Church and recovery.
Well we finally managed to make it to the local Presbyterian church. Liz and Luke went to the nursery while I went to the service. She said that he did very well and interacted nicely with other kids. We returned home for lunch, then Luke had an early afternoon nap, having missed his morning one. It was super hot again and we didn’t go outside at all. Actually we did go on the front porch for a bit, so Luke could swing. We hung a couple of mirrors and did a little bit of other inside work, and played with Luke. Dinner was a new slow cooker dish.
The fear of the heat is worse than the heat itself.
It continues to be in the nineties and will be for at least another week. No rain in sight either. This morning we took Luke to the park in Spring Hill. He walked around a bit but didn’t really play on the playground. While he took his morning nap I prepared dinner in the slow cooker (rice and beans with lots of added vegetables) and did some cleaning. After lunch and a little play time I went outside and cut grass. It was hot as blazes but I enjoyed it. I cut the front yard with my little push mower, then started on the back field with the tractor, cutting until dark.
More splitting, waiting, and driving.
I think that splitting wood must be one of the most effective upper body workouts available. At least I hope so. It sure got my heart rate up and my muscles burning. In 30 degree weather splitting wood is a great way to stay warm. In 90 degree weather it is a good way to stay miserable. I split about a trailer load and also hauled a trailer full of brush to the dump from the job site. No word from the loggers. I drove home around five and arrived at seven. The drive was lovely, but seemed long.
Back on the Mountain, waiting.
After a morning of working around the house I headed back up to the Mountain. I stopped by and talked with Debbie and Charles at the pottery shop for a while. They are doing well. Next I went to my lot, then next door. I caught Aaron the logger as he was leaving for the day. We chatted a while and he said he wasn’t sure when his boss was going to come up and run the excavator. That was a real bummer. Oh well, I’m sure it will happen eventually. This evening I just read and relaxed.
Back on the farm and in the heat.
I did a last bit of cleanup at the lot this morning, split a little more wood, then drove down to Columbia. I bought a new chainsaw and then went to Harbor Freight for a new drop witch for the “$400 pickup”. Then I came home. Luke was surprised and I think happy to see me, and we read some books. Liz came home a little bit later. We had a nice dinner and played with Luke some more before his bath and bedtime.
The sky was lovely and there was a soft glow out back that the phone camera couldn’t quite capture. The last picture is the automatic Google “enhanced” version that they sent me. It comes a little closer.
More cutting, hauling, and splitting.
Today I cleared a path for the excavator to access the site from the property next door. Mainly that meant just clearing up an old road bed. I also cut up a number of downed trees and hauled them to the dump. The lot is starting to look pretty good. It was another hot day but not miserable. After work I did a lot of reading.
Splittin’
I spent the morning working around the house, namely setting up the hoses to water the pumpkins and loading up the trailer with tools to haul to the Mountain. It was pretty hot, even in the morning. I left a little after lunch time and drove first to Manchester. I stopped by a couple of equipment rental places to inquire about machines for removing stumps. Neither ended up being a good option. Also went by Home Depot for a wood splitting maul. In Monteagle I dropped the tools off at the storage unit, then went to my lot. I walked next door and spoke with the loggers about coming to remove stumps with their big excavator. It looks like they are set for later this week, which is fantastic. Back at the cottage I started splitting firewood. It will split easier once it dries and cracks a little more, but it was good exercise.
Friday feeling like Monday.
We went on a brief walk at the new park this afternoon. I spent most of the day working on little projects around the house. Also did a bit of stuff on the computer. It’s hot.