Frozen Fish

I had reserved posting yet more tragic death...Okay so as some of you know we had snow, lotsa snow...We too had below freezing weather as low as -5 below...And no power for some four days and then off and on for another two.

Well we have been here just over a year. And our big plan was to install the koi pond last spring ( we never got to that ). So Anyway when we sold our house in Camano Island we took a dozen and half koi with us.Some of them 17 inches and the best of the colors. I had spent 8 hours in the pouring rain in chest waders with a net and two buckets..Having the famous Koi Rodeo. The new owners had been kind enough to let me get them over the course of several days...We had the thousand gallon stock tank delivered and spent half a grand on new pumps and filter system that we located in the barn so the heron , possums,raccoons and eagles from eating them as the tank was not deep enough to keep most of the predators out.

Okay fast forward to the Sunday after Thanksgiving it started snowing, we lost power and the blue stock tank turned into a giant frozen hockey puck. I did not think much of it, as they, the koi, hibernate during the winter. Nor did I think of the possibility that the bottom of the tank would freeze as well as the sides. Never mind the five inch thick frozen disk. I had tried to smack it with a hammer and was not able to put even a crack in it by the second day of below freezing. The open end of the barn has wind going through it like one of the canyons in Eastern Washington. Adding to the wind chill factor. The power being out, no moving water just added to the flash freezing of the whole thing including the entire school of koi. When I was able to see thru the water realized all had been lost...The pump could not pump since the 125 gallon filter tank was frozen solid with nothing to do but wait for warmer weather. As of yesterday we still had frozen crusty snow of the pastures. So when I had gone down to the barn and I was able to plug in the pump and finally able to pump water through the filter and back into the tank all I notice was every last fish on their sides...So this morning I will go find the 3 inch tube to drain the tank...But what do I do with the frozen fish???? I have thought maybe I will put then in the yard and wait for the red tail hawks and the eagle to dive down and get them...Giving me an opportunity to take some photos of them in action...

I am up at four being awakened by the snow geese as they flew over in the early morning. I have appointments all day and tons of things to do since I was unable to leave before Sunday...And yesterday I spent the better part of the day searching for a car. We have decided to trade in the 4runner and Miata for a Forester..An easy task if one lived in the Midwest..But here it is another story altogether. What would be $10,000. In the Midwest goes for $15,000. Here...Same goes for 4x4 diesels. I found ten in the Midwest to every one here. Hubby and I thought it might be a good idea to find one out there have me fly out and drive back..It being winter was an idea that went right out the window.

Okay so with that all reported I am doing better as far as Buluga being gone...My sister decided to ask if we would like to take care of her dog while she is gone...Just where are you going? What? Iraq!It seems she has decided to give up her Costco truck driving job for a truck driving job there. No one in the family is surprised at this..Don't ask! My hubby had looked into working out there, why he did not go I never asked him. I figured that there just wasn't any dam's that he could get his risk rush in...But I did think there might be other risks that would get his blood pressure up!!!

She leaves the first week of January and will be gone a year. It seems my folks have a rotation of kids who must leave the United States at one point or another. Since 1981 my folks have had kids traipsing and living around the world. I think that the most time they have had all kids here was a few years ago. Ronnie has not been home a year and now Randi is leaving. The folks are use to this as I lived near Oakland during the big quake, Ronnie lived in jersey on 911 and was at the train station in Spain during the bombings there. Curtis lived in Thailand as well as South America after leaving Canada. And the oldest has lived in Alaska for the better part of 25 years. My folks never run out of vacation locations...They met my brother and myself while I lived in Japan and then they went to Thailand with him and then to China before returning home again....My dad never made it to Hawaii while I was there but my mum did, she missing him the whole time.

Well that is it for now..Hope you are all well...And to those of you in the Midwest please stay warm..The news tells me you have our gift of winter in your midst. You guys have it far worse then we did...Be well, be safe and have a wonderful day.