2 and 3/4 Ducks

The winged night murderer returned for another duck and of the three remaining birds, one is hurt. I put off checking on them today as it was cloudy and I have a notion that I am witnessing the quickening demise of the duck experiment. I had lunch in town. Such a delicious hiatus from the dog life, dying duck, chicken drama of the hollow.
Rain forecast along with wintry mix; mercifully New England is due for a foot or two of snow - not us! I am weary of winter. And I miss Pearl and her people.

Hollar Granola

Winter and my cravings turn to granola, here's my recipe:

warm up liquid: 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup honey, 1/3 cup coconut oil, and 1 teas. vanilla

mix together dry ingredients: 4 cups organic rolled oats, 1/2 cup ground flax seed, 1/2 cup sunflower seeds (shelled), 1/2 cup walnuts, 1/2 cup almonds, 1/2 cup pecans, 1/4-1/2 cup coconut flakes and 1/4 cup corn meal (optional). 1/4 teas. salt!


mix dry ingredients with the liquid. grease a cookie sheet. bake in 325 degree oven for 25  minutes or more. Check every 10 minutes and stir mixture - until golden brown. (I toasted the nuts and sunflower seeds a bit before adding them) 

add dried fruit: currants or raisins or cranraisins or whatever (i had candied ginger which i chopped and added) then add chia seeds - 1/4 cup or more. I also add hemp seeds to a bowl when serving.

um 
 

And then there were four...

Four ducks. Was exactly a week ago that the owl (assuming it was the same owl) stole number 6. At this rate there will only be one duck left when my son returns. I told them again to stay in the hen house at night; I know my words went on deaf duck ears...
Got out of the hollow this morning, first time in five days. Supposed to warm up into the 50's for a week. I'm ready for spring. An almost open daffodil at the blue house today - time to force a branch of pussy willow.

The chicken yard invader

It wasn't a wild dog or neighbor dog or coyote, it was MOJO who has for three days been pawing under the fence to check over the scraps in the chicken yard (several days ago I did throw out three chicken leg bones). I caught him this cold afternoon and luckily got my coat on fast enough to catch two chickens taking the opportunity to escape. For three days I have had to round up chickens and then fix the fence - Mojo and Mr. Lee looking on (and probably laughing). Mojo knows he's in the dog house. What a long sad face a hound dog can make.
Road up date: Robin cautioned that the road was too soft to use. So who comes down just minutes ago? The UPS man! He was worried that he wouldn't make it out, but he did! But now there are new ruts in the soft mud.

Road Robin

Cold Cold day for the first of February and before I could say, "rabbit rabbit," out of my mouth came, "fuck snow" as I saw the white out of my bedroom window. Happily the afternoon is sunny with diminishing wind and Robin is working on the tiny rift valley which water wrought. Robin has had to use his front end loader to get earth from the side of the mountain to fill in the crevasse and he had to weigh down his blade with a railroad tie. Yippee, I am getting my road restored - although, Robin cautions that it will need to settle and to dry some before being navigable. 
Calling my Virginia Senator and Delegate to urge them to vote against the Governor's transportation bill (HB2313 and SB1355). The bills in both houses are very similar to what the Governor has proposed: to end the gasoline tax and to gain revenue from an annual fee of $100 on electric, hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles - along with a raise in sales tax to 4.8 cents (.8 cents going directly to transportation). When I purchased my Prius 4 years ago, I paid approximately 8 thousand dollars more for the technology - it was taxed then! We need to encourage alternative fuel vehicles NOT discourage them, let alone single these cars out for extra fees. We should TAX gasoline to discourage it's use - period. Where is the sanity in the Governor's suggestions??

Surveying the road

Mojo really says it all - "Oh, my gosh, so this is what happened last night! no wonder I couldn't sleep well!" I got up at 4:30, glad to be alive - which I guess I would have been able to surmise if I had been rudely awaken by house being washed away. I had to wait until 6 for enough  light to get a good look at the road and to take pictures. Fortunately the worse damage is  near the house, below where the road to Blue House begins. I will check that road later - it does look like it washed in places  though I doubt as deep as down here. The temperature is already at freezing, road work will be hard. But I need to do some work for Mr T to get out. At this point I don't think even his 4 wheel drive can straddle the gulleys; and I'm not going to try! 

snow flurries too!

A Whole Lot of Rain

It is too dark for a photograph, but certainly there will be evidence to picture tomorrow, that is, if I haven't floated away. Much rain on saturated ground, ground this morning that I slipped on climbing up thru the pines to the Blue House. The road is a creek which has swamped the front yard, I hate to imagine the ruts...tomorrow. The creek is as wide as the draw to the river, the spring house looks like it could float away. It is difficult to distinguish the sound of the rain from that of the creek, should I say, creeks which sound like a river. Lord the river must be high. Baldwin's chairs may not survive this storm. Fortunately, the wind has so far not been damaging; although I haven't been up the road or up to the Blue House. Tomorrow.

The dermatologist office called. Not a good sign. If they don't call 7 to 10 days after a biopsy, it means the biopsy was OK. Seems this last biopsy on the 24th revealed a superficial basal cell skin cancer. Phew, at least not another melanoma! But I have to go into the office a let them scrape some more skin on my left shoulder; the spot still sore from the biopsy. Perhaps I should take to living in a cave or move to Ireland.