Well, this has certainly been a busy fall and summer for our family. So if you havent heard whats been going on with the Rustens, here goes...weve had some big changes...
I was offered a chance in June of this year to take over a territory in the Portland/Vancouver area with my work. My counterpart who had this territory took a job with one of our manufacturers. We had always planned at sometime in our hectic lives to move up on the Columbia River somewhere in the coming years, but here was an opportunity right in front of me. Right now...
So I accepted the job change (same company) and it involves a lot less driving all over the boonies than the previous area down in the valley It has the chance to see a lot more and larger customers, hence better pay in the future sometime. Work is a short 30 minute (19.7 mile drive) away and I dont have to go anywhere near Interstate-5 or the Interstate bridges.
Nice....
We got to work painting, reroofing, and landscaping the house and put it on the market on August 1st with a realtor. On Sept 12th we received an acceptable offer on it (basically what we were asking for)
and oh my lord, we have to pack and move !!!!

Earlier in the summer we looked at a floating home on the Multnomah channel in the town of Scappoose, Oregon. The channel is a branch of the Columbia
where it winds around Sauvies Island just after the Willamette and Columbia Rivers meet and is about 15 miles Northwest of Portland. We talked to the owners and arranged a lease with an option to buy in the future and now had a place to move into. So off we went. We had lots of help from my mom and
dad and Beckys mom and dad as well as a couple of friends. Its quite an adventure moving from dry land with a yard and garage onto a floating home with 10 feet of water in your basement and no garage or yard. (which can be good thing) So I have retired from mowing the lawn for the rest of my life I
hope...
It is so beautiful up here and so peaceful. We watch the sun rise from our upstairs master bedroom in this 1960 sq ft floating home every morning, watch the geese and ducks play out in the channel. watch the deer across on Sauvies Island play in the fields and get a visit about twice a week from the local river otter family, who romp and play on every single home down here and chirp like birds to everyones delight.
We have a hot tub on our back deck which was left by the previous renter and which I got going abt 2 days after we got here. Its nice to relax in after a
long day, no matter what the weather. Our Catalina 27 sailboat is tied to the back of the house and deck and we have had some great short excursions up and down river since we got here.
The one down side is,that its about 1280 feet to the parking lot where our car is parked. Thats right.... up and back is about a one-half mile walk!
So were getting in shape too. My moving crew announced that they were all going to Europe the next time we even mentioned moving out of here, so here we are.

Happy November to all!