August 26, 2011



Woodshed currently



Woodshed, small branch wood on left



   






Looks like it will really be hot at the fair today. We plan to get an early start and arrive when it opens at 9:00 am. That way we can leave before the heat of the day. We'll run some errands Down There on our way home. Am going to take a whole day off from everything, so I don't plan to post on my blog Saturday morning, but will resume again on Sunday.


Yesterday morning I moved two loads of wood in the big trailer down to my cutting area. One load from the south ridge and one load from down the driveway. It was just too hot when I was done unloading the second one for any more such activity. JB was working in his shop, and after lunch I helped him finish building a large box in which to put scrap wood that will be used mainly for burning in the shop's wood stove. I also moved the dimensional wood back on to the shelves. Our thermometer registered 78 today, but I know it was well into the eighties. With that heat and all the dust, we almost clogged up the drain with our showers in the evening.

We sure enjoy Larry and Elsie's visits, and not just because of the goodies they bring. They keep us updated on all the events and news of the canyon. Larry keeps telling us that we need to get out more and drive around all the roads in the surrounding area. He is right. We should. And next year, when we have no major projects, we definitely intend to. We have detailed maps of the area, but they do not compare to seeing the land up close for oneself.

It amazes me that so many young people today live in a virtual world. A world of virtual games and virtual people. I can understand it as an escape from life in the city, but I am sorry for those who will never experience the "real world" and Mother Nature. I am so thankful that our son is such a good, no, an amazing father. He sees that his children get out to the beach, museums, community events, and other experiences in the real world and out of the virtual one. At seven and four years old, they each have their little hand-held devices and games, but they are not allowed to make them the center of their world.

When we were camping Up Here in 2002, while building the outhouse, I stood in the middle of the grove and took several pictures while turning in a circle. There are about ten of them that form one continuous photo when placed side by side, and I have them hanging on the edge of a shelf in our bedroom. Whenever I think we are not getting enough done, I look at those pictures. There is just no comparison from then to now. I don't ever think that we have "tamed" the area. Anything domesticated can turn back to wild in just a very short time. Or maybe I should say natural, not wild. And if that is natural, then is city life unnatural? It certainly is for me. . .

It is about time to get some canning done this year. I want to find a recipe for peaches that doesn't use as much sugar as I used last year. If you can find peaches in the store that are canned only in their own juice, then why shouldn't I be able to do the same at home? Larry and Elsie have a friend whose family cans meat every year going back generations. They want to be able to watch their friends before canning their own. I really want to get into canning meat also, as I have heard from several sources that once you taste canned meat, you'll rarely eat it any other way. And it's such a great way to store it for a long period of time.

Yesterday morning when I was on the porch enjoying my coffee, I heard what sounded like raindrops. Looking around I saw pine cone "petals" falling from one of the trees. There was a squirrel sitting way up on a branch eating the seeds in the pine cones and dropping everything else on the ground.  (There is a seed on the inside of each "petal.") I picked up six pine "cobs", as I call them, because they look similar to small corn cobs that have been picked clean. If memory serves me (and it often doesn't), they don't usually start that in earnest until mid-September. Well, the first of September is next week, so I guess it's not all that early. Just more paranoia about another long, cold winter. Hey, just 'cause you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you. . .or the long, cold winter isn't coming.

Pine "cob" and empty "petals"