For those of you who follow this blog, you will understand that I undertook to build a shack at the White Wolf Mine in the Central Arizona highlands, south of Flagstaff about two and a half years ago. January 1, I made the relocation real and am now in the hovel. There is still more stuff to move in, and the place isn’t finished, but I received a certificate of occupancy from the County and that was enough.
Even though I lived and thrived in Southern California as my base of operations and home, California became too much. The cost of living in SoCal is 52% higher than the national average. The weather is nice there…but everything else is just subject to entropy and very high taxes. The progressive agenda didn’t agree with my chosen way of viewing the world. (There are more Republicans in California than any other State – but then again, there are more people.) I’ll still be traveling back and forth to work in the short term.
So I moved on January 1 while the rest of you were hung over from merry making. The high up on top of the Mogollon Rim reached 12 degrees (photo above right). Colder than I’m accustomed to, but you know that I’m a madman. This is the quote from the sidebar (left):
“But I don’t want to go among mad people,” Alice remarked.
“Oh, you can’t help that,” said the cat.
“We’re all mad here. I’m mad, you’re mad.”
“How do you know I’m mad,” asked Alice
“You must be,” said the cat, “or you wouldn’t have come here.”
There are two driveways. Both lead to different garage doors. The “front driveway” is a steep slope and was “iffy” in the snow and ice. So I backed the trailer down the long side driveway (nearly flat) and used that option (left).
Yesterday, I set up the bed in the bedroom, warmed a frozen pizza in the oven, and went to bed early – tired. I don’t know if I’ll have time to drop the Ducati (She-Devil) out of the trailer today (Wednesday) or not. I have a lot of running around to do.
Tomorrow, the work crew will be back on the job, finishing the work that needs finishing. I expect that they’ll be done by April at the current rate. But no matter, I’ve been homeless for the past three months (a shiftless vagabond). I need to set up the gun shop…
I just dropped pillows, blankets, my briefcase, the frozen pizza, etc there on the island in the kitchen. The countertops are poured concrete. You’ll note the Wolf stove and oven and the hole in the wall where the Sub-Zero refrigerator is supposed to be. As to the refrigerator…that’s another detail that needs to be addressed. The spare refrigerator will do (in the garage) in the mean time. I just tossed a bag of frozen burritos on the deck for now. It won’t get above freezing today or tomorrow. I’m a man of simple tastes. I’m keeping a bag of fruit that I bought cold just on a shelf in the garage.
And there you have it.
At long last. Enjoy your new abode.
I just took a break from unloading stuff in the snow. I know that snow and 12 degrees F sounds like less than optimal weather to work in, but to be honest, I'm having fun.
Welcome home… turn the heat up.
I tend to like the heat at around 65 degrees inside.
Congrats on the move and glad to see the Raptor in action. Now you've got a mountain fortress.
Food on the deck? A good way to meet your new neighbors.
Home. Out effing standing. Build a fire in the fireplace, brew or pour something, put your feet up, and savor the moment. Or, save that for later, and continue with the fun.
I'm curious. How much of a pain was it to run power to WWM? Yes, I'm being nosy. If you prefer not to answer, I understand.
Wish you a very happy new year LL! Hoping the new place treats you well and the year only gets more exciting by the day. Hats off to you for beating the cold with all that swag.
Of course you are having fun. You are home. 🙂
I wasn't hung over; but I did wonder if you were moving in.
You have all the important necessities for now, as long as you have hot water.
May God bless your home, LL.
Congratulations on moving in! Hard to imagine a better way to start the year. Long coming. Lots of work. Nothing better than having it done. Or mostly done.
Out here we're having a warmer than average spell. Over 80 by 10 or 11AM.
Congrats on the move-in. Finally were you were meant to be…
It's a wet cold here, much different than what is probably a dry cold there.
Congratulations on the move in! Enjoy!
Darrel
If any food you placed out on the deck is still there in the morning your local polecats are slacking. Note that it will also attract bears. Congratulations on your new abode, we too are looking at moving to AZ at some point in the next coupe of years and to a mid altitude location.
So, when are you sending out invites for the big housewarming party???? We promise not to scratch the floors, pee on the carpet, puke in the oven…
Glad you made it though – it's been a long time coming, hope you, the kids, and grandkids get to enjoy the fruits of this for a long time.
Wandering Neurons
The deck sits thirty feet above the mountain floor, supported by massive concrete pillars. Lions and bobcats could get up there, but not polecats and the bears are hibernating. And would they really want frozen waffles?
There was power near the property, so not that much trouble at all. It's one reason that I bought the place. I could run it on solar and propane (including a propane generator), but didn't want to go that rustic. We're prepared if things go south, but for now, we're on the grid.
Congratulations! That is a real nice feeling, moving into a home you built.
Oh, yes- is there a pool on how long it will be before you are looking for knobbies for the Diavel? 🙂
Finally.
At 8 degrees at night, it would chip their teeth.
It's cold outside, and it's warm inside. That works.
And a soaking tub… and a nice shower. Hot water without the luxurious appliances is wasted.
mostly done… contractors are the bane of my existence.
Dry snow, not much humidity, but still cold. As you point out, cold is cold.
Feet up after a long day of running around, unloading, etc.
I guess that I could fit out new fenders for the Diavel, that would accommodate spikes and knobbies. It depends on how long winter lasts and whether I get bored. An idle mind is the Diavel's workshop.
Inviting some of my friends over en-masse would be like inviting a whole pack of hungry wolves and it wouldn't be pretty.
I have two daughters, three granddaughters and two grandsons visiting beginning Friday. I don't have their beds set up yet. They were quick off the mark, weren't they?
Sleeping bags? Cots? beds or bunk beds? Will they help unpack? Plans for the weekend?
I look forward to reading the after visit rundown.
Glad to hear you're finally in!
-Kle.
I have beds. I just need to lug them downstairs to the guest area (walk-out basement, or lower level really) and set them up.
I'm in and living here, but there is a lot of work left to be done inside the house. Finish items mostly.
Welcome Home Mr. LL. I see you have internet access.
Unlike you I moved a month ago … December 1st. And unlike you I went the other way and downsized. Something I had to do to keep the rest of the family running on all eight cylinders. Grandma is happily only 10 minutes from her grandson. That was the deciding factor. Same town – different address.
You said that you were moving, and close to grandchildren is nice. Actually, we're about an hour and a half from granddaughters (who live in AZ) which is close compared to the situation before. But I'm farther from grandsons.
I am running the internet on a verizon mobile hotspot. And obviously, it works. I thought that I was going to have to be a lot more creative but civilization encroaches and I do have some bandwidth. I'm going to have to set up satellite tv eventually, but at the moment, it's not a priority. The world is always going to hell in a hand basket and the only good movies are ones that I've seen before. I can get Netflix and Amazon Prime on the hot spot.
The Grandsons will love your new place in the "Mountains".
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