Hello again!

Last night, our family drove out to the land briefly.  The garlic is growing well, especially considering that there has been little rain and no external assistance since I planted it.

The pond is still dry.  We need to get someone to clean it out!

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

Fall Planting

The kids and I (katie z.) make a fast trip out to the land today, Columbus Day, to plant our fall crops before the appropriate planting window passed.  I suppose, for a handful of bulbs and only an eventual pound or two of crop, it was a waste of gas, but as we may or may not be in our house next summer to harvest from our yard, I wanted to plant out at the land too.

Because James weed-whacked a week ago, and I had hoed some at the time, I have some fairly easy soil to prepare, unlike the men's first tilling this spring.  I dug my patch with a hand-trowel, throwing out a few grubs, and finding that we had missed at least two potato plants in our harvest earlier in the summer. Two potatoes were still edible, but the rest were mushy or moldy.

I mixed in a few handfuls of vegetable fertilizer, then planted garlic bulbs (the biggest heads from this summer's crop) and some multiplier onions that have been waiting on the counter for a month.  Next June, I should have onions and garlic to harvest, barring drought or other drastic events.

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

Six Penny Pond Cleanup, Attempt #1

a Walk to Remember...

Is that a dark red-head I see?  I think he might need a haircut.

"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.  Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away."  Walden, Henry David Thoreau.

One day, this will be the view every night.

Canopy Success!

This afternoon, we took my middle brother out to the land for the first time. When he arrived, he asked, "Where's the house?" then laughed. That's my middle brother for you.

We brought out our new canopy & net to set up for the first time, along with camp chairs. What a difference that made! I could lay down on a quilt in the shade and not worry about the tick that bit the Assistant last time we were out (I found it just inside her hairline while we were at the doctor, so the doctor removed it).

James shot at a few rats, and I shot the BB gun for the first time.

The weather was fabulous, and the pond is still dry.

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

(I will add pictures when I get them off the camera)

Wild and Free

Heat Wave Broken

We are behind in documenting our visits.

Today, after nearly 2 weeks solid of 100+ temperatures, a storm front delivered a little moisture and significantly cooler weather. We brought our friend Brian, a seminarian who will be a deacon in May (hooray!) to the land. The cooler weather provided a startling contrast to our other visits this summer. No one poured sweat, Q didn't cry in protest that he was too hot, and we could all hike a bit.

Six Penny Pond and the cat-tail watering hole were both dry, with deep cracks perforating the ground. With Six Penny Pond dry, it is easier to see and remove the rusting metal (no, it was Sunday, so we simply talked about it). James shot at the rats that live in the metal.

The trees we planted in the spring are, for the most part, surviving the recent drought. Most still have plenty of green on them, and while there are some dead ones, we are pleasantly surprised by our better-than-average survival rate.

As our house is still not ready to put on the market, we continue to paint and pray and plan.

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