Hillbilly Harbinger

Last week…. A real killer without much downtime. Long days at work, errands every evening and then things that always seem to need doing out at the lodge. Somehow, made it through.
Friday night we ate at My Verona. Pricey, but worth every penny. The service and attention to detail was topnotch, more so than any other restaurant I can recall. The dishes: unique, unpronounceable, and delicious. http://www.cedarfallstimes.com/assets/pagePDFs/pdf200916-43105.pdf Makes the Brown Bottle look like Burger King.

I took a bullet and supervised an 8 hour shift Saturday morning. Meanwhile, things were heating up outside. I swung by the parents around 2 for an old bottle of Disc Quiet, then to the lodge where the sun was out in full force. Cara ran errands while I hauled brush, shoveled dirt, painted the side deck and hauled the jack out front and changed the brake pads on the Blazer. Whew. Then… crack open a bottle of wine and take in a few MadMen as the sun set. Completely exhausted after 6 days of work and other sundry toil, I bedded down like the dead.

At 3:30AM Cara made several attempts to wake me, and finally, after the howling got too much to handle, I got up and scrambled. The lodge was fit to blow away in one of the most bizarre wind storms I can recall. Instead of a quick, violent downburst, the winds circled and changed directions north/south, then east/west, all pretty much simultaneously.

First, I closed all north facing windows and laid back down. (closing the north windows cuts the exit path for the south blowing winds and thus the wind goes around the building and not through it). No change. This was odd, I thought. Then, set up the ladder and closed all but one clerestory. Still, the wind was cutting parallel to the open window screen, whistling with ever changing pitch. I closed up all windows, trekked to the upper deck door and stepped outside. Trees were bending, the wind was forcing its way up inside the soffits and screaming as it cut across the edges of the fascia boards. I looked out in the side yard and one of the heavy wire chairs that had been on the balcony was now laying in the side yard…somehow it made its way through the steel railing uprights on the west end of the deck and launched itself down onto the grass….without leaving a paint mark or scratch on any of the railing. And still, no rain. With all windows closed and everything outside locked down, we went back to bed. So much for a good night's sleep.

Sunday, sun shining in our faces, guess we better get up. After breakfast and tidying, we took my spreadsheets and lists over to menards and, in one swoop, hauled, ordered, arranged delivery and purchased 95% of the materials needed to build the drive-in screen, fence, and concession and projection buildings along with the viewing deck. Can't say my wallet has screamed like that in a very long time. 10-day lead time on the special order, so I guess we'll see if official groundbreaking is the 24th, or the 31st.

And what better way to celebrate the accomplishment of getting out of Menards with souls intact than a trip to Hardee's. Actually, the good was great as usual. Angus thickburgers, onion rings and hand breaded chicken strips.

We decided to press our luck, and went to Lowes to try to order corrugated fiberglass panels that Menards did sell when I planned the DI, but no longer offers. Finding that Lowes had some of these on their website, same brand and all, gave me a glimmer of hope. But as is Lowe's wont, their staff consists of Home Depot castoffs that wouldn't know a truss from a joist. Much hand holding and photocopying of a brochure I brought in ensued. Will I get a call from them today? How have they managed to stay in business? These are the questions.