August 31, 2016 A Doctor's Visit, House-sitting & Cleaning Up

JB starting to cut the bushes
a few weeks ago.

How it looks today,
more than 1/2 done.

Friday 8/26. After washing the dishes and hanging out the laundry, I took JB Down There to the clinic to have his left swollen and sore elbow looked at.  Seems it is an infection of his bursa sac.  We were soon on our way home with an antibiotic and pain pills in hand.

The meds knocked him for a loop and he slept most of the afternoon.  The trip wore me out and I took a shorter nap.

Our high for the day was 80.

Saturday 8/27. It was 64 and overcast this morning with a strong breeze.  The cloud cover soon began to slowly drift off to the east, with blue sky following from the west.

JB went back to bed after his weekly 8:30 am call from his Mom, and slept til noon.  Then he took another long nap after lunch.  Just perfect for fighting off his infection and resting his elbow.

I cut out more bushes where we had been working, but with the wind gusting to 18, I didn't stay out for long.  It raced through the trees, littering the ground with needles.  Our high for the day was 77.

This certainly is the summer for elder berries and rose hips.  Every elder berry bush has its branches drooping with the weight of the berries, and there are new bushes everywhere.  Not sure if I am going to make time to pick any in September when they will be ripe.

Sunday 8/28. It was 54 and partly cloudy this morning with much less of a breeze.  I left at 12:30 pm to house-sit for Larry and Elsie.  She told me to help myself to the few blueberries on some bushes, so I grazed them for lunch.

I always take a project of some sort with me when I house-sit, and this time it was a stack of older (back to 2010) Entertainment Weekly magazines.  I subscribe in order to keep up with movies and TV series, and have saved most of them for reference.  Well, I just needed to go through them all and write down the movies and series that we would like to get.  So now I have a big stack for recycle.

I also brought the book I had started, What Matters Most by Luanne Rice.  Oh, my!  I have found another favorite author.  Couldn't put it down, and finished it today.  A bit like Jan Karon's books.

A little after 4:00 pm, I glanced up and saw a bear coming down the canyon across the road.  It looked like it was on its way to the ponds but I couldn't get my camera out quickly enough to get a picture.

Of course, I watched TV this evening, and actually stayed up til 11:00 pm.

Monday 8/29. It was a very smokey 64 this morning and partly cloudy.  Elsie had told me to help myself to various fruits and vegetables, so I picked some apples, took a few potatoes they had dug up and picked a little bag of blueberries.

Their dogs had let me sleep all night til 7:30 am, so then I just stayed up.  They slept in the bedroom in their beds on the floor, while the cats took turns sleeping on the bed with me.

I stayed til 3:00 pm, knowing that Larry and Elsie would be home around 5:30.  Then drove down to get the mail; met a neighbor on the way up; and was home a little before 4:00 pm.

The swelling on JB's elbow has gone down considerably and he is feeling much better.

Our high Up Here today was 79.

Tuesday 8/30. It was 60 and mostly overcast this morning.  Still a little hazy, but we couldn't smell any smoke.

We put our plans down on paper for getting ready for the BBQ on Saturday, and started on the list.  JB put up two yellow jacket traps.  I raked the horseshoe pits and did some weeding.  JB is still napping everyday, but feeling so much better and using his arm just a bit.

There was very little air movement today and the air was muggy, but our high was only 77.  It sure felt warmer than that.  The sun managed to peek through the clouds a few times, but the sky stayed overcast all day.  Days like this just seem to sap your energy.

Wednesday 8/31. It is 52 with clear skies this morning.  Rain is in the forecast for Thursday and Friday, but sunny weather is promised for the weekend.

Thought for the day: The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs.  James Allen

August 28, 2016 House-sitting

Sunday 8/28. I will be house-sitting for Larry and Elsie today and tomorrow, so my next blog posting will be Wednesday, August 31.

August 26, 2016 Clearing the "Tunnel", A Sick Larry & Snail Mail

A praying mantis who rode in
on a piece of kindling.

Wednesday 8/24. We clipped and cut about 95% of the west side of the "tunnel" before we pooped out this morning.  One of those projects that doesn't take a lot of time, just a lot of energy.  But we accomplished much more than we though we would.  It is obvious that Mr. Sixes has also be working on clearing away the brush by the road in that area.

Got home and washed the big pile of dishes left from all of yesterday's cooking and dining.  My hair had just dried from a late wash when Elsie called to say that Larry was ill, with what might be the flu, and would I be able to come down and help at their shop.  I washed up a bit, curled my hair, put on "town" clothes and was on my way in record time.  Fortunately the speed limit in the paved part of the canyon is 53, so I got there quickly.  Ooops!  Maybe that's 35. . .

JB had dinner ready when I arrived back home at 6:15 pm.  Our high Up Here for the day was a pleasant 78.

Thursday 8/25. It was 62 and mostly clear this morning.  Neither of us had a good night's sleep as Buster came up to visit at 12:30 am!  All he got was another "Buster, go home!"

I was on my way Down There to do our annual laundry at the laundromat of winter coats, drapes that we use for doors to the bathroom, bedroom and linen closet, the shower curtain and bath mat, blankets, etc.  Then I did shopping at Costco and Fred Meyer, my two standard stores.  The heat wasn't too bad in town as their forecast high was in the 80's.

I was home by 2:00 pm and won't have to go back down til next Thursday, when I go to get food for our BBQ on Sunday, Sept. 4.  

In this day and age of electronic mail, it is indeed always nice to be able to send a quick message to someone and know that they will receive it as soon as they check their ipad or computer or whatever, but I still enjoy sending and receiving snail mail.  Personal paper you can hold in your hand and read, and maybe save.  Something special that someone spent some extra time to write and mail.

I remember my maternal grandparents always spending a few hours every day when they stayed us writing letters to friends and family around the world.  I have most of the letters that they wrote to my Mother, and they are absolutely splendid.  Pieces of our history hand written for generations to enjoy that capture the flavor of the time in which they were created.  A slice of life the way it was at the moment it written.  When I read them, I can feel my grandparents who wrote them sitting next to me.  They, once again, come alive for me.

Friday 8/26. It is 64 with mostly clear skies this morning.  Still hazy with smoke to the northwest.  We plan to work on rebuilding the trailer this morning.

Thought for the day: "Ah, but he liked the mail.  Always had.  One never knew what might turn up in the mail.  It was like a lottery in which one could hit the jackpot at any moment."  A Light In The Window by Jan Karon, pg 294

August 24, 2016 Company & Saying Goodbye

(My connection is too slow for a picture this morning.)

Monday 8/22. Definitely a bit chilly this morning with a temp of 48.  I guess we better get used to it. . .

JB left at 9:00 am, and since it was to nice and cool, I worked on clearing up the area where we have been cutting out the brush.  These bushes have to be at least fifty years old.  The stems are so thick that they will make good kindling.  I got quite a pile of them, took it all to the wood shed and stacked it.

I have started a new book, Jeeves in the Morning by P.G. Wodehouse.  I heard about this series several decades ago, but never read any of it.  This is English humor at its best, which is something you either understand or you don't.  You either like it or you don't.  Having grown up in the midst of it, I both understand and enjoy it.

After stopping for a visit with Larry, JB was home around 1:30 pm.  He ate lunch and took a long nap.

Our high for the day was a lovely 73, with a cool breeze blowing most of the day.

Tuesday 8/23. It was 54 and clear this morning.  Still very hazy to the northwest and we could smell smoke from the fire.

We got out early to clear up all the bushes we had cut.  Took them to the swale with the  tractor.  Lots of huge root balls to dig out.  That may not get done this year, but it still looks so much better.

Then we got cleaned up and I baked a banana-chocolate chip coffee cake.  RJ and Mike arrived at 2:00 pm and the guys played two long hands of Magic, while I read my book; took Mike's dog for a walk; and prepared dinner, a pork roast.

The guests won both card games and we enjoyed good conversation during dinner.  But then they had to leave.  It is always so very hard to say goodbye to Mike.  We only see him once or twice during the year and he has grown into such a great young man.  Having watched him from a newborn, it pulls at the heartstrings to know he will soon be out on his own, perhaps far away, making a life for himself.

After they left we watched Silver Linings Playbook. . .

Wednesday 8/24.  It is 58 with clear skies this morning and a smokey smell.  We are going to start cutting back the small trees that line part of the road down the canyon.  This is a requirement by the new propane company as the trees (small aspens) are too low for the stacks on the propane truck.  It will take a few days to do, but we have til mid-September.

Thought for the day: The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.  Mitch Albom

August 22, 2016 Taking Out Bushes & A Nephew's Visit

The little deer on the road.

Part of RJ's yard by
his cabin.

Friday 8/19. This morning's coolness felt so very good!  I know the girls do not like the heat any better than we do, but we are getting three brown eggs almost every day now, with an occasional white one.  And a double yolk in a brown egg about once a week.

Since it was so much cooler this morning, we got out after breakfast and began cutting more bushes.  JB used the bush cutter on the weed eater to cut and I cleared them out.  We are working on the one large area by the Y in the drive going up to the south ridge.  There is at least one more area by some trees that we want to clear out this year.

JB drove down to pick up Mike and go Down There to play Magic cards this evening, but the store was closed!  The owner had forgotten to change his web site.  They ate dinner and were home by 7:30 pm.  We talked most of the evening, then Mike slept on the couch.  He has gone to the Junior Olympics in track for four years now, and is receiving interest letters from some colleges.  He even got one from Harvard!

Saturday 8/20. It was 66 this morning.  There were no clouds, but the sky was hazy from a fire far to the northwest.

Mike and I looked through albums of old family photos, then after lunch we drove Down There to go to Hastings.  They have lowered their prices and I bought 13 more movies, along with part of Mike's birthday present of Magic cards.  Then it was back up the mountain to take him back to the cabin.  He and RJ will come to dinner on Tuesday, and get here early so the three of them can finally play Magic.

On our way down, Mike and I saw two deer just down from the end of our driveway, but they were gone before we could get any pictures.  Then as I was driving home from the cabin, I saw two more.  One little one was in the road chewing on a bush, and just stood and stared at me.  I got a good picture of him, and them one of his mom.

A couple months ago, JB planted two sweet potatoes just to see if they would grow.  One popped up a few weeks ago and continues to leaf out.  Another one just popped up a few days ago.  It would be great if we actually got some potatoes on them!

Our high for the day was 85, and it sure felt like it.

Sunday 8/21. It was 65 and clear this morning with a light wind that stayed Up Here all day, increasing to gusts of 14 mph in the afternoon.  So our high of 87 was not at all uncomfortable.

After lunch we cut some more bushes, getting almost half of the area done.  It is looking really good.

I finished the third book in the Mitford series by Jan Karon.  So enjoyable!  Will have to find the fourth one as soon as possible.

JB is going Down There tomorrow to buy supplies to finish re-doing the trailer and do some other errands.  Hopefully it will be cooler for him.

The sky was almost overcast by 4:00 pm and  the wind was gusting to 22 mph.  One such gust whipped around the porch, blowing off some chairs and the dog beds.  By 8:30 pm most of the cloud cover had moved off to the east.  We had blue sky again, the temp was down to 60.  By 9:30 the wind had completely died down.

Monday 8/22. It is a cool 46 this morning with partly cloudy skies and a breeze.  I can see new snow on the highest peaks of the mountains!

Thought for the day: We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be.  C.S. Lewis

August 19, 2016 Apple Pie Filling & A Very Good Visit

Eggs that JB used for our
sausage & cheese breakfast
fritata.

The little shelves we
built in our pantry
under the stairs.

Wednesday 8/17. As soon as that morning breeze dies down, the temperature rises up.  It was another hot day with very little air movement and a high of 87.

I got caught up in reading papers and magazines that I had brought home yesterday, so I didn't get started on making and canning the apple pie filling as early as I had planned.  But I did get 6-1/2 pints canned, and it tasted so very good.

My nephew, Mike, called this afternoon to say that he and RJ were on their way up to the cabin.  They will be up for breakfast tomorrow morning, so I used one of the cans of pie filling to bake JB's Mom's famous fruit coffee cake.  You can use any kind of pie filling, and it always turns out so delicious.

Afterwards, I used the water in the canner to water the garden this evening.

Thursday 8/18.  It was 66 with clear skies and a cool breeze this morning.  We were up at 7:00 am to get ready for our guests.  That breeze felt so good!

JB asked Mike if he wanted to go play Magic cards tomorrow evening, and, yes, he did.  So RJ left him with us for the day so Mike could put together a pack of cards from JB's collection.  I took him back to their cabin at about 3:00 pm, and JB will pick him up tomorrow at 5:00 pm.  He will spend the night with us and probably most of Saturday.

It was so very good to see Mike.  He will be 18 years old next month.  Eighteen going on thirty.  I remember holding him when he was just one day old, and now he is deciding which universities to apply to. . .

He is going to be taking a civics class this year, which will be very interesting considering the upcoming election and the state of our politics.  He is pretty much a conservative, like his folks, thank goodness.  This will also be his first time to vote, unfortunately.  With Trump stumbling and bumbling like he is now, how can any one justify voting for him?  But then, how can anyone justify not voting for him?!  It will be an interesting civics class, to say the least.  I just hope the teacher will show how good our political system can be, and not just what it has become.

The breeze remained Up Here most of the day, and our high was 84.  Much more comfortable than yesterday.

Friday 8/19. It is 60 with clear skies and a light breeze this morning.  Looks to be a very good weekend.

Thought for the day: A mind stretched to a new idea never returns to its original shape.  Oliver Wendell Holmes

August 17, 2016 More Heat & No Cataract Surgery

More of Saturday's
sunset.

Monday 8/15. Another inside day just trying to stay cool.  Finished the first Mitford book and started the second.  

Had a nice long chat with Randy.  Am going to send him all the DVD's I was going to trade in at Hastings, as he hasn't seen any of them.  Will send the first box tomorrow when I go Down There.

Last night Larry told us that when he was mowing their lawn yesterday, he saw a big ol' rattlesnake.  He took after it on his riding lawn mower and it disappeared into a haze of red.  He had just put a new mulcher on the mower, so the pieces were so tiny that the yellow jackets could barely find them.

The crickets have begun their evening songs in the past week or two, and the grasshoppers seem to be more lively every day.  But the song birds have all but disappeared.  We have a couple of blue jays Up Here off and on, but their squawking hardly qualifies as a song.

So far we have 18 people coming to our Labor Day weekend BBQ, with the possibility of more than 30.  Probably won't know for sure until they all start arriving.  I do hope the weather will cool off by then.  Today's high was a very uncomfortable 86.

Tuesday 8/16. It was 64 and clear again this morning.  I didn't have to leave until 11:00 am, which gave me time to do a couple errands before my 1:00 pm eye appointment.  I mailed Randy's first package, and dropped off several sacks at the thrift store, then went in to look for more books.  I found another one by Jan Karon, and bought four more by other authors. Their prices have gone by by $.50, but still such a good deal.

The temp Down There had to be well into the 90's and I was right in the middle of it.  Didn't get home til a little before 3:00 pm, and our high Up Here was 88.  I think I am about to melt.  But I do not need cataract surgery, despite the blurry vision in my right eye.  It may be another year, or two or three.

I remembered the apple juice this trip, so I plan to can apple pie filling tomorrow.  In the morning.  Before the heat really hits.  It is supposed to be hot through the weekend.

Wednesday 8/17. It is 64 and clear with a breeze this morning.  Am going to get the apple pie filling done first thing.

Thought for the day: I like a bit of a mongrel myself, whether man or beast.  They're the best for every day.  George Bernard Shaw

August 15, 2014 Hot, Hot, Hot!

Saturday night's sunset.

Another hint at autumn.

Friday 8/12. I hit the estate sale and picked up a few pillow cases and a glass bowl for the bird bath.  I overheard one of the ladies talking about all the dolls.  There had been 9000 of them, all shapes and sizes!  She also had many doll accessories like high-chairs, cribs, chest-of-drawers, tea sets, etc.  Unbelievable!

And she had lots of furniture.  Among other pieces, there must have been at least ten rocking chairs.  I just wish I had more room, or maybe it's a good thing I don't. . .

It was really getting hot Down There, but I was able to get my grocery shopping done and be home before 1:00 pm.  Our high Up Here was 82, but that was on the porch in the shade.  It had to have been at least five or more degrees hotter in the sun.

Saturday 8/13. It was 68 and mostly clear this morning.  I had been having very unsettling dreams the past few nights and last night I had a full-blown nightmare.  That only happens once or twice a year and I am not sure just what causes it.  

It was just too hot to do anything strenuous outside, so we built some small shelves in the pantry under the stairs.  I had been wanting to do this for a while and finally figured out how.  JB put in two of the shelves and I put in two.  Am very pleased with the results.  I have everything on a list, but now I can see the smaller items more easily.  I also managed to drop a five-pound jar of coconut oil on my big toe.  That's going to smart for a while.

I had gone to the thrift store yesterday to drop some things off, and look for more.  I discovered three books in a series of four by an new author, Jan Karon.  They are called the Mitford series and I started the first one, At Home in Mitford.  Excellent!  Just can't put it down.  "Heartwarming" I guess it could be called.  Much like The Cat Who. . . series by Lillian Jackson Braun.

I picked our first tomatoes today.  There are lots more just waiting to turn red.  Two of the plants are sauce tomatoes.  Never made it from scratch before, but I certainly plan to.

I bought Granny Smith apples yesterday and planned to make apple pie filling today, but forgot to get apple juice.  I'll do that on Tuesday when I go in for my eye appointment, then make and can the pie filling on Wednesday.

Our high for today was 84.  Not at all pleasant.  Friends in Ontario, Canada, sent an email: It's so hot in Ontario that. . .
  . . . the birds have to use potholders to pull the worms out of the ground.
  . . . you learn that a seat belt buckle makes a pretty good branding iron.
  . . . hot water comes from both taps.
  . . . you realize that asphalt has a liquid stage.
  . . . cows are giving evaporated milk.
  . . . farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying hard boiled eggs!

Sunday 8/14. It was 64 and clear with a breeze this morning.  I thought for sure it would be cooler today, but our high was 89.

I re-arranged the living room rugs, as one of our good ones was getting skewed.  Then I went down to visit my brother at his cabin.  Took him four bags of glass bottles and a jar of blueberry jam.  Had a very nice visit.  Came home and just sat reading my book and trying to keep cool, and enjoying the heavenly scent of two loaves of bread that JB had just baked.

JB is going to rebuild our little trailer, so he pulled it around to the shop this morning.  He did a bit of work on it before it got too hot, and will continue in the cool of the mornings. 

Larry and Elsie drove up for a visit this evening.  The first time since May as they have been so busy picking blueberries!  We sat on the porch enjoying each other's company and the light wind that had sprung up.

Monday 8/15. It is 64 and clear this morning with hot temps in the forecast for most of the week.

Thought for the day: Sometimes you have to gag on fancy before you can appreciate plain. At Home In Mitford by Jan Karon, pg 237

August 12, 2016 Wood, Autumn & Coffee

Fire starter

Kindling

Regular fire wood

Wednesday 8/10. OK, autumn was definitely in the air today.  Which is not to say that the weather will be cool now, but it was that first hint of autumn's arrival.  In fact the temperature is supposed to get back up into the 90's Down There by Friday.  Of course, because I plan to go to town on Friday for grocery shopping and to check out that estate sale again.

On our morning walk the dogs discovered a fresh scent of some critter (bear?) and went tearing off to the east.  I finished the walk by myself and Jesse didn't return for more than 30 minutes.  Then after eating his morning treat, he took off again.  He was barking, so I know there was something nearby.

It was a low energy day, so I just did dishes and laundry, then raked up more grass that JB had cut and spread it on the swale.  JB was back home a little after noon.  We both had a long afternoon nap.

We watched Hellboy last night and Hellboy 2 this evening.  Both very well done and entertaining.

Thursday 8/11. It was 58 and clear this morning.  Blueberries for breakfast.  What could be better?!

Our project for today was to finish cutting up all the large branch wood.  We managed to do that in five cradle loads.  Then JB moved it to the shed with the tractor and I stacked it.  After lunch I split the larger pieces and some of the partial pine rounds that had dried out a bit more.  JB moved those to the shed and I stacked them, getting about 3/4 of the seventh row filled.  I don't plan to do any more splitting until after our Labor Day weekend BBQ, and then we will start stacking wood on the porch.

I divide our wood into three different types: fire starter, kindling and standard fire wood.  This year so far we have three yard bags and two large boxes full of fire starter (in addition to several bags of pine needles), 3-1/4 rows of kindling, and 6-3/4 rows of fire wood.  By the end of October, we should have four rows of standard fire wood on the porch and possibly two rows of kindling.  Last year we had two less bags of fire starter and used it all.  We had 2-1/2 rows of kindling and used it all.  We had six rows of regular fire wood in the shed and used five rows, plus three rows on the porch.

Our high for today was 80, and it certainly felt like it.  Not looking forward to the 90's Down There tomorrow.

For some reason, lately I have been thinking about the effect of coffee on civilization.  No wonder Europe was so screwed up before they brought the coffee bean back from the Americas!  Everyone was in a bad mood, and, as nice as tea is, it just doesn't compare to coffee.  And they didn't even have tea until it was brought back from China.  My time line may not be quite correct, but I am sure the middle ages would not have been so horrific if only they had coffee to drink.  And what about chocolate?!  That had to have a positive effect on people's lives.  I know it does on mine.  I am sure a whole book could be written on the effects of different foods and drinks on the history of man.

In response to the comment about Chicago's seasons being winter and construction, that is so true!  However, if they're lucky, there actually is a spring that lasts about two weeks or so.

Friday 8/12. It is 64 with clear skies this morning.  I didn't set my alarm clock for the meteor shower, but my bladder woke me up at 2:30 am and I saw two shooting stars.  I remember seeing a phenomenal meteor shower when I was in college (1967?) that I don't think could be outdone by any other.

Thought for the day: You know what separates humans from animals?  Coffee!!

August 10, 2016 Rain, Wood & The Seasons

One of our beautiful
sunsets.

Monday 8/8. It has been cold in the mornings lately but I still don't smell autumn in the air.  Clouds quickly moved in today and the sky was overcast by 9:30 am.  It wasn't an ideal day in which to hang out the laundry, but I did it anyway.  I ended up having to take it down and hang it inside when a light rain began to fall around noon.  It became quite heavy and lasted til almost 4:00 pm.

JB weed-wacked north of the house and I split some wood, both of which we finished before the rain started.  Our high was 62, but that soon dropped to 48 with the rain.  I finally put a fire in the wood stove at 3:00 pm to take the chill out.

I finished the book I was reading, Vince Flynn's The Survivor, a Mitch Rapp novel written by Kyle Mills.  JB finished his Tom Clancy novel, Duty and Honor by Tom Blackwood.  I like that when such great authors pass on, someone is found to carry on their popular novels.

I didn't get much exercise today, so after dinner, instead of using the tractor, I carried the wood I had split to the wood shed in ten armloads and stacked it.

We watched Blood Diamond this evening.  An excellent movie but very heavy.  Don't watch it more than once every year or two.

Tuesday 8/9. It was 50 and mostly clear this morning.  Buster came to visit at 1:00 am!  His barking was met with a very indignant, "Buster, go home!"

I vacuumed, split wood and stacked it after JB moved it to the shed.  He also weed-wacked south of the house, and I gathered some of the cut grass and weeds and took them to the swales.

Clouds drifted over on their way east and our high for the day was 69.  Very nice!

Being so very integrated with Nature Up Here, I feel in rhythm with the seasons.  Usually Winter is a time for rest, except for this past one when we got so much exercise.  But then last summer was so hot that it was the season of rest.  Come Spring I am raring to go, with a long list of things to do (some of which never get done).  By the time Summer arrives, I'm still going strong but enjoy sitting on the porch to rest or when it is too warm to work.  Come August, I am definitely slowing down, but the with the majority of the work done.  When Fall arrives, I am more than ready for the cool days and am re-charged by then to finish some of our projects.  

Living Down There, the seasons didn't seem to impact my life as much, other than a change in wardrobe and some outside activities.  I marked the passing of the year more by holidays than seasons.  Of course there are only two seasons west of the Cascades - wet and wetter.  And in California (where we lived for nine years) they are warm and warmer.

But Up Here on the mountain in an area with four definite seasons, there is a rhythm to life.  A joyful rhythm.  One in which I was born and to which I have returned.

Wednesday 8/10. It is 50 this morning with some thin wispy clouds and a breeze.  JB left for Down There at 7:00 for his doctor's appointment to go over his test results.

Thought for the day: Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all.  Stanley Horowitz

August 8, 2016 More Wood, Pie Filling & No Politics

Beans I picked last
Thursday.

JB cutting the huge fir
trunk rounds.

Friday 8/5. I went to the estate sale, Hastings and ran errands, but didn't hit the downtown sidewalk sale.  It seems that the house where the estate sale is being held was owned by a woman who was quite the hoarder.  When they first entered her house, each room was stacked to the ceiling with boxes and just a small aisle to walk through.  This was the fourth weekend of the sale and they still have to sort through half the basement and the garage!  Amazing how a person would need all that "stuff" to feel secure.  But Elsie had mentioned that if I did go again, to look for wine glasses as she keeps breaking hers.  I found six very nice ones and took them to her at their shop.  It was perfect timing as today was their wedding anniversary.

Speaking of stuff, I walked up and down every aisle of movies in Hastings and was able to find twelve used movies and the first season of Arrow all at 40% off.

I was home around 1:00 pm and stepped inside the house to the wonderful smell of banana muffins in the oven.  Mmmmm!  I ate lunch and took a nap, falling asleep to that heavenly scent.

Had a nice long talk with Randy.  Even though he has all his wood in, he is always busy with other things to do.  Just the way it is living on a mountain.

Our high for the day was 88, but it sure didn't seem that hot.  Guess I am finally getting used to the heat.

Saturday 8/6. It was 54 and clear this morning.  Right after breakfast we cut the stack of long, split wood from last year with the chop saw.  After lunch I moved it to wood shed in 1-1/2 bucket loads and stacked it.

Then JB cut the huge, long fir trunk piece into four pieces.  That took quite a while as it was almost two feet in diameter.  Tomorrow he plans to cut the other two, but shorter, big pieces in half and move them all to the splitter.

Our high for the day was 79 with a cool breeze.  Very pleasant.  But by 9:00 pm it was quite dark outside.  I could swear it wasn't that dark that early last night.  It just kind of sneaks up on you.

Sunday 8/7. It was 54 and clear again this morning.  Another brown egg was waiting for me as usual when I gave the girls their breakfast.

I got busy early and canned four pints of blueberry pie filling.  It turned out SO good!  While I was doing that, BJ cut the other two huge trunk pieces in half and moved them all to the splitter.

After lunch I split two of the rounds, which was much easier than the pine.  JB moved the wood to the shed and I stacked it, finishing the sixth row.  I thought that is all we would have room for, but I moved a few things around and now have room for a seventh row which I started.  We may not have enough wood to finish that row and also stack wood on the porch, but we will see.  Won't start stacking on the porch until after our Rose Camp BBQ on September 4.

We also tilted the solar panels half-way down.  Tilting them is always a marker of the time of year it is, and I have a hard time believing that it is that late already.

I love the fact that my day can consist of both canning pie filling, and then splitting and stacking wood!  I am so definitely where I belong.  

I would like to write more about our political situation, but I just can't go down that road today.  However I will quote from a posting on Facebook.  The caption on photos of both the presidential candidates: "316 million people and we picked these two?  Way to go America."  Nuff said.

Monday 8/8. It is 50 with some high, wispy clouds this morning and 20% chance of rain.

Thought for the day: I already hate our next President.  (Seen on a T-shirt.)

August 5, 2016 Wood, Beans & Politics

(No photo today.  My connection is way too slow.)


Wednesday 8/3. I had a nice, long chat with Sandy this morning during which we bemoaned the political situation and solved the world's problems.  Then after breakfast JB cut five cradles-full of wood, which really whittled down the pile of large branches.

After washing all the sawdust out of my hair and eating lunch, I split the larger pieces that JB had cut.  And there were quite a few.  Then we moved all the cut and split wood to the shed in seven loads.  I stacked it and got a little more than half done on the last row.  That's it for a few days as JB is going Down There tomorrow and I am going on Friday.

Nene called this evening.  She returned from Idaho yesterday and had an absolutely wonderful time.  Not only did they see a moose, but during one of their outings a wild turkey hen ran into their car and took the passenger side mirror off!

Our grove is becoming covered with fir-cone "petals" as the squirrels and chipmunks begin preparing for winter.  I have an inkling that it is going to be another hard one.

I spent time on the computer composing and printing the letter to the other propane users in our canyon informing them of the new supplier.  I also printed up this year's invitation to our almost-annual Rose Camp BBQ that will be on Sunday, September 4.  JB will mail them all tomorrow.

It was a very comfortable day with a high of 75 and a lovely breeze.

Thursday 8/4.  It was 60 and clear this morning with a projected high of 85 in town.  JB left for Down There at about 8:00 am for a blood test, bone density scan and to run some errands.

When I cleaned out the hen house this morning, there were two small eggs under the roosting ladder.  So I am quite sure that all the new girls are now laying.  Every morning for the past week there has been a brown egg in one of the nesting boxes waiting for me in the morning.

I gave my hands and wrists a rest today just doing inside chores and hanging out the laundry.  JB was home by noon and we both mainly stayed inside or sat on the porch.  I absolutely had to finish the book I was reading, Purple Cane Road by James Lee Burke.  A very nice day with a high of 78, but no air movement.

When I watered the garden this morning I realized it was definitely time to harvest some of the green beans.  Our very first!

Our son had suggested, since Hastings is no longer selling on-line, that we go on Redbox's site as they often sell used movies.  By signing up with them we got a free rental.  So today JB rented (for free) Criminal and I will return it tomorrow.  It stars Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman and Tommy Lee Jones, and is excellent.

When Sandy and I were talking yesterday, we agreed that our country's political system has never been without corruption and greed, but it just seems like it is so much more visible these days.  And so very frustrating.  Evil seems to be so much more visible everywhere in the world.  I have never considered myself to be paranoid, but I am very concerned.  Sandy rarely watches or listens to the news like she used to, and I am so glad to be up here on the mountain where the goings-on are not constantly in my face.

Well, enough of that.  Tomorrow I am going Down There mainly to check out an estate sale and the sidewalk sale that is going on in town with my birthday money in hand.  It is supposed to be in the 90's, but I will just duck into the air-conditioned stores.

Friday 8/5. It is 64 and clear this morning.  Going to be a hot one Down There.

Thought for the day: There is a higher court than the court of justice, and that is the court of conscience.  It supercedes all other courts.  Mhatma Gandhi

August 3, 2016 Cooler Temps & GMO's

Our huge dying pine tree.

Monday 8/1. JB moved the wood to the shed that I had split on Saturday and mowed in a few places around the house.  After I hung out the laundry, we moved another pile of large branches to the cradle.  After lunch he cut two cradle-loads of wood and then I split two large rounds.

Today was the first day in a while that I took the dogs on both their morning and afternoon walk.  It was very comfortable with a high of just 76.

After dinner we moved all the wood we had cut and split to the wood shed in five loads.  Then we moved the next to the last pile of large branches to the cradle.  After that I stacked all the wood.  Almost finished with the fifth row.

Just a day or two ago we both noticed that our largest pine tree is dead.  Its needles had turned orange very quickly.  Since the spruce beetle is killing just fir trees, we think this tree died due to the extended drought.  It will be a lot of good fire wood, but I sure hate to see it go.  It is just across the driveway by the splitter, and has to be at least 70 feet tall.

Yesterday I had a nice long talk with Randy.  My Aunt Nene, her son and daughter-in-law arrived in Bonner's Ferry on Saturday, and after an eight-hour drive, came to visit him.  Nene was just as perky as ever and they had a very nice time.  And no wonder - they saw a moose along the highway a little before getting into town!  I certainly hope they got a picture of it.  I am so envious. . .

This evening I finished reading a book by one of my favorite authors, The Gods of Guilt by Michael Connelly.  A Lincoln Lawyer book and excellent, as usual.

Tuesday 8/3. It was 58 and clear this morning, with a breeze that gradually increased in strength all day until it was gusting to 19 mph by the time we went for our afternoon walk.

I split wood before and after lunch.  I felt like I spent most of my time just wrestling the rounds as they were from the part of the pine tree with very large branches.  That makes them very difficult to split, so there is a pile of knots that I still have to deal with.

JB moved a pile of wood to the shop from last year that is too long for the wood stove.  We are going to cut it with the chop saw.  Then he moved the wood I had split to the shed and I stacked it.  I have a good start on the sixth and last row.

Last Friday I mentioned to Mrs. Gridder that I would be looking for a push mower at the garage sales.  She said that they had one that they don't use any  more and would be glad to loan it to us on a permanent basis.  I used it today and it works fine.  Just takes a little more effort, but no fuel other than my muscles.

There is an excellent article in the Sept/Oct issue of Countryside magazine about GMO's.  I think they are very brave to print it, as so many homesteaders seem to be against GMO's.  The article has obviously been well researched,  backs everything up with facts, and basically supports the concept, while admitting that everyone has to make up their own mind about it.  

I had been on the slightly negative side, but never did much research into it.  Now I think I am a bit more open to the concept and what is trying to be done, although I can certainly understand the misgivings that many people have.  It seems to be kind of a time-will-tell situation.  But it is amazing how many crops have already been saved through bio-engineering, which is not quite the same thing as genetically modified.  This is an article that really needs to be read by anyone who has any doubts or concerns about the issue.

Wednesday 8/3. It is 50 and clear this morning with no breeze.  A good day to work outside.

Thought for the day: Men will get no more out of life than they put into it.  Rev. William J. Boetcker

August 1, 2016 Garage Sale-ing, Blueberry Jam & A Seafood Dump

Our Sunday evening Cajun
seafood "dump".

Friday 7/29. Somehow I was able to get on my way at 7:00 am for Mrs. Gridder's to go garage sale-ing.  The temperature was quite pleasant until about 10:00 am, but her car's air conditioning saved the day.  We found lots of great buys and treasures, including a small Chinese rug I bought for $2.

I was home by 11:30, just in time for lunch and a nap.  We hit 90 today, so didn't do much else other than read.

Saturday 7/30. It was 64 and clear this morning.  Another lazy, inside day.

By the looks of the brown eggs, all three of our new girls are laying now.  The brown eggs from the first one to lay are now larger than Blondie's white eggs.  Then we also have tiny ones and medium ones, usually one brown one per day.

Our high for today was 87, which really didn't feel much cooler than yesterday's 90, but by dinner time there was a cool breeze and the temperature had dropped significantly.  A portend of things to com.

Sunday 7/31. It was a lovely 58 this morning.  A perfect day for making blueberry jam.  So I cooked and canned nine pint jars.  It turned out so very delicious.

We left for dinner at the Sixes' cabin at 5:30 pm.  We took a couple bottles of wine and a jar of jam for our hostess.  Turns out that Elsie was also canning blueberry jam today and also brought a jar for Mrs. Sixes!

They cooked up a huge "dump" of crab legs, shrimp, oysters, sausage, corn and potatoes with a cajun seasoning.  It was dumped on a table covered with paper and everyone just took what they wanted.  It was so good and so much fun.  We didn't get home til after 10:00 pm.

Monday 8/1. It is 60 and clear this morning, and we both slept in.  Going to have to get busy again today.

Thought for the day: Old age has it pleasures, which, though different, are not less than the pleasures of youth. W. Somerset Maugham