As part of the ongoing Sunday installments of the novel. You can find the other chapters on here, posted each Sunday morning. Thanks! 

<a href=”https://www.amazon.com/Living-Dream-Sarah-Leamy/dp/1503107728/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&linkCode=li2&tag=diroando-20&linkId=844fe1eeaed5c721d40ee27d05b262de&#8221; target=”_blank”><img border=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=1503107728&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=diroando-20″ ></a><img src=”https://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=diroando-20&l=li2&o=1&a=1503107728&#8243; width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”” style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” />

JULY: LISTEN TO THE EXPERTS

“How much? You’re kidding, right?”
“Oh no, ten thousand dollars would set you up with a real solar system, with a good amount of photovoltaic power. You’d not need to worry about the wah wah wah wah, if you watch the wah wah wah, because with that meter in the window you’d see the percentage of wah wah wah.”
Mark nodded. I watched the pup falling asleep across his boots. I tried to focus on Diana and her expertise and not curl up next to Frida.

We’d decided to set up a small system, enough for a couple of lights at night and to charge some small batteries. Mark could find gigs from home, the bus that is, if we had power for his laptop and phone, and we’d get Internet through the phone company, I guess.
The problem was this: Diana, and her preconceptions as to what we needed.

“Wah wah with a load control center leading off to the wah wah wah wah wah wah. You see?”
Mark scratched his goatee and nodded again, saying nothing I noticed.

Diana continued obliviously. “Of course, you’ll need to build a battery box for all of the batteries, and another shed for the wah wah wah wah. Okay?”
“But ten thousand? Are you sure?”
“Oh yes, that’s pretty standard for any home these days.” Diana adjusted her glasses and looked around her. The porch was comfortable and cluttered. We lived out here now. Mark had even made a bed for Frida. Well, one inside and another outside. A table held our drinks safe from her wagging tail. Diana pulled out a catalogue and laid it on the table. “The inverters for twenty four volt systems as you’d need here are wah wah wah wah wah wah. You’d also need the meter for indoors to read the amperage and the wah wah wah wah. The charge controller is wah wah wah wah. And lastly the panels. I recommend wah wah wah wah wah wah.”

She smiled at us both happily.
“Right.” Mark stood up, and stretched. “Excuse me a moment.” He wandered off behind a tree and we heard a little splash. I smelt a cigarette and craved one. But no, I’d made it over nine months without. It did smell good though, but more than anything I wanted to hide behind the tree with Mark.

Diana packed up her notes again into the leather satchel, which was very nice by the way. She tucked in her shirt and sat back down. Her boots were well worn in but clean and well maintained. She had short brown non descript hair. Her nails had been kept to a sensible length. She was sensible, kind of ordinary. You’d never guess she was the local source for all things solar, something hip and happening as that, she seemed much more of a school ma’am from the Eighties. I’d seen her at the café over the weeks but we’d not talked until a few days before. I’d been chatting to the barista about getting a job there when I’d mentioned our homesteading projects, and the idea of setting up our solar power next. Diana had introduced herself from behind the New Mexican newspaper. And that was that.

Ten thousand though? For three lights and two battery chargers? Oh, sorry, I forgot the cordless drill would need to get charged every so often. Yep, must be expensive. How naive of me to think I needed anything less.

“Let’s go walk around to see where the best place to put the pole mount would be, shall we?” She was so damn perky and enthusiastic I didn’t have the heart to tell her no. I coughed politely and Mark joined us as she assessed our land. We showed her what we had and how we’d been thinking of using two pallets to stabilize the panel and the sunniest spot near the bus.

“And your house? Where are you thinking of build that? We could find a good solar placement somewhere between the two homes if that works. You’d save a few hundred that way.”
Diana strode up and down the ridges, standing on the boulders and ledges to take in the sunshine. She made notes. She walked some more. Mark and I followed her, not saying much but I could tell he was close to giggling. I poked him once in the ribs and he snorted. She didn’t hear him thankfully. We followed the guru and thought, what a sweet well-meaning idiot.
Back at the porch, I poured out some water for each of us. Frida climbed onto the bench and stared intently at Diana, nose-to-nose, ears twitching as she assessed our visitor. Diana stood up and moved away, leaning against a post. It didn’t fall over luckily.

Mark tried again to explain what we wanted and needed. She seemed to be on autopilot. He’d had enough. He cut right to it.
“We don’t want a suburban home. If we did, we’d live in suburbia. We want to power three or four lights and to charge some batteries.”
Diana smiled knowingly. “Yes, but…”

<a href=”https://www.amazon.com/Living-Dream-Sarah-Leamy/dp/1503107728/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&linkCode=li2&tag=diroando-20&linkId=844fe1eeaed5c721d40ee27d05b262de&#8221; target=”_blank”><img border=”0″ src=”//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=1503107728&Format=_SL160_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=diroando-20″ ></a><img src=”https://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=diroando-20&l=li2&o=1&a=1503107728&#8243; width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”” style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” />