Spring and Dunrovin’ Milestones

My wife attacks Reed Lake in her new Kayak.  No new records were broken, but she did manage to remain upright for her maiden voyage around the lake.  She was joined by her good friend Marilyn, who has traversed this lake for about 5 yrs. and is an expert kanoest.

While Jole was rowing the lake, I was busy with the construction of my new shop.  After much deliberation it was decided that the shop would be built on the back of the existing garage — even though the build required it to be constructed on posts over a small drop-off.

I can only tell you that Dunrovin’ has added a jewel in the crown in the form of my new shop.  It is perched on a hill overlooking the lake and has an 180 degree view of nature that would give a naturalist goose bumps!

Honestly, I cannot claim credit for most of its construction, but I did help.  My contractor had to charge me a little extra for my assistance, but he didn’t lose his sense of humor over the process.

Jole insisted that our boat the “Knot a Yacht” be placed in the front of our house in order to enhance the home’s curb appeal.  This is the delivery truck bringing me 12 yards of gravel to creat a resting place for the boat when it is at home.  Frankly, the craft is so large this was the only flat spot on our property that allows for entry and exit.

To prove that there are fish in the lake, I entered the annual “fishing derby” and did catch 5 beautiful trout.  I am a member of the catch-and-release club, so they will live to fight another day ( all but one that died, so I ate him).

I got my little Jon boat all set up with my power bait, my rod & reel, and the troll motor.  I putted down the lake (actually electric motors just sort of purr like a cat).  After about a distance of two blocks I noticed that my friend Gary had a fire going in his fire pit and it was sort of cold and rainy.  He offered a place in front of the fire and a beer.  I spent the rest of the derby there with my bait tossed into the water at the end of his dock.  We really enjoyed the day and both did quite well.  All I got of Gary’s catch was his butt.  Just as I got ready to take a picture for posterity, all I got was his posterior.  He dropped his huge fish and shall be just a memory.  Too bad, his children would have been proud of his efforts.  The fire and the beer was wonderful and the day shall remain a fond memory for me … just not for Gary.

I mentioned milestones in this chapter’s title.  Well, we had the pleasure of hosting my brother-in-law’s 75th birthday party.  He insists that his was his first 75th birthday party, so I will take him at his word.  It is hard to tell much about the cake from this shot, but it is a heart shape with a battery-lighted model of “Superman”.  That he is.  He is probably in better shape than most of the people I know in their sixty’s!

This is the Knot a Yacht in the canvas shop.  They guy in the cap Greg)  is in the process of adding canvas and vinyl to the top and upholstery in the interior.  As I mentioned, this boat is sort of a “fixer” that will require a lot of work.  We may not even get it into the water this summer because of our upcoming trip East to visit family and friends.   We are turning this boat into a Northwestern craft.  I expect to have the boat back this next week and will show you its new look in my next chapter.

This was one of our new visitors this Spring.  He has a mate somewhere in the local forest and they visit daily to sample the suet and seeds.  I had to shoo him away last week…..he decided to test my new shop for grubs!!!  We also have  a mating pair of regular redheaded woodpeckers that decided to pick the dead cedar tree outside of our livingroom window.  There a lots of critters that call Dunrovin’ home.  I thought it was going to rain, so I started to go down to the dock and bring in my troll motor and battery.  It seems that raccoons will make daytime appearances at any time.  I make it a point not to get too close as these guys can be a bit crotchety and decide that I am not friendly.  I am trying a new version of the webb blog and it has a mind of its own.  I tried to add these two pictures of the interior of my shop, but I have no idea of how they will ultimately be viewed.  I have a rather eclectic collection of tools, many of which have been willed me by friends.  Some I have carted around the country and packed away.  I was amazed at how many tools that I really did have.  It will take a few years for me to really create the shop I envisioned.

Jole has spent may hours creating focal points in our yard.  perhaps you can see the log in the background…this was a hollowed-out log that has been a part of our backyard for many years.  Jole has planted it with a variety of perrinials and it is a work of art.  In the foreground is a round accent planting that is right in the center of our backyard between the house and the lake.   It really is a camouflaged cover for our septic system.  Yes, it’s a little like putting earrings on a pig, I suppose.  But who would know?  It’s a thing of beauty now.  In my in-basket, Jole has placed a request to add a few items to the round to add flavor.  I will reserve this for a later chapter.

That’s all for now and we will keep you posted.  There are lots of plans for the next couple of months and we are having a ball here.

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