Ceiling Painting: Round Two

Nothing but fun today on Flat Top. That's Mason on scaffolding,
with a headlamp and a ShopVac, taking on some nasty cobwebs.

Remember that crappy particleboard ceiling we started to paint over the winter? Well, we've finally got around to finishing the job.

In our defense, we had to wait until it was warm enough to no longer need the wood stove, which is now enclosed in paper to protect it from flying paint. Painting a ceiling is very messy, if you weren't aware. Of course, now that we've waited for the heat of summer, it's become The Job From Hell, because it's hot as hell at the ceiling of an un-airconditioned cabin with a metal roof.

To do the job, Mason had to build some scaffolding so we could reach all of the ceiling that's about 20 feet over the living room. That's him, above, vacuuming the cobwebs before we paint. After a day's work, we're maybe a quarter of the way done.

Of course, one job always leads to another here on Flat Top. While the scaffolding is up, we'd be foolish not to take the opportunity to refinish the upper wall on that side of the living room. That wall was never properly finished by the original owner. The windows were never trimmed, and the particleboard on the ceiling looks like Grade A carpentry compared to the quarter-inch paneling that was on that portion of the wall.

And that thing about one job leading to another? Once the paneling was down, it was clear some critters had been nesting in the insulation up there. Maybe we should just be surprised there WAS insulation up there. Alas, we'll be replacing that, too.

Despite the undertaking, Mason -- covered in sweat, insulation dust and paint -- was unusually chipper. "Look at us!" he chimed in mid-afternoon. "We're a team again!"

He's not the only one enjoying my new work shift, which is down to three days a week for the summer. Tomorrow, before I start painting again, I'm putting nine tomato plants in the new veggie garden, which is far from finished, but I just couldn't resist.

Mom's Perspective

Here are some photos my mom took while she was here:

Good morning.

An afternoon dip.

Mom liked my bowl collection. Thank you ladies!

Putting in post for the new veggie garden.

Waving to a neighbor driving by while on one of our twice daily walks.

The conversation pit, aka Tiki Bar.

Begonias in my hanging baskets.

Mom! And JIm! And Ralph!

Can you see the resemblance, beyond the white hair, that is? This is my mom's first selfie!
Clearly I need some of her bright lipstick, but Mason won't come near me if I put it on.

Flat Top was in full visitors' mode during the past few weeks. After Mason's ex and her friends, it was my Mom, who braved the hardships of life in the forest to check out the improvements we’ve made since she last visited in 2011. After a few days, marveling at all of the greenery, she remarked, “It’s like you guys live in a National Park.”

We kept her busy for several days, tasking her with helping plan the upcoming guest cabin. She’s got a real knack for design, so I’d be foolish not to tap into her skills. The only problem is she kept designing the cabin bigger and bigger. When keeping my budget in mind, I kept telling her, “smaller, smaller.”  

We finally got a couple of good designs, and roped off the area where the cabin will go. Eventually. But first, we’re installing wood floors in the main cabin, finishing painting the ceiling and putting in a new door and window upstairs. No shortage of projects on Flat Top.

That's Ralph, left, and Jim, otherwise known as Foti.
We're always so flattered by how many Minneapolis friends
 have ventured to our little cabin in the woods!

While Mom was here, Minneapolis friends Jim and Ralph braved our dirt road in their low-slung Volvo wagon while on a cross-country road trip. A frequent Northern Minnesota camper, Ralph is completely versed in living off the grid, which was cool, and Jim didn’t seem too freaked out. They even took time to take video of their urban-mobile cresting the rocky terrain. City folk!

I’ve cut down my hours at the garden nursery for the rest of the summer, hoping to maximize my fun -- if you call painting fun. And sadly, I do, which is why life on Flat Top is so great!

But for now, I must go outside and pull weeds. It just finished raining nearly 2 inches in less than 2 hours. No better time to pluck.

What’s Mason up to? Putting the finishing touches on his deluxe bat house. It’s more like a bat condo. More on that next time!

Just Some Photos

The walkway to the sheds, one of which still needs trim. That's my romaine lettuce in the bigger pot.

All work and no play makes for little news. So instead, here are some photos from the garden. There's still so far to go on the yard, but slowly but surely I can see a little progress. Every time I drag home another plant from work, Mason just rolls his eyes. But he knows it will help make our little place in the woods that much better! Have I mentioned I love plants?

Six or seven miniature roses were growing out in the front "lawn" (i.e.: dirt patch) when we moved in. I don't really love them, but I can't throw out a decent plant, so I moved them to a sunnier spot, gave them some good soil and now they seem happy. Until the deer eat their heads off.

Made this trellis out of branches. Not sure how much longer it will hold together.

We made this guy out of some scrap metal a couple of years ago when my mom visited. Wonder what we'll create when she's here visiting next week? That shrub is a Dream Catcher (kolkwitzia?). Nice lime color in part shade.

Yeah, the front beds are a serious work in progress, so don't judge me.
But that Sum and Substance hosta in the rear left? Delicious. (Note the rhododendron on the front porch waiting to be planted tomorrow. I've killed two Home Depot versions so far; hoping No. 3, from the Barn Nursery, is lucky for me.)

From front to back, that's Burgundy Glow ajuga, a teeny-weenie painted fern that's struggling (a bargain buy from work in November), then a mass of hardy geranium (macrorhizzum, my favorite),  a Japanese forest grass (the yellow thing, which still has some growing to go), a blue hosta that's got a ton of growing to go yet, and then the little Bloodgood Japanese maple I planted on the day my dad died. In the far right corner you'll see the Shasta viburnum that my co-worker Craig gave me. Trust me, it's going to be beautiful in a few years! The lawn is looking pretty lush right now; let's see how it survives the summer.

It's Visiting Season

Mason was way more thrilled with these visitors than he looks here. Way to snarl, Mas! 

The bright red doors of our Flat Top mountain hovel have flung open to the first guests of 2014! Our first suckers ... I mean, guests ... were Karen Cook, aka The Keeper, aka Mason's ex-wife;  her two close and very sporting friends, Daphne and Paula; and Randy, an old running buddy of Mason's from their rowdy 20s.

This was a historic visit. Karen has opened the door to her Texas home to us many times, and is always the gracious hostess. We were super excited to finally be able to return the hospitality. We made these folks live the Flat Top life: walking Nick twice a day and spending the hours in between doing whatever they wanted -- except for Paula, who kept getting enlisted in the kitchen.

Randy is a garden freak like me, so we had lots of flora to discuss, and he went home with a small collection of goodies, including a dogwood sapling.

And each night was spent by the bonfire, including two good blazes in the new fire ring in the backyard "tiki bar" area, which yes, still has no tiki bar. (We're working on it, people.)

All four of these adventurers made the drive up here from Florida. Smartly, they spent time up here first before spending a few days relaxing on the white sands of Destin, Fla.

Next up to visit? Mom is headed this way in a week or so, and we might also score a drive-by from some Minneapolis friends who are taking a road trip.  We never would have guessed we'd lure so many friends to the wilds of Tennessee. But we're damn happy to see them all!

Derby Day

Love these azaleas. Need to buy many more!

Those who know me well know my family's tradition of celebrating the Kentucky Derby with Mint Juleps and some friendly wagering. Well, tomorrow's the big day. But the race we're running here is all about getting ready for our next round of guests willing to brave Flat Top.

Arriving Sunday are Mason's ex-wife, Karen (he refers to her as "The Keeper"), two of her close friends and Randy, one of Mason's running buddies from his 20s. They'll shack up in our shack, while Mason and I do a little camping in the back yard. Classy, eh?

The azaleas in the yard are just about done blooming, but some of the ones growing down by the creek are still going strong. Tonight I got the ferns hung on the porch, and a few annuals planted here and there for color. We also got a new fire ring dug; this one's in the back yard. Doesn't every house need two firepits?

Columbine, planted from seed.

So we'll be thinking of all you old friends on Saturday. And watch those Mint Juleps; they can sneak up on you! Cheers!

I may regret planting these anemones. ... I hope I can control them.

Where the Wild Things Are

No, they're not ours. Who's mane is more gray?

Despite my silence, Flat Top Mountain has been bustling with activity the past couple of weeks. Spring announced itself on April 9th, when we were wakened in the wee hours by the blood-curdling screams of a bobcat in heat. For the record, it's a godawful sound that should bring goosebumps to the hardiest of souls. Nick the Dog, who is the least hardiest of souls, responded with frantic barking and excessive backbone fur fluffage.  The first time I heard it, I thought a woman was being attacked in our woods, which turns out to be not far off from the actuality.

Quick on the heels of the bobcat was the woodland equivalent of the car alarm: Mr. Whipporwill. A whipporwill is a tiny little brown bird of no noteworthy note, until he whistles his annoying little song as soon as the sun sets and picks up speed at dawn before silencing for the day. His song is this repetitive little siren that repeats about 20 times (yes, we count it out), each within nanoseconds, and trust me, it sounds just like a car alarm. Now that spring is here, we sleep with the windows open, and as charming as Mr. Whipporwill sounds, he's annoying as hell.

Then, on Tuesday, four horses showed up in the woods just in front of our cabin. By evening, they had made their way up to the "neighborhood" lake. By Wednesday morning, they disappeared, only to reappear that evening in our back yard, going to town on my plush lawn. I pulled out some carrots from the fridge and made four new best friends. But they were chowing down on so much grass, I was worried I'd be left with nothing, so Mason ran them off.

The next morning, about 7 a.m., they were back, joined by a friend, Horse No. 5. I let them go at the front lawn for a good 30 minutes, then I decided to run them off. But apparently my high wimpy voice was less than intimidating. But it did wake Mason up, who wandered out to the front yard in his birthday suit and belted out this clearly Texan "WHO-YA" holler, and off ran the horses. Then he went back to bed.

The horses tried to return later that day, sneaking in on our back trails in a bid to get some more of my tasty fescue grass, but we ran them off again.  Side note: On our dog walk that day, we took a bucket and a shovel and got some seriously sweet manure for the compost pile.

We think a bear clawed through the trunk of this maple in search of food.

And in the final chapter of wild things: Bears. Something went to town tearing into this 70-foot-tall maple tree near the back of our property, and a neighbor told us it likely was a bear.  YIKES!

Bears aren't common here, but apparently they can wake up in the spring to find few berries to feed their hunger. Desperate, they'll hunt bugs and apparently this maple had something tasty in it. Whatever dug into the tree, it shredded 3 to 4 inches deep into trunk.  Looks like a tree bound for firewood come Winter 2015-16.

Check out that firewood! See those three stacks? We have about eight more just like that ready for next winter.

As for winter 2014-15, we're just about done stocking up next season's firewood. As for the winter we just survived -- the worst Chattanooga has seen in 30 years -- we had exactly just enough firewood to ward off the cold until the nights turned warm. How's that for good luck? OH, I mean, good planning...