Nearly two weeks here

What's been happening this week, hm, what, what, what....

[thoughtful tapping of chin]

Well, we got our satellite dish hooked up, so now we can watch tv if we should feel the need. Although, to be honest, after a few days, you get over wanting it. At first I wondered how my favorite contestants on reality tv shows were doing, but by now I figure they're getting along fine without me cheering for them. The night we got it hooked back up, we made sure it worked by channel surfing a bit and then watching a short DVD. Other than that, we've found other things to do than watch the boob tube. Later I'm sure we'll get back to it, but not just yet.

In order to get the new satellite dish installed, we had to cut down a couple trees along the shoreline slope, so James got to cut up some wood from those. The view looks a bit different now off to the right as you look towards the lake.

Our next-door neighbor, Brad, brought us some of his catch, and we've had fresh fish for the last several days. First, he gave us a red salmon filet so nice James made sushi from part of it, and the next day the remainder of it went on the grill. Then he brought us a big bag of halibut filets (we ate half last night, and half is for tonight) and a sampler platter of what he was cooking himself - blackened halibut, blackened salmon, halibut spread on homemade bread, and salmon grilled on a cedar plank. And just now, he brought us some salmon jerky. Tate is beside herself in the throes of desire for that salmon jerky. But she is not getting any. Absolutely not.

James found an awesome recipe online for 5-minute-a-day bread, and we made the dough for a week's supply and have baked two loaves so far. Without my ginormous Tupperware bowls to let the dough rise in, I improvised with 13-cup Gladware bowls, and the dough overflowed both of those and I had to keep putting excess dough blob into a third bowl. Finally we got it under control, and it really did turn out to be quick and easy on a daily basis. We've made a plain version, and a cheddar and dill version. Next, either parmesan bread or caramel sticky buns. Any votes for which one?

Saturday, we went into Kenai for the Kenai Community Market. Part mini craft fair, part mini farmer's market. We got some giant zucchini and a cucumber, some wild strawberry plants, and a columbine, which I love. (Thanks, Jim.) We ate lunch there, too - reindeer sausage dogs too big for me to finish, chips and drinks. Our Texas license plates were conversation starters again at the Market, since people know if you're there with an out-of-state plate, you came up the AlCan. People like to swap travel stories and to say they are from where you are, or know someone who's from where you were, and tell you how long ago it was that they came to Alaska and never went home. We also bought a deep freeze and had it delivered this morning.

Today we all went down to the DMV and got ourselves shiny new Alaska driver's licenses. So many people come to the DMV and then complain long and loud to whoever will listen about the wait. Well, where the heck do they think they've come to? It's the bleedin' DMV for pete's sake, so settle in for the long haul, and try to remember to bring a book. Okay, with that off my chest, haha, in ONLY three hours' time, we have three new licenses (made while we wait, so no temporary licenses to deal with), and new tags and registration for the truck and trailer. The registration for the CR-V and the Met are with the freight, accidentally packed up with Jim's office stuff, so we'll have to go back for those tags later. So, the truck will no longer have the conversation-starting plates, but the CR-V will for a while longer.

Speaking of the DMV and freight, while we were at the DMV, the freight company called to set up a time for delivery of our goods. We weren't expecting them until later this week, so that was a shock. We've got to get on the ball about finding a storage unit until we can get a garage built. Honestly, though, there isn't so much of our stuff that we miss. I miss some of my kitchen stuff (like the aforementioned Tupperware bowls) and the couch, but I've now been weeks without what's on that truck, and I can barely remember what made it on and what we got rid of. And even having the couch back is a bit bittersweet, because it will mean dismantling our "shipping carton chic" couch:

It's been raining here for the past two days, not a hard rain, but a fairly steady heavy mist or gentle rain. We've needed the soaking, and we're getting it. The rain let up and neighbor Zoe came over to invite James to ride the 4-wheeler, and to let her dog Murdoch meet Tate. Tate has mixed emotions about the exuberant puppy who's already 20 pounds heavier than she is.

I guess that's about it for now. I've got to shuffle some things around in the kitchen cabinets and in the walk-out basement so that we have room for the freight when it comes. And then there's that other fresh halibut fillet to go on the grill....