Monday, June 8, 2015

Three days in June...

Took Friday off.

I wanted to prime the racks on Friday, but the wind came up too soon in the morning so I kept cutting wood and finished the log pile. Five weeks since it was delivered, used more gas on Friday than I expected so let's call it 10 saw tanks worth of gas. Now I have to cleanup a spot to stack wood so I can start splitting.





Finally got the knack of putting down gravel in the driveway. The 150' or so section by the garden that got muddy in the spring I raised up about 4", though I still need to pickup the rocks on the side and make sure there is no spots where water will pond up. part of the 13 hours I put on the tractor this weekend.





So I wanted to prime the racks before Uncle John's burial on Saturday....but it ended up taking me over an hour (and a trip to Walmart for a cheap electric mixer) to mix it up. Had to use a metal bar to scrape the sludge off the can bottom up to wher the mixer could mix it up. Worked well putting the can and mixer inside the five gallon pail -- I could just let it go on it's own while I cleaned in the garage.



So Sunday morning I *finally* got the next three racks primed:




Now that's one big ass rock:

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Another cold day...

Think I've gone about as far as I can go till I get those other three metal racks painted and back in place this weekend to give me some place to store stuff away as I clean the rest.
And the label maker has come out :D

Monday, June 1, 2015

A cold day in June

Came home from work, lit the woodstove, put on a pull over and a hoodie and went and worked in the garage a bit more:




Sunday, May 31, 2015

More updates...and friends pickup you up or lie down...

Two racks painted and back in place...three more to go (hopefully by next Sunday afternoon; between Uncle John's memorial service and rain coming on Sunday it became clear I couldn't get them done this weekend :( ):


Finally got the small tree by the garage down:



Stopped at Hart's for some more six-pack of veggies to fill in spots in the garden. I am working unbelievably hard not to buy these dinosaurs :D


Old plant containers dropped off at the swap shed at the dump...and this bench in need of cleaning brought home!


One tank of gas on Saturday, two more on Sunday. Rain came in earlier than forecast, but since it started as a warm rain and I was sweat soaked...I just kept on going as I got drenched! Maybe 1-1/2 tanks left to go and I'll be done with the bucking.




Monday, May 25, 2015

Shut up and Dance with Me

When I looked up the video for the song...I wasn't expecting one of the most fun, 80s homages I've seen in a while!

Memorial Day Weekend Doings...

More work around the house (except for a nice Sunday drive on Monday morning up to New Braintree and back...because I was too tired to work first thing in the AM!). Mom swung by to drop some things off, and John Lombardi stopped in to say goodbye before his move to New York. Finishing up today by watching Mad Max for the first time. How did I never watch this before? :/

De-cluttering the garage. As I have no plans to open a commercial greenhouse soon, I'm thinking my collection of pots can go...

Moved the electrical service to the house in 1999, guess it's time to take down the old meter housing.

4-1/2 chainsaw tanks of gas into the log pile, quite a few blocks building up!

Ratchet Rake for the bucket (a ratchet strap and cable system holds it in place)...this thing works really well!


Rake off, time to scoop and remove the debris:

Two shelves painted. Now once I move stuff to these, I can paint the remaining three. Wanted some bright color to make it "lighter" in the garage, and I'm hoping the tractor paint will keep them from forming the light surface rust the cheap racks were prone to do.

Letting some of the wildflower patches be for bees for now.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Early start to the day...

Up about 5...started with a 1.7 mile bike ride around the block (did have to walk up the hills), maybe about 20 minutes.

Then split wood for 30 minutes to make this nice load, then another 10 to get it stacked and the tractor put away:

Monday, May 18, 2015

One of the best meals I've ever made...



It started with a quick side-trip on the way home to Woodstock Orchards to pickup some apples...and on their counter was asparagus and my brain said, "Hmmmm....you know I think that could work..." A quick google and some customizations in my head gave me this meal :D

Grilled Chicken, grilled the Asparagus (my garden) and Crispin Apple (Woodstock) together, on bed of salad greens (Pakulis'), topped with a local Jack cheese I picked up at Sweet Peas Fine Foods, drizzled with warm honey and a splash of oil and vinegar.

It was just absolutely high-end restaurant level shear awesomeness!

Since I couldn't find a good stream last night, enjoyed it while watching the finale of Mad Men.

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Another good Sunday.

Cooper came for an overnight on Friday:


Picking up sticks: You're doing it right :D


Silly tulip:


Started mucking out the swim pond. The tractor makes this job just a bit easier!




Sunday morning started off at 6:30 when I started cutting firewood. Ran a bit more than one tank of gas through the saw.

Nice London Broil with Asparagus with a simple oil/vinegar/salt/pepper for dressing and seasoning.


Sunday, May 10, 2015

Tarping the garage (and more food)...

Out at 7am to blow the sticks off the roof...


I really need to get around to shaving off this moustache that both amuses and horrifies me :D


Making drain holes:




:/ 26' roof that I ordered a 30' tarp for which is actually 32'. But at least I have enough to cover the leaking spots.


Time for a break! Asparagus, and eggs with hot peppers, onions, and goat cheese:




Done...almost. I'm having an issue with the tires along the back sliding off! I may need to tack up something to keep that from happening. I was already planning to go up another day to straighten the tarp once more now that I have the two edges along the fascia nailed down.



Saturday, May 9, 2015

A good day in May...

Started off running a tank of gas through the saw:



Realized after I cut it I was...happy. Not simply satisfied, but actually happy knowing I have three years worth of wood. Happiness is something that eluded me for so many decades.

Then I changed and went for a bike ride. Last time I tried the roads near Natchaug forest was two years and fifty pounds ago -- and the bike back then wasn't safe for the road. My health and the bike after the tune-up did so much better today than back then. Felt especially good since I was able to only go out a couple times last year due to my injured Achilles (which is probably 95% healed now).



For dinner: grilled swordfish in a olive oil and lemon marinade seasoned with oregano and thyme (picked today) plus basil and mint (dried from last year's garden) to go with the season's first asparagus.

Monday, May 4, 2015

Peggy, with Swagger

Perhaps my favorite Mad Men scene ever, even better than "Sit down, shut the door" -- and not a word was spoken: