Spring Dreams

The snow is gone.  Well, except for a few inches now and then, when Mother Nature decides to remind us that winter will be truly gone when she says it is.  Not when we wish it were. Or whined about it.  She seems particularly deaf about whining.  Almost like using sarcasm with Hurley, the Great Pyrenees.  It's not that they ignore me - it's just not within their job scope.

Have the greenhouse in a flurry of planting.  That's spinach and mesclun mix setting my taste-buds to a slightly embarrassing drooling state.

Soon the dandelions and lamb's quarters will be up and getting a light sprinkling of virgin olive oil (don't get me started) and balsamic vinegar.  That's a 250 watt HPS lamp to make sure they get 18 hours of light a day.

Zucchini came up in a very short time. They are on a two by four heat mat and have a timer controlled grow lamp a foot above them. I know people just can't seem to give away Zukes. Not a problem here, the chickens, turkeys and Peegs munch them down like a starving man at a salad bar! Tip of the hat to Brenda, a local greenhouse operator:  water seedling with warm water.

 The tomatoes, apples and Leafy greens go first.  Then the cukes. Last, go any citrus, tho the chickens will eat it if I slice it into chunks so they can get at the tasty innards.  The pigs usually just ignore it.

John Deere tractor Hub.  Or one of life's abundant lessons. The tractor is the backup for our skidsteer and the only thing I have that can actually lift a mini-bag of feed.  It had a flat and required replacement.  If you want to bring tears to a farmer's wallet tell him his tractor tires need replacement.  With the help of brother Tom, who passed away this year, we got the old tire off, found a brand new one for cheap (had a cut in the side, but nothing a tube wouldn't make safe), had it filled with calcium.  And it sat there for almost a year.  The problem is obvious. Have a close look at those tire studs.  For sure they are rusted in but good, and will require a master mechanic and specialized tools to remove them. Contemplating this huge problem kept me in procrastination mode for close to a year.  I moved onto stage two of the mechanical repair issue: whining. Friend Bill, the all-things-mechanical whisperer, finally had enough and showed up on a rainy, sleety day. I tried to put him off, the skidsteer would chew up the yard, it was a nasty day.  The lugs would all need to be replaced (I did some YouTube research). By the time I had found the right punch, Bill had given it a small tap and out it came.  We did it again so I have a sample to take to the parts store.  Easy-peazy.  I spent more time figuring out how hard the job was than the half a minute it took to solve the problem.  There is a life lesson, for me, in there.

Dry enough that the peegs have been rooting out little nests in the dirt! For sunning purposes.

 Arnie, the Boar, practicing for the lazy-way-to-eat-cauliflower Olympics.  He has it down to an art form.

 

All this procrastinating has tired me out.  Think I will join Hurley in actualizing my dreams.  He's in the information gathering stage here.  See you in a bit.