Letter to Gloria Jorg

Gloria Jorg visited us for  week in early March.  Later she wrote some questions, which I answered- I include part of that letter here.

I have been missing you ever since I left. 

-Gloria, you are always welcome here.  Thanks for bringing your special light into our lives.

Are the small logs now in place for the blueberry bank, or is it too early? 

-I managed to get six logs to the house/ woodshed but none in the blueberry bank.  The poor blueberries are still heeled in and waiting for their bed to be made up, though it's warmer than it was, and there seem to be new leaf buds forming.  Meanwhile in Cottage Grove many fruit trees are a riot of flowers, and we seem to be a couple weeks behind.

Wishing I was a fly on the wall too see how wood production is progressing. 

-Wednesday I finished remaking the dump trailer so that it could be towed from the mounting bracket of the triple-bag grass catcher I've just assembled. Then I threw some tools and a chain into the trailer and went to check out the cut wood near where the creek crosses the west access road. Someone cut slices and threw them down the bank of the creek.  I was unable to roll these huge rounds back up the bank, but the garden tractor was useful for dragging a few to the roadside. With some work I loaded the largest, about 24 inches on its long diameter, and 12 on its small diameter, onto the cart's edge while it was tipped for dumping, then righted the cart and towed the whole thing to the woodshed.  I hope the wood is of good enough quality for firewood, to make this effort worthwhile. If not I'll just leave the rest where they are.  Maybe I'll hire someone to help me with this once a week. MM and Jon have each independently suggested I get a gas-powered chainsaw for the more remote locations, and I guess I'm going to take their advice, though I dislike the noise, the stink, and the mess of a gas engine.

-Thursday I spent getting the new beat up old blue pickup bought and brought home, with a couple trips to the DMV, and it got a pressure washing to get off all the old muck.  It's about what you'd imagine a 27 year old truck that's been worked hard would be- you can see a picture on Facebook- and it has a few quirks, like no door handles on the driver's side. But everything is reasonably functional, and behind 3 adults in the front bench of the cab, you can scrunch in four 10 year olds or a couple of big dogs, while the back has room for full plywood sheets in a bed that looks free of holes, though there are a few dents.  The previous owner says he "rattle canned" the blue paint (by which I understand he used cans of spray paint) over a bad (!) black paint job. It has a dock bumper with tow ball attached which is a plus for my uses. Next I need to build a ramp to get stuff like the tractor or wood chipper onto the bed if need arises. Tractor weighs 600 pounds. I also think I may put a lift point over the garage door opening to aid in getting things loaded/ unloaded onto the truck. (hoist item, back truck under, lower item, secure in bed, drive away.  Or the reverse.)

-Today I made a start on a pull-off system with a bar in front attached to a tarp lining the truck bed.  Pulling on the bar should cause the whole load to be rolled off the back.  This pulling could be accomplished by a chain anchored to a fixed object like a tree while the truck drives out from under the load, or the tractor driving away pulling the chain while the truck is stationary, if it's up to the task. Just have to make the attachment points for the chain on the bar and it will be ready for the test.  Hope the tarp is strong enough. The bar is meant to spread the load over the whole of the fabric while it rolls the load off the truck.

-With this rig I ought to be able to pick up and unload truckloads of sawdust and manure to build up the blueberry beds. Anyhow I finished up just in time for the truck's maiden voyage- to the dump with trash and recycling.  It had plenty of room for a month's worth. Tomorrow or Monday I plan to get started hauling the components of garden soil.  

Where did the new blue rocker get found and how was it transported? Did MM meet up with the woman from knitting for coffee, outside of the group? I talked with Judy at Yo Mamas Mug and she says 195 is what she serves extra hot coffee at, so that's what I ask for and it is perfect. 

Have you had a TV night with central heating on for the living room?

 

What were your electricity readings over the past week? 

- between 20 and 30

How are the shelves of test plants in the kitchen area doing - what is thriving and what isn't? 

-The whole test failed.  I don't know much more than when I started, because the control group had less than 25% sprouting. I'm going to buy mulch this year.

Have you walked the property together and decided on areas for gardens? 

-Yes, we did that a few days ago, and put out some flags to remind me of what we talked about.  Basically there's a lot of work to do, which I will get to "in due course", and not get too stressed about it.

Tomorrow we will meet for breakfast with our neighbors at Jon's house. Looking forward to getting to know them.