Missed it by 1 second!

We had a couple of feet of snow a few weeks ago, so you know that that means!   This is a 30 minute 8 footer … that last foot is the hardest (no ladders allowed):

Helen helped me give it some more character the next day:

 

He started slowly tipping over, despite my encouragement to remain straight and strong:

But snowmen age a bit faster than the rest of us:

 

Even Irena’s mannequin was worried about him:

He eventually called it a good life, about about 1 hour after I took this photo:

And about 1 second before I took this photo …. 1 SECOND!   Ah for a slightly faster camera.   He was impossibly horizontal!

And for completeness, 1 week later:

We had a fun Thanksgiving.   Boris shared with us the joys of cooking Salmon with Pomegranate seeds:

Along with lots of other good food:

Noah and Inna, a friend from NY, flew in for a few days.  Here Noah is trying to figure out why a bird (on the deck chair) constantly perches on our deck and  periodically and deliberately flies into our window:

Our leading theory was he was being territorial and trying to scare away the competition, which looks remarkably like him.    We solved the problem by sitting a stuffed gorilla where he normally perched. 

The rest of our curtains arrive next week.    To prep for them, I bought a 26’ multi-function ladder and strung the wiring to supply power to the motors:

 

In the mean time, I’ve been playing with another project.   We have been enjoying our hot tub:

But feeling a bit guilty about the energy use.    So I researched the best way to leverage solar energy to heat water in cold temperatures.  Turns out to be evacuated solar tubes:

   http://www.solarpanelsplus.com/evacuated-tube-collectors

Invented in the US, but popularized and affordable-ized in China.    Initially I ordered a set from China, but shipping 2xed the cost, and required a “slow boat”.    So I found a state side supplier:

Got so excited, I assembled it in our kitchen before I figured out I couldn’t move it down the stairs:

So I dis-assembled, moved, and re-assembled:

I currently have it jury-rigged, testing out how well they work, deciding where to put them and if 16 tubes is enough:

Those little panels on the left are cheap (in-efficient) photo-voltaics that power a small submersible pump, so no external electricity or valves are needed.  

One last, yet another sunset, photo:

Bruce