. . . AND THE SAGA CONTINUES

The time change is always a challenge, and these days we complain about it. I fell asleep on the sofa Saturday evening and put myself to bed as Mike went around the house changing the clocks. As I snuggled into bed, I glanced at the time and was shocked to see that my clock read 8:45. Then I was wide awake for another hour.

Sunday (Nov. 3) we went to the farm, and it felt like we both worked hard. It was cold in the house but warmer than the weekend before, and in the afternoon the temp was 50. We were encouraged to see that the forecast for the next two weeks is warmer than last week. We decided not to drain the pipes at this time. (We are a bit paranoid about the plumbing, you know.)

Mike lit a fire in the fireplace and then headed down the road to light the slash pile where the road curves into the lane. Meanwhile, I began by baking a small batch of cookies (flourless peanut butter) in order to put more heat into the house.

Then the excitement began. The fire crept up the bank under the dead trees. Mike had a 15-gallon tank of water on the back of the 4-wheeler, but it fell off, and I wasn't much help in the lifting of it. That thing was heavy, and I couldn't get a grip. Once the tank was replaced, and Mike was once again reaching the smoldering fire, my next assignment was to stomp out the little flames here and there near the main fire, but Neighbor Pete happened by and advised me to let it burn itself out, assuring me that this would happen. We were surprised that the entire slash pile burned up, including several larger rotten logs.

Well, I have to tell you that Blaze the Horse is still moving about the farm. Mike and Bess went hunting in the afternoon, and there he was. Mike was grinning when he told me. I think he and Blaze have become friends -- sort of. The worst of it is the mess in the yard, but we do want what's best for Blaze, and it's not to be roaming around without care. Mike touched base with the sheriff Monday morning, and we haven't heard from him yet. So, the saga of Blaze the Horse continues.

While Mike and Bess were hunting, I made a batch of serviceberry jelly. Unfortunately, I forgot the lemon juice, but the jelly did set and all five jars sealed.

I'm not one who readily moves from one task to the next, but I had to keep moving, and with the long shadows growing longer, I headed out to feed the gopher holes while I still had daylight. I've researched the elimination of these critters, and you just have to stay on it. On our next trip, I will have a fresh batch of poison with me. I know -- it sounds terrible, but you should see what they're doing to our yard.

My next task was to put away the spooky decorations. Putting away is harder than getting it out. It's like a puzzle that fits into the boxes in just one way. But I got it done -- mostly.

As suppertime approached, I was tired. I really didn't want to fix supper, but I had to. In the end, we had seasoned chukar with mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, a green salad, and rolls with fresh jelly. I made one of my favorite "go to" recipes for dessert -- fruit cocktail cake.

I  was really tired in the evening. After all, my inner clock knew it was an hour later than the clock said. Unfortunately my sleep was disturbed by a chirping smoke alarm in the vintage sewing room. We didn't have any 9 volt batteries, so we'll have to take care of it on the next trip. I'm sure it's still chirping away. KW

The old maple tree at dusk