Gettin 'er fired up
October 26th is the one year anniversary of the hit counter which clicked over 3500 on that day.... it was also my B-day, and was marked by an excursion to Sidney-by-the-Sea for a visit with my Favorite Sibling. On the way back we visited the big-box centre of Langford. I've gotta say, I don't miss city shopping and crowds of people. Although the Everything Wine store was quite interesting... I picked up a bottle of J.Bouchon Reserve Cab that I'd been trying to find (to no avail). This may prompt a wine review... it's been a while.
Denman Island Wildlife.... (Not meaning the Halloween Dance, which we were to tired to attend), we (again), have a cougar prowling the island. As you may recall the last cat lived here for some months before swimming to Hornby Island, (where he met his demise). Hopefully this fella has no appetite for sheep, (or house cats) and he can eat his fill of resident deer and return safely to the Big Island. The turkey population seems to have exploded in our neighbourhood just in time for Christmas. These aren't the brightest of fowl as shown by the picture taken out my windshield. Even after safely crossing the street some of these turkeys decided to turn back.... there's a joke there somewhere. Eventually they picked a side and I was able to continue without any Tom fatalities. BTW- a group of turkeys is called a "rafter".
Straw Bale House Update: The framing crew Bob & Bob have started on the loft and are ready to finish the floor joists as soon as I have the post and beams in place. Thanks to two band-saw mills here on the island, I have 2 of the beams required to finish the upper floor framing. (One beam I had ready to go turned out to be a foot short.... but only on one end.) Truss delivery is scheduled for Thursday but the weather may push that back til next week. Five gallons of gas and a lot of 
patience resulted in the burning of the huge slash pile which accumulated when we cleared for the house. Burning of this size required authorization from Forest Services as well as a permit from the local Fire Dept., then you wait for a good venting index and you're good to go. Straw supply is now very good in Alberta... there is plenty of flax, (the preferred crop), to be found at a nominal price. 
Transport of said straw is another matter. Shopping for a reasonable freight rate begins tomorrow. Still no sign of BC Hydro and the generator keeps racking up the hours. As there is currently no electrician on the island, I'll apply for the permit myself, stretch my limited knowledge on the subject and beg advise where I can. We do need an electrical permit here....septic is also regulated, and Island's Trust requires a siting permit.. no other building permits are required. The picture on the left is a cut-a-way sketch of the lower floor of the house.
Denman Island Wildlife.... (Not meaning the Halloween Dance, which we were to tired to attend), we (again), have a cougar prowling the island. As you may recall the last cat lived here for some months before swimming to Hornby Island, (where he met his demise). Hopefully this fella has no appetite for sheep, (or house cats) and he can eat his fill of resident deer and return safely to the Big Island. The turkey population seems to have exploded in our neighbourhood just in time for Christmas. These aren't the brightest of fowl as shown by the picture taken out my windshield. Even after safely crossing the street some of these turkeys decided to turn back.... there's a joke there somewhere. Eventually they picked a side and I was able to continue without any Tom fatalities. BTW- a group of turkeys is called a "rafter".
Straw Bale House Update: The framing crew Bob & Bob have started on the loft and are ready to finish the floor joists as soon as I have the post and beams in place. Thanks to two band-saw mills here on the island, I have 2 of the beams required to finish the upper floor framing. (One beam I had ready to go turned out to be a foot short.... but only on one end.) Truss delivery is scheduled for Thursday but the weather may push that back til next week. Five gallons of gas and a lot of 
patience resulted in the burning of the huge slash pile which accumulated when we cleared for the house. Burning of this size required authorization from Forest Services as well as a permit from the local Fire Dept., then you wait for a good venting index and you're good to go. Straw supply is now very good in Alberta... there is plenty of flax, (the preferred crop), to be found at a nominal price. 
Transport of said straw is another matter. Shopping for a reasonable freight rate begins tomorrow. Still no sign of BC Hydro and the generator keeps racking up the hours. As there is currently no electrician on the island, I'll apply for the permit myself, stretch my limited knowledge on the subject and beg advise where I can. We do need an electrical permit here....septic is also regulated, and Island's Trust requires a siting permit.. no other building permits are required. The picture on the left is a cut-a-way sketch of the lower floor of the house. 
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