Archive for the ‘Wintervale Ranch’ Category
As Planned
photo by Elysa Hays
With rain threatening for most of the morning, we stuck to our plan and started the day focusing on the landscape pond. We rearranged a lot of rocks, placed the pump, built a waterfall, and then stacked stones around the plastic tubes to make them less conspicuous.
Cyndie had purchased supplies to help keep the water clear, and set about tending to that. Elysa served as my consultant, giving me feedback on how my placement of stones looked from afar. Elysa also took a turn at capturing photos, and pruning dead growth from the few perennials growing out of the water.
Since we are experiencing problematic wetness around the property this spring, it feels nice to finally embrace water for once, as opposed to frowning over it, longing to see it gone. Cyndie wrapped the water line and power cord from the pump with some vine leaves, and after topping off the overall level with a bit of fresh water from the hose, we declared the pond complete and ready for the season.
We are lucky to have had the help of Elysa and Anne all weekend on the variety of things we chose to do. We didn’t make it to the work weekend up at the lake place, but having them here made it feel like a special weekend, and their efforts provided great gains and priceless company on the first Memorial “work-weekend” at Wintervale.
Little Steps
After day two of our three-day-weekend, we are detecting an increased level of tiredness, but feeling good about our little steps of progress. Still, the grass mowing continues to be delayed. In hind sight, we probably should have put in a bigger effort toward that task yesterday, but after Cyndie gave a shot at mowing down by the road, and got herself stuck several times, she put it away and moved on to other interests. Now we are facing a higher likelihood of rain today, based on forecasts.
I was successful in getting out on the bike, but didn’t ride for more than an hour, because the sky was sprinkling just enough rain to make things wet. It was a pleasant surprise to find Cyndie had mowed, because I rode past several other places where folks were out doing the same thing. It appears that many others are in a similar predicament to us, battling the extreme wetness along the road side where grass is getting long.
Of the many projects available to us, we settled on starting to move a pile of firewood that was dumped at the bottom of the back hill last fall, and then working to recover the edge of woods next to the labyrinth. Before I headed out, I replaced the flushing lever on our toilet. Some projects automatically rise to the top of the priority list.
When the fence crew pulled out the old barbed wire last fall, they cleared out some trees and turned up the soil, pulling stumps, to a degree that exceeded our expectations. Their effort left the area looking rather abused, with large chunks of dirt scattered around holes and divots. But they did provide us with quite a pile of cut logs from the trees they took down.
I wanted to get the logs up the hill near the spot where I would like to have a wood shed, which is also the place where I expect we will be doing much of the splitting. Elysa and Anne dug into that project.
Then, while Cyndie ran an errand for equipment and supplies, we raked down the area next to the labyrinth as best as we could, and covered it with leaves, sticks and grass, in attempt to return the strip to a more natural transition from field to woods again. That is the kind of work I like doing, because there is such an immediate visual reward for the effort. Even though we didn’t do much work on the labyrinth, cleaning up the area around it makes it all look a million times better.
Today, we hope to put a new pump Cyndie bought, into the pond to get the water circulating. Since it is a water project, we figure it will be something we can do, even if it is raining.
Stunted Progress
Despite our lofty intentions, the number of things that we filled our day with yesterday, were but a small portion of what is awaiting attention. Time just slips away. It is our normal mode of operation, it seems.
It was overcast and chilly in the morning, and Cyndie asked for a fire in the fireplace. Elysa and her friend, Anne, had spent the night, and Cyndie and Elysa were visiting in the kitchen, drinking Guatemalan coffee and chocolate. I noticed we hadn’t burned any wood since the power outage of the great snow storm of May 2nd, and the fireplace doors needed cleaning and the box was full of ash.
By the time I finished all the clean-up and preparation, the focus of activity had moved on to other things, so we dropped the plan of having a fire. Before making a visit to the local Ford dealership, to test drive a pickup truck, Cyndie said she was going to vacuum her car, in case it became a part of potential negotiations. That became a much more involved project than anticipated
If there was ever any doubt that Cyndie deserved to be driving a truck, instead of her little red Audi convertible, the sight of her back seats provided an excellent argument. I rushed to take a picture, and missed the focus, but maybe that softens the impact of how bad it looked. It was going to take more than a little vacuuming to spruce up her car. Cyndie has the ability to get the maximum use out of whatever she drives.
Our morning visit to the dealership for a test drive didn’t happen until around the time they close on Saturdays, in the early afternoon. As often happens with me, that visit left us with more questions than answers. We will be pondering our options for Cyndie’s future vehicle a while longer.
Before we finally ran out of day, the goal of working on the labyrinth became the next objective. I really want to position boulders in the middle to start the project, and Cyndie is anxious to begin planting some things she recently purchased (and hauled in the back seat of her car), to begin defining the pattern of the path. We decided to try bringing down the diesel tractor to see if we could figure out how to move big rocks using the loader bucket and hydraulic power.
The results of that experiment left us with one pinched finger on Cyndie’s hand, and some muddy ruts in the ground. It is still too wet to be able to drive around down there. We finished the day by hand-raking the area to groom it. I tried to fill in the muddy divots left by the tractor, with limited success.
We didn’t get any grass mowed on the rest of the property, so if the rain holds off, that is high on the list of priorities today. I’m hoping Cyndie is in the mood to play around on the tractor. I want her to be having fun, if I steal some time to get out on my bicycle to put in miles in preparation for the annual bike week that is only 12 days away.
Intermediate States
We have arrived at the U.S. holiday weekend of “Memorial Day.” For us, this usually means a trip to the vacation getaway of Cyndie’s family, in Hayward, WI, for “Work Weekend.” This is the time when the property gets a major cleaning, the beach gets raked, toys and floatation devices pulled from storage, and boats get scrubbed and hauled down to the lake. The work culminates in a spectacular community feast at the main lodge.
We aren’t there this year. It feels strange.
We have our new property to tend to this spring, and have been granted a pass from contributing our labor to the lake place.
It feels as though everything at our place is hanging in an intermediate state right now. The two biggest projects, the hay shed and paddock fencing, have been stuck in limbo for weeks, waiting for conditions to dry.
I think the geothermal furnace installation looks complete, but I don’t know the status of whether or not it is fully operational. Almost all the work of installation occurred while we weren’t home. Each day last week, I would check progress when I arrived home from the day-job, trying to discern what had been done, and why, and how. As of last night, it looks like everything is wired and plumbed, but we found no indication of the status, nor instructions on operation. They did leave manuals out. I suppose I could do some reading.
We finished digging up the drain line from the septic tank. It looks like the distribution box is disintegrating. It also looks like there are a lot of illogical twists and turns in the plumbing. I have no idea why they originally chose to do it the way they did, but it did work fine, as far as we can tell, for almost 25 years, so we won’t redo the whole thing. The septic professional I have been consulting has located a replacement distribution box, and will also replace the section of cast iron pipe originally used. It being a holiday weekend, that work will not happen until next week some time, weather permitting.
We need to do a lot of cutting of grass, as the growth is so rapid this time of year, it gets long on one end of the property before you finish cutting the other. Julian helped us greatly last weekend, by doing the first cut of the season, but he wasn’t able to mow the back hill, due to geothermal installation that was in process. It had time to grow doubly long, and we knew rain was coming, so we jumped on that chore late yesterday, before it could get any worse. I am happy to report that Cyndie was eager to have a lesson on the operation of the tractor, and then looked to be having so much fun, I might get away with doing a lot less of the grass cutting around here than I previously anticipated.
In a classic demonstration of our different modes of operation, Cyndie took off with glee, mowing around a tree and then wheeling off in any direction, haphazardly picking off areas of long grass wherever it appeared in her view. I am inclined to mow in a line, back and forth, very methodically. I am a bit more timid. She boldly devoured areas that deserved to be cut, but that I would have been hesitant to try with that mower. I was thinking it would require the brush hog attached to the large tractor. She demonstrated otherwise.
Cyndie and I are a great combination. She spotted some mushrooms growing under a dead pine tree in our front yard. I told her they tasted funny and she got all riled up, exclaiming that I shouldn’t eat them until I know what they are. I was teasing her, of course. Comparing images we found online, we are very confident that these are the very popular and definitely edible morel mushrooms.
We started tending to our little landscape pond with waterfall, but finally came to the full realization that they didn’t leave a pump behind when they moved out, so that project is awaiting a purchase. One more thing hanging in limbo. We also may try to test drive a pickup truck this weekend, a task we have been talking about accomplishing for months.
One last thing that has us feeling unsettled is how much we miss our friends, Alane, Dunia, and Marco. Cyndie has been working with Alane and Dunia for much of her Epona apprenticeship training. I met them and Marco last weekend, and in that short time, developed a deep feeling of connection with all of them. We feel a deep longing to have them here with us, and, in turn, they have indicated a desire to have us visit them in Guatemala and Australia. Long distance relationships can be hard, but we truly hope to make these connections flourish.
Our projects may hang in an intermediate state, but our friendships are definitely established.
Dug In
I did some trenching after I got home from work yesterday. To my surprise, I learned that the drain does not run in a straight line. I’m not sure why they did it this way, but one guess is to improve the position to the drain field.
So far, everything looks fine. I was looking for the junction where it splits and heads to the drain field, but I was running out of time, and the pipe was getting deeper and deeper. When I reached a joint that was covered by some sort of fabric, I stopped for the night. I suspect that is the spot I’m looking for, and will need to open up a larger area around it, to be able to adequately inspect it.
It struck me, as I was working, how much attention we put into assuring both our furnace and septic system were inspected and in working order when we made our offer to buy this place, eight months ago. Now we are totally replacing the furnace and digging up a portion of the septic drain system.
At the time, we were meaning to be diligent about pertinent details; prudently thorough about such a significant purchasing decision. Seems like maybe that wasn’t as important as it seemed to be.
We are getting this place ready for the long haul, and we have dug in with the intention of staying here for the rest of our lives. These things are just small steps toward the achievement of our overall goals of living with horses in this magical place we now call home.
Matched Set
It feels a little odd to be so pleased with my back yard being torn up, but it has me just tickled to see. The loop field is actually out to the left of this image, underneath the trees of that front section of forest. It is the ideal location, I have learned, as the tree roots draw moisture up, enhancing the effectiveness of the geothermal transfer.
Everything that grows green is bursting forth with gusto right now. I took a short walk in our woods, searching to see if we have any trillium growing, and hardly recognized our trail. I need to be careful about getting lost in there! Unfortunately, I spotted no trillium.
What I did find was, standing water in the ruts of the trail. I don’t think I’ll be driving through the woods for quite a while around here. It is wet, wet, wet.
Inside the house, they got the old furnace ripped out, and already replaced by the backup unit that will function for our new system. Today, they plan to pour the concrete to patch the floor where the lines come up from the loop manifold out in the back yard, and then set the heat pump and other unit side by side on top of that spot.
Meanwhile, I have received counsel on my septic situation that has me pondering doing the digging, myself, to expose the suspected problem area. If I can get it dug up, the guy that pumps it out told me he could make the repairs. The target zone is about 10 feet from the tank, along the pipe that leads to the drain field.
I’m not sure my back will be all that happy with me taking on that chore, but I won’t know until I try. I’ll be working slow, since there is a propane line buried in the area, so I don’t think over-exertion will be a problem.
When that gets completed, we should end up having matching dug-up front and back yards!
New Friends
We have arrived back home at Wintervale, and the cats seem pretty happy to see us. In fact, Pequenita doesn’t seem to want me to get this post typed, because she is on top of me, between my hands and the keyboard, insisting on being scratched enough to make up for the days we have been absent.
It looks like there was some heavy rain in recent days, because it seems like it is wetter than before I left, five days ago. If you have been reading along, the geothermal guys like the soil wet, for drilling the lines underground. As a result, the geothermal plumbing installation is complete, up to the furnace room in the basement. As for the fence project, no progress whatsoever.
I have already had an opportunity to put some of what I learned over the weekend at the Epona leadership workshop, into practice. Just as I was picking up my car at the airport parking lot, I received a call about a problem situation that had arisen at the day-job, yesterday. I had to kick into “leadership” mode and deal with a sticky issue.
It really upset me, because I was trying to reflect on the wonderful weekend and many learning experiences I enjoyed. This issue commanded my full attention long before I was interested in changing modes. Cyndie quickly pointed out I had a choice about how to respond to this interruption, and, using a skill gained from her training, helped guide me to a place that we refer to as “getting back to grazing.”
It is a reflection of the behavior of horses, after they are involved in a conflict. Whatever happens is dealt with in the moment, and then it is done. Return to the calm mode of grazing.
It helped. I made some calls, and got back to remembering the great events of the weekend.
We already dearly miss the friends we left behind. Sunday night there was a graduation ceremony, and I tried to get a couple of pictures. Monday morning we had breakfast together, and then went our separate ways. Last night we felt a void, in not being able to check in with them about how the rest of their day went.
It is a great indicator of the bond we are feeling for these special souls who have become new threads in the fabric of our lives.
New Dilemma
We are now at the middle of May and our place is finally beginning to show signs of greening up. The weather has moved very quickly from chilly temperatures, to a day with a heat advisory being issued. The grass is wasting no time. The lawn beckons to be mowed, especially if we are to keep pace with all the other property owners in the vicinity. Everyone around us seems to have leaped into that task with gusto. Don’t they have more important things to do first?
I still haven’t figured out which areas I want to continue to mow in the manner they were previously tended, and which areas I can turn over to nature’s whimsy. As it is now, areas around the driveway and barn are going to be hard to mow, because of the disruption caused by the projects underway.
Speaking of projects, one more thing demanding immediate attention made an unwelcome appearance yesterday. I was running a load of laundry, in preparation to pack and leave for Arizona, and while I was out discussing the location of our planned backup generator with a contractor, we witnessed some water flow out of the lid of our septic tank!
That’s not right!
Especially, based on the fact that it was pumped out and inspected about 8 months ago when we made our offer on the place. Based on only 2 people living here now, that is way too soon for the tank to need to be pumped again.
It seems a little ironic to me that the whole time our property was soaked through like a wet sponge, there were no signs of trouble from the septic system. Now, just as things are finally drying out, the problem shows up. And, of course, it happens just as I am headed out of town.
So, today, while I am at work, and then headed to the airport, there will be a drilling crew setting up at the house for few days of work, and a septic company pumping our tank. I hope they all get along fine with each other, …and without me.
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I’ve got no posts prepared in advance, so we’ll see what the next few days brings, while I am in Arizona. Cyndie tells me I will have access. Hopefully, I will be able to provide some up-to-date stories and images from our adventures over the coming weekend.
And, hopefully, there’ll be no more new dilemmas popping up for some time.
Good Wet
Of all the days for the new geothermal furnace installation project to start, they picked the day when I leave to join Cyndie in Arizona. Isn’t that just the way things go?
But, hey, that’s progress, and any progress is good progress, as far as I’m concerned this spring. Yesterday, at the house, I was able to meet with the lead person on the boring crew for the fluid lines that will go underground. He said that if all goes well, that part of the job will be done in two days, and thus, completed by the time we get home. It was good to meet him and talk, because as he was leaving, he commented that I may never see him again.
He offered to take some pictures of the process for me, which will be fabulous, because burying the lines is the most dramatic part of the project, I think. The rest is just units in the utility room in the basement, which is about the same as the installation of a conventional furnace, as far as I’m concerned.
Interesting note about our soil, which is the big question regarding whether the boring goes well for them, or not, is that he said, “The wetter, the better.”
Well, we’ve got wet here, that’s for sure!
He also said that clay would be good to go through, so I’m hoping they will benefit from the very thing that has been a big nuisance for the people trying to put up fences for us. The geothermal guys will be happy to find clay and wet soil.
‘Being happy’ sure is a switch from what we’ve been hearing for quite some time now, from the fence contractor.
Lucky Loss
Throughout our life together, up until the purchase of our current property, Cyndie and I had never owned a parcel of land that amounted to a single acre. Now, we are responsible for 20 of them. That feels real intimidating at times. I am seeing an awful lot of things that deserve to be dealt with here, and we just can’t get to them all at once. I need to work on developing acceptance with not being able to take care of every issue I see, as soon as I see it, or I will become very frustrated.
That’s a risky proposition for me. I grew up in a home where I developed a notable ability to accept unaddressed issues. The kitchen of the house where I spent my pre-teen and high school years, was torn up when we move in, with the intent of being remodeled. My father put up metal shelves to store things on. It stayed that way until after I had moved out. It didn’t bother me one bit.
I have a recollection of there being a vice grip pliers to turn on the water for the shower in the bathroom I used. It seemed like a workable solution to me.
I have a dangerous ability to turn a blind eye to any number of things in my own living situation, that would strike me as odd for being overlooked or disregarded in another person’s home. It has taken a conscious effort to motivate myself to not be that guy who just gives up and lives with unfinished business. I have failed more often than I have succeeded in that endeavor over the years.
It seems counter-productive to be considering a strategy that gives me permission to do the very thing I am trying to learn not to do. Somewhere in there, I hope I discover that some sort of achievable healthy balance exists.
I did a short walk-around after work yesterday, to check on the water in our drilled holes, the remains of the smoldering brush pile, and a couple of evergreen trees I have propped up. I also walked past the second pile of root bundles, which is on the agenda for further burning, around the area marked for a labyrinth, up through the now-long (and getting longer) grass on the hill behind our house, and into the garage with wood overhead doors that are about shot, and log siding that is overdue for being re-stained and sealed. All of it on hold for the time being.
I did pass by the one tree that tipped under the weight of the last record-setting snowfall, which we are totally okay with, and have no intention of rescuing. I don’t think I have mentioned it here yet. It is the one tree that we were going to need to get rid of, in order to open up a road on the back side of the barn. We were talking about trying to transplant it, but it was going to be a difficult and iffy task with the equipment we have at hand.
Now the decision is made for us, as the roots have broken, and there is no sense trying to save it. We got lucky on the loss of that one.
…And I am very happy to have an item removed from our list of issues deserving immediate attention around here.
Relative Something 