Stairway to Heaven

They've added the stairways to the deck, so the deck is now complete.  We have some grading work to do.  A number of restraining walls and back fill are planned.  We like the way the deck turned out.  Even for the stairs, they used large beams for the support; it's really solid.  The deck is probably three feet higher than the old deck, and extends out an additional 6 feet or so.  You really feel you're above it all.

There are stairs on both sides of the deck.

Here's a shot with both stairways in view.

Up North - Summer 1980

Some shots from the summer of 1980.  What's really amazing from these views is the total lack of pine and spruce trees.  My parents were busy planting, sowing the small transplants we appreciate today.

I love this shot, Heather is totally entertained by Macy's splashing.  Simple joys.



Pontoon boats are now a given for just about every resident Up North.  My parents bought one of the very first on the chain.  It was christened "Hawaii".  They had planned to take a vacation there, but then channeled the funds to the purchase of the boat instead.  Who knows what would dominate the lake scene if they would have gone off to the islands instead, maybe surf boards.

Note the raft far off in the bay...another tale to tell.

Drywall and More Siding - July 11, 2011

Last weekend the drywallers were hard at work.  It only takes a couple of days to hang all the drywall.  Hard to believe given all the ladder work and lifting.  The drywall sheets are 4'x12' and very heavy, can't imagine lifting one to the ceiling.

This shot is of the kitchen area.  Macy has finalized her appliance choices so that's one round of decisions made.   The need to make decisions never ends.  I tuned out when we got to choosing the grout colors.

The siding guys are making steady progress.  They probably have at least two more weeks of work.  The easy parts are done.  Given our hill side site, there is lots of ladder work, and there are lots of angles in the roof line, so a lot of diagonal cuts and custom fitting.  We're really pleased with the outside appearance so far.



Come Fly, Away

Some of you will recall how we handled a nasty biting fly problem along our driveway at our former home on Blue Goose last year.  After much research on the Internet, Macy came up with the sticky stuff on a blue pail approach that many claimed worked.  I put it in the category of the old British April Fools movie on the spaghetti harvest in Italy which showed happy farmers picking it from trees.  It worked, although thankfully our drive and property was very secluded.  (Not sure what tunes Macy listened to while parading up and down the drive)  Have you ever seen Macy so happy?  And the house sold.

Biting flies have been a problem this year on the beach Up North.  Not convinced our neighbors were ready for the sight of Macy parading around the beach with the blue bucket on a broom handle, I turned to my good friends at Fleet Farm.  Voila, the Fly Captivator. 

The flies are attracted by the "Secret Formula Super Fly Attractor" and they fly through vents (apparently by the hundreds) on the top and drown in the secret sauce.  One thing I learned when I read the instructions, is that the approach to catching flies is much like the approach to losing weight.  To successfully lose weight, one must combine both diet and exercise.  To successfully catch flies, you must use the Fly Captivator along with "good manure management"! (I'm not making this up)  Apparently Up North cottage owners are not the target demographic.

After one weekend the results are mixed.  It must take a while for the "Secret Formula Super Fly Attractor" to emit it's alluring stench aroma.  We've caught mostly "no see ums", which any camper can tell you are also a pain to deal with.  No doubt the big guys will follow.  As you can see the Fly Captivator is unobtrusive.

(It's on the small table.)  When the Fly Captivator is half full with dead flies, it's recommended you empty it.  I suspect the concept of unobtrussive will weaken at that point as well.  The Captivator is reuseable, and fortunately I got extra "Secret Formula Super Fly Attractor".  It's recommended you bury the spent secret sauce and the dead flies for composting...although one would think if you are practicing "good manure management" this would be overkill.  Time to Google up this whole manure management thing.

We'll keep you posted.

Cedar on the Side

Just before we left on Tuesday the siding crew arrived and began work.  Just a sneak preview of what you'll see in upcoming weeks.

Sunset Cruise

We've created a new nightly cruise...the sunset cruise.  Now we need to slot this in.  One can only cruise so many times per night.  The 5 PM cruise, followed by dinner, followed by the sunset cruise, may be a stretch.  As we look forward to the days we are spending more on gas for boats than cars we'll work it out.

Deck The Halls

The decking is compete except for the stairs on either end.  Needless to say, with my Mom and Jane up, we wasted no time with the baptism.

Here's a shot from the master bedroom looking out through the screened in porch and deck to the lake...then one in the opposite direction.

Two shots of the exterior of the house showing the deck.  Trying to take these angles consistently, so I can show a progress collage at some point.