Chapter 77...Moving Trees & Battery Gas Vent

Off Grid...Chapter 77 7-2 We finally got our new battery vent. Mike took it out of the box and figured out what needs to be done. But before we can do that job we have to go over to the other property to mow. On our way we stopped at our dirt pile to fill some 5 gallon buckets with dirt. We have some extra trees at our other property that we planted 2 years ago. We will bring some back and plant some in our backyard. Hopefully they will survive. When we got to the other property we saw that the back field was hayed. It was a rough year for the farmers this year. We have had so much rain which made it really hard to get the fields hayed. I also got another surprise when I started to weed eat. Our next door neighbor did the weed eating on his side of the fence. Woo hoo. Just one section that I don't have to do this week. After Mike and I finished mowing and weed eating we picked out a few trees to dig up and take home. We started a small nursery on this property with very small trees for future transplants. Mike is digging one out. We picked out 2 more trees and dug them out. Then we filled in the holes with the dirt we brought from home. Our first 3 trees are loaded on the trailer. We get back home and unload the mower and the weed eater. Then we pick an area to plant the trees. Mike starts digging a hole for the first tree. After the 3 trees are planted Mike stakes the trees to protect them from the wind. Then he waters them. Now we have to try and keep them healthy until they establish. Hopefully they will make it. Our first 3 trees are in. Later on we got a call form our neighbor Albert. He said as much as he and his wife want our other property they can't buy it right now. They have to sell their land first. Oh well- back to the drawing board. 7-3 Wow, it's really cold out this morning. Don't get me wrong because i am not complaining, lol. I hate the heat. Niki and i went up to check the garden and I picked my first two squash. Woo hoo. I think it is so cool to be picking my own veggies. Now that Albert isn't buying our pother property we have to start advertising. We made up some flyer's and now we have to go over there to move the signs around. We take the trailer and a ladder and head to the other property. On our way we stop and fill up a few more buckets of dirt. We might as well get a few more trees while we are there. Mike getting dirt. We get to the other place and go around to the back. We put the ladder against the tree and Mike and I take down the big For Sale sign. Then we bring it up to the front of the property. Here I am banging a t-post in to hang the sign on. We hang the sign, install a box up front and put the flyer's in the box. Then Mike takes the backpack sprayer and starts spraying the weeds on the driveway. While he is doing that I go over and dig out 3 more trees and fill in the holes. Then I load them onto the trailer and wait for mike to finish. When we get home we plant the new trees and Mike fertilizers the new grass to give our lawn a boost. 7-4 All I can say about today is Ugg!! It's just one of those days. I think all of our problems from June are catching up to us. Mike is working on our new battery vent. First he installs a PVC elbow and pipe into the battery box. Then he puts the battery vent with the fan on top of the pipe. Next he has to hook up the wires to make sure it works. The fan is supposed too automatically turn on when the batteries are gassing. He hooks it up to the inverter first but since we don't use the "mate" on our system it doesn't work. He had to reprogram some things to get it to work. Next he hooks the wires to the charge controller and tries the fan. Ah success. The fan is working. Then Mike goes outside while I hold a coffee can up to the roof so he can drill a hole. I catch all of the metal filings while Mike files the edges of the hole. Here is the hole for the new pipe. Next Mike has to add a piece of PVC pipe to vent the gases outside. Here he is measuring for the pipe. Finally our new battery gas vent is in and things are safer. After that Mike goes outside and climbs up top to put the cover on and seal it. Just one more thing off the list, lol. 7-5 It's a dreary rainy day. Mike noticed that our tailer for the mower which is made for our mower is staring to bend and basically fall apart. It doesn't look like the company used strong enough metal. Mike called Tractor Supply and told the manager we just bought this trailer this spring and use it about once a week. There is no way it should be falling apart. He told us to bring it in so he could look at it. Well it's a rainy day so we take the ride down the mountain to Tractor Supply. The manager comes out to look at it and he tells Mike "this shouldn't happen". Ya think. He can't do anything about it know until he checks with the higher ups. Yeah right. That means they won't do anything. So everyone don't buy a zero turn trailer from Tractor Supply because even though they are supposed to be made for zero turns they aren't strong enough. Mike and I will just put braces under the gate when he rides the mower on and off. This way the trailer shouldn't break. That's all for this part of our story. All I can say is Thank God June is over. It was a terrible month for us. It seemed like everything went wrong. First the motor home fiasco, the flat tire on the Jeep, the computer broke, the Internet satellite stopped working, our generator didn't start, we had a water leak, our water pump didn't work when we tried to drain the water tank, our charge controller didn't work so we had to send it back, the starter on the mower died, our land deal fell through, and now the trailer is bent. Sometimes life just throws curve balls and you just have to keep on going. We got through all of the obstacles in our way but i really hope July is a little better because we could really use a break, lol. I hope you all enjoyed the update. Lisa

Chapter 65...Patio and Front Yard

Off Grid...Chapter 65 Hello everyone. I have to split some of these chapters up because Mike and I have been doing a lot of different things. Tonight I am starting off where we left off last week. The concrete crew is gone. Woo hoo. Thursday 5-28 This morning we woke up in the motorhome at 6:00am. We sneaked back down to the house to have our coffee. After yesterday's ordeal with the concrete crew and the stress of the last week we are really dragging today. We did a couple of small jobs today and that was all we could handle. Mike took the plastic off of the patio so it could cure. After that we ran back and forth from the house to the motorhome and settled back into the house. Friday 5-29 Jim showed up this morning to take off the form boards and also take out the wood stakes. The form boards are off. Yeah, everyone is gone. Mike and I are back to the way we like it. Just the two of us and peace and tranquility in the Mike and Lisa world. Our life is so much less stressful, actually there is no stress, when it is just Mike and I. We have to start the grading so we can put our front yard back together again. We are done with any contractors and heavy equipment in the front yard. Yeah, now we will have a clean front yard, as soon as the grass grows in, lol. After that we have to re install the downspouts on the gutter so we don't end up with a huge mud mess in the yard. This is the mess that was left behind. Mike starts working on the downspout first. He re hooks it to the gutter and then we bolt it to the house. Next we have to re attach the downspout to the drain pipe that goes away from the house. There is also a tee that connects the drainage pipe that runs around the house and out the front. When Mike tries to connect it to the pipe they put into the concrete wall it doesn't fit. Uh, oh! It's off to David's to see if he has a connector. Thankfully he has what we need and we can finish this job. After that is done we bring up some boards to make a temporary walkway. This way we won't drag too much mud into the house. Mie works on the downspouts next. Now any water that drains toward the back of the house will run through the drain pipe or end up in our gutters and through our drain pipe in the front yard. Saturday 5-30 Today Mike promised to take me to the new Farmer's Market and to the local flea market. It's nice to get out once in awhile. We rarely do anything that isn't work related. Wow I feel human today. We are both showered and dressed in "non" work clothes, lol. Even if it's only for a couple of hours it still feels nice. The Farmer's Market didn't have many vendors but it was their first day. There was a vendor there from a local farm. I spoke with the woman for a little while and I found out they also have U-Pick fruits and vegetables at their farm. Cool I can't wait. Now I have a local place to pick strawberries and blueberries. Ok "dress up" is over. We are back home and it's time to work. First we have breakfast and we change back into our work clothes. Oh well it was fun while it lasted, lol. We have a lot of dirt that has to be brought down and filled up to the patio. Mike brings down about 15 tractor buckets full of dirt. Uh oh. Mike is getting a little optimistic. He brought down half of our new trees. We are trying "Emerald Green Arborvitae" Now that we have enough enough dirt, hopefully, we can start the hand grading. We start on the left side of the house so that we can work our way out to the driveway. First we have to dig the drainage ditch a little farther and add a connecting pipe to it so it drains farther from the house. Then we have to grade the yard, rake it, and pick up any of the rocks and debris. Last we will seed and straw it. Mike and I love doing this kind of work. It's the best because you actually get to see some accomplishment by the end of the day. Here I am do some grading while the "princess" poses, lol. We get finished with the first side and Mike says "let's plant the trees." How can I resist, lol? Planting the first batch of trees. Next we fill in the dirt up to the patio. As we work and complete the raking on each section Mike goes back and seeds it. Then I put the straw down. We do this until we get to the right side of the house by the driveway. Now we have to dig out and add the extension to the drainage pipe on this side. Then we cover it up. We rake, seed, and put out straw up to the new wall. Then we plant 4 more trees. Here is the front of the house. It is going to be so nice when all the grass grows in. The whole front yard is raked, seeded, and strawed. We had a very full day today. I thought this job including planting the trees would have taken us 2 days to complete. Wow I am so excited to get rid of the mud around the house. This is what we accomplished today. Sunday 5-31 Well it seems like we overdid it yesterday. Our minds say "go go go" but the next day our bodies say "what have you done to me, lol". It's rough getting older. On the bright side it is raining out so it is a really good thing we kicked butt yesterday. If we didn't push yesterday we would have a big muddy mess out front. Monday 6-1 Wow it's June 1st. It's hard to believe. The time seems to be going by so fast but Mike keeps reminding me that we didn't even start working on the house this time last year. We built the house and Mike completed our solar system and we moved in by October. When you look at it that way we have plenty of time to get things done. Did you ever have one of those days where nothing goes as planned? Well that was our day today. We loaded up the trailer to go over to the other property to mow. On our way over we ran into a problem that we had to take care of and it changed the whole day. Then we saw our old neighbor next to us at a red light. She started saying out her window "did the Sheriff call you?" Oh that is never good. The light turned green before we could find out what happened. So we drove to the Sheriff's department to find out. There was a motorcycles accident in front of our property and they ran into our barbed wire fence. Ouch. Anyway there was a report because there was some property damage. So now Mike and I head over to the property to check it out. The fence is a little twisted but nothing that can't be easily fixed. After hitting the barbed wire I bet that driver learned his lesson about going too fast on that curve. I'm sure he will be much more careful next time. Finally Mike and I get back home and he decides to repaint the roof on the gray building. This week we are going to try and move our solar system. The panels are going on top of the gray building and Mike wants to make sure it is perfect. Mike painting the top of the gray building. He is finished with that roof. After he finishes the gray building he has a little of the roof coating left so he uses that on top of the green building. Well I guess today worked out for a reason. It ended up being very hot out. Mowing and weed eating in that kind of heat would have been brutal. Now it is early evening and we decide to try it again. We load up the trailer and off to mow. The ground over here is saturated. There has been so much rain this year. When we get there I check on all the nests. The Geese and their eggs are gone from the island and there is one broken egg. Then I go and check on the Killdeer and their eggs. Gone they are all gone. That usually means something got them. I hope it wasn't the dog next door. We now have ducks all over. Their is one family with their babies but I didn't have the camera when I saw them. Here are 2 ducks by the pond. Time to work. While I am weed eating I look up and see Mike talking with our other neighbor. He and his wife are interested in buying our front piece of property with the pond. It looks like it might be possible that we sell both of our properties this month. Very cool. No more mowing, lol. Does anyone need a zero turn mower, lol? I finished up first so Mike and I swapped. He needs to spray the weeds on the driveway. Here I am mowing away. Tuesday 6-2 Jim showed up to grind the rough patches of concrete. To be continued.....in the next installment. I am stopping here because the next part of our story is about moving and redoing our solar system. Mike thinks he has perfected it. I hope you all enjoyed another glimpse into the Mike and Lisa world. Lisa

Chapter 60...Rain and More Rain...But The Culvert Workd

Off Grid...Chapter 60 It has been a really rough week for work because we have gotten so much rain. At times I felt like we were going to float away. Monday- The start of our week and it is cloudy and drizzling. I have an appointment with the Dentist and I also have to take take Niki to get her groomed. I can't clip her nails myself because she was traumatized by a vet years ago. We both finish in record time and head home because I know Mike misses us, at least me, lol. Mike changed his mind about the culvert we put in the ditch last week. He's not sure if that will be the best place to use it. OK, so it's time to move the culvert. We go down with the tractor and chain. First Mike and I pull the culvert back out of the ditch. Then we attach one end of the chain to it and the other end of the chain to the tractor. Here is Mike bringing the culvert up top to store it. It is supposed to rain more but Mike says we haven't gotten enough done so he wants to make 2 more concrete piers. Mike is mixing the concrete. Then we shovel it into the forms and add the rebar. Next we have to cover them with a tarp. It is supposed to rain more and we need to keep them protected. Tuesday- It looks "iffy" out and it rained all night. Later on the sun starts to poke out so we decide to make a run for it and go over to the other property to mow. We are still playing catch up over there so we have to get over there any chance we can. Here is the trailer all loaded. We get to the other property and unload. I start weed eating and Mike starts mowing. Within 20 minutes the sky opens up and we get soaking wet. Time to load up and go home. On our way up to the top we stop to check the culvert. Here is the water running down our mountain and into our ditch. The water continues through the top of the culvert. And out the other side. Everything looks good and the culvert is clear. Woo hoo. Wednesday it poured all day and we got nothing done. Thursday- Today it is just drizzling and then it clears up. Off we go again to try and mow. This time we get there and it is already raining so we just turn around and come home. In case you all are wondering if we listen to the weather forecast we do. I check 3 different forecasts each day. Usually they are all wrong. Apparently they can't forecast the weather accurately in the mountains. Friday- Again it rained all night but this morning I see sun. Woo hoo. We got a call from Jeep and our Hard Top is in. We take the wide trailer to town and pick it up. As soon as we get home Mike starts working on getting the canvas top off the Jeep while I clean the rails. Next I help Mike get the Hard Top off the trailer and we put it on the Jeep. Mike bolts it down. It's a perfect fit and color. Hopefully this will solve the noise issues. Saturday- We have some sun. Yay. Mike went out outside while I opened up the doors and cleaned. Mike got done outside just before it started to rain. Again. This has been the craziest weather this year. Maybe it's a good thing that I haven't done my garden yet. I think if I had planted anything it would have all rotted by now. Sunday- Yay. It's not raining and it looks beautiful out. Mike and I have to go to town. On our way we stop at Nicole's to drop off a few bags of clothes. Her husband does the local yard sale and maybe he can sell this stuff. Then we head to Lowe's to pick up a grinder, concrete and rust restorer. Mike also takes me to look at pressure cookers for canning but we didn't find any. Maybe it's too early. We get everything that we need and head home to work. On our way home Mike suggests we try mowing again. Oh I am so thrilled, not. We get home, unload the car, hook up the trailer, and re load. Off we go. This time we actually get some work done. Four hours later and I got all the weed eating done and Mike got most of the lawn cut down to the right level. Woo hoo. Now maybe we can start on regular maintenance. On our way out the gate we run into the young man who is interested in buying the property. He came back with a shovel to dig some holes to see how the land perks for a septic system. We walked with him and found out his wife had a baby girl yesterday. After spending time with him we all head home. Mike and I have a late dinner and while I upload the pictures for our story Mike goes up to play with his new toys. We had to buy an electric grinder because the one we had was just burning up the batteries. First Mike has to sand/grind all the loose pieces off the building. Any dents he has to pound out then filled and any rust spots he will grind down and spray with rust restorer before painting. He says it's just like his younger days when he did body work. Mike working on the building. What a mess. Well that was our week in the Mike and Lisa world. I hope you all enjoyed. Mike and I are really ready to break out and do some real work. Now if we could just get the weather to cooperate. Have a great week and I will write again next week. Lisa