Nickel Farm

This closeup of the oolitic limestone stones comprising the 1879 portion of the house shows the individual chisel marks made by hard working pioneers. The walls are about 20″ thick which sometimes make signal reception on a cell phone difficult.

Finally got all the glass panels installed in the Sun Room. Still need to add wood trim to the windows and install glass sliders. Hope to have a warm, sunny place to eat breakfast this coming winter!

I’m planning on having “vine ripened” tomatos clear to Christmas. For that to happen, I ripped several wood strips off the house and built a simple frame right around my 7′ tall plants and covered it with visqueen. The tomatos are planted adjacent to a south facing rock wall and should, with the electric heater I placed in the tent, last well into the fall.

Spent a good part of the day sawing up some of the logs I hauled Wednesday. I have great respect for the danger of a chainsaw so take great precaution when handling it. Late in the day, I took down about a hundred feet of chain-link fence along the western boundary in preparation for grading in the spring. I also needed to get access to the pile of broken concrete I plan to haul to the dump tomorrow.

Decided today to revise the house plan by converting the present living room to a family room.  I had previously planned to convert the living room to another bedroom and a bath but now realize that my large family will need a big room in which to gather for reunions, etc.  I will provide an additional bathroom in combination with the laundry just east of the kitchen.  Also, will completely re-design the kitchen to include two separate workstations for large gatherings.

Enjoyed a Family Valentine Party at church tonight.  Lots of food and fun dances like the Virginia Reel, Greek Dance, etc.