New Finds on the Farm

We've been busy this spring, and particularly the last couple weeks.  Here are some new things you will find on the farm...

A new group of piglets arrived in early May

 Guinea keets arrived four days ago

Katza, a friend's mare that is hanging out with us.  Oliver, my 20-year old bachelor gelding, doesn't quite know what to make of this new pasture-mate. 

 Shameless plug for the Farmers' Market.  It's a new sign!  Wednesdays, 3-6p.m!  www.flycreekfarmersmarket.com or like us on Facebook.

Our new roof that was put on last week! I'm truly excited about the flashing around the dormer and the chimney.  Really...

A new basic-model lawnmower we bought earlier in the spring.  Yes, we do not own a ride-on mower even though we live on a farm.  It's even self-propelled (yes, this is a treat for me). 

 Oh look, a new toilet was put in last month!  My mother will be particularly pleased since there is now a toilet upstairs that flushes! 

You can't see it really well, but there is actually baseboard and ceiling trim in the kitchen.  Plus, the color is a flat, very pale blue and not shiny-shiny white (which I couldn't stand).  My darling husband worked his tail off doing this kitchen make-over and it looks fabulous! While it will always be a country kitchen, the trim adds such definition to the room. 

Top Three Unexpected Country Moments of 2011

I know we are already well into the second month of the year, but while spinning some wool this evening, I was inspired.  And I haven't been inspired in a while (hence, no posts) so here it is.  Three of the top unexpected country moments of last year.

3.  At spinning group back in December, we were going around the circle for show and tell (I know, sounds elementary, but it's how we get to see each other's work and share ideas and upcoming events).  We get to Mother K, who is a nun and shepherd of actual sheep at the local convent.  Mother K had spent all day tending to the animals and had basically decided she needed a break for a while, so she came to  spinning group.  She stated somewhat sheepishly (no pun intended), "Nobody there knows I'm gone."  Then in a more playful confident tone, "It's easier to ask for forgiveness than to seek permission!"  Maybe I shouldn't be surprised by this statement as country nuns are people too and need breaks just like the rest of us.  And they certainly aren't infallable either.

2.  The husband of a friend of mine who is a nice guy and a "real" farmer and do-it-yourselfer (rough around the edges, slaughters his own beef cows, owns multiple tractors, hays his own fields, fells his own trees, builds his own house) stopped by one morning asking me for advice.  The questions were initially about nursing school, which caught me even more off guard, because it was the last thing I would expect from this person (he was looking into pursuing a "real" career).  We stood around for a while, looking at the pigs, talking about farming, the new USDA-approved slaughterhouse opening up, the harvest, etc. like any country farmers would do.  Huh.  While my darling husband has been able to navigate this road much more easily than I (no doubt in part because he is male and the perceived "head of household"), it only took me 5 years of running a small farm to earn some farmer respectability.  Not bad, in the grand scheme of things.  Kristin Kimball writes about a similar experience on her farm in The Dirty Life (I can't quote it exactly because I lent the book out to somebody but I don't remember to whom!). 

1.  My darling husband and I were sharing a quiet meal together in the kitchen one December day when the dogs started barking.  Old Farmer J down the street (another "real" farmer) was at the door.  He wanted to know if we were interested in a Kitchen Table discussion about local food and fiber.  Here is a guy who has worked on a farm his entire life, who puts up 10,000 bales of hay a year,  sells his own grain mixtures and basically lives off the land, and now is spear-heading a local movement.  While we have bought hay and grain and lumber from him for the last three years,  he is probably the last person I would put under the label "visionary".  And yet, here he is, driving up and down the valley, stopping at all the farms, big or small, wondering if we would be interested in such a discussion.  The group has already met twice, and what a lovely range of farming personalities.  The group consists of a couple life-long, honest farmers; there are several yuppy farmers; there are the farmers who want to be organic and use environmentally friendly practices; there are farmers who want to raise exotics; there are farmers who want to barter; farmers who want to sell their goods down in NYC.  We have already decided to set up a farmer's marker right in our little village on Thursday afternoons during the growing season.  Goods ranging from fruits and vegetables to honey to the fiber arts to meat to homemade goat milk fudge and breads will potentially all be available for sale.  Even if it never really gets off the ground, the fact that this particular person had a vision and acted on it is a testimony to all that is good and surprising in the world!

Irene Visits...An Update

Hurricane Irene made it up to the Northeast corner of the country yesterday.  As predicted by the forecasters, we woke up to some relatively substantial winds and rain coming from the North.  This meant that we, as opposed to Boston, got the front side of her (or what was left of her at that point).  The power went out at the farm around 7:30 in the morning.   The village center where the church is still had power when we arrived for service at 10, and one of the congregants was actually making sloppy joes for coffee hour to use up some meat.  In the middle of the second hymn, the lights dimmed, and we knew power failure was in the near future.  A few moments later, the organ stopped playing and we were left singing a Capella for a couple stanzas before a volunteer moved to the piano in time for the next verse.  Bud went to grab some of the candles normally reserved for Christmas and Easter, and we went through the rest of the service in candlelight.

Back on the farm, I spent much of the afternoon playing board games with Bud, reading, and spinning wool.  We do have a generator, and plugged the fridge in for a few hours.   I wasn't worried about the freezers, as they tend to maintain a cool enough temperature a few days as long as they aren't opened.

There was some substantial flooding in our basement which we pumped out sporadically with the generator throughout the day.  There's also a spot near the chimney that leaks when there is a hard rain.  It's right where Belle, the mutt, normally sleeps, so she wasn't so keen on being displaced (better than being rained on, I suppose).  We also had leaking on our first floor on the North side.  This was highly unusual, as the water has to make it down an entire floor inside our walls.  We concluded that the attic vents on that side were getting pummeled by the rain blowing in sideways all day and the water was getting in that way.  The ceiling is wood, not plaster, which makes us a little less concerned than we would be otherwise.  

After dinner, my darling husband and went up to the sheep pasture to repair some of the netting that had fallen down with the wind (the sheep were not very motivated to go anywhere). 

We all went to bed around 9pm, and woke up to no power and no phone (and no cell service).  We also had a very warm refrigerator (the only thing we ended up tossing were left over burgers, which the pigs enjoyed). While I went on my morning run, I was able to survey some of the damage.  Several large trees had come down (one on top of a neighbor's home), and there was no power anywhere (except for the filthy rich weekenders down the road who apparently have a whole home generator and had all sorts of lights on!!!).

The power did come back on shortly after I returned from the run.  We would have been okay for a few more days, but it would have been irritating.   However, just after midnight on Tuesday morning, the hardwired smoke detectors started beeping, indicating that the power was out...again.  It was quite a rude awakening, as I had only fallen asleep an hour earlier.   Also, I wasn't exactly sure how to turn them off, since they were hardwired, and my brain was not fully functioning.  First I had to find some light, but had stowed all of the flashlights and lanterns away during the day assuming that the power was on for good (I know, when you assume, you only make an ass out of "u" and "me").  Anyway, I blindly felt my way down to the basement steps where I had hung the (battery-powered) Coleman lantern.  I wandered back upstairs in the fluorescent glow of the lantern, woke up Bud with the harsh light (who was very dismayed to hear that the power was out, but even more annoyed by the beeping of the smoke detector) and proceeded to tear out the wires from the back of the smoke detector (don't worry Mr. Code-Man, I didn't break or cut any wires, and we'll put everything back together when the power comes back on). Really, the most worrisome aspect would be  of this second outage is keeping the fences charged.  The pigs, particularly, are curious critters and wouldn't have minded won't mind going exploring. Our two solar chargers may or may not be recharging their batteries effectively at this point.  NYSEG is not giving any estimates about when the power will come back on, but they are warning it could be next week.  Bud mentioned that it was like going back in time and being "old-school" (this is his new favorite phrase) and he was quite content not to have to bathe.  I, however, am taking full advantage of being back on a college campus and showering at the gym here.

In closing, here is a lovely picture of the storm descending on the North Carolina coast.  A FB friend posted the picture.  I don't know the photographer myself, but I think he should definitely enter this one in a photo contest!

Photo by David Hutzenbiler