settling in

Since the phone company turned on our landline yesterday, I was able to set up our 3-in-1 fax machine today. I did my techie best packing it for the trip: a piece of paper on the platen to protect it against scuffing, masking tape to hold the lid down, the original packing material (all of it) and "This Side Up" labels to prevent ink leakage. [Ed. note: the labels won't prevent anything. They just remind the Lemurs not to put the wrong side up.)

The southeast room has become my office; the northeast, our bedroom. The bathroom is between them with entry from either side. Mark and Marina are bringing us some furniture for the living room tomorrow. Teresa and Steve lent us an air mattress until we could get our own, and today I bought one. It's a Simmons, and has excellent reviews. And it is 17 inches high, so it will be easier for Lisa to get on and off of.

We are able to avoid a hefty deposit on our electric service if we provide a document from our Florida power company stating that we have not been late more than twice in the past year (we have been on time for longer than that). Lisa called them about that today and they are emailing said document to us. Then we can fax or hand-deliver it to the local utility's office and have the service in our name by next week.

Jack is beginning to grasp the nature of the terrain. He is a flatland cat, born in Florida. He is out of his element here but, since it stopped raining and snowing, he has had a chance to look around. Everything is different here. The ground isn't flat - it drops sharply, especially once you leave the yard. All the plants and trees are different. There's not sand beneath the grass, there is real soil. He's having to adapt to that because he can't just dig a hole to shit in anywhere he chooses; instead he goes out into the woods where the fallen leaves are good and thick.

Last night was cold and windy outdoors but we were toasty warm inside. All of the windows in the house are relatively new and fuel-efficient. The floors are insulated from beneath, plus my office and the bedroom are both carpeted and on the leeward side. We can close the doors to the front of the house and use the bathroom as a hallway. The thermostat is in the living room, which is uncarpeted and on the windward side. It is a programmable model with many options. I have figured it out and, since we are in the warmer back of the house most of the time, have it set to 67 degrees during the morning and evening, 66 from 9 AM to 5 PM (because the sun warms my office appreciably during those hours) and 66 overnight. For now.

This morning was clear, cold and sunny once the sun cleared the ridge at about 9 AM. Rocko and I walked around on the frozen ground and I cleared a path down to the creek. It's only about three feet wide and a few inches deep, but it flows into the East Fork of the Pigeon River a few hundred feet downstream from us on its way to the mighty Mississippi River via Tennessee.