FINALLY...A KITCHEN!! Plus, other items of possible interest.

OK!!!  I finally have a kitchen...water, range, oven, micro, and dishwasher!!!  It's like I really live in the 21st century!  All that is left in the kitchen is the new refrigerator...soon forthcoming.  Do you have any idea how good it is to have water, fire, and refrigeration?  Of course not...none of you have had to do without!  :):)

Now, just so you don't think that everything is fine, I need to let you know that after four days being stuck on the mountain following two 6 inch snowfalls in 3 days, I finally got down.  The only real problem was that I couldn't get up.  I managed to set my (4-wheel drive) car/truck sidways in the road.  I had groceries in the car and I had to make 3 trips of about half mile up and a half mile down in boots that weren't good to get the stuff out of the car and into the refrig.  At least I got some exercise.  That would have been good except the refrig died. UMM.. do you think that I should have rethought this move?  Well, too late, we're here and really do love it.  Luckily we have a backup. This winter has been challenging.  Challenges are not over.  As I write, we are expecting about 3-4 new inches of snow.  I was going to Charlotte tomorrow.  I've had a dental appointment that I have had to cancel twice already because of snow.  This could be the third.  Another issue is that if Freddie can't get up to complete the doggie compound, I could be here while planning to be in Austin.  I'm trying not to cry about that one.  Maybe God will smile on me.  I missed a visit at Christmas and am hoping to make Adam's birthday.  But, as I told one of my sisters today, this is a small problem when compared to the problems of others.

THE SIDEWAYS CAR

Hopefully, I will report to you from Charlotte and Austin.  Love to all.

Escape From Rapunzel's Tower

I have been snowed in so many times this winter that I have lost count of the number.  But..it's been often enough that my sister-in-law, Renee, has begun to refer to this place as Rapunzel's Tower.  It feels like that sometimes, too.  Maybe I can grow my hair long enough to make a zip line to get down the hill!  I did manage a brief escape last Thursday, though my intention was to leave on Wednesday.  I missed two appointments in Charlotte, but was able to make the third, and then go to Greensboro to see Mama.  The only problem was...I took the snow with me, 4/5 inches in Charlotte, and about an inch and a half in Greensboro.  Everybody but me was delighted.

I headed back to the mountain on Saturday...to only about 6 inches of new snow.  JR met me in Asheville and we rug shopped and ate lunch out, then trekked back up here not knowing if we were going to be able to get up the mountain or not.  Cullowhee Mountain Road was thick with ice and snow, but Pine Creek and Yellow Mountain were pretty much okay.  We got to our dirt road and managed that okay and came up our steep drive without too much trouble.  But it snowed again on Sunday and JR left before he got snowed in.  I'm still here!  I don't know what our accumulation was this time, but it's pretty deep and there has been little melt off since the temperatures are so cold.  I'd like all of you to come, but maybe winter isn't the time to do that! I might be able to get down tomorrow when it warms up some, or I COULD work on my taxes.

I finally have water in my kitchen, the granite is installed, and some of the appliances have been installed.  The granite installers had to be pulled up the mountain with the John Deere, and the appliance installers had to leave because of the snow in this area and South Carolina (where they live).  They may come on Friday if it doesn't snow again.  Big Green is waiting!!!  I can't wait to get all of it in so I can display a snapshot, but at least, I don't have to haul dishes to the doggie bath anymore!

The Great Weather Conspiracy

It seems that the weather is in a determined conspiracy to keep me from any plans that I may have.  In addition to being snowed in for 5 whole days ALONE, (an event chronicled in a previous post), the weather has kept me from final completion of my house, from the beach, and may keep me from getting back from Charlotte on Friday.

After the big Christmas snow, we experienced very cold temperatures, as did much of the rest of the country.  It didn't get above freezing for two weeks, but when it did and the dirt road that leads to our driveway began to thaw and refreeze, some odd phenomenon occurred.  I do not understand the physics of it, but a HUGE mud hole opened up in the road and nothing could get through it.  The best I can describe it is as a big mud swamp.  Now, what did that mean for me?  Well...I had planned to go to the beach with my bridge buddies for a whole week, and had made my plans so that things that had to be done before I could go would be done.  The wrought iron guy was coming to put up a doggie run, so Chet could be left alone for a few days.  The granite people were coming to measure for the granite, the tractor guy was going to deliver the tractor, and the plumber was coming to hook up a sink.  But none of these things could happen because there was a hole in the road.  Consequently, no beach trip for me because there was no place for the dog; no granite measurement, thus extending the time for my kitchen to get done; no sink hook-up, meaning that I still had to cart dishes down to the doggie bath to wash them.  The tractor guy did come after the road got sort of fixed (it could recur, this hole), and the granite people came last Thursday and are going to install the countertops this Thursday; but there was no trip to the beach, just like there was no trip to Austin in December.

Ah, well, we had another storm this past Friday...about 9 inches of snow with an inch of ice on top of that, but the temperature was warmer and we were able to get down the mountain on Sunday.  Did you think you would ever say that 40 degrees was warm?  Well, it is, and it means that snow melts!  Weather forecast for today was to be freezing rain, but we dodged that bullet and are only having regular rain.  Still, Friday is forecast to have a wintry mix.  I'll be in Charlotte.  Could it be possible that I'll be snowed out?  Just hang on for the next installment.  If it ever gets to be spring I'll be a happy camper...but spring comes slowly to the ridge.  I guess I'll just have to wait it out!