Visiting Day

The first arrival was the rain, the rain I'd been able to avoid the day before.  Yesterday it started as I let the first goats out of the barn and fell steadily for hours.  I missed a quick visit from Joel while I was milking.  He has been perfecting his canning techniques and brought me a jar of beautiful alabaster pears (and a few fresh pears, too) and left them on the porch.  The sun came out in early afternoon, the sky filled with a gorgeous, constantly moving cloud display. 

Shortly thereafter, Tree Guy appeared.  The soaking rain made it safe to set off the brush piles, and he was antsy after two days of inactivity.  TG had intended to burn just the one pile out by the garden, but the weather held and he just couldn't help lighting off a second by the fallen oak in the side yard.  I went out to help pick up the twiggy debris that covered the ground.  It was actually warmer outside than in the house, and there was a toasty bonfire.  TG is going elk hunting next month, and we talked guns and told hunting stories.  Conversation moved in many different directions as we worked and he tended the fire.  A light rain started falling again just about the time there was nothing left but a pile of ashes, and it was time for Bess and me to go back in the house.

Giving a last hurrah before going down, the sun caught and limned the four antlered bucks browsing for leaves and acorns right in front of the kitchen windows.  I'm very glad to see they've made it safely through the season.  I get proprietary about "my" deer.

Thinking I'd seen the last visitors for the day, it was more than a little surprising when I started to go out for evening chores and looked into Faye's brown eyes right there on the doorstep.  She readily accepted being leashed to the porch post again, as well as a few dog cookies and a pan of water, while I called her owners.  (I'm going to put their number on speed dial.)  Hurriedly putting all the critters to bed, Bess and I then sat on the porch with Faye and waited for Missus Owner to come for her.  She explained they are building a larger dog run for Faye so she won't be so confined during the day, hoping that will help curb her wandering tendencies.

I had more visitors yesterday than I'd get in a month.  It was a good day.