Family Mellmann

Today started sunny and chilly but pretty quickly turned cloudy (and a little less chilly).  After running some errands in Billings, I visited the construction site so that I could bring you all a fresh batch of pictures. Between Columbus (where we leave the highway to drive local roads to the property) and the construction site, there is this stretch of road where you are looking down the valley toward the mountain range that runs behind our house.  Normally, they are just a dim part of the background, but today, with snow on top, they appeared to be so much bigger and closer than usual.  The same was true when I arrived on site.  The mountain range looked closer and stretched further along the horizon that I'm used to.  It was lovely. The clouds seemed to be falling out of the sky toward earth and by the time I returned to Livingston, the mountains were mostly hidden.  I suppose there will be more snow up there by the time the sky clears and we can see th...

After a phone call with our Vermont realtor to get the morning started, Joerg went to his "day job" and I took off for Absarokee and Billings.  I took some pictures of the house, asked a couple of questions of my builder, and then double-checked the number of interior doors and which way they swing.  In Billings, I gave my little GPS a workout (I think it overheated from all the driving around so I had to switch to my phone for a while) as I drove from one end of town to the other placing orders, confirming colors, and gathering information.  It was a busy day, but I can work with busy when things are getting done. Here are the latest pictures from the construction site. The front patio cement has been poured. The builder and his crew were up on the roof attaching the peak trusses. I just took some weird angle images to play with the sunlight.  It was a gorgeous day. The imprinted cement is subtle but looks so much better than plain poured cement. The back patio ceme...

Saturdays are great for relaxing, catching up on random duties that often go ignored during the week, or taking an afternoon drive. The sunrise this morning was quite lovely and set the tone for a relaxed day.  In the afternoon, we took a drive to Absarokee to see the construction progress and show Dad and Sharon around - neither of them had seen the house with walls or roof trusses. More roof trusses have been added since my last visit, and some of the roof sheeting has gone up.  The first cement pour for the back patio is done and all the framing is ready for the second and third pours which should happen next week. The day ended with a colorful sunset.  

It is usually sunny with blue skies here in Livingston, but once in awhile the clouds roll in and bring some rain.  This time the clouds rolled in and brought some rain, but in the higher elevations and on the north faces of the mountains, snow was what we saw when the clouds rolled away.  I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later. ❆😎❆  

It was raining when I prepared to go for my morning walk so I had to wait until later in the day.  As I walked out the door, I was looking at my phone to bring up a podcast to listen to and was startled when this neighbor turned around to look at me.  We stared at each other for a moment and then I said out loud, "I think I'm going to take your picture" as I brought my phone up for the shot.  They were about eight feet from me. After we finished staring at each other, I went on for my walk.  On my return, I got a nice view of lower Livingston.  With the mountains in the back.  

I have been walking (almost) every morning as long as it isn't raining or too cold (roughly 40 degrees Fahrenheit).  It's not something I particularly enjoy so getting a little sunrise show helps to make it worth the effort, especially as the nights get longer and the days get shorter. I thought I would share a little sunrise color; when I left for my walk, and when I came back.  

We went downtown to take in a little local Oktoberfest here in Livingston.  They close down part of 2nd Street and set up food trucks, beer tables, picnic tables, and a brat booth.  And there is a large "kid zone" in the middle with pumpkin painting, limbo games, llamas (because who doesn't love a llama?), and kid-sized swimming pool piled high with autumn leaves for the kids to jump in and throw around (they were having a blast!).  The brats and sauerkraut were good and there was a little "oompah music" at one end of the pedestrian zone.  Several people came dressed for the occasion with Dirndl, Lederhosen, or German-themed scarves and hats.  It's a far cry from the real thing in Bavaria and it pales in comparison to our Stowe Oktoberfest in Vermont, but it was a tasty meal, a nice walk, and a good way to wrap up a day...especially a day that began with a lovely sunrise.

When I look outside to the night sky it is dark.  Light pollution from the town below blots out so many of the stars.  And yet, with a camera, set to a slow shutter speed, one can see...Aurora Borealis.  The Northern Lights.