Little Old Gramma Lady Lumberjacks ...

I'll stack this (photo below) neatly, I really will. But not tonight. I took my work boots off and am not going to put them back on tonight, not no how not no way! I'm in my comfy slippers and am going to stay that way.

I've also got some cutting to do, but not nearly as much as I would have if my sister hadn't done two things : 1) she got my chain saw going for me (it hates me); and 2) she got out her own chain saw and we got all of the above cut to length before I even brought it home. The stack in the below photo will get neatened up and added to what I've already got of about that size ... then one of these days - when I'm not wiped out from breaking, cutting, dragging and/or carrying, loading, and unloading - I'll get ambitious and cut them all down to length. Most of this is going to be perfect for my cooking fires! Ah, better make that three things. The other is that while I was in one section of the shelter belts she took her chain saw to another section and had three piles cut to length while I wasn't looking! 

When I pulled out of my sister's farmyard my little S10 pickup bed was full - not overfull but to the top of the bed box, a perfect load.

There's lots and lots left out there, more than I'll need this year for sure, so tonight I'm going to sleep like a log (no pun intended but there you have it) and head back out tomorrow. I left some cut to length out among the trees; I'll remember to take along my toboggan tomorrow for hauling. It's a lot easier than carrying out an armload at a time, believe you me, especially if you're back in the trees a ways. 

If I can manage to get an earlier start tomorrow I should be able to get two loads instead of only one - plus I learned something tonight when I was unloading. Lengths of four or five feet work a lot better for unloading and stacking. The cut to length ones seem to take forever to unload when I'm tired already. There are just too darned many of them! I ended up loading them into a big plastic tote and carrying them down that way. Throwing the longer ones down the basement steps is easier and quicker. I can cut the longer ones down to size any time - for now the thing is to just get them home.

Oh, in case you're not familiar with my unloading methods ... 

There's a side door of my house that opens right into the basement landing; I back my little pickup to the doorway, let down the tailgate, and throw the wood down the basement steps, trying to shoot it as far as I can into the basement. 
Inevitably it starts piling up at the foot of the steps and next thing you know it's most of the way up the steps. 
Then of course I have to try to clear it off the steps, working my way down as I go. 
It sounds like extra work, but it's actually not nearly as time and energy consuming as carrying it all down one little load at a time. Frankly, by the time I'm unloading, I'm flat out of both time and energy. If need be, that wood can sit on the darned steps until I recover enough to tend to it.

At any rate, I'm off to a good start this year with my firewood gathering. I had some of my own tree trimming branches from last year, about a load's worth; then a friend took me gathering a couple of weekends ago, another load; and today's load is only the first of (hopefully) probably a dozen or so more, God willing and weather permitting.

*contented sigh*

I'm going to want to do the stacking of today's haul first thing tomorrow before I go out for more. If I'm smart (which I might or might not be depending on the day) I'll also go ahead and cut all the long pieces down to size. 

I can do that any time, this is true ... but my basement is unheated and it can get almighty cold down there when it's forty below outside. A quick trip down to replenish the supply for a day's use is one thing - spending more than a few minutes down there is a whole different ballgame. So this year I'm going to try to spare myself as much winter work as possible and see how much I can get cut to size and stacked ahead of time.

Great.

It's midnight and I've just talked myself into putting my work boots back on and going down to stack that wood. 

Sometimes I forget that I'm a little old gramma lady, you know that?

Geez.

Whoooop!! Gotta Love OSHA Training!

As the time draws near for me to begin stocking firewood for this coming Long Dark I went down to my cutting and storage space.

Yep.

I should have taken a 'before' photo. I had a lot of sawdust and wood chips to sweep up.

This little pile would have been long gone if I were adept at splitting wood. They're too big around to fit into the firebox of my woodstove. I'm lucky there are so few of them.

I think these four lonely little logs will fit when I cut them to length. They were hiding under the big logs.

These average a couple of inches in diameter - they're a great size for cooking.

No shortage of kindling!

Here's my work area for firewood. I don't know what that blur is. Since I had just swept I'd not be surprised to find some little circle dust mote images - but that's not what this was - it was moving.

Whatever it was, it isn't in this shot. What the heck. Strange things happen in this old world of ours.

At any rate, clearing out the firewood room BEFORE adding anything to it is the direct result of old OSHA training ... clear your path before you go to use it. Almost all of that stuff was practically smack in the middle of the floor, not to mention a pretty thick pad of dust and bark and bits and pieces.

Now that my path is cleared, I can begin my gather of firewood - deadwood from a shelter belt on a friend's farm. 

The 'shelter belts' are wind breaks for farmsteads and in this neck of the non-woods are often the only trees to be found in any number. Some of them are generations old. Many have been cut and cleared away as old abandoned farmsteads are razed and turned to cropland. 

So if you ever visit the Great Plains ... no, the trees do not naturally grow in straight lines. Naturally speaking, few grow at all here. In this area the 'Tree Claim Act' of the pioneering and settlement days pretty much failed. People came all right, but they had a darned hard time getting their required trees to survive. Very hot summers, bitterly cold winters, harsh winds ... some trees don't do well in those conditions. We've learned much since then and plant trees all the time. But the old shelter belts from generations past are dying out.

That many of our local farmers still have them is a definite bonus for me. I get firewood; they get rid of deadwood and have healthier shelter belts as a result.

When it comes to the actually gathering of firewood, OSHA training again comes in right handy I have to say. In many ways, but in particular it sticks in my mind to be sure I'll be able to get that deadwood out of there. It behooves me to make a clear path as I go along.

Local Couple Brings a Bit of History Home to Share

Photo by Shelly Weigelt

Frank Hockridge knows what he's talking about as he explains the photographs reproduced on this unique quilt.

The first photo is from 1902 and shows a band of Native Americans at the North Dakota State Fair, then held in Mandan, ND.

The State Fair apparently moved around a bit back in the day before settling itself in Minot in the 1960s. There are photos from both Fargo and Grand Forks, who took turns hosting it for years.

There are photos of County Fairs from the early 1900s on through more recent years.

Too many of the photos have sad endings ... 'doesn't exist any more' ... 'went bust' ... 'no longer there' ... 

The photos are enchanting, but some of the Fairs they represent will only ever live again through photos such as have been preserved in this quilt.

On the bright side, Frank and Glenda Hockridge have been collecting Fair things for quite a while. One of the photos of the Quilt they found in Iowa. Glenda laughs and says, 'You just never know what you're going to run across!'

And just exactly WHY is this local couple so fascinated by Fairs?

Oh. Well. It's what they do, you know.

Both of them were brought up in the industry, love it, and love to share with others (like us!). They had businesses facing one another at the State Fair in Kansas lo these many years ago, became good friends, and eventually married. Their kids are carrying on the family tradition, the fourth generation to do so.

Locally, the pair is well-known and well-loved.

Frank is our go-to person about anything having to do with our fair, and now we know he can also be our go-to person about much of our state's history as well! Glenda's big smile and happy laugh can often be found at our local (and internationally famous, made so by anyone who's eaten there and gone anywhere else in the world) Rosa's Pizza where she gives a hand when she has time.

Their affection for one another is palpable in the air around them. You can't see them, together or apart, and not grin. And they've brought us a most wonderful gift, besides their own selves.

The ND Fair Quilt is currently hanging at Close to Home, a shop that carries gifts of local origin. Owned and operated by Deronda O'Neill of Deronda Designs (also known all over the world for her 'OMG I can't believe you MADE those!' lampwork beads, enamel pieces, and metal-worked jewelry), Close to Home has expanded to include the work of other locals or people with local connections - all unique and individualistic pieces. So it's a great place to hang this ND Fair Quilt. 

Close to Home is located in the old Quarve Building at 97 South Main Avenue in Fessenden, ND USA - the same Fessenden of the book called 'Small Town USA' written by another local, Shiela Branson.

If you happen to be driving Highway 52 in ND, swing in and grab a coffee (or any of the creative beverages the Coffee Shop is becoming noted for). The town of Fessenden is located smack at the end of Highway 15, which begins near the MN border at a little town called Thompson near Grand Forks, ND. If you're traveling from the Forks to Bismarck, give yourself a treat and take 15 for a lovely change of scenery - and stop in Fessenden along the way for yet another treat! Shelly Weigelt carries an amazing variety of vintage and just plain interesting things; Ann West has clothing and accessories; Eldredge Publishing has an office; Carson's Computer store comes in mighty handy, and Justin's Stuffitorium has antiques and is a dangerous place to visit (very difficult to walk out of without having added something you didn't even know you HAVE to have - don't say you weren't warned); and soon a hair stylist will be joining us in that old Quarve Building. (that building will be getting a story of its own in due course, so hang onto your hats folks - we're in for a bit of a ride here I think).

If you come through before June 1, 2015 you will find the ND Fair Quilt on display at Close to Home; it will then go to other places in the state, including coming back here for our own County Fair in mid-June. It's slated to go to Bottineau, Jamestown, and up to Pembina County before it gets much of a rest. 

AND, best news of all (from my point of view) Frank and Glenda are talking about bringing more of their collection out of storage. They have enough to put together a museum of their own! Hearing about it is fascinating; seeing it all would be a wondrous thing. My personal favorite of the things they talked about (one of the photos of the Quilt has an example) are what they call the Funny ...something or others... (shhh, it's my memory slipping again) ... where different scenes are painted and there are face holes for people ... anyway, THOSE would be tremendous fun, and Frank and Glenda have a collection. For that matter, we could certainly make a few of our own, now that I think of it. Maybe not in time for this year's Fair, but almost certainly for next year! So bring your smiles and your cameras.

To close, here's a photo of the ND Fair Quilt with Glenda and Frank by it. If you zoom in you might be able to see some of the photos better. Or you could wait a few days to give us time to take close ups of them all, pair them up with Frank's explanations, and post them on line! This is one awesome couple and their inspiration has produced an awesome Keeper of Memories for our state. 

Thank you so very much, Glenda and Frank, for everything you do and for simply being the great people that you are. We love you.

Photo by Deronda O'Neill

UPDATE! Small Town USA - Gotta Love The People!

Update to the below post!!!
I met the mother of the story at this evening's JuleFest Feast, a Norwegian culinary delight I have to say ... but the UPDATE is that this mother had TWO sons on the same mission, and the book was for her husband. One son was a little ahead of the other, and he's the one in the story below. It's just as well that was the last available copy, and that she and her sons communicate well, as otherwise that second son may have persevered until he'd succeeded in his quest as well - and the dad would have gotten two copies of the same book!


How oh how I wish I'd remember to never go anywhere without a camera!

Walked over to the local grocery store a bit ago, to get stuff for supper.

In I go, right?

They told me that someone from out of town had just left to go see if Close to Home was open because he wanted one of my books and the store is out.

Not only did I not have a camera, I had no keys to get into the shop, either.

Even so, I slip-slided my way the half-block over to The Q  just in time to follow this person in.

Turns out it was indeed the one who wanted a book. When I asked him if he had a couple of minutes, as I would have to slide the block and a half home to get the keys, he smiled and said, 'Sure.'

Then a friend who happened to be there sweeping and such said, 'Wait! I have a set of keys!'

And so into the shop we went and out he came with a signed book for his mom, who had asked him to bring her one since he was in Fessenden on another errand.

I would have loved to get a photo of the people who all pitched in to get the mom her book! The people at the grocery store who steered him to The Q and Close to Home, the ones at The Q who helped us out, and the son who went out of his way to get something that his mom wanted.

Serendipity is awesome.

But serendipity rarely works in a vacuum. Without everyone's being the kind people that they are, she might not have gotten her book for quite a while.

So yeah.

Ya gotta love the people of Small Town USA!

ARTWORK: THE FIRST OF THE 'SERIES OF TWELVES'

It's a beginning.

In my attic hall I have hung a half dozen old tin ceiling panels, salvaged from an uptown building that is no longer there.  I'll use wood strips between them and around them to give them a more 'finished' look.  Into the dozen squares of the panels will go a dozen pictures, a series with a common theme of some kind. 

The first of these series is a no-brainer for me.  Among us four sisters we have a dozen children, the Dozen Cousins, and they will be represented as the first of the 'Twelves'. 

Being a lazy so-and-so I decided to cut Liza and Helen down to size and use the already-done silhouettes of them that have been hanging about, or lying about as the case may be, for years now.  The other cousins will get pictures, probably paintings (although you never know if I'm going to get REALLY lazy and use enlarged photos), that are representative of them as individuals from MY perspective. 

It's going to be a fun project, this first of the 'Twelves', and I'm very much looking forward to getting to work on it!



ANGELS

I BELIEVE THERE ARE ANGELS AMONG US

Some of my first experimental back-lighting pieces.  These four angels represent the four daughters of my mother.  They are painted with acrylic and pearls on fabric, using the screens from the windows themselves, hinged together, as easels.  When cut from the screens, they fit right into the windows.  I'll try to get a photo without all the tree shadows...!

Here are the angels from the back side, as seen from inside the front porch with the morning light illuminating them.  The same effect happens at night, viewed from the outside, with a light on inside the porch.



WINDOW TO DOOR

First you choose a window that doesn't have a radiator in front of it, more rare than you'd think in 100 year old houses.  This one is in my new kitchen, which used to be the back bedroom.  It looks out into my courtyard on the south side of the house.

In order to get the window out, you have to remove the trim and moldings.  Sounds simple enough but they only come out in a certain order, so you have to see what can come off first.  If your house is as old as mine and as well built, be prepared for a lot of humongous nails.

These are the inside moldings, holding the windows in place.

Here goes the window sill.

Finally the window frame comes loose, after a lot of cussing.

These weights, with pullies, are built into the window frames and the framing beside the windows.  They make for incredibly easy raising and lowering of the lower and upper windows.  They're also heavier than you'd think.  I didn't weigh them but they have a number seven embossed on the ones attacked to the upper windows and a number eight on the ones for the lower ones.  I'm guessing that's how much they weigh in pounds. 

I don't kow if you can read this but it's the name L. Schwartz written on the top of the window frame.  Since the name Louis Schwartz is written on other dismantled parts of the house I'm guessing that he's the one who built the place.  If he were still around I would first thank him for building such a very sturdy house and then ask him if it was REALLY NECESSARY to use so MANY very BIG NAILS. 

Here's the top parts of the pullies.  Those knots and the top part of the cords fit into the top outer edges of the windows, in a hole hollowed out in the side for the knot and a slot that the cord fits into. 

At the other end of the cords are the weights.  They have their own space alongside the window framing.

Knocking out the wall beneath the window is easier than I expected.  My skilsaw cut through the outside siding and the wooden wall with a minimum of hand-sawing at the bottom since I didn't want to make the cut past the level of where I wanted to fit the door sill.  The lath and plaster on the inside was a pain in the patoot.

Looking from the outside in, you can see through the room to the door just opposite - it has one of those windows that open up on top of it; I forget what they're called ... it'll come to me one of these days.

Here's the screen door I put in.  The heavier one will go in when the weather cools off.  For now I'm just happy to finally have gotten my door into my courtyard!  Duke likes it too. 

And yes, the trim is going back on as soon as I recuperate from the stress of it all. 

Also, a special thank you to my big sister who stood by me through the entire ordeal, cussing and all!

STRIPPING ONE OF MY WORK TABLES

This sturdy work table came with the house.  It's not fancy; two wooden rectangles support a thick wooden top and it's mounted on un-matching 2x4's.  But I love its strength and endurance.  The thing got painted with that same ungodly dark brown paint they used on all their floors (UGH!) which I don't like on my work surface any more than I do on my floors - so OFF it comes!

I spread that orange goopy stuff all over it and when it's ready I'll take it off; hopefully the nasty brown paint will come with it.

Well SUN ON A BEACH.

I can't get it to rotate.

At least that dark brown paint is GONE!!!

Now for a little sanding, a lot of sealing ...

and hopefully a LOT of USING!

VINTAGE CINEMA REELS

I have several of these hanging on my wall, my favorites.  The rest are hanging in the attic!  One of these days I'll figure out something creative to use them for; meanwhile, I like them just the way they are!



ROOF INTERIOR

Here's a photo I took through the attic hatch door to show my sister how come I'm not finding any antique high chairs with built in potties or any other fascinating stuff under MY roof!  It's all just one big wide open attic!

POPPIES!



The flowers never last as long as we want them to, sigh ... !  But they're beautiful during their short lives!

DUKE FROLICS IN THE BACK YARD

Hey Duke!

Go THAT way!

Swing arm.

Duke goes that way.

And again.

And then the other way.

It's good for him.



IVY OVER NORTH DOOR

This grape ivy is making a comeback over the north door of my Studio House!  When we first looked at the house, WAY back in the day, my children and I didn't even realize a door was under there!  I have a plan for this side of the house; implementation may take a good while, but once it's complete it's going to be GREAT!  Just you wait and see!  And yes it involves the ivy.

New Look For My Old Kitchen - A Work In Progress

This is the ktichen hutch I got from my Grandparents.  It belonged to my great-grandmother, Mary Jane McCord Branson (wife of Samuel Levi in Kansas).  There's a story that goes with it but I'll tell that another time!

This vintage kitchen range, once refurbished a bit, will go into the spot in my old kitchen that belongs to it.  Again, there's a story but it will have to come in its own good time.

MY ARTWORK AT MY SISTER'S SHOP

Here's a sampling of some of my work that may be showing up in my sister's shop:

My sister has opened up a small shop called 'Close to Home' at the edge of our little town, and some of my artwork will be finding a home there. 

Right now it's mostly a binder of rough cut small peices done over the course of the years and tucked away just because I wanted to keep them. 

A couple of bigger pieces, the Wolf and Raven silhouette and my Carnival Life, are there as well.

I had a very few cedar shake skyscape/silhouette pieces but they need finishing up work so they're home with me. 

Also still at home with me but slated for development are lots of photos.  They will be used in any number of ways:  postcards, greeting cards, prints of different sizes, posters, backgrounds for personal silhouettes, etc.  I've gotten most of the photos sorted out according to general location (i.e. Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado) and have chosen groupings within those categories as well, so there's been at least a LITTLE progress on that front! 

As the seasons will be changing (as they always do in this neck of the non-woods) there will be new photos to add to the collection, and new directions for the developments to take.  I'm looking forward to working on the seasonal projects!