It's Another Wet One

It wasn't raining when I got up this morning, which was exciting in itself. And it didn't start to rain again until about 2pm, just as I started bringing my dry clothes home from the laundry room. I do not have a laundry room in this cabin. I trek through the woods, around a few bends, and down in the bowels of the former bed and breakfast building is a laundry room. I had only been told it was down under, but no specific directions. I opened a few doors, and found nothing, so went to my new friend Ken's door, but there was no answer. The only snow in sight is at the foot of his steps, so either he's dead in there, hermiting, or he is away. So then I knocked on Leo's door and he was happy to tell me where the laundry room was, and then jumped into his boots and followed me down to make sure I found it. There are two washers and dryers, kind of. The new front load washer is broken as the drum belt snapped and no one has fixed it. The new dryer works very well, and I noticed a small apartment sized dryer on the floor, but wasn't sure if it was even plugged in, so didn't bother. I could only wash one load at a time anyhow, in the older but working well washer.

Once I finished the laundry I set about making a fire and it was much easier with some drier kindling. The wood I bought is very good quality as far as cut goes, but is about 6 months from seasoned well enough for good burning, so there is some effort involved. Once it is burning, it does burn hot and long. It's Douglas fir, and splits like a dream for making kindling. I chopped up a bunch in the rain the other day and have been drying it inside here, so it makes a much better fire now. I packed all the wood up against the fence and wall by the door, with some of it under the eaves keeping somewhat dry. There isn't usually much wind with the rains most of the time. I bring in some wood and dry it by the stove for burning later too. Not all of it is damp, but the bulk of it is. I've even had sap seep out when I was chopping some of it up for kindling. Hardly dry. I would have given those boys a piece of my mind if I'd noticed at the time. It is pretty damned heavy too, being so wet, so I borrowed the landlord's wheelbarrow and hauled it to the back that way.

The rain is pouring still on my tin roof. The ceilings are high here with the loft so it isn't right over my head. I have Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers on anyhow, so the rain is the background. When I am up in the sleeping loft, however, the ceiling is just a few feet above my head, and the window is literally right beside my head, so I hear it well enough up there. There's no real wind or thunderstorms so the steady rain is pretty soothing and I haven't had much trouble sleeping through it.

My head has been otherwise occupied with Australia. Between my interview prep, research, and chatting with a friend who is also interviewing for Oz, I've been pretty absorbed by the culture of it all. I'm sure I'm already boring my daughter all to hell who has heard me drone on about Australia in every phonecall. My friend and I are both jazzed about the potential opportunity to work abroad, so have no problem talking about it several times a week. She is trying hard to picture herself there right now, as she freezes in the Yukon where the current temps are below -40C for the past week, plus the windchill. Brrrrrr....I do not miss that about the north at all.

I'm hoping to find somewhere to hike tomorrow, rain or shine, If I wait until the rain stops to do anything I'd still be in bed. I'll just dress for it and take an umbrella. With the temperatures here hovering at about 9C, the rain is warm, and I got me rubber boots, 'by.

Now it's back to Stephen King scary movie night...awesome with the rain on the roof, the black night just outside the floor to ceiling glass in front of me. If only we got thunderstorms here...but then I would have to worry about losing the power and then I couldn't watch Stephen King movies. Boooo!