Home Work: Catching Up on the Homefront, and Getting Ready to Leave for Augusta

 This past week we've mostly stayed home, believe it or not, catching up on housework, gardens, and grass. Larry finished putting the plywood on the roof of the new back porch that is actually the front porch of the new log room we're slowly, slowly working on.

That room is on the five-year plan and we're on year three so we need to speed up progress to make our goal.

 

 The gardens are beginning to really come in. I canned more beans this week, and we cut the cabbages. I made dill pickles and we froze carrots and broccoli and harvested the onions, which are now spread out in the woodshed to dry. I weeded the flowerbeds and cut back things that were finished for the season. Today I am cutting basil and parsley to dry. The second planting of cucumbers is blooming and we should be making yet more pickles in a week or so. Tomatoes are beginning to come in and I hope they can hold off their biggest production for another week.

Larry finally had a chance to harvest some honey. It's darker than last years, but we like it much better. Last year's was so light it was almost flavorless.

The hive of Russian bees is really strong and he was able to get about a gallon of honey. The new hive of Italian bees is not as vigorous so we won't be taking any honey from them. I just hope they're strong enough to make it through the winter. Next bees we buy, we'll be getting Russians. They're a little more aggressive but seem better adapted to our climate.

A new skill! We broke a small window pane in the cellar top a couple years ago, and it's been one of those niggling "gotta fix that" things ever since. Larry picked up a glass cutting tool last weekend and using the glass from an old, picture I was planning to toss, he cut a new pane for the window. This is going to come in handy as I often do not buy furniture or pictures with broken glass since the cost of getting new glass cut today is pretty high. Now I can pick up pictures at Goodwill or yard sales and re-deploy the glass as needed. Today he is repainting the cellar top, and next week he'll do some other needed repairs on this little building. It's about 30 years old, and we've done little to it over the years, so it's time.

The fixed window is the bottom left pane. Proud of him for learning to cut glass!

I restocked all the booths this week, did a little picking and priced a few totes to be ready for when I return from Augusta. The booths are all doing well and sales are also good, which is nice. I finally got that pretty china cabinet painted and into the booth, and filled it with some nice china we found in March. I've been waiting to get this cabinet done so I could display it in there.

I also had time last Saturday to do some junking with my friend Nancy, and found some interesting things. She and her husband Don are visiting from Arizona and getting their cabin and land, only a few miles from me, ready to sell. We've had fun catching up--even though we're on Facebook, there is so much to tell when we're face to face. I hope we can get out to Arizona sometime to visit them. She tells me there's great thrift shops out there too!

Gong! I think this is a keeper; I really like it. I'm torn about selling the ceramic tree; it's lovely when it's lit up, and it even has a music box that plays O Christmas Tree.

We walked out to Don and Nancy's cabin yesterday evening, because I thought I might not have another chance to see them before I left for Augusta . I remember so well back in the mid-70's when Don was building it, and walking out the rough road with my young sons to help with construction. There used to be the best blackberries back there; we would pick gallons of them in no time at all. Good times, and good memories.

Their road is still just a bit too rough for my Toyota van, but the walk in was so pretty, and so quiet, and then we were at the cabin.

We sat by the fire and talked; what pleasure it is to be by the fire with friends.

Dark is coming earlier these days though, so we headed out before it was too dark to see those mudholes in the road.

We've been taking time in the mornings and evenings to have our meals out on the deck. It's a relaxing way to start the day, and the opportunities to do this will be gone soon enough.

Eggs, turkey bacon, fresh tomatoes (the one that looks kinda green is actually one of my favorites, Black Crim),wheat toast, grits, jam, and coffee this morning started our day right.

And all gone! Well, almost all, anyway.

I will be away all next week, teaching storytelling in Elkins, WV and so my major task the past week was getting everything pulled together for the class. Today I'm packing and doing last-minute tweaks on my plans. It's been good to dig into this class, deciding what I want to bring and what I want to cover. The participants will guide what we do by what they come wanting to learn. But I hope we will get into folklore, superstitions, history, family tales, story building, senses in storytelling, nature and ghost stories.That's a lot for a week!

So that's a quick look at what's going on here at our little place in the hills. I'll be posting when I can in the coming week, and wishing all of you could be with me for Old-Time Week at Augusta. It's sure to be a fine time in the mountains with music, singing, dancing and stories.


Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.