And, That’s a…

Wrap? No. Not yet. Close, though. It’s so close there’s not even very many pictures of new work that’s been done to show y’all this time.

Am I excited yet? Kinda. Hesitantly so. But until I get through the last of the inspections, am handed the Certificate of Occupancy and have a mortgage loan in place, I’m still guarded in my enthusiasm.

The propane guys showed up and completed the yard line and filled the 500 gal. propane tank. The satellite internet provider, Wildblue, showed up and relocated the dish from the construction utility pole to the rooftop and Norbert & Carolyn left on Weds. or Thurs. while Brett, Felicia, 5-day old Skyler and two of Brett’s sisters left yesterday. The trailer park ceases to exist.

Given how one of my neighbors was rattling his saber about calling and complaining about all the activity and trailers up here at my place, I kinda wish I could’ve gotten more folks up here to camp out for a few weeks. He’s been shooting his mouth off to everyone in the immediate area about how he was gonna do this, that and the other to me until they all told him to shutup and leave me alone. It’s good to know there are still some reasonable people left in this world.

I’m still giving tours of the house on a weekly basis. The only people who won’t have had a tour is everyone I know in town, and my lifelong friends. There’s something wrong with that, ain’t there? Ah well, my lifelong friends will get to stay in The House, whilst those in town will have to return to theirs. I consider that worth the wait.

The long sequence of open houses should be starting in December. Here’s the operating schedule as it stands right now (subject to change of course. But y’all know that by now): Manana I go get the custom lighting fixtures. Then, aside from me doing a bunch of detail work (make and hang rain chains, putting up towel racks, hooks, the closet rods, shelving, drawer units, batteries in thermostats, light bulbs in exterior lights, cutting firewood, etc) and running around, there’s nothing scheduled for this week. Well, aside from seeing a financial planner. More on that in a sec.)

The countertop will be installed on the 12th and the plumber will come do some final hookups on the 13th along with the electrician who will be here to install the fixtures and make good on a bunch of goofs and incomplete work. Or he dies. Actually, I’ll just call a local electrician to finish up and duke it out with original electrician later.

As for The House, that will be it! (Not counting the problematic doorknob that is still going back and forth between Toby’s Doors and The House. Believe it or not, I have to have all knobs and locks in place for final inspection!)

Ya remember how I was bemoaning about how I was going to fall just short with being able to pay off the last of the work on The House? I bemoan no mo’. Mom left me one more chunk o’money. The bills can be paid and the trip to the Caribbean is back on! Woo hoo! I thank my mother every time I think of money, which is frequently. The appt. with the financial planner next week is to see if I can’t grow some money with the ‘seed’ money Mom left me. It’s a meeting I don’t mind attending.

One last bit of juicy news: In September, 2007 I posted to the blog the history of Tierra Grande and the rancher who is legend in these parts who bought up the development and free ranges his herd of cattle out here as part of his bailout deal of TG.

For some reason, and through a chance in a billion, an adult child of the rancher came across my blog and happened to read who knows how much of it, but did find his/her (I’m not wanting to give out too much info about this person, please bear with me) way into the archives and read that particular post. S/he sent me the following response:
“Anonymous said...
Are you one who have shot some of the McKinley cows? Were you the one who shot my father's favorite horse? Are you part of the group that regularly breaks into his bunk house? 

Your disclaimer at the bottom in no way covered up your hatred.” (The commenter left a full name and relationship to the rancher, which I’m not posting here.)

(All of the above events HAVE occurred, btw.)

What I don’t get is: Why would anyone accuse a total stranger of such horrific acts? And, aside from one being as cruel as the responder suggests, who would consider those acts the act of a woman? Furthermore, if she read that far back in my blog, then has she come across the other posting I did about the rancher and my subsequent interactions with him? If not, ok, then the comment makes some irrational sense. If the commenter had read more of my blog than that single entry, then…WTF?

I was a titch disturbed, to say the least. I WILL be following up on it. I’ll keep y’all posted.

I’ve been sleeping and spending most of my time in The House since I ‘moved in’ over a week ago. I want to get used to it slowly. Maybe with that strategy in place I won’t have to overuse my GPSr by setting tracks and waypoints throughout The House. Here’s hoping. I use The Tin Can as my private movie studio and diner now.

There y’all have it. Instead of the interminable “one month” left with this “adventure”, it’s now down to “about two weeks”. Don’t hold yer collective breath just yet. I’m not. Expect a few more entries to this blog and then I’ll close it off. It will still be available to view, I just won’t post anymore new entries. I WILL be starting a new blog, or three, though.

Another tale from the high desert nears the end as the proverbial sun sets in the west and leads us ever forward in serch of manana.