For some unknown reason I decided that maintaining the cabin road, mowing the lawn, raking leaves in the fall, keeping the wood shed stocked, and other chores in and around the cabin just aren't enough work to keep me busy. So I found myself a few more projects...
This is the old wood shed.
How old is it? I really don't know. It's been there as long as I can remember. I know there is wood that has been in there well over 20 years. And that's a bit of a problem. It keeps getting re-stocked in the front while wood in the back is actually starting to decompose. So I decided the thing to do is build and stock a new shed while I use up that old wood.
During an earlier visit I had noticed a fair sized oak was leaning pretty badly over the old shed toward the cabin and aimed right at the kitchen chimney.
The soil is sand, sand, and more sand. Once a tree starts to go it may not be long before it comes down, especially when winter comes and the tree loads up with snow. So I had a tree service come take the oak down while I continued work on the new shed.
With construction mostly complete I started to apply paint to my new shed. It's a simple process involving old spray cans and my trusty Thompson/Center .223.
I learned it's a good idea to keep other objects at a safe distance to avoid any overspray...
In the summer there was a triathalon in a nearby town. My sister competes regularly in Iron Man competitions and somehow she dragged myself and son #1 into this race. I believe it was the first time she had visited the cabin in at least two decades, maybe three.
So we had to kayak one mile...
Lookit me GO!...
Then we had to bicycle 11 miles...
..and run 5 kilometers....
Well, I can't provide photos of myself and the boy bicycling or running... because we came in LAST PLACE and the photographer wasn't hanging around for us. In fact, by the time we finished the 11 mile bike ride my sister had already finished the 5k run. She took first place in her age division. You know, the granny division! Bwahahaha!
For another project I decided to construct a privacy wall for the shower.
I added a heater for those colder days...
...and my sister gave me a nice new bar of soap. I wonder if she's trying to tell me something...?
Sometimes I bring a faithful companion and sheet stealing bed hog to the cabin with me.
He likes to go down BY the crick...
...and down IN the crick...
...and help with raking leaves...
...and then a good walk in the woods does him in for the night.
In the fall we had the largest gathering the cabin has seen in many years. We had gathered for the unveiling of my father's headstone at the nearby cemetery.
In December my wife and kids gave me a very thoughtful gift, a nice custom metal sign for the cabin. It gave me an excuse to go up again to install it. After all, I can't have such a nice sign sitting around in my basement!
My local Family and Farm store had a sale, so now I'm all stocked up with a good supply of my favorite cabin toys.
