Pittsboro, NC

 Still playing with the mini-van.  If you've noticed, the carpet in the van is black.  Not our favorite since it shows grass/gravel/dirt so easilty.  But almost all vans on the market currently have black carpet!  It was clear that the cargo area would just be a dirty-looking mess since we use it constantly to haul stuff.  Duane found this roll of leftover carpet (from Richard's old 4-Runner, I believe) in the shed.

 

 I measured it and cut it out to fit the rear space.  Amazingly easy to cut with scissors. 

The carpet laid down in the rear area with the back seats folded into the floor.  This is how we'll leave the vehicle unless we actually have 6 people we need to transport (which I believe didn't happen in the last 10 years!)   I ordered some binding that I will sew around the edges to prevent fraying but it has not arrived yet. 

 

Pittsboro, NC

 Duane is installing a new trailer hitch on the mini-van.  We often pull a trailer to the coast so it's a must-have.  Complicated a bit by installing a wiring harness from the front of the vehicle to the back for the brake/signal light hookup.

As I was walking out of the hangar, Duane said  "there's a snake in that doorway".....

 

Kinda pretty....but I'm not really into reptiles!

Pittsboro, NC

Finally a boat-related post!  

We have looked for a replacement Splendide washer/dryer machine in the past.  Our washer/dryer is original to the boat - so over 20 years old and is going to fail at some point soon.  The interior frame is terribly rusty, as you would expect from something stored at the coast year round.  It actually looks pretty good but it's pretty finicky to get it to operate.

 

I had looked on Facebook marketplace in the past so a new one was in my "feed".  We contacted the seller in Winston-Salem - just a little over an hour away.

Country girl doesn't get out much - so the neat Winston-Salem skyline was fun to view.  Lucky it was Saturday - the streets were deserted.  I'm sure during a weekday this place is a zoo!

 

I had exchanged messages with the seller on Facebook - she told me that they were refurbishing a bus to live on and had decided to "go another route" for washing clothes.  After a wrong turn, we found their bus - quite the project!!

But they were really neat young folks.  Wish them well in their adventures.  It's amazing how interesting buying something from Faceboook or Craigslist sometimes turns out.  

The young man helped Duane load up the washer.  It's brand new!  Never been used with plastic protectors still in place.  Apparently the previous owner of the bus was going to install it but never did.  These folks don't want to set it up so decided to get rid of it.   Lucky us!

So we got it home and into the basement for a trial run.  Works perfectly.  Now the trick will be to get it onto the boat and installed.  That will be another saga, I'm sure because I believe we will have to disassemble part of the boat to get the bulky machine in place.  We'll worry about that later when we finally get back to Oriental.

 

Pittsboro, NC

 I had ordered a new laptop several weeks ago. My old laptop was about 10 years old.  It was a good one, had a built in number pad and still had a DVD player.  I used those features extensively over the years, but it was time!  

I love my little red trackpoint cursor.  It's an absolute must for me since I pretty much "grew up" using one.  My brain is simply not wired to use that pad everyone else uses with their fingertips to move the cursor around.  

So, the laptop had to be another Lenovo.  I've been too busy to switch over until now.  But I've spent most of the last day getting the new computer set up with all my programs, passwords, etc.  Oh, it's so lightweight!  Will be much nicer to tote around. And it has a touch-screen which is really handy!

Is taking a bit to get used to Windows 11, but I'll eventually settle in.

 

 

 

Pittsboro, NC

 Just catching up on chores at the airports and home....

We spent the day car shopping - yay!  New to us mini-van.  It's in really nice shape and super clean.  Glad that's out of the way since we absolutely hate to shop for cars.

Pittsboro, NC

 I have finally sat down at my computer for a brief hello.

We ended our several week stay in the mountains with a fun but rowdy Chinese Buffet with Keith, Denise and my Mom....was so.much.food.....I know, I know....I don't get out much.

 

Time to head home. Leaving the Asheville Airport exit onto the interstate - I'm following Duane who is driving the mini-van.  We had driven to the mountains in separate vehicles.  I drove the mini-van and had a little "transmission" issue climbing Old Fort Mountain several weeks ago.  We hadn't been able to re-create the problem, so we thought we'd just drive it home and figure it out later.  I am telling you all this because.....

 

Around Marion, the transmission decided to completely stop working....so a quick decision was made that it wasn't worth fixing.  It's been a great extra vehicle for over 10 years, but time to say goodbye.  It will be missed by many of our boating friends who have borrowed it at the dock in Oriental!!  Off to the the junkyard in Marion and we continued in our "good" car to Pittsboro with minimal fuss.

 

And when we arrived at the house, there was a birthday surprise waiting for me!  (Yep, I tried to make this particular birthday pass un-noticed although I did get lots of well wishes and cards and one very nice "Red, Red, Wine" long distance seranade)  

But my sweet friends Dee and Nicholas from Meshugga obviously "DO" birthdays!  They sent me a little care pkg to brighten things up a bit - I bet you never thought you'd see Karen in a tiara, did you???  Good fun - thanks guys.

 

We'll be doing some chores around the house and the airport for a little while now.  Feels good to be back.

Mills River/Hendersonville, NC

 Still very busy in the mountains!

 

Duane's dad sold this backhoe attachment to a fellow that buys hay from them.  Duane made arrangements and met the guy to load it.

 

My Mom is getting ready to fill and open her pool for the summer....I stood by while she did some interior repairs just to make sure someone was there in case she slipped/fell in!  The pool will be much prettier when she cleans/fills it!

 

And today I met Duane's sister at the Asheville airport - glad to see her from Florida!

Mills River/Hendersonville, NC

Over the weekend most of my family gathered at my Mom’s house for an early Mother’s Day party. Always fun to see everyone!

Mills River/Hendersonville, NC

 Still hanging in the mountains!  Beautiful here.  Enjoying Keith & Denise’s hospitality and beautiful garden!

Mills River/Hendersonville

 Thought I should give equal space to my childhood view from my mom’s house!!

Mills River/Hendersonville, NC

 We're still in the mountains!  The view from Duane's folks place....beautiful here.

Mills River, NC

 Just wanted to check in. I drove to the mountains after an airport meeting today. It’s beautiful up here but windy and chilly. Frost warning tonight!

Pittsboro, NC

Getting back into the swing of things on land!

I worked all day on paperwork at the Asheboro airport....lots to catch up on...Duane is still in the mountains taking care of his mom.

Finally the sun came back out.  Was a few rather depressing days just because of the weather.  Same view, much more cheerful.

 I did bit of a walkaround, enjoying the spring flowers.

The last of the azalea blooms.

 

And one of Grandma's amaryllises (I looked that up, it is, in fact, the plural of amaryllis...) starting to bloom.  Will be beautiful in a few days.

 

And abundant irises of different colors.

 Glad we're a week or so early as these will be quickly gone.

 

And a final few camellia blossoms left over from the early spring.

 

Pittsboro, NC

 It was a very dreary rainy day.....the usual view towards the runway.

 I decided it was time to do something with the bag of kale I got from Keith and Denise....

Washed and drained.

 

Patted dry and seasoned with garlic powder and some "Greens Seasoning" that Teresa had given me to give it some spice.  Gently tossed with just a sprinkle of olive oil.

 Into the oven to bake for about 15 minutes.  It comes out amazingly light, paper thin and crunchy!