Winter's grip loosens a little.....

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Hey, I finally have a photo of the Ottertail Springs!! Or, rather, the impoundment created there by the earth berm that we are sitting on. Kate, Mag, Barb, Gene, Sue and Neil as we all looked
about 50 years ago.......

The Ottertail Springs also look quite different now, not many trees around it, the whole north side exposed by gravel diggings, etc.

And I knew I had an aerial photo stashed somewhere. This was taken a few years ago by me in my airplane. Little did I know......









We have gotten some things put away and the dining table put back together.





I borrowed a dining chair so I could look out the windows as I murdered a couple of tunes on the accordion. Luckily the photo has no sound file attached.





Starting to look a little like home! Peg and I camped out at the A-frame about a week ago, and we dragged the small grill over there.





The first cookout at the new house. The weather was pretty nice that day, so the grilling session was very pleasant.





And that steak turned out just right......







Back at the homestead we had a problem with vandals. Some yahoo(s) snuck in while we were gone and cut the woodpile into little pieces.... durn varmints.

And, coming soon, a personalized report on the American Birkebiener, 2011! Check back for this update....... and remember....

Well, that's about it for now.

I gotta go, Carlo

Winter events.

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I was expecting a contribution covering the new snowshoe event, the Phillips Flurry. While I wait for that, I thought I would apply this stop-gap measure. Above is a photo of niece Angela doing the Phillips Flurry race! You can check out Snowshoe Magazine for all the details on the event.

Niece Kristi was the event coordinator for the Flurry. You may remember some of her guest posts on here about here mini-triathlon and USSSA snowshoe races. Her husband, Adam, was the official photographer. The above trophy is an interesting item. The stainless sheetmetal design was accomplished by none other than our friend Ivan! That, coupled with the birch wood prepared by Todd Zumach, made a choice remembrance of the race.

Another local winter event is the American Birkebeiner, held near Hayward, Wi. Anyone we know going to ski this event this year???????

Here is the place for Birkie info.

""Today, the historic event of the rescue of Haakon Haakonsson is honoured in Norway by three annual sporting events, a run, a mountain bike race and a cross-country ski race, Birkebeinerrennet. Common for the bike and ski events is the requirement of carrying a backpack weighing 3.5 kg as a remembrance of the child the Birkebeiners had to carry on their journey. The bike and ski events start in Rena and all three events finish at Lillehammer. There are also sister cross-country ski races held in Hayward, Wisconsin (USA), the American Birkebeiner, in Edmonton (Canada) and in Falls Creek (Australia). ""

Some history of the Birkebeiner can be found here.

Here is a section of wall in the a-frame. I love the treatment of the barn wood, and would a barn wood wall be complete without a little roof sticking out over it?

Peggy and Hailee did a little decorating during the holidays.

The only bad part of putting in a masonry heater is the fact that this unique fireplace will have to go. Not an easy choice, but I think that is what will happen......

I know, the woodpile looks about the same now as it did last fall. I tried a new approach this year and started using wood on the west side of the pile.

A closer look at the south end shows a definite gap in that pile.

The usual chain of events was as follows: use up one row of wood at a time, fight the covers that were always collapsing as I removed a row, repeat til spring arrives. This year I used wood off three rows at a time and propped up the cover as I went. The covers are old machinery flatbelts and they get quite stiff up there with ice and snow frozen to them. This allows them to be semi-self supporting. A couple of boards, some old boat oars and we have a roof!!

Soon I'll have to deal with that roof mess as I come to the end of that outer row.... looks like fun.

And speaking of winter events, did you catch the warblers that sang at the Super Bowl???? The first one could not hit any note, so she started a little higher on almost every one and then slipped down to the correct spot. And then, and then.... Christina did a job on the national anthem, outdone only by Maya Rudolph. I've posted this before, but it still kills me.....

That's it for now, I gotta go, Carlo

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Plowing and heaters...

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About a week ago I loaded the ATV on the trailer and headed for Ottertail South to plow the yard and drive. When I arrived I saw that Art Raleigh had delivered some pulp wood. Now I did not know exactly what I would do with the wood, but figured I would need it somehow. When we acquired the new place, I thought perhaps I would rig up an outdoor boiler and some sort or heat exchangers in the house. Then I got a call..... My niece and nephew, Paul and Jenny, are part of Dale Anderson Masonry, in Allenton, Wi., and very interested in masonry heaters. Paul suggested that we consider putting in one of these......

Here is a brief collection of a few masonry heaters. I chose these particular photos to show how diverse the designs can be. This is the Masonry Heater Association's website, an association devoted to the art of masonry heater construction.

I have spent hours looking at and reading about these heaters, and I'm nearly sold on the idea. Here you will find an extensive collection of heaters of all styles.

These things heat by radiating stored energy from a wood fire. Twice a day you burn an unrestricted fire, the gases travel through a labyrinth of passages and nearly all the fire's heat is captured in the masonry mass. This stored energy is then radiated slowly to the surrounding area, heating things instead of heating air.

This type of heater works best in an open floor plan house, making this a feasible choice for the a-frame.

As an added bonus, these things are beautiful to look at!! Anyway, Paul is looking for places to build these heaters, and would like to do more along these lines. We may take him up on the project.......

So those were some of the thoughts cruising through my head as I plowed and shoveled. Making plans, considering options. I'm sure that when we get moved and settled in this spring, we will be making some decisions about what projects to start first.... we have a list started!

Plowing is done, ATV loaded and ready to head back to Ottertail North.

The ATV does a pretty nice job on the driveway! And the sunset was pretty nice as well.

That's it for now.

I gotta go, Carlo





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