... at least that is what I think it is. I'm in a funk tonight for some reason.
I know I haven't written in ages ... or at least 8 months. People might be surprised to know how busy life can be in the country during the fall and winter.
Fall is a time of cutting down trees and preparing for winter. The tractor, 6-wheeler and trike all have new trickle chargers on them, thanks to Pat. Routine maintenance was done and outside stuff was gathered up to be stored in the shed. Everything was battened down for the winter.
As for the trees, we started at Jim & Jackie's house and cut down a couple of trees that they were concerned about. Even though the trees were huge, it didn't take long at all for them to be cut, split and loaded up to take home.
Pat and I developed a good routine for cutting down the trees. He cut them down and cut off the limbs, then sectioned the tree. I hauled off the limbs and created a brush pile for the critters, then loaded the sectioned trunk into the 6-wheeler and he unloaded it all when we got back to the house. I'm not sure quite how many we cut down here on the property, but we now have a clearing where once a stand of cedar trees grew. Another stand of cedars had died and we cut them down and salvaged what we could and then we headed over to the other side of the valley to cut more. We came across a couple that had ants growing inside the trunk. Something that neither Pat or I had ever heard of ... so much for cedar repelling insects.
Cedar is not a tree native to Missouri, so neither Pat nor I felt really bad about how many we cut down. In the place where the cedars once stood, the oaks and maples will now have sunlight to start growing. We also plan to plant some thorn-less blackberries in the clearing. If we are lucky, we might even get a few that the animals don't eat.
Pat hadn't burnt cedar before, so it was a new experience for both of us. One thing we quickly discovered was how much hotter cedar burns. The woodburner keeps the house very toasty ... around 80 degrees. After waking up a couple of mornings to find the house at 90 plus degrees, I quickly learned to keep a window open, even when it was below freezing outside. I use the air conditioner in the bedroom every night in order to get a good nights sleep.
As fall started to wind down, then the winter visiting/partying began. I think we had something almost every other weekend there for a while ... heck, we still have something going on every other weekend, if not every weekend. Of course most of that time was with Jim & Jackie, but we also did some visiting with some other friends.
Snow doesn't slow us down much either. Pat and I were out at 1:00 a.m. the night we had a 4 inch snow ... plowing and shoveling the drive and walk. I guess our strange schedule had a lot to do with that. Since Pat works nights, our "days" are actually evenings and nights, instead of mornings and evenings like most people.
My days are filled with keeping the wood burner going and taking care of Pat, cooking and cleaning, and all the critters. I go out back on a regular basis with a bucket of corn for the deer. Spike is still hanging in there and I take her out almost every other hour to potty. She will be 19 in July. On warmer, sunny days, Tux entices me outside to sit in the gazebo with my morning coffee. I will often look outside, after bringing Spike back inside, to see Tux sitting on the floor mat in the gazebo, looking toward the house ... waiting for me to come and keep him company. If that doesn't work, he comes to the doors and looks for me.
The promise of Spring has me yearning to be outside more and more these days. Some of my bulbs have sent up a few shoots ... testing the air. The weatherman is promising 40 degree temperatures this weekend and I'm looking forward to it. It's hard to believe that I am looking forward to 40s! In Texas that would have meant a pot of stew, hot chocolate and staying indoors ... here it is a "get outside and enjoy the good weather" day, maybe even barbecue some steaks.
And that last bit has me wondering what has me down ... Spring is slow in coming, but it is coming. I just wish I wasn't in such a funky mood. Maybe it is due to the bleak landscape and bare trees outside my kitchen window ... I'll be glad when they have blooms and leaves on them again!
