11/6-10/23 I went up to Camp Serendipity for five days: Monday through Friday.

It rained most of the way. I stopped at Stevens Pass to walk for a few minutes since Deception Falls was now closed for the season. I arrived at Camp Serendipity exactly at noon. I brought my gear up in one trip, hoisted the flag, had my lunch and my nap, and when I got up, I set all the clocks back an hour. I put my stuff away, did some exercises, and then built a fire in the stove.

I made a nice discovery: that pistachio shells make an excellent fire starter for the stove. I made a small pile of shells at the bottom of the stove, lit them with the torch, and then stacked logs above the shells. In no time the logs took hold, and I had a nice fire. From now on I will save all my pistachio shells.

On Tuesday morning, it was raining cats and dogs when I got up and the temperature was 37 degrees outside. I practiced the piano, listened to the radio a little before I went out and worked on the rigging that I need for my stonework when it resumes. After lunch and a nap, I went for a walk and went into the woods by the bridge intending to look for Earl's cabin. I thought that with the leaves gone I might be able to get a glimpse of it but no such luck.

On Wednesday I started out by doing some exercises and then I practiced the piano. I listened to the radio a little and then went and worked in the crawl space. I found some chain repair links and used them to make 3 pulley hooks. I'll use those to hang the pulleys from the overhead chain and then use the pulleys to lift loads, like buckets of mortar. Next, I made six Z-brackets which is all I will need to fasten four 2x10 planks for my scaffold deck.

After lunch and a nap, I walked to the grave.

On Thursday after I had practiced the piano, Dave called, and we had a long informative conversation. Next, I filled the water jugs and staged them in the front entry room. Then I went down to the crawl space and started making a mortar board stand. It didn't go too well because I discovered I don't have any 3/4-inch EMT and all that I have are half-inch. I'm not sure whether to make it with the smaller tubes or buy the bigger tubes so I made no more progress.

After lunch and a nap, I walked to the grave again and got back early enough to play the piano. I was happy about that because I could play better than I usually do when I wait until the end of the day to practice. From now on I will try to arrange my afternoons so that I practice the piano earlier before dinner.

On Friday morning I practiced the piano and then went outside and loaded the water jugs into the truck. Next, I vacuumed the first floor and then did some reading before I packed up to leave for home. I left for home at 12:00 and felt like I learned a few important things during the week.