Perhaps the most daunting task of finishing out the interior of our cabin by ourselves was sanding and staining the interior walls, doors and trim inside our home. “Phase I” of this process involved sanding all the interior walls and ceilings.

Just doing the vaulted ceilings was a massive two-week undertaking. While the hubby had tremendous help from our youngest and the DSL that first weekend, the hubby was forced to take some vacation time and do most of it himself.

After looking at several log cabin magazines, I had one fear and I have a sneaky suspicion many log cabin families fear the same thing: making the cabin too dark. Our neighbor says and I agree that one does have to install more lighting in a log cabin than in conventional housing because the logs are already going to naturally darken the room and absorb light.

Thus, I elected to go with the lightest stain we could find to minimize this effect.

Lakeside view of Solitude this morning…

As a blogger I do not spend inordinate amounts of time promoting my blog on social media. There are several reasons for this: A) I do have a life! If I actively worked all the major “avenues” of social media, I would never make any progress in the other “arenas” of my life. B) Some sites require a master’s in computer science in order to post links. C) Some claim they have major followings and then really don’t. D) Some are photo-based and as you have probably noticed, I’m not a great photographer. (I do have future plans for working around this, though!)

However, there would be no MaryAnn In Progress if it were not for Facebook. I began writing “Notes” on Facebook nearly 10 years ago “just for grins” and the response was surprising to me. Several faithful “followers” suggested that I needed to write a book and the DSL finally suggested that I “own” my writing. Hence, a blog was born!

We are officially postponing the Log-Raising Event for our lakeside cabin at the Reserve in Montalba, TX until Saturday, June 11th at 10 am. Please see my post from yesterday regarding directions to the Reserve and email me if you need the code for the Reserve gate along with the number of people in your party. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause for those planning to attend this weekend. Unfortunately, I do not control the weather!

For those wanting to stay overnight, we recommend the Holiday Inn Express and the La Quinta in Palestine, TX. Please bring sunscreen, bug repellent, lawn chairs and rain gear (Hopefully, this will not be needed!). Wear comfortable clothing–this is definitely a casual event!

Questions? Post a comment below.

Sunset on Serenity

I was not looking forward to a trip to East Texas in October 2014.

My brother’s best friend wanted to dedicate a park he had created on some property he was developing and he invited my other brother and my family to be at the dedication. I was not looking forward to it for several reasons:

1. I was just getting to the point where I wasn’t sobbing incessantly about losing my brother.
2. The event would be attended by people I had never met except for my brother’s best friend, my other brother and my hubby. I’m an introvert in such situations by nature and awkward when I try to fake being an extrovert. Add grief to the equation and I’m doubly awkward.
3. My allergies often send me to the ER for anaphylaxis. These are costly and threaten my very existence. I wouldn’t be where I already knew the doctors and hospitals if that happened…not bueno for me, since my health adventures defy typical medical scenarios.
4. The Reserve (the development where the park was being dedicated) was full of lakes and a wide variety of trees, bushes, etc. Translation? It could be my allergy tomb! Mold is often around bodies of water; I’m allergic to all kinds of dust, grasses, weeds, and tree pollens.

It’s difficult for me to contain my enthusiasm for Soul Feast, since it opened up a whole new realm of discovery, study and blessing for my spiritual journey. But, I think restraint is warranted here, since others may have encountered this material before and thus, be less impressed than I.

Written in 1995, author Marjorie J. Thompson proposes that a major spiritual awakening is due for us earthlings any day now. History states that these events occur about every 500 years and the last one took place in the 16th century. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that the 21st century version is already underway. People are restless and want something more.

Thompson contends that the something more they seek is to be found in practices first initiated by the “desert fathers and mothers.” These folks grew up in the era immediately following the deaths of the Apostles and felt that they were losing something important from the absence of Jesus Himself and these great teachers and writers.