6.1.25
Mother Nature decided to crank up the heat again this past week, reminding us that summer is officially around the corner and maybe giving a taste of what she has in store for the months ahead. “A little bit of moisture now and then would be greatly appreciated,” I beseech her as I head off to milk in the mornings and see how dry the hills are becoming. Maybe she will heed my plea and bless us with the occasional soaking now and then. Turning on the hosepipes to sprinkle our newly planted garden will have to do in the meanwhile.
Yes, our garden is in! Darrell got his potatoes, corn and beans planted while I set out our tomatoes, onions, cabbages, Brussell sprouts, squash and melons in the freshly tilled earth he prepared for me. Now the task of keeping the weeds under control begins and the rodents at bay. We have chipmunks galore this year and I know it will not take them long to find the smorgasbord of delectable plants out there in the garden. Bonnie is pretty good at chasing them but does not quite have the dispatching technique our old Bella girl did. That should hopefully improve soon!
It was a busy week. After teaching a CPR class in John Day, a trip to Central Oregon to stock up on supplies, getting the garden in and generally working around the place, yesterday saw us taking a breather. It was a lazy type of day although we did get the fence up around our outside garden. The putting up of that fence to me seems to signal the garden is off and running. Our “inside” garden, as we call it, has a permanent tall fence around it that I built many, many years ago. As our garden expanded, well, almost doubled in size, instead of putting up another tall permanent fence we just use stout wire panels, 16 foot long, to enclose the “outside” area. It works quite well in keeping the deer out. Now we can sit back for a wee bit and watch as the plants start growing in relative safety.
This next week will be a busy one too. Family is coming over to visit for a few days and that always calls for a sprucing up of the place. Darrell’s two daughters Terresa and Susan, our oldest grandson Jesse and our great granddaughter Ole will arrive on Wednesday. Suzi, Jesse and Ole are making the trip down from Alaska and Terresa who lives in the valley will be their chauffeur. It will be a short visit, but one much anticipated by us all. I want to make sure the grass is neatly mown around the bunkhouse and barn as we do not need a repeat of the time 26 years ago when Jesse, as a young lad, discovered a rattlesnake under the bunkhouse deck.
Has it really been that long ago? Goodness, it seems impossible so much time has gone by. Yes, about 26 years ago we had Jesse staying with us and what a summer it was! During his time here, he got to see black widow spiders, inadvertently carried a scorpion under his arm while helping me with the moving of wood and old tarps. When a huge wildfire broke out, threatening our land, he was evacuated down to the river and stayed with friends until the immediate danger was over. However, the icing on the cake was when he discovered a rattlesnake residing under the deck of our bunkhouse where we were living at the time. Yes, that was a year Jesse will never forget! Since we now see rattlesnakes more often up here on the hill, I always feel it prudent to keep the grass mowed down when expecting visitors.
This past fortnight has seen another goal of mine come to fruition. After many queries from folks as to when I would be publishing a new book, I decided I had better get cracking and get the job done. Very shortly book number five in my Redneck Englishwoman series will be available. As always, this could not have been accomplished without the help and amazing talent of my dear friend and editor Pat Hutson. She has the knack of letting my stories flow as if I am sitting there reading them aloud, tolerating my English spelling of words and flawlessly correcting any punctuation errors! My books would not be the same without her expert touch. So, thank you Pat for helping me achieve my goal of bringing “Redneck Englishwoman: Always the Optimist” to completion.
