Monday
Sonny
I know it has been too long between blog entries. Linda and I have been busy with many things. We have had several rounds with the phone company but now after 5 months we now have voice mail up and working.
We have started running below my comfort zone with our firewood. So the last couple of weekends we have been cutting up trees that we downed several months ago. I ordered a pair or wood “tongs” that will be used to pull a bunch of “log butts” that were left over from when the place was timbered a couple of years ago. The logger made a pile of left-over ends and it will add up to at least 5-6 cords of wood. We plan to use the tongs, a chain and my Jeep to try to pull them into an open area to let me cut them up and then I can hit them with the splitter.
Last night at about 0400 the water froze. Linda tried the hot and cold faucets but nothing. At around 8:00 she called John and he and Carol came over with an electric heater. Now remember that our solar-powered house and electric heaters are not really compatible due to the power consumption. So we fired up our spare gasoline powered generator and put the electric heater under the house. Several hours later we thawed the pipes out and were back in business. This weekend I will get on my insulated coveralls and get those pipes insulated to the max.
Oh, and the good news. I found a publisher to publish Linda’s book. It will go to Amazon and iBooks first in ebook format first. When I told her I needed it smoothed she went into panic mode and has been combing over it for the last week 12 hrs a day. She is nearly finished so I can get it uploaded. After she gets back to normal when will get back on track with her current project that she is about half way finished.
We have had about 10 inches of snow over the last week. Tomorrow we expect to be hit with several days of snow but we are ready for it. The food we canned last summer is still stock piled, Winter is here.
Off-Grid in West Virginia 
I was glad to see the blog up and running again but sorry to hear of the problems. Thank goodness for John and Carol.
We will be back on track soon. Thanks for waiting.
Have you heard of a type of wood stove called a rocket stove? There are certain types of these called rocket mass heaters which are designed for heating. Supposedly they are very efficient and Ive read of people cutting their wood uses bu 75%.
They also seem easy to build.
I looked at quite a few videos on Rocket stoves. They are interesting but fairly crude for in home applications. It does look like a project I wouldn’t mind for my work shop though. I do like the concept though.
Super news on the book. Hate it about the pipes :(. Glad you back up!
Now I will be doing some trap repairs on the kitchen sink this weekend. I never really got it right on the original install because it has dripped all summer. Just been too busy on other projects.
glad you got those pipes unthawed….I would not know what to do, reckon I would of waited till spring.
I must read that book….I kNEW she had it in her, for Bestsellers LIST