March 7-8, 2014

Sally and Tender decided to stay in town, so I came out solo for some outdoor therapy. The weather was pretty nice, about 50 both days with an overnight low around freezing. It was a bit gray though, saw several spells of light rain Saturday, and there was still a bit of ice on the ground from the previous Sunday's all day sleet event.

Honeysuckle

The honeysuckle has pulled the 2x4 off the side of the garage. The lattice Eddie or Kathy used to train the honeysuckle was nailed to the 2x4. The weight of the vine plus all the snow and ice it must have held on to through all the storms we've had this winter was just too much. (The news reported we have had 17" this winter, the 4th heaviest snow on record, and we may not be done.)

I have been pondering what to do about the honeysuckle, with no real plan yet. I will probably consult the boss. In the mean time I wedged a piece of landscape timber under it to prevent it from complete collapse. I believe the lattice is permanently warped, and thus not salvageable.

Walnuts

Not knowing when it might start to rain, I decided to crack some walnuts while I could. I did another big bowl full, which I bag up and take home for picking. As usual, I am behind on the picking but making progress. I now have a couple of bags backlogged at the house.

Split Firewood

The last time out I had hauled these three truck loads of logs to the barn. Rain or shine I can split them here and I was anxious to get started. I worked about 2 hours on them Friday and another 2 hours Saturday. My goal was to finish them all up this weekend, but I did take on another tree Saturday morning (see below).

Hot Water

Having been two weeks since we were out, I was expecting the sulfur smell from the hot water due to the iron bacteria problem we have had since replacing the hot water heater last spring. I had already decided not to drain the tank, since it was just me and it is not harmful. There was some odor, but it really was not bad and it didn't last that long. Of course I have a theory – perhaps the anoid has built up a coating of lime and it is cutting down on the reaction. The old hot water heater never had a problem, and when I had Rex replace the anoid (guessing it might help, it didn't) it was already showing some mineral build up on it. Hopefully the smell issue will gradually go away entirely.

Mop

Friday night I washed the door mat, swept most of the house, and mopped the main part of the house. I don't mind doing it, but just always prefer working outside during the short periods of time I have at the farm.

Deer

While fixing breakfast Saturday morning I noticed three deer down in the valley, And then when I opened the back door go out later, these three deer were right out back. First one raised his/her head, then another, and then another. Finally I moved enough to alert them, their white tales went up, and they were off up the hill.

Cut Down Tree

This widowmaker had broken off some time last year. It was just up the hill from the house and very visible, so it had been bothering me. Since I had no logs cut to the 16" length Amanda and John need in their new fireplace insert, I thought I would kill two birds with one stone. It took me awhile to get it down, as after the first cut it was still hung up in the nearby trees. To get it on the ground I had to put my back into it and scoot the butt down the hill until it fell. It was then a simple matter of cutting it up and getting it down the hill. It was hollow and the wood is not great, but it will burn. I threw or rolled the pieces down the hill and was fortunate that none rolled all the way off the bluff. After splitting them up, I loaded up most of them to take to town to complete the stack of short logs I had started.

Weed Garden

The spinach had not spouted, except for maybe a couple of plants. I think it has just been too dry, and the ground being covered in ice probably doesn't help. I spent a bit over an hour weeding. The spring weeds are beginning to show up in force. Much more weeding to go.