Gray water and Garbage Disposal

Just read an article in Mother Earth News.
this guy used "grey water" (water from sinks and showers), cleaned it up a but with some filtration, and re-used it to feed his tolets with flushing water. That's not a bad idea!

Then I was thinking about how much I like having a Garbage Disposal. But folks down that way don't have them in their homes, because of the septic systems. Which is fine since it is better to compost anyway.

When new septic systems go in, they have a "brown water" tank for toilet flushes. Then they also have a grey water tank for showers and sink waste.

How about adding two smaller tanks? (Could we get away with making these two smaller tanks out of trash cans? double layered? with cement between the layers?)
The Garbage dispoal could go to the first of those tanks. It's waste stream separated from the sink's other drain system. Then you have a way to say, "okay, that one has been run for 3 years, now we are going to use the second tank." On the 6th year, you clean out the first tank ~ removing the rich compost, and then let that second tank sit for 3 years. Still having the modern convenience of a garbage dispoal, but also the composting benefit. And besides, we all know stuff in composts break down faster if they are ground up first! Why not let the garbage dispoal do the grinding! lol!


Ah.. but wait... how much would it cost to have TWO additional things buried in the yard? and what about the cost of the extra piping and the control value? hummm...

Mr Brown's Garage is a huge old carriage house. (South-East)
His driveway is lined with massive trees (South)

All of this will reduce the viability of passive solar or active solar.

But...
South-West to West is exposed to the road. Fairly tree free. So if we were to go with active solar, it might be good to start there.

root celar

The more I read "Mother Earth News" magazine, the more I think I might want to be sure to incorporate a root cellar into the design. Maybe off the garage? A small section under the house? I think some thought should be given to food storage in addition to the traditional pantry. I don't think I would ever want to "homestead" and can a zillion cans of everything I could possibly grow... but I like the idea of not shutting down the option also. Putting in a root cellar type area is easier to do when a home is built.

Road Trip?

This company has some really sweet talking things to say....

http://www.sunlighthomes.com/design/sustainable-design

They are in Albuquerque, NM.

Then there are two companies in Ashville NC ~ Deltech home and Spring Time Homes.
http://www.springtimehomes.com/

I am thinking road trip. With a stop to see Scott and Laura of course!

what?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insulating_concrete_form
Need to look into this more!
Mentioned in an article ~ architect company called "Sun Plans."

closets closets closets!

And a special thank you to the fine folks of Vancouver. They just spelled it all out!

http://vancouver.ca/files/cov/passive-home-design.pdf



I have some photos to upload to the blog when I get the chance.


One other thing I wanted to mention. Google has a program called "sketchup" and ~ for free~ I can start playing with designs! Just need to download it.

A week as passed since my last post.
Round homes... ????
eft!
maybe not! Not the best use of land maybe. Too much wasted space?

Been looking at kit homes today.

Found this rather cool article.
Maybe I should say "warm" because its about passive solar.

http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/guest-blogs/cost-effective-passive-solar-design


And then...
for some thing completely different....
This guy has his own ideas and is a bit combative in how he presents them ~

http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/guest-blogs/contrarian-view-passive-solar-design

If he is so right, why does he mention the wood stove or boiler fan?

Maybe a Deltech home?

So there is a company that makes kits.
Round homes.
Totally flexible design options.
They ... could maybe beef up their sustainable design,
but I really like the kits, the options, the flow of it all.

I can see how ... what they have to offer...fits what I have in mind.
But a round house?
Really?
That's just funky!

www.deltechomes.com

Check out the floor plans! And the interior photos! Yeah, I can see growing old there!!!

a nicely wrapped nut shell

Mother Earth News
February / March 2011 issue

page 41

"You can...start out with high levels of insulation and build a tightly sealed home with low heating loads. ... incorporate passive-solar building principles that will reduce the heating loads. Passive-solar design strategies include facing the long axis of the house south, sizing roof overhangs appropriately, and using high-mass building materials and high performance windows. In a well-designed passive solar home, heating loads will already be minimal, so solar collectors should be able to provide even more of a home's heat."

Yes, I can agree with that general idea...
Its the specifics I seek to sink my teeth into!

Roofing

Roofing materials -
either make money, or are worth money.

If we were to try to incorporate solar into our roof ~
I would want something like this...
http://www.certainteed.com/products/roofing/solar/341624

Where it is not mounted on brackets... but the solar IS the roofing materials.

There is a hitch....
(of course)
as I have mentioned before,...
this is an old neighborhood with a number of trees...and we don't have control of the entire tree line to the south.
That being said...
MOST of the trees that are blocking our solar access...
are Norway Maples.
Norway Maples grow up to 98 feet tall and live up to 250 years of age. They tend to get heavily damaged in storms.
Trees.. function as a colony. If we remove all of the trees on our property ...that are capable of casting a winter shadow on our house, this will leave the Maples to the South of us exposed to some strong harsh Nor-Easter winds.
The trees that line his driveway are just stunning with a beautiful canopy.
The cooling effect this canopy has in the summer is just stunning as it creates a breeze in the area.

Taking down all of our trees,
in the hopes of using the solar we can get...
and hurting the trees around his drive way...
Just seems like evil.

Maybe solar isn't the way to go!
In which case, I want a metal roof.
It can last for 50 years. When you take it off you can sell it for scrap.
Maybe in 50 years ~ the neighbors trees will be dead?

I still think that building the house with passive solar in mind is still the way to go, even if we don't get as much of a benefit due to neighbor's trees.

IF Solar could work,
I would like to see the solar convert to electric energy.
Limited battery storage. A few hours of power stored maybe?
With "meter running backwards" capacity as well.

two things I would like to learn more about:
heat pumps
heat exchangers

What follows is copied from the web site (listed above) about roofing made of solar panels.






"Apollo II Solar Roofing - Radiant energy...Brilliant Looks In our highest producing solar shingle.
System Benefits
Apollo II Solar Roofing System is the pinnacle of energy production, using monocrystalline silicon solar cells to capture and convert more solar energy per square foot than any other CertainTeed solution.

Features and Benefits
Apollo II Solar Roofing is the versatile solution for maximum power and flexibility in installation directly on new or existing roofs.


Efficiency: 14 high-efficiency monocrystalline silicon solar cells per module for a power rating of 54 watts per module.
Low profile: The slim profile provides a clean integrated look that a rack mounted system cannot match.
Lightweight: No need for structural reinforcements or analysis. Each module weighs only 12 pounds or about as many pounds per square foot as a typical asphalt shingle.
Load rating: Modules are rated to 250 pounds per square foot.
Wind resistance rating: Apollo II roofing systems achieve a 110 mph wind resistance rating.
Water handling: Water channels and raised fastener locations further improve the integrity of Apollo II as a roofing system.
Wire management: Open space under the modules allows for easy wire/installation and eliminates the possibility of wires being pinched between the module and the roof deck.
Aesthetics: Black (frame) on black (cells) on black (backsheet) provides a greater aesthetic and visually blends with the surrounding roof.


Benefits In Your Bill...and In Your World
Apollo II makes you master of the sun with a system that harnesses more energy per square foot than any other, significantly decreasing your home's draw on the grid and reducing carbon emissions.

With its maximum output potential, Apollo II can generate most or all of the electricity your home uses during the day. And if you don't use all the electricity your roof makes, the excess power flows back through your meter into the power grid, causing your electric bill to go down even further.

That makes Apollo II Solar Roofing one of the most environmentally conscious things you can do with your home for a beautiful, ecologically-sound future.

JUST MY NOTES FROM AN ARTICLE I LIKED

A FEW QUOTES FROM AN ONLINE ARTICLE I AM READING:
http://www.cchrc.org/docs/sns/Zedda-Abstract.pdf


"Provide a roof structure that will allow future location of photovoltaic and solar thermal arrays."

"Use of natural ventilation along with supply air brought it from air cooled by groundwater."

YES,
How do we cool the place in the summer? There are about 4 weeks of summer that might be more comfortable with an AC unit. But in place of an AC unit, can we run pipes down into the ground to capture coolness from ground water / water table? (without increasing Radon exposure)
So far all the info is applicable to places like Maine, Canada, and Alaska. But how about COOLING factors?

"including natural light in every space." ~ sounds like a novel concept... even if it is from the north a "reflective" lighting.

Oh, and ran into someone that said they knew a couple that build a home for their golden years. They put the master on the first floor. Then they built it so that after the kids moved out (god willing our kids will one day ~ actually move out) they had built in shut offs. All water and heat could be shut off with some changes of valves. All water, heat, and electricity shut off. Then they had a way to block the heat rising up there. Not a bad concept. So... insulate the first floor... from the second floor... as you insulate from the second floor to the roof. Then save one piece of foam, pre cut to fit in the stairs to make it look like a wall, and the upstairs... disappears. Disappears from the Utility bill.

"heat recovery ventilation (HRV) system"
also called THE MAGIC BOX

"They installed the largest solar array in the YT on the south side to provide a total
output of 3.825 kW of power using a type of solar panel that didn’t require a battery bank. The building is small and the batteries would have taken a large portion of the space. Excess power is sold to the local utility in the summer and bought back in the winter. "
also called NET ZERO.

OOPS~ SOMETHING TO AVOID HERE:
"The building was designed and built in factory and then disassembled and shipped to the site. A problem was encountered because the building design didn’t account for the SIP joints adding 1/8” per joint to the width of the structure. As there were many SIP joints, the last panel wall extended 6” beyond the foundation. There was also a problem with a 1” gap between the sill plate and the column splice joints."

"Focus on the Basics – Improve thermal efficiency of building envelope before spending big bucks on technological gizmos"

We had 19 people check out the blog last month.
Not sure if the same person checks it 19 times ~ it it would count it as 19. Or is it 19 different computers read our blog.
We might have one highly interested person.
or
19 bored people....

Either way,
I like it!

on the radar

It is almost comical how ... when you have something in mind, ... on your radar... suddenly the info starts pouring in.

Was at the Doctors with the little one.
Saw a magazine on the rack that ~ perhaps I would never have noticed before.
It is called "Mother Earth News."
Jackpot!

Then I found out they carry it at the library and you can check out back issues. I got 9!
When I return those I will get 9 more!
How to build a sun room that will heat your home,
how to build your own house,
how to build a house that is net zero or off the grid. Very basic info but lots of links and resources listed for more info.
They also had info about Yurt houses. Its an interesting read. I have zero desire to ever live in a yurt. Be it noted!
They also have a lot of info about making your own soap or bread or raising chickens.... tempting stuff I tell ya!

I might copy some of the pages from the magazine for design info / resource info ... to keep as I return the magazines.




Saw an article in the Newspaper today.
http://www.ctpost.com/default/article/UA-prof-lauded-for-energy-efficient-home-4488449.php

Basically a professor (Teaches sustainable living stuff and energy efficient home designs) managed to build a home in Fairbanks Alaska that uses 20 gallons of heating oil a year ~ instead of 700 gallons.
If he can do that in FAIRBANKS ALASKA ~ home of the frozen hell!!! I sure as heck think we can do it in RI! No brainer!

He teaches a class that I could "attend" remotely. They call it "Distance Learning." I figure the class will just make me read the same materials I would have read if I had done my own research, but with the added pressure of deadlines and papers to write.
I still might try to find out what materials he is using to teach his class....

That Wisconsin House

Somewhere in a box,
I have a little book.
It was something I picked up in Wisconsin in 1993.

It was about a house that was heated by passive solar.

Any-who...
the point I wanted to make...
they had a mud room / coat room between the garage and the kitchen.
they had their fridge backed up to the mud room.

Ya see...refrigerators produce heat.
Then, they vent that heat ... to the wall behind them.
The wall behind them gets hot.
Which makes the fridge work harder.

So imagine this...
the space behind the fridge was wall-less.
So all of the heat from the fridge.. went into the mud room. They were able to dry off their coats, warm gloves, and air out their shoes...
all because the fridge gave off heat that kept the mud room toasty.

They also didn't loose as much heat as they came and went from the garage because of the slight (although not air tight) air lock system that the mud room created.

The fridge didn't have to work as hard, so it used less electricity.

So, the fridge backed into the mud room, an oven that vents to the outside, ... starting to get a lay out for the kitchen...

After talking to a fire fighter

After a talk with a fire fighter...

I would like a fire wall between the garage and the house.
If there is a room over the garage, it will also be separated from the house by a fire wall.

Doors, ... did you know that doors are rated based on "burn time" ~ how long does it take for a fire to get through it.
He recommended getting a door between the garage and the house that has a 1.5 hour burn time.
He also said the weakest spot on a door is the door knob area. There should be a very tight seal on that.

So the door to the room above the garage, to the rest of the upstairs, should also have a door like that.

iPhone test email

Test. Sending from iPhone

Sent from my brand new iPhone 5!!! Yippee!

3ft 2 inches is not the same as 32 inches

So there was this guy in Maryland. He was not very smart.

He was building his own house.

The local building code required him to have a window that was big enough for a firefighter to get through. They had decided that the fire-fighter had to be able to crawl in with his oxygen mask/tank on. So on the architect's plans said a number
3
followed by a number
2
But he did not know how to properly decode it.

He ordered all of the windows in his house to be 32 inches. Keep it simple. Order them all the same.
While he waited for the windows to arrive, he built the window casings.
The inspector came,... and pointed out that he had mis-read the drawings and specs.
He had a costly re-do!

The take home messages that has stayed with me... to take to our home...
Make sure the firefighters can get into each room your house by having big ass windows that are 38 inches.
(is that 38 as in the way we measure TV's?)
And before you "measure twice, cut once," make sure you know how to read the architect's drawing! ha ha!

Them old folks - they are 95.

So Dave sent me a link.
Here it is (not sure if it will remain valid).

http://www.boston.com/realestate/news/2013/04/06/home-the-week-waltham/6LHtQWMfeJfqpJM9POBv2J/pictures.html

It is a house with a turret. The master bedroom is on the 3rd floor. With the bedroom in the Turret.
I totally love this photo! Really I do!

Oh boy...
I want to design ~
our home ~
that we can live in with ease~
when we are both 95 years old.
(hiking to the 3rd floor to sleep? I should think not!)

You know those old people?
They can't drive worth a damn...
so put their garage facing the street. Back out of the garage, and plop... right there in the road you are!
And they can't shovel much, so keep the drive way short, small, and direct.

We have been looking at homes in this area ~ we have a huge variety of home styles. He seems to hate any house that has a garage you can see from the street. He is thinking "detached" and maybe "around back."

Make it energy efficient ~ because them old folks ~ they can't afford to heat their home with the rising heating costs.
(the price has gone up on all of it - electric, oil, whatever!)

When we lived in CT ~ for some reason ~ I drove around and took photos of homes I liked the "look" of. What if, we brought a print out of these photos to a designer that specializes in "sustainable architecture" and just asked him to tape them around his computer screen while he worked on our home. Drawing inspiration from the suggested theme to camouflage our "lab rat science experiment" design into a home of our liking? Could that work?

(the garble below is supposed to be the photos I tried to upload)

We lived next to a guy that was a fireman. He worked one day on then had two days off. Unlike most Firemen that work other jobs on those two days off,
this guy...
hung out by the pool,
cleaned the pool,
went to the gym to work out,
and PLAYED THE DRUMS.
He would play for over 2 hours at a spell.

You can pick your friends,
You can pick you nose,
You can't pick which annoying hobbies your neighbors take up!


Then there are the neighbors that put the dogs outside at 5am while they jump in the shower. And all the dogs do is bark for the entire 30 minutes. Not a welcome wake up call.



So, sound proofing.
Yes, some consideration to sound proofing.

not a lab rat

This will only make sense if you have read the blog post from earlier in the month of April 2013.


I want to live in a house.
A home.
Not feel like a lab rat living in an experiment. In that way,... There has to be compromise about the design. Passive / Green / Sustainable. Thats all well and good.
But it can't FEEL too funky.

From the onset,
we know a few things.
Moving around ~ living in a variety of homes ~ aging and all of the biological changes that come with that~
we know a few things about what we might like in a home.

This is a home we want to live in when we are 95 years old.
So it should have a Master Bedroom on the first floor.
None of that "sunken" living room type thing. The first floor will be ONE FLOOR.
There will be a front door, with a ramp up to it, not even one "little step" in the front door.

Attached Garages are a total dream come true.
One large enough to park two cars, 5 bikes, a lawn mower, a snow blower, and also enough room to store the Kayak Gear, Snow Shoe gear, Camping Gear, cross country ski gear, storage for tools, a spare freezer or fridge.

A place to sit in the sun, inside, and just sit quiet with a book.
And in addition to that a window seat that is truly designed to be sat in ~ big enough and stable enough to really hunker down in.

A screened in porch to enjoy on a warm summer eve - big enough for a table, chairs, and a foot rest or two.

A library / Music room / office / den. All in one?

A fire place - the kind that has one of those wood stoves. It looks like a fireplace but heats like a wood stove.

Heat in the floor ~ at least for the first floor. Tired of cold toes.

A few bedrooms upstairs - with a full bathroom - for the kids. Not too fancy. They will need to test their wings and fly one day.

A garden tub in the upstairs bathroom. I want a tub I can get into and not have to chose which part of me is going to be sticking out of the water feeling cold.

hum... maybe "on demand hot water heaters" - little units at each location (sinks/showers) that heats the water so there is none of that "running the water while waiting for it to get warm enough to wash my face." It only works when it needs to.

A GREAT BIG fridge!

A dishwasher - and located in a way that the door does not pin you to the sink when it is open like our current one.

I want to sleep in the dark ~ on the North side.
I want to LIVE in the sun on the South side. Living room. Dining room.

A stove that ... vents to the outdoors.
When I cook the kids know dinner is almost ready when the smoke alarm goes off.
I know.. it's sad!
But!
having a stove that vents out is rather handy!


How about we build on a crawl space?
The water table isn't so low there. Plenty of homes have basements.
and plenty of them have to pump them out.
So you can't use them to really "live" in much.
Just when you get everything settled, a new wet season comes through and you scramble again.
So then you just use it for storage.
of what?!
A bunch of stuff you should have thrown out the day you took it to the basement! That's what!

So maybe just a crawl space.

Hey, if we are going to do the crawl space thing...
How about a thing... a potato and onion storage thing?
It can be lowered into the crawl space, or brought up to the kitchen when you need to pull something out of the root cellar / crawl space.

Humm...
Up there at Good Old Unity College...
They have been working on some new stuff.
They built a home for the College President.
It is a "net zero" home. Which means they sometimes run the electric meter BACKWARDS.
It produced more electricity than it can use ... some parts of some days. The excess at those times is sent out to "the grid" / the power company.
And other times it draws electricity from the power company.

They are also building some dorms, to hold 10 people each. They are doing a lot with solar panels, special windows, orientation. They have blogged about it: It was a quick read. www.terrahaus.wordpress.com

If you could build a home, ... any home...
why NOT build one that has you less dependent on "the grid?"
When we are 95, we can't change our income. We cannot accommodate a spike in oil costs or the cost of electricity going through the roof. But we can build a home that needs those things less. It would cost more to build... certainly. But you have a fixed cost. The mortgage won't go up. It will someday be paid off. Incorporating "Green" architecture into our lives... would give us a stable quality of life. Well... maybe not in every aspect. But certainly we can be warm, and not cost us every penny when we are "on a fixed income."

Agh...
and the grid.
Hurricanes. Blizzards. Down there on the peninsula... power can go out for 3 days at a time.. easy. This happens every few years. Fridge/freezers have food in them that needs to be tossed. Showers are cold or somewhere else. Heat (if in late fall or winter) can be effected.
It would be nice to ride out those storms without that interruption in life styles. Our home could be where folks come to store their valuable frozen moose meat / frozen blueberries, or take a shower.

The biggest obstacle to using solar is that we don't have control of ALL of the treeline that will effect our home. Its kind of a postage stamp sized property compared to the land I have seen such things accomplished on.

You can use the water that leaves the shower or sink. I don't mean "re-use" I just mean you can use it to pre-heat your incoming water. The water that goes down the drain is hot. The heat from that can warm pipes, warm an outdoor water feature as water circulates through the pump area, warm your driveway. Heat Recovery that is called. That's a neat idea.

Water. This is not an area where water use is a concern like out west. But it would be great to see some "rainwater recovery" where in the water is collected from the roof and used in the yard, or to wash cars.

A new use for the blog

I don't actually think anyone ever reads this blog any more. It was at one point a blog address that was given out to perhaps 100 people. I am going to guess that less than 5 people will ever read this. So, as far as audiences go.. I am mostly writing this for me. Feel free to enjoy the journey of the story that follows.


This blog was created in a dark time.
Dave had cancer.
Everyone said "keep me posted!"
But I had a family to take care of, a medical system to weed through, a move (or 4) to co-ordinate, a sick husband to nurture, a sweet little boy to try to maintain a normal life for.
This blog was my way of keeping people posted,... but also a way for me to "scream at the universe" for all of the frustrations.

Years have passed.
Life has changed SOOOOO MUCH since then.

Dave has been given the golden "cured."
We now live in Alaska - with two amazing smart healthy children by our side as we hike, kayak, bike, snow shoe... and this weekend we are taking them to the symphony.

My Dad passed away. October 16th 2011. It was so sudden and so very unexpected. And so heart wrenching.
I wrote a book about him. Its mostly photos with a few short stories tucked in. Most of it could have been better. A dozen or so folks wrote in stories for me to include and I hope I did them justice. I appreciate their input more than words can say. Getting the book created, and 8 copies printed and distributed, was like letting the demons of grief out of the box... so they could fly away. Yes, it still hurts, but not as deep, not as often. I just miss him. Alan Clarke is working on "re-working" my simple book into a PDF file to be shared with the entire "world of Charlie." I think he is a far better writer than I am, so I look forward to seeing what he is able to create.

In 1996, when I met Dave one night at the movies, we were both living in Narragansett Rhode Island.
In 1999, we married and I joined him in Virginia. Then to Florida. Then CT. Then moved out of our house in CT ~ and then moved back to CT. Then Wisconsin. Now Alaska. 7 homes. 6 states. 15 years.
One starts to wonder about the definition of "home." Where is "home?" How is home defined? Is it
"Home is where you hang your hat?"
"Home is where your heart is?"
"Home is where your heart sings?"
Through the introspection of my Dad's passing,
I started to realize that "home" meant all of those things to me. All at once.
"Home is where you hang your hat:"
Juneau Alaska is where we hang our hats (and mitten, and gloves, and snow shoes.... [to dry]). It is the place we look forward to getting back to ...at the end of a vacation.
"Home is where your heart is:"
I am at peace, and at home, to some extent, in every single place we have lived. Because we are a family together. I know that all too soon I won't be tripping on crayons that are ~ for some odd reason ~ on our bedroom floor. But my home is by my loving husband's side. I could probably create a niche where ever he gets a job. It is because of our love, and commitment, that we can call any housing structure ~ in any location ~ a home.
"Home is where your heart sings."
Dave has 21 years in the Coast Guard. This summer his file will go before a board, and they will decide if he is to advance to the next rank. If he does NOT get advanced, he will finish his job here (summer 2014) and the Coast Guard will pay for one last move. We would probably go where-ever the job offers come from. If he DOES get advanced, the Coast Guard would move us to a new home, where he would get a new job as a Coast Guard Captain (its a term for the rank, no boats involved).
We certainly would like to continue to see his Coast Guard career grow. It is our sincerest hope that he does get "picked up". If he does, or does not, our next home will be where ever his work takes us. This will be our 8th home in 16 years.
Does it ever end? Do we get to sit in rocking chairs someplace with a garden that has asparagus?
(Asparagus is something that takes years to start before you can harvest)
Will I ever get to plant my favorite ornamental and wildlife attracting plants and trees? And GET TO BE THERE when they are mature, filled in, and doing the very thing they were planted to do?
Where will this HOME be? This for-ever home...
Over the past year and a half I realized that when I am in Rhode Island, on the little section I grew up in, I am in the area where my heart sings.
Dave and I talked about this. He does not have a place that calls to him in that way. There is no pull on his compass. But he can understand that there is one on mine. And since we are linked, then he is willing to be pulled that way also.

I tend to do things "loud." I process things "out there for the world to see." I Facebook post, I blog, ...
I say what I am thinking without editing (this has resulted in opening my mouth and inserting my foot at very regular intervals ~ I never seem to be able to learn how to avoid).

But .. this time I did something rather quietly. Well... quietly for me anyways... ha ha!
I was online watching real-estate. For well over a year. I saw a few homes come up for sale in the general vicinity of where I was looking,.. and I waited. Watching the market. Watching the treds. Waiting for the right one.
In the neighborhood I was looking at, you don't get to buy a home unless someone dies. The people that live there are financially stable so there are not a bunch of homes up for foreclosure. Folks seldom "just decide to live somewhere else." There is a strong sense of community feeling. You know your neighbors. You help out, watch out, and gather in the streets to talk. There is a park, a boat ramp, a beach, and ponds for ice skating. It wasn't the richest neighborhood. But its the neighborhood that the "good kids" came from. Five Generations of my family have lived on that peninsula. Other families have kids and grandkids that are returning to the area also. It is the place my heart sings. Its my "Cheers."

A rare opportunity came up. There was a piece of land for sale. We put in an offer, then another, then another. Then they said "we are going with someone else." It was not about the price on the offer it seemed. It was maybe someone they knew. 12 hours later, our agent called back. That other deal had fallen through and it was ours if we wanted it still! We are not the proud owners.. of a vacant house lot!
And
It
Feels
SOOO
Good!

Sometime in the next 4 to 10 years we will build on that lot.
I am going to keep a list of what we are looking for in a home.
In the 4 years of planning, "THE LIST" will probably evolve dramatically.
I was going to keep a note book - dating each entry.
Instead, I am going to blog about it. Here. For me, (and for the approximately 5 people that still look here,) to see.
So, Life progresses.
The purpose of the blog progresses.
Roots are going to be put down. Someday. and now we know where.

This too shall pass...

Folks say this.
But.. it is true.
The drama of our lives, that caused this blog to be created, is behind us.

The biggest thing going on right now, is the book I wrote about my Dad.
I have had 8 copies sent to Rhode Island.
One copy sent to Maine.
And finally, this week, I will get my copy.
The Fed Ex truck came today and I got chills!
False alarm! It was a box from Old Navy ~ socks for "Little Lion"

Other than that ~ Life is good.
It snowed today. Hoping it keep snowing.
Looking forward to Cross Country Skiing at the local Camp ground while "Little Lion" is at preschool.

Cured!

Dave saw his Doctor in Boston - the Oncologist that was is primary contact through all of this. Yeah.. Bit of news. DAVE IS CURED! Cured! did I mention - CURED!? The neuropathy has subsided. We did some cross country skiing and snow shoeing this winter without pain! The kids are growing, days are busy, Alaska is beautiful, ... life... is... good____.

Kerri's Dad

My dad died on October 14th. It was rather unexpected. They were putting dye into his heart to look at the blockages so they could make an appropriate plan for how best to proceed. When they injected the dye, he said "That hurts" and passed out. His heart discontinued beating on its own at that point. A team of 25 doctors and others that worked at the hospital - worked on him for 2 hours. I was on a plane before I knew he had died. I thought perhaps I was going home to help out as he recovered from what would become open heart surgery perhaps. Perhaps I knew? I packed some black clothing. I was home for a week. We had a wake / calling hours on Tuesday ~ nearly 1000 people came through the line. The burial was Wednesday. Then the really long trip home Friday. Totally exhausted, running on combination of shock and emotion, trying to go through the motions of everyday life. I didn't talk to him every day. But just knowing I can't ask his advice, or talk about the kids... its rough. Ugly rough. My mind knows that he is not in pain, that quick is better, ... but my heart is that of a little girl that misses her Daddy ~ and no thoughts can convince it otherwise. My Birthday is in November. I always got a phone call from him on my Birthday. He was up at "the farm" in Maine hunting. Not sure if I will be able to handle even hearing the phone ring on my birthday this year.

all clear

All scans and tests are giving us good news! No issues! Dave is 18 months away from the golden goal of "cured"

ALASKA!!!!

Yes! We are moving to ALASKA!!! It was our 17th choice (out of 18) and we had 5 Boston jobs on the request list. Ya get what ya get and you eventually learn to breathe again. We are now looking forward to it! Juneau is one of the cities closest to Seattle. It is the capital of Alaska. The town has 30,000 people and a very low crime rate. They get 277 days of rain per year. It is a sub-arctic temperate rain forest. When it does snow it melts off fairly quickly. So, technically that makes it WARMER than Wisconsin! lol! In the winter they have a few hours of daylight ~ not that 24 hr darkness folks speak of. And in the summer the sun does ~ eventually ~ set. They have a Walmart, Costco (like a Sam's Club), and a Home Depot. And yes, there is always online shopping. I am going to try to figure out how to deduct all "shipping and handling" costs from our taxes!!! I have a list of "family" building ~ folks we know and love that are there, or folks that are really good family friends of those we know and love. So it will be ~ hopefully ~ like being embraced by family when we arrive! We will have to have a housewarming party! Speaking of houses, there are not enough! The Coast Guard is aware of the shortage of suitable housing. They are willing to pay for temporary housing until we land something. So as soon as we have our arrival date hammered out we will be booking that. Like an "Extended Stay" hotel. I expect we will be living in that (with just what we take in the trunk of our car) for up to 2 months. I heard of one family that ~ as a way of getting out of temporary housing ~ wrote letters to people that had their house on the market and begged them to consider renting to a sweet Coastie family. I think, and Dave is not yet "sold" on this idea that our "emergency escape plan" is to buy a house with a VA loan (zero down) and... since the housing market is so challenging, we would be able to rent it out easy-peezie ~ just pay a management company to deal with it. Liam might miss a day or two of school ~ his last day is June 13th I think (not sure how they are making up two cancelled days). At this point we are thinking of having the the movers finish up with getting us out of here (the house itself) June 3rd. His last week of school will be a commute from a hotel. Then Dave would work here through June 10th. Then we head out ~ either that afternoon or the next morning. Our first choice is to drive to Bellingham Washington and take the ferry (thats how we can get the car to Juneau) from Bellingham to Juneau. It is... ha ha!... get this! .... a 2.5 day ferry ride!!!! I hear they have a naturalist on board and they make announcements when a whale or something like that has been spotted. The second choice is to take the Ferry out of Prince Rupert BC Canada. I have to work on getting the kids their passports. We may not be able to take the Bellingham ferry because it may be already booked solid. The only way in and out of Juneau is by Ferry or Boat. Its "land locked." Juneau is part of the mainland but there are no roads up over the mountain out of Juneau. Or tunnels. (can climb over it, can't go through it, can't go around it) Once we get to Juneau we are going to boogie to Kodiak (airplane ride) for the change of command. Then return to Juneau for beginning our life there! I have heard from a number of folks up there, and they all ADORE it there. Dave will be in Boston this upcoming weekend for a colonoscopy and scans. He seems fine and I don't think we can expect any problems. That being said, we have had, more than once, some spot being found that upon further inspection is deemed to be nothing. So, we call that "spot scares" and I feel that I brace for them each time. About mid-way through his treatment year we were told that, although they were 96 % sure they could get rid of it all, if it comes back they have a 4% chance of figuring out how to kill it the second time. So ... yeah... the "spot scares" are frightening. Not sure anyone checks the blog anymore. But if you do check back after March 16th for ~ what we expect to be ~ an excellent report. Okay, thats all I have for now, gotta run! Kerri

In march is a big round of re- checks.Preparing to move to juneau AK.If you know anyone moving to milwaukee our land lord would like to fi

All is still well. Sometime in the next 6 to 8 weeks we should know where the CG is moving us to next summer. Dave has scans again in febr

home sweet home!

I got Dave home at about 4:45 today. Then went round and collected Liam from where he had been "on a play date." Its good to have everyone home together!