I Miss This Place

It's been a long time since we've spent any time out at Purgatory Ranch.  A gun-toting, senile old neighbor (not Uncle Bruce) made it too dangerous for us to have much energy for working out here.  Also, six small kids, 3 acres at home, and all our animals at YJ Acres made our energy resources low anyhow.

 Six Penny Pond has water, which is awesome, but some cedars need chopping.

 We did chop down a few cedars, with the naive idea that we might be able to use one for a Christmas tree. Yeah, no.  I had so many splinters in my hands from cutting three trees and hauling them to the car, that this idea was quickly abandoned.  But it's three less trees for James to brush hog.

 (How did she get to be so old and grown up?)

 I have missed being out here.  Half the kids and I trekked around the acreage, exploring the boundaries and seeing what there was to see.  I could have happily spent all day.

James spent the morning brush hogging and much of the front 20 acres as possible.  We don't currently have the man power, ability, or supplies to burn the front 20, and the cedars MUST be kept down.  We had the entire field cleared last year and are determined to keep the area clear and usable.

On another day, James will have to come back and finish.  At least we made progress.

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

Ringing out the Old Year with Friends

and a brief visit to the land, partially mowed in preparation for fencing.

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

(We're expecting a baby soon, so it may remain quiet around here!)

Easy Time Ranch?

There is a vote in for a new name for the ranch: Easy Time Ranch.  James figures if we rename it, maybe it won't be so difficult.

Today, we drove out to the land to prepare the earth for potatoes.  As I pulled in with the van, I see the tractor and the truck, but no James.  As I park, I see James lying under the mower attachment, prying out barbed wire.  The best we can figure, the barbed wire wasn't properly attached to the fence post and whipped loose as James drove by.  No fingers or hands were lost in the process (or eyes, or other body parts).  He proceeded to accomplish his mowing task and moved on to...

Plowing.  Well, you know there's a steep learning curve for everything here at PR.  Steep.  As ladder steep as opposed to stair steep.  We had to call it quits for the night since James' trailer's brake light wires are stripped, and he bought the wrong piece to fix that.

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's, er...

It's still Purgatory Ranch.

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.