Glenn's Underground Cabin Update

[phalynx]

It sure seems like a comedy scene waiting to happen with you digging an underground addition so close to your pool..  Above ground polls do tend to break now and then.  And I am almost certain you are the type who would cannoball into the pool just to get Sassy wet............... 

[glenn kangiser]

I'm way too cool. 

hmm I'd never get me wet.....would I?

No --- pools never leak....

OK --- so I'll berm it up but most of it should go the other way.

[glenn kangiser]

Finally took a day off to go prospecting and looking for old mines a bit.  Work schedule is messing up my play time.  I fired up the old Jeep Cherokee and loaded up the dogs.  They love it.

Spike got to try his favorite sport again.  Chasing and eating water skippers in Harry's spring.  I enlarged the pond a couple weeks ago when I reopened the road with the Bobcat.  He was so tired he fell asleep on the way home.  We hiked to the top of the mountain through brush and poison oak.  I had to crawl uner it many times to get back.  What a blast.  

[Bishopknight]

just in time to rush down to the NAPA store and get a hose made. 

Never knew they could do hoses, very cool, good to know!

I'm glad you got your bobcat working again also, sounds like your hose job was 100x worse than mine!!!

[Redoverfarm]

Most everything on a skid steer is hard to work on except the driver.  Glenn , Spike must be half bear as he doesn't like to get his ears wet.     My son has taught his Blue Heeler to go rock diving.  My son throws a rock in the creek and I'll be d%$ the dog goes down and comes up with the same rock.  I didn't know that dogs could smell under water.  He likes being in the water almost and I say almost as much as rolling in cow piles. 

[glenn kangiser]

As John said, lots of things on a Bobcat are hard to fix, but I can't afford to pay someone else to do it because I'm lazy.

I took the dogs down to the mine/spring again tonight John.  They love it.  Suzy slept in the jeep all day waiting I think - was there when I left and when I got home- she climbs in the back window - had to take them.

My dogs love to chase and get sprayed by skunks.  Must have done it 30 times by now.

[Bishopknight]

LOL, I'm sure they sleep outside, right Glenn?

I'm looking to get a rescue dog when I move up to my house.

[glenn kangiser]

They have to sleep outside. 

If they smell OK they sometimes get in for a little while, but Sassy claims she can smell them after they leave -- rolls her eyes and makes objectionable sounds about it....

I don't understand the reason they love that smell so much. 

Once they chased a skunk about 4 miles, all got sprayed in the face so they couldn't find their way home, and the dog catcher got them.  That one was about $200 with the rabies shots and getting out of jail, etc.   They needed the shots anyway as some of the skunks are rabid.

[glenn kangiser]

After Sassy's encounter with the rattlesnake last week and not being familiar enough with the guns to do more about it we decided it was time to take the wives to do a bit of shooting.   Living in the country, that can be a useful skill.  

Whitlock and I took our wives and a few guns we borrowed from a garage sale - some that didn't burn in the fire, and went to Harry and Jenny's range and yard area for a bit of practice and instruction.



Everyone went away much better for the training and practice and full from the barbecue.



Now to get those nasty guns back to that garage sale table before anyone notices.  I wouldn't want anyone to think I would use one.....

[PEG688]

Well Anne Oakly she ain't,    was the guy Whitlock? 

[glenn kangiser]

She's just getting familiar with it, but able to bounce the jug up the hill without hurting herself or anyone else now..

That was Harry.  Whitlock was in the shop.

Sorry the video wasn't better - just had my Blackberry phone today.

[PEG688]

  Hows her shoulder? Got any  bruises ?

[glenn kangiser]

She did pretty good -held it pretty snug-  not complaining yet, but we all got a pretty good workover today.  She went to the Valley to work tomorrow - so we should hear from her about the shoulder then - unless she cares to update us sooner than that.

The ladies even enjoyed the 12ga guns which Sassy was shooting there.

We sighted the rifles  in earlier at 100 yards  (103 actually to a shade tree).    Probably a few bruises from that also.

[Sassy]

Well Anne Oakly she ain't,    was the guy Whitlock?  

Come on now, PEG, I've envisioned myself as being Annie Oakley since I was 4 y/o!    Now, once they turned me into a right handed  (I'm left handed) shooter, since I was using my right eye... it's a little difficult to shoot left handed with my left eye shut & right eye open...  for some reason, I could never get the sight lined up with my target      I think Whitlock noticed    hey, I didn't realize I was doing that!  

I don't feel too sore    It was fun, gives you an adrenalin rush!

[glenn kangiser]

Sassy is after me to get the garden drip system up again and get the trees below on the terrace under drip so that when she is gone to work things will not die.  

She took some pix as I dug down the driveway toward the terrace and the dogs were doing what dogs do.



The ol' John Deere.  She ain't pretty but she still works.  Blew a hydraulic hose today but it was one I could make as I had old fittings and a hose press from my ROPS installation days - even a roll of 1/2 inch hose.   Probably saved $60. 




Dang.... I ain't so pretty either....

[glenn kangiser]

I forgot to mention that I am extending the water lines and adding faucets for the lower driveway and one down at the tree row across the terrace road.

[poppy]

What a compound, and what a view.

I really like the garage or whatever that building is by the driveway.

And I like all of your man toys.  That Bobcat is a monster and the John Deere looks pretty good to me, and you don't look so bad either (as one old grizzled bearded man to another).

[glenn kangiser]

Thanks Poppy.  Yeah -- I guess we really are a couple of pretty handsome old dudes, eh?

The garage is a 2 story based on John's Little House Plans http://www.jshow.com/y2k/listings/29.html that I converted to post and beam.  The top car is a 1926 Dodge Sedan and  the bottom car is a 1919 Dodge Roadster.  (Neither well shown in this pix.) '93 Dodge Stealth outside in front

The view on a hazy day we see the San Joaquin Valley center around 40 road miles away and a bit better day  the first of the coast range around 80 road miles away, with the mountains surrounding Yosemite on the North east side.  Most of the mountains showing in the above pix are within about 10 miles.  Smoggy hazy day, although we are at almost 3000 feet and most of the smog and haze is below us.

The toys - yup gotta have 'em.  The man who dies with the most toys wins.

[glenn kangiser]

Some of the neighbors have had a bit of a parasite problem around here lately.  A pickup with a local logo and a trespasser actually going onto their private property to take photos of their PRIVATE Constitutionally legal property.

Seems the pest is warded off by my Constitutional NO TRESPASSING signs as my renter/Security watch reported he turned around and left immediately when he saw my signs at the cul-de-sac.



To ward off this Trespasser I decided to put a deliveries box at the cul-de-sac and put in a security gate with another copy of the sign in case he missed it.  Seems he also may have been warded off by my security camera/video/audio monitoring sign (Harbor Freight) at the cul-de-sac.  TRESPASSERS don't like it when they get caught.



The gate is counter balanced by an old backhoe bucket in no longer use, with rocks in it.  I made the chain a bit too long at the shop so added the rocks on top to take up the slack. [idea]




Beauty, eh?

[Whitlock]

I love it and I'm sure Sassy is going to also
I'm wongering if the rocks slip and the backhoe bucket is on the ground can she still open the gate
If I forget the combo can I use my chainsaw to get in



 Nice,W

[glenn kangiser]

I told her about it last night - she called after I got back from dinner at my friends house

She thinks the inconvenience is justified especially since a few undesirables have showed up next door and a wood splitter is missing from there - family feud/divorce going there so likely it was an inside job, but this will cut down on all unapproved access.

[glenn kangiser]

Sure, W.  Use your chainsaw - don't hit a spike. 

The rocks seem to be staying pretty good, though I was thinking of driving a few spikes there too to help keep them in place.  The weight gets unbearable even for me, without the "counterbalance".

[Redoverfarm]

Glenn where is the hinge point? I see the spike on the bucket end which looks to go into the post.  I am sure there is more to it as wood/on wood would be hard to swing.

[glenn kangiser]

The 30" concrete stake is the pivot.  There are a couple 2 1/2" dia steel washers over the stake below the pole.  It swings easily - still needs a bit of adjustment but works well.

[ScottA]

Nice gate. I'm still thinking about how we will secure our place. Lots of good ideas here.