Ashland Ice Box

Whoa! long time since we have updated, sorry followers. Too much going on as usual.... Trip to Florida to see Grandma better. Michigan and Detroit for the holidays. Now, we are finally home, back to this Wisconsin life. Latest books in our clutches: Bridget is reading The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. And I am on my fifth Aldo book (the best one yet!): For the Health of the Land by Aldo Leopold edited by J. Baird Callicot and Eric T. Freyfogle.

Oprah ought to be recommending these both like they were a top priority in this nation! Other recent additions to our life include our much awaited (3 years of research) la cocotte 8 quart hand crafted in France enameled cast iron pot (to piss in). Silly as it may sound, these are the best pots on the planet. They cook evenly, they are not made in China (like most cookware of today) and they will last forever. They are made by: Staub. Other recent additions include our Eliot Coleman books, both of which most Americans consider to be the bible of organic gardening: The New Organic Grower and: Four Season Harvest. He is featured in The Omnivore's Dilemma, and B went to one of his presentations last year in Port Townsend. We start our Master Gardener course in two weeks. Talking about the weather is rather drab, blogging about it seems worse, however, -22F affects your brain such that you must talk or at least complain about it (a little). Today we are struck with a heat wave:22 F !!!!!!!!!
Now, the house......... Our drains are currently frozen, so no showers or bathroom sink (till spring?) but current projects include removing old wiring and adding new. ZAPPPP!
and, the first steps to the largest of projects: vaulting our ceiling. So I have isolated a room upstairs (containing the inevitable dust and blown polystyrene) from the rest of the house. i think we have to move downstairs to safely escape the demo that is about to occur. First all the insulation most be removed to access the frame work. Thats right, powder turns in Wisconsin!