Georgetown Building - More Photos

I got the rest of the old frame addition removed from the back of our commercial building. These pictures are about two weeks old now. Since then the gas meter has been relocated and the low spot filled in with gravel.

Fat And Happy

On Tuesday I (Scott) drove to Jackson MI and stayed at Brian's house - and on Wednesday Mom and I drove back to Lebanon. She will be here for a few days helping us celebrate Thanksgiving and catching up on our lives. Brian and family should arrive on Saturday and will head back home on Sunday with Mom in tow.

For Thanksgiving dinner yesterday it was the four of us - Lee Ann, Annie, Mom and me - versus a huge feast of turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie (plus a bunch of other stuff). We gave a good account of ourselves and have been laying around in a collective stupor ever since. Annie thought the table was so impressive that she had to take a picture - then commented that it looked better in real life. There is a larger truth in that somewhere, and I am still thinking about how to wrap it into a neat phrase.

Re-Wilding

On Sunday Lee Ann, Annie and I, along with 30 other people, tore down a house. This was on land obtained by Highlands Sanctuary for wilderness preservation. They call this "re-wilding" - a new word for me. It was a pretty cold day and we worked hard, but it was fun.

Potpourri

• Here are a selection of snapshots of our last week's adventures and accomplishments.
  The first photo is of our new yard light. We put this in at the end of the walk that goes to our parking area at the back of our lot. The post is an old wood porch post that had been broken off near the top, which made it perfect for this use. I had to run 100 feet of direct bury electric cable down the hill from the house to this spot. Now when you turn the back porch light on, this light comes on too.
  The second photo is of the new skirting I am building for the back porch. I am making this out of 3" wide cedar planks that I got with all that other lumber several weeks ago. I spent most of today making these two sections.
  The third photo is an action shot of me at our pharmacy building on Monday. We have now torn off all of the shed addition that we can until the gas meter, which is attached to it, gets relocated. Hopefully that will happen next week.
  The last photo is of me in front of the largest horseshoe crab in Ohio (and maybe the world). We have seen this several times while driving thru Blanchester OH on our way to Georgetown, and finally stopped to check it out. Originally it was built for an aquarium on the east coast, but somehow it ended up in front of a little church that uses it as a shelter for weddings and parties - the entrance is underneath the tail.
  
  
  
  

Halloween Costumes

Here we are in our Halloween costumes - Lee Ann as a Gypsy, Danny as a pumpkin, and me as The Invisible Man. Despite the fact that we live on Main Street in Lebanon, we only got one Trick-Or Treater this year, and that was our neighbor's kid.

Pharmacy Building - Georgetown

We own a commercial building in Georgetown, rented by a pharmacist for many years. Since we bought it three years ago I have been thinking about fixing or tearing off a shed addition to the back of the building whose roof had failed and caved in. On Friday I spent the day emptying the contents and pulling down the rotting wood. I hauled three pickup truck loads to the dump - a hard-working day. Tomorrow (Monday) Lee Ann and I are going back to figure out if we should rebuild or just remove the whole thing.

Highlands Sanctuary Visit

We had a fun day at the Highlands Sanctuary in Highland County (about a 60-mile drive) on Saturday. This is an organization we have donated to for several years, and this year we attended their "Donor Gathering." It was an all-day event, with music, hiking on the cave trails and presentations from various folks on saving the eastern forests.

I like this organization because it relies on individuals (like me) giving money to buy and protect woodlands into the future. The Highlands group builds trails, eradicates invasive non-native species and holds educational seminars on forestry and ecology-related topics. Annie is applying to be an intern there next summer. Photos show the opening music by Stephen Free and the hiking trail led by an intern in character as Edward Sullivant, 19th Century naturalist.