Alls Quiet On The Western Front

Living on a farm has it’s pluses and minuses. It is easy to self-distance but then again, it is too easy to self-distance.

I take the dogs for a walk each morning and it is very quiet. For one thing it is like 5:30 in the morning and for another, few others are awake at that time. Living in a rural area you can hear distant noises clearly. I can hear trucks driving miles away and later in the day even hear bees swarming 1,000 feet away. I tend to talk quietly as I know at least early in the morning my voice will carry.

I have been into town a few times but have tried to stay home as much as possible.

Since I had the orchard weed whacked recently I have been trying to maintain that. I spent days trying to find the right grease fitting for my tractor mower. I had to go into multiple stores and try to match them to the holes.; not being able to bring the part needing the fitting with me as it is many hundreds of pounds in weight. You would think the manual would be useful however I spent weeks getting the right drive belts because the manual was wrong. Anyway, I got the proper fittings after a long wait on shipping and greased up the mower. A couple days later I heard loud thumping. I wish I had noted where this happened because a part came off the mower due to a broken bolt. The mower works by swinging hammers which shear off grass and weeds (think of these as hands with the fingers cupped and swinging at the wrist). One of the 12 hammers came off and is lost forever somewhere in the 8 acres. I had replaced all hammers almost a decade ago, but I guess I threw the old ones out. I used the metal detector for a couple of hours but didn’t find it. Had I found the old one, I could have gotten a bolt that day (well assuming the manual had the correct size) and been back in business. Instead I had to find an internet company who would ship these. I ordered all 12 and they are expediting things but it has taken a few days. Still the weeds grow. So those hammers should come in today, then the search for bolts can start.

A few weeks ago I was cleaning my InstantPot and lost the weight which keeps the pressure in. I ordered a replacement on Amazon but because they are expediting certain products, shipping on this was held up over a week.

Both dogs should be seen by the Vet but that will wait another week or so too. The Vet normally holds court two times a week at the Farmers Market nearby. Although the market has been closed she did deliver prescriptions during a few hour period the other week. ‘Deliver’ is kind of a misnomer. You drive up and she hands the meds though your car window. When she starts actually seeing dogs again, she and the helper will handle your animal while you keep your distance.

I have a number of projects which are all on hold but hope to start them again. In the meantime I’m watching a lot of television and sleeping often.