September 6-8, 2014

This was our last trip to the farm, the final page of an eleven year chapter of our lives. With some grieving, we will move on. I put off making this post to put some distance between our separation, but it really hasn't helped. Of course there was no deadline this time, no need to get the previous post made because another would be due. Ah, I guess deadlines do serve a purpose.

This picture was taken on our last walk to the pond the morning of closing, part way down the hill at the bend in the road. The sky with the early morning sun, fog and high clouds was brilliant. It was foggy because we had gotten some good rain, two inches Tuesday and another half inch on Saturday morning before we came out. Saturday was very cool with a high in the mid 70s (unseasonable for early September), with it warming up a bit Sunday into the low 80s. I failed to make note of what the lows were.

Craftsman and Sale Items

The buyers had agreed to buy lots of furniture, the mower, the high wheel string trimmer, and the trailer. That was great for us, not having to haul it all off and then try to sell it ourselves. But that was assuming I had gotten the mower fixed – not (see the previous post). I told them about the problem with the broken weld on the mower and lowered the price. But given that information they decided against the mower and high wheel trimmer. I then told them I would have to retract the trailer, as I would need it to haul the mower and trimmer off. Plus I said I would keep brush whacker (priced at $0) so I could maybe sell the lot together. In the end they offered $200 less than what I thought was fair, and we accepted. It was so much simpler to just leave it all, and let them deal with fixing the weld on the Craftsman (shown in this picture).

Mow and Weedeat

It took most of the day, but it finally dried up enough for me to mow what was needed: the front and back yard, above the spring, around the spring, and in front of the barn. Sunday I used the brush whacker to clean everything up.

Fires/Blow Log

We had fires both Saturday and Sunday evenings. The buyers were driving up Saturday with a trailer that they had asked if they could park in the barn (shop was the term he used) until closing. We had agreed and expected them about 6pm. Being very cool out, we thought having a fire going would be nice. But then they had car problems and had to stop and have some radiator hose clamps tightened. We went ahead and had dinner out back and enjoyed this blow log.

Soul Tree

While loitering around, I tried to get Sally to let me take her picture with her soul tree – this Colorado Blue Spruce she planted on Sunbridge as a bareroot twig, moved to Elm Street, and then out here. She opted to let me pose with it. What history, what ties.

Deer Blind, 2 Feeders, and a Generator

Our buyers rolled in about 8:30. They almost got stuck making the turn toward the barn, but managed to back up and get back on the road. We went down to welcome them and see what we could do. They had a large diesel SUV pulling this trailer loaded with a huge deer blind, two deer feeders, and a generator. I wasn't sure it wood fit under the top of the barn door, and width wise I had to slide the door entirely out of the way. Once in the barn I didn't know what they were going to do because there was no way to turn the whole thing around, not even back behind the barn. He dropped the trailer in the middle of the barn, drove out back and turned the SUV around, and was just barely able to drive around the trailer and get back out of the barn. They then unloaded some more belongings to leave with the trailer.

Sally was pretty shaken by all this. When he asked if he could come back Sunday and set up the blind in the field Sally objected. I said we would get back with them Sunday. Apparently they were planning on driving back home right after closing Monday morning. I was shocked, but the daughter they had with them had to get back to school and they had other kids. Her parents were also with them, and they were the ones actually buying the place even though they had never seen it. We ended up letting them come back Sunday to look around, but they were not to move the trailer until after closing. A good call on Sally's part. They asked about the brush hogging. Apparently they had thought I had said I would have it brush hogged before closing. I believe I had told them I would have it mowed. I felt a bad about the misunderstanding, but all in all I think they got a great deal.

Walks

We took a lot of walks, soaking in our last Serenity Farm experience. We went to the pond both Sunday and Monday mornings. It was very foggy both mornings. We walked up the hill a couple of times, and over to the swing past the spring in the evening to enjoy the night and take in the nearly full moon.

Swing Repair

The swing past the spring had a slat partially hanging off. Being out in the weather it has taken a beating, while the one on the porch is in near perfect condition even though it is older. I took some screws over and re-secured the dangling slat.

Mammals

We saw two deer near the edge of the woods coming down the hill upon our arrival. We saw three more as we rounded the corner at the bottom of the hill on our Monday morning walk. One just stood and stared at us for a long time – pictured here. I caught a glimpse of a ground hog out back a couple of times, just beyond the apricot tree. One evening we were hearing these unusual animal noises. Sally said it was a mother fox gathering her young, and I will take her word for it. Monday morning before we got out of bed, and with the window open, I heard a very strange sound that moved from the front of the house, along the drive, and toward the back. I had no idea what it was, but felt it was a mammal of some sort.

Garden

The Italian pepper was loaded and we brought home quite a haul. The only other plant still producing was the basil, so Sally made one more double batch of pesto. I didn't bother weeding, and it didn't need watering. I did pull up a tree that had come up volunteer. I had thought it was a walnut, and so was leaving it since I had transplanted a couple of those out front from the garden in years past. But this tree was getting taller, growing really fast, and I finally decided it must have been a heavenly tree – and invasive exotic. I have never seen one out at the farm, but there are a real problem in Fayetteville. So I just pulled it up and burned it.

Loveable Loo

With the cooler temperatures and new owners coming, I decided to put the loo back into commission. I filled the sawdust bucket, got a new compostable bag to line the poop bucket, and seeded it with some sawdust. I made use of it both mornings. Perhaps that will be its last use. (I love the morning view from back there.)

Thistle

While taking our walks, I had noticed a few thistles beside the road near the house. Monday morning before leaving for the last time, I went out and pulled them up and stuffed then in the feed bag/trash bag we were taking with us.

Pack and Clean

Since we were leaving so much stuff, there really was not that much to pack up. Fitting it all into the back of the truck was a little tricky, but not hard. Most of it we loaded Sunday. I covered it with a tarp and then backed the truck into the garage so that the bed was sheltered. That way there was just loose ends to throw in Monday morning. Cleaning the house was more work, but it wasn't too bad. We did stay busy over the weekend.

Kings River Title

Closing was supposed to be at 8:30 Monday morning in Berryville. Of course we were out of sorts, didn't sleep well, and were up early for our last walk to the pond. We planned to have breakfast in Berryville, so we were out of the house and chaining the cattle guard in plenty of time. This selfie is our last picture of the place. We ate at the Original Ozark Cafe, not great food but it was very interesting watching the locals. We got a call while eating and were informed that closing was going to be delayed. Sally was mad because we could have had an extra hour at the farm.

There was a lot of waiting for us at Kings River Title. We visited with the buyers some, but it was awkward. I did give them the title to the trailer and the keys. We waited more while Farm Credit met with the buyers, and then while the buyers settled and signed everything with the title company. Then it was our turn. It went quickly, we got our check, and went straight to an Arvest branch to deposit it. Then we went to the Farm Bureau office to cancel our insurance (had a little trouble finding it since it had moved). We came back via AR 21. Sally swore she had never been down that road, while I was confused thinking she had come that way to the farm often from Harrison.

What memories we have to cherish.

August 29 - September 1, 2014

Wow, 4 days at the farm! I haven't done that in a while, nor will I do it again. The appraisal came in, the buyer's loan was approved, and closing is scheduled for September 8th. So this was our main pack up and move out weekend. Sally was watching Savannah Friday night, so she joined me Saturday. The dry weather had persisted, but we did receive about a tenth of an inch Saturday morning and again Monday morning. Highs were low 90s and lows were low 70s, but at least it was breezy. We slept with the window open Sunday night.

Mower

Bill had the Craftsman almost two weeks. He first had someone else weld some steel to the top of the deck to provide support for the left spindle. It turned out the bearings were shot in both spindles, so two new spindles. And then there were the spindle brakes that remain on until the blades are engaged, he replaced both of those but had to wait on parts. There went another $215 blown on this piece. It wasn't ready until about 3 on Friday. That, plus a stop for a yard hydrant, meant it was 6pm before I got to the farm.

After filling the bird feeders, I figured I had enough light to mow to the pond and back. But as soon as I engaged the blades it started throwing sparks. I don't think Bill ever tried it after putting the brake arms on, because they were rubbing against the bottom of the spindle pulleys. That is why they needed replaced, because it had worn entirely through the old arms. Bill had told me it was like I had a new deck. Wrong! Looking around I quickly saw what I (and Bill) had missed, there was a weld that had failed between the deck plate and some upper portion where the brake arms were attached. That is why it had been cutting so low and why there was contact with the arms.

I bent the arms down so there was no contact, kept the deck raised as high as it would go, and went ahead and mowed to the pond. It was getting dark, so I cut a few corners getting back. Dang it, more mower problems -- and I was hoping to sell it to the new owners.

I mowed the front and back yards Saturday, and did the weed eating around the house and the hill south of the house.

Yard Hydrant

I had committed to the buyers that I would try and complete this replacement job (I had already dug it up down to the feed pipe), but I still didn't have a new hydrant. I had planned to come out 412 and stop at Tractor Supply, but completely forgot and headed out Hwy 45 as usual. I was pulling into Eureka right at 5:30 and was hoping the plumbing supply store there on Hwy 23 would still be open. It was, and actually didn't close until 6. A lady there helped me collect what I needed and gave me some great tips. When I told her this was at the bottom of the line and it tended to drip, she switched me to some cement that works better in wet conditions, told be to stuff a piece of bread up the line to temporarily stop the seeping, and to let the cement setup for at least an hour before turning the water back on. Its just great to have experience, or get to talk to someone that does. I doubt it would have been the same at Tractor Supply.

I was also pleased when she told me it was a Simmons hydrant. I believe the other 4 are Simmons, but this one back of the barn was originally some other brand, and then the Clayton Mark I replaced it with lasted only about 3 years before snapping.

I thought I would shut the water off and do the replacement Saturday morning before Sally arrived, but it rained early and I could not find any teflon tape. I called Sally and asked her to bring some out. I did go ahead and widen the hole and clean out the debris from the bottom.

Mid afternoon I got permission from Sally to shut the water off for an hour and half (it turned out to be more like 2). I turned off the pump, shut the water off to the house so it would not all drain out, watered the garden with what was left in the pressure tank, and opened up the hydrant in front of the barn. I cut the line with the same wire I had used the last time. But just before penetrating the inside wall it stuck. It took me awhile to get the sawing motion going again, but once the line was penetrated it went easy. The water pooled in the bottom of the hole, so I had to get a rag and sop it up, wringing it out into a bucket. I used another rag to dry things up as best I could, got some sand paper to smooth over the cut, and placed a piece of cardboard in the bottom of the hole.

The cementing went pretty well. But the hole is deep and I had some difficulty keeping from sliding into it. In fact my ribs were soar for 4 days due to laying on them and reaching into the bottom of that hole. Just as I came into the house to turn the well pump on, Sally told me she had already done that but that the toilet would still not flush. It freaked me out a bit, and I ran to the well house and just found a little water running out of the open hose. I shut it off and ran to the front of the barn and that hydrant was gushing. I shut it off and ran to the back to check the new hydrant. Thankfully no leaks. Back at the house I pointed out to Sally that she needed to also turn the water on to the house in addition to turning on the pump. I am just glad she didn't turn it on sooner. I checked the hydrant again Sunday, tested it, and late in the day went ahead and filled up the hole. I sure hate replacing yard hydrants.

Firewood

I am sure glad I picked up John and Amanda's firewood when I was out to meet the appraiser, otherwise I would have had another trip to make. But I still had one red oak log in the barn that I had been saving for Amanda to split, plus the larger walnut pieces left from the tree I had milled. I split it all and lined the bed of the truck with layer to provide some weight and traction getting up the hill pulling the trailer. The rest I piled into the trailer with the rest of my junk.

Packing

Sally had brought out a bunch of boxes and packing material and did most of the packing up of small items. We are fortunate our buyers are going to purchase many items, and allow us to just leave others for them. This includes the beds, couch, table, some house chairs, the TV, two picnic tables, a bench, and three Adirondacks. Sally also loaded her Outback, except for the concrete coyote which I helped her with -- standing it in the front passenger floor board. That left me to clean out the garage and get everything into the trailer. Hopefully we can then get everything else into the truck the next weekend.

Cedar Logs

I had been thinking about the cedar logs that I had trimmed after they were downed in the January 2013 tornado, just lying in the cedar groves. I had talked to Ryan (who milled the walnut) about them, and he said they would be fine. So Sunday morning I went down to the pond to get the bird house and coon guard, and to inventory what I had. There were more logs than I realized of a decent size. I brought my Stihl to be prepared, and decided to go ahead and pick them up. Of course once they were loaded, it would be best to go ahead and get them to Ryan. I couldn't find his phone number, so I sent him an email. We had lunch, and by the time were done he had gotten back to me giving me the OK to drop the logs off. At 1:50 I headed for Wesley, unloaded the logs, painted the ends, chatted with Ryan, and headed back arriving about 5:30. I was bushed and we decided to stay another night.

Leaving the Farm

Sally was anxious to get back and start unloading, but it started raining Monday morning and we were planning to get the table and the twin headboards in the back of the truck. We even had the table top loaded at one point, but then changed our minds and decided to leave it. (I'll now have to put it back together.) From the weather radar we could tell it was clearing, and we were able to get the headboards loaded (and wrapped in a tarp) and get off about 11:30.

One more week, and Serenity Farm will no longer belong to us.

August 15-16, 2014

It was hot, humid and dry -- low 90s and low 70s. We had a showing scheduled for Saturday, so I was anxious to get out and mow, but Sally was babysitting all day. We decided she would just come out on her own later.

Boots

Chris gave me these boots when the National Guard issued him the new tan (sand) camo ones he would take to Iraq. They have been my farm boots for 8 or 9 years. They worked well even though they were a little big. As you can see, the sole is separating on one so I am going to go ahead and dump them. One more chapter closing on the farm.

Mowing

Wanting to get everything cleaned up for the showing, I was anxious to get the mowing taken care of. I filled the mower with gas and headed for the pond. In the process of mowing across the dam I could tell something was wrong. Maybe I hit something (when don't I), but it started really gouging the cut on the inside of the left blade. It has been doing this for a long time and I could never find the problem. Now it was serious. By the time I got over to the side of the pond I could tell that I would not be able to continue. I reluctantly disengaged the blade and drove back to the house. This picture shows what I found. The deck had rusted and weakened such that the two inside bolts had nothing to hold on to. When the belt was engaged it pulled the top of the spindle toward the middle lowering the inside arc of the blade.

I didn't even have the tools to remove the plastic cover over the top of the spindle and its drive pulley. I thought if I could offset the pull of the belt on the spindle I might be able to get at least the front yard mowed. All I could come up with was anchoring the spindle to the outside using wire. I fought with this for a while and then tried it out. No better at all. I went back to work, finally putting some boards under it and using my weight to somewhat correct the misalignment, and then tighten the wire as much as possible. It was good enough. I got the front and side yard mowed, and even managed to use it to do the spring and front and back of the barn.

That left only some weedeating to tidy things up a bit, although the grass looked awful with lines and gauges through it.

Showings

Friday night I received a message that another interested party wanted to come out Saturday. The first couple was scheduled for 10:30, and since this was there second time out I wanted to give them priority. So I scheduled the second family for 1:30 to 2.

The 10:30 showing was with a couple from Houston, the couple that had seen the place on their own 3 weeks earlier. We had been out that Saturday, but we did not find out until we were home Saturday evening that they had left a voice message that morning asking to see the property. In spite of the high temperatures (hottest weekend of the summer) they had come out on their own, hiked down from the cattle guard, and looked around the place on their own that Sunday. They had even made it all the way down to the pond. We had some e-mail exchanges since, and here they were coming back. I thought it was very promising, but I have learned not to get too excited.

They flew in this time and left the kids at home (we found out they have nine children between them). They are interested in using the place for vacations and as a get away – like us, just from farther away. The first order of business was to show them the house. Actually we just let them walk through it on their own while we hung out outside. They really did not come prepared to hike through the fields and woods (no long pants and boots), but they did hike around back and up the bluff. I met them there after putting on my boots, but we just returned to the house. Since they had already seen the spring and barn, I offered to drive them around the fields. We first went up top and drove out the ridge, then down to the pond, up to the southeast corner, back across the dam, through the lower field separating the creeks, up into the back pasture, along and below the north facing bluffs, down and across Plume creek, and back to the house. There was some discussion around price and other particulars, an offer, and a promise on our part to get back with them after our second showing.

The afternoon showing was with a Rogers couple and their two teenage children. They were wanting a place to keep horses, serve as a weekend get away, and possibly a place they could rent out at times. We could immediately tell it was not right for them, but showed them around politely (as they were being). The daughter, the one with the horses, walked to the spring and barn barefoot.

We counter offered with the Houston couple, they accepted, they drove back out, looked at the barn again, and they left with a partially filled out contract. They had already discussed a loan with Farm Credit out of Harrison, and were confident about being able to get financing. Actually, they were even going to have her parents make the purchase. We exchanged more emails including the partially completed contract, and had an executed contract by Tuesday. I returned for a very quick trip Thursday afternoon to let an appraiser walk through the house and take some pictures. The loan seems to be approved and there is talk of closing on the September 8th. Wow!

August 8-9, 2014

This was a typical August weekend with high humidity and temperatures in the low 90s during the day and low 70s overnight. We were also fortunate to have received almost an inch of rain Thursday, some sprinkles Friday afternoon, and it had just begun to rain again when we left Saturday. I got this butterfly picture Saturday morning on our walk.

Garden

It was nice not having to water. Sally continued picking green beans, dragon beans, peppers, and basil. She made yet another double batch of pesto. She freezes half and we eat the other half. I did not get any weeding done, although it needs it.

Masked Bandits

The green bird feeder was totally empty. That told me the racoons had cleaned it out. So about dusk I was keeping watch and, sure enough, momma and two little ones showed up. I got this picture by quietly sneaking out the door and onto the porch. (One of the little ones had heard me and bolted.) I wish I could have seen how she gets up there. I presume it just needs to be higher. I really don't like encouraging them.

Deer

When we went out for a walk in the morning we heard this deer just up the hill. He/she did not seem afraid of us, and just stood there watching us and twitching its tail like a dog. When we got back from our walk it was just past the fire pit grazing. And later when I was walking down to the walnut tree, I heard and saw one in the woods above the road. I figured it was the same deer.

Blue Birds

I was eager to check on the baby blue birds I had seen the previous weekend. Before I opened the box however, I knew it was bad news because I could smell death. They were there, but it seems they either starved or burned up in the heat. Nature is cruel. I was surprised there was a nest and eggs this late in the year.

Mow/Weed Eat

The only mowing I did was out back. The rest just didn't look like it needed it, and with no showings scheduled I thought I would just let it go another week. I did take the brush whacker up the road, around the cattle guard, and back down the other side. That was needed.

Walnut Milled

After dropping three walnut logs at the millers the previous weekend, I still had one more (the largest) plus a few large limbs to transport. I was nervous about getting this heaviest log loaded. It was a slow process, but really no problem. The first task was to get it out of the wooded area where it lay. (You can just see the end of it painted red in this picture.) I had decided to use the truck and drag it out, which worked very well. I only had to adjust its direction once using my crow bar.

I then inched it around parallel to the hill and stepped it down to the truck and ramps with the crow bar and a stop log – the same I had done the previous weekend with the other logs. It was a bit more cumbersome getting up the ramps and into the truck due to its size, but the ramps were not as steep and most of it I did by hand. (The come-a-long didn't help much.) I did get drenched in sweat during the process.

We had been in contact with Ryan and thought we were going to drop the load at his mill on the way back to town, and that I would come out Sunday and help/watch him mill all of it. But as we neared Huntsville in the rain Sally had the idea of just bringing the logs with me Sunday and save a trip to his backwoods mill. I was able to get him on the phone and we agreed to start at 9:30 Sunday. It is almost an hours drive for me, and he had worked until 8 at his firefighting job. I thought he had meant 8pm, but he hadn't gotten off until 8am!

Three of his six children (all under the age of 9) were out with us during most of the milling. They were sweet and kept bringing me cherry tomatoes from the garden. Once they went inside and came back with pictures they had colored for me. Ryan did a good job with his Wood-Mizer, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching and helping throughout the process. It only took him three hours to finish the job. I threw and extra hour's pay in for him.

At home I had to unload and stack them with stickers between the stacks. Sally helped by sweeping the boards at the truck before I took them down. Drying is a critical step in making lumber, to fast and it cracks and to slow it will mildew. Its some pretty wood, and even cut it is heavy. I weighed a squared off board at 84 pounds. Later I weighed one of the two center cuts which I had had him leave the natural edge on, and it was right at 100 pounds. I topped off the stack with cinder blocks and placed a small fan blowing across it. I am still learning, and decided to re-stack it Wednesday night with more stickers, more uniformly placed, and closer to the ends.

I measured and counted the boards. I am recording that information here for my own future reference. (A board foot is a 1 inch thick board 12" wide and 12" long.)

3"x3" legs of varying lengths

1 3', 1 5'2", and 1 6'2" for 10.5 board feet.

1" boards all 7' but varying widths

8 2", 3 3", 3 4", 2 5", 2 6", 1 7", and 1 8" for 44.3 board feet.

2" boards all 7' but varying widths

1 6", 3 8", 1 9", 3 10", 1 12", and 2 13" for 124 board feet.

2.5" boards all 7' but varying widths

1 7", 2 8", and 2 10" for 62.7 board feet.

August 1-2, 2014

I was very pleased to see an inch and half of rain in the gauge, and we received almost another tenth of an inch overnight. Though we slept with the windows open, I never heard it rain. It did make for low clouds Saturday morning, and very unusual for us to not be able to see across the valley. Saturday started off nice and cloudy and cool, but by early afternoon it was in the low 90s with high humidity. I really worked up a sweat working our Walnut logs (see below).

Blue Bird Babies

I checked our bird house out back and, as expected, the eggs had hatched and there were little babies with their mouths gaping open. I took a couple of pictures, but both were blurry. I probably didn't give it time to focus, sticking my phone into the top of the box to get the shot.

Mowing

The grass was not very high in spite of not being mowed in weeks. With the recent rain, that will change. I did go ahead and mow the front yard, down to the pond, and around the spring.

I couldn't resist stopping to get this picture of the walnuts on the tree down by the confluence of the creeks. Its limbs are drooping down with the weight of the nuts. I just hope they don't break.

Walnut Logs

This was the big project for the weekend, and boy did I feel it. After procrastinating for so long, I finally cut our Walnut that has been laid over since the 2009 ice storm. – and it was solid! Even though it was up off the ground, I was afraid it might be hollow. It lay pointing down hill just below the spring. I had scouted how to drive my truck up there and swing it around so I was heading down hill. Sally wanted to come along for this project, and I was glad she did. She not only got some great pictures, but offered some good advice and took care of painting the ends of the logs (to prevent checking).

I ended up being able to cut four logs 7' 2" each. Their diameter was greater than I had estimated (I allowed to much for the bark): 10", 12", 13" at the small end of the upper logs (the ones I got loaded), and 15" at the butt of the base log. Being larger in diameter than I had estimated, and cutting them to longer lengths than I thought I would be able to, all meant they weighed more than I thought they would. I was planning on being able to lift one end up onto the tailgate. The bigger ones I could not even get off the ground. I thought I was stuck.

Sally suggested rolling them down the hill and getting our miller to come pick them up. That gave me the idea to drive the truck down the hill into the ditch that drains the spring so that the tailgate would be lower to the ground. Then I thought of getting the ramps I built to load the mower.

Just getting the logs down the hill turned out to be quite a challenge. While Sally painted the ends, I went back to the house to get the ramps, Papa's come-a-long, what little chain I had, and a crow bar. With the crow bar I could lift one end just enough for Sally to get a short limb under it, and then I could roll the log over the limb by cranking on the other end with the crow bar. I was able to spin one around parallel to the hill while sitting up on a limb, but mostly I just inched them around with the crow bar. I had to use other limbs as stops so that the log wouldn't run away down the hill (and over me). Using the crow bar I would pry it off the stop limb, move the stop a foot or so down the hill, and then let the log roll. I adjusted the direction as I neared the truck. A couple of times the log grabbed the crow bar and I had to let the log roll over it.

When I got to the ramps, I let the logs roll up as far as possible on to them. I was worried about the ramps breaking with the weight, and used a big limb to provide some added support on the down hill ramp. Once on the ramps I could just barely spin the logs around to a 45 degree angle to the bed of the truck. That's where the come-a-long came in, I had to crank them on up into the bed. It was all a very slow and exhausting process. Sally was worried about the weight of the three logs and feared we wouldn't be able to get up the hill or might even burn up the engine, but with low 4WD I knew it wouldn't be an issue.

I had talked to a miller a couple of months back that would saw our logs, and figured I would touch base with him Monday and take them out then. But Sally suggested seeing if we could drop the logs off on the way back to town. So I put in a call to Ryan to see if that would be possible. After the exchange of a few phone messages we got the okay, and then his wife provided me with directions. He is outside Wesley at the other end of Madison county, at the end of his own dirt road. He has a nice place, and is very nice young man with a young family. He used his front end loader and a chain and just drug the logs out of the truck. I was somewhat surprised the tailgate closed without a problem after all the stress I had put it through.

Now I just need to get the last, and largest, log loaded and out to him. That will have to wait until the following weekend. Once cut, I have to find a place to stack and dry the lumber for six months. This is going to be a long term, and expensive, project. I fully expect enough wood for a nice table, a bench, and plenty of left overs.

Garden

Sally picked a bunch of green beans, more dragon beans, a few peppers, and enough basil for more pesto. She watered and I weeded. With her permission I pulled up a bunch of the mint on the far side.

Weedeat

I did just a bit around the house, and cleaned up the hill below the house.

July 25-26, 2014

Finally some typical, and miserable, summer weather. It was 97 when we arrived, it cooled all the way down to 72 overnight, and topped out at 98 Saturday. (Inside it was 77.) I was pleased to find .25" in the rain gauge. The good news was that due to the hot dry weather I didn't need to do any mowing or weedeating.

Propane

We had the tank filled during the week. It took 236 gallons and cost $446. We will be good for another year.

Road Repair

Since the 3.5" rain week in June and the resulting road erosion, I have been wanting to get on this project. With no mowing to do, this was the weekend. But, in the heat it was a miserable job. Friday I dug the mud from behind the barn filling all my available buckets and containers. Most I got by cleaning the trench next to the barn foundation, where I have it funneling to the back and then across and under my culvert to exit down the hill. Some of the other mud came from the build-up next to the bluff. My shirt was soaking wet with sweat.

Saturday I loaded it all into the truck and hauled it up on to the road. I made it go pretty far, patching over the worst eroded areas and building up the water bars that were failing. I also cleaned out the silt that had built up in front of the water bars. Those fine sandy particles are perfect for top coating the mud. When I didn't have enough, I used leaves and what silt I could get out of the ditch on the uphill side of the road. In the end I was pleased with the work, but dead tired.

Yard Hydrant

Since I was working right beside this broken yard hydrant excavating mud, I decided to dig it up in preparation for replacing it. I think it has been broken for a couple of years, in spite of it being the newest of the 5 we have. I replaced it about six years ago, but then went to use it for the first time last summer or the summer before and it just snapped. I can tell you one thing, I will not be putting another Clayton-Mark in.

I got much of it dug up Friday as shown here. Then Saturday morning, while there was still some shade, I got deep enough to expose the feed pipe. I still have to widen the hole and clean out all the debris at the bottom before I can tackle the replacement. Of course I also need to purchase a hydrant and some plumbing parts. I've procrastinated long enough and its time to get this job done. (People that know me know how I hate plumbing projects – I just fear something going wrong.)

Walnut Tree

I am ready to cut our walnut tree that was laid down in the January 2009 ice storm. I hope to have a table built from the wood. I have found a saw mill that will take this small job, so I need to get it cut, loaded, and hauled to them (near Wesley). I took my pick and cleaned out the loose rock under the base of the tree, so that I can cut as much of it as possible. I am expecting to get three 13" diameter logs 6+' long. I think that will be enough for the table top, and that the upper portion of the trunk will provide wood for the legs. I just hope I can get the logs lifted into the bed of my truck. I am nervous about this project as well. Stay tuned.

Wildlife

We saw an owl take flight as we rounded the curve at the bottom of the road driving in. While behind the barn digging mud I saw this bird just sitting in the barn. After I got the picture it tried to fly, but just made a low circle. I don't know if it was just young and learning to fly or injured. I went back to work and never saw it again. While digging up the yard hydrant I disturbed a tarantula, which hung out there beside me for awhile. When coming outside for an evening walk Friday we disturbed three racoons which seemed to be teaming up to gain access to the green bird feeder. They slowly moseyed off. And at some point during the weekend I found that giant bright green grasshopper (?) pictured at the beginning of this blog entry.

Garden

Sally took care of the garden for us. She picked a few green beans, many dragon beans (which we have lots of), some of the italian peppers which we really like, and made yet another double batch of pesto from the basil. Of course she had to water as well.

Missed Showing

We had talked to a Houston couple the weekend before who had mentioned that they might come up to see our place this weekend. We never heard from them, and had been wondering what had turned them off. But when we got home we had an answering machine message from them, they were in Eureka and wanted us to show them the property. I felt horrible about the miscommunication, but all we could do is invite them to walk down from the cattle guard and look around on their own. After they looked, the called back with questions about what they were looking at, which pond they were seeing, how would you get to the pond, etc. I think they went back for another look Monday morning before heading back to Texas. Hopefully we will get a chance to show it to them properly.

July 19-20, 2014

Sally staid in town on stand by for the delivery of grand-child number 6. I needed to mow and thought I had a showing for Sunday, but that didn't materialize. Saturday was nice, cloudy with a high of only 80. The overnight low was 68 and then it was back to high humidity and the upper 80s. Unfortunately the rain gauge was dry.

Garden

I missed Sally being out to tend the garden. The typical weeds weren't too bad, but then there is the bermuda and mint. The Dahlia's were getting showy and there were Italian peppers, though I thought they were supposed to turn red (I left the biggest one to see if it would). I picked some beans, but left most to see if we would could harvest just the seeds of this new mottled variety we ended up with (I prefer the green beans myself). I also clipped more than enough basil for a double batch of pesto. And then there was watering done both days.

Mow

I mowed everything Saturday. This is the first time the grass has begun to look brown from the lack of rain. Being dry, I also wore a mask while mowing. Expecting a showing, I also made sure things were cleaned up around the house, barn and spring using the weedeaters.

Blue Birds

There is a new blue bird nest in the house out back, and it has 4 eggs! I cleaned out the abandoned nest with eggs in the house on the hill – I'm just not sure what happened there. I needed to clean out the nest in the house at the pond, but forgot. (I'm sure the babies have left by now.)

Spray Sumac

While driving up on the ridge top during a showing many weeks back I had noticed two large patches of sumac right at the fence line. I had also noted another large patch in the back pasture when up there looking for thistle. So I got out the back pack sprayer, herbicide, and some diesel and hit all three. I hope the mix was strong enough for the patch in the back pasture. Of course both will need a followup to make sure I got everything.

Pull Brush

I went back to the hill where I had cut a bunch of briars, elm, and persimmon a couple of weeks back. I pulled the brush and stuffed it into the ditches to rot (and slow the erosion). That's some pretty tiring work. But I wasn't done.

Cut Sassafras and Oaks

When it seemed likely our prospects were not going to show, I tackled these two growing up on the hill just south of the house – since they obstruct the view and Ben had given me a hard time once for letting the oaks grow amongst the pines. I like the little bunch of sassafras, but some were getting mighty large and the patch is spreading. I cut out three of the big ones and will see how I like it. I also cut a few of the larger oaks, and went around the hill with my loppers cutting dozens of the little ones. I never got to the west end of the hill, and suspect I will want to take out more of the larger oaks. Some I want to leave for erosion control, and I did leave all the hickories though I did trim some of them up. I have this vision of letting the hickories grow tall and straight up amongst the pines. Hey, they can always be cut.

July 4-5, 2014

It was a pleasant weekend for July, low humidity, low 80s for highs, and low 70s over night. No rain however. We did get some hammock time in, and three sudoku challenges -- Sally creamed me on two and the one I won was only by seconds.

Mowing

I did the far back, the front yard, down to the pond, and behind the barn. Saturday I ran the weed eaters on both hills, around the road and back to the barn. It sure looks nice all cleaned up. I found a piece of the mower loose on the deck. It was half of the piece that breaks against one of the drive pulleys when you disengage the blades. For some reason it was pressing up against the pulley, when it should have been underneath it. The effect was that that the pulley wore entirely through the metal arm. I removed a spring that held the remaining half in place and now there is no contact. It seems to be an optional piece of safety equipment. I won't replace it unless I can figure out why the alignment was off.

Garden

It was nice having Sally to work the garden. It was very dry, so she watered both days. She pulled up this bucket full of onions, picked some green beans, and got enough basil for another double batch of pesto. I did bring out a spray bottle and tried misting the Bermuda with vinegar. I am anxious to see if it had any effect.

Deer Grazing

The deer are continuing to devour many of my baby trees and plants. This is the Pixie Delight apple. It was getting large, so I had just removed the wire cage that had been around it. That was mistake as you can tell. I got it back over the tree and can only hope that it will help. All of the other plants will have to be on their own.

On a related note, the older Gold Rush apple actually has three apples on it which I had not noticed previously. I am amazed because it has been so sickly. I still do not expect it to survive the summer.

Blue Birds

I believe this will be the last hatching for the year. This picture is from the house at the pond, and I suspect these babies will be leaving the nest any day. The house on the hill has eggs, but I am fairly certain they have been abandoned. If they are still there my next time out I will clean out the nest.

Walk to Pond

We walked to the pond Saturday morning. It was nice since it wasn't too warm. We still can't figure out the sweet smelling plant we always notice down by Plume Creek. We did spot two thistles, so I knew I would have to come back.

Thistle

I found just a few in the little pin beside the confluence of the creeks. I also found a large mullen there about to bloom. I didn't want that going to seed either, so I dug it as well. I ended up finding 112 thistles, though most were some different variety that has not actually bloomed yet. Those were all on the south side of Gum Creek in a very localized area. They are prickley like thistle but don't seem to get as tall. They are also fuller and greener. I was certain I didn't want them, so they were dug up as well. I even walked up into the back pasture since I had found a few there in years past, but it was clean. Great!

Clear Brush

The smilax, wild grape, elm, persimmon, and cedar are taking over the hill side west of the road as it makes its final descent to the valley. So I took my loppers and attacked it one area. I just cut things back and will have to come back and drag the brush into the draw to rot. There is much more work to do here, just further up the road.

June 27-28, 2014

Sally was out of town again, so this was another solo trip for me. Driving in I could tell we had received a lot of rain because the road was scoured and I noticed a leaf dam in the ditch. I was still surprised to find three and half inches in the rain gauge. Temperatures were rather mild, low 80s during the day and low 70s overnight.

Gully Washer

Here is what the drainage looked like over by the swing, just before it drops off the bluff. I would never call this a creek because it is always dry except during a hard rain, but it does drain a large area and parallels the road coming down the hill. You can see where the term gully washer came from, it literally washed the gully out and parted the leaves. This is where I drive the mower across. I piled some rocks in here years ago and they back up the leaves which provide some base and elevation for me to get across. I just kicked them back into the bottom, and drove across and mowed as usual. I do have a little road erosion I will need to address.

Wildlife

Interestingly, I saw a Bald Eagle while driving out – near the White River. I knew we had some year around residents, but it is rare to actually see one of them (at least rare for me). Not at all atypical though, a Great Blue Heron took off from the pond as I approached on the mower. (I am sure they are the reason we no longer have any cat fish.) And then later when mowing around the big sycamores in the valley a ground hog scampered across the road. I suspect he is the same one I saw at the pond a few weeks back.

Mowing

With all the rain it is no surprise that the grass had really grown and everything needed mowing. I almost got it all done, but left the area behind the barn and the far area back of the house. I did some weed eating around the house, and then took the brush whacker up the road. The hills will need to be tackled the next weekend.

Garden

I couldn't believe how the weeds had grown in the garden, just when I thought I had them in control. I tackled them first thing Saturday morning. The Bermuda and mint remain my nemesis though. I think I am going to try a spray bottle with vinegar.

I picked enough green beans for one meal, had summer spinach with my eggs Saturday and Sunday, pulled up the garlic (which was hard to find amongst the Bermuda), pulled up a few onions whose stalks were laying over, got enough kale for a meal or two, and 4 cups of basil (enough for a double batch of pesto). The oldest Italian pepper was beginning to bloom and several others I planted later were coming up. Same for some late beans I put out. The tomato is not going to make it, unfortunately.

Deer

In spite of all the vegetation growing everywhere, the deer seem to prefer my plants. I could tell they had been nibbling on the Pixie Delight apple, the baby wild cherry I transplanted this winter, the walnuts I have started out front, the snowball bush I transplanted from home, and even the thornless black berries. Hopefully they won't kill anything.

Thistle

I went on thistle patrol again and only found 32. That's great, and I did not see any over the fence in the Clark's or Jeff's pastures. I am not sure why not since they both had problems last summer. Perhaps they sprayed. I also hiked up into the back pasture and along Plume Creek, but found none.

Walnuts

It looks like it will be another good year for walnuts. These were on the tree out back of the house, but the the tree down by the creeks was really loaded – I just didn't have my phone on me when I was down there.

June 13-14, 2014

Sally, just getting back from Chicago Friday morning, did not come out. We had a showing scheduled for Saturday afternoon though, so I made the solo trip to get the grass cut and do the showing. I was glad to find an inch and half in the rain gauge. Any rain we get now will help us through the summer, and is especially appreciated considering the unusually dry April and May. Temperatures were low 80s each day, but got down into the 50s overnight -- nice.

Shortcut/Scarlet Tanager

I came out the shortcut, which seemed a bit rough. I also started my return home the same way and was surprised the road had been graded since the previous afternoon. I got to the Warm Fork on the return when I realized I had failed to shut off the power to well pump. Staying calm, I just turned around and drove back. I was rewarded by seeing this brilliant red bird with black wings and tail feathers. I didn't know what it was and had never seen one before. I couldn't find it in our bird book, but later did an internet search and I believe it was a Scarlet Tanager. (I also saw a blue bird along the same road through the Madison County Wildlife Management Area.) After all that dirt road, I just made my final return through Eureka.

Wild Raspberries

The black raspberries were ripe. I ate a bunch from the plant on the road in part way down the hill near the culvert -- very easy access. I wish I had had time to clean the bushes down by the Sycamores. They were tasty.

Mowing/Thistle

I got the upper level mowed Friday and did some weed eating around the house. Saturday morning I mowed everything else. After that I went on thistle patrol and found another 100. Many I found on the south side of gum creek, not where I have usually found them. For these I cut off the flowering heads and bagged them. I found one plant from the previous weekend (which I had left in the field) which had gone to seed. I hope there weren't others

Showing

This was a young couple with a three month old who have plans to move to Berryville. They were joined by his parents and their dog. He seemed very excited, but it did not seem to go well to me. We all walked out back, the couple walked through the house, I drove him to the pond and up along the ridge, and then they left. (We did see lots of fish in the pond including a large grass carp.)

Turkey Nest

I had been curious about the turkey nest I had stumbled upon about a month earlier. I figured I would no longer be disturbing the hen or the checks, so I went to investigate. I really could not tell whether this looked like they hatched, grew, and left the nest; or whether something had gotten them. I hope they made it. Something up the hill was making some strange sounds (at me) when I was checking it out.

Walnut Tree

This walnut was downed during the January 2009 ice storm, but was left with enough roots in the ground to continue to grow -- and it is up off the ground. I have always wanted to have it milled and dreamed about building a table with the lumber. I have developed a serious interest in pursuing this due to Chris and Lindsey moving into a new place, us giving them the dining room table we had used in our breakfast area for years, and Chris commissioning Skip to build him some custom shelves for his new living room.

Knowing I do not have the skill or tools to build the table, I had been thinking 'why not hire out the job?' So Sally and I dropped by and discussed the project with Skip. He remembers doing some project for us about 30 years ago when we first moved into our home, but none of us can recall what it was. He was willing, but very humorous when he said "if I'm still alive". He was pointing out the length of such a project: getting the tree cut into logs and hauled out (or milled in place), drying the boards for six months, having them kiln dried, and then actually building the table.

I am excited about the idea though, so I went and cleared some of the brush that has grown up around the tree and measured it. I think there will be plenty of wood, possible enough to also build a bench. I am not yet sure if I would be able to get the logs to the truck and loaded into the bed. (The tree lies just below the spring.) I have found a miller outside Huntsville that takes small jobs like this. We'll now see if I can follow through.

Garden

I did not have much time to spend in the garden. I pulled up the radishes for Sally, and then tackled a big portion of the mint -- it is just taking over (along with the Bermuda). The basil is looking very good, the bean's are beginning to flower, and the onions are still coming along. The garlic will need picking next trip out. The summer spinach is full and thick as usual, and the sole kale plant is holey due to the little worms on the back side of the leaves. (Didn't keep me from having some with eggs for breakfast.) I wonder how others manage to grow it organically.

Snakes

This was the weekend for snakes, I saw three. This black snake was the longest, and was right out back where I had walked our prospects a few hours earlier. I saw another smaller black snake by the road at the bottom of the hill when I had come back to turn off the power to the pump. The big hair raiser though was a timber rattlesnake I found, and disposed of shortly after arriving. This was the first and only poisonous snake I have ever seen out on our property. Hopefully the last.