Tuesday, June 16, 2009 -
It is overcast again this morning and NWS is predicting thundershowers for the afternoon. The wind has picked up and was blowing at a steady 9 or 10 mph, but then calmed down after noon. The ground is very muddy, after yesterday’s rain, so roadwork is out of the question.
The dirt around my place consist mainly of clay, so when it is wet, the mud sticks to anything and everything, making grading almost impossible. When I have attempted to work in it, I had to stop the dozer every 50 feet to clear the mud that stuck to the box blade. I spent more time clearing the mud than working the road, so now I wait until the dirt isn’t so wet.
I have spent this morning reading my emails and researching chipmunks. I have been enjoying their antics in and around my woodpile, so wanted to find out a little more about them. According to all of the sites I investigated, there are 25 different species, and with the exception of one Asian species, all live in North America. I discovered that their average life span is 7 years, which is longer than I would have guessed. But National Geographic’s site states that in the wild, they only live 2 to 3 years. Wikipedia states that they are omnivores and even eat bird eggs, while another site states that they also eat fledglings and small frogs.
They have had many different names through out history, but we know them as chipmunks. They have been called: chitmunk, chipmonk, chipmuck and chipminck. They have also been known as chip squirrels, striped squirrels, chippers, munks, timber tigers (I really like that one), and ground squirrels. I found out that the Eastern chipmunk is larger than the Western chipmunk and lighter in color, while the Asian chipmunk is the smallest of the species. All of them hibernate in the winter, but rather than put on fat and survive by sleeping the entire time, they wake and eat some of the stored food every couple of weeks. The Eastern chipmunks have two litters of 4 to 5, spring and late summer, while the western chipmunk only has one litter in the spring.
Chipmunk nests, or tunnel system, can be as long as 30 feet, and have many chambers. The sleeping chamber is usually filled with leaves, grass and even feathers, to make it comfortable, while the other chambers are used to store food and their waste. One site suggested that some chipmunks use bird’s nests as a home, but I doubt that happens around here, as they couldn’t be protected from the winter weather.
Of the 20+ species that comprise the Western chipmunk, I have the Least chipmunk at my cabin, although I would be hard pressed to tell you the differences from all the other species. Evidently, chipmunks make good pets if they are hand raised, but I certainly don’t need one while I have multiple families of them entertaining me right outside my window.
On another note, I did research on Cat Scratch Disease (CSD), which is just one of the zoonosis diseases that can be passed from animals to humans (Dogs can also carry the CSD and pass it to humans). I had just read an article in one of the magazines I get from the AKC and my vet; about CSD and it all of sudden dawned on me that it may account for the non-healing sore on the top of my foot. While Zack and I played at the Salton Sea, he stepped on the top of my bare foot, scratching it rather badly, to the point of bleeding. His claws and pads are sharp and my skin is thin, so it left a wound that scabbed over, which as it healed, itched. This occurred some four months ago and now the area of the wound has lost its scab, but still doesn’t look like it is healed. It has begun itching so badly that it will awaken me in the middle of the night.
After connecting the information in the CSD article to my symptoms, I realized they matched, so did additional online research on the matter and discovered that while CSD isn’t considered common, it does occur and there doesn’t seem to be a cure. If I have contracted a case of CSD, then it should run its course in six months and leave no after affect. There are case studies of it causing additional medical problems, but the possibility is slim. I will share the information I downloaded with my doctor, at tomorrow’s appointment, and see if she is even aware of CSD.
The sun has broken through the clouds and in the clear spots I can see beautiful Cumulus clouds rising to 30 or 40 thousand feet. Zack is out on the deck enjoying the sunshine and dreaming about chasing something. His feet are moving and he is woofing under his breath. He seems to be enjoying the chase, and it may be a reenactment of him chasing Jackrabbits at Salton Sea.
I am going to conclude my research on Healing Through Humor, as I have ordered and had three books sent to my friend Bruce in Wisconsin. His prognosis is only months, if not less, and I remembered reading about Dr. Norman Cousins healing himself through humor (his book is, Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by the Patient). His resulting research, concluded by doctors and scientist, indicates that laughter releases chemicals that help manage pain and boosts the immune system. Most of my research concludes that indeed laughter can cure many human maladies.
Hughes has slowed down my download speed again, so I am going to quit for the day and after playing with Zack again, I’ll feed him and them myself. A nice shower and some relaxing television should finish off my day.

Monday, June 15, 2009 -
It is cooler this morning and the sky is full of rain filled clouds. I decided to start a small fire to take the chill off the sunroom and then started the generator so I could go online to work on my blogs and do some research.
NWS is predicting a 60% chance of thunderstorms today and by 11:45, the sky opened up and it rained hard for about 15 minutes, and then quit. The sky has that eerie glow of gray-green and the forest is dark green with freshly washed needles. I love a good storm as it washes and cleans everything, helping to keep the dust down and Mother Nature at her best.
Like other areas in the north, I have suffered the devastation of the Bark Beetle, which has moved down from Canada, killing off fir trees by the thousands. It is nature’s way of thinning out the weak trees as the beetles don’t attack healthy ones, but the next natural step is a forest fire to clear out the dead debris. Living in the middle of an almost million acre national forest is wonderful, until you realize that it can all be taken away in a moment. I know that fires can affect everyone and people lose their homes to it on a regular basis, but homes can be rebuilt, forests take years and years to grow to their beauty.
The day passed with two more downpours, depositing almost half an inch of water, but by late afternoon, the clouds started to break up and the some sunshine started to shine through. It never did warm up, but I did have to finally let the fire die down and open the sliding doors for some fresh air.
After doing research most of the day, and writing, I finally stopped at 7:30 PM, took a shower, fixed myself some dinner and then relaxed in front of the television.

Sunday, June 14, 2009 - New Web Site - Notes From The Cabin
It looks pretty threatening outside and NWS is indicating a 50% chance of a thunderstorm today, so I have decided that if I did do any road work, and it rains, then I’d probably be back to square one, so I’ll work indoors today.
It wasn’t cold enough to build a fire, and when the sun did shine through, it made the sunroom hot enough to open the sliding doors. I have the backup generator running on the economy mode so I can work online, and have spent the morning finishing all the postings to the travel log web site, adding photos as necessary, and then set up a new daily blog web site at http://mountainmanalbert.blogspot.com/
I will attempt to maintain this blog site and keep it current as I write my daily logs. I’ll keep the travel web site for when I take trips, and use Notes From The Cabin to keep readers updated on my daily activities and adventures around my cabin.
After spending ALL DAY on updating the travel site and then setting up the new blog site, I have a new admiration for those people, like my friend Kathy that authors her web site, Legends of America, and respect how much time it takes to operate a full-time site. I just hope I can keep up with these writings and still work on my books, and get things done around the cabin.
The afternoon did produce a little rain, but more thunder than storm. Zack enjoys being able to go outside and play, even in the rain, so we did more than usual today. I continued working on the blog until almost 9 O’clock before quitting for the day. I had some dinner, showered, watched some television and then went to bed at about 11:30.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Saturday, June 13, 2009 -
Sunny and clear this morning, but by noon, the cloud cover started moving in and looks like the NWS prediction of a thunderstorm is possible.
After my morning routine, I will go out and see if there is any way I can straighten the upright bracket for the top track roller on the dozer. I think I may be able to use the jack and a short length of chain to pull it out enough so the track will ride correctly on the roller. If not, I’ll have to order the entire roller and brackets to correct it.
I managed to correct the roller problem, but it will never be the same, as it doesn’t roll any more, but then I don’t think the other ones roll either. It doesn’t seem to affect the wear on the track, so I’ll just keep checking it carefully for any signs of a problem. I tried to use the jack and a chain to pull the roller back in alignment, but I just didn’t have enough clearance to make it work, so I had to remove the track and then the damaged roller to repair the bent upright brackets. Once that was accomplished, which took most of the afternoon, I was able to reassemble everything and reattach the track and adjust it.
I think the repair will hold, but I think I’ll order a complete bracket and roller assembly in case it doesn’t fare well. If only the roller is affected and not the track, then it can’t do any more damage than it has already. I tired as quickly as yesterday and wonder if my blood sugar is the problem. I’ll ask my doctor about it when I go in on Thursday for a blood draw. I have no stamina at all and it isn’t even hot outside. I rested, playing with Zack more often than usual, and drank lots of fluids, both water and a soda, but still feel wiped out.
I finished and put my tools away, cleaned up, and started the generator by 6 PM. I need to switch from the portable generator to the big one so I can draw water for a shower. The small generator won’t delivery enough amps to get the water pump running, so I have to rewire the other generator to have the necessary power. Once I have built up enough pressure, there will be enough water to last me until tomorrow afternoon.
I discovered that I can run the small generator on the economy mode and one gallon of gas will last me three days, and I only need to run the big generator to run the water pump. When the batteries are installed, they will provide the power to run the water pump and I should be able to charge the batteries with the small generator on the economy mode, which will allow me to take the large generator to Great Falls for the repairs it needs, and use the small one as necessary.
I played with Zack until his tongue almost fell out, but even so, he is staring at me for more playtime. I fed him and Zoey asked for some wet, so I gave it to her. I will switch generators and shower, fix something to eat and relax for the rest of the night. Tomorrow, I hope to do some roadwork, making my passage to and from town a little more comfortable.

Friday, June 12, 2009 -
It was sunny this morning, but feels cooler than the past couple of mornings. NWS is now predicting 50% chance of thunderstorms for Sunday, with a 40% chance between now and then.
I feel lazy this morning and have taken my time reading a magazine and then starting the generator so I could collect my emails and send yesterday’s update. Zack and I have played and took a short walk and he is now napping while I do some research online.
After playing with Zack again, I changed into my old work clothes and went out to get something done. I am split between having so many tasks on my list, that I hardly know where to start. I unloaded the gas, 2 x 4s, insulation board, and propane tanks from the truck and then parked it in the garage. I got the trail mower out and then backed the Argo out of the garage, hooking the trail mower up to it. If you remember correctly, I had attempted to start the unused trail mower to circulate the Sta-Bil in the gas tank, and the pull start cord wouldn’t retract, well, for whatever reason, it was retracted and with several pulls I was able to get it started. I mowed the front half of the property before parking both of them back in the garage. I really just wanted to see if the damn thing worked, and it does. Because it is a “trail mower” and not a lawn mower, it doesn’t cut close to the ground and my grass isn’t really high enough to make much difference, but I was able to cover the same area in about 30 minutes that took me a day with the push mower, so I am happy.
I then decided to use the bulldozer to smooth out my driveway, so started it up and moved it out of the garage. The right track seemed way too tight, so I got out my wrenches to adjust it. Because I’ve had the tracks come off of the gears so often, I try to keep them adjusted and lubed on a regular basis, but this track was so tight that if I didn’t know better, I’d say it shrank in the rain. There was absolutely no play in it at all. I loosened the lock bolt and attempted to turn the adjusting bolt, but it was frozen in place. I can’t believe that it must have rusted fast in just the few months of non-use, but nothing I did could get it to move. I sprayed it liberally with Wrench Free and let it soak.
I checked the opposite side, and it adjusted without a problem, so I had to figure some way to free up the right side. I finally ended up using a pipe wrench and 6-ton hydraulic jack to make it move a fraction of an inch. After about 8 times of jacking the wrench, it loosened enough that I was able to move it without the jack. I guess it was just the rust, but then I noticed that the track was not riding on the top roller, but actually the outside was riding on the outer edge of the roller.
Closer examination leads me to believe that the upright holding the roller is bent inward and it caused the roller to move enough that I can’t get the track to ride in the roller. I worked on it until 7:30 and became exhausted, so I quit and played with Zack. I can’t believe how fast I got tired, and I mean like I had been working hard all day long, not just a few hours. I am drinking lots of water and resting often, remembering how high my blood pressure has been. No need to have a stroke over something I can finish tomorrow.
I fed Zack and Zoey came to ask for some canned food, so I gave her a little. She only eats about a quarter of one of the small cans and that satisfies her. I sat down to cool off and relax before taking my shower. After my shower, I fixed myself a couple of frozen French bead pizzas and sat down to watch television before going to bed at midnight.

Thursday, June 11, 2009 -
It is a bright sunny morning, but there are numerous clouds on the horizon and NWS is still predicting 40% chance of a thunderstorm this afternoon.
I had my usual morning and then got ready to head into town to have additional work done on my teeth. I loaded all the gas cans; two propane tanks and a bag of trash, planning on going to the transfer station to dump the old water heater.
I wasn’t sure if they still had traffic control in effect for the Marysville Road, so I left the cabin with enough time to allow me to get to the check point at the usual 15 past the hour departure time. As we got to Belmont, which is the road going to the ski resort, the sign was out to wait for the follow me vehicle and they were working on the road, spreading gravel and rolling it for a large parking area for recreational users. At about five after the hour, they waved me through and I drove into Marysville and got in line behind the three cars waiting for the follow me truck.
Aside from painting the lines and finishing the guardrail installation, they appear to be finished, having paved all of the aprons and side road approaches. I really see no reason for continued road control, but it provides work for the people that do it. We made it to town and went right to the transfer station, dumping the trash bag and putting the old water heater in the metal reclamation area. We then drove to Montana Propane and had the two empty tanks filled. On the way back into town, I stopped and grabbed a burger for lunch and after eating, I called Fred’s cabin to say hi to all the guys. This is the week that they met for the annual get together.
Jack answered the phone and we talked for a while, bring each other up on current events. Fred and some others were out on one of Fred’s “walks,” which usually takes an hour or two. As it approached my appointment time, I said goodbye and drove to the dentist office.
They took me right in and John explained that he needed to clean up the tooth before taking a mold to cast my new crown. I thought he had done all of the work during the last visit and wasn’t prepared for another shot to numb the left side of my face. The work took about an hour and he filled my broken wisdom tooth to help it last longer. He didn’t charge me for the filling, saying I was such a good patient and was already paying a lot for the root canal and crown. I paid for today’s work and scheduled an appointment for putting the crown on.
We drove over to Safeway where I got a few items and filled the gas cans, and stopped at Home Depot to get some treated 2 x 4s for the cattle guard I will build, and then headed for home. We arrived at Marysville Road at about 20 after 6 PM, so waited with the other vehicles. I expected to wait until 6:45, but she brought cars down at 6:30 and then stopped to tell me, no one else, just me, that next week the times would change and leaving Marysville would be on the hour and returning would be on the half-hour. She then turned around and took us up the road.
The road already had the right side fog line and center lines painted, and I thought they may have done them all of the way to Marysville, but we soon came upon the truck in the center of the road. It had broken down and was waiting for someone to come repair it.
We stopped at Mary and Guy’s to drop off some magazines I share with them, but they weren’t home, so he headed up the mountain, arriving home at a little after 7 PM. I unloaded the truck and played with Zack before starting the generator and sitting down to relax.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009 -
It is partially cloudy this morning, with the sun shining through as much as being hidden. It is warmer by several degrees, so the cold front is gone. NWS is predicting 30 and 40% chances of thunderstorms for the entire week, and because we need the moisture, I would welcome it.
My chipmunks have been entertaining me with their antics all morning and I have named another one. He is “Itchy” because he either has a nerve disorder, mites, or lice, because he constantly stops to scratch himself. Another one I have named is “Humper”, as he has tried to mate with ever other chipmunk that will hold still. I attached the empty peanut butter jar to the top of the 2 x 4 that holds the end of the firewood rack, and filled it with sunflower seeds. I have watched several of the little guys try to figure out how to get to them, but so far haven’t witnessed any of them achieving success. I know one of them will figure out how to get to them and will keep me entertained.
I spend most of the morning doing additional research and trying to communicate with the battery place to purchase the batteries, but Hughes slowed me down again, saying I exceeded my usage. When I am in town tomorrow, I will call them and talk to someone. If they can guaranty that Hughes won’t slow me down, I’ll pay another $20.00 a month to upgrade.
I drove to the Divide and called my dentist to confirm my appointment for tomorrow at 2:30, came back, changed the oil in the small generator and wired it to the cabin. It uses less gas and I am almost out of gas for the big generator. Zack and I played for a bit and then I fixed him his dinner, and then showered and will think about my dinner. I’ll fix something and then relax for the rest of the night.
I just witnessed one of my little friends get into the sunflower seed jar. He stretched his little body between the closest pieces of wood and pulled himself to the rim of the plastic jar. He is now sitting INSIDE the jar, filling his cheeks with as many seeds as he can. Those that he is eating, drops the shells back into the jar and I am not sure how I’ll dump them out to refill it. Watching them are better than a Saturday Matinee with cartoons.