At the age of 22, I moved into an old water access Cabin with my now long time partner. We took what was one of his hobbies and made a small business out if it; my almost full time job for the last twenty years has been running a small satellite communications company from home. My passion in life is gardening and just being outdoors in nature.

The concept of this Log Book was born in September 1999. In a flash of inspiration, it became clear to me how memories and information only are permanent when they’re recorded or stored. My idea was backed up while watching a family member sell their house. There was little regard for any information transfer, and I saw a need for a tool, a property manual to help organize and pass information from one owner to the next. I looked around the local book stores and did not find anything close to what I envisioned.

The idea of Cabin Notes A Log Book was easy - it was the work and learning required for the next eight years that was tough although a magical experience. First came the research into what all houses entail, then making decisions about what could and would be useful for the property owner in the future. Writing the text was harder than it looked, as I’m a little dyslexic and writing is not my strong point but I had help. My artwork was picked up from where I left it 15 years earlier - now a whole new ball game with the advent of computers. I purchased a graphics tablet and off I went on a very steep learning curve. The first drawing was a simple icon the “plug” for the“Electrical General” page and it literally took all day. Many drawings later as I became more skilled, I started having fun, I think it really shows up in the “Gift” and “Guest Pages” some of the last works in finalizing the book.

I thought I was done! I didn’t realize that combining the text and illustration was an art form, all in its own category. I finally got some pointers and a publishing program that I liked; off I went again on another learning experience. Months later, DONE! Or, so I thought, till I got the first proof back from the printer. Let’s just say I’m glad I found a person in the printing industry who was willing to work with a total novice. I asked many questions and he gave me answers to questions that I didn’t even know existed. I would say “yes, I will do that”, come home and ask myself “what is that?”, “what are they talking about?”, never mind do it.

I would like to share three secrets that kept me going through eight years of working on this project. First, the idea of the book was bigger for me than the “I can’t do its”, in my life. This meant working with fear a lot, fear of asking stupid questions, fear of learning new computer programs, fear of pushing my own limits and all the emotions involved in that. Second, every time I gave up for a while, I would ask myself “are you going to regret not finishing this later in life?” In the future will I look back and ask “what would have happened if I had continued on with the book”? Would I have to live with regrets for the rest of my life. If the answer was even a little “yes” I knew I needed to continue no matter what hardship was stopping me at that time.

Third, printed across my computer screen are the words, “Life is absolutely worth living to the best of your ability!” I Published Cabin Notes A Log Book in early 2008.