Sitting in the Window

Friends, I still have post-Covid exhaustion. 

I am trying to keep up with posting, but, my goodness, my yard work is suffering!

I'm glad Jax has been able to help a little. 

Do you see the arbor in the middle?  Keith built that as almost the first thing he ever built here. 

It still stands, though it took a direct hit from a branch this summer, but Ben was able to repair it. 

On either side of it were four beds about twenty five feet long.  One bed was in the shade of the maple tree you see.  The big bush like thing on the left was an oakleaf hydrangea. 

These beds were gorgeous in their full bloom.  I mulched them with straw... you can see it here... 

and they were raised and had to have new bags of dirt poured in yearly.  My gosh, they were beautiful. 

I wish you could see what is left!  There is still one, sort of.... on the side where the maple is.  It is full of 

horrid maple seedlings that I  cut out over and over and over.  But there is still some yarrow growing there,  and the hollyhocks have re-seeded themselves.  All other raised meds were taken out by Ben. I have one left, and Jax is helping me re-do it.  We are waiting until next week, for some reason we are having a blast of summer's heat right now.  It is going to be 99 on Wednesday, the day he usually "works".  

So... I have about fifteen bags of dirt, bought a year ago.  Jax is going to spread them across the bed, rake it smooth... and then we are going to transplant every iris we can find.  I am going to try to buy some more this fall, and we are going to have a beautiful bed of iris in the spring, I hope! 

Meet Buddy, or actually, Big Dog, as I call him.  He was found out in the county on Labor Day, and the kind person who found him posted him... then called the Sheriff, who, God bless the deputy, 

called the Bonner Springs ACO (who is awesome) and she came and got him.  He was very weak, 

almost to emaciation, and could hardly stand.  The vet estimated his age to be around ten or older, which is ancient for a German Shepherd Dog.  The vet believes he is purebred. 

He has had his shots and been chipped, and after three days, he came to me to foster. 

Friends, he is the gentlest boy.  He is not fazed by my littles, by the cats, or by the chickens.  I have yet to hear him bark... the only noise I have heard him make is a groan when he rolls onto his side on the floor.  He had a week of Clavamox for a UTI... and yes, I am crating him at night in Ranger's old crate which takes up a bunch of real estate in the kitchen... but.... he did great this morning while I ran down to the Ag Hall to do something and he was loose the whole time.  I do get up at 1 or 2 and take him out of the crate, let him have a good drink, and then go ouside to relieve himself, then he goes back in and back to sleep. 

The cats nearly went catatonic on his arrival... but Mama Cat now comes up to him and boops him on the nose with her nose!  Our routine is that I get him out of the crate about 5:30, and he goes out on the porch, relieves himself, and I put the cat food out so the cats can start eating breakfast.  They ignore him. 

He lays on the doorstep.  He and Zoey were guarding the door this morning before it got hot. 

We all took a two hour rest this afternoon, then everyone had a snack.  

My friends have been teasing me because I failed with my last two fosters... Zoey and Fritzi.... but.... 

I think this guy deserves a home where someone will cherish him in his final year or two  and devote themselves to him.  He had a lot of people interested in him... but no one came forward to fill out the forms to foster.  

The thing is, I can put him out on the porch when I am getting tired of stepping over him, and know that he will stay close and be within recall.  It's comforting. 

Bullseye was not too sure at first.  I will say that Bully and Molly, the two inside cats, are cautious when they come through the door, still.  I don't blame them, he is bigger than anything ever here... and Ranger has been gone a long, long time.  (Ranger was our black/silver GSD that Keith rescued in the county and we brought back to health.  He was our beloved companion for 8 years)

Our beloved Ranger Boy. 

So you see, there was a "Big" here for years. 

Guess what?  I made another trip to the country last Sunday! 

I went to Garnett, where my two oldest grandsons have lived for years. 

It's about 70 miles away. 

This is Aurora Jane Rose, daughter of my grandson Nathan, who was at work. 

She is just a doll, and so fun to be around.  

Two weekends and seeing my grands and great grands was a lot of fun!

I am including this picture because it cracks me up!  My former daughter in law lives in Garnett, and her partner is a barbecue aficionado.  I could not remember on what street she lived, and she said 

"Just come down the street until you see the giant smoker in the front yard".  

Boy, she was not kidding! 

I had her take this picture just as I was leaving! 

These are beautiful dahlias from the Wyandotte County Master Gardeners garden in front of the National Agricultural Center.  

They make me want to grow dahlias next year, they are so gorgeous!  My friend and fellow volunteer Jan held the pink one so I could take pictures of it. 

The beautiful full moon as it faded this week. 

And the moon setting through my bedroom window as I got back in bed after letting Buddy out one morning. 

This is a gander at the Ag Hall on alert last week.

And his ladies in the shade behind him. 

The gorgeous Cleo likes to watch from afar.... and I am still feeding her at the Little Red Hen House.  However, yesterday morning I saw her come up on the porch to eat, so I know she knows where to find food. 

Molly Ann.  Both she and Bully like to lay in the cool dirt in this barrel planter from which Jax and I pulled the tomato plant. 

Cardinal Vine... a very late planting, I threw a bunch of seeds into a big planter in the only garden bed left - the overgrown one... and what a reward! 

Why did I call this entry 

Sitting in the Window? 

Two years ago, during the height of the pandemic, I bought a desktop computer . It literally sat in the the closet until February or March of this year, when I had the young man from the computer place I use come out and "install" it and hook it up to the printer in my office.  That day, he put the old computer, which had been Keith's.... on my kitchen table to get it out of the way.  He had to connect it for some reason... I don't remember why.... and he left it sitting there when he left that day.  

This is an eight year old HP computer.  

I am still using it daily, I LOVE to sit at the table... watch the garden... I can see the chicken houses on the west side of the yard, I can see the two bird feeding stations.  

The dogs are either under the table or behind me, and it is just so to my liking.  

I had it facing out to the road for a few months, and I could glance up and see the television... but here, the television does not usually get turned on until time for the news.  If I have to print something, I send it in to the "new" computer (which is surely now outdated, too) and print it in the office. 

I like the "new" computer, don't get me wrong.  I had a lap top for a while, but I found it awkward to type on, and I did not like having to balance it all the time if it was not on a firm surface.  Call me old fashioned, I don't care. (The lap top, which was a used refurbished, molders in a closet). 

I like what I like.  

So here I sit, watching the world go by in a tiny fashion outside my window.  

Soon, it will be cold again, and my electric heater sits here, ready to keep me warm as I read and type. 

It suits me. 

Everyone have a great week! 

. 

 

Autumn! Best Time of the Year!

Autumn, the best season! 

Despite some higher-than-normal temps, it is beautiful here in northeastern 

Kansas. 

If we could just get a little rain....

Four days were promised last week, with storms warned.  We did have clouds and 

thunder on Thursday, but despite a few sprinkles, the storm moved over.  Friday, 

we got a light rain.  I'm back to watering the plants again. 

I took that at sunrise on Sunday morning.  Yes, it's really that beautiful, and I'm glad to be alive and well enough to admire it. 

I put a bowl of cat food in the pasture daily for squirrels, the feral cats, and anything else that wants to eat it.  I stood and admired the view.  Yes, I miss seeing the sheep, but no... I do not miss emptying the 

heavy troughs every few days.  I am considering... right now, just considering... broadcasting some wildflower seed and letting the pasture grow up next year.  However.... this pasture was not cut the 

year I moved back, and had to be cut down with a tractor and bush hog (Called a "brush hog", here). 

So, there's that.  

It would make it hard for the wild critters to get around. 

It also kind of admits to defeat for me. 

A beautiful web in my garage on Saturday morning. 

Alas, by the evening, it had been destroyed, probably by a

 cat going through, or a chicken (on the anchor strings). 

This garage and the accompanying shop, a small barn with a cement floor, were 

near the original house on the property, which was on the south fence line. 

It was a u-pick berry farm back then, and encompassed my neighbor's ten 

acres and my neighbor to the east's acreage.  

My happy boy, Jester.  He is going to be ten this year, a venerable age. 

He is maintaining his weight, and except for the burst anal gland, has been 

getting along well.  I have switched him to a food that he seems to like, Bil-Jac Picky Eater. 

(chicken liver flavor).  We are going to the vet every six weeks now, for anal gland expression, and sure enough, last Monday he was found to need it.  The vet and I just looked at each other.  It will be a regular thing now. 

I am having trouble finding a good picture to show you all how very tiny Olive is.  She is the smallest of all the hens, probably not even a pound.  She is a Silkie, and that is Pipsqueak, one of the two Silkie roosters next to her.  One of the bigger pullets (now hens, they are all laying) is particularly mean to her, and she doesn't often come outside.  I would put her with the three Silkies who are in their own little pen, but I am not sure she would be happy with them. 

Those are two of the young pullets.  This is NOT the one that is attacking Olive. 

Can you see Molly? 

This beautiful girl is Cleo, who started out in the Little Red Hen House. 

Part of a big group of feral cats from Missouri, she is truly wild. 

She has been neutered and had a set of shots, but will not come 

near me.  I have learned to look in the morning and evening in the fenceline, to find her waiting for some canned food.  She is living now in the wild 26 acres across the road from me.  It's funny, because I can sense when she is around.  She will let me come within ten feet 

to put her plate down, and the porch cam has caught her eating on the deck many times. 

I go out at 5:30 in the morning in the dark to put a bowl of cat food out so she can eat early. 

There are Wanda and Yeller on deck on the seventeenth.  Wanda will meow to me  now when I go 

in the shop morning and evening to fill their dishes.  I keep dry cat food out there all day, but take it 

up at 8 so the darn raccoons won't get it.  Yeller will lay and stare at me, but he is not ready to be friends yet.  I have actually not seen him for two days, and am a little worried. 

Wanda is mousing at the big hen house too. 

Rusty has been missing for a week, but I am not worried... yet... of all, he can take care of himself. 

The harvest moon on the horizon... I got a bigger picture but it did not have the perspective! 

These are mourning doves on the feeder one morning. 

I have to say something here about the wild birds. 

Last year, I spent hundreds (probably thousands) on the 

blend of wild bird seed I have fed for years.  Like everything else, 

the price of the grain has been passed on to the consumer. 

I am no longer feeding from swinging feeders except for one 

very small one on my deck. 

Every night, I go out to the flat feeder (on the right just barely visible in this picture) and I scoop out 

what seed is not used that day.  I leave just a tiny bit for the raccoons. 

In the last three weeks, almost no wild birds have been feeding.  I have not seen a woodpecker in a month, and I actually threw away suet that had molded ... no one had been eating it. 

Several other people here locally have mentioned that they have not seen any woodpeckers. 

I would say only a fifth of the birds who normally eat have been coming to the feeder. 

I have a separate feeder for the small birds, with a blend of small seed, sunflower hearts and 

dried mealworms.  There are some still eating there. 

I do not attribute it all to Molly lurking around either, because others locally are 

writing about it.  I suspect natural food is in great abundance right now. 

It has been so good to have a respite from the expensive feed for a bit. 

I am not going to feed with the swinging feeders this winter, and won't put seed out in 

abundance as I did before.  

The only remaining swinging feeder is in back of Molly here. 

 (laughing)

There is a comm tower across from my bedroom, and I always watch it for birds. 

Here is a vulture (my favorite bird, and soon to leave us for the winter) in the horaltic position last week. 

Two weeks ago, I was ready to tear the plants out of the 

big planters in the forefront here.  They all looked dead.... and then, miraculously, the weather got a little cooler, and the vining plants began to bloom again profusely, and the geraniums perked right up! 

I have actual sweet potatoes growing under those vines, and next year, I'll plant only sweet potatoes in those planters, as the calibrachoa got drowned out. 

 Some nights I don't get the bowl in fast enough :-). 

Proof that this is my little slice of heaven. 

A good thing to remember when you are wondering what your life is about. 

 

Soggy

We have had a soggy two weeks off and on (and again today) but it is 

getting the garden and flower boxes off to a good start. 

The problem is, I am afraid to plant ANY boughten flowers because we keep dipping down into the low thirties at night.  

 

Arugula, spinach and lettuce coming up in one of the 

deck planters. 

Peas up in the one long bed I had Ben leave. 

They are much higher now, in fact.  In the middle of the bed I planted

onions I picked up running through a store... they were mostly rotted in the bag, 

but, lo and behold, after a couple of days in the rain they are doing fine. 

IF.....these guys leave them alone!  

I have been letting the flock into the house side of the yard the last few weeks for a couple of hours a day. 

I don't need to, I just enjoy watching them run around, and so far, they have not made a 

mess on the porch as they used to. 

I still have three Ameracaunas left, and I am getting two to three 

eggs a day from them, which is pretty darn good considering they are four years old. 

This stunning piece of yard furniture was built for me by Ben, my 

yard helper. 

He is so creative.  This was a purchased flat feeder (and the clear cover was thrown in free). 

It was meant to hang, I think, but you know the black birds would have been all over it, and 

I hoped the little birds would use it. 

I give you the feeder. 

Notice the brown headed cowbird in it. 

To be truthful, I have not had to re-fill it all week, 

and the hanging feeders were literally dropping pounds of 

expensive finch mix all over the ground. 

And... some of the small birds have found it. 

If you squint, there are some smaller birds on the far side. 

I am still feeding along the railing, so that Molly has birds to watch. 

And of course, I can't find the picture of her watching the birds!

The silkies in the little hen house are doing well, but they move so fast I can never get a good picture of them!

Everyone has been soggy these last few weeks. 

I swear they are going to be in the house, next. 

The rescue chickens are now allowed down on the floor daily, in the feed room. (Don't worry, the fourth is still here). 

It makes the mature birds have to walk around and come in the pop hole on the side.  

Every afternoon I have to catch them (it's a pain) and put them back in their pen. 

Because the nights are dipping down, I still have a light above them.  Last night, I forgot to 

turn off the overhead light in this hen house and went back out at 8:30.... they were all nestled together under the light, so they still need it.  Just because they look like teenagers does not mean they don't need TLC. 

Hope everyone has a great week! 

 

What a Year

January, 2020 

Let's go back. 

It was a fresh, new year, and I was looking forward to more happy times on the homestead. 

 My beloved sheep were still here, waiting for me at the gate as I went down to feed, on the first of January, 2020. 

You see there was no snow on the ground that day, and the sun was shining. 

I can tell from this picture I had not started feeding the birds along the railing, as I do now.  As an aside.... I counted six squirrels yesterday afternoon, eating here during the snowstorm. I feed good. 

The sheep were having a good month in February, they were fat and sassy. 

There is Flicka and her son Cookie... but I was beginning to realize that taking care of them was getting away from me. 

 

Our neighbors were burning off around the ponds, they have a wood shop and make fine cabinets. 

I can only see the ponds in the winter now, because my east fence line has grown so much. 

I am considering getting hold of them and finding out if I can have tree eaters come and take 

down the cedar trees.  

I don't want to have to rebuild fence, so it would have to be done carefully. 

Oddly enough, they were doing this yesterday in the snow, and today. 

Farm dog Fritzi was always right behind me. 

Adopted in August of 2019, she settled into life out here in the country without a second thought. The best thing was, like Jester, she did not have any interest in the chickens, and I could trust her to 

go anywhere with me. 

In March, I started seeing a beautiful cat in the pasture. 

Here it is in the feral cat feeder in the pasture. 

He began coming on the deck to eat, and eventually, would let my son and me pet him. 

We called him Tanner. 

And then this came into our lives. 

This was Gemma, called that by Lucky Thirteen Rescue. 

I took her as a foster, she was sixteen, I was told. 

This is her as we drove home the first day, uncertain, wondering what was happening to her. 

It was the first day of lockdown here. 

I had several people (applicants) call about her.  One wanted to know if she could be 

left outside in a fenced yard all day long.  I wanted to ask if she would leave her ninety 

year old mother out, but I didn't.  I realized then I would not be able to let her go. 

I'm going to say this... it wasn't easy.  Snowy, as she was actually named (and I could see on her 

vet papers that were forwarded to me) had been owned by one lady her entire life.  She was 

very choosy about people. 

It took months for her to be comfortable with me. 

She took to Fritzi and Jester right away.  

In March, we also found out that Fritzi was diabetic, and subsequently, that she had Cushing's disease, and we started the twice a day schedule of vetsulin shots. 

Snowy took to life in the country like no one's business.... but she was heck to the chickens, she took down one of the big roosters and almost killed him! 

And always, my steadfast Jester. 

In April, I decided to give up the sheep.  Of all the animals we had had here 

at Calamity Acres, I really, really loved the sheep.  But, I realized it was very hard to find someone to shear only two (and worse the year before, when there was only one). 

As the young man who sheared this year worked, I asked if he would be interested in having all four free, to join his flock.  He was eighteen, he checked with his mother, 

and called me several days later to say they would take them. 

It was very hard to see them go. 

(it was also a rodeo) 

But, I was the one who lucked out. 

I agreed to loan my pasture to the Manus Family (Sam had sheared) for the summer, 

and I gained being able to watch the beautiful flock they brought over. 

In mid-summer, they switched out some of the ewes for lambs, so it was 

even more fun.  And the best thing I gained, was that the boys were available to work 

on projects here I had put off for lack of help.  Ben became my main helper in the yard, I literally don't know what I would have done without his help. He did all the weed-eating and some of the harder yard work I can no longer do. 

In May, the Baltimore Orioles visited the deck. 

And the hummers were back. 

By June, these two had become fast friends. Snowy's favorite place was on the deck or the doorstep. 

I loved seeing her there. 

Tanner, as we called him, became bold enough to come on the deck and wait for his food and pats. 

Unfortunately, about two weeks later, Troy found him dead at his pond as he mowed on the tractor.  I walked over to look... he appeared to have a wound on him... I will spare you the photos from my phone.  He was a beautiful boy. 

The deck planters were filling in nicely. 

Someone else thought so, too.  This little hen took her life into her own claws by jumping over the gate, crossing the yard, and laying in the planter daily, at risk of a Snowy Attack.  

I've been so lucky that my dogs get along with each other so well!

We saw a lot of these all summer. 

I had so much fun growing a meadow in a big laundry tub. 

And frankly, I had way too many planters on my deck, but by the end of July, they were so beautiful. 

This one in particular, the "bird nest"... filled out beautiful, though you can see the gap on the left where the hen laid. 

The sheep and big goat were always a delight to watch.  The goat (whom I called Minerva, but the boys do not name) did a great job of cleaning my fence lines.  I am going to rent a small herd of goats this spring and put them to work on the fence lines in the south part of the yard and in the pasture.  They will only be here for a week or two, they are "rent a goats". 

Very late in July, Ben worked very hard on my raised garden beds, and tilled them up. 

I planted pumpkins, summer squash and sunflowers, oh... and zinnias.  They took off. 

I got a yield of about 15 decent sized small pumpkins that I gifted and also decorated with, 

and at the end of the season they went to feed a neighbor's pigs.  

Keith built that raised garden about 12 years ago, and we liked gardening in it... but... here are the drawbacks.  The beds were put too close together, and Keith HATED weed eating, it was just about the only thing he would not do.  I struggled every year with it.  No matter how we amended the soil, the next year we were buying 20 to 30 new bags of Miracle Gro soil and manure to enhance the beds. 

It was hard, even if I pulled up to the beds themselves in the yard. 

So, I have talked it over with Ben, and I am going to pay him to remove the beds.  They do not extend 

underground, except for the posts on the corners, and they are not embedded.

It is going to be a day's hard, hard work, and the lumber must be hauled away. 

Then, I am going to have that area tilled up, and I am going to plant a larger pumpkin and a bit more squash and some other things.  I did not eat enough tomatoes this year to warrant planting as many as I used to... but I will probably put one plant in for the chickens. 

My days of planting 36 tomato plants are over, friends. 

 

By the third week of August, the plants along the road were showing signs of fall. 

The weather stayed dry in September.  In fact, until last week, we had had no appreciable rain since July.  My well is holding out, so far. 

This guy took to hanging around the bird feeding area. 

I noticed the lambs standing perplexed one afternoon. 

Here was the reason.  It was my first sighting of Spot. 

Spot went on to be welcomed into the house, and slept here many nights. 

On the 19th of December, he asked to go out in the morning when I got up. 

I let him out on the porch... and have never seen him again. 

Another loss.  

It took a few months, but Snowy settled in to be my farm helper, too, as Fritzi grew weaker from her Cushings and diabetes. 

We had some whopper sunrises in October. 

And some gorgeous moonrises. 

By mid-November, my heart was breaking daily.  My little Fritzi had gone blind. 

She was able to get down the east steps to the porch.... carefully.... and for some reason, usually went around the car and came up the south side steps from the patio.  I think it was muscle memory.  I 

watched her every time she went out.  She could still wander around a little in the yard, but the alarming thing was that she was shying away from her shots.  Canine diabetes insulin is given by shot, there is no pill.  This is the second dog I have had with diabetes, and I would not wish it on anyone. Before anyone comments about overweight... the vet told me the Cushings caused it. 

The shot-shying went on for two more weeks, and then we had a miserable weekend where 

she was ill, vomiting and not eating, and then went into a coma.  It was dreadful. 

I had joined an internet group for canine diabetes, but discovered they valued their 

own opinions over those of veterinarians, so took them out of my feed, but I had been 

ingrained that you do not give insulin if the dog has not eaten.  I did not give her 

a shot Saturday night, or Sunday, and I feel that I killed her.

By Monday morning when I rushed her to the vet at 7:30, she 

was recoverable... but on the bubble and completely blind, and I let her cross the bridge in my arms. 

It tore me to pieces.  I miss her every day. 

She was not a cuddly type dog that wanted to be in your lap, but one that was your shadow

and wanted always to be near you.  I listened to her get worse and worse over the months, 

and could hear her labored breathing from the floor.  I still believe I made the right decision. 

At the end of November, I found Snowy bundled down in the bed one morning.  I often let her sleep late, sometimes as long as an hour after I got up... I just went back and forth from the yard checking on her. 

Thanksgiving was very quiet here... my son works nights, so slept all day.  My oldest son spent it with his wife's family (custom)... and I had a quiet day with Jester and Snowy and Spot the cat. 

Pandemic holiday. 

I never dreamed when I took that picture that Snowy would be gone a month later. 

My happy boy helped me decorate for Christmas.  

I did not have a gathering, it was another quiet holiday. 

At Christmas, it was apparent that Snowy was continuing to grow 

sicker.  In November, her vet had felt a tumor on the top of her head above her right eye. 

He surmised that the removal of her mammary tumor in August was 

too late, and that the cancer had already spread.  She had a terrible 

grand mal seizure in bed with me one night, and after that, was 

experiencing small seizures all day on Thanksgiving. 

I filmed them, and took her to the doctor on Friday.  

He looked at them and said they were causing her pain for sure. 

We started her on Keppra three times a day, and gabapentin for 

pain he found in her back. 

We thought we had her pretty balanced, but in mid-December, she 

began to show signs of the little seizures again. 

She was very ill, vomiting and not eating at Christmas, but a 

steroid shot on the 26th and some Cerenia for the upset stomach helped for the weekend, but 

I knew the writing was on the wall, and the doctor confirmed it. 

My little doll... my snuggler in bed.... the little girl that bestowed kisses 

very sparely, so that you KNEW you were worth it.... 

left us for the Rainbow Bridge on the 28th. 

Thank God we had good weather that weekend. 

She spent hours in her favorite place, the doorstep. I left the inside door open, so I could watch her and she stayed out that weekend off and on for hours. 

With her brother, who was very attached to her. 

Under the kitchen table, waiting for a crumb to fall. 

My heart is broken for these two special little girls. Jester is lonely. 

To top it off, Spot also is gone. 

It is going to be a while before I can take another senior in. 

2020 was the year with no concerts, no travel.  I stayed pretty close to home, 

and wore a mask every where I went.  I still helped out at the Ag Hall, 

and even led tours during the summer (that's fun in a mask) for small 

family groups.  I admit to you that I am scared to death of getting Covid, because I am 

diabetic.  I try to stay healthy (I could have eaten better over the holiday, I DID bake a 

lot of cookies) and I still get exercise daily, taking care of the chickens, etc. 

I miss music, but I have sponsored musicians online during the year, and listen to lots of diverse music on the phone and computer. 

I hope we can be back in the concert halls sometime this year. 

I have friends and cousins who have recovered from Covid.... 

I pray those who have not gotten it do not, and those of you who do.... that you heal in mind and body. 

I pray daily for our world, our poor world that has been so ravaged... but... 

I also look forward to planting another garden, more flowers, maybe some new chickens, 

and the return of the flock for the summer. 

Life goes on, a little lonelier, but it goes on. 

I hope you all have a happy new year, and thanks for reading the longest blog post I have ever made!