Pope house – The Hermits' Rest

Turn That Calendar Page

I did so. I don’t even have a good calendar this year. That’s what happens when you only have free ones. So, Whee.

Apache and I are looking into the future.

Actually it was about as perfect of a day as a person could want. If retirement could be this pleasant I’d be more ready than I think I am now. The weather was beautiful and I just enjoyed working on projects and hanging out with the horses.

I’m practicing my hill work. I also found grass.

Drew was making me laugh, but not making Dusty too happy. I watched Drew poke and prod his buddy endlessly. It was mostly playful, judging from how horses typically play and show affection, but I wish Drew would stop chomping Dusty’s tail.

I tried to use up some teen horse energy by riding Drew for a while and exercising him. He was in a great mood, so it was a lot of fun.

I also rode Apache more than on most days. Why? Because I had time. That’s so wonderful. I’d love to be able to spend this much time every day. When I just have an hour, I’m lucky to do groundwork on one horse, since feeding takes so long. Anyway, we had a blast doing all our schooling and riding around the property.

See how he looks in that picture? He ended up so relaxed and calm. He even went on the road briefly and showed no concern. Only Lee’s new mobile office gave him pause, but we got through it. Drew was the same. Walking with calm horses is nice.

We’re calm, too. Maybe if you retired, you could ride us.

Of course I also cooked traditional Southern food. Even Anita the Northerner liked the collard greens! Yep.

So far 2023 is fine, peaceful, and hermit-like. The only issue was that our water went out. Then it got fixed. It doesn’t make for exciting blogging, but I’m fine with that.

Now enjoy happy horses.

I Have Glass! At Last!

Howdy! Today my Cameron office is happy, because I finally got my window and desk glass. The glass for the desk came out perfect. I can’t wait to put my stuff on it.

The glass guys also got the beautiful half round window up between Lee’s and Kathleen’s offices. That should help with sound and cold air transfer.

The glass is so clear you can’t see it. Also, Lee put up art on his walls. It’s looking great.

The challenge was the glass for the window in my office that looks into the hallway. At first they brought one that didn’t fit. Then they went back to Taylor (which is a good distance away) to get another one. They brought back a second door top instead.

So, they went back one more time and finally brought the right size. They’d just finished when I arrived at 4. It looks really good. Ahh.

I look forward to less noise, protection from germs, and a warmer office. I also have two sets of shelves, since the glass people accidentally made two sets. They seem a bit confused. We will get those set up tomorrow.

The cool old chair is holding the shelves safely.

I’m looking forward to furniture and glass rearranging tomorrow!

The glass looks great held in by quarter round trim.

Office Break-In!

Yep. My Cameron office got broken into. Don’t panic, though. Lee and I did it. You see, yesterday I left work a little early to go on a special errand. When we got back, I went to go back and do a couple of things, but my door wouldn’t open.

Uh. The door would not open. I typed in the code. Green lights told me it was unlocked. I wiggled the handle and nothing happened. Um. My laptop was in there. And a burning candle. (Oops)

We tried to call the relatives, but there was no answer. Lee went and got a screwdriver. We banged on the door. The dang doorknob did nothing. So, we looked at the windows. The interior one is painted shut. The outside one would not budge.

That left the window that was covered in wood, that is supposed to be replaced by glass…someday. Lee poked around and managed to get the wood loose (it wasn’t in there tight, since it was planned to be replaced).

There was no way to remove the piece of wood without hitting stuff on the other side. You know, because my office is full of “shit” and all that. But only two candlesticks smashed! Not bad at all!

While the wood was there so my Zoom meetings wouldn’t disturb the people in the other offices, it’s no problem for the time being. I won’t be in the office for a while. We will have to leave the door open until the door handle is replaced, but the computer is out now! Nothing else is valuable, just shiny, like a magpie lives there. I am much like a magpie, after all.

Kudos to Lee for letting me in! The door works fine from the inside, not that it helps at all!

I’ve had so much go wrong lately that this didn’t phase me one bit. It just fit with the rest of the week. Hoping we can fix it soon! And I hereby declare that a new week starts today and nothing but fun is permitted. I even got happy nails yesterday!

Have a good Samhain, Halloween, día de los muertos, or whatever you celebrate this weekend.

Random Goodness

I may as well share the good and/or interesting stuff of the day. Maybe I’ll do this every so often.

First, I got the little bistro sets up in the break area by the stairs at the Pope Residence. They surprised me by fitting. I even ate lunch at one. Now that no one else eats in the office, I’ll fine solo in style!

Kathleen and I picked these out in hopes that they would fit.

And I opened the box with the dishes for the office. I just set out coffee cups, in case a visitor wanted some coffee. The rest are i. The cabinets for now.

If it’s deemed too junky, I can put them away.

So that was fun. I also had fun looking at birds this afternoon. I finally determined the small heron I keep seeing is a green heron. It was out with the blue heron behind the house, and while I was looking at them and turtles, I spied the BIGGEST bullfrog I ever saw. Turns out they can weigh up to 1.5 pounds!

There was no way to get a photo of the frog, but I did get a picture of this scary kissing bug. It will not give me Chagas’ disease because it is deceased. Buddhism fail.

The best news is this! We had four eggs today! That’s the first time I got four eggs since we built the hen house here by our house. Thanks, Springsteen!

Bertie, Fancy Pants, Springsteen, and Hedley.

By the fall molting season, we may have a few more kick in! It would be nice to be able to share them with friends and family before they shut down to molt.

Blinded in a Good Way

Lee had been waiting patiently for the rest of the blinds to go up at the Pope Residence, to save on electricity. The new-ish windows aren’t terribly efficient, but not old enough to replace.

Now that the stair rails are done, and the custom sized blinds for the really long windows are in, Lee’s dream can come true. They’re going up.

There are even blinds for the upstairs rooms we haven’t renovated yet.

Sadly for some, I like light, as do my plants. So my shade stays up.

Plus there’s the collection of brass birds, which I don’t want to touch.

Lee and Chris quickly got Kathleen’s shades up, while she was working offsite. I also spotted the snakeskin she recently found, displayed on her light fixture. So cool.

Lee’s office has been amazingly bright and cheerful. No wonder he hasn’t moved much in. It’s also pretty warm in there. Once the blinds are up, it will be a lot more hermitage in mood, and efficient in electricity needed.

Well, I like light. I need my shiny stuff to shine!

Blind Weirdness

Here’s something. The blinds for the building were all ordered on the same day, from the same store. They are the same brand and style (real wood, but not fancy).

However, there are three different mechanisms for raising and lowering them. Some you just push up and pull down, like in my office. Some have sophisticated buttons you have to press before raising or lowering, like in Lee’s office.

Others have the traditional string pulls, like in Kathleen’s office. Those may be challenging.

More Blinds

Anyway, the whole downstairs is blinded now. Lee is very happy with his dimness.

The reception room now really wants its furniture!

I wanted to see how the blinds looked from outside then I remembered all the sand burs and the fact that the grass is knee high. But I did it, so you can see.

The outside pictures really make it clear that the exterior also needs a lot of work. We will get there! In the meantime, I look forward to enjoying my office from all angles, every day. Next week?

Finished: Railing and Rugs

We got two big things finished over on the Pope Residence project today. First is the one that matters: the stair railings! Ooh.

The masterpiece! (I’ve removed most of the blue tape since).

Everything finished getting painted. Once it was dry, Chris had to attach the pieces to each other. There was no way to do it outdoors, so he very carefully used the acetylene torch.

The results looked like this.

After that, the welds got painted. Carefully since it was indoors.

The trim on the other side of the stairs is next. But it’s already pretty glorious.

Rugs?

Yes, the new extreme pink rugs arrived and are in my office. I also brought my favorite heirloom table over for the lounge corner.

The extremely pink chair will look great there.

Lee and Chris also brought my new filing cabinet over, and it’s by the smaller pink rug.

I found I had a little spare time today, so I put the crystals on the old chandelier we painted white.

I am not putting the ugly plastic bits back on. Maybe I’ll get other crystals or something. As it is, it makes a nice pattern on the ceiling.

Now there are just a few touch-ups and such left, but we’re just about ready to get final inspection.

Safety Time at the Pope House

What an achievement! We have half a safe stair rail at the new office. Today, Chris got the big rail all painted a shiny black. It was cool how he held it up.

Later he and our strong assistant administrator, Meghan, hauled the gigantic contraption upstairs. I think they’re both glad that only has to happen once!

It looks pretty good, doesn’t it? I’m obviously feeling very safe now that it’s screwed in. Yes. Safety achieved. Now he’s working on the smaller stair section, which shouldn’t take too long.

As for my office, I just did a few little things. I brought over the big art pieces and even hung my favorite! Tomorrow the rest of the furniture comes, other than the computer. Can’t actually work here until it’s all certified.

I ordered lighter and pinker rugs for the seating areas and a very pink chair to put in the dark corner. All was deeplyon sale, so if it looks awful, I can change it.

Office Move, Phase 2

Today I spent my lunch hour moving some of the things I can carry myself over to my new office. First, Chris helped me position the desk on the rug, so we know that will work fine.

Then, I brought in my plants, who will be happy to have a “home” at last. I was able to bring over my hat rack, chairs, and some big decor items, and it already is looking cozy.

Ooh, why is the plant blocking our view?

Most of the stuff in the office will shift around as we finish things off, but it makes me happy already.

What’s Next?

This weekend I will get the filing cabinet and rolling drawers moved over, as well as a bookcase I’m gonna use until Chris makes the built-ins behind my door.

Ooh, look at all the stuff. It’s the view from the desk chair.

My office chair will come in from the ranch house, too (that one fits better in the room. And I’ll build the big bookcase that’s in a box in the bathroom. I’m hoping Lee can help hold up some parts while I put it together. I want to let Chris concentrate on the stair rails.

Ooh, the seating nook. It needs the lamp and a table. And no one likes that rug. The little fireplace will be sitting on the tile at right.

After that, all the furnishing will be done. We are still waiting for the glass in the interior window and the shelves that will go in there. That will hold shiny glass stuff. The glass top for the desk is also important, especially since leaving the doors outside for so long has additionally “aged” them. More character! I do have a smaller piece of glass on my current desk that will be a fine substitute.

Ooh, you can see the red inside the desk from here. The new chair will be white. My big tree art will go above the upholstered chair.

And Chris said he would build a cool custom shelving unit behind the door, which will be triangular. I have a hanging light fixture for the seating area that will need some work to install, plus something to hang the spider plant from.

Ooh, I like my pink vases. Wish I’d gotten the third one before Pier 1 went out of business. My sister gave me the cool old chair.

But I can use the office while that’s going on, for sure. And I can leave things in the old office until there’s a spot for them. I hope you enjoy the current pictures, and look forward to Phase 3 (with maybe some art, too!) as much as I do. It’s the most exciting thing of my quarantine period! Well, maybe next to Rip the bull calf.

That bottle will go somewhere else. But, that’s the view from the desk.

Bathroom door shut. Peace plant in corner. I can hang a picture from those electrical conduits.

The hat rack and second seating nook with mother-in-law tongue plant. That door is permanently closed. There will be art above the door, probably my bluebonnet painting. The filing cabinet will be under the window.

Two hours later: I already decided I didn’t like the way the chair looks in the above photo, so I moved it.

It’s Office-ial

The day I’ve been waiting for has come! Fancy Pants finally started laying eggs again! That took a while.

No longer Miss Broody! I love her ombré eggs.

No, that’s actually not the big news. It’s that I am able to put things in my new office. Chris said so!

Ooh. Ahh. The rug in the back left blends in a bit much, so I may change it out.

The rug for my floor magically showed up, so Lee and I spread it out. Hmm. It’s blue. No idea why I bought that rug, but the color goes nicely with the ceiling and the wall decor thing.

Looking out. The window will have stained glass hanging in it. The bathroom contains the bookshelf that I’ll build this weekend.

The pole thing shows where my desk will go, approximately. The desk has made it to the Pope house, but isn’t put together yet. I’m not sure if we’ve ordered the glass for it yet.

The window in this picture will be frosted to let in light but have privacy.

It looks like this weekend I’ll move more stuff in, though I’ll have to stay at the other office until we can officially occupy the building. The stair rail is almost done, too!

My favorite view, where you can see the ceiling. Picture the little stove over by the mantel, a chair in the corner, and my desk on the rug.

More Little Bits of Goodness

Today has not sucked. Chris is back at work on the Pope house, so I got a glimpse of the stair rail progress. Ooh.

And I got an awesome mask from my friend Angela in Austin, who knows I love The Who. She made me one like her husband’s. I looked better in the picture where it’s upside down, so you get two pictures.

I look much less tired in the exercise photo.

Plus! Look what I found today! That’s right, one of the “new” hens finally went into production! I think they may all have white eggs, so I don’t know who laid it. But yay.