Literally Being Swarmed

By bugs.  It doesn't seem to matter what state I am in, what I am wearing, or whether I have showered or not.  The bugs love me.  They don't seem to particularly love Alex, this fact doesn't really endear me to him.  Everyone complains about the black flies in ME but let me tell you, the black flies are nothing compared to the mosquitos.  The mosquitos up here are blood thirsty little demons and I don't appreciate the attention that they give me. 

We left the camp spotless for the weekend and when we came back it was swarming with mosquitos.  I swear they must be breeding in there for how bad it is right now.  I can't even go pee without having trillions of bugs attacking my rear end.  I don't even want to discuss what they are currently doing to my arms and face.  It seems that I now spend more time at work scratching then actually working!  Luckily I hear that the bad mosquito season won't last forever and sooner rather than later I will be able to have a bit of peace and quiet without all of the bugs eating me...

On the plus side while we were at Alex's parents house for his birthday we picked up the drill press so that we can quickly put the seven holes that we need into the lattice frame.  Also they gave Alex money for his birthday to buy the carriage bolts that we will need to put the lattice together.  Later this week we will buy the bolts and hopefully this weekend the yurt lattice will be assembled.  We are still waiting for the fabric to arrive but once it does work will begin on that. 

Itchily,
Anna

The rain is GONE!

After 13 days of constant rain and drizzle the skies have finally cleared.  What does this mean for our life in the woods?  The clothes I washed 10 days ago on Saturday and have had drying on the clothes line are actually dry!  I was beginning to think I would need to just suck it up and bring them back to the laundromat and pay to dry them.  As for the rest of the week, well, they are predicting more rain.  But at least today will be glorious.  I sincerely contemplated calling in sick to work today and doing nothing but laying in the sun and reading.

Thursday Forecast - Rain

It is now Thursday, I woke up this morning because it was pouring outside.  What does this mean for our clean clothes?  Well they are still very wet and hanging on the clothesline.  Soon I may need to suck it up and pay to get them dried...

Alex now has cut about 97 boards for the yurt.  Getting closer to being down everyday.  My foot pedal arrived on Monday which means we need to order the fabric and get sewing...

-Anna

Rain and more rain...

Alex and I had a slightly strange weekend.  The weekend certainly seemed much longer then your average run of the mill weekends.  It all started on Thursday when we went out to get Pizza in Naples.  I had been assured by Scott that this pizza was as close as you could get to authentic NY Pizza in ME.  I will tell you that it was definitely acceptable and pretty damn close to NJ pizza.  We got a large pie and were very satisfied with the desicion. 

Friday I went to work and I assume we must have eaten something for dinner, but it couldn't have been too noteworthy because I certainly don't remember what it was...  (Recently we have had a lot of really uninteresting meals). 

Then Saturday came and Alex had promised me shopping.  Living in the middle of no where in a cabin really cuts down on my shopping opportunities.  But of course before we could go shopping we had to have a pancake party and plant potatoes.  The pancakes were good but I was in no mood to sit around shooting shit with everyone we had potato's to plant I had things to buy!  Needless to say while everyone was still sitting I started taking all there plates away and doing dishes.  If that isn't a hint then I don't know what is.

The first part of potato planting is that the guys need to go down and dig all the rows out using the tractor while I stayed up in the outdoor kitchen cutting all the seed potatoes into chunks to throw in the earth.  Well the cutting took significantly more time than I expected and I couldn't believe how few eyes some of the biggest potatoes had!

Once the potatoes were cut I had to coat them in ash to keep them from rotting or being eaten or looking pretty, something like that and then put them in the trenches.  I can't believe how bad the black flies were on the field or how painful it is to plant potatoes.  All in all it took us about 4 hours to get the potatoes in the ground.  Mind you it has been drizzling on us this entire time.  At one point I snuck away to the camp because I was filthy and all I wanted was to put on clean pants and dry shoes and go shop!

Well, Zizi being the kind soul she is made us lunch...  So of course we had to stay and eat to be polite.  She has a real knack for making nothing that I actually want to eat.  Lunch on Saturday was Polenta (gag!) and cooked spinach (triple gag).  I took a few bites and pushed it around my plate until Alex finished his food and then passed mine on to him to eat.  Trust me I am definitely not converting to a Polenta lover anytime soon...

Well it was after 2:30 by the time we actually left the farm and by that point I was just twitching to do some shopping.  We went to Freeport and hit all the good places...  Horny Toad, Candy Stores, Patagonia, LL Bean, Van Heusen.  It was superb.  Then we had Pizza at Amatos which also was surprisingly good before heading back towards home.  We stopped in Lewiston on our way and went to Good Will where Alex and I got 2 sweaters and three button down shirts for 26 dollars and then off to Starbucks to check our e-mail and drink a Chai.  Then we went to Walmart because I just can't resist a good walk around Walmart before we headed home.  By the time we were back in the camp it was about 10:30 at night and I was very satisfied.

On Sunday we did laundry in the rain.  We have lost our laundry detergent so we had to buy some at the Laundromat, then it cost 8 dollars to wash all of our clothes.  Alex and I are way to cheap to pay to dry our clothes so when we got home I put the clothesline up in the downpour and hung the clothes out.  Our plan, well they can't mold if there getting rained on and blowing in the storm.  We had downpours all day and all night on Sunday and it is still drizzling today.  Welcome to Maine, enjoy our copious amounts of rain...

Here's to hoping for some sun.  Even the cats are looking frizzy in this weather.

Oh and this morning I was trying to bake the four loaves of bread I made last night but couldn't because we were out of propane.  I suppose that explains why my coffee cake cooked so slowly yesterday since we were essentially out of fuel.  Alex is supposed to buy some more today, that will be pricey. 

Picture Time!

Some Photos as promised of the new digs.  

Anna reclining on the bed while she was busy NOT unpacking

Noodle checking out her new crawlspaces and our fancy under the bed storage

Lily getting the lay of the land from her new windowsill.

The cabin at night all lit up with our candles and oil lamps

Alex showing off his new outdoor working dude look.  Make sure to admire the rope he is using as a belt in this photo...

Phil cat on an outdoor adventure this morning. 

Alex collecting Lilly to put her back in the cabin after her outdoor adventure.

Noodle who certainly does blend in well with her surroundings. 

The outdoor toilet...

Phil cat after he successfully conquered the rock.  He was very proud.  Phil cat does not blend in well to his surroundings. 

Hair Washing and Spiders

God help me...  I got up this morning before work and needed to take a shower.  When Alex and I lived in town I never had to think about showering.  You got up, you went into the bathroom, turned on the faucet and....  tada!  Hot water magically appeared.  Now to take a shower I need to start boiling the water 15 minutes before I want to shower, plus if it is cold out I need to light a fire in the stove so that the camp warms up, and lay towels down on the floor so that I don't make too big of a mess. 

Today as I bent over to start rinsing my hair to wash it a spider fell out!  Can we say disgusting.  I had a spider in my hair.  All Alex could do was laugh and let me know that at least it wasn't a tick.  Totally not helpful.  45 minutes later I managed to wash my hair and get the vast majority of the dirt off of me.  Now if only I could figure out how to tame my hair without electricity I will be all set... 

I got to work this morning and looked in the mirror, all I can say is Holy Cow is that a lot of FRIZZ!

First Tick in the Woods...

I tried to get Alex to write one of the blog entries but he declined.  On Sunday I woke up to a nasty surprise, the first tick I have seen since we moved to the woods.  Scott and Zizi kept talking about all the ticks they have been finding on Jasper and Trego and the kitty but Alex and I were yet to see one so I didn't worry about it.

However, Sunday morning  I opened my eyes and Alex was laying in bed with his arm up over his head and what do I see but a creepy crawly tick crawling around on his armpit.  Luckily it hadn't bitten him yet, but I sure woke up real fast and couldn't get back to bed for the rest of the morning.  Alex got rid of the tick and squished it up good but still, I am thoroughly grossed out.

One of our lamps has started to run out of lamp oil also so I will need to figure out where to buy more lamp oil.  I still haven't gotten used to not having electric lights in our cabin but I am sure that with time I will  get used to it...

This weekend we did some really good cooking.  It seems that when we have nothing else we make really good food.  I mean what else are we going to do all day in the woods besides make food, read books, and go for walks around the property...  Anyway, this weekend we made some delicious easy bake tofu using organic New York tofu, and a great Lentil and Mushroom Soup.  I really have been  meaning to send that recipe to my mom, I think that her and dad would really like it.  On Saturday I made four loaves of bread which I was hoping would get the 5 of us through the week, however it looks like I will need to back up a second set of loaves on Wednesday because we will soon run out.

Our weekend was really uninteresting as far as weekends go.  Alex refused to take me shopping.  We played a round of Munchkin which I won, we cooked, He hung up a slack line, I did some laundry, and it rained a bunch.  As far as excitement goes, there was very little...  I suppose I will need to get used to this laid back life style.

Sunday we went in to the community garden for a work day.  The garden is shaping up nicely, I even did some weeding while I listened to my ipod.  This was a big triumph since I really really HATE weeding.  Alex seemed pleased and I chatted with some of the other gardeners.  Much to my dismay though while we were at the garden new people were moving into MY apartment.  This was fairly upsetting.  I don't know why but I assumed that Nate would have lots of trouble renting the apartment so I could always come back if I changed my mind about this yurt in the woods thing but it seems that now I am stuck...  I will just need to learn how to coexist with a four year old, lots of people, bugs, and no light.

On the plus side I found the camera cord this morning so soon I will be able to really truly post photos!

-Anna

Rain, rain, and more rain

I'm sure that some people have probably been wondering how Alex and I have been cooking, doing dishes, and all those other minor details of life.  In terms of the cooking Scott and Zizi have an outdoor kitchen that has a gas stove, counters, cold running water, etc.  We do that majority of our cooking up at the outdoor kitchen.  Unfortunately that means that you are completely exposed to the elements while you are cooking and eating.  The first three days we lived at the camp this was no problem since the sun was shining and it was about 60 degrees out.  However, the rain started and has continued for two days now making food a bit more challenging.

When we lived in town Alex and I routinely ran out to the grocery store, Co-op, or Walmart at least once every other day.  It was really convenient since Walmart was the furthest away and it was only about 4 miles from us.  I can say with the up most certainty that we had not gone grocery shopping since we moved to the camp six days ago.  I also haven't had any idea what we needed, could make, or even wanted so we ate rice.  Rice with more rice, and a side helping of rice.  Occasionally we ate some of the carrots from a one pound bag we had moved with us.  This diet along with being sick has left me feeling quite crappy.  Yesterday while digging in Alex's car for something to eat (since at this point we had also run out of bread) I found a small pouch of hickory smoked Tuna. 

All I can say is God Bless Tuna in a Bag.  I have never been more happy to see Tuna (especially since I really don't even like Tuna).  While Alex was cooking some pasta for dinner last night I sat down and ate the entire bag of Tuna.  Surprisingly it really helped so I must have been really running on no Protein at all.  Tuna has never tasted so good to me (though with a cold I actually tasted very little of it).

Today before going to work I ran over to Hannaford, and then the Co-op to buy some food for us.  I got about 40 dollars worth of groceries including,  yes that's right, more Tuna!  The store didn't have the hickory smoked Tuna so I bought a lemon pepper one and then 2 regular packages.  I also got a bag of corn chips because a girl can't live without corn chips, cheese, more carrots, sugar, yeast, tofu, soy milk, matzo, and I am sure some other things that I am forgetting now...

So that is how our cooking situation has been going, now, on to our resident four year old.  I am trying to be a bit more understanding of that kid but boy can he be hard to handle someday.  Apparently he drove Alex absolutely bonkers yesterday during work but he wasn't too bad with me.  That is if you ignore the fact that as soon as I pulled in he actually chased me the entire way from my car back to the cabin.  Then I once again had to figure out how to get changed without flashing a four year old.  He certainly is clingy.  Alex was out at a meeting so I decided to make some bread.  Of course that means baking with a four year old.  I thought it was going to be rather hellish but he was surprisingly good as we baked. 

We made a double batch of dough and Jasper insisted on helping with every step from stirring the yeast and heating the water, to adding the flour, to stirring some more and kneading the bread.  Well his kneading left a lot to be desired but he let me help him so an hour later our bread was sufficiently kneaded and set out to rise.  If only I could explain to him that it is counter productive to poke the bread while it's rising we would be all set. 

The bread rose overnight and this morning I got up at 6:30 to form, shape, and bake off the two loaves.   It was too cold and rainy to let the bread rise outside so I had to keep turning the oven on to about 100 degrees and then turning it off again so that the bread would have a nice, safe, warm place to rise.  It seemed to be effective and by the time I left for work the brad was looking gorgeous in the oven and was starting to brown nicely.  Unlike the super flat loaves I made last time these were puffy and delicious looking.  Now here's to hoping that there will still be some left when I get home tonight at 5!

So this is what it's like to have a 4 year old...

The last two days have been relatively uneventful.  Alex, the cats and I are learning how to cohabitate in our new cabin.  We have so far hung our clothes on the clothesline (yes we bought a clothesline and we bought clothes pins)  We got the clothes pins at the dollar store 36 for a dollar, though when I was at Walmart yestarday I saw that they sell clothespins 50 for 97 cents.  Oh well, next time I will go to Walmart for my clothespins. 

Over the last few days we have organized the clothes, my work stuff is in our former shoe chest, brushing our teeth, washing dishes, and the toilet (which is a very snazzy bucket/box thingy with a toilet seat on it).  I am actually kind of a fan of our toilet right now, it is just sitting in the middle of the woods so you get a nice view while you go :) . 

This morning we took the hair washing challenge for the first time. Before this we had just been doing "duck baths" in the morning before work but the time had come to wash my hair.  It was interesting to say the least, and we learned that we didn't boil nearly enough water.  Rinsing my hair outside with 50 degree water was very, very cold.  We also realized that I have no idea what has happened to our hair brushes.  Today perhaps I will go to the store to buy a comb so that we at least have something to use on our hair.  Trying to comb out my hair with my fingers was daunting to say the least. 

And now, speaking of the four-year old...  Jasper has finally gotten the courage to come down to the cabin all by himself.  Unfortunitly that means that even though his mother told him NOT to come down to our place, there he was at 8 o clock in the morning staring in the window before I had even gotten out of my sweat pants.  Apparently you are not allowed any privacy with a four year old around.  Alex and I kept trying to kick him out so that I could get dressed for work, but he wasn't having any of that.  Instead I ended up putting my skirt on over my sweatpants etc...  It was awkward, and my cats suffered greatly in the process as Jasper picked them up, dangled them, swung them, and grabbed them by the tails.  Needless to say I left for work as soon as I could and left Alex to deal with Jasper.  

Besides that life is going well down there, and as soon as I locate the cable for my camera I will post some photos of the place...