Tiny bouquet of fall mums
We had several foggy damp days last week, but Friday and Saturday were beautiful. It was sunny and breezy and a little cool, but that made working outside very pleasant.
I was able to do the final grass cutting of the season on Friday. And then my daughter and son-in-law surprised me by coming up on Saturday to help me with all the rest of my projects. They removed the air conditioners from the windows, replaced a door in the dining room, moved a heavy piece of furniture down the stairs for me, loaded a pile of scrap metal in my pick-up, and my son-in-law brought more bales to insulate the south side of the house. He remembered that most of the water pipes are on that wall, and although it's the south side, when there is a freaky weird south wind in the winter, they will all freeze. The bales he brought were actually made of corn stalks, something his brother is experimenting with.
A thought about scrap metal around your homestead. Scrap metal can be hazardous if you have livestock, they can eat it or step on it or get tangled in it, or it can cause damage to your mowing equipment. Pick an area of brick or concrete where you can collect scrap until you have enough to make a trip to the salvage yard. If you use a grassy area, the grass will grow up in it and it'll be a mess to keep clean and to pick up when you're ready to load it. Below is a photo of my truck with a modest load of scrap that I took to our salvage yard. Usually I'll wait until I have a bigger load, but wanted to take advantage of my son-in-law's muscles on Saturday. The salvage yard will weigh your truck with and without the scrap and then pay you for the difference in weight.
A thought about scrap metal around your homestead. Scrap metal can be hazardous if you have livestock, they can eat it or step on it or get tangled in it, or it can cause damage to your mowing equipment. Pick an area of brick or concrete where you can collect scrap until you have enough to make a trip to the salvage yard. If you use a grassy area, the grass will grow up in it and it'll be a mess to keep clean and to pick up when you're ready to load it. Below is a photo of my truck with a modest load of scrap that I took to our salvage yard. Usually I'll wait until I have a bigger load, but wanted to take advantage of my son-in-law's muscles on Saturday. The salvage yard will weigh your truck with and without the scrap and then pay you for the difference in weight.
My truck loaded with scrap metal. I got $4.35 for this.
I recently learned that copper is much more valuable than regular metals and should be saved and weighed separately. If you mix it with your regular scrap, you'll get the regular price, which is much less than copper alone will bring. The salvage yard said prices for scrap metal have really dropped. It seems like the price for my load was pretty low, but I don't argue with them, I just take what they give me and thank them. These guys are kind of my neighbors, and sometimes good will is worth more than making an extra buck, especially if you're a lady.
I started burning off my brush piles, which mostly went well. I cleaned the gutter on my front porch, which was packed with leaves. And I took my truck into the shop for an oil change and winterizing tune up.
I started burning off my brush piles, which mostly went well. I cleaned the gutter on my front porch, which was packed with leaves. And I took my truck into the shop for an oil change and winterizing tune up.
Before the kids went back down south, I treated them (and myself) to an all-you-can-eat buffet at Hibachi, a chinese restaurant. I can never eat my money's worth, but I still enjoy the food.
As I've been working around the place the past week, I thought of a few miscellaneous things to mention.
When you're dismantling your straw bales to use for mulch, be careful to properly dispose of the string or wire the bales are wrapped with, especially if the string is plastic. Old-fashioned twine will eventually rot away, but is still a danger to mowing equipment, livestock, or your own feet when it's new. Wire and plastic string can be very damaging to large livestock as it can wrap around their legs or feet and even smaller animals can become entangled in it. I once had a chicken swallow nearly the whole length of string used to fasten a bag of laying mash, and I had to pull it back up out of her crop.
When I burn the brush piles I don't use just gasoline to get them started. Gasoline will flash up fast but burns away quickly. I mix diesel fuel or kerosene with a small amount of gasoline and use this. The kerosene/diesel fuel burns more slowly, so the gasoline gets it started but the diesel fuel will keep it burning. Sometimes I'll use motor oil to drizzle over the pile before I pour on the gasoline, too. I never add gasoline to a fire already burning.
Be aware of the area around your brush pile. Rake away all the dead grass and leaves surrounding the brush before you light it, as a brush fire can spread quickly, especially in the fall with all the dead vegetation accumulating. I had two piles going at the same time Saturday, quite some distance apart, and one of them almost got away from me. ... Also remember to scare away any furry or feathery things hiding in your brush pile before you light it.
Put your snow shovel by the door before you actually need it, so you won't have to go to the shed for it. Sometimes just a skiff of snow can be swept off with a broom. And I don't care how bad you think salt is for your concrete steps/sidewalk, any damage you might do to your concrete is better than slipping and falling outside... especially if you're a country widow living on your own. I keep a container of salt near each exterior door.
A couple of country weather tips that were passed onto me by people much older and wiser than myself that I thought I'd share:
If you're wanting to cut the grass, when you get up in the morning check to see if there's dew on the grass. If there's dew, that means no rain later and you can plan on cutting. If the grass is dry, it's going to rain later in the day.
Most wind will come from south and west in the summer and from north and west in the winter. An easterly wind usually brings moisture, and lots of it. In summertime, there will be lots of rain; in winter it means a heavy snowfall.
I gave wind direction some thought this fall and decided to park my truck facing northeast. In this way I can pull out of the drive when snow is deep rather than having to back out like I have in the past. I think driving forward will make the most of my 4 x 4 options. Even though it is facing a kind of northerly direction, at least it's not straight north or northwest.
I wish I had paid more attention to my parents, because they were full of wisdom about country weather. There were a lot of tornadoes where I grew up and I used to hear Daddy up pacing the floor at night during storms, watching for funnel clouds. I knew he would let us know if we had to head to the basement. One time, on a visit back home, we were outside watching some storm clouds move away from the farm. Then Daddy said, "The wind is going to change and they'll start coming back toward us." I sort of smirked, because that would be totally unlikely given the typical direction of storm clouds and wind. However, we soon felt a puff of wind in our faces and the storm turned around and came back toward us. I still can't explain this. I did learn, though, no matter how smart you think you are... never smirk at your daddy!
A couple of country weather tips that were passed onto me by people much older and wiser than myself that I thought I'd share:
If you're wanting to cut the grass, when you get up in the morning check to see if there's dew on the grass. If there's dew, that means no rain later and you can plan on cutting. If the grass is dry, it's going to rain later in the day.
Most wind will come from south and west in the summer and from north and west in the winter. An easterly wind usually brings moisture, and lots of it. In summertime, there will be lots of rain; in winter it means a heavy snowfall.
I gave wind direction some thought this fall and decided to park my truck facing northeast. In this way I can pull out of the drive when snow is deep rather than having to back out like I have in the past. I think driving forward will make the most of my 4 x 4 options. Even though it is facing a kind of northerly direction, at least it's not straight north or northwest.
I wish I had paid more attention to my parents, because they were full of wisdom about country weather. There were a lot of tornadoes where I grew up and I used to hear Daddy up pacing the floor at night during storms, watching for funnel clouds. I knew he would let us know if we had to head to the basement. One time, on a visit back home, we were outside watching some storm clouds move away from the farm. Then Daddy said, "The wind is going to change and they'll start coming back toward us." I sort of smirked, because that would be totally unlikely given the typical direction of storm clouds and wind. However, we soon felt a puff of wind in our faces and the storm turned around and came back toward us. I still can't explain this. I did learn, though, no matter how smart you think you are... never smirk at your daddy!
I think that about covers all I wanted to share. I hope these things are helpful to those of you needing ideas about successful country living. Enjoy these beautiful autumn evenings with someone you love or doing something that's especially comforting for you. For me tonight, I'm looking forward to a hot bath while sipping wine and watching Bones on my Kindle!
Blessings,
Katrinka
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