Why so few updates?

[MikeFairbanks]

I thought I'd take a moment to explain why there have been so few building updates during the last 12 months.

Here are 2 photos taken within a few minutes of each other on 26 Dec 2024...

I had spent a very productive day working in the shop on the Kitfox, when Bethe got home I walked over to the house to greet her. When we opened the front door to go in we were knocked back by a wall of smoke... it reminded me of the tear gas tent when I was in the Marine Corps. We immediately called the fire department because we couldn't get more than a few feet in the door before the smoke drove us back out.

Long story short the damage was extensive, and the house had to essentially be gutted... ceilings had to come down, flooring all had to be removed... and of course all of our belongings and furniture. It has been a long road and a lot of work, but we are almost back to normal. We've got a couple of small pieces of trim we're still finishing up... and unpacking and organizing is still taking place. But 90%+ of the work that needed to be done to the house has been completed.

In addition to this many other factors in life took what little time I had left. My mom had passed away only a month before the fire, so we've had her estate to deal with, including a farm in Illinois. Our boiler failed (don't know if it was related to the fire or not), as did the well. And just because we didn't have enough on our plate, we bought a farm in Missouri where we plan to snowbird and eventually move when Alaska becomes too hard on us as we grow older. It's a beautiful piece of property with plenty of room to land a Kitfox... https://youtu.be/ZrqtlcA2SN4

All that said, I have started working on the Kitfox again, and hope to begin posting regular updates again.