Neglecting The Blog...

Happenings... 

Fantastic to be able to get together on a stormy April night for some fellowship with the Fam.  Wish more coulda been there.  Mike, Jen and Tyler were in town for Easter weekend--wish they lived back here.  Well, wish Jen and Tyler lived back here.  I wish Mike lived back here but that he travelled...A LOT!  Joking, joking...

Ms. Molly and I fished in the rain last night--paddled the little fishing boat around the pond in search of hungry bass, to no avail.  She did tell me, however, that what I was witnessing was a "Casting Clinic," and she refers to herself as "Master Caster" now.  We won't discuss, in this forum, how many times she hit the bank with her casts, or how close she came to perforating my ear with a treble hook during her wind-up.  She almost "Joe'd" me a couple times--a few weeks ago, Joe caught a 220 Lb. Scottfish.  He hung me in the right cheek (my face, buttheads), past the barb.  Because I am incredibly tough, I made him snag me in the other cheek purely to achieve symmetry...

Tornadoes all around last week, and there are neighborhoods that are devastated just a couple miles from where I work.  Nobody killed and no injuries reported--miracles. 

Girls and two boyfriends were with Molly and I for Easter--great time.  I love that they love The Ranch.  Here's a photo or two of it...

Hey, how did WINGMAN get in there?  That jackass! 

Anyway, Molly teased me about "neglecting the Blog," so I wrote you a book.  Typical, right?

Scott

Cottage Reno

This is the beginning...2004. We want a cottage up in Muskoka, Ontario for retirement and then for Andy's Dad to live in for the summer after wintering in Fla. So Andy found this place with a rundown boathouse (as you've seen) and a dirt floor 2 car garage. The cottage isn't bad except it had the original kitchen, with avocado fridge and stove from the 1970's. The bathrooms were all original too. 3 bedrooms, 2 baths with a living room, dining room, kitchen "great room" all along the water. We're on the Joe River which brings together Lake Rosseau and Lake Joseph. The 3rd Muskoka lake is Lake Muskoka which you have to go through a short lift lock to get into. We finally decided, after losing Andy's Dad, to renovate this place since we had some issues with wood rot, etc. The small plan developed into a big plan and has even gone beyond that.

Muskoka is an area north of Toronto, that city dwellers come to every weekend to their cottages to get away.

Now, some of these "cottages" are 10 to 30,000 sq. ft. and something you'd give your first child away to own.

We have several celebrities that have places around us like Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, Cindy Crawford is just finishing her place on an island, Shania Twain just to name a few.

Our humble place is great for a number of reasons. It's on a year round accessible road, which a lot of these places aren't. We're on a narrow part of the river so traffic must slow down (well they're supposed to ) so boat viewing is great.

So, now we're here at the 2nd picture. We've replaced all the old cladding with cedar shakes. We put a new entrance portico on the front with a stone walk going up to the garage rather than old wooden stairs. Changed the roof line a bit with new eaves both front and back. I, by the way, call the front of the cottage the side towards the garage where some people call the front by the water side. I slip now and then so if it gets confusing, that's why.

We're now finishing up in the inside. Pictures to follow. We hopefully move back in by the end of May, can't wait!

The All-Day, Full-Body Massage

I said this to Molly somewhere between the on-ramp to 44 and St. Clair...it was just after we got on the road:  "I have been dreaming about this for 20 years."

I have been wanting to saddle-up, tie down and bike to an overnight destination since I began riding motorcycles, really, so yeah, maybe it's been a lot longer than 20 years.  It wasn't until I began making any money that I really felt it was possible to a) own a road-worthy bike, and b) be able to take it somewhere cool on my own time.  Molly and I have been working up to this fairly short trip since early last fall, and we've been talking about the ride from home to Table Rock Lake since we got the first bike (same time last year). 

The weather, by the time we got to Rolla, seemed to be cooperating, but we had rain gear, balaclavas, rubber gloves and rubber boots to wear over the bike gear just in case.  We got southwest out of Rolla, Waynesville I think, and the sky came down a few thousand feet.  The wind howled from the time we hit the highway up toward home, but it got stronger still.  When it gets that strong, the wind hits you like a left-cross, gives you three seconds of vaccuous relief, then caves in the right side of your helmet...no way to anticipate it.  Somewhere between Rolla and Marshfield, I told her that biking in such wind was like a full-body massage.  She laughs and says, "That's a good way to look at it." 

Just before we got to Strafford (Kev, Cristina and Shayla live there, and we actually pulled into their driveway--nobody home), Molly is riding in front, and I watched the wind literally wiggle her bike.  We speak to one another with helmet-to-helmet radio gear, and I heard her go, "Whoa.  Wow.  Hey, that's not good," and then the same gusts hit me, and we exit for Strafford.  Rode the outer road for as far as possible till we had to get on 65 toward Branson.

65 offered no relief--only rain to add to the wind.  We ate at the "Home of the Throwed Rolls," caught a couple of those, talked to four other bike-folk who lamented the weather along with us, and carried on.  The rain pounded, the wind kept us saying, "Wow.  Wow.  Whew!  Oh, wow."  If you've never ridden in weather like that, it's just tough to describe.  You know how you feel after a deep back rub, a great aerobic workout or a day of yardwork?  It's like that, along with getting socked in the gut over and over, once you dismount the bikes and breathe a little while.

Anyway, we made it down to Table Rock safely, and somewhere just as we got onto 65 headed toward Arkansas, Molly says to me, "Remember--you dreamed about this for 20 years..."  We had a laugh about it--I think in my dream, the elements actually cooperated.  We are very blessed, though--for one another, for the great gear and good roads and a chance to "get there," wherever "there" happens to be.

Ready for a cool weekend, even if it is spent socked-in at this resort, lounging in this home away from home, spending time with this very special girl...

Renovations and other stuff

We've been "freshening up" our cottage/home for almost a year and are looking forward to having it done. We bought the cottage in 2004 and updated the garage and boathouse first. The first picture is the boathouse before, obviously, with the "after" picture. With laws changing up here yearly as to what you can and can't do along the waterfront, we thought it was smart to do this before the cottage. This is where we're now going to live while they finish the cottage. The upstairs has living accommodations with a bathroom, pull out couch, fireplace (gas) microwave, small bar fridge, and a wine fridge.....plus our pool table. We usually let guests stay here as it gives them some privacy from the main house.

We have 2 boat ports with one occupied by a 22 ft. Cobalt bowrider and the second port with 2 Ski-doos. I also have 2 kayaks that I use most often paddling around the lake.

The Man

And, of course, Wingman the ranch mascot is still...The Man.

At the Ranch

Spring has sprung at the ranch; the horses are shedding their winter coats, the fish are starting to bite, and the grass has been mowed twice already.

Send me your family's e-mail addresses

Hey,

If you want your peeps to be able to post on this blog, send me their e-mail addresses and I will get them an invitation...

Scott

Welcome, Family!

Dudes and Dudettes,

Want to invite you to join Molly and I in pursuit of our own little "family Facebook," a "blog" created so that we all can keep in contact with one another in a fun and informative way.  Everyone is online now (including Joe), and although there are some of us who are sort of anti-Facebook, this provides a way for us to upload pics and publish info that keeps everyone updated and informed about everyday junk.

Please post on our family blog!  Do it now and do it often! 

Love to all,

Scott