STAYCATION DAYS 5-6 (HOT AND HAZY)

Tuesday afternoon smoke rose from a nearby controlled stubble fire. That’s just one reason the sky stays hazy. The other is local and regional wildfires.

The black hawthorn jelly I made Tuesday tastes fine but crystallized. I guess a lot of things can go wrong in the jelly-making process, but I believe I should have heated the juice to boiling before adding the sugar and then then cooked it more rapidly. The addition of lemon juice might also have helped. It was an experiment, and I’ll try again.  Sometimes we understand the process better as a result of failure.

As we walked Wednesday morning, I could hear what sounded like a logging truck coming closer and closer. Nellie wondered about it, too. Finally we could see the dust coming our way, and then they turned onto our road – two white pick-ups and a big, loud sprayer.

As they approached, they slowed to allow me to control the dogs. The beauty of walking the dogs here is that I don’t have to worry about “traffic,” but it was clear that we were the ones who would have to give place. I stepped into the field with Nellie obediently at my side, but Bess was curious and it took a second or two to get her attention.They sprayed the CRP ground at Plank's place and also on June's.

 

When I’m on staycation while others are vacationing, I don’t much think I should have to work, but on the other hand, there are always things to be done – like the dishes and the garden duties. I’ve kept up pretty well with the activities of daily living, but the last several days I’ve worked from a list in order to accomplish a few goals – like cleaning off the bed in the sewing room.

And so Wednesday – a day that quickly became hot – found me ironing my mother’s vintage tablecloths used at our picnic last summer. I had washed them and then left them on the bed in the sewing room to be ironed at a time when it wasn’t hot. But when the weather cooled, we didn’t spend much time at the farm. So here I was -- a whole year later, ironing on a hot day. I finished clearing the bed, too, because it must double as work space and storage, which means it will be cluttered again soon.

It was still 80 at 9:30 last night. The dogs didn’t want to go to bed and I couldn’t blame them. I found it hard to sleep myself. I decided it was time to return to town. KW

[Nellie and Bess both love apples. If you're a dog, once you bite your apple and pieces drop to the ground, you are duty-bound to share it. The other pictures are of Bess. She does point but doesn't hold very long. I'm sure they are going to enjoy working her in the field beginning next month.]