Wally & the Guerrilla Growers

Today started very early for me ... not necessarily for Denise, except that it's Sunday and she didn't need to get up early. She, Henry & I did an early evening Wally the beaver watch, the other night ... and again ... no Wally. So when we got back to the house, we decided that maybe a morning stakeout would be in order... Well 6:45 came early for me, but I got up, put a pot on so I could make some oatmeal before heading out. I had parked my jeep out by the pond the night before so that we didn't have to drive it up in the morn and possibly frighten Wally away. The plan was that the three of us were to walk over during predawn hours and wait to see if Wally's an early riser too. Well, Henry wouldn't/couldn't wake up so it was just Denise & I. So there we sat ... in the jeep ...  in the dark ... and waited ...   Seems like Wally may be keeping his business hours a secret ...

  

Anyway, after an hour or so, morning had dawned and we packed it in ... But now I'm up ...  we're in the Jeep ...  and there's an 'illegal' road that someone bulldozed off the access road that runs along Denise's property line. I want to get the tires dirty and there's plenty of mud. So we drive a short way, to where the 'new' road begins ... and right there off to the side, is all this stuff. So I got out to take a quick look and find all the makings for a Guerrilla Marijuana Grow. Flower pots, gas heaters, fans, framing for a structure with clear corrugated roof for sunlight, tubing for water, etc...  Now yes, we're in the boonies, but this isn't exactly hiding it well ... :-?  

Gas heaters and metal shelving to keep the plants off the ground ... all this stuff is literally on the shoulder of this 'illegal' road ... no attempt at concealment ...  What were these guys thinking??? Knuckle Heads ...

There's over 300 starter pots and trays, clear corrugated roof panels for sunlight, tubing for water ... it's all here. Later I told Denise "at least it's not a Meth lab" ... this didn't amuse her ;-) The only thing we couldn't tell was, is this operation going up or was it dismantled from some where and moved here? There's a very interesting story about the previous owners of the farm that's much too long to tell here ... that,  and I can't remember the whole thing ... But let's just say that there was a family with about 16 adopted/fostered children, ages 2+/- to 17 +/- and all their names started with the letter 'J' ... when a new child was brought into the fold ... a 'J' was configured into their name - I don't think much more needs to be said here. But it seems that one of the older children still owns this piece of adjoining property ... and ..... enough said.

Denise in her Bush outfit, hunting with a Nikon. So anyway, after that we continued up the small road, ... 4 wheel drive ... I was happy. As we hiked around, we came across another 'strange' sight ...  someone had cut down some small trees on the side of the access road, but they cut them at 3-4 feet off the ground. And this lead to a trail disappearing into the woods. So here we are ... might as well investigate ... The brush along the trail looked like it had been macheted but why? it wasn't that thick anyway ... and if it was the Growers looking for a grow sight ... nice breadcrumb trail genius's ...  Well the one trail split into two, and later split again ...  and I didn't know anymore if we were following people trails or wildlife ... and if it were the Growers ... 'common sense' would indicate that they would probably traverse deep into the woods, maybe for hours ... who knows. So we stopped and headed back... 

There were too many oddities about this whole scene ... nothing seemed to make sense. They're probably two different incidents, but one seemed to lead us to the other ... Anyhow, all the clues weren't adding up to anything tangible which left us very confused ... intrigued ... but confused.

Can you spot the cougar in this pic? Denise told me of a story about a family that went on a safari of sorts, when they stopped for a family pic ... Later ... back home, while going over the vacation pictures, they spot the face of a cougar in the bushes behind the posing family ... So she's (Denise) on high alert now when ever she's out in the field, after her two cougar sightings. This river is part of the Bellingham water supply and runs through the property, and part of it feeds the pond.    p.s... there is no cougar in the pic ... only Denise ... I think ... ;-)

Work & Play

Today was a little drizzly ... and the cold weather has been moving in & out this past week ... so it's time to get my little wood stove some food, and get ready for the snow. Wayne (Denise's upstairs lodger) had cut up a fallen tree by the pond, courtesy of Wally the beaver ... and I later split it up to dry out some. I use these opportunities to get some exercise and it's fun because it's all leading to my owning my own land and doing this stuff for myself ... I figure ... I'm basically just practicing :-)    

Nothing like old fashioned log splitting to get the blood moving. It sort of gives me a first hand account on how our predecessors forged their way on this land years ago. As I drive around the valleys here, I remind myself that the pastures and meadows I see, were once probably all forest, and were cleared with only axes, oxen and some serious hard work.  So with a faint drizzle, the cold rolling in, and the sweat pouring ... I'm getting my exercise in ... it was one of Rocky's training methods ... and look at him!

This was cool ... the cold coming in makes the fog roll in ... and within minutes, it has rolled in and 'covers' everything. This is the path that leads over to the pond. Denise, Henry & I did an evening stake out for Wally the other night, but with yet another no show, we decided to do a morning one, but that's another post.

This is a shot looking back towards the house ... you can see that in the time that it took me to walk over to this point, the fog has already rolled in and covered the whole meadow. Another mystical moment. The mist also creeps down the mountain sides around here ... it's eerily... cool to watch. I liken it to ancient Japanese dragons ... descending down ...  almost as if they have a life of their own ;-)

I sat here for a while, doing a mid day Wally watch ...  I'm just curious to see if he commutes home in the early afternoon, or if he's a dusker ... Some things I find, I've taken for granted ... like the pictures you see of beavers, they always show them in the daylight ... but where is the elusive Wally... and Denise the other night got a picture of a Doe 'squatting' to go pee ... who knew that deer squat to go pee ... I didn't.   What else don't I know?..... 

Everyone had projects...

Over the weekend, everyone had their hands full of... 'gratifying' work. Gratifying because although it's work, everyone here is... here by choice. We all in (our) own way,  made a decision to embark on this venture ... And part of living close to the land, where the work is never ending ... entails first making peace with that fact... and then learning to embrace the moment...  Many people work very hard at what they do ... moving paper from the 'in box' to the 'out box'...  For (us) ... this is the work we choose ... and it's very fulfilling.  So Sunday found Tom working on the upstairs bathroom. He finished installing a recessed vanity, painted and hung a new light fixture. Denise, in between giving a hand him,  was following up on emails/blogging and cooking an early Thanksgiving dinner, because Tom won't be able to here later due to work. And Henry bounced in between jobs, like Leo Getzs (Lethal Weapon's I&II) What ever you need... Henry Getz... ;-)  And I wanted to finish my slab by the house for the generator...  

The gang's all here ... They always gravitate to where the action is. And they have a taste for wet concrete. Denise had told me the story of having to wash their little beaks out because they loved to eat the mix she was using to make her walkway. So no real added pressure ... I just had to keep an eye on them so they didn't become, self inflicted, lawn ornaments.  I gathered all the cement bags I could find, put some rocks/gravel into the form, put the cement mixer in place and got ready to go. 

Someone had mentioned that the mixer worked great,  as long as the red 'thingy' didn't fall off the motor mount.....   Well,  here we are, Henry & I, after the red 'thingy' fell off the motor mount...  190 pounds of concrete, that needed final mixing, and a home... fast! We had to get Tom to help roll the 'thingy' back up to the form and empty it out. I later found the problem was a stripped bolt that was wasn't engaging... so Henry and I just had to go slow and nurse it to make sure it didn't fall off again.  And look at this kid... I've got on pants, long sleeved shirt and a sweatshirt... and he's out here like it's So. Cal... :-)  I've said it before, and I'll say it again ... Henry's a great kid!

So I'm getting close to the end ...  using up misc. bags of cement, screening out useless lumps that have  hardened prematurely ..... when the gang really starts closing in... They've been patiently eyeing the job since the beginning... working their way closer & closer...  This is a shot of the fellas (boys are white, girls are more brown) right next to me... not even 2 feet away. They were just 'waiting' for their moment... thinking that the 'new guy' doesn't know about their past shenanigans... 

Well... the 'new guy' turns his back for a second... and next thing you know... they're all stomping around like they're making grapes into wine...   F___er's  ;-)   Thank goodness they didn't get a chance to buffet on it, or then the new guy would have to call for help. But as luck would have it,  not today ... not on my watch.

And these are just a couple of pic's of my pad... I love it!  Finally got most of my stuff out of boxes and situated... now it's just fine tuning here and there. It's one big room, with the bathroom on one end and the kitchen on the other leading to a little deck. There is a small room downstairs that leads to the shop and my laundry room. I'm using it more for storage since it's gloomy and cold down there. 

I've been up here almost 3 weeks and I'm just now really starting to mentally & physically settle in... In the evenings I usually have one of the French Canadian radio stations on while cooking or whatever. It helps me keep my french up... they discuss more world issues... and it's interesting to hear how they perceive (us) in the U.S.  They don't 'Hollywood' the news as badly as we do... and since it's playing  in the background... I don't fall into the 'negativity' of the whole affair. Which is great because that frees up more energy for me to focus on the positive things I want to attract into my life's experience... ;-)  (A-H)...  and it's working!

And finally... my little wood burning stove. What a joy it is to light a fire at night... turn off my electric heat and finish up my computer work in it's warm glow...  Funny thing too,  all while living in O.C. ...  mentally manifesting 'my land' ... every time I smelled smoke, I would 'envision' myself  standing on 'my land',  and that it was 'my' wood burning stove I could smell.  And knowing that our sense of smell is so incredibly powerful (from a meditation point of view), I used that as one of the tools to help me get closer to acquiring my own dream.  And clearly,  I am one step closer...    remember this one?  paraphrasing of course...    "The journey of a 1000 miles starts with the first step..."   (SR)  :-)    take care all...  Alexis

Long Weekend...

Sorry everyone (anyone) for the delay... Denise's husband, Tom was in town for a few days, and the Internet up here has been 'sketchy' LATELY  :-# ... at least for me...?   And over the past few days, I had been graciously invited to some awesome Margarita's, 2x 'dinner & a movies' and an early evening 'Wally the beaver' stakeout... all in the short time Tom was here. During the past few days, it seemed everyone had a project going on of sorts ... and so it was really nice, as the sun started to set and the cold rolled in... to finish up the day with good people ... warm up, break bread... and veg out to Lethal Weapon I & II. 

It's starting to get a little colder now in the evenings, and my little wood stove has been eating his Wheaties. I haven't seen frost outside my door in a very long time... It's really kind of magical ... And the temperature during the day doesn't vary greatly, so much of the frost remains through out the day in the shadows...  Usually I'm not one for cold weather... ask anyone who really knows me... but the change is nice, and I'm really looking forward to the snow this year! ...  I knew before coming that it might be one of my concessions to moving up here. I've lived where the weather's been great, warm & sunny... but in the end I found that didn't nourish me... my Spirit (yes... I went there ;-)   So I made peace early on with the fact that I would enjoy more rain and less sun, and that I would have to buy gloves and a winter coat :-0  But now I live in a culture that gives me hope... in a vibe that resonates with me... and I'm around friendly, like minded people.  That... I've realized was one of the biggest gifts I've been fortunate enough to discover and give myself...

Mosquito Lake Road, where I live... is actually much more scenic that I had realized. The way it meanders... it connects to roads on both ends that, both in turn, lead to town. And out of habit, I had been taking the long way in, towards the little towns of Acme, Clipper & VanZandt... Well if you go 'right', out of the driveway... the drive is a little more scenic and eclectic... One direction takes you to 'Deliverance Corner' where the "locals" have 5 junked cars right on the side of the road ... and in the other direction... you get this... :-)

 

These are all in the same 'front yard'... and unfortunately the bottom pic doesn't translate well out of person... ;-)   There's a real sense of movement when you stand there and see all the trucks... some look like they're driving in to pick a load, while others seem to be driving off... it's really kind of cool. It's situated near a road leading to the community park... I need to find out more about this... landscaping...

You can see 3 trucks in the back ground following each other, going from left to right... maybe passing by the crane, getting logs, or rock...  Again, the feel of it is lost when viewed digitalized... Guess you'll have to come see for yourself...

And this house I just love... It is clearly abandoned, and the 'shrubbery' has climbed up to the roof line and into windows... I think it's the curiosity that gets me... I liken it to wooden 'keepsake boxes' ...  no matter how ornate or intricate their design.... it's the space inside that captures the imagination... 

Here, obviously is Acme's General Store... it's about 10 min's from my place... This town epitomizes the saying "blink and you'll miss it" ... It looks to be no more than a tenth of a mile long and has just what you need... library, Post Office, Gas, etc... and a the proverbial 'General Store' ... it's really a little Godsend... close enough for a 'munchie' run, and they have a nicely stocked, little hardware section in the back... I actually bought new jumper cables there, just to be prepared this time of year... that and rotated the tires the other day ... come on snow  :-)

And in the town of Deming, 20 odd min's away... I thought this was the 'buzzer beater',  but I was wrong. Denise told me this afternoon that there's an ARCO station in Bellingham that has gas for $1.75/gal... I swear, years ago I never thought I'd see anything near $2.35... even in the best of day's...  But then again, I purposely moved to a place that would make me 'Feel Good'... (Abraham-Hicks)   ;-)    ... what a concept ...    Alexis

Projects

I just wanted to do a quick post tonight because I probably won't have time tomorrow, and apologies but this one seems to be geared for the guys tonight. I'll be more 'uni sexually correct' next time I promise. So here's another little project... Abe, the big Ox, popped the boards out with his massive horns one day.  I guess...  because he could. So it's pretty straight forward right... you put the boards up and screw them in place.    yeah...  It seems I'm always  on a learning curve.

So here's the first contact with the job site.  It's squishy... it's deep... and it smells a bit. So watch your step and don't drop anything  ;-)   Now I have to find a safe place to put my tools, and not get s__t on them. Oh! and about cows... they can get s__t on the wall!  Like 4.5-5 feet up the wall! No where is sacred... Anyway, so the tools are stowed... now to pick up the fallen boards and get going. Yes... the pic was taken after that 'dirty' deed. And of course you have your gloves on... but now they're... 'dirty'. So now you have to watch what you 'touch' ... scratch an itch, push your hair back, grabbing tools, the list goes on ... too funny :-)  I'm also learning that it's impossible on a farm, to do one simple project, and not have it expand into 3 or 4. When I was finished with the outside, I poked around inside ... just curious...  and it was a little drier. I noticed that 3.5 feet of a 'support' beam has been removed... from the bottom!  and moved over 5 feet  :-0 , and large, dislodged boards with sharp nails, just barely hanging on up above ...  and the list goes on...   :-)

Then later in the day I got started on clearing a little spot by the house to pour a small slab. They lose power out here frequently... lot's of big trees ready to be ladened with snow, in close proximity power to lines. And when you're running a water pump, the refrigerator, etc... it's nice to have an auxiliary generator nearby to keep the house up and running. So that's where it's going, hopefully before it snows ;-)

Denise and her husband Tom are very prepared... they had an electrician install a special outlet into the side of the electrical panel, so all they'll have to do is plug in the generator, turn it on and voila, the whole house is powered up... 

Squared & level and basically ready to pour... after gravel, etc... Then we'll probably build a little shed to house and protect it...   I've got Black&Deckers - Contemporary Sheds - book next to me right now as I write... :-)

AND... the mouse hunt continues... this 'lil fella is #29... he's over in the kitchen right now as I write  ;-)  I did a quick search to see if they have homing capability's .... and they do! So tomorrow I'm going to mouse proof this place if it kills me...  ;-)   So good night... I've got to go set him free now...   catch & release, catch & release, catch & release...  and the list goes on ;-)

Little Fellas...

OK, well this is the first real blogging attempt... and a masterpiece in progress I can't promise. Especially for those of you who've fallen for Denise's Blog (asthebutterchurns.com). She is doing a marvelous job at documenting, her and her family's Farm Life experiences.  And  that's just one segment of their day. There are the daily, non-stop, must be done, priorities of caring for, feeding and taking care of the animals, and the farm itself...  and let's not forget a little thing like running a household on the side... taking Henry to school, feeding, cleaning, paying bills, doing laundry, answering posted comments, trying to get a screenplay off the ground, re-working a business plan, trying to figure out where the heck is our mail person with our mail, go get Henry from school, then off to gymnastics, then home. Then once home... picking up a dead mouse here & his little head over there ... and there's more I'm sure, but I'm going to stop there... just because,  I'd like to keep some semblance of manhood around here. And so my little blog... while it maybe fun to read, and packed with questionable grammar... will be starting off small... Hence my first topic... Field Mice. 

Now when you make a move like this, you learn a lot as you go. But most people probably wouldn't have made such a big change unless they were ready & open to face something new and challenging. But once you've come to that threshold, then being more open and flexible becomes a part of your evolving experience. For me that 'change' has been in motion for a very long time... I just needed to slow down and Listen more... (more on that later). So starting off small... let's get to know some little friends I didn't expect to meet. Of course now in hindsight, I would've been a fool not too. This fuzzy pic is of three little field mice, huddled together sleeping. I caught them over night. It's fuzzy because I have them temporarily housed in a big, plastic storage bin. This makes 19 total captures in 12 days... We're (the mice & I) on a 'catch & release' program... like a fisherman after 'furry' trout ... I bought one of those mouse friendly traps that ... trap them with out harm, and then I get up, put them in the bin with some water, a walnut and a paper towel so they can 'rest up' for their morning release.  

Now for those of you who are squeamish... sorry... but this is a 'small' part of country living. The wildlife only gets bigger from here on out. So here they are, the next morning... where upon I usually walk up the street a couple hundred yards to release them into the woods. But with 19 captures and climbing, the thought has crossed my mind... "Am I re-capturing some of the same one's over & over". I mean, do they actually stand up on their little hind legs, look over and recognize my Apt off in the distance, and trek back?! No clue... but everyone has had the idea of marking them. The suggestions have ranged from putting a 'zip-tie' on their tail (W), to a spot of paint on their back (DM), to nail polish (MMM)... yet each one of these 'wonderful' idea's means picking up these incredibly fast, long jumping and teethed fellas...   Yeah... not on my list of to-do's just yet... 

 
This particular morning, Henry came over to tell me that the barn 'mucking' had begun, and so as I got ready, boots and all, I asked him if he wanted to take these little guy's over to the barn and we'd release them over  there this time. So here are 2 of the 3, on the compost pile. I'm told that the compost pile is just 'teeming' with wild life, that it's actually very warm, and it's sort of  a built in cafeteria.  So... "Go free 'lil Fellas! ... and please ... don't come back" 

Here's a shot of Denise... arguably not one she'd prefer I'd post... but by the time she reads this... it'll be too late ;-)  The quality is my fault... no flash on the iPhone. But since she is always the one taking pic's, needless to say, she's always behind the camera... I'm going to try and remedy that once in a while.  She's the 'boots on the ground' & backbone of this operation... and while taking pic's in the field (so to speak) usually finds you scuffed up and dirty... leaders still need to be recognized!  "So hat's to you Denise! ... and,  you've got a little somethin' on you cheek there..." ;-)

 
And she really does talk to the animals... the mice aside, she has a relationship with every single animal here. They are truly pets...  I really need to start paying attention to the background stories (or you can check her blog), but she raised these geese from 'goslings'? Started them off in the house, in the tub, and now they follow her every where she goes. She & Henry will on occasion run, flapping their arms and the gaggle will all run after them, in a flurry of flapping wings, feathers  and some intense honking... 

And lastly... 2 'acceptable' pic's... (according to her)  Denise and Loyd... you gotta be momma to get close enough to pick up one of these guys. I now know why they use goose down for comforters, pillows, etc. Petting Loyd's 'lil belly, clued me in to how soft, and plush their feathers actually are... and I was again, further educated in the ways of living closer to the land.

 
And for all concerned... 'no animals were harmed in these pic's" ;-)  They get nothing but love and attention here in 'Mayberry' (ST). So that's it for now... I just wanted to get this thing rolling and thank those who've given me such wonderful words of encouragement, and who've expressed their desire to follow along, reading more tales about Country Living.  Trust me, reading these tales is a lot cleaner then following some of the other tails around here...  in a word... "Boots"    as always... take good care of yourselves... Alexis

My New Home III

I can't show you Wally because no one's ever seen him... but I can show you some of his handy work. He felled and peeled this whole tree.

I know you can't really tell, but those a hugh CHUNKS of wood laying there... I'm told their teeth are 4 inches long, and after seeing this... Whoa...

Here's Wally's front door... it just disappears under the embankment.

There's a pavilion by the pond with dual BBQ's and a regulation height basketball hoop inside. Now is a good time to play... almost no mosquito's.

This is a shot facing the house... the pavilion is on the left and Wally's carnage is behind me. 

My New Home II

The goats... well, one of them anyway. They're a lot harder to photograph... I took 5 pic's of these guys and only one came out. And of course while I'm taking this guy's pic... I had left another door open... and so I look in to see the other three had escaped! F----ers  ;-) Thank God they went for some spilled grain by their pen instead of the front door... 

I have no clue as to the names of these little guys, but they are cute... and a little dirty & smelly, in a farm like way.  These are 2 of the 4.

The introductions are,  Abe (named after Lincoln) Anna, (after one of the 1st ladies) and i think Andy (after Jackson). All these animals are the same breeds that were around during the days of Washington & Jefferson. Denise and her Husband are starting 'Fort Flashback' ... a recreation of the early days, to help teach children history in a fun, interactive way.

Here's the gaggle (what do you call a bunch of geese?) The only name I know out of this bunch is Quackmire... and that's because he's the leader and he's always in front, leading, scoping, and protecting. 

This is Henry, Denise's 11 year old son and Irish. He's named after Notre Dame because Denise's father used to play for them years ago. Henry's a great kid.  And below is Miracle... she's such a ham. We're getting to know one another well enough, but when i come out with the camera... she's starts waging her tail and you can actually see her put on the charm... too funny.

My New Home

     Here is a shot of the farm. It's about 40 mins. outside of Bellingham. The drive is all farm land and winding roads that carve through the forest. I live in an 'apt' above the shop on the far left. In the center is the main house, and in the pasture is the cow's pad. You can just make out the barn in trees in between. 

     This is a shot from my 'apt' behind me. In the background, just beyond the tree line is the pond where Wally the beaver lives. I have to get some pic's of that soon. After Denise and I went on a night run around the meadow in the Jeep looking for the cougar, she wants to take the Jeep and do a late night stake out to see if we can get a shot at Wally.

 

     That's the main house... and of course the barn below...