Reality sets in

As many of our homesteading family know by now, Quentin came back from his uncle's funeral to crazy news from his job. For those that don't, in short ... They made him take "bereavement time" and the points to accompany it, with the proviso that he bring back the flyer from the funeral home to prove he'd been there, so that they then would revers the bereavement points and he'd still have his job. Lo and behold, he goes back after the funeral with the flyer and was basically told, "Sorry 'bout the funeral, but you now have too many points against you for absences to keep your job. Bye-bye." We are still waiting to find out if he'll get his unemployment or not, and that could take a few weeks. We are hoping he gets it, so he'd have some spending money of his own.

However, there's so much to do around here, it really isn't that funny, and the time off, we've decided, would be good for him. He can apply for rehire in six months, and in the meantime, as long as he maintains his job-hunting per requirements, even if he doesn't get another job, that incredibly long to-do list can get whittled down a lot faster on the small stuff during the week, when before, he barely had time for anything. It does mean he has to do more of the chores around here, as I'm the sole breadwinner right now, but that's okay. When I was between jobs for 18 months, he was our sole breadwinner and the chores and such were all on me. It's a switch, but we can do it.

In other news, "fresh season" at my job is finally over with, and while the money was nice, the 55-60 hour work weeks were killer. I'm about dead on my feet. We had a three-day weekend to celebrate the end of things, and with Turkey Day in just a few days, I have another four days off for that. I've been working thirty-three days straight, and I honestly haven't a clue how to deal with time off. I've forgotten what it is!

This weekend was still busy, though. Homesteading always is, even if it's all just small stuff. Of course, if you go with the Rule #1, Don't sweat the small stuff and Rule #2, It's all small stuff, nothing fazes you. Saturday we made a pilgrimage to Fayetteville/Springdale west of here just over an hour away. Neither of us had ever been to Hooter's, and I'd promised him a trip for lunch there after fresh for a late birthday lunch. So off we went. He had a blast with the eye candy, though he was so focused on the menu it took one of the waitresses deliberately dropping a napkin at his feet, saying "Ooops," and squatting down to get it for him to start looking around like he was supposed to! Silly man, but it shows how much he is focused on our marriage and not on looking around at what he doesn't have. Though the manager there needs to go on a diet and exercise program. The girls were nice to look at, if that's your thing, but the manager was a beach ball with appendages! Enough to put y'all off your food, though what we had was really good. (Whoever tried to tell me homesteading meant not having fun like lunch was, is off their nut!)

We also took a tour of the mall there, not that it's much, before heading to a grown-up toy store - the local Harbor Freight. We found several things we shall have to get from there for the homestead. They've got a greenhouse that will work to start, a generator he likes, and a cutting torch to make taking the Merlot apart a lot LOT easier for him, all for reasonable rates. For a late birthday present, I got him a logging chain and we got a solar light for $8 to screw down to the porch that will light up the doorknob for us without running up our electric bill.

Not that the electric bill is much. We ran to the power company offices today among other things, because we hadn't gotten the bill yet. They printed us off one right there, and it was much less than we'd thought it would be with running the space heater out here in the living room nearly 24/7, along with the space furnace in the bedroom just about as much. Considering all the spray foaming we've done, the insulated blackout curtains and blankets we've hung, the energy efficient lights we use, and that we turn things off if we're not using them, our bill was not bad at all, only $70 for the month. So we know we'll be okay this winter even if we add another heater or two, though any others will likely be vent-free propane heaters, and we'd run lines into the house through the floor to the heaters, and either get several of the cylinders and hook them together or get a propane pig in here. We're likely to go with a pig in the long run, because our eventual stove will be propane, along with our water heater.

We found the stove we want, in apartment size, with four burners (including one big enough for me to can on), and a good-sized oven on it. We also found the propane water heater we want, and finally found the stovepipe and chimney kit for a reasonable price that are mobile-home approved. The best part for Quentin about the chimney kit is that it's set to go through the roof or the wall, so he can go through the wall and stay off the roof, and hopefully not have to worry so much about falling off the roof and busting some important part of his anatomy like a limb or his neck.

Fall color's over here at the house, but it was nice while it lasted. By next year, there'll be less color around the house than there was this year, but it will be because all the brushy and shrubby stuff that's just junk trees will be cleared out, making the property all the much nicer to live on.

Oh yes, and we have internet again, which is why I can type this and get it posted, along with photos!!!!!

 Here, Quentin's working on the spacers for the Hardibacker to go behind the woodstove.

This is a view down the easement during fall color. It didn't come out too well because the day was overcast, but you can see some of the gorgeous yellows and golds I got to look at for a few days. The squarish thing with a hole in the middle in the foreground is the frame left from burning one of the recliners from the trash pile up by the deck.

The trash pile by the deck AFTER the furniture had been pulled out and burned. Boy, does it look a lot better. Still got a long ways to go, though.

This is part of the easement edging for the parking area that Quentin did. It makes it a lot easier for him to back the van out. The tires are useless for driving on for various reasons, but they are being held on to along with others we've found on the place to help make raised beds next year. Waste not, want not when it comes to a raised bed garden.

Another view of the parking area.

And looking down the drive towards the road so you can see the front of the parking area. If the electric folks need to work on the easement at all, it's awful easy to move the side stuff out of their way and still allow us to park here in the widest, clearest, cleanest spot of the drive.

The electrical splice got buried, see? And it works great despite the fact that we've had some good downpours. No electrical problems at all. Whew.

Quentin working on his chainsaw on the deck. He's just having a blast.

 This is for those of you wondering what he did to the bottom of the Reliance toilet seat to make it work on a five-gallon bucket. I have no clue how he got the legs off or what he did, but it looks like this underneath and sits sound on the bucket. We use the doodie bags like it's supposed to, to make cleanout a lot easier on both of us.

Near the wood pile, where we've been clearing out brush and such, during fall color. Just beautiful!

 Looking up the drive to the house from the parking area during fall color. Looks a lot different than when we started, doesn't it?

For comparison, similar shots of cleared stuff ...

And looking up towards the house now that fall has truly set in and the leaves have all fallen. Yes, I know the woodpile's shorter, not from use, but because we got tired of the deer kicking it over and knocked it over ourselves, back out of the way of the drive. For some reason, the deer kept kicking it into the walkway up to the house, and we got a little tired of that.

So now it looks like this. The white blobs behind it are empty scoopy litter containers from the boy's litter. I'm saving them for planters for next year's garden.

The lines are the screen ... it's a shot from my kitchen window looking behind the trailer. It's prettier than it looks, with all the leaves on the ground and even with the trees bare. It's just fall or early winter pretty.

This is NOT a small pool noodle. It's actually small pipe insulation that I'm going to be cutting down to size in two pieces and crocheting a cover for it to make a two-sided draft dodger that will slide under the front door and stop drafts. Right now, we're using a towel, and of course, every time someone opens the door, you have to put it back if someone's still indoors to keep the heat in. So a small project for all those dark evenings I have coming up, when I can't get outside to do things, that will help with keeping our home warm and comfy and still be cute.

Taken from the deck, looking down the walking path towards the parking area. You can see some of the trash along the sides a bit better, especially on the left, but you can also see a lot of what we've managed to clear up and clear out that has left things much more open.

Quentin's new to him trailer that he picked up from his cousin Donnie while in Nevada, MO for his uncle's funeral. Also, the burn barrels, neither of which is even a quarter full of ash yet, and we burn trash regularly, along with brush (keeps the brush ashes from flying all over the place).

And finally, a shot of Bouncer looking out the screen door one sunny, warm afternoon to say howdy.