The View from the Outhouse

Hello friends. I would say good morning but no telling when the cell tower will get repaired, so you may be reading this in the afternoon or the next day.

On thing I forgot to mention in the last post. A few weeks ago while Roger and Kari were milling logs, Cory and I finished up the drain field for the septic system. Now that the work is finished, we are complete from the bathrooms to the septic system. The next thing is to set a toilet and connect the water line to the existing cabin. The guys can’t get here now so it is yours truly. I set the toilet in the main bath downstairs and connected the cold water to the system. A few minor leaks to tighten up and we are good to go, if you know what I mean. I mentioned in an earlier post that once this happened, The View from the Outhouse should change to The View from the Septic Tank but I don’t think that will attract many readers. Never know, like the septic tank pumper told me one time, Buddy it may be poop to you but it’s bread and butter to me.

The wood stove. It was an after thought for Kari and I. First consideration was an outdoor wood boiler. Still not out of the question, but the glycol antifreeze to fill the system could be almost the cost of the boiler. So the only place for the stove was on the second floor. We went to the Vermont Castings stove store in Anchorage and ordered what we needed. The double wall pipe to run 20’ from the stove,through the roof to the top of chimney was almost the price of the stove. Kari and I had a fire going in the stove before she went to Michigan and it kept the upstairs plenty warm, but it was 30 degrees outside. I have had it going since I came back out on the 12th and it has kept both floors warm. It helped that Roger installed 2 ceiling fans to help push the heat down the stairwell to the lower level. I try to get things warmed up to 72 before I go to bed, then if I sleep too long and the fire goes out it still won’t be too cold before I wake up. So far 18 degrees outside and 64 in the morning.

Carrying wood to the second floor is part of my get in shape program. Every time I go downstairs for something I try to bring up an armload of wood. We don’t have good seasoned oak here just spruce and birch so it takes a lot. The best part is how good it feels to come up the stairs without an armload of wood.

32 degrees in the greenhouse yesterday morning with 18 outside. That foam insulation really works. Next year I will try to have a heat source to extend the season on both ends. Cory and I brought the tamaders into the great room the last day he was here. Hopefully a few more will ripen on the vine.

The other part of the get in shape program is the treadmill. Our neighbors at Wolf Lake gave it to us and it had been in the shed here at the cabin. I have it facing the windows upstairs looking at the river and Mt. McKinley. Makes the time pass quicker as I look at the mountain thinking about Marty Rainey of Homestead Rescue fame, telling me about carrying a guitar to the top so he could play a song he wrote, “Strum it from the Summit”. I knew him back when he wasn’t so famous. I also think and try to calculate in my head how many gallons of water goes past in a minute or 20 minutes while racking up steps on the mill. It would be like Joe thinking about”How many wheels would a canoe have if a duck lived in a doghouse?” Just the way he runs the administration. Stupidest man to ever enter the Oval Office, bar none.

Anyway current about 3.5 miles an hour, river maybe 100 yards wide, depth maybe average 4 feet. 3.5 miles per hour equals 308 feet a minute times 300 feet wide times 4 feet deep equals 369,600 cubic feet. At 7.48 gallons per cubic foot equals 2,764,608 gallons of water. That’s at low and slow water conditions. What does that weigh? Friends that is one heck of a bunch of water to strain with a fishing lure hunting for a salmon.

Well that occupied 20 minutes on the treadmill.

Another thing I do is to think about what to write in the view from the outhouse. I have ideas go through my mind while treadmilling that would split a normal man’s skull wide open. Luckily by the time I have finished my cool down I have forgotten most of them.

Now as I promised. How is Pete Butigeg qualified to be Secretary of Transportation? He has been rear ended numerous times.

From the treadmill high above Silty Slough, I hope you were entertained and or enlightened. I wish you well.

Thank you Lord for your beautiful creation.

I’ll be in touch.

Blue skies!!!