We're here.

Today, finally, I feel that we are here. We've been living here (after a fashion at least) since weekend before last, since the bed moved. We moved the last of the STUFF (washer/dryer and propane tank) this past weekend. I went to Bangor Saturday night, after spending the day moving heavy objects, to connect with a friend who was working the Folk festival; didn't make it to the festival but I did meet up with her at the UU church, where her band was playing for a contra dance.

Now, I was not really excited about dancing. Yeah I had gone to one other contra dance in the past (in NC) and had fun, but after killing my bod all afternoon, vigorous dancing was NOT on my top ten list. But that was of no consequence as I managed to show up for the only contra dance on the planet where there were more GUYS than gals, guys who ALL WANTED TO DANCE! LOL Fortunately the contra crowd are good at putting you where you need to be... patient with incompetent beginners... and eventually more gals showed up. THANK THE GODS! This was also a younger crowd than I had seen before... lots of college kids who, while fun to dance with, were prepared to "swing their partners" with much more vigor than this easily-dizzied old woman was used to. For that matter the old farts were pretty spry, too.

In any case, I survived (may even go back again) and spent the day Sunday cleaning at the old place. I got most of it done, set the repairs on the flooring with heavy weights and prepared to go back today to weed eat (EARLY before the electric could be shut off) and finish the last of the mopping. Unfortunately I forgot the bit of brown paint to touch up woodwork... and the rain cut short my weed eating... but I got the worst of it done and I will complete the paint touch up tomorrow, as I don't have to work, and will visit a bit with a friend in Milo and then try to touch base with the old landlord and return a borrowed cell phone.

But, coming home this evening... fussing about beginning to put things away... calling and working out technical issues with a NC client... waiting for a friend/electrician to show up to connect up my washer/dryer... I feel like I am, finally, HERE.

Not sure what turned the tide... maybe hauling the last load of cleaning stuff and the weed eater from Milo... putting out the trash there... knowing that nothing of us remains there...

I did a ceremony on the land here last Friday, offering to the four directions and land spirits at the corners, walking the land... looking at the stuff growing on "the back two" ... lots of goldenrod and, as one local friend put it, Maine, trying to reclaim the land as forest. Lots of tiny birch trees, no taller than the goldenrod.

Today when the electrician came -- a relatively local fellow who had done the home inspection on "the infamous red house" -- I asked him about someone who might plow/till my soil. He is thinking about it, but he metioned that, come spring, I need to come by his place and he will take me walking in the woods to collect pine trees. He says the grow very thick and the small ones, in mud season, you can just grab and pull out and collect in a bucket. He did this for some other property he has, to have trees to plant. Sounds like fun...

But I still do not have washer/dryer. Apparently the outlet died (K thought he saw sparks when something fell as we were working in the laundry room) so tomorrow night my friend will return with a new outlet and then, hopefully, I can do the wash. Gives me tomorrow to dig the hole for the bucket that holds the clothes tree. This will be a good chance to see how the soil is. I am still waiting for the soil test kit to arrive from the extension service...

It's only 8 PM but I am tired. so I guess sleep will be on the list soon, unless I get a re-send of a file from the Waterfowl Museum that got corrupted in transit.

Oh, and in a bit of surprising good news, I learned today that I got the contract (again!) for the Cape Lookout Seashore National Park newspaper! I plan to be in NC the first weekend in Dec to attend Waterfowl Weekend and will meet with the Park Service then, but this will largely be a project done by teleconference.