FINALLY -- BACK AT THE FARM

I have noticed that people dislike saying “farm,” as if the word has a negative connotation. In the old Orofino phonebook, the phone at the farm was listed as “Dobson, Vance rch,” meaning ranch, but if anyone called the farm a “ranch,” Daddy didn’t let it pass. “We don’t have livestock,” he would say. “It’s a farm – land in cultivation.”

Anyway, here we are at the farm. Mike enjoyed a group motorcycle ride Saturday morning (May 2), and the post office delivered my box of yarn. Having no other town business on the schedule, we felt free to load up the old truck and head out for the farm. It looked as though we were leaving dark clouds behind as we drove up the Clearwater. Appearances can be deceptive, as we know.

We stopped at Barney’s Harvest Foods on Orofino’s Riverside, and I ran in for a few things. Clearwater County has had no reported cases of covid, so I didn’t bother with a mask. None of the staff and very few customers wore them, but social distancing was politely practiced. Plexiglass was in place at the check stands. Shelves were not well-stocked, but I found what I needed.

Storms drifted by to the north

At the farm, we unloaded and checked things out. The fields are planted. The rhubarb looks great – nice healthy stalks. The cherry tree is beginning to bloom. We noted one gopher mound and took care of it. The sky was dark and getting darker, but the grass was high, and checking the forecast, Mike decided to mow. He was able to finish about a third of the yard before the storm hit. It was mostly wind, but it included a few thunderclaps. The rain came later.

Sunday was a chilly May 3. Mike built a fire in the fireplace and kept it going all day. According to our weather station, the high was 57, but it didn’t feel that warm. I wore my winter coat when we went for our walk.

Mike saw an American Coot and a pair of Mallards on the pond. A hummingbird came to the diningroom window and asked me to please hang the feeder, so I did. Mike discovered a bird nest on a ledge in the woodshed where we hang the garden tools, built since our last stay. The bird was absent, so I suspect she had already discovered it was not a good location. Mike removed it. This morning I saw half a dozen whitetail running over Plank’s place as though they had been startled by something.

It's a lovely sunny day. I’m going out to plant the spinach. Yay! KW