Little Axle, Healing Chairs, and Renovations

At the end of my previous blog posting at the end of June,  I mentioned our hopes to finish our exterior siding, and then perhaps move on to some bathroom renovations at the cabin during the summer.  I must admit that at the time I wrote that, I didn't really think it would all happen, and that we would be lucky to get the siding done!  

At the end of June, Rob was also furtively spending a lot of time in his workshop just prior to my birthday, and even went so far as to post a sign on the workshop door that read "No Stinky Girls Allowed!" Nice.  So I knew he was trying to build something as a gift for me as well. 

But then, the wind surely got knocked out of our sails, when our sweet little cat Axle had a seizure for the second time.  Our vet had already prepared us for what this meant, and at the age of 20 with advanced kidney disease we knew that the number of days he would be with us were diminishing.  Always full of surprises though, after laying limp in our arms for a couple of hours and being unresponsive for most of the evening, he greeted us the next morning with a series of loud meows, and was more than ready for his usual breakfast.  We assumed that he wasn't quite himself though, so booked him in for another vet assessment.  Just minutes before we left for his appointment, with doubts in our minds and the hope that he would be with us forever, he had another seizure, and we knew it would be his last.  With thanks to our sweet vet who helped us through the difficult decision, we sadly had to say goodbye.  We returned home to the emptiest of houses.  Rob and I were almost unable to think of a time when our lives have not been filled with the presence of amazing cats and dogs.

Axle came to us by traveling underneath a farm pick up truck when he was just a small kitten.  He hung on underneath the truck for several kilometers before he dropped out in front of our fiery food store and took off like a shot.  Rob set up a live trap and managed to capture him after a short while.  We took him to our vet for a check up and were surprised to learn he had burned his little paws during his truck ride.  Axle seemed like a perfect name for him after his truck riding ordeal. He joined our three other cats and gentle giant dog and settled in to his new life in no time. 

Axle was a little peace maker, always wedging his way in between the other cats when there was an altercation, head lowered and ready to snuggle up with which ever cat most needed it.

For 10 years he allowed me to easily administer twice daily insulin injections for his diabetes, before he simply stopped being diabetic.  He surprisingly outlived our other three cats, and our German Shepherd. Despite a few rather dire prognoses in the last few years, he rallied and enjoyed his life, especially those days when he could sleep in the sunniest spots in the house. 

He developed a love for a lick of butter, a touch of yogurt, and the occasional small bite of cheese.  He was seldom far from the dining table when we ate! 

Each June the vet would ask for a photo of Axle on his birthday and we always sent a pic along to them. I think we were all amazed when he made it to the age of 20.

After Axle passed, I decided to paint one of our chairs as a tribute to him and his "siblings", Leon, Sita and GB. I call it the Cat Tribute Chair, and as I painted it and stamped words and stories on it about them all, it brought back lots of sweet memories.  

When he was a kitten I made up a little song for him and over time I added a few more lines, but the basic song went like this:

"I rode in under a pickup truck, you know I burned my paws, I was down on my luck.

I dropped out at the liquor store, ran across the street couldn't take no more.

Chilly Chiles heard there was a kitten about, so they set up a trap and they waited me out.

I got hungry so I jumped in and a whole new life was about to begin." 

So I stamped his song on the chair as well.

I think it was a good way to help process my grief, and I can't help but smile when I see the chair now each day.  I was reluctant at first to recover the cushions, as I wanted to hold on to the deeply cat scratched fabric forever, but I was also working on three more chairs. Eventually they all got stamped, and painted and it was obvious that the cushions needed to be reupholstered.

My original plan was to set up on the screened in porch of the cabin, where I could spread out my paints, brushes and stamps, and quietly work on the chairs while enjoying the views of the forest, and the river outside. Rob was just finishing up on the siding, and I was content to use the time to think about what I wanted to do, and how to go about it.

The siding job was progressing quickly and in no time the back and side of the workshop was completed.

The porch area of the shop is still unfinished as we ran out of wood siding, and will have to decide if we can buy more, or whether to choose something like metal siding for this area.  We stack firewood here in the fall and winter, so we just aren't sure what would work the best. We will have to do some thinking about this over the upcoming winter.  Rob trimmed all the bottom edges of the newly installed siding, and the ones that needed doing around the house, and it was an amazing feeling to be able to suddenly say "Done".  

No sooner did Rob finish the siding (with almost no fanfare or celebration!) than he showed up at the cabin and began to work on the cabin bathroom renovation.  As he pulled out the old tub, sink, vanity and drywall and began to fill the porch with building materials, I fled back home to the quiet of my studio there. This turned out to be a wise choice! After years of surviving "building" we were about to be reminded about what it is like to be "renovating".  And in a rather small space.

The bathroom in the cabin had a tub, but no shower, and for years we had talked about removing the drywall, installing proper waterproofing and tiling the walls around the tub and getting a shower head installed.  In fact at one time there was a shower head, and on occasion people visiting Rob's Mom had been known to simply step in the tub and use "the shower" not noticing that there was water flowing everywhere, so we had removed the head.  After much discussion, and even polling a few friends on their opinion as to whether they would prefer a tub or shower in a bathroom, we decided to remove the tub altogether, and install the roomiest shower stall that we could, given the small space, and angled low ceilings.  I think this is the last photo I took of the existing bathroom before we started to work on it.

As much as we loved the octagonal window, we both agreed that it had to go.  To open and close it, the screen had to be removed every time, and it was slowly degrading.  As well, the shower was designed to go in this space, so a more waterproof window was required. The tape across the window in the pic above shows roughly where the new window would go.

It was a pretty little bathroom, but there were a few things that were meant to be "temporary" some 30 years ago when we first built it.  That vanity was one of them! Rob's Mom had tucked a little white wicker shelf under the sink to hold some bathroom items. And there they remained all this time.  Rob began the job of dismantling the bathroom and suddenly it looked even smaller than before.

The first job was to put in a new window.  We actually found one on at a discount window and door location, and drove east of Ottawa to pick it up, hoping it would work as planned.

After finishing the siding at the new house, I was sure that Rob was done with having to use scaffolding, but I was wrong!

As with all of our projects, we spent lots of time researching techniques, materials, and methods of installation.  I am sure we wore out our welcome at our favourite tile shop, looking for appropriate tiles, flooring etc.  We had to make a trip to Ottawa for some specialty shower products, and ordered some online.  We tried to buy anything we could on sale, and made use of any materials we had on hand to keep costs down. We even had a light fixture tucked away that we were able to use.  Luckily too, we know an excellent tile installer !  There was a bit of a learning curve for a few items like the shower pan though.

I would love to say it all went smoothly.  But I think we ordered four different shower taps as the first three were defective.  One sink arrived damaged, and we ordered the wrong size toilet seat.  (Who knew?) We picked two different floors and discovered neither were appropriate for a "three season" house.  As we close the cabin down every winter, the temperature drops inside to the same temperature as outside and all the floors we chose had specific temperature ratings.  Oddly enough the one that would work ended up being the very first one that we saw and liked, but we had dismissed it thinking that the colour wasn't right!

We had to have the glass shower doors delivered as we were no longer driving long distances in our truck.  To our surprise, the delivery driver left it on our hill, leaning against a tree.  

Luckily, despite the broken box, it seemed none the worse for wear. We managed to wrangle it home, (the glass doors were super heavy!) and the next time a friend dropped by, we coerced him into helping us move them up into the upstairs of the cabin.  Then Rob had to figure out a way to complete the install, as I wasn't much help.  Luckily he was able to use a jig to hold them in place while he drilled holes in the tile and anchored them firmly in place.  (I closed my eyes during this part!)

As Rob had some drywalling to do in the bathroom, we somehow convinced ourselves that this was also a perfect time to finish all the unfinished drywall in the cabin, and to repaint the large bedroom as I had stripped off the wallpaper borders there the previous fall. We had gallons of leftover paint from our house, so could use them up there.  We had friends arriving from Germany in October, but figured we had loads of time ! 

So we finished the downstairs closet.

Fixed up the areas around the woodstove and repainted.

Fixed up all the unfinished areas in the upstairs hallway and painted.

Emptied out the large bedroom..

And primed and painted.

And soon realized that due to delays in replacement taps, sinks etc., we were slowly running out of time to complete the bathroom!

But, we managed to get it pretty much done. 

The vanity still has some work to be finished, and the taps will be swapped out in the spring, but it all worked out pretty much the way we hoped it would, and more importantly was ready just in time for our friends arrival.  We cleaned (and cleaned!) as drywall dust does seem to settle everywhere, and then put everything back in place in the large bedroom.

We had been picking up some nice artwork and light fixtures etc. from our local online auction house so we managed to hang artwork, and install a couple of lights.  I had also found a couple of good solid chairs for the dining room, and somehow Rob found time to paint them!  And he even put in a few baseboards.  

For the first time, I also framed some of my photographs to hang here and there in the cabin.  I kept it simple for my first attempt with inexpensive photo processing and frames, just to see how they would all look, and overall I was pleased with them.

We didn't quite manage to repaint the smaller bedroom in the cabin, and we still have lots of other jobs in mind for next year, (and probably years to come)  but we were pretty happy with our efforts, and finished up with just hours to spare.

I  had also just finished the four chairs I was working on, and was busy putting a clear protective finish on before starting to recover the cushions.  After fighting with a manual stapler, and watching numerous Youtube videos for upholstery tips, and getting completely frustrated with my attempts, Rob wisely bought a pneumatic stapler, and took over and did the re-upholstery job. Thanks Rob!

I was so pleased with the chairs. As always there is a learning curve.  The first clear coat we tested made some of the inks that I used run, so we had to switch to a different base.  That one gave the vanilla coloured paint a slightly more yellow tinge, but in the end I was fine with that, so we went for it.

Along with the "Cat Tribute" chair I did a  "Delish" chair where I stamped the names of many of our favourite restaurants over the years, named some of our best loved recipes and our fondest food memories.

I did one called "Conversations" which has LOTS of letters stamped on, and words here and there.  That one was really fun, although each letter is stamped individually so it took some time! 

And the final chair was the "Dreaming Chair".  Over the years I have written down some of my special dreams, so now they are stamped on this chair. We have two more chairs to be done, but Rob wants to paint them, and I can't wait to see what he comes up with!

And so, by mid October, with the cabin newly renovated, cleaned up and the fridge stocked with a few basic necessities, off we went to the airport to finally meet up in person with our friends from Germany.

And that wonderful story will be in my next posting.

Two Words

Two words - Snow Pants. As a child I hated them. Getting them off and on was a horrible chore, they were ugly and bulky, and I couldn't wait until I was deemed old enough to go out in the winter without them on. I had to wear them to school, and when I was outside playing. They made a loud swish, swish noise when you awkwardly walked with them on, and there was no mistaking that you were still a little kid because your Mom made you wear your snow pants.
 
So it's kind of funny, all these years later, to find myself in a country hardware store gushing over snow pants. And coming home with a pair. And loving them. Yup, they are still ugly and bulky, they still make that swish, swish noise when you walk with them on. But I am outside with Jet three times a day, and out walking and taking photos every day. I have discovered the use of snow pants that keep me warm and dry and block the wind, and allow me to stay outside longer. I probably won't wear them when I go "into town" shopping, but they are incredibly useful here.

If I thought last week's freezing rain made for icy conditions, it was nothing compared to the freezing rain we have had these last two days. The driveway and roadway in to the property are a solid sheet of ice this afternoon. We were able to get Jet out for some play time by stomping around in the clearing at the side of the house, and then tossing his wubba into the woods for him to chase after. Rob and I just took a walk up the road and the main road is actually quite wet, but the roads here are extremely icy. For some reason the treads on Rob's boots clung nicely to the ice, but I had to walk more carefully at the edges where I could punch through to the snow below.  Last week I could at least walk up the center of the road.

We made a quick trip out yesterday morning just before the freezing rain hit, and picked up a few supplies like bread and eggs, and our fridge is pretty well stocked so we are content to stay in the cabin today. There is snow in the forecast tomorrow and we are hoping it will be mild enough that it sticks to the ice, and corrects that icy base. I guess we will see what we get.

It's been a productive week here as we continue to work on getting a few things off of our to-do list. A wood splitter that attaches to the tractor made quick work of our firewood. The light that Rob installed outside the cabin earlier in the fall allowed him to do most of it even after the sun set.  Our wood is all neatly stacked outside (no thanks to me) but we do need to order more, and it needs to be drier when it arrives.

Rob installed a stove vent hood in the kitchen this week, and we are both quite surprised at how much the additional light changes the appearance of the kitchen. It would seem that I have been cooking practically in the dark all this time! I think having a fan above the stove is really going to help too.

Cutting through one of the logs and the chinking in between, to install the vent, was a bit of a chore. Kudos to Jet for being relaxed throughout as usually he reacts to the sound of Rob's drill. He pretty much slept through most of the drilling!

Here, we discuss whether it's a possible opening for Santa Claus.

This recent change in the cabin has us both talking a lot about lighting, and it's importance in the new house. As we are (ahem) aging, I find we require more light as well, so this will be an important consideration. Of course, if we are off grid we will also be thinking about how to do have lots of light without using up all of our solar resources.

In fact I would say that living in the cabin gives us both a great deal more cause for house design discussion. As we struggle with some issues of size or storage, or entrance ways, or door sills that leak, being here in all the seasons for the first time has forced us to think about the effect of our choices year round. We talk a lot about the things we worked out over the years at the dome. The things we liked or disliked. The things that worked, and the things that needed improvement. There are design aspects from both houses that we think we may like to use again in the new house. (Windows that open and close easily comes to mind. I love the windows here. And a heat lamp in the bathroom!) And of course in both cases there are probably things we would not do again, so won't repeat those mistakes in the new design. (Soft pine floors are gorgeous, but get damaged too easily by furniture, and pet claws, and neither house had an easy solution to our volume of wet winter boots, coats, mitts, hats, scarves etc.) We need to start a list of all the things we have been discussing so that we don't forget about them later on.

With only one week to go before Christmas, we are both amazed to find ourselves curled up at night, listening to Christmas CD's and calmly discussing possible dishes for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. In our retail business we would have been working impossibly long days, and although I always enjoyed helping our customers to choose special Christmas gifts for loved ones, the season was always a bit of a blur for us. Last weekend on a whim we drove out to check out a local auction, and when we decided there was nothing there for us, went off to Arnprior where we had been told there was a delightful bookstore and coffee shop attached. The bookstore was indeed very lovely, and we soon had found a book for each other so our Christmas shopping was complete! We enjoyed a delicious coffee and slice of cake and I think we were both grinning as we commented that with only two Saturdays left until Christmas, we were out together and simply enjoying the day.
This is definitely one of our favourite Christmas Cd's right now.

Today Rob is working upstairs, where he is boxing in the stove pipe that runs through one of the rooms, as a new requirement for the stove inspection we had. It will provide us with a closet space at the same time, so although it is a finicky job, it will be worth it in the end. We will probably install some vents in the new walls as well though, so that some of that nice radiant heat from the stove pipe will continue to help to warm up the room.  Working in the cabin, space is pretty tight, so Rob is forced to use every nook and cranny while he puts things together.

In the spirit of being more frugal, I cooked up a small turkey this week after finding one that was much less expensive than a much smaller chicken. Made a huge and delicious stock, and then made a enormous amount of turkey and vegetable soup. I followed a recipe by Susanna Trilling who runs a cooking school in Oaxaca, Mexico for the turkey roasting and it came out really well. Our little freezer above the fridge is now well stocked with the Red Chile Posole I made last week and the Turkey Soup from this week. I really cannot get used to having so much time to cook, but I am truly enjoying it. 

With only 1 week left until Christmas, we are hoping to finish up a few more things around the house, and then if the weather cooperates we may make a quick run into Ottawa for a few special Christmas goodies. But if we don't get there due to the weather, it doesn't really matter. We can make do with what we have.  In the meantime some shortbread showed up in the mail this week! Delicious.