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Chronicles of the Joys, Trials, and Tribulations of Owning and Maintaining a House and a PondThis will be a rambling recap of what has gone before, and a semi-up-to-date account of current events in the land-based lives of the Webcaptain and Ladysailor. Mostly so we can remember what the heck happened here! OverviewThe House:Purchased in the summer of 2005, rehabbed just enough to become livable in the next 2 months, further improved the following summer with a second-story deck, new roof and gutters, and pond where the swamp was, this house has never been occupied by it's current owners in the winter. We were spending the winter in Mexico on our boat, and hoping all was well while we were gone. Thanks to a couple who rented the place the first winter, and our pal Buck who lives here full time now, there has always been someone here to keep an eye on it. This year it will be our eyes as well, since the boat is now in the southern hemisphere, and hurricane season is their summer, our winter. We'll return to the boat in Fiji April 28, 2008. The big plans for this winter are to finish the downstairs into living space. You see, the man who built this place back in the 1940's was a plumber, and he built a two storey house so he could live upstairs and work downstairs. His old workbench and pipe vise are still down there, along with all the exposed studs, plumbing and wiring. We sprayed for dry-post boring beetles and other critters today, and this week hope to start hanging insulation and drywall down there, section by section. We will plumb in another bathroom down there, as well as a full kitchen, and with a ceiling and floor covering, it'll be just like a small apartment down when we're done! May even rent it! We still have to get rid of mucho junk-o, though, just to be able to work down there, so that will remain job #1. Interestingly enough, yesterday I took pics of the unfinished windows and doors, and today they're getting done...will post the "after" shots in a day or two. Looking good so far. 12/6/07 The Christmas lights are up on the house, and now on the web site, and today the tree will go up. Buck has been a champ getting the drywall all filled in and mudded up in the interior around the doors and windows, and paint and trim will appear soon, in time for Christmas, yay. We're going to try to get insulation and drywall up in the "bedroom" alcove downstairs before Christmas as well, so somebody can sleep down there in relative comfort. You know, we try to make even relatives comfortable...ha ha ha. That reminds me, I better get off this computer and to work! The Pond:
So the pond was conceived as a remedy for swampy back yard, before we realized the swamp was due to an old spring-box that was just left to drain into the yard. When we discovered how much water was actually flowing into that old spring-box (around 800 gallons a day?) we were already bitten by the "pond bug" and couldn't wait for it to be dug and filled so we could begin raising Koi. We were pretty naieve. It surprised us how long the job took and the cost of rocks, liner, pumps, and back hoe time. Knowing what we know now, we could have done alot more of the finishing work digging the ledges, etc, but we trusted our pond-guy Robert, and he did a hellovabangup job. He talked us out of that landscape fabric that keeps weeds down, though, and I wish he hadn't, because when we returned last week, the pond had been overcome by WEEDS big time. I know our pal Buck did his best to keep them in control, but these Oregon weeds are tough, wiley, and resiliant. Too bad you can't use Round-Up (good weed killer) around the fish without endangering them. One problem with creating a natural-looking water feature is that the creatures in nature think it's all for them. The nerve of them! The pesky deer and elk think it's their private drinking fountain, the bugs think it looks like a good home, and the #*!@(%$? birds (and raccoons) think the fish are on their menu anytime they get hungry. The latest pest is a Great Blue Heron who thinks he owns the place. Being a member of a protected species has made this guy pretty fearless, and he is young, big and hungry. I'm afraid many of my small fishy pals have become lunch and dinner for him, probably breakfast too. I wish I had a bigger dog... 12/6/07 The slingshot worked- never hit the big ba..ard, but scared him a little I guess. Unfortunately, the damage was done, I fear. Next we got hit with a nice little storm packing 100 mph gusts, and Lake Lacrimose filled up with pine needles, debris, and mud, so we'll never see any fish anyway for awhile until it clears. I did make a basket out of screening to keep stuff out of the recirculating pump, so the water is getting well aerated at least. Another, more recent take: It was the summer of '06 that we decided to confront the swampy back yard and try to find a solution for it. The thought of a pond had crossed my mind, but when I chopped my way through the huge blackberry thicket and discovered the old springbox that used to supply water to the house in the old days it was decided. Since we still had a good house rehab budget, and convinced ourselves it would be a good investment (hahaha), all we had to do was find somebody to dig a big hole for us and we'd be in business! We found Robert Holland in the phone book, and he told us he had a "vishz" and we could have the pond of our dreams for 10 grand all up. For some reason we trusted this guy and he didn't let us down. I kind of wish we'd gotten a bottom drain, but not having to worry about leaks there is a good thing. So after a couple of years of pretty much ignoring the pond while we sailed around the Pacific, now in '09 we're here for a year and have started trying to improve our little aquatic environment. We bought a $60 Home Depot sump pump to drain the ditch which has been overflowing onto the lawn lately, and for grins installed it in the pond and hooked a spray nozzle to it to see if the fish liked it. They really got excited about it and started growing before my very eyes, so the next step was to try to make something to filter some of the crud out of the water while adding still more oxygen. Yesterday I bought some lava rock and stacked up some old milkcrates to make a makeshift Bakki Shower, although the flow rate isn't nearly strong enough according to the info online. I didn't quite buy enough lava rock to fill all six crates, so the bio-balls I had in the intake pool went into the top crates. I was hoping if any good bacteria were in the bio-balls it might help the lava rock to get colonized. We'll see what happens, and if it looks good, we'll put the Bakki up where the pool is, and route the main waterfall water through it. The pics show the design development and final prototype in action. There are many more at Photobucket. I'm subscribing to some koi boards to see what I can learn from the experienced ponders. More later.
<Begin Non-sailing Captain's Logs>Home for the Holidays 12/6/07Almost three weeks after returning to our non-floating home, we are starting to get used to the non-cruising life again. The culture shock was extreme when we first walked off the plane, after 19 hours of travel time. Everyone was just as they were when we left, and many folks we know only casually acted as if they had no idea we’d been gone for a year! We learned right away not to volunteer too much information about what we’d been up to, because many people just got a glazed expression on their faces as soon as we mentioned “South Pacific”, or “the boat’s still in Fiji”. It’s better just keeping it our little secret unless someone is genuinely interested, and very few are. The house came through our absence very well under Buck’s care, and what few situations we didn’t care for (like the mess we had left in the downstairs) were quickly and easily remedied. The “pond pets” were doing OK until a Great Blue Heron showed up a few days after our return, and proceeded to nosh on whatever was swimming around. The effect of the new slingshot was much like that of a late barn-door closing, and though the big bird has moved on, there seems to be little sign of fishy life out there. Buddy, on the other hand, is looking better than he ever has, though he is completely bonded with Buck. We decided that’s just fine, since we’re going to leave again in a few months anyway, and don’t want him to have to get over missing us all over again. Anyhoo, we’re hoping Arabella will make it through a cyclone season there at Vuda Point, and when we leave here to return, we’re also hoping there will be a finished area downstairs that may bring in a bit of income. While we’re home this time, I think this Captain’s Log type stuff will appear in the new “House and Pond” section, and will resume here in early May, when we’re back on the boat. Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas, and the Happiest New Year!
HO HO HO, Mike, Barb, Buck, and Buddy the House Dog Life on Dirt 01/10/08Living in a house on dirt has sure been a treat after a year of life afloat. It’s hard to believe it’s coming up on two months since our return. Little things that are challenging to accomplish on the boat are so easy here, like doing laundry and getting groceries. It’s especially easy getting groceries of all kinds; fresh, good, plentiful and cheap, with no long distance carrying or dinghy rides involved. Booze too, even though Oregon has state run stores for hard liquor. We were used to paying almost $100 for a bottle of vodka in Fiji, and $50 for a box of wine. So it’s no mystery why we sat around and ate and drank a lot at first, while staring at another luxury I’d missed for a year, the Boob Tube. Not to mention enjoying the great views of nature we are so lucky have from this little shack on the dirt we call Casa Fulmor. Don’t get me wrong, we have done some stuff since we’ve been back. Lots of cleanup and organization mostly, trying to get the downstairs cleaned out enough to get some work done, and the workshop put together enough to use in that pursuit. It actually looks pretty good now and I’m kicking myself for not taking “before” pictures. We’re working on getting a line of credit to pay off the credit cards and buy home improvement materials, and it looks like it will all happen. A couple of azalea bushes got transplanted and the pond area weeded to some extent, but the inclement weather has impeded outside work. We’ve had a couple of doozy storms packing winds up to 60-100 mph knock down lots of trees around us, but the house has been sealed up well enough that we hardly feel a draft. Christmas was a blast, with daughter Lucy and her soon to be husband Dave, twins Nick and Alex, his friend Sara and my sister Deb joining Ladysailor and I here for a couple of days of feast and frolic. Anyway, after New Years we cleaned off the treadmill our first renters left behind, plugged it in, and it works! It’s a smart treadmill that can run online programs (iFIT.com) and adjust its speed automatically while a virtual personal trainer talks you through a workout. They even have an online diet/meal-plan that changes every day and is very easy to follow. Maybe this will help a fitter, smaller webcaptain to emerge from hibernation come spring. Have to close for now, Jennifer (my virtual trainer) says it’s time for my hike on the treadmill! Hope your New Year is going well and continues to do so. Your Temporarily Dirtbound Sailors, Mike and Barb Shore-leave Flying By 02/17/08We flew out of Portland on the 12th, bound for Hawaii and my daughter’s wedding. After a marvelous visit with Barb’s sister Mary and her partner Barbara at their beautiful 14th floor condo in Honolulu, we came over to Maui yesterday to prepare for the Big Day tomorrow. During our time on Oahu, we managed to tour the entire island, see some major surf at Waiamea Bay (25’ faces), visit all four yacht clubs, tour the Maritime Museum, and even enjoy a tiny bit of Waikiki night life. While touring the Aloha Tower area we managed to get a pretty good look at Paul Allen’s little 300’+ floatie toy named Octopus, tied up to the pier there. She only had one helicopter aboard, but we were relieved to see another helipad on the forward deck. You have to have a place for guests to land aboard also, don't you? On a sad note, words could never describe the “progress” that has occurred on the fair island of Maui in the 40 years since the webcaptain has been here. Let’s just say there are precious few familiar landmarks, especially here in Kihei where several happy summers were spent at my folks’ “beach house”. I couldn’t even find said house, and imagine it got torn down and replaced some time in those intervening years. I had been warned about the changes here, but nothing could have prepared me for the reality of the place. It makes me think of the old Eagles song about paradise, and what happens when a place starts getting called by that name. Admittedly, the island is still drop-dead beautiful, but it sure is starting to feel like Oahu there. So tomorrow is Lucy’s wedding, then we’ll fly home on the 20th to resume our home improvement project. The remaining two months in Oregon will be past before we know it, and the time to return to Arabella will be upon us. Hopefully we’ll get our work done on the house before then! Update 02/19/08 The wedding was as beautiful as you could imagine, set on the beach in a perfect little cove in the Makena area, where we used to go snorkeling in the old days. As they said their vows the sun came around a cloud with that "TA-DA" effect, you know, the rays shooting up and down like God is about to appear... a truly classic moment. The reception dinner at Sea Watch restaurant was a fabulous "surf 'n turf" with a crab cake appetizer and of course wedding cake for dessert. Today we're going to ask them how in the hell the bill came out $400 higher than they quoted Lucy. Seems kind of wrong, doesn't it? Anyhow, today we'll tour around a bit, probably go to Lahaina with sister Deb and her friend Virginia, and get ready to fly home- see ya here with another update in a month or so. Aloha from Maui, Mike 'n Barb Yes, click here and there are actually some new pictures available for your viewing pleasure,Countdown to “The Return” 3/27/08Could it only be a month until we climb back on a silver bird for the gruelingly uncomfortable, interminable flight back to our beloved Arabella? Since they’ve curtailed direct flights to Fiji from the States, we have about a 10 hour layover in Auckland, New Zealand before we actually get to go to Fiji. Not sure what to do for that amount of time, but hope we’ll find something. Meanwhile, the progress on the house appears less than exciting, although much has actually been done. Despite how it looks, we may yet accomplish something like what we hoped for. Miracles do happen, right? The next few days may actually see those new water pipes actually carry water, and the downstairs bathroom finally become functional. That’d be a biggie, one of those things I’d just never quite thought could happen. After that, it’s just a matter of insulation and drywall, putting together a kitchen, and some kind of floor treatment. Yeah, that’s all… In the midst of all these house thoughts, it’s a challenge to try to think about boat needs. I need to hurry up and order some stuff, I’m sure, and somehow figure out how we’ll get it all back to Fiji. We’ve had some great family time lately, with my kids and sister visiting for an early Easter, and Barb just returning from a whirlwind tour of family and friends in Southern California. Spring is in the air here in Oregon, but we drove through falling snow yesterday in the coast range, so it’s not exactly hot yet. Fiji will be shockingly sweaty for us, I’m sure, but at least we will have missed the worst of the heat if we timed it right. The three new koi are doing well in the pond, and one big heron-survivor has appeared from under the rock, so we have four big guys swimming around. The four little Wal-mart koi are not visible, and may have become food for a seagull; however I’m still holding out hope for them. So that’s about it for now from the Casa Fulmor Koi Rancho, will try to get some pics up today. Cheers,
Mike ‘n Barb (and ‘lil Buddy) Some Construction Progress Pics
The Next Season... Home at Last 4/19/09It's been quite a busy and hectic time, but we are finally in our little place at the beach and really enjoying settling in again. This page would have been updated sooner, but the new computer didn't want to accept the old software (FrontPage) and it's taken me awhile to face defeat and dig out an old laptop that still works with it. This computer has outlived the one I bought just before heading to the South Pacific in 2007, so I'm wondering why I ever replaced it. We had a smooth departure from Bundaberg thanks to our decision to get off the boat the day before our ridiculously early flight left, and stay in a motel across from the airport. The trip was long and uncomfortable, however, and it was a great relief to finally get off the plane 18 hours after we began our journey (only 12.5 hours flying across the ocean, the rest was the hop from Bundy->Brissy and waiting around Brissy) and breathe the wonderful air of LA once again. There was much visiting of family and friends for 10 days or so, then a really quick drive up I-5 in our new-to-us Toyota Sienna. As we dropped down from the Siskiyu Pass, Oregon welcomed us with first a bit of snow, then some rain, and finally, as we arrived at the coast, beautiful clear sunny skies. Since we made it here to Yachats on the 14th, we've had a little rain, but mostly great weather, if a bit colder than we're used to back in Oz. The downstairs project is looking very good thanks to the ongoing labors of our resident home improvement maestro Buck, and hopefully it'll be really close to done by this coming weekend when everybody comes to see it! Gotta run now, will try to do an update close to the first of May with pictures and everything. Fair Winds, Mike and Barb So Two Months Went By…6/18/09 Log
What
can I say, been busy and also avoiding the
Computer Room with it’s comfortable chair and certain way of making daylight go away
quickly. The same has been true of the Living
Room with it’s magic box and comfortable couch.
I try to walk by fast on my way to do something else. And there are lots of something elses to do around
here, that’s for sure. Part of my
strategy for not thinking about smoking or eating is to stay almost continuously involved
with projects, and it seems to be working. Believe
it or not, it’s been 5 months without a cigarette, and I’m down 50 lbs as well! Easy does it, they say. So
what exactly have you been doing, I hear you asking.
Nothing too spectacular, just mowing and weed-wacking, organizing and
getting my shop ready for serious production, trying to improve the lives of my small herd
of fish through Pond Mods, and of course helping out with the Neverending Project
downstairs. There were daily power walks and
exercise sessions, then a two-week vacation due to a bout with some flu-like deal, which
we’re all still recovering from. If it
wasn’t Swine Flu, it sure did pack a good wallop like it was a little brother. The question now is when to resume the
“training” regimen, like “are we well yet?”. The
Neverending Project is actually kind of getting close, but I’ve said that way too
many times to actually believe it, or expect anyone else to. The tape and mud process drags out towards
infinity, because there is no such thing as smooth enough walls. I wish the upstairs looked half as smooth. With 9
hrs of help from a drywall specialist friend, the bathroom did get ready for paint, so at
least that small, but important area will be finished.
The kitchen cabinets, sink and stove are all installed, along with the
window trim on most windows, so we have actually allowed ourselves to begin thinking of
floorcovering options. Maybe by
Christmas… There
is a huge batch of my trademark stone, wood and antler creations begun, and hopefully
they’ll be ready to turn into large wads of cash at the Oregon Country Fair coming up
the second weekend of July. Our good friends Dale and Jane will be joining us for a visit
Fourth of July, and we’re hoping they’ll want to hang around for that
extravaganza. Our best Mexican buddy Piper
Lover is currently visiting friends in Canada, and we’re hoping he might come by here
as well. I’m
going to have to close now, because the new Bakki Shower I built to help the water quality
in Lake Lacrimose (AKA da pond) is in need of service.
I have ordered a very expensive state of the art Muck Vac to clean the
bottom of the pond, and when it arrives the pond party will really get going. The fish have been energetic and growing like Sumo
wrestlers since I got them some more oxygen with the new filter and a sprayer system. Now they poop too much, though, and that creates
more problems. The fun never stops here at
the Koi Ranch, I tell ya! Hope
all who read this are well and happy, and may the sun shine on your parade! Love, Mike
and Barb
July Flyin’ By… 7/22/09
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