Yesterday, March 15, in Iowa the temps got up to 57 degrees and the forecast sounded good and should be better yet in Mo so we packed up and came down. We had a lovely evening. It was 60+ degrees and there was no wind. We sat on the porch and admired the nice evening and weather and our decision to start the season early.
Today, we got up to overcast skies and cooler temperatures. We were planning on coming back down Monday evening and staying thru Thursday but the weather forecast changed. Snow is predicted tomorrow night and the highs will only be in the 40s.
Last evening, I climbed down in the ravine across the road from the cabin. I was on a mission. 8 or 10 years ago, I found colored glass down in that ditch. I carried up a couple of broken pieces and stashed them under the cabin. In working on the new cabin, we thought about putting transom windows in above the bathroom and bedroom doors. We talked about louvers or stained glass. Well if we like anything, we like frugal and reuse and repurpose and I thought of that lovely heavy blue glass down in the ditch and decided I would see if I could find the rest of it. I had my doubts as debris has been thrown over the edge of the road as a way and a means to stop erosion. I supposed the glass would have been covered over and/or broken.
Donned my boots and vest and down I went. I started out across from where I remember finding the glass because access was easier. I wended my way through brush and mud and poison ivy vines, walked across the bottom of the ravine and after poking around a couple of minutes came up with a 10" X 24 " pc. This blue glass is 1/4" thick and heavy and I thought it looked to be just the right size for a transom. I carried it up out of the ditch and on up the hill to the big cabin and I was a huffing and a puffing. It 'bout wore me out! Anyway, we measured and thought and supposed -- and I said I'm going back.
This time I went down the steep side of the ravine, above where I found the big piece and lo and behold! there's 3 more pieces. These were smaller but all in all, I have enough glass for the two transom windows. This time, it was even harder getting out of the ditch as it was straight up and I was carrying three pieces. I scrambled them out, the glass and me still all in one piece and carted them home.
Now, I will take the glass to Creston and have it cut to size. We'll figure out later, how to frame them in and make them work.
Back to the weather, just a year ago today according to my 2012 cabin calendar, Craig and Traci bought their cabin here and the weather was 80 deg! 80 deg on March 17 and again on March 31! Last year set Spring temperature records and the summer set records for being dry. I hope we don't set either one of those records this year. I hope it rains and pours and lots of thunderstorms move through! I hope all the trees we planted last year survived the drought and the winter!
