compressor to our house. So far, I have pumped up (12) tires.

We made several runs to & from our house with both vehicles today.

Dinner: BLT's & chips.

Lights out: 11:04am.