February Deflation?

The sun has finally come out and the temperatures are pushing 60. At lunch outside without a jacket a couple days ago. Strange. Still feeling low on energy though, but the crocus are blooming! Need to finish pruning the trees in the backyard today before the buds get too big.

Even though the weather is changing, I am feeling really demotivated at work. They are going through a transition period, getting away from traditional education in favor of project based learning and other things. I was really into this. Lately it seems clear that the transition is being managed in a chaotic, unproductive way and I can't see much hope for any success in the short term. There is no clear vision of where they want to go.

My excitement for being a part of creating an updated educational format has gone out the window. Makes me feel a bit sad and angry. I will start poking around at other job opportunities, although not too seriously, as there is still a lot that I like about this school. Just need to decide if living with the chaos is worth it or not.

Dear Auntie Caryn, thanks for the Valentine!!

Sick Day

Friday I had to take a sick day. First time since teaching at this school (if you don't count the kidney stuff last year). I definitely wasn't the only one. Lots of people are sick including everyone in our family. Still not feeling better. Hopefully I will have a bit more energy tomorrow. It is February, after all.

It has been really windy the last four days, but at least the temperatures are up a bit. Yesterday, some factory near Rotterdam had a meltdown and was spewing junk into the air. The wind blew it toward us. Soccer games and other things were cancelled because it smelled so bad. In the news, they said, it wasn't anything bad, but it stinks might make you throw up. Because I am sure that if it stinks and makes you throw up it must be healthy...right?

Karmen & Clifton

We had a really nice visit yesterday from our friends from Rotterdam. It was really snowing when they got here, so we made fire and then Clifton, Amélie and I went for a walk. Amélie ignored him the entire time. Even though she was hungry, and he tried to share some chips with her, she acted like he wasn't there. What a stinker. At least they were both friendly after dinner, but it sure took them a long time to warm up.

Abigail had a nasty little cold this week. Had to stay home from school on Friday. The neighbor brought her some cough medicine with a strawberry flavor. When I got home from work she told me all about the special medicine 'made from strawberries'. She is feeling better today, but the cough still lingers.

Clifton and Karmen want to come visit us in the States next summer. They are interested in being a part of the dome project, so they want to check out the land we are trying to buy. Clifton wants to check out some Harley Davidson stuff, so they will probably fly into Chicago and do a lap around the lake.

All ready for the drawers.

New Sink

This has been a busy week. Don't want to get my hopes up too high yet, but we are looking to buy a piece of land about ten miles south of Marquette. If all goes well, we will sign a purchase agreement in the next week or so. Dad has been doing most of the the legwork to make it possible, and it looks like the perfect location to build the dome!

Yesterday I pulled out the old bathroom sink. Not only was it made out of the cheapest materials possible, but it was glued to the brackets and the walls. The walls were on all three sides. Completely unnecessary as just the screws would have been sufficient. Had to rig up a lever to break the bonds and broke the countertop in the process. Not sure anyone would have wanted it anyway, but now it is definitely headed for the dump.

The install so far has gone better than the demolition. The new sink and countertop are in. Looking good so far. Today I will try to connect the plumbing and install the lower frames. Hopefully the problems aren't too big because the hardware store is closed on Sundays...

We got a nice snowfall on Tuesday - gone already, of course.

The old sink.

The new sink.

Winter.

Finally, winter arrived. We have ice on the pond. It is the coldest morning of the season thus far at six below (C). The sun is shining, so it will get above freezing today, but not much. It might even snow a bit this coming week. Sure is nice to see the sun more and more! We are exiting the two months of darkness.

My energy levels are quite low. I guess that is because it is January. Haven't really even had a cold yet this winter that I can remember, so that is really great not to be so sick all the time! Also, I scheduled an appointment to get my eyes measured for laser surgery. It would be great not to deal with contacts and glasses any more. They are really busy though, so it is hard to get a spot. Needs to be planned way in advance.

A few weeks ago we had a 120 euro dimmer switch stop working in the bathroom. So we replaced it. A few days ago the same thing happened in the kitchen, but this was 130 to replace. So we decided to just put a regular switch in. Of course they can't match what we had, so we have to get everything new. We do have a match in the hall, so I brought that one to the kitchen to match everything else and the hall switch will be new.

On Wednesday I submitted my short story to the University of Michigan (Michigan Quarterly Review) to see if they will publish it. Fingers crossed. I also handed in my portfolio for a promotion at work. I am curious to see how they respond as I mentioned that I wouldn't be doing the extra work any more on a volunteer basis. Figured it was reasonable to show them what I could do, and then leave it up to them if they want to pay me for it or not.

This coming week will be about the big install for the new bathroom sink. I have to finish up one hidden part of the frame tomorrow, then I can install it next weekend. That will be a big project. After the frame and sink are installed, I will need to make all seven drawers. Another big project. Hopefully it goes in without any disasters!

We were at an playground last weekend where they have some chickens and turkeys. The girls were watching the birds for a while and then they came running up to me, "Daddy, Daddy, we have a problem! Come look! Someone cut off the birdie's head!"

Open Day

Last year when our school had an open day it was a miserable experience for me. Yesterday things went a lot better. I brought my own food which probably made the biggest difference. The school only provides little snacks even though they advertise a lunch, and they expect you to be there from 9-3. I also knew where to park and what to expect in general. Got to help out a bit with parking too, so there was a bit of variety. Otherwise my job was basically the Walmart greeter. Everyone gets the day off on Monday (except for the people who don't work on Mondays, like me).

It was a really busy week at school with working an extra day and basically finishing up my portfolio to apply for a promotion. I should be able to hand it in next week - just waiting on one last review. I even managed to get the second and last coat of tung oil on the bathroom cabinet. Needs to cure for a couple weeks before the install.

Naomi is starting to feel a bit better about her shoulder. She wants to try driving this morning, so we shall see how that goes. I am more than ready for her to resume her normal responsibilities.

Abigail sleeping like she is ready for a trip.

The Workshop

I have spent a lot of time this week in the shop! Busy with making a cabinet for our bathroom. I finished up with the difficult material - santos mahogany. It is really hard. More that twice that of maple. Been going through a lot of drill bits. So far it is looking really good though!

It has been a less restful holiday that I had anticipated, but definitely a lot more productive. We got a lot of administrative work done and even managed to book a couple houses in France for the May holiday. Looking forward to that already!

The girls had a few friends over this week. One even spent the night! Exciting to do that for the first time. They even got some sleep. The girls are also really looking forward to school starting up again tomorrow. Hopefully we can get them split off into other classes soon. They have been fighting a lot lately, so we think it is time for a bit of separation. For now, it is time to get them in the bath!

I had 'helpers' in the shop.

The sink will set into this countertop.

The frame for the seven drawers.

I made seven handles in two hours - saved 60 euro.