Saturday, August 18, 2012

Saturday, August 18, 2012

DD Abby drove her sister Marcia and my sister Barby to Portland today to catch the bus for their flight from Boston. It was hard to see them go.Abby will now be staying at the lake alone and I am alone now at the farm.

I picked a gallon of elderberries this morning. I made cordial with one quart and the rest into juice for jelly. Ordinarily I would have crabapples to provide pectin but this year there are no apples of any kind so I may end up with syrup.

Yesterday Nancy H brought a group of people from the Bible Camp where she assists. Their leader is a Master Gardener and they volunteered here to pull of some of my weeds. They worked around the tomatoes and peppers in the lower garden, then weeded the corn in the Paddock garden. There is some question if the corn will mature but now it has a better chance.

When DD Marcia stopped in yesterday we looked at the lower garden and she noticed beans on one of my poles. I did not think I was going to get any what with late planting and the Japanese beetle attack. I picked one large handful and tonight cooked them for my supper. These are a lumpy unattractive bean. I will have to look up the name, it was something like Aunt Annie. From the looks of them I expected them to require long cooking and to be stringy, but no. They were tender and had excellent flavor. I will try to save some seed as I have never seen this variety before.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Late last evening there was the sound right outside of the house of a chicken being murdered. Willie about went nuts but I did not let him out. In the morning there were feathers strewn around.Puzzling why a predator would carry the chicken from the barn before killing it.

The weather today was particularly fine.

The travelers are safely home.

I made blackberry jelly and a big bowl of cottage cheese.

Around 8PM when I called in the sheep my ewe Linda did not come. I found here out in the lean-to lying down unwilling to move. I petted her and tried to get her up but no luck. When a sheep gets like this it is hard to save them. It’s the Four S’s my vet said he learned in school: Sick Sheep Seldom Survive. I could not see a thing wrong with her.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Linda moved during the night but was stretched out dead this morning. Still no idea why she died.In thinking back I realize she was less perky yesterday. I always let the sheep out early, then bring them back in when I go out later to milk and she came right in at that time.

Her poor lamb mourned dreadfully. He stayed by her body all morning and returned regularly during the afternoon, bleating. He is four months old so it won’t hurt him to wean.

DS Martin came up this evening and will bury Linda in the morning. In the meantime he fixed my printer and trimmed the barn door so that it swings properly. I gave him a nice lamb and rice casserole for dinner that I had in the freezer.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Martin and his friend Brett S buried poor Linda this morning. Such a disappointment to lose her.Her ram lamb is doing well.

Martin also did many other helpful things such as replacing the spray hea on the kitchen sink. Most especially appreciated, he cut some of the wheat and oats that DD Sally planted. They are laid out to dry upstairs in the carriage house.

It’s DIL Mitra’s birthday. Abby went over and took our gifts and saw a magnificent bouquet sent by Max.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Very fine weather.

Poor old Bagel Dog seemed very ill this morning.He was not even interested in his breakfast of boiled ground beef. He ate some liver a little later and perked up noticeably. He also drank some milk. We are defrosting some pork liver for his breakfast tomorrow.

DD Sally’s little house across the river where DD Abby has been planning to live got a big boost today from an insulation crew. They are doing the attic and under the floor. This will be the boost to livability it has needed. The men also moved away the old Round Oak stove and moved theKalamazoo wood cook stove into its position. It will now be possible to actually cook with this darling stove that is complete in all its parts but has until now been purely ornamental. I bought it five years ago from the old Grange Hall when the contents were dispersed.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

DD Abby has received what sounds like a nice job offer as a caregiver in Oregon. She will be leaving right away. She is cantering around as fast as she can finishing up with closing camp and helping me. There is so much to do.

Friday, August 24, 2012

The fine weather continues.

I am getting several large tomatoes every day now.Most are huge yellow and rose colored ones that have to be eaten quickly, delicious.

I made another savarin, this time a belated birthday cake for Abby. It turned out well.

As Martin and Amy were on their way today to camp they passed somebody selling lobsters. They stopped and bought some and we had an impromptu lobster dinner. Abby did not join us as she is so very busy and besides she doesn’t eat lobster. We ate down on the dock. It was a perfect evening except that Henry, 4, fell in the lake just when nobody was looking. He was doing a cartwheel on the deck of the Hobie. The water was not over his head but he swallowed some and was frightened.

Fern’s production is dropping lately. Today she only gave 2 gallons and a pint. I am losing vacuum somewhere on the claw or pulsator. This may be a factor.

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Saturday, August 11, 2012

Saturday, August 11, 2012

First thing this morning DD Abby and DD Marcia came  down from Weld and sorted out the calves. I may have a buyer for Ella and need to get her in and into a halter. Bret finished up the stair railing to a high standard.

We were worried that it might rain on our vast family picnic at Marcia’s camp. It did not.Neither did the sun shine but the temperature was very pleasant. Little children ran around and were given boat rides by DS Martin.Older children got towed on an inflated ring.Adults sat around drinking various delicate beverages and eating the enticing nibbles brought by DIL Mitra and DIL Amy. Cousin Holly made cucumber salad and I made Spanish rice (DD Bret’s recipe). Martin and Amy brought artisanal sausages and I made three lamb roasts. DS Mark and DIL Annie brought artisanal bread from Standard Baking Company in Portland, a truly world class bakery.

Granddaughters Shireen and Maia made a three layer yellow cake from The Joy of Cooking  with chocolate cream cheese icing.It was a group birthday celebration for grandson Roger, July 25, granddaughter Roshan Aug 12 and me. DD’a Abby and Marcia did all the setting up for this lovely occasion. There were 25 of us. 

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Last night after sister Barby and I came home from the lake, the four teenagers, Shireen Roshan, Maia anad Roger, accompanied by DS Bret went down to DS Martin’s to swim. They like to swim at Martin and Amy’s because they have a float. It was 9:30 and dark. My sons were on land and not swimming. All four kids stood on one edge of the float and jumped off together causing the float to flip up and capsize. They were all slammed by the flipping float and knocked under water but Roshan was hit hardest by a metal pipe arrangement that sticks up. It swiped her head. Maia was struck on the shoulder. All four had at least a bruise but it could have been so infinitely much worse. There is something sinister in realizing that the float always had this potential, it just awaited the day when they were all big enough for their combined weight to capsize it.

Barby and I stayed home today. DD’s Abby and Marcia visited and helped with chores and took my trash to the dump. Bret visited and worked on pruning the black current bushes, his favorite fruit.I worked for awhile with my heifer calf, Ella, to make sure she remains friendly. There is an interested buyer coming tomorrow.

The weather remains damp and threatening.

I picked three zucchinis and a huge yellow tomato which Barby and I ate for dinner.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, August 13, 14 and 15

On Monday anad Tuesday we convened for dinner at Marcia’s camp and when I got home it was so late and I was so tired that I did not write.

As anticipated, the folks came for Ella. It was a nice young couple named Mike and Ruth Straub. They have a baby named Ella. They have other animals but are new to bovines. With Abby’s help, Ella loaded pretty well. They reported on Tuesday that she also unloaded remarkably well and permitted herself to be led to her new quarters. They promised to provide updates on her.

We got together for a lobster dinner.

Tuesday was Bret, Maia and Roger’s last day. Roger mowed the lawn while Bret pruned the black currents. I provided rib eye steaks for our dinner. Afterwards Maia demonstrated her Science Camp project. She built from scratch a little catamaran about 15” long that is operated from shore by a hand held device. She even molded the plastic hulls. There are little propellers on each hull that operate independently so that the boat turns and dives. It has a submersible electric power cord.

Fern and Milton keep squeezing into Ella’s pen and lying down. We figure that they are remembering her.

Wednesday morning Bret and the kids left forAlaska. Abby drove them to the bus in Portland.

Fern and Milton are still lying down in Ella’s pen.

Fern’s production is now down to 2 ¼ gallons OAD

Thursday, August 16, 2012

It rained all last night, a warm rain interspersed with thunder and lightening.

At milking time all the animals were quiet and orderly. Fern gave almost 2 ½ gallons. She and Milton were both packed together in Ella’s pen again this morning.

Marcia, Abby, Barby and I met Mitra and her mom, Marie, for lunch at Wicked Gelato inFarmington. We all had paninis. Mitra and Marie then had to do other errands, Mitra picking up her popping corn order, Maria home to make over Roshan’s room. The rest of us went to the Thrift Shop and had fun finding things to bring home.Marcia found a nice Polar fleece jacket.. Abby found a charming lamp in the Art Deco style, quite old. I got a lobster shaped cookie cutter. Not sure why.

Max wrote this morning from Montana where he is currently working:

There is a family of Peregrine falcons that live in a tree across the river. They were setting up such a squeaky ruckus this morning that I looked out to see what was going on. There was a big raccoon in their tree. While I watched they set upon the raccoon with such ferocity it changed its mind and climbed back down.

The Kootenai River runs past his house.

Friday, August 17, 2012

The day started warm and sunny but by evening reverted to rain.

The front door of the barn has been sticking badly. It’s the one Ernie, Marcia’s SIL, rebuilt this spring. Because the barn is post and beam construction, when the barn got filled with hay the bottom edge of the new door, which is built into the big main barn door, began to scrape the floor. I have been having to kick it and use my hip to get it open. The last few days of rain have further swelled the boards and I had to fight with it to get it open for the wagon this morning. By the time I was ready to leave with the milk, the warm sun must have swelled it just too much to allow it to open at all. For about 20 minutes I employed every trick I could think of. Lately I have been thinking of Archimedes so asked myself what he would do.  I found a heavy old flat coal shovel and slid it under a bit of a crack and managed to lever the door along until I got it open. It is going to stay open now.

During the sunny portion of the day I went to Weld with Marcia, Abby and Barby where we bought huge ice cream cones before driving to the Center Hill overlook. One can see a great panorama of the finest Maine mountain scenery including Lake Webb and Tumbledown. Lastly we picked up my car from Mt, Blue Garage where Mike had been working on it. He had to replace the entire muffler. I had been driving around make noise like a flock of Harley’s

All day I simmered bean soup made with the ham bone from earlier in the week. It was a big success. We convened for a soup supper on the porch at camp, Marcia and Barby’s final evening.

Fern gave 2 ¼ gallons this morning.

AugusT 4 2012

Forgot to send last night:

Saturday, August 04, 2012

Another hot, sticky day.  It was hard to find motivation to do anything useful. I went down to the lower garden and was thrilled to find three cucumbers and two yellow heirloom tomatoes. I harvested the marigold flowers for drying. Then I studied A1A2 for a half hour or so before falling asleep in my chair.

Abby has been preparing Marcia’s camp for summer guests and was alarmed to discover that the refrigerator was not working. We drove out tonight with frozen gel packs for emergency cooling and found to our joy that it had gotten cold after all.

For supper we ate yummy leftovers from Max’s birthday party.

Sunday, August 05, 2012

It was a few degrees cooler today but till humid.

Fern’s production was up a quart. This might be because Abby emptied and scrubbed out  her water tub. It looked perfectly clear but day before yesterday Abby saw her sniffing it and turning away. Or there might be some other reason. I will see what tomorrow brings.

DD Abby spent most o f the day on tasks related to fixing up her sister Marcia’s camp for habitation. Marcia had  left it bare and for sale. It has not sold so she and the family might as well have some use of it. It is right on the lake in a beautiful spot. It has a marvelous garden too.

I worked in the lower garden for over an hour this afternoon tending the peppers and tomatoes. I made dikes around the peppers and carried water to them and tied up the tomatoes a little better. The pole bean leaves were being eaten by something. When I brushed the bush probably 5 thousand Japanese beetles tumbled out of the plants. It was awful. I wished the chickens were there. I am hunting for my traps now.  I got too hot in the garden and feel totally wiped out tonight.

I fixed curried Thai flavored chicken with coconut milk, using Friday’s leftover chicken, and a fresh salad of new cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes (not my own tomatoes) for our supper.

We got a light rain for a half hour at dusk.

Monday, August 06, 2012

The heat wave eased off today. Living was easier.

Abby took another flying trip to Rumford to exchange the hat we got for Max’s birthday.She was able to get a size smaller. DS Bret and kids are due to arrive tomorrow and it  is Max’s last day before returning to Montana.Tomorrow afternoon will the thhe only opportunity for Bret and Max to see each other. Abby has organized a picnic and cookout at Marcia’s camp at the  lake, so much of today was devoted to preparations for that. Abby has made a vast potato salad and I have started beans.

Cousins Holly and Richard popped in this morning with jellies Richard had made from various fruit they picked here a few weeks ago. We had tea and blueberry buckle (made by Richard). The heat had eased enough to permit us to sit on the deck. Also, the mosquitoes have retreated to manageable numbers.

DS Mark made a surprise visit, it being his day off at the hospital. This was a treat. We walked all around the garden and then had a delicious dinner mostly prepared by Abby. We had breaded scallops, salad , couscous and custard. I made the custard on spec this morning knowing it would be needed for something.

Nancy H came this morning and checked the electric fence line. Thanks to the major trimming she did last time there was little to do except for one 100’ stretch that something had torn out. It is a good thing my animals are not especially adventuresome.       

Tuesday, August 07, 2012

There were several nervous phone calls and a bit of worry but also some careful planning that paid off for DD Abby’s expedition toPortland to meet DS Bret’s bus. Until yesterday we had been unable to confer with him about his arrival plans from Alaska. He was incommunicado for over a week. What he had not told us was that he and the kidss Roger 14 and Maia (16) had gone sailing on his boat that he keeps at Whidbey Island.This morning I got the following account:

  

We (Maia, Roger, Bret) sailed out of Oak Harbor on Whidbey island on Tuesday, we got there on Monday, 30 July. We took the Swinomish channel through La Connor, stopping to talk with another Rawson Pilothouse owner, same as our boat, the kids ran along the main street and bought ice creams.We continued on to Anacortes where we stayed the night in the city marina. Hot showers and a meal at a cafe. In the morning I walked in to town to a coffee shop with internet and did work for a couple hours, then returned to the boat, woke the kids and made breakfast.We walked to a couple stores for errands, paid our mooring fees, and cast off.

We crossed Rosario Straits and in among the San Juan islands. We anchored at Spencer spit, chatted with a gal there digging her toes into the sand. Ally, just starting as an ecology student at UCD.She's working as a camp counselor and giving sailing lessons. I spent the evening scrubbing the outside of the boat. In the morning the autopilot refused to work, oh well, but it is handy, very handy. We sailed up to 'Olga' where some nice people gave us some onions, arugula and 2 kinds of basil out of the garden they were tending. On the dock we chatted with a retired Englishman named David who manufactured self-steering wind vane equipment for sailboats. I would like to have talked to him longer because his invention was seminal to single handed long distance sailing. We sailed  out to Stuart Island, anchored, and went for a hike.Next day sailed to Friday harbor, anchored, sent the kids in for ice cream and fish & chips while I fiddled aobut on the boat. Anchor became fouled during the night with a dock mooring chain. Long story, but in the end elected to slip the anchor as the safest option. I'll hire a diver to get it back, I'll be $400 ahead. I have an old aquaintance there I met through Tom McGuire by the name of Kurt Schwalbe, the right reverend Kurt Schwalbe, who is a diver. We sailed all day, all about, past Olga up East Sound and finally back to Spencer Spit to anchor for the night, I used one of my 2 spare anchors. I finished my Woody Allen book. Sailed all day yesterday, back in behind Whidbey Island and anchored atHope Island.

So much sun nduring sailing that I finally had to cover my legs with a towel. I gave Maia lessons.After we anchored we took the skiff to the far end of the island, it is a state park, to a rope swing I know and where there is an exposed fossil bed. We collected some momentos, including a bottle of crushed shell sand for Maia's teacher. Roger and i walked back along the island while Maia ran the skiff back. I think that made her feel good, to give her a reasonable level of responsibility as skiffing about on the ocean is a bit spooky, even if an island is near at hand. Roger and I had fun speeding along a game trail through the woods. We slipped a bunch but did not shoot off the various banks into the ocean. Maia picked us up. This morning I pulled anchor and ran us back toOak Harbor. Roger got up and made us all breakfast along the way, he was pretty proud of himself. We refueled the boat, 23 gallons for a week of cruising, pretty damn good; then I cleaned the boat for  hours while the kids ran errands.We had a bit of lunch and went to the shuttle, and barely made it, but we did. Now sitting at Seatac waiting for our overnight flight.Abby called and is very excited to be meeting us tomorrow in PortlandME. She knows all the best bakeries along the way.

Bret

Abby picked them up as planned following a bus trip from Boston. As many as possible of the family then met at Marcia’s camp in Weld and had a grand picnic and cookout organized by Abby.  This provided an opportunity for Bret and Max to see each other. Max has to leave before dawn tomorrow to travel back to Montana.

Wednesday, August 08, 2012The weather today was quite pleasant although hot for garden work. I weeded and tied up tomatoes for as long as I could take it. Abby and the kids spent last night at camp but were back down here before ten to help with chores.

Dr. Cooper stopped in for lunch. I gave him ratatouille with my first zucchini and second eggplant. For the family dinner, which took place here, I served braised lamb shanks, brown rice and carrots.

Abby did all the farm chores today except for milking Fern.

I got in about an hour of writing.

During the afternoon, Bret took the kids to CoosCanyon to jump off of the rocks and swim. Back here, the girls helped out with whatever needed doing. Roger netted a large frog in the muddy ornamental pond (catch and release) and taught the girls how to play poker. Roger also played the piano for a long time. Shireen practiced her viola.

Everyone except me is sleeping up at camptonight.

Thursday, August 09, 2012

The weather remains much the same only a little muggier. The paper says that climatologists say we have  so far had the hottest summer on record.I think many of us already knew that.

Even after scrubbing, I noticed that Fern was giving the hairy eyeball to her water tub. Abby changed it out yesterday for the galvanized one.  This morning it was drunk down 4” and on their way out the sheep stopped for drinks. For now it looks like they prefer the metal tank.

Sally called to tell me that she picked a bunch of flowering stalks from the edge of her garden inHaines AK and put them in a vase next to her former bakery shop. She thought them to be naturalized from angelica she had planted several years ago. Her friend Judy, a naturalist, saw them and said they were deadly water hemlock. So I guess Sally will be doing some plant eradication.

Dear Holly and Richard picked up DD Marcia and my sister Barby in Portland and brought them here.

We gathered this evening for grilled chicken at Marcia’s camp. But first, Barby and I went down and soaked our feet in the lake. Her feet were a bit swollen from air travel.

All are staying at the lake except Barby and me.About the time we finished eating a thunderstorm began and it is still rumbling.

Friday, August 10, 2012

It stormed violently all last night and continued to rain off and on all day. We needed rain but perhaps not this much. Sally’s oat and wheat patches were ready to harvest and I hope will be able to dry out again. At least they were not lodged.

DS Bret built a railing for the stairs to the carriage house attic. They were a bit scary without one so everyone applauds this improvement.

This was Shireen’s last day of working in the kitchen at Kawanhee Camp for boys, all over for the summer.

I baked one of the hams from Luick’s home reared pork. It was superb, the sort of ham that makes understandable the worldwide fondness for pork products. We all ate at camp again, this time a buffet around the house and porch because of the rain. Driving home in the dark and rain was a challenge. The road is very dark. Fortunately there were few other cars..

The sheep were still out. One did not come in with the rest. I could hear frantic bleating. A lamb had gotten himself trapped in the calf pen that is inside the beefer pen. The light had burned out in there but fortunately I had worn my little head lamp and got everybody sorted out with the only mishap being that I was not shod for this little adventure and was wearing my white linen pants.

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