Friday, September 22, 2017

Paradise ponders: no, we didn't fall off the edge of the earth edition...

Paradise ponders: no, we didn't fall off the edge of the earth edition...  We've just been busy!  Jimmy and I finished the cedar ceiling on our deck, including the trim!  It's beautiful, but you can't see it – because it's dark as I write this, so I can't take a photo.  Even better, the sod is completely down in our back yard.  It's beautiful!  The contractors still have a few details left to do (mainly patching small holes, getting valve boxes to the right level, etc.), which they're planning to do today, or Saturday if the weather is still nasty.  We had rain last night, and our forecast includes the possibility of more today.  The dogs have been out in the yard, supervised (so they don't ruck up the sod), and they've pronounced it acceptable...

Yesterday Debbie and Michelle were busy all day long – cleaning, organizing, and (most importantly) making a b'stilla for our dinner.  It's been seven or eight years since we last made one.  Oh, man, was it delicious!  They've got shrimp burgers on the menu for tonight's meal...

This morning I'm going to have something I've never had in Utah: scrapple.  Debbie and Michelle ran down to the Amish store in Perry on Wednesday and picked up five pounds of it for me.  Four pounds are in the freezer.  One pound is about to have some slabs hacked off of it, fried, and arranged on my plate with a couple fried eggs.  Then I'll slide that whole lovely, aromatic concoction down my throat while making ecstatic noises...

We're hoping for a little weather good enough for Jimmy and I to work outside today.  If we get it, we'll be hauling my chop saw from our deck back into my woodshop (that sucker is heavy!), putting up light fixtures, and possibly moving the leftover cedar (about 200 sq. ft. worth) into my barn.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do with that cedar, but I will most certainly be doing something with it – it's beautiful!

Tomorrow is shaping up to be a bit of an emotional roller-coaster for us.  In the morning we're headed down to Salt Lake City for several stops.  First up: we go to the airport to meet our new dog.  She's a young field spaniel, about 16 months old. coming from a breeder in Michigan.  Why, you might ask, would we get yet another dog (this one will make five!)?  Well, because we're suckers for sad stories involving field spaniels.  This little girl (who we will call Ipo (EE-poh)) was adopted as a puppy from the breeder in Michigan.  Then after being in her new home for a year (!), her owner decided she didn't like field spaniels, and returned her to the breeder and got a different dog.  For Debbie and I this seems just appalling – and most likely indicative of a less-than-loving home.  The breeder couldn't find a home for the year-old dog, and already had far too many dogs herself.  She reached out to Debbie and, well, we're going to the airport in the morning. :)  After we pick up Ipo, we're headed to the Red Iguana for a farewell dinner with Jimmy and Michelle – after that repast, doubtlessly excellent, we had back to the airport to drop off Jimmy and Michelle for their flight home.  Then we head to Wild Birds Unlimited to stock up on some high quality birdseed – it's on sale for 30% off, and we're taking advantage.  Then (finally!) it's back home for us, to introduce Ipo to our other four mutts.