What a difference a week makes. LastSunday we were waiting for snow, this Sunday it’s 80 degrees. The chicks that were supposed to arrive tomorrow, came today, causing a canceled trip to the Broadway musical and a hurried trip to the post office. 31 noisy peepers have settled down in a kiddie swimming pool in the garage, warmed by a red spot light. The next few weeks at thomsonranch will include visits from school children and their parents, cameras in hand.Funny how chicks bring out the inner child in the teenagers who also want their picture taken with a soft fuzzy chick.
On Saturday, this year’s farm intern, recently retired Jane, on the other side of 65, patiently planted carrots and lettuce by hand in the 100 foot rows. Visiting friend Ron chose to do the tougher job of digging out the monster clumps of grass at the ends of the rows, dubbing it more “manly” than planting. I don’t know, the sight of Jane on her knees deftly dropping one seed in each hole with the precision of a surgeon conjured up visions of pioneers planting for their family’s survival, a al Laura Ingalls Wilder’s The Long Winter. thomsonranch’s size is such that with the modified square foot methods we use, our planting and harvest is too large for a family garden, but calling it a farm is a stretch, as the guys at the old timey feed store keep reminding me when I haul out my Ag extension card. They also snicker at me when I search for supplies in the dusty back of the store, using plain English to describe hardware. “You know, the kind of lock that slides across into a sleeve?” You mean a barrel bolt, ha, ha, ha.In this bleak economic environment I’m glad I can provide them business AND entertainment. Sort of like dinner and a hat when you spot raccoon roadkill.
As to the hawks and foxes, the fishing line appears to be working. We haven’t lost any more girls since the line went up, but it only took 3 days for me to clothesline myself on one of the low parts. The saying around here is “if there’s something to spill, drop, break or trip over, I’m your gal”. Maybe I should add throttle yourself.
