Sunday Funday

Good morning!

I am *loving* this day of Daylight Savings Time ending!  I like to keep my "free hour" until bedtime on this day each year.  I don't change my clocks until then.  That way, as I'm getting into bed, I gain an extra hour of sleep!  Whoo-hoo!  Plus, it's kinda fun to look at the clock throughout the day as the time flies by . . . only to realize that, "Hey, it's really an hour earlier!  I'm doin' fine!"  

(Yeah, my brain works a little . . . strangely?)

We had a little Meet & Greet at work last night after closing for the new manager, who starts tomorrow.  A buffet table was set up in the souvenir section, and a freshly emptied end cap (display) held the wine.  I wanted to take a picture of that end cap to PROVE that alcohol WAS once consumed inside the store at least once in it's 72-years-so-far history!  ;)  I also wanted to write, as my greeting on the large welcome sign we made, "Welcome!  We put the fun in dysfunctional!"  Buuuuut . . . that would have been frowned upon by the boss.  Especially since even though it's true!

Now that the immediate need to help my folks with wood is temporarily past, I've been focusing each of my recent days off on the new chicken yard.  I've been using 6' metal stakes and old wood pallets and chicken wire (or welded wire or whatever's around) for the walls.  Now I've got those portions 75% done, the end where the chicken house will go remaining.  And, I'm not sure how I'm going to finish that because I plan on building a new house this winter.  For now, I will move up the little loaner coop from my dad to serve as their indoor housing.  Also, I'm going to put a ceiling of chicken wire on the entire thing . . . because I've ALWAYS had problems with flying chickens.  This way, I'll be offering them a little more protection from predators, too.  That's what's on the schedule for today, the "ceiling".  I haven't taken too many pictures of the process, and none lately.  Matter of fact, I just looked back through my pictures to May, and I don't seem to have ANY!  So, I'll see what I can do today to remedy that situation.

I *have* made some definite creature comfort improvements to my little abode!  Four weeks ago today and after nearly 10 months of living here, I got REFRIGERATION!!  I finally got my little (dorm size?? - it's about 30" tall) refrig dug and hauled out of one of the storage units.  This time I was smart and, before hauling it up the trail to this cabin, I brought it to Mama & Papa Pea's where I plugged it in and let it run about 24 hours, just to MAKE SURE that it worked!  Doing a thorough cleaning was SO much easier, too, at their house (with running water and ample space in their garage).  On FB, I wrote, "It's insane how amazing it feels to have cream in my coffee this morning . . . 'cause you know what this means? After 10 MONTHS, I finally have a REFRIGERATOR in this wee little cabin!!! I'm HAPPY!!"

At work that Monday, I was almost giddy, and I shared the reason for my excitement with an old friend as she shopped that day.  A few days later, I get a call from her at work.  "Say, do you have an oven in your cabin," she asked?  Noooo.  No room, I laughed!  Well, her husband was getting rid of a countertop convection oven that he used only in his medical practice for making (baking!) orthotic inserts.  It was free to me.  Was I interested?  Was I INTERESTED?!  I'd been researching convection ovens for months, determined to purchase one to make this cabin more like a home.  This was an old beast (but perhaps better made, I wondered?), and it. was. free.  YES!

So, I got it hooked up and installed two weeks ago and, for the very first time, BAKED something here at home!!!  (A frozen mini pizza, natch - one of my many weaknesses.)

  
And, with that, I'll sign off for now.  The sun is breaking through the clouds, and the chicken pen open-air roof awaits!  Have a great Sunday - got anything in particular planned?

:)  ChxMama