Sliver of a moon yesterday morning. Today clouds and temperature near 29F on my walk.
Most of my walk is in an association immediately behind us. We hear the noise of equipment (mowers, leaf blowers and truck mounted vacuums). A landscape company gathered leaves all day yesterday. This morning at 6AM falling leaves fell on my head where it was clean twelve hours before. The noise moves into our smaller association shortly.
My Wednesday as follows. Up before six to depart near 6AM. At our community center I dry mop a gym floor. The gym is our pickleball spot with four nets. Slow days mean 20 players show up. Near and over thirty players and the wait time is longer.
Hours are 0830L to 1130L but my early arrival works for me.
In the past I would write a newsletter to a longer address list. Siblings, sons, granddaughters and other. Part of this entry will be an outline of topics. Water in, water out at camp. A deteriorating dock at camp. People days this season (2024). How many people spent one night. This year two hundred. Alex; two, Cathy; two and my Kathy and I the other one hundred and ninety-six.
All the days are documented with Kathy alone a few times and the same for me. She had a gathering near Westbrook so continued on and spent the night at #20 for example. I was called at 9AM with a possible 4PM skin appointment. Off I went and spent the night (at #20).
My nights alone at camp or Kathy's nights alone at camp were about the same.
Repair of rotten wood is always a newsletter item. In 2022 I put shingles on the outhouse, only then clearly observing all four bottom corners were rotten. So the end of 2022 and 2023 I bought ground contact framing wood and slowly rebuilt the bottom corners one at a time. Many vivid details and various jacking and propping up techniques followed.
For myself and for the camp log book I should add a full page of details. Right now only the door has untreated wood within eighteen inches of the ground.
A large newer shed was built with supporting beams at the drip line. So left and right side beams had and will continue to have major rot. I removed wet ant filled wood for days and used tar and ground contact this summer. Not even close to a solution. SO A CONTINUING PROJECT EACH YEAR.
We also had a bumper crop of mice. Usually I trap about thirty. This year I lost track at near 75.
A plastic bucket with water at the bottom is the best trap. Seven mice in one bucket one of the nights.
Yes, they are on day 10 traveling Canada to Florida by way of The St, Lawerence Seaway, and Maritime Provinces. Today in Portland, Maine!
A surgery first used in 1938.
The surgery near my ear is now healing.
A good day is to place a handful of outdated letters or notes into recycling.
I do not need the loan papers for our purchase thirty years ago. And so on, and so on.
Pens, blank note pads, three ring binders. Pick a number. Fifteen to twenty is too many.
Camp is closed for the year with water system shut down and power off.
Here in Westbrook, we are back to routine pickleball hosting. Furnace cleaning today. Our Utah journey is behind us. Birthdays by mail is always our separate jobs.
A fall newsletter and a family Christmas letter document family history.
