Winter Warmth

The weather had been so mild I had hoped we could make it until November 1st before we began heating the house. We made it until October 26th. Not bad. There is something so satisfying about having that huge stack of firewood just outside the door. Now if I could split those few ash and locust rounds that are refusing to separate.

Trials, Tribulations and Manna

The crush of the last few weeks is ebbing, tho not over. I actually have a few moments to sit and catch up on what's going on around here (if I can remember it all!). Mostly I have been getting ready for the big fiber show. Many trips from bunnies to spinning wheel to dye pot and back again. If I do say so myself I came up with some gorgeous yarn (and the obligatory ugly ones). However, like all things artistic there are bad years and good years. This was a bad one. Not many buyers for yarn this year. At least (unfortunately) it seemed to be a universal problem around the show, not just my little corner. After all the craziness before hand it was pretty discouraging at the show tho now I am home it is on to other things. Maybe next year will be a yarn year - after all I have baskets full now.

We finally have the water system put back together and thats a plus.

Some of my other little jobs came up in the middle of all this so a little extra income coming in. My most challenging role as of yet in the SP program was a battered wife. I went in with trepidation as I had nothing to draw from tho I was quite pleased that I pulled it off. The nursing student that was interviewing me had tears in her eyes! I also gave a yoga demo for the homeschool group.

This weekend has to be the weekend to get the boat out of the water. We would wait until it turned cold. Our friend who was fixing the brakes on the trailer discovered the brakes are completely shot so we will be pulling the boat sans brakes. He assures me it will be fine (it is his truck pulling it afterall).

Thru all of this the boys have been great. Working away at their projects and entertaining themselves a great deal. We also had a little snow yesterday. Not that I am really ready for winter tho it was a nice, wintery sort of day and it was somewhat exciting to look out and see frozen stuff blowing around. We also received a surprise Boomerang in the mail. For those of you who haven't discovered this great kids audio magazine it is a compilation of biographies, history, good stories, weird items and funny things kids say. The boys have really enjoyed this in years past tho its a little out of price range right now. So where this copy came from I have no idea but thanks to David anyway!

Well, that is it in a nutshell. I am sure I have forgotten things. Maybe now we can get back to a semi-regular life.

Happy Dance!

We have water! There is still a leak somewhere but at least we can bathe again!

False Faces

The boys have been into native Americans these days. Their latest is making Iroquios masks. The Iroquios would wear the masks to scare away the evil spirits.

Gray Days

I love gray days especially in the fall. There is a crispness to the air with a underlying layer of moistness here in the mountains. We don't get alot of fog because of where the farm sits in the hollow tho I can see it hanging around down the way. I think of driving up on the Blue Ridge Parkway on days like today. I love just getting out and walking around the farm and the neighborhood. It is a great time to take pics as the mass amounts of weeds are dying down tho there are still tons of colors. I find myself out wandering around with the camera shooting things I would never shoot with a film camera. Why? I have no idea tho I do like seeing pics on blogs. Yesterday I went looking for the sang found in the spring. No luck tho I did find the golden seal. I am sure the sang is still there it is just so elusive. I did manage a nice pic of the boys' garden. It started out with a nice combo of annuals tho as you can see the nasturtiums have taken over. We purposefully didn't plant any this year as last year they were the ONLY plant in the bed. They have won out once again!

In every bucket of muck...

I believe in knowing your environment. That's not to say I don't love surprises and this farm continually does that. I now can say I have seen the inside of a burial vault, that is to say our cistern. Great place to live if you are a salamander or a crawdaddy. Some crustaceans can change their color. Never knew that about these little fellows but he was very blue/green when I took him out of the cistern. Already he is loosing the brightness tho I think the difference still shows. After cleaning the muck out of the bottom we ought to be good for a few more years. That mountain silt just seeps in no matter what you do. So now we just sit back and wait. The cistern ought to be full by tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed that there aren't any leaks!

Time Capsule

Here we are one week later and still no water. Everyday takes us one step closer, one more trip to town for yet the another fitting. Hopefully we will have water by tomorrow. The boys decided to make a time capsule to bury next to the little house where the new pipes are. They hand copied a Yu-gi-oh card, wrote their favorite things, what they wanted to be when they grew up, date and added some little plastic odds-and-ends. All encapsulated in a 2 liter drink bottle. I'd like to be around when it was opened. On the other hand, guess that would mean we had to fix the water and I think once is enough for me, thank you.

Red Spotted Newt

This time of year is a great time to learn the flora and fauna around the farm. One of our plentiful favorites is the red spotted newt. I like it because it is so versatile. It starts out its life near the water and then wanders for a year or two as the red eft. Those little orange creatures with red spots down its back. Then as it completely matures it turns back into the red spotted newt, a green newt with same red spots, returns to the water, lays its eggs and the cycle starts all over. I feel somewhat like the newt by loving the mountains and the ocean equally. We have also been searching for fall flowers tho most are spent. You can still glimpse a late blooming iron weed or fleabane.

Thankful

It has been a challenging week here on the farm. We have this list of things that need doing before winter sets in. I have been splitting wood like crazy. Hopefully those high heating bills won't affect us. We filled the propane tank before prices skyrocketed and we have at least a cord of wood. (If anyone hears of an oak tree in want of a good home....) And just when you think the list is filled out unexpected things throw themselves onto it. M's truck breaks down, and of course the easy, do-it-yourself fix turns into a bear. So we have a truck in several pieces in the garage. My work as an standardized patient is going well. This week is a challenging role as I am a battered wife, eye-shadow bruise and all. Today I find out the woman that runs the program, and who is EXCELLENT at the job, has been replaced. We emotional actors need our support systems! And replacing that water line turns into a few days with no water. However,and here's where the thankful part comes in, we have no lack of water in the system its just getting it to the house that isn't working right now. So many of our neighbors are hauling water because it has been so dry. I just checked in on a good friend's blog and they are rationing water as well. Thankfully, our system has always been full. We had to drain the entire cistern last night and by this morning the water is pouring out the overflow once again. Now if we could just get the water to the shower....

Top of the List

The boys enjoying their favorite vacation past time.

Life's A Beach

Ah, well rested and tan. What a way to be. Life should be more like a vacation than the stressful thing most of us turn it into. St. Augustine, what a great beach town. A nice mix of laid-back ocean living and history. First ingredient to a relaxing vacation, find a nice place to stay. We found a house on the ICW (Inter Coastal Waterway) that housed the Butler clan quite nicely. It was the old home place of the people who owned it. While the houses around it were big, newer homes with no shade this place kept its big trees. A nice breeze blew through constantly which made it a joy to be outside any time of day. Next ingredient (at least for me) add lots of water. Having the ICW right out the back door made it easy to get some paddling in most days. The beach was a short drive away. The sand is so highly packed here cars can drive on the beach and also wheelchairs. My SIL was plain tickled that she could roll right up to the ocean's edge. We spent a great deal of time on the beach swimming, boogie boarding and shelling. Co's find was a complete conch shell. Both boys fell in love with riding the boogie board and ranked it as first on both of their lists. Throw in good seafood, sightseeing and perfect weather and you have a lovely mix for one great vacation.

Some of the highlights other than the ocean were Castillo de San Marco, Ripley's Believe It or Not, a walking Ghost Tour, putt-putt and a boat ride where Guthrie saw a sea turtle and dolphins.

Bazzies

One of Co's first words was bazzies. It was also his first food, blueberries. There is something so satisfying about home-grown fruit. I didn't put in much of a garden this year as we have so many other farm things that need doing (not to mention all the sailing!). Amazingly, I haven't missed it much. I do miss harvesting tho and the berries have helped. In contrast to a garden that requires constant work year after year the fruit trees and bushes require very little. The first few years they need extra nourishment and care. Then once established they just give and give. Most of the berry bushes were here when we bought the farm. This year I have dried approximately 10 gallons of blueberries and frozen around 7. And it was a bumper year for raspberries. There are several gallons in the freezer and one batch of dried waiting for winter granolas. Not to mention all the pies and cobblers that were eaten. A nice reward for not much effort.

Old Stomping Ground

Well, there I was missing all the old stuff and low and behold my old elementary school has kept a few of the oldies. The jungle gym and other climbing things are gone. However, the old slides and swings are still there. This metal slide is one of the fastest. With no step at the top its just one quick trip down. And the nice, tall old swings are still intact. The school itself has been added to and updated. Wonder how the equipment slipped through. Glad it did. Maybe the chances of getting hurt are greater on the old stuff, tho I don't remember anyone getting seriously hurt. But taking away those risks also took away the rush of finally being big enough to feel confident on the big slide or jumping out of the swing. If all the risks are taken away at an early age how will the kids face the more risky challenges as they grow?

Dragon Park

Another good thing about the big city is there are more creative minds and resources to draw from. Most of those old playgrounds we grew up with have gone the way of modernization. Back then, each playground had something unusual, unique. I would get excited about certain things around the city. There was a stand-up merry-go-round over on Nolensville. There was some sort of tether thing you grabbed on to and swung around below the resevoir and giant concrete tubes over at Sevier. Now everything is generic. No matter where we go it is pretty much the same plastic thing. Luckily, one Nashville playground has kept a piece of its history. Fannie Mae Dees Park, more commonly known as Dragon Park kept its piece de resistance. Twenty-five or so years ago the community got together and built one huge concrete dragon. They then covered it in broken tiles creating wonderful mosaics. If you look carefully you can find local people and celebrities. I have no idea how much it cost tho it seems a group of enthusiastic parents and interested people could create similiar items in their own communities. What a way to bring people together. Finding donated items, building structures... The possibilities could be endless.

The Dragon Itself

You Can't Go Home Again

Every time I go to Nashville I am amazed at the changes. The traffic, the new buildings, the prices. Someone has bought my grandmother's house. The house was in our family for 61 years. The man who bought it is 'remodeling' it for his family. in my grandmother's day it was a 3 bedroom house. Across one side of the house was my grandmother's dining room and living room. She loved those rooms as they were combined into one huge room. All that is left of her house is the foundation, 3/4 of the wall of the front of the house and 1/4 of the back wall. Why these smatterings wereleft I have no idea. Apparently he is planning on making the original single story house into 3 stories. It is rumored to be a $1,000,000.00 house when it is finished. When I heard about the possibility of her house being torn down I thought I might be more upset when I saw it. I wasn't. The memories I hold for that place is in my heart, always will be. What was upsetting is that the neighborhoods I grew up in are changing from middle-class, one family homes to $1,000,000 hulks that leave no yards, no places for children to run around in. And how many parents will actually grow to know their children in those places if they have a several thousand dollar a month mortgage? Glad I left the big city a long time ago.

On the other hand the big city is a nice place to visit once and awhile. The boys and I had a great time visiting some old haunts. We headed out to Cheekwood the first day. The Cheeks were one of those old, big money families that left their mansion to the city. It houses a nice art gallery and is surrounded by lovely gardens. We were drawn this time because there were 6 large, outdoor mazes to ponder. Two years ago Cheekwood had had treehouses. That was a great exhibit. Unfortunately, the mazes did not fare as well. The mazes were too simple in some cases, non-existent in others. We did enjoy walking the grounds tho.

The second day we made a visit to Ellington Agricultural Center where the International Tree Climbing Competition was being held. They had several large trees 'roped up'. Part of the competition seemed to include the ringing of cow bells far out on some of the higher limbs and dropping foam rods into targets on the ground. While we were there they didn't have any announcers so it was hard to tell what was going on. Looked like fun tho, I'd like to give it a try. The equipment looked mostly like what we use when rock climbing. Another walk thru some beautiful gardens was a nice ending to that trip.

And of course no trip to Nashville would be complete without a stop at Dragon Park and the Cumberland Science Museum.

The Boys in the Hood

I don't suppose anyone could ever say that we have too few interests. I do suppose I could say we have too many. That is one way to find out your likes and dislikes. the boys have been wanting to learn archery for over a year now. We found a very inexpensive beginner bow, so what the heck. It has always been one of those sports that looked easy to me (tho I knew it wasn't). Now I know. It doesn't take long to get the action down tho trying to hit the target - that is another thing entirely! Both boys did very well. Guthrie jumped right in there and hit the straw bale second arrow out of the quiver. Nice strength and concentration, that boy. Co, as always with anything new, was a little hesitant. He never backs off in the end tho and produced several strong shots. They will split the sheriff's arrow soon enough....

What Are You Reading?

As usual I have several books going at once tho fewer at the moment than normal. The one that has captured my fancy the most is Gipsy Moth Sails the World. In 1967 Francis Chichester sailed his sailboat around cape Horn and around the world to capture the fastest solo time of 221 days. This trip prompted The Times to sponser a race the following year to see who could sail the world fastest without stopping. Peter Nichols excellent book A Voyage for Madmen tells of this race. Back to Chichester, in his book he opens up his soul to the readers of the ups and downs of such a venture. Also on the bedside table is Guevara Also Known as Che. The biography of the Latin American revolutionary. Tho well written its a slower read. I just finished Deception Point by Dan Brown (of The DaVince Code fame). The older I get I like a mystery novel where unbelievable coincidences save the heros' lives. Not true to life tho a nice escape. Also, in preparation for the tour guide job, friend, Jennifer Bauer's Roan Mountain A Passage of Time. And of course, a couple of sailing manuals. What are you reading?

The Half-full Cup

Lately I have noticed I am thinking of crusing more and more. Thru my readings the last couple of years I have thought I would like to cruise for an extended amount of time tho never thought I would think of it permanently. Amazing myself, lately I have thinking of just that. Which leads my brain down all sorts of avenues.... Could I really sell the farm and sail away? I guess not as I want the boys to have a safe place, a nest egg if you will. With the political turnings you never now what the future holds and I feel better nowing there is a piece of ground with my/their name on it as a haven. That being said all else about living on a boat intrigues me. Being on the water is soul-feeding. The challenges are invigorating. There are a few things here on the farm that have never held my interest. Mostly mechanical things, the water system, fixing the computer. I now find that I want to learn how to fix motors as I am sure that will come in handy on the Big Blue. Since my quilting days the sewing machine has held little interest and now I find myself thinking of cushions and covers to sew. I want to learn how to navigate by the stars. I have a friend who lived in a camper for several years and I remember her saying she could have her home spotless in an hour. She was so right. When you compare how long it takes to make the house (not to mention the whole farm) spotless, well, its just incomparable. Even those irrating things can create a challenge. Like yesterday. M needed to check a bolt size. He removed the plate at the bottom of the mast to do so and watched as the plate left his hand, bounced down the deck, into the water and lazily sank out of site. Frustrating? Exceedingly. Tho now it poses the puzzle of how to make another one. I haven't even touched on all the places I could go, the people I would meet. The world would be a nice classroom for the boys, and me too! I remember as a child telling my mother I wanted to live at the ocean. She said she did too when she was my age but she outgrew that. Guess I never did....