Boat!

Once again - you'll need to go over to the sail blog for an update of our activities!

http://mccrawsails.blogspot.com/

Timberrrrrrrrrr!

There was a tree at the back of the hangar that had died this past year.  Duane said he had "nicked it" with the loader many years ago while we were clearing for the hangar.  I guess it finally gave up.....

It's a pretty big pine tree and it would do massive damage to the hangar should it fall that direction.  So, Duane fired up the offending loader to dispatch the tree!

The loader bucket is pressing against the tree here -kinda hard to see, but it's the tree in the very center of the photo.

Duane is also hard to see, but he's back there in a maroon shirt with a chainsaw making a few "wedge cuts" that will allow him to push the tree over easier.

And then one great big push and the tree is falling nicely clear of the hangar!

 And that's all that's left of that old dead tree!  Anyone want some dry pine for a bon-fire?

NC State Fair 2014, gotta love it!

Dick and Lindy invited me to volunteer again for the Kiwanis ham-biscuit booth at the NC State Fair.

Early morning departure for the drive to the Raleigh fairgrounds......

Weird to see the fairgrounds so early - like a ghost town!

This "alley" is usually filled with fairgoers!

Getting ready to open up!

The biscuit "factory"!  Luan, Charlee and Lindy hard at work.

Jerry spent the entire day unwrapping "Grands" biscuits, putting them in the oven, then taking them out of the oven when they were just "perfect"!

Dan spent the entire day grilling the country ham....a smelly job!

I spent the entire day at the window taking/filling orders....in a lull moment, I had time to eat my breakfast - a fabulously hot Grands biscuit with some homemade peach butter.  Yummy!!!!

We had a break mid-morning when the sales dwindled....the 4 girls went for a "walkabout".....random fair judging photos....

Loved this sailboat painting.

And the quilts displayed were amazing!

Did I say amazing?  This one was mind-blowing!  You can't see the detail in this photo - but this is the "best in show" area.  Really, really detailed.

Large amounts of knitted goods - my sis would enjoy this area!

And my sis-in-law would enjoy this one - there were so many amazing quilts on display that they had a lady there all day flipping thru them for the crowd!  Each one was a masterpiece!

But we only got to roam for a little while....had to get back to the booth!  I took this photo out of the window of the booth.  He wandered the alleyway stopping to chat with all sorts of folks.

Mid-afternoon I got another chance to go solo for a quest for some "corn"... I always like to get one of those roasted ears of corn - simple and yummy!

Now the perfect weather was bringing the crowds.

I meandered thru a couple of buildings.....happened upon a judging in one of the livestock buildings.

And there were cute little goats displayed too!

The next building housed the fruits and veggies.  Amazing pumpkins!

Every kind of veggie was represented and judged.

There were plenty of NC apples - and familiar names on the tags.....thought I snapped a photo of it, but there were tags for Tony Hill also.

And I finally found the booth I wanted for my corn.....the vendor kindly posed with my snack!  It was yummy!

A walk near the midway....I'm not into the rides at all.....

And I certainly wouldn't want to win one of these things 'cause I just don't want them!

Back to the booth.....for a few more hours....

And one more mini-break to go see these balloons.  Lindy had seen them and insisted I needed to sneak out for a peek.

She was right - the "balloon sculpture" was pretty cool!  All made 100% of balloons.  Enjoy!

New (to us) Boat!

Sorry to keep sending you away from the World of Karen....

but hop over to the sailing blog for BIG NEWS!    http://mccrawsails.blogspot.com/

Sailboat shopping

Hope over to the sailing blog to see what we are up to....


http://mccrawsails.blogspot.com/

On my way home, I spied Dick's new ballon afloat! Neat-o!!!

"Spring" (no wait....."Fall") Cleaning

Our basement "utility room" has once again gotten stuffed with stuff.  

It got so bad that you really couldn't even walk to the shelves.  Time to fix that again (it seems to happen every few years...)

I know, it still looks cluttered....this was several hours of work!  And a pile hauled away for donation to Habitat!

Change in Blog Name

Just wanted to make note of a change - since we sold Glory Days - it's not really appropriate that my sailing blog be called that!!

I've changed the web address to http://mccrawsails.blogspot.com/  - so bookmark it and stay tuned!!!

I'm Tired!

I spent my "day off" washing the house!  I mean, literally, washing the outside of the house!

It has been a couple of years since we've washed the siding.  On all sides but the south facing one, a "grunge" grows.....

I think it's a mix of mold, mildew and just plain dirt!

Some bleach mixed with "house wash" from Lowe's sprayed on thick.  Then a good rinse with the power washer.

Front of the house....before....

And after....it took all day - the sun is setting now!

And the railing for the front porch were in really yucky shape....

I thought I was going to have to re-paint....but they washed up just perfect!

More door work!

This weekend, what was left of it, was spent on more door work. Betcha thought we were done with that, didn't ya??

This is the last of it, hopefully of for another 20 years!

The laundry room door jambs were just too rotten for Duane....so he decided we'd just rip the old door out and put a new one in it's place.   The old one came out easy enought - the new one is in place and I'm in the process of painting it.  (the one leaning against the house is red on the other side- you're seeing the inside of that door).

Photo taken this morning with one coat of paint on the new door.

And the other work in progress is the rebuild of the garage door frameworks.

Too much moisture and not enough paint over the years!

And, of course, Duane won't just fix the worst spot, the whole frame has to come down!

Not enough time this weekend to finish it....so the saga will continue!

Siler City Airport Open House

Fabulous day for a Open House!

Random photos -

Early in the morning, before the event started, there was a lot of set up to do!

Sandy setting up the registration booth.  Jim actually doing some work, not just drinking coffee and giving orders!

Scouts lined up to register for their Young Eagles rides.



Registration for Young Eagles flights.

Bill getting ready for a bumpy day of Young Eagles rides!

We had a great turnout of  pilots for the Young Eagle rides - they made quick work of this long line!

Cub Scout Pack/Boy Scout Troop  924 did a wonderful job with the concessions!  I had a slaw dog, of course!

The Siler City Fire department was there with their "Stop, Drop and Roll" display for the kids.

The Forest Service helicopter is always a  big hit - the crew spent the entire day talking with various folks!

The 4th Annual Open house was the best ever - parking lot packed full!

A gusty day for Young Eagles - but the pilots stuck it out and flew over 100 kids!

And what event is complete without some Ben and Jerry's????