Today's Adventure - N by NW / Sunset At Home

 

Song:  The Lonely Shepard

Artist:  George Zamfir

This time I took my younger sister to the north and northwest to look at possible mountain properties.

Although there were some nice ones...

they were simply too far away from any major towns.

As she is only one and a half years younger than am I...

she must think about the ability to not only handle large properties...

but must consider her proximity to conveniences as well as to a major hospital.

So...

we accomplished crossing off another large area of land as a possibility.

Tomorrow...

we will concentrate on my mountain area...

or around the town nearby.

We saw these pronghorn antelope on the way back from one of the properties.

We then traveled to the northwest to look at more mountain properties...

but they were also too remote for her.

-------------------

We came back home for the day...

and I started cooking Mandarin Orange Chicken...

and Paella...

and then halfway through my cooking...

(Yesterday...I removed the screen doors from the front apex of my house...

just in front of the large sliding glass doors leading out on to the second deck.

They come off easily...and are easily stored in the storage closet underneath 

the loft stairway.  I will put them back on in summer as I will just leave the front 

sliding glass doors open to allow more cooling mountain breezes throughout the house.)

...I looked up to see these incredible colors coming from the east.

While this is where I watch the sunrise...

when there are clouds on the eastern horizon...

they pick up the colors of the sunset to the west.

As I am fortunate to be able to see both...

the sunrise and sunset from my home...

I went out to the second floor deck...

and after taking some of the eastern cloud shots...

I merely walked around the corner of my house following the wrap around deck...

...and took some shots of the sunset.

I normally take sunset shots from the third deck...

but I wanted to get a slightly different perspective on these shots...

so...

I just stayed on the second deck and took all of the sunset shots.

These are more of the eastern clouds as they deepened in color.

I kept walking from one side of the deck to the other to capture the incredible unfolding colors

of the sky on both horizons.

As you can see...

even the clouds directly above turned pink.

I was surrounded by deepening colors all around me...

east...west...and above.

It was so surreal...

and all of this coupled with a gentle cooling mountain breeze blowing...

with just the light sound of the wind blowing through the trees.

It was a beautiful way to end the day.

-------------

My sister is presently looking up more properties of mountain homes near mine.

We will be visiting them...

and she will be compiling a list for a real estate agent for this Wednesday...

whereupon they will look at the properties up close.

My younger sister definitely wants a view of the sunset.

To be able to see the sky aflame is a treat that will keep giving...

for a lifetime.

The Past Few Days - Relaxing / Going South

Theme From:  Cosmos

Artist:  Vangelis

On Saturday...

my younger sister was still tired...

so I took her to The Garden of the Gods...

and then out to eat at a Thai Restaurant.

Yesterday...

it was a beautiful day...

mid 50s F.

Today...it got up to the mid 60s F.

-----------------

Today...

as my sister felt more energetic...

she looked up some properties online to the south of my home.

We first ate at a Mexican restaurant at the nearest town...

and we then drove out to a couple of listings to see the general area.

It turns out that the southern area was just too remote and the properties simply too large

for her to handle as she ages.

The normal lot sizes were 35 acres...

and although the houses were large...

they were just too isolated.

And so...

she will just cross out the south for most of her real estate searching.

However...

just by looking...

she is taking the first step to a better future.

On our way back home from her southern search.

Not too far from my home here.

The sky was just too beautiful to keep driving...

so I pulled over for us to take some photos of this magnificent sunset.

My sister likes the idea of seeing natural beauty all around her 

here in Colorado.

We are going to the north to search for other areas of a possible future home for her.

She is presently searching the internet for possible homes

that we will drive by to get an idea of the general area...

and so...

a possible future home.

On Wednesday...

my younger sister has an appointment with a real estate agent to actually look

inside some homes.

She will first look at some homes in my neighborhood

(somewhere on this mountain)...

and then at some others near other towns.

The more my sister sees of Colorado...

the more she loves it here.

----------

Tomorrow will be fairly busy...

as we will drive up to Breckenridge Ski Resort...

and look at the outside of listings which interest her on the way.

 

The Past Few Days

 

BGM

YouTube Channel:  Best Music Relax

My younger sister arrived a few days ago...

and she is still tired from her drive and the altitude.

So...

we have just gone to a few local places to eat.

She has been on the internet looking at homes to get an idea of what is available.

She had found one which quite suits her taste.

But...

as this is just an exploratory visit for her to get the feel of the area and the weather...

we won't actually be pursuing any real estate during this trip.

Driving down the mountain from home on our way to get a bite to eat the other day.

We had just come back from Wild Horses Cafe.

We had eaten a large pizza...

and had some hot cocoa to sip on while the pizza was being prepared.

The view...

as always...

was magnificent.

This was our view as we ate our pizza.

After eating...

my sister had to go back inside to look for her glasses...

and so...

I just walked up to the edge of the parking lot to take some pictures of the view.

On our way back home from the cafe.

This was just down the street from home...

at Sunset Point.

-----------

As we are just taking it easy for the first week...

tomorrow I will take her to the Garden of the Gods.

We will stop somewhere to eat afterwards...

and we will then come back home.

My sister has been sleeping a lot...

and no doubt...

she will still be tired...

so it will just be a quick and easy day tomorrow.

My Younger Sister On Her Way

 

Relaxing Classical Music

From:  YouTube Channel - HalidonMusic

As the whole of the main floor is tile...

it takes but a few minutes to use the extra wide dust mop on the entire 2nd floor.

I then just form a pile and sweep it up with the broom and debris container combo. 

I had initially swept off the water proof entrance rug.

This is where I take off my snow boots...

and there are often small pieces of crushed granite and snow 

which deposit themselves onto this special carpet.

Its whole backing is of rubber...

and so...

every so often...

I need just do a quick sweep.

Anyway...

as I always clean up after myself in everything...

there is no need for me to do any rush or deep cleaning...

not anywhere in my home.

I talked with my younger sister last night.

I had been trying to get her to come out and stay with me...

for at least a few weeks.

We looked at the weather window...

and as it is supposed to be relatively clear...

my sister agreed to drive out early tomorrow morning (0200 hrs).

She should arrive tomorrow late evening.

She will stay for about one month.

She is thinking of looking at properties in my area...

and if not in the immediate vicinity...

then somewhere relatively close.

My sisters and I love many of the same things...

that of privacy...

the serenity of being surrounded by nature...

or by having it nearby.

My younger sister was looking at some pieces of property

with some acreage and views.

I will be driving her all around to view...

not only specific pieces of property...

but of general areas.

I wanted her to get an idea of the mountains in winter.

They are actually much milder than most winters

in other colder areas.

I will also be able to show her around more than when she was last here.

I will take her to my favorite restaurants...

and we will explore some others as well.

------------

As a result of my younger sister's visit...

I, of course...

will put off my little projects.

There is no rush for anything that I do around the house...

and it will be fun.

I have all winter to chop down trees...

but even should I miss all of winter...

I can always start next year.

However...

 I will have plenty of time after my younger sister's visit.

But...

this will also present an opportunity to take pictures 

of surrounding areas as I take my sister around.

And so...

I will share many photos of the surrounding areas as I show my sister around.

Inside Project Day - Second Tier Inner Windows

Cosmic Piano Pieces 

Artist:  James Malikey

Today, I did the inside second tier windows.

My ladder is about 23 feet fully extended.

It folds into a compact position for easy storage.

I will demonstrate this at the end.

I keep it in the storage closet which is beneath the stairs leading to the loft.

It has a total of six strong latches so the ladder may be configured into a variety of shapes 

for different uses.

The brand is Gorilla Ladders and I got it from Home Depot.

It is strong enough for industrial use.

It holds up to 375 lbs...

and in the A Frame configuration...

two people may use it at the same time...

one on each side of the A frame.

It weighs 54 lbs...

and is sturdy...

and perfect for my home needs.

For my purposes for this day...

I configured it into an A Frame.

My window cleaner set comes with many extension poles...

but I only used a few since I would be on a ladder.

It comes with three different heads.

The orange I use to apply and scrub the windows with the Rain X cleaner / protectorant.

The grey rough surface one I use to initially dust the windows and sills.

The finer head I use to wipe dry the windows after using the orange applicator head.

They are easily swapped out as I use them.

I first dusted all the second tier windows and sills

(actually, there was very little dust)...

and I then took up the drying head with me so I could swap 

the heads out after cleaning each window as I was atop the ladder.

The head is adjustable to a lockout position in various degrees.

This proved to be very useful as the outer edged windows are angled.

I simply got underneath the ladder and pressed it up and walked it over

to each window as needed.

After I had reached the far end after dusting each window and sill...

within a short period...

it had begun to snow.

A minor problem arouse with the snowfall...

as I couldn't see the whitish residue left behind as I did the final wipe down...

as the sky was white.

And so...

I just tried to ensure I covered each area of the window...

as I was essentially operating blind.

Of course...

by the time I had finished...

it had stopped snowing and the sky opened up some to blue skies.

The locking mechanisms are easily manipulated...

are strong and positively lock into position

with actual thick bolts.

I just got underneath the A of the ladder...

and released the locks on one side while I allowed one side at a time to retract.

Once I had it in this position...

I then released the center locking mechanisms and finished folding it down to size.

I simply laid it down...

as tomorrow is supposed to be sunny.

I plan to do the outside lower and second tier windows.

I won't be doing the third tier windows unless I have someone to hold the ladder

for me.

Perhaps when my sisters visit.

Being some 20 feet in the air...

especially on the inside of my home with the hard tile floor...

 were I to end up falling from that height...

I could crack the tiles  :)

---------

A good ladder is a must for a mountain home.

In the summer...

I will be applying UV Protectorant / Water Proofing to the outdoor wood surfaces...

and for that...

I will need to use the ladder in its fully extended open position on the upper reaches of my home.

That is why I had gotten a flared bottom and top ladder.

It is relatively easy to flip over a ladder without a flared bottom and top if one leans over too far.

--------------------------

Addendum:  

Although the bottom tier windows look good...

on the upper tier windows I couldn't put enough pressure on the windows while on a ladder.

While all of the windows looked good from the 2nd floor...

while up in the loft...

and in the morning sunlight when the sun shines directly through the front windows...

I can then see many streaks in the windows.

Enough...

I called for an appointment with a professional window cleaner.

He will be here next week.

However...

I will still be using the ladder on the outside of the house to apply 

UV and water repellant...

as well as to change high lying light bulbs.