Barn

The interesting metal thingy is a manure cleaning system.

Junk

Junk, and a pretty view.

One of the 7.8%

Morning Sun

More Rain

A Quiet Day

The continuing rain meant a quiet day. Max did the Lowes run while I stayed and worked on curtains. The finished curtain, made of a fine grade of burlap, shows Margot's excellent taste in fabric as well as men.

When Max returned the rain had mostly stopped so he was able to put in the new fuel line to the kerosene tank. It had been removed, probably both for its value as copper and because, as our neighbor told us, she had seen people carrying something away in buckets. Kerosene?

We learned from the former owners - delightful people - that the sugar house was the maple syrup operation of Wellscroft, the Tudor Mansion nearby. That explains why the barn is so beautifully built. When it is cleaned up I will do a post just on the barn.

I had a visit from a Lake Placid antique dealer looking for the former owner, (who built a new house on adjoining property (which is rented by the young woman who saw the kerosene thieves)). He mentioned that his crusade is getting people to keep their old windows. "Don't throw away any old windows. They will last another 100 years if you just re-glaze them and add storms." Apparently the construction then was far superior - harder wood and better joinery. He was excited about the 2 over 2 windows in the farmhouse. He also wants his name added to the raw milk list.

Before the Rain

We did a lot of miscellaneous projects today before the rain started. Max wired the hot water heater, spackled some more in the guest quarters, insulated the fuel oil pipe access, cleaned out the guest quarters (don't look at the back porch) and took the truck into Devon's for an oil change and to have the soft tire fixed. The problem with the tire - which has been an issue since we bought the truck - was a piece of wire from the brake that wasn't removed the first time we had the tire repaired and now had worked itself in deeper.

I finished painting the wainscoting in the guest quarters and worked on the front porch.

Now we are off for cocktails with a prior owner of the farm and his wife who want to tell us lots of stories. I think they are expecting Alex and Margot so we feel like the booby prize.

The siren on the fire department across the street is blaring, so this rain is probably a good thing.

At Home

Alex is here for the night, and it's a good night for a fire.

The Farmhouse - Looking Good

The farmhouse is ready to show to the first prospective tenant tomorrow morning. Max filled about 6 large trash bags from the basement (which measures about 10 feet by 12 feet), and I worked on the kitchen and bath.

We won't tell the tenant that we haven't quite gotten around to making sure the furnace works.

Puzzles

Every day there are new puzzles. Why doesn't the shower valve go all the way to hot (because it was put on upside down and there was a metal filing in the valve). How are you supposed to clean the storm windows if the screen won't come out (the whole Anderson storm/screen comes out and then you remove one of the storms so you can clean both sides ). Why won't this cabinet door shut (because the magnetic catch needs to be brought forward far enough to catch the metal plate on the door).

All are annoying if you are feeling stressed, but if you slow down and puzzle them out, it makes the day full of small victories.

Some of us have little to worry about except what time dinner is.

Cloud-Splitters

The high peaks of the Adirondacks are called cloud-splitters. On these frosty mornings we often wake up in the clouds - literally.

Water!!!

Having determined that digging up 30 feet of underground water line was not a good option - especially because water lines here are about 6 feet underground - Max did the work-around today to get water from the farmhouse to the attached guest quarters. We are not quite sure why it wasn't done that way originally, since town water isn't metered here.

So, of course the minute Max finished the plumbing and turned on the water he discovered there was also a big leak. It took a while to find the source, but it turned out to be an obviously frozen pipe by an old chimney. It was an awkward spot that meant cutting the wall open, but the problem was solved and now we, at long last, have water to the guest quarters.

Stuff - Gone

The lure of the dumpster was too much for Max. He set aside plumbing and started one of his favorite activities - throwing old things away. So, by the end of the day the dumpster was more than half full, and the store, the carriage house and the back porch had been cleaned out - not to mention miscellaneous piles in the yard and the red truck. The photos show stuff that was not thrown away, plus some nice clean spaces. The upstairs of the carriage house may become Casa Eaton Est.

Note to Dumpster Fairy: next time leave the dumpster downhill from the junk.

The Dumpster Fairy

Woke up this morning to discover that the Dumpster Fairy had been by and left a present for us.

Margot

Margot is a great organizer. She makes projects sound fun! So, "we"/
(Margot) decided yesterday that our project for the 2 days they were here was to get the farmhouse in condition so that they could photograph it for a Craigslist ad and a Facebook post so we can get it rented.

Of course nothing goes entirely as planned, and there were a few diversions - like Mark the town water guy who came and had a nifty machine that traces water lines when he hooks a battery up to one end. That led to more digging. But in the end the goal was met! Three cheers for Margot!