Lake House Diaries 15

      The family dynamics took a turn after that meeting. There were changes blowing in the wind and perhaps the meeting was just the catalyst for something that may have been inevitable. The eldest son Greg Jr., had previously had a falling out with his father and then the brothers with whom he had been in business. He and his wife Lil and their girls were the family that used the Lake House the least of all of Greg and Ethel's children. His in-laws had a vacation property elsewhere and they seemed to prefer to spend time there. It did not make sense to him to pay a share of the expenses at the Lake House if he and his family were not there much. As a result, when Greg and Ethel passed on the property to all of their children, 6 couples, Greg decided to opt out soon after and insisted that his name be taken off of the title. 

      The others thought it was a rash decision, but the papers were finalized and then there were only 5 owners. The burden of responsibility was now on these 5 couples as Greg and Ethel were winding down their time there. Paul and his wife Hannah slowly took over the book-keeping and all the financial details that job entailed. All income and expenses were handled by Hannah and she did a great job. The issue of how much to charge the "campers" was often discussed as the expenses of running the property continued to climb. But discussions were no longer held at the Oroville meetings. In fact the Oroville meetings became a thing of the past when Paul declared that he was no longer calling meetings nor would he attend if there ever was one. He did not want to be "blind-sided again". 

    This left a few family members perplexed but business was still discussed via phone calls and emails. As time went by, certain topics and decision were only talked about by certain family members. For some unknown reason, Tod and Em were left out of the loop and would not be a part of the discussions, but decisions made by others were simply announced to them after the fact. Small fractures between individuals were not resolved but were left to fester and soon there were some real divisions. Of course, not knowing any of the disputes in the family, Greg would say to his children and grandchildren that he was so happy that he and Ethel had built the Lake House and that it was such a source of happiness and unity in the family. The enjoyment part was very true, but the unity was turning onto disunity, and it was mostly because of the Lake House. 

    The youngest son Rick and his wife Willa divorced themselves from the family and moved out of province. They still came for their week at the lake but would not so much as rub shoulders with any other family member. It seemed to be a continuation of the falling out he had with his brothers, similar to Greg Jr.'s. And then a decision was made that changed everything. 

Getting Started

  These are some of the first AI assisted photos that I attempted. On the Big Island of Hawaii there is a beautiful little park on the ocean with this peaceful cove. I know that Hawaii was not plagued with pirates, but I thought a pirate ship at anchor here would be fun. 

   What would happen if you were stranded on the road on a windy rainy night and you tried to flag down some help. These are two versions of the same thing but with different weather. 

     As with many of my photos, the scene is very pretty but there is something lacking. This evening scene after a rain shower needed a sail boat. The rainbow is real. 

   This spring the Cherry blossoms were spectacular. I cropped one of my many photos of blossoms and had AI insert a Robin. It chose an English Robin!

     A very well finished custom street rod but in a much better setting than a hot sticky asphalt parking lot in the middle of a big city. "Off roading" with this beauty is not advised. 
 

Rat Problem

     

      We live in an upscale Condominium complex and we should not have rats, but we do. There are two or three main reasons for this. Our property borders a small business mall which has a restaurant and a pizza joint. The garbage bins behind the establishments are not always closed tightly so rats can feed at will. Then they come to our complex where the landscaping  consists of much cement block and bark mulch, making it a good nesting site. We also suspect that some residents are leaving cat food in their outdoor areas and rats love the stuff. 

    The pest control company that has a contract to eradicate the rats is not very successful. The regulations around rat poison prohibits them from using lethal doses. Go figure! As a result, we see rats scurrying about day and night. 

    I finally decided to take matters into my own hands a few weeks ago. I started with the very sticky sheets that have a smell that attracts rats and mice. Shortly after laying one down in between the shrubs, I heard a commotion. Much to my dismay, a beautiful little bird had been caught. There was no way I could extricate him and I had to end its life humanely. On to plan B.

    For $5 I purchased a real rat trap, a snap trap. I soon found out how powerful it was as I was baiting and setting it. I quickly learned that I should have worn gloves. Let's just say that had my brains or heart been in my fingers, I would be dead. I used peanut butter as bait, not just any peanut butter, but my favourite, Adam's all natural Crunchy. No self respecting rat could possibly turn that down. 

   The next day, much to my dismay, I found the trap sprung, but no rat. And the bait was completely gone. I still have no idea how that happened. Believe me when I say that, because the trap has a "hair trigger". Then I got to thinking, as I sometimes do, that if I bait the trap again, but do not set it, the rats would get the idea that the trap and the bait are safe and soon they will throw caution to the wind and pounce on the bait with gusto, as I do my peanut butter toast in the mornings. 

    Much to my delight, the deception worked. I set the trap a day or two later and in only a few hours, I had my first rat, a clean kill right on the neck. 

    I have become somewhat of an expert now and have just notched my 10th kill as of this writing. I still get nervous setting the spring and have "snapped" myself several times, but now I wear gloves. I hope the rats don't get the same idea. 

Reworking Photos

    Our vacation property in Oroville gets some pretty spectacular skies, but nothing as good as this, thanks to the AI generated lightening. The photo is exactly as I took it. Amazing what a streak of jagged light can do to add drama. 

   The Ghost town of Molson revisited. A child of yesteryear comes to life with a little help from AI. 

        Again, 100% my photo, and a good one, I think. The added Moose makes it spectacular. 

   Another moose on the loose in a local field taken on a foggy Autumn morning. Funny, but there was a horse in the original photo. 

    Central Washington State is so much like Saskatchewan. I would like to say that is an old, old photo, but it is not. 
 

Lake House Diaries 14

     Paul, the third eldest in the family, had recently been showing more of an interest in the affairs of the family and of the Lake House. This was the first meeting where there seemed to be an official MC or facilitator of the meeting. He took charge of the discussion in a manner of speaking, and indicated that they would go around the circle and get each couple's dream for the future. Nothing written in stone, only an idea for the future and perhaps a guideline for further developments and actions. Just talk, mind you.

    As the couples were voicing their ideas and opinions, it was becoming evident that they were dealing with a heritage and a legacy, and the property would be there forever for future generation to come. Perhaps one of the couples would live there in the future, like Greg and Ethel did now. But who that might be was left unsaid. The main thing was to help Greg and Ethel run things smoothly, and let the future take care of itself. 

    And then it was Tod and Em's turn. Tod had been brainstorming with Kris and they both saw the possibilities, agreeing on the principle, but not the details of what Tod was about to say. Tod began by laying out the math. A sentence or two in, the room fell silent. Undeterred, Tod continued. His premise was that if they sold the property, as a family, and of course after Greg and Ethel were gone, and if the assessed value held, the revenue would be around $US1.8 million. Divided by six couples that would be $300,000.00 per couple. At that time, the interest rate was around 10%. Simply put in the bank by each couple, that money would generate $30,000.00 per year. They would no longer have the Lake House to vacation at, but imagine the vacation they take each year with that kind of money. And, Tod emphasized, it would be a real vacation, not one where you had to mow lawns, pull weeds, trim hedges, prune trees, clean up after spiders, etc, etc. 

    Kris was sitting next to Tod and it was his turn, after the silence became uncomfortable. Kris said that he agreed in principle with Tod's idea, but would not expand on it. He sensed it was not being taken well. And indeed it was not. 

     The meeting ended shortly thereafter and everyone went their own way. There was a sense of foreboding and Tod and Em talked about it on the way home. It was only an idea thrown out there, and yet there was something deeper. Tod expressed the idea that he was an in-law, a "married in" and perhaps what right did he have to any opinion at all, let alone the opinion to sell the family legacy. Tod learned something, that night, about the family he had married into and had a sense that things were going to get rough. And he was right. 

 

Easy Photoshop

    This photo lends itself so well to the addition of the tractor and mower. Photo taken in Glen Valley.

    Added the fish to satisfy the Great Blue Heron's appetite. 

       I took this photo in downtown Waikiki about two years ago on a bright and sunny day and wondered what it would have like to have an electrical storm sweep through the high rises. Now we know. 

       That horse with the snow on his back was not there when I took this photo. 

    A whimsical idea came to mind as I changed this photo to Black and White, but I wanted the car to stay in it's lane. AI thought otherwise. But, like when I took the shot, there was not another vehicle for miles. (Central Washington State) 
 

More Nostalgia

     Spring at Osoyoos Lake and new families are out strolling. Geese and their young were added. 

          Nothing change here except the horse was inserted. 

         Just for the record, this is my photo before AI insertion of horse. 

       How much better with a bit of action!

      The photo is recent but this very land probably saw horse drawn wagons less than 100 years ago. 
 

Lake House Diaries 13

      The family was not sure about the source of the information, but someone came up with an assessment of the property, considering the up turn in the market, and the potential for water and sewer service possibly coming in the near future. Neither Greg and Ethel, nor any of their children, ever considered the possibility of sitting on such a valuable property. The bare piece of desert all those years ago was purchased for US$40,000. Nobody really knew what the cost of the development of the lot, or the cost of construction of the house and cabin were, but it was quite evident that those costs were nowhere near what the property was worth now. 

     The lot was 3/4 of an acre. The percolation tests for septic limited the number and sizes of dwellings on the property and it was not possible to utilize any of the land for more dwellings as in sub-dividing lots. But with city water and sewer, those limitations would no longer exist and there was room on the back of the property, behind the garden and the orchard to carve off two small lots. With water and sewer, and no sub-dividing, the assessed value was US$1.8 million. With the two lots staked off and services put in to them, the value went to US$2.1 million. 

     Naturally, this topic came up at the 'Oroville Meeting' held by Greg and Ethel's children and their spouses. Some, including Tod, had heard Greg express some excitement over the windfall, and he did not outright reject the idea of at least talking about it. All in attendance at the meeting agreed that nothing would be investigated or explored regarding this topic and any action or even discussion would have to be initiated by Greg and Ethel. The Lake House was their dream, they owned it, and even they were 'hands off' owners and residents, they would still be in total control. 

     One day, Greg and Ethel would be out of the picture, due to health or death, and then the family, who would inherit the property, could take any action they saw fit. At that meeting, the topic came up as to what each couple thought the future would hold for the Lake House. What was the 'dream' for the future. 

     There were various ideas floated, and it was just talk, but perhaps a loose guideline for the future. Again, the consensus was that nothing be done until the aging parents were out of the picture. It was agreed that the Lake House was not only a dream come true, but it was a legacy, something to be cherished and held dear for Greg and Ethel's sake and as a lasting remembrance of them. 

     And then a seemingly innocent comment was made and it dropped like a bombshell, forever changing the dynamics of the family and the Lake House legacy. 

Limited by Imagination

 I shot this scene in a local park and caught some good light. Problem was that there was not enough interest in the scene. With the help of AI I got a canoe to drift through the photo, complete with ripples. 

    Back at the ghost town of Molson, the old machinery is itself a statement, but add an old farm couple and it makes more sense. 

   A gorgeous sunset at the Mission Bridge, back in time a few hundred years during the fur trade days, and you get a Birch Bark Canoe travelling up-stream. AI is still learning how to paddle. 

    A bit of a rain storm right at sunset, peering out this window made a pretty photo. 

      I photographed this beautifully restored old pick-up truck at a local custom car show. The cars were displayed in a very ordinary parking lot with hot grey asphalt as a backdrop. I almost discarded these photo but thought maybe AI could place the truck in a nicer setting. Boy, did it deliver!

 

Lake House Diaries 12

      In those days, there were many Canadians interested in holiday property and if it was on a lake, so much the better. The Okanagan, on either side of the border was ideal for this as the summers were hot and dry and there was a vacation feel in the air day and night. The lake was great for boating, water skiing, and all manner of motorized craft, and even a little fishing if you were not fussy about what you caught. So it was no surprise that some land developers (from Canada) bought a huge tract of land directly across the lake from Greg and Ethel's bay. 

     The area was affectionately known as Turtle Bay. Because there was little development on the east shore of the lake, this little bay was more or less ignored and could only be reached by boat. Everyone in Greg and Ethel's family had at one time been to Turtle Bay. There was lush vegetation down to within a few feet of the beach and the shore itself was a clean sandy beach. The water seemed to be clearer and cleaner here too and it felt like a little tropical paradise, lacking only a few palm tress. Many hours were spent here in perfect peace and quietness, with only the sound of the gentle waves lapping at the shore. 

     Not everyone in the community was excited about the prospect of hundreds more residents, many with boats and Seadoos. The town itself would benefit economically, and it would provide a few jobs after construction, but the little strip of undisturbed beauty would be lost forever. The housing project sprung up rather quickly and seemed to sell like hotcakes. It was geared for the upper middle class, the BMW, inboard motor boat type of people. Indeed, many Canadian doctors, dentists and lawyers bought in, partly as a great vacation spot, and partly as a an investment with high capital gains potential because prices were on the rise. 

     It was appropriately named Veranda Beach. The architectural theme was nostalgic Americana, hearkening back to a time when everyone had a screened in porch on their rambling bungalow, on streets that were mostly pedestrian friendly with large open spaces in residential areas for play. The beach was a long curving arch of golden sand with plenty of boat docks and parking outside of the village for boat trailers and all vehicles. The amenities area was surrounded a pool and was highlighted by a 50's style diner/soda fountain styled restaurant. It soon became a destination, even for those who did not live there. 

     The town of Oroville welcomed the project and there was no objection to extending the town's services such as sewer and water to the outlying development. The talk was that the same services might be extended to the west side of the lake too, suddenly putting a whole new light on the value of property owned by anyone, property from the Canada/US border to the town of Oroville. The 'Oroville meetings' began to take on a new flavor as this reality began to sink in.