Waste not, want not...

The shepherd's crook that was too wimpy for the hanging baskets turned out to be just right for a couple of bird feeders. We picked up a hummingbird feeder and a song bird feeder. Now the patio feels like a backyard.

It will be interesting to see if we get any birds, given the density of the population here and the number of wandering cats in the neighborhood! Perhaps, if we leave Pogo tethered outside, she will scare away the cats, and the birds will thrive... maybe not...

Incidentally, the plant I hadn't identified in the hanging basket turns out to be scaevola, also known as Fan Flower.

Scaevola "Blue Wonder"

It is native to Australia and the south sea islands and Hawaii. The interesting thing about it is that the flowers are semi-circular, as if someone had cut the blossoms in half, hence the name Fan Flower.

Notice the "half" flowers.

The legend goes that a young maiden was jilted by her lover, so she cut the flower in half. He was then doomed to wander the earth until he could find a whole flower.

Oh, yeah!

I forgot to mention in my last post that we did some shopping today. We have been here a little over 3 weeks, and we expect to be here about another three months, so we decided it was high time we dolled up our patio to make it a little more attractive. Jill bought a double shepherd's crook plant stand last week, and we thought we would hang a couple of pots of flowers on it. Then yesterday, she was shopping at Rite Aid and found out they had left over red, white and blue color bowls for sale for $5.99.

Today we went to Dallas to see the house progress (see previous post), and we stopped and bought a couple of the pots of flowers. We also tried Wally World, but their plants were way too expensive. Imagine, Wally World with prices that can't compete. On the way back home, we stopped at Bi-Mart and picked up a hanging ivy geranium and a hanging something else that I don't recognize. I also got a drip watering system with timer that I can hook up to the faucet and keep things nice and moist.

Our little retreat.

I put out our patio rug, and now we have a nice retreat in the out of doors. Unfortunately, the shepherd's crook was not stout enough to support the two hanging baskets, so we are planning to pick up a couple of bird feeders to hang there. In the meantime, we have some color on the patio.

The prettiest flower of all!

The first wall goes up...

The first wall of our new home is standing!!

I don't know if I am excitedly disappointed, or disappointedly excited. It's somewhere in that general neighborhood. We went by the house today, and the first wall is up. Woo Whoo! That part is exciting. The disappointing part is that Jill went by yesterday, while I was in Portland, and they have not made any progress. She spoke to Robert yesterday, and he was frustrated, because they needed a shipment of materials from Parr Lumber. It had not yet arrived, nor has it by today, as nearly as I can tell.

Here are some more walls yet to be erected.

So, all of that being said, I must say I am grateful to have one wall up! This whole process of pulling up stakes and moving to Dallas has gone so smoothly that I forget there will be snafus from time to time. This is one. Since the weather has been a hindrance -- first too wet, then too hot -- I guess I am feeling the time slipping away. Tomorrow is Sunday, so I don't expect anything to happen. My hope is that Monday will bring the needed materials and more temperate weather so that we can get some real progress.

A look at the 3 car garage

And of course, the piece de resistance, the RV garage/shop.

Nine (count 'em), nine years...

Would you go to the beach with this gorgeous chick?

Yesterday was our 9th wedding anniversary. Hard to believe. Seems like only 8 years and 12 months. Actually, in some ways it seems like a couple of years, because we are still on our honeymoon! In other ways it seems like 30 years, because we trust each other so much and communicate so well and think so much alike. But I digress...

Neither of us had ever been to Pacific City. Unlike many of the more famous towns on the Oregon coast, PC is not situated on U.S. 101. It is several miles off the main highway and just north of Nestucca Bay. We decided it would be fun to explore the area in celebration of our anniversary, having no idea what to expect.

It was an indescribably delicious feeling to know that the beach was only 45 miles away! After living most of our lives in Portland, we were unaccustomed to such a short drive to the shore. It is a straight shot from Dallas to Pacific City on Oregon route 22. That is it is straight in terms of staying on the same route. The road, on the other hand, winds through some of the most beautiful countryside you can imagine. The Oregon Coast Range is not tall, but it is covered with vegetation like a rain forest.

We arrived at PC around mid day and found that the parking lot near the beach access in the "resort" area was packed. Driving further north, we found a place where we could park on the beach and have a stroll. Pogo loves running on the beach, and how she did run.

After a romp on the beach, we drove back toward PC and up the hill to see the "view lots and homes." Wow! We are talking rich-guy houses here... 3,000 square feet, with views of the ocean. Very swanky!

We headed back to "PC central" and did a little exploring on foot. There is a grocery/deli/gift shop on the main drag that has wonderful ice cream, and it is only $2 for a large scoop on a cone. Try the coffee almond fudge!

Our explorer genes clicked in, and we got back in the car. Following our noses we had a long and winding journey through a beautiful state park and wound up in Netarts and Oceanside. These two tiny towns sit one on Netarts Bay and one on the ocean. They are charming and were crowded with tourists/sunbathers/sand castle architects.

We toured the area in the car and then headed for Tillamook, which is a larger town of several thousand population and the center of milk/cheese/dairy production on the north Oregon coast. Passing through Tillamook, we headed back toward PC. Scenery abounds on U.S. 101, and we quickly found ourselves back in PC. By this time, fog had rolled in, and the crowds had thinned out.

It was then too chilly to stay on the beach, so we decided to have an anniversary dinner at the Pelican Pub and Brewery. This is a place I can recommend wholeheartedly. In spite of its name, it is quite family friendly. The food is top quality pub food (we had the "famous fish and chips") and the handcrafted beers are wonderful. The Doryman's Dark Ale was smooth and chocolatey with a tiny bite of hops... a perfect complement to the fish. I might add that the service was friendly without being too familiar. We will no doubt return to the Pelican.

At last, we had to head for home. One last stroll on the beach for Pogo's sake convinced us that the warmth of the day was past, which made it easier to leave. The drive back through the mountains was just as pretty as it was on the way out. Going by Nestucca Bay, Jill couldn't resist one shot from the car. Clearly, the fog in PC was a local phenomenon.

When we arrived back in Independence, we found the heat of the day was NOT past! A few minutes with the AC on, though, and Sadie was quite livable again. We both agreed that the anniversary celebration was a complete and utter success.

More progress...if the weather will co-operate.

We stopped by the house on our way to the beach yesterday. The sub-floor insulation was being installed. We had a chat with Robert, Duane's right hand man. He said the crew would start at 6:00 o'clock this morning to lay the decking on the joists.

The weather is up to its old tricks again. Now we have the opposite problem -- whereas, the crew couldn't do anything for a couple of weeks due to rain last month, now the weather has turned hot. It was 98 degrees yesterday and may be hotter today. The good news is that Robert said, "This house will go up really fast."

We have plumbing!

This photo shows the foundation at the corner of the garage
and the front of the music room. The white vertical things are
plumbing stubs, and the boards, of course are the rim joists.

We stopped by the house today to see the progress. Unfortunately, just as we were driving over there, the sky opened up. When we arrived the ground was pretty soggy. Nevertheless, I braved the mud to see what progress has been made in the last couple of days.

We now have a foundation, joists and plumbing! Today, the HVAC sub-contractor was scheduled to arrive and install the heat ducting and the base of the furnace. He hadn't arrived as of the time we were there for a visit. Duane was pretty sure he would finish today, though, and we would be able to get an inspection today and start decking the foundation next week. I hope he is right, since we have a holiday on Monday, which means no inspections on Monday.

And now watch as our home magically springs from the soil...well, almost!

This is the day we have been waiting for. The foundation for our new house was poured today! This post will contain mainly media.

Here is the concrete pumping machine. It is very impressive.

The concrete pours into a hopper on the back of the pumper.

The forms await filling.

The pumper operator has a wireless remote control that hangs around his neck. With it he precisely moves the boom to the proper location for pouring the concrete.

Now the fun begins!

Alberto begins the pour of the footings.





Pouring the center footing.





Duane vibrates the concrete to compact it.





Screeding off the top of the wall to make it flat and level. The mud sill will be bolted on here, and the walls will be built on top of them.

This high tech piece of construction equipment serves the vital function of preventing concrete from going down the electrical conduit, through which the cables from the street will bring electricity to the house.

Tomorrow, the forms will be stripped off and the placement of the joists will commence. Also, Jill will return from Denver, so she can see the progress.