House, Ashfield, Rhinebeck
Oct. 21st, 2007 08:14 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
helwenRealized that I never posted officially about the house sale. Closing did finally happen this past Tuesday. Check is in the bank and should clear Monday or Tuesday of this coming week. Then come the decisions on what to pay down and what to pay off. Still have one more trip to make down to Holyoke to pick up what's left at our neighbor's place. Wood and sheetrock mostly.
Things about Ashfield...
- When it's dark, it's _really_ dark... Somewhere we have a package of glow-in-the-dark animal track stickers. When I find them, I'm going to stick them on boards that we can put in the windows during the day to charge them and hang them up the hallway at night. Might not light up the hall much, but at least we'll be able to see where the walls are. Figure one will go on the bathroom door, and one on the office. Although most of the time finding the bathroom door isn't a problem, even in the middle of the night. The black cat who refuses to move out of the bedroom doorway however, is....
- There are no ding-dong carts up here, with or without stupid music. Yay!!!![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
fitzw is very happy about this.
- Sunrise here is very different here. With the open field and hillsides, the sun casts long, uninterrupted bands of light and shadow.
Rhinebeck...
We almost didn't go, as we were debating the use of fossil fuel, and also the weather. But the weather improved and in fact was nearly perfect, if a trifle windy. Didn't find two of the vendors I was hoping to find. Did finally decide to get a tahkli and a spinning bowl for it. Also some Icelandic yarn for a future weaving project, and some weaving yarn from Maine that was marked down (end lot probably). Oh, and L got a new cane/walking stick that works better for him.
Best part was the people. We saw some old-time engines and machinery -- this guy was making shingles from a log on one, then sanding the long sides. Another guy had a water pump powered by a Stirling engine. That was definitely a beauty to watch, and much quieter than the other engines. We also got to see human and animal-powered tools and machinery, talk to a carpenter who was making spindles, and a couple of letterpress printers.
Plus, we ran into a couple of SCA folks we know, one of whom does timberframing and carpentry. I'd just been saying tofitzw that maybe we could have him make us a shave horse, because even though fitzw has plans for one and could make it, he has limited spare time. So when we ran into our friends, I asked about maybe having him make one, and it turns out he was getting ready to make another one for himself, and he said making two at the same time would be no problem. And since he's low on maple syrup and cream, we'll be sending some to him via friends who are going to an event they're going to in a couple of weeks, as partial payment on the shave horse. We also talked about building, beekeeping, mixed pastures, and Shetland and Icelandic sheep. They're looking at getting into raising sheep in a little while. I saw some Shetlands too -- they're not as big as many modern sheep. And apparently both they and the Icelandics are triple purpose - fiber, dairy, and meat.
We got to watch some of the dog trials, so I've finally had my fix on those for a bit.
fitzw got to chat with the guy from Merlin Tree again, learn a few more things about the great wheel, and we got to see a couple of pendulum great wheels, one of them antique, and one newly made and being used in a demo.
Things about Ashfield...
- When it's dark, it's _really_ dark... Somewhere we have a package of glow-in-the-dark animal track stickers. When I find them, I'm going to stick them on boards that we can put in the windows during the day to charge them and hang them up the hallway at night. Might not light up the hall much, but at least we'll be able to see where the walls are. Figure one will go on the bathroom door, and one on the office. Although most of the time finding the bathroom door isn't a problem, even in the middle of the night. The black cat who refuses to move out of the bedroom doorway however, is....
- There are no ding-dong carts up here, with or without stupid music. Yay!!!
fitzw is very happy about this.- Sunrise here is very different here. With the open field and hillsides, the sun casts long, uninterrupted bands of light and shadow.
Rhinebeck...
We almost didn't go, as we were debating the use of fossil fuel, and also the weather. But the weather improved and in fact was nearly perfect, if a trifle windy. Didn't find two of the vendors I was hoping to find. Did finally decide to get a tahkli and a spinning bowl for it. Also some Icelandic yarn for a future weaving project, and some weaving yarn from Maine that was marked down (end lot probably). Oh, and L got a new cane/walking stick that works better for him.
Best part was the people. We saw some old-time engines and machinery -- this guy was making shingles from a log on one, then sanding the long sides. Another guy had a water pump powered by a Stirling engine. That was definitely a beauty to watch, and much quieter than the other engines. We also got to see human and animal-powered tools and machinery, talk to a carpenter who was making spindles, and a couple of letterpress printers.
Plus, we ran into a couple of SCA folks we know, one of whom does timberframing and carpentry. I'd just been saying to
fitzw that maybe we could have him make us a shave horse, because even though fitzw has plans for one and could make it, he has limited spare time. So when we ran into our friends, I asked about maybe having him make one, and it turns out he was getting ready to make another one for himself, and he said making two at the same time would be no problem. And since he's low on maple syrup and cream, we'll be sending some to him via friends who are going to an event they're going to in a couple of weeks, as partial payment on the shave horse. We also talked about building, beekeeping, mixed pastures, and Shetland and Icelandic sheep. They're looking at getting into raising sheep in a little while. I saw some Shetlands too -- they're not as big as many modern sheep. And apparently both they and the Icelandics are triple purpose - fiber, dairy, and meat.We got to watch some of the dog trials, so I've finally had my fix on those for a bit.
fitzw got to chat with the guy from Merlin Tree again, learn a few more things about the great wheel, and we got to see a couple of pendulum great wheels, one of them antique, and one newly made and being used in a demo.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-10-21 01:19 pm (UTC)We went last year and it was spitting snow..this year its going to be 80 degrees! hmmmm got to love TN .
I hope to get my sheep fix .. We live in the city so there's no farming animals allowed.. :(
no subject
Date: 2007-10-21 03:10 pm (UTC)