Cold and frosty here too. Third frost this past week and this was the kiling frost.
Recovering from a week of which I'd soon like to forget. All's well now and Al has been home for a few days.
October On The Homestead
What happened, Robin?
It's a fairly warm morning here, already 40º & not a cloud in the sky. Numero uno job is recovering the doggie sunroom. Got it all cleaned up yesterday, now to staple the new GH plastic on. They sure love it in there during the winter!
We have not had frost yet. Thankful for that. Got a load of hay yesterday. Just 25 bales. All I can handle at one time by myself. It has a lot of pickers in it but the horses and goats like it. Problem is 3 of the first 6 bales I opened had mold. Gotta call the guy I bought it from and get credit on the next load.
Al had an oil change and tuneup done on Thursday, then left Utah last Saturday afternoon to head home and the Explorer just couldn't take the mountains and a snow storm had just begun. Luckily he was within a mile of an interstate exit with a motel, where he sat till Monday morning before getting the Explorer towed to a shop. Mechanic said the engine was blown. He ended up renting a car on Tuesday morning to drive home and he's scrapping the truck. Lot of extra expence that we weren't counting on. But he's home safe and sound, and thankfully, we had the money to cover all of the expences. Just puts us in a bind now, having only one vehicle. He had planned on going to Port Authur, TX next. Just trying to figure out what the best move is and how to make it happen.
I hate it when stuff like that happens and it always seems to. Just when you get a bit ahead life throws you a curve ball and picks your pockets. Grrr So glad he is safe and sound at home though. That is priceless.
This message was edited Oct 30, 2010 2:04 PM
Hmmmm... I see Port Arthur in your future. Bummer on the Explorer. Maybe they forgot to put in the oil and you have a case against the tune-up joint? Timing is lousy, but is there ever a good time for it to happen?
My first thought, too. They didn't put oil in...
Well, that thought crossed my mind, too, or even that the oil drain plug wasn't put on tight enough. He drove almost 300 miles before it happened. I haven't really talked to Al about it, because he was so frustrated. He did say that the oil pressure dropped suddenly and the engine started tapping. He's pretty mechanically inclined, so I'm assuming he thought about those scenerios.
He's got a couple of buddies working in Port Authur already and one is staying at the same motel that he would be staying at. So he could ride back and forth to work with him, until he got enough money together to buy another vehicle. He can rent a car to get down there. I don't have a problem with him taking the van, but it's an old full size one and questionable as to whether it could make the trip. We discussed buying a new truck a couple of months ago, but the Explorer was paid for and we decided we didn't want that debt.
Nope, never a good time to have this happen. But it could have been worse...he could have broke down along the interstate in the snowstorm in the middle of nowhere. Fortunately he was close to an exit and had money to pay for everything and was able to rent a car.
Beautiful weather here today, but we're now having frosts just about every night. My 3 tunnels held up well through those ferious winds last week. The plastic won't make it through the winter, though. But I think it will last long enough for me to have everything finish ripening and get it harvested. This next week, I'll be working on getting my little greenhouse cleaned out and some less cold sensitive potted plants moved to it. I never did get around to planting anything for fall, except 3 dozen broccoli plants and the cabbage worms stripped the leaves in 2 days a few days ago. They've got some new growth, so I sprayed them with an organic insecticde today.
Hope every one is doing well. Anyone heard from Twiggybuds lately?
Maybe they overfilled it & the engine finally blew a gasket after 300 miles. Don't know how old the Explorer was, but if it was paid off, probably too old be worth fighting about w/the shop; time & expense-wise. Hate that. Somebody does a sloppy job & gets away w/it because it's just too expensive to confront them.
I've just got a little aphid infested lettuce planted, some kohlrabi, and root veggies we'll store in the ground till we need 'em.
I'm at 6000 feet, downhill from the Mogollon Rim towards I-40. Have many of the same conditions Jayryunen has, though, especially some of the weather, but not as much snow. Fixed the hole in the barn wall where the chickens tore a vent off, now just need to finish bubblewrapping the inside of the little greenhouse, and fix the door -- wind tore it off its hinges. Nothing in there yet except a new blueberry plant, which is going dormant now. I decided to run the solar water pump and fill the 4 tote tanks, should get from 1/2 to 3/4 full by 5pm, then will open the valve to let the water down to the lavender field. Need to get the tanks emptied by nightfall, we expect a hard freeze tonight, 23, don't want to break any pipes. Jay was right about needing to water, because the soil around the plants is nearly dry. The wind was ferocious yesterday, felt like about 60 mph, could hardly stand up. In the big greenhouse, looks like almost all the cuttings I made of the Royal Velvet have rooted. Too early to tell on the Grosso, but I'm going to take a chance and cut more Grosso today. If all goes well I could end up with over 700 new plants for spring -- saving $2800. The greenhouse will have paid for itself!
Discovered that I have some volunteer butter lettuce coming up, a happy surprise.
AZ, how high is the rim if you're downhill? I wouldn't have guessed it was 6000'...
That wind came through in a big hurry last night, banging & battering the house. Warm wind! Woke to no wind at 6 and 54º, 44º by 7 am, 31º by 8 and now we're back up to 70º with just a light, pleasant breeze. Just put a 4" straw mulch on the garlic... after the deep chill we had, now the weather is going to shoot back up to warm & wonderful. Which plays holy heck w/the garlic & other bulbs.
Had a speed breakfast to get out early & get the new covering on the doggie sunroom before a wind came up. It's done, done, done! Naturally, I think we're going to have a windless day today. LOL
Great news about all your starts!
I know you have ALL been waiting anxiously for a report on what happened at the Board of Stupidvisors meeting Tuesday morning. (Hey, this is the "Homesteading" forum, and my homestead is under attack.) Well, we lost. Christians 0, Liars 10. The setbacks will be 1/2 mile from rows of 450ft tall electricity-generating machines to an exsting home. 1/4 mile setback from the turbines to any-size parcel's property line, except that a 2.5 acre parcel will get 1/2 mile. They were going to be worse, only 750 feet from a 40 acre parcel. During my 5 minutes, I finally said "Get out your calculators! Don't you realize that a 750 foot setback would make it impossible for anyone to bujild a house on that 40 acre parcel farther away from the turbines than 2000 feet, which is a lot less than 1/2 mile!" (Not that anybody would build there anyway.) Whereupon a couple of them said, "Oh yeah, duh, we were wondering . . . ", Meaning no, they hadn't. So they begrudgingly changed the setbacks. The developers kept insisting "industry standard" was 1/4 ;mile; I said "Yeah, the WIND ENERGY INDUSTRY STANDARD, of course!" All other researchers in this agree that 1 mile is absolutely the closest wind turbines should be from homes, and most say at least 2 miles. All ignored by our esteemed county dictators. Please don't think I was the only protestor, there were about 30 others, all of whom presented scientific facts & figures in our defense. All ignored, of course.
After the previous week's Planning Commission Meeting, where the Commission voted to accept the (insane) setbacks & send the ordinance to the BOS, I heard later that the millionaire rancher who has leased the land next to us was afriad to walk out to his car alone. He asked for a sheriff's deputy to escort him! Since I was the only one who mentioned his name during the meeting (I accused Planning & Zoning of only listening to HIS inputs, not ours), I guess he was afraid of ME. I AM SO PROUD. I am a 72-year-old white-haired great-grandmother! (Although I have to admit, ahem, people are usually surprised when they hear how old I am, I don't act it, speak it, or look it.) My son says,"What did he think, you were going to hit him with your walker?" (Joke, I don't have a walker.)
From above: "What did he think, you were going to hit him with your walker?"
WARNING: I have a flyswattter and I know how to use it!
Not to mention yards & yards of plastic hose! Hurts like bejeesus & leaves no marks. The standard for abuse in Dubai.
I'm just so sorry this happened to you & your neighbors, AZ. Don't give up... maybe the new republican mixed congress will stop all funding or something. It's still a long trip twixt cup & lip on this one... hoping for a miracle of sanity out your way.
Hmmmm, you mean plastic like garden hose, or plastic like tubing? I should look into it.
One of my friends said, "Yeah, I sure wouldn't want you mad at me!" LOL
I was thinking tubing, but whatever comes to hand... =0)
7 quarts of chicken stock in the pressure canner, two hubbard squash baked & ready to scrape the pulp out for pumpkin butter, seeds washed & drying... woo-hoo. Making progress!
Such culinary industry makes me tired.
LOL... you'll just have to eat more, build up your strength.
Re elevation, my place is really just under 6000 feet, something like 5980. Heber/Overgaard, up on the Rim, according to something I found on the internet is supposed to be 6500 feet, but that seems low to me, they have huge Ponderosa pines and we don't. You wouldn't think 500 feet would make that much difference. Forest Lakes, 20 or so miles west of Heber and the last town you pass through before you head down the Rim, is supposedly at 7300 feet, which sounds right except Flagstaff is at 7200, and it doesn't seem like Forest Lakes is higher than Flag. The Mogollonn Rim is an escarpment that runs across most of Arizona and into New Mexico. It divides the state in half, hot desert below and cool mountains & "high desert" above. The Mogollon Rim is pronounced "Muggy-own" Rim (own as in you own something, not as in town). The guy it was named after, a Spaniard, probably didn't pronounce it that way. LOL Going to town today to vote, will check at the city limits sign to see what Heber's elevation is for real.
I knew how to pronounce it because I am an avid reader of Louis L'Amour westerns and I have an extensive collection of his books.
I looked it up, and sure enough, you're downhill from the rim. Learn something new every day. =0)
Have you ever read Zane Grey, Cajun? Now he really describes that area to a T. You used to be able to visit his cabin down below the rim. Don't know if one of the fires got it or not.
Pumpkin butter's been cooking in the slow cooker all night, the house smells like pumpkin pie this morning! Yum! So I'll be canning again today. The SO is grinding flour for fresh bread; love warm fresh bread!
Whoops! It's November... starting a new thread....
com'on over!
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1138913/