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What's been going on since July 24th, the last posting

Stacy to California,
On Saturday the 26th Stacy left to drive to Northern California to help out and be with daughter Sandy as the birthday approached for the new grand daughter to be born. As Sandy was going to have a C-section birth, so the actual date was pretty well planned, Sandy had called and was concerned that there was a possibility that new baby would be a bit earlier than anticipated. So with that call Stacy left two days earlier than planned to be there that much sooner and before the doctor's visit to find out one way or the other on the due date.
So Stacy made the around 1,000 mile trip in two long days and was there by Sunday night. By the doctor check up on Tuesday morning, the concerns were lessened and the timetable was back on track for the birth on the first of August.
Stacy had a great time with almost 2 year old grand daughter Justine, giving mom Sandy a much needed break before starting it all up again with the new baby.
Friday August 1st, originally had new baby arriving at 7:45 am. That was changed to 10:00 am, then to around noon, then around 2, and then nothing.
I was told later that because of the number of births that day, everybody there was put in a queue for arrival. When told that I had visions of an airport terminal for storks with them circling around waiting from landing permission of the control tower. Would the babies be delivered in the rooms or picked up from baggage claim?
New Baby, now named Natalie, was delivered around 3 pm on August 1st. A couple of pounds larger than her sister Justine, and Sandy came out of this pregnancy much better than the last, physically.
Stacy has been there, now helping when she could, being moral support if nothing else. And today, 08/13, Sandy had arranged for a photographer to get shots of the new addition and new family photos and some with Stacy in there too. Then Stacy will be back here on Saturday or Sunday. She'll have been gone 3 weeks!

More area thunderstorms and winds,
"Much hotter than normal"and "unusually hot temperatures" has been the phrases for this summer. Last summer was low to mid 90s almost all summer long, this summer has been primarily upper 90s and low 100s almost all summer. In the 'olden days', summers were generally degrees of 80s with some 90s scattered in, no more! After 3 years the heat is here to stay in the summers, so I think since this is apparently the new normal, the news should go with that.
At least this year no repeat of last years "the forest is alive, with the sounds of buzzing"! As it seems there are even less wasps and hornets than 'usual' and no where near the millions of last summer.

In late July, before the storms started, the humidity and 'monsoonal air' came in and has stayed since.
Saturday night August 2nd, was the second storm to take aim on our part of the world. This time it was less rain, a little less winds but way more lightning and for us a power outage of just under 8 hours. It was quite the light show that night watching from the back deck with the power out and the sky lighting up every few seconds as the storm worked through.
Currently all of this area of North Idaho as well as Eastern Washington and Western Montana are under a "Red Flag" warning due to excessively dry conditions, with afternoon thunderstorms and dry lightning with little or no rain. Tonight, tomorrow or Friday, it's actually supposed to rain a bit which will be nice, but until then the storms bring the lighting, and the winds from the storms fan the ground strikes starting the fires. Last night was a big storm that worked through but it hit mostly South West of here, with power outage and trees down. It seems like the storms are natures roulette wheels, where will the storms develop or track through?

A new roof on the old building where we work,
We've been getting warned about it for a few weeks, then last week the company was preparing for it and this week they're doing the job. Where I work is on the second floor of a building built in the late 1930s. For being built in the snowy North it has a flat roof that even with drains often holds water and as such after a few winters it gets leaks that work down through to the ceiling of the second floor in spots. When that happens, as it did two winters ago, then I guess that's the cue to those powers that be, to replace the roof.


So part one (above) was stockpiling all the parts for the job, plus a bathroom. The roof, as it was built way back when, is primarily plywood sheets. So the job has entailed ripping those sheets off, installing new sheets then putting sheets of styrofoam on top of the wood.  After that's done then a large layer of rubber like material is laid on top, much like a modern RV. And then it's all sealed up and they'll hope for the best!

 The workers use this loader to get the new stuff up, and as this photo above shows, the old stuff down from the about 40 foot up roof top.
The loader then trucks it, load by load, across the street next to the grocery store where the company has a  big truck on hand, that when full, takes the old materials and hauls it up to the local dump. 

The problem is..................THE NOISE!!!
Think of the worst night you've ever spent at a motel or hotel with what sounds like a party going on above your head while you attempt to sleep below. Now, times that by at least 8 throwing in nail guns, hammers, boxes of heavy materials being walked across the roof by the up and drop, up and drop method and you can get the idea. There have been many times, and it's only day 3 of what's supposed to be 2 weeks, that I expected to hear the loud crashing sound to look over and see a worker in an office or the hall standing their with that 'what's going on' look!
At least Stacy is in California today as it seems like they were working over her office most of today. 

Till next time, Tad


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