Snow today !!! It will never be enough but one must take what they can get.

I know, it's not Route K...but I went to this movie tonight and would recommend it...Silver Linings Playbook

     The boss must be out of town, 'cause there's not much getting gotten to these days. I hunted down some metric screws to use as replacements for all the many original bunged up phillips head screws securing much of the 2 cylinder Honda motor bike engine. The little hardware store I went to is replacing their Christmas stuff with racks of seeds for spring. Really.

     I fixed the knob on the lid of my coffee pot. The one that I bought on my solo(...well Petra came along) canoe trip a couple years back, exploring the Adirondacks. The hole was always too big so it has never stayed in. I drilled holes in the knob/pull and put a stainless steel cotter pin through. maybe I can find some pictures of the trip...to help put down any cabin fever taking hold.

    The great thing about cold weather, if you have a big pot of soup but no fridge space you can just store it out on the porch bench.

The 40 year old motorcycle got it's distributor cleaned up today after I got the exhaust side valves and related parts reinstalled in the head. The distributor mounts on the end of one of the cam shafts. I will hunt for screws to replace those in the distributor points plate having the slots in the heads quite distorted.

The Cb450 head rebuild goes on: Yesterday I dismantled the exhaust side valve train (having finished what I can on intake side-waiting on rubber damper rings for both cam shafts) and today I cleaned off carbon build up and lapped the exhaust valves using the hand crank tool and some valve grinding compound.

Finally, back to the engine work on the CB450. Way back when, after not getting any satisfactory compression test readings(yes valves were checked), I decided to take the engine apart instead of simply reinstalling it as I had hoped. While apart, I'm replacing the valve seals and lapping the valves to the seats and honing cylinders and replacing piston rings as well as all gaskets. Luckily I found a write-up on line re: putting the valve train back together as I was unclear where/how all the 1973 double over-head cam valve train parts went. The basement nook, with good lighting and warmed by the wood stove, is an excellent space on a cold winter day.

      It's in the teens at night and just a little snow remains in the shade of the out buildings. I threw together a basement work bench and some lighting for it. A place to continue work on the cb450 motor, close to the basement wood stove. I carried in all the parts from the garage/shop related to the head and cylinder rebuilding. I'll have to get re-acquainted with it all.

         I'm working through the book - The Walk West, A Walk Across America 2(Pat and Peter Jenkins-1981). Just today, in my reading, they left New Mexico and walked over Slumgullion Pass-almost to Lake City Colorado, where they met some folks with an empty cabin-and they offered them...for the whole winter! They just had their first big snow and the guy's exploring the ranch, Vickers Ranch, they are on. A fine place to transport myself on December 25th.

     This explains a lot about how our government "works": Benjamin Franklin said(about 1788)- "We must not expect that a new government may be formed, as a game of chess may be played by a skilfull hand, without a fault. The players of our games are so many, their ideas so different, their prejudices so strong and so various, and their particular interests, independent of the general, seeming so opposite, that not a move can be made that is not contested; the numerous objections confound the understanding; the wisest must agree to some unreasonable things that reasonable ones of more consequence may be obtained; and thus chance has its share in many of the determinations, so that play is more like tric-trac with a box of dice."
     This is from page 771, 772 of the book: Benjamin Franklin (by Carl Van Doven) copyright 1938. It's a first addition copy I have- and I think another such copy you will grow old and feeble trying to find.

    I was mindful of the moon today, directly over MY house. I cleaned out some ashes from the old coal stove I burn wood in for my heat. You may find someone that advise you save the ashes to scatter on the winters ice. Also I noticed some mint which has so far survived the cold and snow. I think if I put some straw over it I could pick fresh mint for tea all winter...or maybe a gallon glass jar...

I noticed the accessory drive belt on my, currently only, vehicle was tearing the other day-so bad I was concerned about driving to get the replacement belt. Have you ever seen one separate/decay in this way ? Oh well, was a good thing that I noticed it. I think it took longer to get the air intake duct/tube off then to remove/replace the belt...maybe 8 minutes.

The sky was clear today...but of course we're all in heaven now so that would be expected...and hey, that must be why the auto repair went so well...Heaven. Here's a another picture from yesterday.

The first snow came with a strong wind making the chimney whistle till the afternoon. We only got about 3/4" of the white stuff and the sky cleared this evening helping helping to set things up for our first lows in the teens tonight.

Why do I feel full after just one freshly baked whole wheat applesauce raisin muffin ?

       Rain coming tonight...maybe some snow even. I restocked the firewood and kindling containers on the porch- a trash can and 2 totes that I made lids for from ply covered w/vinyl banner/sign material- great stuff.

 
        I was inspired by Richard Proenneke(One Man's Wilderness-he used fresh blueberries and sugar, I think, to make a syrup) and made myself some syrup for french toast by putting a little crab apple juice in a pan and adding some molasses and honey. Dang if I shouldn't bottle it to sell...maybe add whiskey and call it cough syrup. It will certainly do until my maple tree matures.

I forgot-yesterday was the anniversary of the purchase of this acre surrounded by woods. I will see if a picture taken back then is worth publishing in this post- here's one of exactly one year ago today of my "camp" in the living room...and one from 11/15/2011, before I bought the place, of the house and smaller garage.

Today I worked on finishing the basement supporting stud wall under the center beam and then painted all the studs with a brown paint I had so the new and old all look the same now. I need one more 2x4 and then all the temporary supports will be gone.

Fog rolled in this a.m. and hung around for hours. It was an interesting look-one I'd not seen in the past year here. The basement bathroom area got a 2nd coat of floor paint (2nd hand latex) and a coat of fresh black on the cast iron stack stub. I also cleaned basement window and door glass and made curtain rods from some stiff wire and cut up a sheet for curtains. It's nice to be able to look out clean windows if I want but also have the privacy of curtains available.

      The basement bathroom (brick shower stall and toilet area) is getting some fresh paint and color after a little effort with a bleach cleaner and a scrub brush. It's been in 50's during the day so I've been able to leave door and windows open some for air flow but have the basement wood stove going for extra warmth to dry things faster.

      I wandered the property last night about 10 p.m. with Petra and looking up, saw plenty of "shooting stars" on the peak night from the last meteor shower of 2012-The Geminid meteor shower.

      More fancy brush work painting more of the basement today. The dirty yellow is now gone, as well as the baby blue by the rear door entrance door. I look forward to scraping the window glass of over sprayed paint on the exterior so I can see out.

       There was a knock on the door yesterday evening. It seemed so strange-then I realized I've had this place almost 1 year now(purchased 12/16/11) and Petra and I had never heard a knock. It was some hipster kid trying to line up jobs for a remodeling company. A nice kid-as he was leaving he said "I like your yard"...hmm.

It sure is nice when someone gets up and sees to a roaring fire in Rex's belly then whips up a batch of fresh from-scratch biscuits. There was a serious frost on everything this morning-the roofs were white as if dusted with snow. Today saw more scattered dead-fall and such old logs get cut up for fuel and hauled back via the trailer pulled by the 8N(fired right up after sitting almost a month I think-though the mineral oil gear lube resisted getting up for work). I also cut down 2 small Shingle Oaks(?) by the ditch- maybe 5" diameter at base. I figure for warmth during the day, when it's reasonably cold, I'd fire the stove with the "scraps" lying about the property and save the good wood for the deep freeze...trying to make it last at least as long as the Mayan calender.

The basement-the walls, the paint so fully me blended from three-not the same but all a bit shiny...it's on the walls all with a 2" brush and oh so fine to look upon and oh, so, so about time for to return to the old would and will never, never do for what was should never have been on the backs of my eyes and weighed so as now I'm a foot taller and as much lighter while enjoying an Angry Orchard hard cider...really!

Tis the season...to work in the basement - a little each day. The cement block walls are getting prepped for painting. I raked and pointed about 8' of joint then scraped, caulked and cleaned. A good 50' of wall is ready so maybe tomorrow I'll mix up a decent color paint from my varied 2nd hand supply. Thoughts are about a darker semi-gloss on lower 1/2 and something lighter and flat above.

I've been reading Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons. I'm ready for spring foraging...maybe one good snow first...like 14". Quoted from page 288(chapter on medicine from wild plants): For the amateur, there are other thrills in this field. One of the greatest of these comes when, after long reading and study about an unfamiliar plant, you go out in the fields and byways and actually find it growing in it's native habitat. When I first glimpse a long-sought plant, I sometimes seem to enter into the herb and feel it's virtues and uses. I am one with it's long history of healing man's ills and ministering to his comfort. And when I carry the plant home and transmute it into some grateful remedy it has a soul-healing power far beyond anything it might do for my body, and it brings a satisfaction no purchased product could ever provide.

Gate in progress-2010*

The new pavement got the lines painted today-so only lacking the painted on bicycle symbols now-but perfectly usable bike "lanes" they are...into town or to MKT trail. I found a sewing machine (a Singer 293 B-made in France in the 60's-recently cleaned and tuned) via CL for $35 and the sweet owner took time to show me how to use it. So, instead of crossword puzzles to challenge me brain I'm going to try an learn to sew something using a machine(funny-I used to say welding w/a mig set-up is like using a sewing machine...but really I had no idea). Simple hems on some material for curtains for the house and camper is all I want really. There's a gal on line I saw who has an industrial machine and she commented how she got her men friends interested once she showed them her machine could sew 1/4" plywood.
*  above pic is the gate for I-land (property in The Lou)rear garden area

The deer processing is done except for odds and ends I'll prep for dog food. It's a rule here at route K that one has to eat at least one internal organ-so this evening I prepared the oh so fine heart. I was lucky to take the gifted deer with a 100 grain .243 shot to the lung which dropped the animal instantly where it had stood...leaving me an intact heart. I made up my own way to cook the dense muscle-in a covered frying pan with vinegar and chopped onion, raisins, sweet potato shavings and a little of all my spices. Sort of steam cooked. It turned out very well and I enjoyed some home made apple sauce too.

I think about all the meat is cut up. I ground most of the burger but gave up struggling with the hand grinder- believing I'd finish up tomorrow. It's been in the low 70's the past few days and is to be tomorrow also here in Mid Mo at about 839' above the level of the rising oceans.