Elevated Attitude » Apryle

Happy Holidays (photos)

Apryle — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 01:05:36 +0000

Hey, everyone! Happy holidays! Here are a bunch of photos of our house, our first Christmas Tree (a live blue spruce named Fat Albert!), and a bounty of gifts waiting to be opened. Thanks to everyone who thought of us this holiday season.

Autumn Update: Garden, etc (Photos)

Apryle — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 18:46:21 +0000

Climbed a tree and picked apples. Made applesauce and apple pies. Got some local Palisade, CO peaches and canned those up. My boss gave me some cucumbers out of his brother’s garden; made some pickles. Baking lots of pies!! Put a coat of paint on our concrete stairs. Phil got pretty good tomatoes this year. You’ll also see pictures of the wheat crop.

Wood frog in my hand

Apryle — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:57:33 +0000

The Beavers of Fish Creek

Apryle — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 17:56:58 +0000

We learned of an active beaver colony on Fish Creek road a few years ago but did not go out to the site until recently to check it out. Now I try to go at least once per week. Some muskrat and ducks mixed in…

Free Entertainment Center & Queen Mattress

Apryle — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 20:34:42 +0000

Free mattress and entertainment center. Pickup only. Please call us to arrange pickup 610-413-2240. We also have some scrap metal for free.

Monitoring Veg at Rocky Mountain National Park

Apryle — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 19:09:11 +0000

Beetle Kill Pine Floor – Finally Finished

Apryle — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 18:46:18 +0000

After what feels like decades, we have our floor installed and finished. We sanded, distressed, stained, and coated it with polyurethane. A lot of the boards were imperfect, plus we anticipated the wear and tear from the renters, so we distressed the floor prior to staining with Zar Spanish Oak. Click here for beetle kill pine floor installation photos.

Unfortunately, our kitchen plumbing is leaking so the project is still not over and we still don’t have renters in. Money pit.

If anyone wants to check back in and find out what the floor looks like after a few weeks or months of wear and tear, feel free to shoot us an email and we’ll let you know how it wears. We’ll try to post photos at the end of summer, but no guarantees.

Homemade Pot Pie

Apryle — Tue, 17 May 2011 01:59:35 +0000

Beetle Kill Pine Floor Installation

Apryle — Sun, 15 May 2011 20:23:07 +0000

We started to install our beetle kill pine floor. Despite the persistent snow and rain, the moisture content dropped to 6% (as low as it will go) without any kilning. We got it at the local Drake, CO sawmill. The boards don’t go together entirely flush, but we’re going to stain it dark and distress it so I think it will be okay anyway. These pictures are all unstained, unfinished in any way. We’ll post more when it’s complete.

After we install it, it needs to be sanded, stained, and coated with polyurethane. We were hoping to do something more environmentally conscious than stain and poly, but with this place being a rental property and wanting the floor to last as long as possible (also an environmental factor), we think poly is probably going to be a good choice.

Working at Rocky Mountain National Park

Apryle — Fri, 06 May 2011 01:27:03 +0000

I love my new job. I measure vegetation as part of the ongoing process with the Elk and Vegetation Management Plan (EVMP). Throughout the Park, there are randomly placed vegetation cages. The cages are cylindrical, made of chicken wire, and have a top to them so that it prevents browsing by critters. I measure vegetation outside the cage, where the elk and other animals have a chance to eat the grass, etc, then I measure inside the cage and compare.

I am also involved with monitoring raptors, checking on unique wildlife observations from visitors, and other things that crop up that are involved with wildlife.

Thanks to everyone (especially Phil!) for your patience as I’ve been trying to wrap up projects with my web design business, work my new job, finish my EMT class (ends May 8!), clean and package about a dozen eggs per day, and help prepare our house for installing a new beetle-kill pine floor.

Happy birthday, Phil!