Trailer and old Pictures

 

I have been working on replacing the plywood floor of the trailer this week.  I discovered the old screws would come out with the correct sized star driver bit and the impact driver.  In this picture I am taking loose the last U bolt for the 4 wheeler hold downs.  Once the stainless screws get here I will be installing the new plywood.

Vera was sorting some boxes of her mother's stuff and ran across a bunch of pictures.  I  took pictures of them and have been editing them with my AI software.  This is Vera's mother standing on the East side of their house.

I also got this one of Vera's brother Leonard, older sister Threesa and Vera edited and cropped.  It is fun looking back at when she lived in Randle.

Tierney and Jared's Wedding

 

We went to Tierney and Jared's wedding today at the Mason Jar in  Onalaska.

Dan is walking the bride to the ceremony.  Michelle took the picture and sent it to me.

It was really a nice setting for the wedding and the weather was just right, not too hot or cold.  There was lots of laugher during the ceremony, one of the best I have been to. 

The reception was nice, the food was excellent and once again lots of laugher. We spent most of the day with Mik, Michelle and James.  Laury took this picture of James and I having a good time.

 

I got the water heater all hooked up and turned on yesterday evening.  It sure felt good to have warm showers this morning.  I got the cover and vent installed today.  There will be one more vent above the opening for the outside air inlet.  I also added a shutoff valve by the water heater so I don't have to crawl under the house to turn it off.  It was nice being able to relax a little today.

Installing the water heater

 

James came up yesterday and today to mow and help me once I was ready to put the water heater in.

This is the opening I created, 23 1/2 inches and the water heater is 22 inches in diameter.

This is the ramp I built from some foam blocks and 2x6s so we wouldn't have to lift the water heater into the hole.

The new water heater weighs 196 pounds and James moves it with no problem.  It took both Vera and I to move the old one which I believe is lighter.

We are talking strategy before we move it over to the opening

This is when we realized it wouldn't fit the way we were trying to do it.

 I had to trim a piece of foam insulation so we could get it in.  It also had to be turned as it went in.  When it finally went in I was inside the closet trying pry it up and not having any luck.  James picked it up and set it over the lip of the drain pan and it went right in.

Thanks to James we got it installed.

59 Years

 

Today we celebrated our 59th wedding anniversary.  This picture was taken by my aunt Jean as she showed us around San Francisco while we were on our honeymoon.  We spent a quiet day at home and then went down to the El Compadre for dinner.  The years sure seemed to go by fast, we are looking forward to sixty next year.

When I took the garbage can up to Laury's, Josie showed me how she could ride her little bike.

The New Water Heater arrives

 

I am pointing out where I would like the water heater put.

Because of the small wheels on his dolly he had a little trouble getting it up onto the deck.

I had him put it in the dining room since it would be several days before I got it installed.

After the water heater was delivered we went down to Home Depot and got a few things I needed to install it.  The rest of the day was spent cutting the hole in the wall.

Getting back on track

 I was just starting to feel good again after the Mohs surgery and had been editing some pictures for the blog.  I had the appointment to remove the stitches from the bolster and things were looking good.  Then the hot water heater quit working, I discovered a leak had filled the case with water and burned up the heater wiring.  The water heater is located in the back of a bedroom closet, the last time I replaced it I decided the next time it was going out through the wall.  I was usually tired enough after each days work that I had no desire to do the blog so I will start now with the older pictures and work towards getting caught up.

5-13-2023

Today was Jacob's birthday, Bev had ridden the train up to Kelso and Michelle picked her up.  I wasn't feeling well enough after the surgery to go so I asked Michelle if she could pick up our present.  They had some time before the party so they stopped and we had a very nice visit.

We always try and get a picture of the girls together.

5-14-2023 Mother's Day

Mik, Michelle and James came to see Vera today and brought Papa Pete's pizza to share for dinner.  Just before they left we had a photo session on the porch.

They insisted I get in one picture bandages and all.  Luckily the one on the right side had fallen off.

Then Vera took the camera and got Mik into the picture.

A while later Josh called and wanted to know if they could stop by.  Jacob and Vera always have a lot of fun with the games we have.  He is getting pretty good at them.

Jordon was asleep when they got there but finally woke up and started rough housing with his dad.

We ended up with Mother's Day pictures of everyone except Debbie who was working.

I was wandering around a little after Josh and the boys left and took this picture of our bachelor buttons.  They are doing great without any care from us.

5-15-2023

Vera got a call today from Joanne one of the ladies in her bible study.  Her husband Larry had caught a salmon this morning and they wanted to give some to us.  This is after Vera baked it and it was delicious!  We had a nice visit with them and we got to show them the shop and my planes.

5-16-2023

Because one of the medicines the Mohs clinic has me taking reacts with another one I take I had to get a blood test today.  After going to Kaiser for that we stopped at Safeway for a few things.  I was surprised how tired I got walking around there for a few minutes.  On the way home we found out the road around Rocky Point was now open and this is a picture of the new bridge they had installed.

5-17-2023

Vera mentioned before leaving for bible study that there was no hot water this morning.  It is not a good sign when there is rusty water leaking out the heater access panel.  I took this picture and started researching replacements.  It is located in a bedroom closet at the far end of the closet and I had to force the last one through the opening.  I said at that time the next time it need changing I would cut a hole in the wall so I started planning that.  I discovered the PUD has a rebate plan for Hybrid Heat Pump Water Heaters that covers about half of the cost.  After checking prices on good quality electric heaters I discovered that my cost would only be a couple of hundred more, so I got one ordered.  I started opening the wall up over the weekend so I will start a new post of when it was delivered on Monday.

Mohs Surgery

 

The flowers in this pot still look pretty good after we saw two deer eating from it on our security cameras.

I had Mohs surgery scheduled at the Portland Interstate Kaiser this morning.  They got all the cancer cells the first try but then I had to have some reconstructive surgery done.  It ended up lasting four hours.  Now I have to have the protection over the skin graft on for six days before I can get it removed.  Then I have to take it easy for several weeks.

They have a nice waiting area set up, Vera had made us a lunch since they don't have a cafeteria like they did five years ago when I had my last Mohs surgery. 

This is the skylight above where we were sitting.  Traffic wasn't bad coming down or going home, but I5 is sure rough in some areas around Vancouver.

Trailer Teardown

 

Today I decided to start tearing down the trailer so I could put a new floor in it.  

Some of the bolts holding the sideboards to the frame had been in there a long time and it took me quite awhile to get them out.

Once I got all the bolts out I moved the Caravan and Smart Car out of the carport.  Then I pulled the trailer through it and slid the whole assembly out.  The Smart Car fit nicely between the sideboards.

This is how the trailer looks now.  The next step will be getting the plywood floor loose from the frame and replace it with pressure treated plywood.

Nice Weather

 

Monday I had to get a blood test at Kaiser.  We came over to the Kelso Safeway afterwards to get a few things.  Of course we ended up filling the cart clear up.  After we loaded the car, I noticed this unusual looking house on the hill to the Northwest.  It looks like a pretty good sized home.

Tuesday I changed the oil and filter on the motor home.  Today I washed half of it in the morning before the sun got on the right side.

Then I mowed the lawn.  Mowing the lawn sure gives you a feeling of accomplishment when you get done and look at it.  After dinner I went out and finished washing the motor home with Vera's help.  She had vacuumed it while I was mowing.  UPS brought me a new variable speed temperature controller for the storage container today so I got that installed after we finished washing the motor home.  Before calling it a day I got a nice flight on the new Stearman biplane. 

Mothers Day gift and Flowers

James brought and hung up a hanging basket that is Vera's Mothers Day present from them.

I hope it grows like last years did, it got below the table top under it.  It also lasted until the freezing weather got really bad.  We had a nice visit with James, he was telling us about a movie they watched about the Mt St Helens eruption.  Then we told him about our experiences that day and when we finally got ash.

After James left I walked around taking pictures of our flowers that are in bloom.  We have a great crop of Bleeding Hearts this year.

Bleeding Hearts are sure cool looking when you get up close.

Our Rhododendrons are just starting to bloom.  I have noticed the ones in Castle Rock and Longview are in full bloom, 300 feet in elevation sure seems to make a big difference.