Idaho 1 - Preparation

I left for Idaho in advance of the family. The plan was for me to focus on the house we are finishing as well as do some prep work for the building of our shed – an activity that would come later in the trip.

My sister picked me up at the airport. I’m not accustomed to my family picking me up at the airport. Several decades ago, when I first began traveling internationally, it was a bigger deal. You could also come all the way to the gate with welcome signs and balloons (okay, my family never did that).

It was good to be back. The weather was sunny but not too hot. My newly retired sister would be my host and transportation over the next few days, both in Boise and as we headed north to our activities in Adams County. Great opportunity to hang out and catch up with her after so much transition in her life (grieving the loss of a spouse and retirement).

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After one night in Boise, we were off to the mountains. I was keen to get up there and have a look at the house. The work has been agonizingly slow. When we purchased it, there was already a foundation, a roof and much of the interior framing. At the time, we anticipated that it shouldn’t take too long to complete the build and have it rental ready. Two full years later, we realize how naïve we were.

Early on, I had plans to do much of the work myself. In fact, my flight was booked and I was going to use some vacation time in late March 2020 to finish the framing as well as some other tasks. Then the pandemic hit. Most of the planning I had done was for not and it was clear that we needed to move to plan B. My DIY plans would need to be for a future project.

In October 2021, I traveled to the US given that my pandemic-canceled ticket, still valid, was going to expire at the end of the year. My 80-ish-year-old mother-in-law had been visiting us in Nairobi and I decided that, in order to avoid losing the ticket, it would make sense to accompany her (she’s more than capable of traveling on her own but it was easier with me – and she could get lounge access), carry on to Idaho and see if I could kick-start the work on the house.

Taking shape, but so much still to be done.

With contractors in short supply, and few willing to take on a project as small as ours, it wasn’t easy to find someone. But I found a contractor to take on the project while I was there. Construction in Idaho, as well as real estate, was booming. Pandemic-induced supply chain issues exacerbated the challenges and, after I returned to Kenya, the project moved forward at a glacial pace. Trying to support from Africa made it more complicated, particularly as so many in that area still rely on phone and text messaging as opposed to technologies that are friendlier to those who are ten time zones away (e.g. email, WhatsApp).

Hard at work.

Little by little, things began taking shape. The septic was done. The initial wiring and plumbing followed. Drywall. Counters. Flooring. Cupboards.

Dinner in New Meadows.

We arrived and focused on the exterior. My brother cleared weeds. My sister cut branches and thinned brush. I alternated between working with the contractor and hauling stuff into the shed after the concrete flooring was done. Building materials were ready for the shed. 

Taking a break on the lake.

When we were done, we headed back to Boise where I would retrieve my family at the airport. Once reunited, the focus would change and we would be off to see my parents and to the many tasks that awaited us at their place.