Social Distancing - Week Three

Living in the country, we have intimate and often unwelcome interactions with wildlife. I’ve written often about the deer, woodchucks, skunks, possums, rabbits, squirrels, sparrows, and mice that I have to do battle with almost all the time. The deer have been grazing in my orchard and rambling across my garden all winter and I haven’t bothered with them. But now my tulips are up and their tender little leaves are delicious to deer. I made a brew of cayenne pepper, garlic, and soap and sprayed the tulips to discourage the deer. Unfortunately, I waited a day too long to do that and some of the tulips were already eaten. The survivors are okay so far. A woodchuck has emerged from hibernation in a den that I did not notice out by the woodland garden. Its den is in the middle of what will become our pig pen in a few weeks and I think that will encourage the woodchuck to move out. If not, I’ll have to take more drastic measures. And the skunk is back tearing the lawn apart looking for grubs. I saw it in the front yard when I got up before dawn this morning and I took a shot at it and scared it away, but it will be back. The most annoying animal invader right now is a mouse (I think it’s just one, but probably not) that is living in the walls of the house. Every night it scurries and scratches around in the ceiling above my bed. The noise of it wakes me up and as I lie there listening to it, the Rogers and Hart song Dancing On the Ceiling runs through my head. That song is a love song, but when I switch a few words, it fits the present situation perfectly.

It dances overhead
In the ceiling near my bed
Out of sight
Through the night.
I try to hide in vain
Underneath my counterpane.
There's a mouse
In my house.
I whisper, "Go away, you pest
It's not fair."
But the noise will attest
It's still there.
I hate my ceiling more
Since it is a dancing floor
Just for
That mouse.

We’ve set traps throughout the house, but the mouse remains and the nocturnal dancing continues.

It was hard last week to see the springtime world, so recently released from winter’s grip, once again disappear under a layer of snow. I should be used to it by now. It happens every year. Winter is a bully who keeps pushing and shoving his way clear into May. But I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it. It makes me sad to see the flowers smothered under snow no matter how many times it happens. I pushed back against the bully by starting more seeds. The weather warmed later in the week and the snow is gone – again. But when will it go away for good? I’m still hoping that global warming will kick us up to Zone 6. Sorry Greta.

Monday.

Poor little crocuses.

Some of the seeds I started two weeks ago have sprouted. I love to see the tiny green leaves and imagine what they will look like in their summer glory. In an overly optimistic mood, I switched some winter things out and set up warm weather things. I put the heated chicken waterers away. I set up the rain barrel by the back porch stairs. I brought out the garden hose and opened the water line to the outdoor faucet. I put away the snow shovel and the bucket of salt on the front porch. We will probably need them again, but I’m tired of looking at them. I’d rather drag them out again if I have to rather than look at them all the time.

Seed Starting Central in the music room.

On Thursday and Friday the weather was beautiful. I spent both days working outdoors. I weeded flowerbeds – the weeds, especially chickweed, are growing rampantly. I filled my two new raised beds and covered several other raised beds with weed control fabric. The sun was warm on those days and I loved working in just shirt sleeves.

Friday.

Two more beds filled.

Three beds covered.

Garlic is doing great.

On the snowy, rainy, and cold days, I spend most of my indoor time working on family history. I love to pick a family name in the morning and go online and gather all the information I can on every member. One of my favorite things lately has been to search the World War II Draft Registration files on Ancestry.com. I love it because it gives information like the height, weight, eye color, hair color, and occupation of the men who registered. It makes them more real to see a description like that. I’ve noticed that men were smaller back then. I rarely find a man six feet tall. And they were thinner – most weigh under 175 pounds. Maybe living during the Great Depression had a lot to do with that. It is fascinating finding out who these people were.

Indoor flowers to cheer me - my oncidium orchid.

Clivia minata.

Back when our tax return came, we ordered and paid for a bed frame from an Amish furniture maker in Ulysses. We picked it up on Wednesday. It is very nice. For years now our bed has been a mattress resting on box springs that sat directly on the floor. It’s nice to have a real bed with a headboard and rails again.

Our new bed frame.

Our dryer broke last week. It was in failing health for a long time and finally succumbed. Stacey, ever the handyman, took the old dryer out – no mean feat since it sits in a tight corner of the kitchen. We weren’t sure how we were going to get a new one. For several days we had damp clothes draped over everything trying to dry them. Then through an unforseen blessing, we were able to get a new one. It arrived on Thursday. I was so glad to see it. It’s amazing how quickly laundry builds up. We are blessed by miracles God sends us through mortal ministering angels.

We are still coping with social distancing, and it hasn’t been too bad for us. We received word at the beginning of the week that our schools will remain closed until April 9th – unless they change it again. Miriam went down to the Thayn’s house on Wednesday. Rachel is due to deliver grandchild number seven (their fourth and another girl) any day now and Miriam went down to help take care of Hazel, June, and Mabel for a few days. We’re excited to add another grandchild to the family. With Miriam gone, Stacey and I did feel a little more isolated, but we are doing okay.

Little Dutch irises.

Crocuses and squill.

Yesterday Stacey and I drove up to Wellsville to buy chicken feed at the Tractor Supply. It was a dreary, rainy day. There was hardly anyone around and it seemed a bit strange. While we were there, I also bought more seeds. I don’t need them for this year’s garden, but I like to have a stash of them. While we were driving around, I noted the progress spring is making. The hills are starting to take on a little color – not green, that comes later, but a reddish hue from the maple trees budding to bloom. We also saw pussy willows in bloom along the Genesee. And earlier in the week, when the sun was shining, we saw colts foot blooming along the roadsides. That’s a welcome sign. On Friday night we heard another welcome harbinger of spring for the first time this year – peepers! We were so happy to hear them.

Colts foot.

I moved the chicks to larger quarters.

This was our third week holding church services at home, and this was Fast Sunday, so part of our service was bearing our testimonies. We had a very small group (Miriam is gone and Nancy couldn’t make it in person, but she joined us via technology). We sang hymns, prayed, partook of the sacrament, bore testimonies and then went on with our Sunday School lesson discussion. After our service, we broke our fast together. The Dunns brought a roast and baked beans. Stacey made rolls, a jello salad, and funeral potatoes. There was chocolate cream pie for dessert. It was a nice meal. I’m really enjoying having church at home – more than I probably should. I love the simplicity and the intimacy of our little group sitting and worshiping together.

After church today.

It looks like the whole week ahead of us will be rainy. On Monday night and Tuesday night the rain will be mixed with snow. So it seems I’ll be indoors most of the time. I guess there are a lot of people who will be spending the week indoors. Such is the way we live these days.

This will be the last week the crocuses will look this good.