"I'll be looking for a report on your success next time I see you." Melanie smiled at him, happy to find that he was a kindred spirit.
The next four hours passed all too quickly for both of them. They tended the smoker, turned the fish periodically, and added charcoal and maple chips as needed. In between these tasks, they talked of anything that came to mind.
"I noticed the excavation has begun for the basement of your house. What comes next?"
"The forms will be put in place and then the cement truck will come and pour the foundation. Because it's a walk-out basement, the walls have to be stepped down from the full wall height at the back, to ground floor level at the front. Before the floor is poured, the plumbing and in-floor heating pipes will be put in place."
"It must be really exciting for you!"
"It is. It's the first time I've designed something for myself with nobody to answer to or to suggest changes to me. I'm still really surprised by the traditional design I came up with, when I could have had anything I wanted. Sometime in the future, it may be on the market for sale, and traditional often sells more easily. Unless, of course, it gets passed down from my children to their children, and so on, to a never-ending stream of relatives. What a thought!"
"It's a marvelous place for kids to grow up, learning how to fish and swim, watching wildlife in its natural habitat." Melanie had a sudden thought. "What about bears?"
"Just something to be aware of and to respect. There are precautions that must be taken, just as you would when camping. Keeping meat and bones out of the composter, and being extra careful during cub season. I haven't seen any since I've been coming here, but that doesn't mean there aren't some around."
Russ checked the fish one more time and declared them finished. "Let's eat."