Snapshots of Pastoral Joys, Round Three

More gleanings from the great disorder in my room:

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Firewood underneath Big House windows, 2005

It was ordered around June, probably for reasons of economy since fuel is not so much in demand then. It is probably fir, and after it was delivered and dumped in our driveway in a huge antheap, we would stack it in a concrete bay of sorts beside the house. Opapa and Omama made an alcove of it, by putting a grid of white wood (two by two inches or something of the sort) around it, covering it with clear plastic to shield it from the rain, but leaving it open on one side in a species of doorway.

We inherited tree stumps, on top of which one would balance the piece of wood upright, as well as the axes with which we clove the wood into kindling. Though we had a concrete surface suitable to split the wood upon, it was a jarring sort of exercise and worthless when the wood was especially knotty, whilst the softer stumps absorbed the shocks nicely and — I think — helped the grain split far better.

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Fall, 2001?

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One of our Columbia chickens, 1999 or later.
By this time, the hen enclosure was on the opposite edge of the property, where it would later stay as long as our fowls lived. Though the photo is cropped, remnants of dry weeds testify to our habit of offering chickweed, etc., to the chickens when we went gardening, or simply in passing. Because these plants were not so welcome in the vegetable plot, it was lucky that the hens adored eating some of the species. We strung them in the fencing rather than tossing them on the earth so that the birds could easily rip away the leaves and the tenderer parts instead of tussling with the whole beasts, roots and all.

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Farewell from the fall, 2001 or thereabouts:

After cropping this photo for a while, I spotted the reason for this shot: there is a formation of Canada geese betwixt the canopy and the telephone wire, at the left-of-centre.