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