Towel day I think.

AHA!

I was very productive today. Did a bunch of work and then went up to Milwaukee to the storage unit and spent several hours sorting crap up there. We’re moving it all to a closer storage unit, but also trying to dejunk and get as much as possible into a yard sale as we can before that. When my dad first moved to the cabin, it was intended to be temporary, and so he kept a lot of crap that otherwise was probably not worth storing.

I came back to the cabin and spent some time getting the rummage stuff organized, and the screen porch dejunked. And at that point I was on a roll so I got the deck reorganized and set up for summer.

Now I’m sitting on the deck, having a beer and listening to all the birds and frogs. And about to go inside because my otherwise very nice neighbor seems to be burning a bunch of damp wood and from the sound of it possibly doing wheelies on a riding mower? IDK. It’s approximately mosquito o’clock so I’d be going inside around now anyway probably.

I took Tilly for a 5-mile hike this morning, then had lunch with some friends, and took a nap, and did yard work.

A good Saturday.

Except my climbing partner says she's going to stop climbing for a while because (we're old) she's having trouble recovering from injuries. Which sucks because I'm much better at climbing with people than on my own.

Also Tilly has a cough and I cannot get her in to see the vet before Wednesday, probably. She does have all her shots, including bordatella, so I don't know what this is.

Anyway I'm watching some of the American Baking show on Roku. Which is fun -- I really like Zach Cherry, particularly. He's pretty great.

Yay for productivity, and walks with pups!

I hope Tilly's cough resolves.

My plan for today is making a good list of what I have to do to go north. My SIL arrives for a 10 visit the day after I leave so she is going to stay here with her friends rather than couch surfing with the other sibs. So I have to make a list for her to close up the place when she leaves. Things like bring in all the balcony furniture and empty perishables from fridge. I don't know how long Brendon will stay in Otter Lake, and hurricanes seem to spin up quickly these days.

We went and visited his mother yesterday so he could fix stuff with her sink and car, and I made her a quiche. I don't think I will get a chance to go and see my sibs before I head out, but we'll see how the week goes. I leave Friday morning.

My packing for 5 months is just pet stuff and my vitamins and meds, along with clothes and toiletries for the few days on the road. In the past, I have brought pretty much all my clothes, but now I have north and south clothes. A big part of my packing used to be cooking related with all my favorite spices and base ingredients. I am trying really hard to do that on both sides instead. I've duplicated my kitchen tools, but the ingredients are trickier. I need to purchase minimum quantities up there this year because I can't leave them up there over the winter. Canned goods turn to mush, and spices solidify from freezing and thawing repeatedly for months. People who cook understand just how many items are required staples. (I may make an exception for my Indian spices because I am not even sure there is a good market for those near Otter Lake) So maybe a small staples box in the trunk.

Yay Tilly is her name and she likes hikes! Boo on the cough and hope it’s easily treated!

Brenda you’re reminding me that I need to coordinate someone to work on my cabin this summer. I have zero time to do it and I need a new deck and someone to figure out a water seepage issue. And general contractors are very hard to find up there.

It’s glorious weather up here in CT and I’m enjoying the long weekend of gardening and yard stuff. I’ve got a water saturation issue in the backyard that really needs to be dealt with sooner than later, so my plumber is headed over today to temporarily plumb the sink/dishwasher to the septic (instead of the “dry”well they currently feed into). It’s temporary because the existing septic tank isn’t graded for this expanded house, so I’m installing a whole new septic system as soon as we have the permits. But I can’t deal with the saturated drywell anymore - every time I do dishes now, my back patio floods and it’s really gross. Because it’s grey water, it’s not as gross as it could be, but it still smells yucky and the Snarflebutts think it’s the BEST THING EVER to roll in!!!! 😩😫 So, yeah. Home-ownership is so much fun!!!

I had NOT thought about the spices and food thing happening at Otter Lake, Laura! I forgot that your place is seasonal and gets super cold in winter.

Laura have you considered a small root cellar? I did some searching for food storage for seasonal cabins and lots of forums exist where people talk about digging a few feet into the ground below the frost line, and sinking a steel container (even a trash can in one case) into the ground to keep their winter food stuff. Would something like that work for you? It’s fascinating reading about the people who for part of the year can only access their cabin via snowshoes - so to avoid hauling groceries they come up with creative solutions!

Javachik, I do use my nephew's basement for that purpose. It stays in the 50s all winter. I have stored my canned goods there but haven't tried spices. I'm not sure how they would do in the moisture. I probably could pack up the spices and stick them in a closet or under a bed in their house. Anything has to be better than carrying the stuff back and forth!

Absolutely!!

It's surprising how many kitchen staples I find essential, and spices are expensive!