EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED

Little Canyon with snow on the distant mountain

Arriving at the farm property yesterday morning (Monday, April 29), we discovered that one of the pines from the burned stand at the bottom of the lane had broken in the wind and was lying in the road. Once we had unpacked the Dakota, Mike proceeded to cut it up and pile it for burning. It was an unexpected chore, which meant he didn’t finish his to-do list.

The day was rather chilly – 42 when we arrived and 51 around noon. The breeze made it seem even cooler.

Hallie's laurel

I spent most of my time emptying boxes in the dining room – recipes and recipe books, two boxes of “miscellaneous counter stuff,” and a box of towels. Before lunch, I was feeling the chill of the house, so I went outside to work in the sun. I daydreamed over the raised beds, imagining them filled with delicious produce from vintage seeds. Well, I’ve ordered the seeds, so we’ll see. The strawberry bed needs attention soon. I discovered that both rhubarb plants are alive and well, and they, too, need attention. Only one of Hallie’s laurel trees wintered over, but I’m not sure it will pull through a hot summer. It was an experimental project that happened at a time when I couldn’t give them as much attention as they deserved. Even so, I think laurels probably prefer the “wet side.”

Bess is six today.

American coot on the pond

Mike and I ate our light lunch on the front porch steps, allowing Bess some extra bites since it was her birthday. He went on with his outdoor chores while I vacuumed Hallie’s room and made her bed. I wonder if the three of us could sleep in the one bed because right now it’s all I have. Mike called Big Mike the Contractor, and he said the shower door in the master bath still has to be caulked, and he’s awaiting a part so that he can hang the master bedroom closet doors. It can’t happen fast enough to suit me.

 

We loaded our trash and left the place about 2:30 in order to make it to the transfer station in Orofino before closing. I also brought a load of laundry to town, mostly kitchen towels. KW

NOW THE FUN BEGINS

At least four deer play in the far field.

Mike and I, with our best friend Bess, visited the farm again yesterday (Thursday, April 25), this time for a real workday. We trailered the lawnmower, which Mike had stored in our town garage over the winter to protect it from the mice. 

Maple tree just budding out

Mike had a definite plan of action. After lighting the pilot on the hot water tank, he spent the morning spraying weeds in the lane, and after lunch he mowed the yard. It was more difficult for me to determine a starting place. Daughter Hallie will come to help as soon as we can coordinate our schedules, so I decided to start with her room. The bedding from our bed landed on hers, and unfortunately, a mouse or two had a great romp there. I determined that everything should be laundered, including the bedspread, and that meant carrying it back to town.  

Next, I decided to empty a big box so that I could load the laundry into it. I selected one that was labeled “board games” because I knew I could easily put those away. Then I stuffed the laundry into the box and loaded it into the back of the old Dakota. The laundry will keep me busy for several days.

What a mess!

I was discouraged by the appearance of the master bedroom. Big boxes block my way, and everything needs to be cleaned. The good news is that Big Mike had been there on Wednesday and installed the shower doors. Meanwhile, I decided to work in some other area, so I made water in the sink and began to wash kitchen counters, drawers, etc. One thing led to another and eventually I located a food box and opened it. It was mostly canned goods, so I unloaded it and washed every can. I will have to determine whether to use or toss. If I’d been thinking – which of course I was not – I should have had the crew box up the food but leave it for me to carry to town instead of storing it. But then, in the beginning no one realized that the project would be so extensive. It was just a year ago that this trial began.

Still snow on the distant mountains.

I figured we’d go back to town as soon as Mike finished mowing, but no – he asked me to bait the rodent holes in the yard while he cleaned his shed, also a favorite place for the mice to cavort. It was about 4:15 when we were finally finished, loaded, and ready to leave, but just then the neighbor came along for a visit. It was nice to see him.

The old barn at the corner still stands.

Twenty minutes later we were on our way, but we stopped at our leaky mailbox so that Mike could apply sealant. We were at the town house by 6:30 and were grateful that we had leftover pizza to warm for supper. KW

FARM REPORT – NOTHING BAD HAPPENED

You can just make out the snow on the distant mountain.

It seemed to take forever to get out of town this morning. First. we forgot the gizmo necessary to play my iPod through the old pick-up radio. (Yes, I know -- the rest of you moved beyond the iPod six years ago, but I still love mine, and it works just fine with the old player technology.) So anyway, we made a right turn and went back to the house for the gizmo. Next, we stopped for gas at a Lewiston station where we use our Albertson’s reward points. We thought we would then be on our way, but we had to detour around the major intersection overhaul at the bottom of 21^st Street.

Crown Imperials and daffodils at front porch

Even with these delays, we arrived at the farm at 9:00. The snow is gone, and we had no difficulty traversing the culvert and driving up the lane. We unloaded the 4-wheeler and blade, and then we entered the house to de-winterize the plumbing. In January, we had the plumbing professionally winterized and anti-freeze pumped into the pipes, so it was a matter of reversing the process and then turning on faucets to flush the system. We also drained the refrigerator hose and turned it on.

Daffodils in the grove -- more every year

Well, that took an hour, and that’s what we went to do. We’ll have to decide where we'll start as we move in, but today we just didn’t want to get into it. We gathered up some of the trash on the porch and in the yard. And after that we turned the water off and drove back to town, making a stop at the landfill. 

I like it!

It was delightful to be there even for that short time. I took a minute to check this mug (Pfaltzgraff’s “Pistoulet”) against both the wall paper and the cupboards. I like it!

Yard Report:

What should I plant in the raised beds?

I was delighted to see the daffodils in bloom. It’s disheartening that the yard is totally riddled with rodent activity. I will be on that soon! The strawberry bed needs attention, but I believe the plants will be all right. One rhubarb plant was killed by the rodents, but the other is fine. Perhaps I’ll just buy another rhubarb plant and set it in the compound. The lilac bushes were looking tough by summer’s end last year, but they are leafing out.

A nice clump of daffodils

We’ll have to plant something in the rustic raised beds. Mike is going to set up a drip system for me. Oh! And while I didn’t check the compost barrel, I’m fairly certain we have compost there.

And yes, the lawn needs to be mowed. The lawnmower is stored in the town garage, so we'll trailer it next trip. KW