New Coop is Almost Finished

On May 20, 2018 we began bringing in the lumber to start building our new outdoor kitchen, referred to as New Coop until a better name comes along.

On September 11, 2018 we finished up the last major detail of what we wanted it to look like.

114 days... 

Not all of them were productive, and some were slowed considerably by the oppressive heat and occasional rain.  But we wanted it done right so 'how long' was not the issue.  We wanted it to be a really special place, and we definitely got what we waited for.

We've already started cooking in it, but the real test comes when everything is in place and works well for us.  So far we are tickled pink with how comfortable it is. 

The last project was to set the salvaged "Katrina Windows" in place to make it look like a bistro.  We finished those yesterday and they really tie everything in to the Bistro look we want for the space between New Coop and New House.  We've got lots of plans to make it even nicer.

But as of now, we have an outdoor kitchen worthy of showing off and fun to cook in.  What more could we ask for to round out our new life here at Terra Mariae in Covington, Louisiana.

Here's a short video as it was late yesterday when we put away the paint brush.

New Coop on 9-11-18

First Long Cook in New Coop

Now that New Coop is 'operative' I've been trying to catch up on some cooking.  Yesterday I decided to cook a small pork butt that we found on sale at our neighborhood Walmart.  

But I also wanted to try some rub seasoning we bought at the Abita Springs Farmers Market last week.  It was our first time there and we really like what we saw.  We'll be going back.

It was raining and we had to get some stuff from Lowes, so we didn't stick around long.  But we did get to meet one of the vendors and try some of his BBQ.  And we were impressed enough to purchase a bottle of rub and a bottle of his BBQ sauce.

Anyway, it was a good day for cooking so that's what I did.

Here's a video of the cook.

https://youtu.be/6dvF09Rt8Ks

First Cook in New Coop

We moved into New House on November 1st, 2017.  Our first priority was to get settled well enough to function.

Then we built the attic elevator to help store some of the items we just couldn't get to fit anywhere.

Then two months ago we started building New Coop, our outdoor kitchen.

We aren't finished with it yet but we're far enough along that we can cook in it.  And that's what we did yesterday.

I made a video of the that long awaited moment.

First Cook and Tour of New Coop

Maybe now you can better understand why we worked our asses off in the heat to get New Coop up and running.  

Life will definitely be more fun around here.

Kirkpatrick McMillan - The Devil on Two Wheels

As many of you know, I have a lot of Irish and a lot of Scottish in me.  Some of it in the form of DNA and some in the form of beverage for which each country is noted.

Being a little of each gives me both curiosity and enthusiasm in a world where technology is quickly exceeding my ability to absorb its advantage to the world about me.  But I am blessed with a decent mechanical aptitude that sometimes allows me to repair what can be repaired, and even create something that has never been created.

Even so, nothing has ever gotten in the way of my curiosity nor has it stopped me from trying to understand things I can't change.  And there's great joy in changing what I can change.

I would dearly love to leave this planet in better shape than I found it.

There was another McMillan (also spelled MacMillan)  (note the spelling is slightly different than my own name: McMillin) who's ability to apply ideas to the technology of the day set in motion a form of human transportation that quickly changed the world.  And it continues to do so today.

My distant relative, Kirkpatrick McMillan, is now recognized at the person who invented the human powered bicycle in 1839/1840.

And in doing so, he changed the world for the better.

If you have ever owned a bicycle, you owe its existence to Kirkpatrick McMillan.

If you have a few minutes you might read this accounting of him and his invention.

Devil on Two Wheels

Jack Semmes Ranlett Baptism and Party

Nephew Chase Ranlett, and his wife Cheryl, asked if I would take pictures of their new son, Jack, as he was baptized.  Of course. 

But there would also be a family celebration party afterward.  Of course.

The timing was perfect.  It was Easter and the day was beautiful.

Everything went smoothly, and before the day was over I had over 200 photos and a lot of video.  I had to discard some, of course, and edit others, but in the end I think I did a fair job of showing the two events.

The whole day was very nice.

Here's the link to the YouTube video: 

Jack Semmes Ranlett Baptism and Celebration

Another Sod Day at Maison des Poulets

You wake up thinking that it would be a nice day to recover from yesterday's sod wounds.  But no - there's even more sodness to be dealt with today.

Maison des Poulets just doesn't look like it did yesterday.  And in many ways it looks even better after we came to grips with our sodlessness.

The truth is, we really needed some 'Sodness' in our lives.  If for no other reason than to perhaps serve to remind us that not everyone is lucky to even have Sod.  We had it but Mother Nature took it from us. So Sod.

We were fraught with worry over what we should do.  But in the end it became clear that we just had to take matters into our own hands.  We did, and we feel really good about it.  And we decided that Sodness can be a good thing when handled properly

So once again we're off to the Sodest place in Covington, knowing that we would end up being even more banged up and dented, and a lot Soder than yesterday.

Maybe these photos will show you what I mean.  These were taken this morning as a new sun arose.  You can actually see the sodness as it spreads to the right, affecting everything in its path.

Here too...

Yes, we need about 1,500 more pounds of Sodness before we can truly say we've got our sodlessnes under control and our feet firmly on the ground.

Next day, we added another 1,500 pounds of Sodness, plus two full wheelbarrows of beach stuff.  Then we waited for the promised rain.  It came and looks like our efforts to achieve Sodness Nirvana paid off.  We feel the power of success.

More proof that Sodlessness can be overcome with a plan, some $$$ and a lot of effort.

Finally, A Shed

A shed for our growing collection of lawn care and gardening tools equipment was high on the list of 'things to do' here at La Maison des Poulets. 

(Yeah... I know I said I would no longer have to do lawn mowing, but somehow my plans went awry)

We flipped and flopped as to what kind of shed (build it ourselves or buy one) because of the area where it will be located.  We wanted it to look nice but be functional.  But most of all, it needed to accommodate items that were unnecessarily taking up space in the garage.  And it had to meet the Homeowner's Association guidelines.

In the end, we opted for a resin (plastic) shed that would do the job.  And the one we chose comes with a 10 year limited warranty.  I take that to mean if it fails on the last day of the warranty, the cost of it's warranty replacement will be calculated by dividing its original cost by 3,650 days minus one.  So in this case the company would give us a prorated refund of $0.22. 

But hey, if I built my own, my warranty would be 'Zero.'  So we probably made the right decision.

It came in a box and was set up and functioning as a shed before the day was over. Judy and I assembled it ourselves.

Take a look.

I will be mounting some hangers and hooks to hold most of the stuff off the floor.

Next project: our outdoor kitchen...

More Concrete Makes For More Patio

Back when the house was being built we could not for the life of us make a good decision on what to do with an area between the house, the porch and where the New Coop (outdoor kitchen) would go .  So, as expected, nothing good comes from indecision.  Sure enough the area was unusable. 

So we finally called the concrete guys and they took care of it.  It really turned out well and instantly made our porch/patio/outdoor kitchen area more like what we really needed all along.

More photos will follow as we get it completely finished.

Visit From Texas Friends

February 2018 started off with a visit from eight of our long-time friends in Texas.  We really had a great time visiting, but we made sure we all had plenty to eat and drink.  We may be living in another state now but it didn't take long for the food and drink to start its magic for having a good time.

Lots of photos were taken and although it was hard, I edited out as many of them as I dared so we would not bore people with too many 'happy-smiley photos.'

I combined them into a video that should pretty much tell the story.

Enjoy

Texas Comes to Covington

Jack Semmes Ranlett - Age 'New'

My Sweetie and her sister Joyce, have been waiting a long time to become Great Aunt and Grandmother.  And now they are...

Introducing Jack Semmes Ranlett.

He is the product of Cheryl and Chase Ranlett, and is not shy about showing off his good looks and captivating smile.

And he seems quite pleased about how quickly his parents respond to his commands.

Here's the short video of the momentous occasion - his first birthday.

Introducing Jack Ranlett

Leroy's Elevator Update

When we lived in Texas, we stored a lot of items in our detached garage attic.  It was always awkward at  best to get items up and down from the attic.  I really hated it.  Not only was it difficult to use the flimsy pull-down folding ladder, it was unsafe.  So unsafe that I actually fell from the attic because of my losing my grip on the ladder.  Yes, my head was well into the attic making the fall about ten feet.  By the time I stopped falling my head was hitting the floor.

Yes, it hurt like a SOB!  But it could have been worse... Much worse.

So when we moved to our new house in Louisiana, I had hoped the garage attic had a better and safer means of access, especially when I found out the climb was three feet more than in Texas.  I knew I would not survive falling from this height.  In fact, my first time up the ladder was so frightening for me that I was shaking in fear.

So I had to come up with something better.

I looked at making a 'pull-down staircase.'    It would be just like a staircase except that it would retreat into the attic until needed.  At least I could easily carry boxes up and down a lot more safely than on the rickety fold down ladder.

I show my design to the builder, and although he found my creation 'interesting' he would not build it.  So I was on my own.

But then I got to thinking that perhaps there was even a better way to solve the problem.  And I started searching 'elevators' and 'dumb-waiters' and 'lifts' to get some ideas.  Eureka!  I actually found some creative people's videos on YouTube showing their elevators.  Not just a 'sling' type lift but an actual elevator.

So I drew some ideas from them and added my own.  I knew this would work and I could build it.

As it turned out, my brother-in-law and nephew stepped up to do the difficult work for me.  I'm glad they did because I'm clearly getting too old to do that kind of work by myself.

The results were better than expected.  We now have an elevator in our garage and we are the talk of the neighborhood.

Take a look at the video I just posted on YouTube.

Leroy's Elevator

Pretty darn cool...  But more important, it's much safer than me climbing the fold up ladder.  Plus, it allows me to take even larger and heavier items into the attic for storage.

It could not have worked out better.

Basil Cell Carcinoma

Nowadays everyone knows about the sun's ability to cause skin cancer, especially among fair complexion  people like me.  So I visit my dermatologist at least once a year, and immediately if I see something that may be a problem.  I sure don't want skin cancer to be the thing that kills me.

Needless to say, I've had some problems over the years and fortunately for me the were easy to treat, some because I caught them early.

This latest incident was not that unusual but turned out to be a basil cell carcinoma.  As bad as that sounds it is the best kind of skin cancer to have if treated timely.  It is localized, so there is very little chance of it spreading.  But left untreated it can cause some damage to the skin and surrounding area.

During a routine visit to my primary care physician my wife asked him to take a look at a bump on the side of my nose.  It had been there for years and seen by at least two dermatologists.  But it had recently started to grow larger, looking more like a wart than anything.

So the doctor took a look and suggested we schedule a visit to my dermatologist because it looks like a basil cell carcinoma.

Needless to say, we drove straight to the dermatologist's office and made an appointment for the next day.  We're glad we did because the resulting biopsy tested positive for cancer.  An appointment was made with a specialist.  She explained what she would be doing to remove the BSC and a date was scheduled for the surgery two weeks later.

The surgery was yesterday.  And it was actually more boring than painful.  The doctor first cut out a sizable piece of the bump and took it to her lab to see if she managed to get all of the cancer.  It took a while to get the results.  When she returned an hour later she said there were some signs that she didn't get it all and would have to cut deeper.  This is what I looked like while I waited.

She returned and cut again.  And this time it was successful.  I was cancer free - a good feeling.

Here are some more photos to show what I looked like on the table and on the way home.  Yes I drove.

By the time we arrived home the pain started to get worse so I took a Tylenol and went to bed.

The bandage came loose during the night and would not re-stick.  So I left it off and followed their instructions to clean around the area with a Q-tip and hydrogen peroxide, then apply a lite layer of Vaseline. 

I return next week to have the stitches removed, but that's pretty much it.  Meanwhile, I will clean it with the Q-tip and hydrogen peroxide and cover it with a small bandage.  I'm not to do any heavy lifting or strenuous workout for a couple of days.  That's pretty easy to live with in order to be cancer free again.

See your dermatologist...

Update;  I returned today (2-6-18) to get the stitches out.  It looks good and I can return to normal.

The Happy Place - A Great Idea

One of the things we like about Terra Mariae, our little 55 and over community that we now call home, is that it is small (only 70 houses), compact (One long street and two short ones), out of the way of traffic and crime and noise, and there are lots of people who want to get involved.

And it's a perfect place to take a stroll.

So when Neighbor Scott Goodwin decided to build a pergola in one of the large green space areas about half way down the long street, he knew it would be a welcome spot for strollers to get out of the sun or rain.  Not to mention just a nice comfortable place to enjoy a book or just watch the birds.

He decided to pay for it and build it himself.  But that's when a few neighbors jumped in to help.  This was just too good of an idea to NOT be involved in it.

I made a short video showing how the efforts of a few paid off.  Take a look:

The Happy Place

Nice huh?

Not shown in the video is the concrete floor.  He paid for that too.

And he has since built a horseshoe pit.

It Snowed Again

It's hard to believe, but we've already had our second snowfall since moving into our New House on November 1st, only 78 days ago.   And it has only been 38 days since it snowed back on December 8th.  I'm guessing that's some kind of record for here.

Not only did it snow, it got down to 16° with a wind chill of 1° this morning.  And Mother Nature promises even more of the same for today, tonight and tomorrow.

Even so, we sure enjoyed the view this morning.

It's way too cold to work in the garage today so I guess we'll just catch up on something else.  I'm thinking Naps may be the answer.  We sure aren't crazy enough to go somewhere.

Leroy's Elevator

As we get more and more comfortable in New House, there are two large projects that I particularly wanted done. 

The first was to build a new outdoor kitchen, now referred to as New Coop, to not only serve as a place to cook on our Big Green Eggs, but also our Blackstone Grill, while also serving as a gathering spot for entertaining.  I have the plans drawn and approved by the Homeowner's Association, the slab poured, the plumbing, electrical, and natural gas stubbed out, and I'm ready to get on with it as soon as the other major project is finished.

The other project is a freight elevator into the garage attic.  Yes, an elevator - not one of those 'lifts' that work like a motorized 'sling.'  I wanted something that was built strong enough and safe enough for me to ride along on the elevator if necessary.

The elevator project is now almost complete.  Just some tweaking and cosmetic work remains and it will be finished.

It has already delivered its first load into the attic, a very heavy box filled with Mardi Gras beads.  They were much too heavy for me to hand-carry up that flimsy folding attic ladder, so they remained on the garage floor, always in the way until they became the first to ride the Leroy Elevator.

I will make a detailed video of the Leroy Elevator's construction after I finish, but for now I thought I would share this short video of the elevator hoisting its first load into the attic.

Leroy Elevator First Load

Yet Another Nice Surprise Visit

Another Nice Surprise Today

Frank Smith (aka Frank From Houma in Big Green Egg circles) and Maria (aka his bride of nearly 45 years, navigator, and Traveling Companion) drove over from Houma to see New House and its current occupants. That would be us.

It was a wonderful surprise to see them again.

They also brought Poteet and Jolie who quickly discovered my chair.  I like it too Poteet and Jolie.

Judy had some spaghetti and meatballs cooking when they arrived so lunch was served, followed by some good old 'table talk' that included some old times and new times. It was fun.

Naturally, they got the tour of New House, saw the desks we built, where the elevator will go and where New Coop will be built.

But they didn't come empty handed. Frank presented one of his cutting boards to us. It's beautiful and contains four species of wood.

As they drove off into the sunset we were once again reminded that except for the Big Green Egg, we probably would never have met them. But in a way it feels like we've known them all of our lives. Its a real pleasure knowing them.

Y'all come back soon, you hear...

Our First Christmas In New House

We really, really wanted to be in our new house by Christmas.  It's Christmas Eve and here we are.

But it isn't a "New House" any more as much as it is "Home."

Yes, we're getting more and more settled in each day.  All those many boxes of 'things' in the garage are gradually finding a place that best suits their purpose.

So on this first Christmas Eve, we are taking a much needed break from unpacking so that we can celebrate our good fortune and all that goes with the spirit of Christmas.

Instead of working on Christmas Eve,  we will join David and Michelle, and Chase and Cheryl at Joyce and Allen's for a traditional Christmas Eve celebration in their New Home.  Then we will return here for our First Christmas in the quiet solitude of Our New Home.

Update...

On Christmas Day, we returned to Joyce and Allen's for a delightful Christmas Dinner.  We were joined by neighbors who also brought food.  We certainly had plenty to eat.  It was fun.

I took a lot of photos during the two days and condensed them into this video.  I hope you enjoy it.

First Christmas at 136 Magnolia Mound

It has been a good year.

Almost Christmas Update

First, let me apologize for not updating our move to New House sooner.  As you can guess, we've been pretty busy getting settled.  There were literally 'hundreds' of boxes to open and start looking for a place to put the items.

Some things didn't make the cut and ended up at Goodwill, or given to someone who wanted it, or sold, or tossed.  Lots of stuff was tossed, but it was mostly junk to begin with.  Some of it dating back to the late 1900's.  Ha... that sounds strange, "late 1900's," but we accumulated a lot during our 29 years in Texas.  And there are some treasured items dating back even further.  Not all fits our new lifestyle in New House, so ......

There were a few surprises, some disappointments (mostly breakage), and lots of frustration, but it was clearly coming together to become everything we had hoped for in our new life.

The garage, of course, has been where most of this 'stuff' was stored until we could get to it.  But first, we had to install garage cabinets to hold some of it.  And we're still not through with that project.  But we're working on it and hope to get it done soon.

Meanwhile, on December 8th, it snowed...

Yes, and it snowed all day long, sometimes with big fluffy flakes just like in the Hallmark Christmas shows.  It was just barely cold enough that the snow managed to accumulate to as much as 4" in areas.

Yes, it was beautiful.  And what a nice Welcome to Terra Mariae, where all the cottages looked absolutely beautiful, ours included.

And evidence of the snow was everywhere for four wonderful days.

Here's the video: Snow in Covington

If you like photos, here are a few.

Stay tuned.  There will be more updates coming.