June 2

I arrived second to the land in the evening, around 7:15. Dan had arrived just moments before, but that's fine as he had the important equipment: a trailer to mow our overgrown paths. A nearby neighbor kindly loaned it (he even brought it and mowed part of the trails). Part of me thinks it would be great fun to have a tractor to drive around, but then the other part of me is reminded of the costs involved and how I want to do more with less... is a tractor in the plans? James arrived a little later with his dad and family, who had never before seen the land. I think it's overgrown state was a little more than they expected.

Then again, Dan almost hitting the van with the trailer was a little more than I was expecting.

We can one again drive to Six Penny Pond and search for the skunk. The saplings have paths around them so the grass competes just a little less.

I managed to weed one more row of potatoes, trying to lay down my weeds as neatly as my dad had on Monday, when he completed a row. The obvious distinction between use of compost and not will continue to be a lesson for me on soil quality. I tend to grow things a bit willy-nilly, attending to weeding and care of the plant more than care of the soil. Not anymore.

Until next time, remember: this is not paradise. It's Purgatory Ranch.