Friday, February 29, 2008

Leap Day

I've decided that today is a special holiday. I get to count this as an extra day, and I'll just do whatever I darn well please with it.

Which, translated, means: "I don't feel like packing up to leave my winter home yet."

Naught to be done about it, our work season begins. Phil is already in Todd Mission, and I'll join him this weekend ... if I ever get the van packed. We're constructing another fruit booth at TRF, and we'll fly to NYC for a food show next week. All of this means that the lounging season has ended. No more walking outside to pick a grapefruit for breakfast every day.

Usually about this time Phil and I start saying that next year, we're going to get here earlier, and leave later ... but it doesn't tend to work out that way. We tend to be drawn to where our projects are. Our current plan is to create winter projects here. We'd both like to make the house more energy efficient, and we really dislike the weird carport-closed-in-to-be-a-porch thing. So the plan for next year is to redesign the porch to follow the lines of the dormer above, put on metal roofing, and maybe get half of the windows replaced with more efficient models. Oh, and a solar batch heater for water.

The long-term plans involve wrapping the house with rigid foam insulation, then lathing and stuccoing to make the house not only super-insulated, but to also help it fit in culturally with the local architecture. All of the windows will have to be replaced before that can happen, so I don't have a time-frame for it ... other than the idea that Phil and I would both like to have these things done before we are thinking about retirement.

I'll be sure and let you know about any changes.

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