Today I was very excited to do what felt like the very first step in the process of building my cabin! How fitting that I should begin the process on solstice, the very first day of summer.
This morning I got up at seven and I must still be “jet-lagged” because it sure felt like 5. For Father’s Day, Paul’s family gave him a new tackle box filled with all kinds of lures and fishing gadgets and allowed him a day off from normal family obligations to fish the hours by as he pleased. He invited me along and we met up with Joel a few miles from my lot at Newman Lake around 8:30. We put in and fished for trout for about four hours.
Pictured here is a family of common loons, the Minnesota state bird. Joel told me you can tell the male is the one on the left because he has a bigger head than the female. They make a call as eerie sounding as their red eyes are eerie looking. Joel was a little concerned about getting too close to them because sometimes they get aggressive if they feel threatened. Luckily, I have a good zoom on my camera and we escaped unscathed.
Not only that, we caught three trout apiece, plenty for a nice dinner! Joel showed us how to clean them and we headed back to the DNA lab in Becida. Before departing, I saw a small flock/herd/gaggle/whatever of swallowtail butterflies.
We also saw some local folks on horses. This guy rode his horse right into the lake and the horse started hopping all around and then laid down in the water with the rider still on its back. I tried to get a picture of the horse playing in the lake, but I was slow on the draw. Here is a picture of the scene anyway and I like to think of the rider on the left as having a pretty good suntan, for a Minnesotan...
Toward the end of our fishing trip, I started to feel a little antsy that I might not have enough time for what I needed to do today. My fear was unfounded however, and turned out to to be a result of California conditioning. See, I'm basically programmed to believe that when I deal with government entities, there will be lots of unnecessary steps, red tape, long lines and grumpy workers who are tired of dealing with irritated customers. What I forgot to take into account is that almost everyone here is "Minnesota nice". It's like what they are known for.
So we went about 35 miles down to the county building so I could apply for an address and a permit to build a driveway. We arrived at 3:30 and there was no line. Barb was there and said never mind that form I was about to fill out in pen, she would put all my info into a computer typed document for me while I waited. I paid $50 for my address which includes the county coming out to put in a permanent reflective sign with my address on it. Then Barb gave us directions to the highway department where I could apply for a driveway permit: "Do ya know where da Faith Baptist Church is? It's just across from theer." We got to the highway department a few minutes before closing and I submitted my application for a driveway. She regretted to inform me she wouldn't be able to give my application to the engineer who would inspect my site until.......... tomorrow, as if that were months away and I was about to yell at her for it. Oh how different things are here. I forked over the $100 application fee which includes an 18 inch diameter culvert (water pipe) 36 feet long, provided and delivered by the county. If I were to purchase such a thing in California, it would cost hundreds for the culvert, not to mention delivery fees. When I handed her the money, the lady behind the counter said, "Ah, small bills, I like you." I could only respond genuinely, "I like you too," as I was so grateful the process was so easy!
So Paul and I headed back up the 40 miles to my lot, and I drove my $100 stake into the ground where we decided my driveway should be. I felt like I was staking my claim, and struck a pose to say so.
Afterward, we headed back to the DNA lab and had a wonderful trout dinner with Dustin and the kids. My new friend Curt came over and ate with us and it was nice to chat with him because he's headed out of town for a week. We grilled the trout with their bellies packed full of lemon slices, fresh garlic, and herbs picked right from Joel and Dustin's garden. After my trip to the county buildings, the meal seemed triumphant!
Sitting and enjoying the company, we were soon visited by a character named Ernie. He had a white beard, long hair pulled back into a ponytail, a T shirt with the sleeves cut off, and tattoos all up his arms. I've heard he makes really beautiful art from anything he can find. His handmade knives are said to be exquisite and I hear he wastes nothing. I thought the highlight of my day was placing my driveway until Ernie started telling us about Jesus, UFOs, and a conspiracy theory concerning the world’s most powerful battery that the energy companies don’t want you to know about. I can't remember how it was all tied together, but what I took away from it all was, watch out for bigfoot, she is looking for a male companion. Ernie seems to be a local legend around here, and I can't wait to see his hand craft work.
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