2/26-3/1/24 I went up to Camp Serendipity for five days: Monday through Friday.

The trip was a little slow. I had to stop at the post office and then at the tax accountant and then it snowed from Skykomish on. I had to be in 4WD all the way over. I arrived at 1:00. Fortunately for me it stopped snowing just as I arrived. There was about four inches of new snow on the ground that hadn't been plowed but I drove right over it and didn't have to do any shoveling even on the steps. I brought my gear up in two trips, hoisting the flag between the two, and then I had my lunch and a nap. When I got up, I built a fire in the stove and then had my shower.

On Tuesday it snowed about two inches more overnight. I practiced the piano, listened to the radio, and then walked to the grave.

After lunch and a nap, I got up my nerve and went back to bending pipes. This time it was much more successful. The key was to wear sturdy work boots with a stiff sole so I could maintain steady pressure down on the pedal on the pipe bender. I also did it on the front porch right next to the Grid F2 column which I used to hang on to and to lean against to give me more mechanical stability.

I found that bending the pipes requires a considerable amount of effort. It's hard work. But persistence paid off and I bent seven more stubs. Next, I got my supply of dowels and used them to join the pipes into two rectangular structures. The dowels were about 6 inches too long but instead of cutting them I stuck them in the pipes the way they were so now my rectangles were 6 inches wider than I had planned. I figured I can always cut them back to the original size but by using them the way they were I could proceed with what I had.

In order to assemble them so that I could fasten them together, they needed to be interleaved. So, I opened one joint, interleaved the two rectangles, and then re-closed the joint. I got a short length of rope and tied the tops together as they will be in the final structure. As it is, the structure is very flimsy because the axle connecting the two rectangles is missing. But I at least could get an idea of how the end result will look and I'm happy with it. Next, I went in for the night and built a fire in the stove.

On Wednesday morning I was experiencing arrhythmia and a rapid heart rate. I felt a little faint when I got out of bed. My heart was going at 130 beats per minute.

After getting out of bed and going through my morning rituals, my heart settled down with a normal heartbeat and normal blood pressure for the rest of the day. I practiced the piano, listened to the radio, but I didn't feel like walking so I did some more work on my mortar stand.

After lunch and a nap, I felt a lot stronger and went for a walk to the grave in the rain. Near the grave I was surprised to see Barb and Byron who stopped to talk to me, the surprise being that Byron was driving. He told me that he was feeling really good. That was great news to hear. Whatever his measurement numbers are, he said he was near 100% this morning. I was glad to hear that.

Back in the cabin I built a fire in the stove. Just as it got going, at about 5:45, the power went out. There was still a little daylight left but I got my battery powered light and just started thinking about my strategy for fixing dinner. Just then at 6:00, the power came back on and stayed on the rest of the night. I was glad of that except that it had knocked the telephone out and phone service was not restored until about 8:00 when I was already in bed. Ellen called and we had our normal daily conversation.

On Thursday morning there was no new snow, my tachycardia had returned, and I was a little lightheaded early on. Ellen called early in the morning telling me of an emergency at home. The thermostat at home was not working, so the furnace wasn't working, so the house was cold. After discussing possible strategies, I decided to leave for home as soon as possible right after I finished my breakfast and closed up the cabin.

Before I finished my breakfast Ellen called again and reported that she had fixed the problem by putting new batteries in the thermostat lined up in the correct directions. I was happy to hear that and went back to my normal plan for the day.

I practiced the piano, listened to the radio and then walked to the grave. The weather was dry and clear, so it was a pleasant walk. When I got back, I worked some more on my mortar stand and then had my lunch and a nap.

When I got up, I did some more work on the mortar stand and then practiced the piano. Then, I filled and staged 14 water jugs to bring home the next day.

On Friday morning it was mostly clear and there had been no new snow but there was a light freezing drizzle that accumulated some ice over the top of the snow, but that only lasted for an hour or two. I went outside intending to groom the trails to make it easy and safe to carry the water over, but the snow was frozen so hard my aluminum shovel didn't work to cut steps or to even scratch the surface. But the ice grippers that I had strapped on my boots were very effective and I could walk over the snow trail feeling safe and secure.

I had my breakfast and then practiced the piano for about an hour. Then, at 9:00, I went outside to haul the water.

I made one trip down to the truck to bring the scoop shovel back down and to groom what I could on the way. And to start the truck and get some of the ice off the windshield. I also prepared the truck bed to haul the water and I picked up two ski poles to use on the snow trail at the top. Then I made five more trips up and down the stairs carrying 3 gallons of water in my Trapper Nelson pack (except the last trip was 2 gallons). I finished at 11:00.

On my first trip down the hill, Robert called, and we caught each other up on our activities. I was happy to hear that he is doing well, and I was happy to report that I am doing well. On one of my trips to the truck, Nancy stopped by with her dogs and we had a nice conversation. The weather was beautiful and great for going on a walk.

I left for home at 12:30 after a long and eventful week. It was great fun.