Begin and End

Turkeys are not know for their subtlety.  I'd been reluctant to go out in the wet, wet fog of early morning.  It was enough that Bess and I had taken the trash down to the big road.  Back at the house while it was still dark, I returned to the computer while waiting for that blanket to lift.  Impatient with my dawdling, one of the big toms stood on the rail just outside later and gave me what for, demanding breakfast for him and his gang.

Looking out the kitchen window is as entertaining as watching television.  There is a wooden power pole next to the first shed (no underground lines up here).  Every time a PG&E guy shows up for whatever reason, I ask to have that pole checked for stability because it is a favored storage bin for the woodpeckers and I worry about the Swiss cheese effect they create.  Yesterday I watched an ingenious grey squirrel climb the pole and steal acorns deposited by the woodpeckers.  Acorns are there for the picking on the ground.  Maybe this klepto squirrel just liked the challenge.

By now, my son Dave is used to strange text questions from his mother, e.g., "Is this an air compressor?"  I sent him a photo of some strange-looking piece of machinery that is out in the barn.  "Yes, Mother, it is a gas-powered compressor."  (Who knew?)  Yesterday's query:  "How can I tell if a drill bit is for metal or wood, and does it matter?"  He doesn't even ask why anymore, and patiently explains what I need to know.  I haven't felt the urge to work on a new craft project for ages, but an idea has been niggling in the back of my brain and the time has come to act.  I can't say yet what it is (1) because I don't know how it will turn out and, (2) if it turns out well, it will become a gift and I don't want to ruin the surprise.  The project will require some work down in the shop.  I got a start with what I could do with hand tools from my chair yesterday sitting in front of the wood stove.  While it hadn't rained, the fog had dropped the temperature 20 degrees and there was 100% humidity.

The sun did come out in the afternoon long enough for me to haul another load of branches to the burn pile, but it didn't last.  As it began, so the day ended.  This study in black and blue was taken at what normally would be sundown last evening.  The fog bank was creeping back up from the valley to spend the night.  Barely light now, I see it's even thicker than yesterday.  Any wood I haul today will be up to the porch for firewood.