Fence art, Part II

Well the work continues and now the path is paved, still needs a little work to level it better but this should keep the weeds down in the path. All the stones come from local quarries made to create the forest service/logging roads. They come flat and merely need placed down. Looks pretty nice now in that area and if you look in the window you can see Lynda's newest creation of art, the crocheted curtains. Below is a picture looking from the inside out. The pattern of the salmon swimming goes well with the decor of the office/art room.



We didn't get much more of that summer weather so the trip I referred to last posting was nice but not very photogenic, not much contrast between water, clouds and islands. Nice cool, wet weather, can't complain much about that. ;),

Fence art

At last, the fence is up. This has been a project of long duration and it is nearly completed. All that is left is the gate which still needs designed. We also plan on paving the rest of the path with the local flat rocks that we pick up out the road or with the boat across on the mainland on the beach. The crosscut saws came with the little house on the left in the basement and this is Lynda's idea of how to use them artistically. The bush is a local elderberry bush, should do well in this climate since it is a local plant. The weed barrier under the cedar mulch is outdoor carpeting left under the house, should do for awhile and will save taking it to the dump.

Today was beautiful with sunshine and 71 degrees. I took the day off since work was slow and got the fence done and other projects. Maybe we will get a few days of summer. Hope to post a little more often. Tomorrow is another flight to Juneau, may get some pictures as the sun will be shining.

Travel Plans

Early this morning the above apparition appeared out my window, our first and probably only large cruise ship this summer it arrived on a beautiful sunny day. This is my last day at work before leaving on an adventure that will encompass many miles, this time by ship, (not a cruise ship) auto, and plane. Tomorrow morning I board the ferry Columbia for a 2 day, 2 night cruise to Bellingham, WA, then proceed by auto to Sweet Home, OR. I look forward to a few days with my beautiful wife and her parents, seeing Cynthia and Seth and relaxing before then next leg of the journey. Monday Seth and I start towards Texas to his new home and job. We plan on a stop at my parents house and Rick's for a short visit then proceed cross country to get to Sugar Land, Texas. From there I fly back to Oregon, pick up my wife and head back home via ferry.

Convertible

Lynda and Seth went to Oregon to celebrate his graduation with Grandma and Grandpa Easterday as well as position himself to be closer to his next step which is to put his education to work. Yesterday after serious consideration of all the options of vehicles that were in his price range and style tolerance Seth settled on this 2005 convertible PT Cruiser Touring. He had to forgo the Alfa Romero, Smart Car and Mini Cooper for various reasons such as cost or availability. Today he is on his way to Texas by plane for the on site interview.

Meanwhile back at home, we have just finished a 5 day stretch of beautiful sunny weather amazingly over a holiday weekend. (It was a bit hot though with temperatures over 70). The trees are all leafed out and flowers are everywhere. Today we will have a reprieve with the return of the clouds and projected rain.

Graduation reflection

It happened as planned, our young man graduated with honors from UAF with a BSCS and minor in Math. The ceremony was loooong but interesting speakers attempted to keep us awake. There were some VIP's there apparently but I didn't really know them, as the really important VIP was Seth.



Just before the exit processional they dropped balloons from the ceiling with the school colors of blue and gold. That was a highlight watching the kids trying to capture the balloons and the graduates hitting them up into the air. The brass band did a splendid job with providing the pre and post music, and a drum band made it lively for their walk out to the reception.



It was nice visiting with family during and after this event. Since we are so spread out around the country I look forward to these visits. As you can see we are quite proud of our son and tolerate his style. (I didn't include the picts of his mismatched socks).



After graduation services we had worked up quite an appetite sitting in the bleachers ;) and Amanda had planned ahead with reservations for Gambradellas Pasta Bella. Seth's roommate Chris (far right of pict) joined us for a pleasant meal and fellowship. (The Fierenze Pizza was scrumpdilliicious.) All good things come to an end and we are currently waiting in Anchorage at the airport for the final leg of the journey home and Seth is awaiting a phone call from a potential employer for the second phone interview. We wish him well in his career as they prepared him well to be a top game programmer. Congratulations Seth.

Fairbanks and graduation

Here we are in Sunny Fairbanks, Alaska getting Seth moved out of his dorm apartment and readying for the graduation ceremony. Mom and Dad Willes are here from California and Amanda came up from Anchorage to celebrate this event. We all realize that the ceremony will be somewhat boring but it is a milestone in Seth's growing up. He is packed and nearly ready to move on to his career. He has had a number of job offers but is trying to get one more related to his passion of programing games. He has the talent for doing that task and we look forward to good things coming from him in the future. Will try to post some pictures of Seth and family at graduation tomorrow.

New pets

We decided to put up bird feeders even though we haven't replaced the deck. They are about 25 feet off the ground and we weren't sure anything would come up that far. They did, dozens and dozens of them costing over 10.00 a day for bird seed, all the same species - Pine Siskin. Their chatter is delightful and they are a pleasure to watch.

We have actually had some spring weather with about 5 days in a row of sunshine, (may be a record) but the rains have returned so we feel at home again. Flying up to Juneau again today in the small plane so will take the camera and see if the lighting works right. It is cloudy with spots of sun and winds are expected to be light so it should be a pleasant hour flight both ways.