The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Sadie's first toy

While Frank and I were away on the weekend for my high school reunion in Phoenix and a lunch out on Sunday, Lance combed the fields for the last of many of the veggies. But he also said that if we don't get another freeze for a week or so, we could have a few more. And some of them actually like cold weather. We had a freeze Friday night which wiped out the last of all the squash and okra. It also damaged tomato plants but they're about done anyway. Today he'll get the remaining cherry tomatoes and large green tomatoes off. The peppers are done.

End of season ugly cabbage

These final harvested veggies aren't pretty. They're survivors, and I'm sure they still have plenty of nutrition.

We might see more cabbage and broccoli. The Brussels sprouts are just now sprouting. In fact, I'd forgotten we had planted them. I walk by them all the time but they look a lot like cabbage plants. I thought they were duds - no heads forming. Now I find out I should've pinched them back from the beginning to encourage side chutes. They have one main trunk with lots of little nubs showing, so here's hoping.

Relish, pickles, peppers, green sauce

Our freezer is full and the canned food has spilled out of the pantry and now lines the tops of the kitchen cabinets. This winter will be fun every time we try a new jar!
We bought a flame throwing thing to help with clean up and weeding. With Frank's discount at Home Depot, it was only $45 and will be well worth the expense. Some of our weeds are small trees. We'll scorch some of them then Lance will till back into the soil. Compost!

The high school reunion was fun. My closest friends from those days were not there; two of them are deceased. But I recognized a lot of faces - although some I had to look at the faces on their name tags. I had a lot of acquaintances in high school, never fit with any one group, so I knew a few people from all the different clicks. Although I enjoyed those years, I would NEVER want to go back. We stayed at my mom's in Sun City. Friends took us to lunch on Sunday for Frank's birthday next weekend. It was beautiful eating on the patio of Dillon's on Lake Pleasant. Great weekend.

The clutch on the chevy is shot. We have an appointment to take it in on Wednesday. $700. I practically cried. Lance and Christie sold their old clunker a few weeks ago so we are sharing our two vehicles until they get another. Which means they will pay half the clutch cost, but still... A bit of a set back for some other needed things around here.

Have you ever sold gold? I just did. I have, no had now, a gold charm bracelet that my mother-in-law put together for me of all the highlights of my life at that point in time. But I never wear it, and she is gone. So I sold it. I can't use the money to fix the car. We already had it earmarked for the back up pump on our well which is even more expensive than the car expense. If we were to lose electricity for any length of time, we wouldn't have water. Hate spending money on something 'just in case' but farmer Lance is pretty adamant about this.

On the brightest side - Christie's tummy is growing. My granddaughter is now active and making herself known. They're calling her Sadie Belladonna. Sadie Bell for short. I saw a rocking horse that makes noises when you touch the ear. I wanted to buy it so bad but seemed foolish to buy something that wouldn't get used for about three years, so I walked away from it. Ha. Went back the next day and got it. It'll look great just sitting in a corner of the nursery waiting for Sadie Bell to climb on. Next year will be a ton of fun!

Gambling Skunks?

Pretty Skunks

With the farming part of our life slowing down (more on that later), Frank and I decided to get the boat in the water for the first time. He took it one day for a couple of hours to Lake Mary but the motor gave him problems. And just like our motorcycle recreation, the boat can pose financial obstacles too. But he had some money saved in his fishing account. It was earmarked to use to spend on fishing but without a boat... So we fixed the boat.

Only crazy people out in 103 degrees

With little left for fishing, we came up with a plan. Laughlin, Nevada is a little over two hours away. We could get a $20 room at Harrah's, cheap buffet meals and fish Lake Mohave. It was the middle of the afternoon before we got there, but we stopped at the lake anyway. Surprise! It's a national park so that lifetime pass we bought last week at the Grand Canyon got us in. All we had to do was buy a yearly pass for the boat at $15. That paid for itself with two trips in and out. And we caught fish. I caught the first one, and Frank caught the biggest. Thank goodness we caught some or the 103 degree temp would've been a real slam. As it was, we seemed to have the lake to ourselves. A couple of hours was all I could handle.

I caught the first fish

Frank caught the biggest

We checked in at Harrah's around 5:00. No electricity. Excuse me? Some other guests told us it had been out all day. The machines were working but not much else. They upgraded our room and told us the electricity would be on in about an hour. We left the boat and truck there, took a water taxi to another casino. That was kind of fun. $4 each.

View from our room

Every casino has players' cards. We signed up (they're free) at three casinos and for doing that we got two for one drinks at one place, 25% off the buffet at another and $5 in slot money at two of them. The buffet was at the Aquarius which is the only one I know of where your alcoholic beverages are included. Great food and cold margaritas! The next night we ate at the Edgewater, and our card got us a $4.99 buffet. It wasn't very good, but I found a couple of things I could eat.

The River Walk

A raccoon or two

For nighttime entertainment, we walked the river walk. Unfortunately, it doesn't go all the way to Harrah's. Getting back to our hotel that first night required some uphill street hiking. It was still hovering around 100 degrees. We were really thankful the electricity really was on when we got back.

Along the river walk you run into all kinds of nightlife and not all on two legs. Skunk, raccoon, ducks, rabbit and feral cats share the river walk. None of them have any fear of humans. They looked well fed. But maybe it's the music that keeps them hanging around. I wondered if the skunks were de-stinkied and put there for amusement. Probably not, but there were so many and so fat and pretty.

It was a good two night break from the farm and cheap! We steered away from gambling - mostly. I lost $20 and Frank lost $5. Not bad for three days.

The crops are about done here in Tortuga Flats and so is the canning. The freezer is full so even the peppers are going to the food bank. We left Christie to can tomatoes and apples while we were gone. I'm guessing one or two more passes through the tomatoes and that will be that. Sweet potatoes are yet to be dug up and not quite ready. The chard has come back for a second round after chopping it down.

There is still one thing to watch grow - my first grandchild. Christie's tummy gets bigger every day. It's a girl!

I'm plunking away at book two in my Love and Murder series. Haven't heard from the agent yet so no good news but no bad news. I'm enjoying writing it regardless. Patience is part of every author's life. Publishers are infamous for taking months to look at a book proposal. Just have to keep writing.

One Amazing Hole

Get your motor runnin'

Part of this new meagerly funded lifestyle is finding entertainment without spending too much. Motorcycling is part of our fun. Trouble is, motorcycles require upkeep like all other vehicles. We've been grounded for a couple of months because we needed a tire. I finally got the dollars, we got the tire and headed out yesterday to the Grand Canyon for lunch. Looked up the restaurant inside the south rim entrance and saw too many dollar signs so we decided we'd eat in the little village outside the entrance.

Before getting to pine country

Looking over Frank's shoulder

The drive up was gorgeous. The low 60's are cold for me to be on a bike, but with leathers and a turtle neck it was comfortable - except for my face. I forgot a scarf and wore my half helmet. The sky was full of popcorn clouds and as long they didn't pop over the sun, I was warm enough. Beautiful day. We headed north and turned east at Ashfork and north again at Williams. There are red, purple and yellow wildflowers blooming amongst the evergreens. Beautiful.

Still outside the park

Our choices for lunch were pizza, Mexican food and steak. Steak for lunch is a bit much. We'd had Mexican food ala Christie the night before. We ended up at Canyon Pizza because they had a patio. And because pizza can be cheap. We ordered a margarita pizza and sat in the sun on the patio. The bar next door had Radio Margaritaville playing. What a perfect lunchtime setting. And the pizza was phenomenal.

We walked across the street to get our pass into the park. We scored another great deal. With Frank's age status (and it is status now adays!) we paid $10 for a lifetime pass. Not only does it get us into the Grand Canyon forever but into all Federal and national parks and sites. So cool!!

Frank the photographer

Leathers kept me warm

The short drive into the park was even more beautiful. We saw a female elk and a swooping brown hawk. We stopped at the first lookout which is also the visitor center. We didn't bother with the center this time. Our purpose was to eat lunch and get a glimpse of the canyon. Although there were lots of tourists there, it was relatively slow for the canyon. We met a couple from Brazil who rented a Harley in Chicago and were on a twenty-three day ride to San Bernadino. Oughda! They invited us to come to Brazilia in July to attend a huge motorcycle rally and party. If only...

This displays the native tribes of the area

A pretty awesome hole in the ground

The ride back was warmer so my face didn't freeze. And we got home in time for another great Christie creation. All and all, a great day on a dime.

Good News/Abundance-Bad News/A Flood

Christie geared to fight allergies in the garden

Harvesting continues. With lots of sneezes and wheezing. Neither Christie or I were bothered during the typical spring allergy season that plagued us in Phoenix. But August and September have been miserable if we work too long in the garden. I've started taking allergy meds again,  but Christie can't because of her motherly state. She gears up but still can't last too long. We're seeing the last of the peppers and tomatoes, yet they just keep coming! We still have potatoes and musk mellon. And some carrots. Always forget about them because they can stay in the ground for a while.

We're canning more and freezing less. The freezers are topped out. We sat on the corner out on the main street for a couple of hours a weekend ago - made a big $3. Won't do that again. We gave some of our overflow to a farmers market in Scottsdale and made considerably more. Was even sweeter because we didn't have to man the booth. Maybe next season we'll designate some of our crops just for the valley market. We've also given bags to the food shelter. They loved that.

Xena is fearless

A couple of nights ago we had a thunder storm. Not abnormal but Lance and Christie were gone so poor Gabby felt really insecure. Gabby always shakes when she hears thunder. Christie is her security during those rough times. Between her shaking and drooling, I felt sorry for her but she was inconsolable. Rusty used to pant and fret. Now he just follows me around to keep me within sight. Xena could care less. Nothing shakes Xena.

This morning I woke up to a flooded laundry room spilling over into my bathroom and kitchen. You're not going to believe me, but the washer turned itself on. Actually, I forgot to close the lid. Not usually a problem because it shuts off and sits there. And I'm sure it did because some time in the night or early morning I got up to use the bathroom, and there was no water under my feet. But at 6:00 this morning there was, and it was still running. It had to have turned on or overrode the auto shut off some time in the wee hours. What a mess. Sure hope there's no damage where it ran into the floor vent.

Lance and Christie are on the first part of their mini-honeymoon staying two nights in Laughlin. Hope their having fun - and it's not so bad having the house to ourselves either!

I'm Guilted, Xena Knows No Guilt

Rusty with his new toy

I ended my last blog with a promise of better news this time from the farm, retirement and writing. I actually said next week, but I didn't make that deadline. I've never had a bug hang on so long. Now, at last, the only thing I'm left with are allergies.

The birds scored this one

Farm news: Although we're inundated with tomatoes and peppers, much of the other crops are about done. Our freezers are nearly full. We have to add a top shelf to the pantry. Frank has put up jars of pickles and relish with still more to do. He's also started on the pears. Christie got all the red delicious apples turned into sauce or pie filling. We had to get them all off the tree because the birds were feasting. And we have jars of tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato soup. But there will be more. I even jarred some tomatoes one day. I prefer to stay out of the kitchen but my guilt wouldn't let me leave Christie with that much to do, even though she loves to cook. She's made sun dried tomatoes in the oven. Delicious. I  harvested the balance of the onions, leeks and radishes today. We've given several bags of patty pan squash and okra to the local food bank. This weekend we're giving some of our harvest to a Farmer's Market on consignment. May as well see if we can make a few bucks with our lovely bounty.

Retirement: I'm not actually retired but we're calling it retired since Frank has achieved that status. And we're living on lowly retirement income supplemented with my writing royalties. Frank is wondering if he really is retired. Working the farm, keeping up the house and all that goes with it - not much time for the front porch rocker. And right now with all the crops coming in, none us of are twiddling our thumbs. Lance is now calling his dad Pickle. He's getting pretty good at canning pickles and relish.

In an effort to conserve money, I have my hair done at the beauty college in Prescott. Yesterday was my second visit and this time I did the whole banana with color and cut. OH. MY. GOSH. I was in the chair an hour before poor Sara could begin. Every step has to be approved by an instructor. So after Sara and I decided what colors to do my measly twelve foils, it took her an hour to convince two instructors what she wanted to do would work. I just about got out of the chair and said forget it. But I felt so sorry for her. She's a cutie and says things like "how's that look, Mama?" She calls everyone Mama when she's being cocky. My time is the price I pay for keeping the cost down on my hair. She did a good job and $36 sure beats $150.

Xena considering Rusty's new toy

Another way to save money - the used everything store in Chino Valley has stuffed toys for fifty cents. Xena tears up all toys so I quit buying Rusty new ones. He used to have a whole basket but he's down to one. We hide it from Xena. Now we can replace toys without breaking the bank. We found one that laughs like a baby. We bought Xena some without a noise maker. I think she feels slighted. Digging out the noise maker is what gives her joy.

And Writing: My agent is out of town until the 17th which is my deadline for getting the revised book one in the series and the two synopses for books two and three to her. And I'm already done! Or at least I think I am. I'll read over them several more times. Tomorrow I get back on my regular writing schedule. The wedding, the illness and now the overwhelming harvest have had me all out of whack. I'm excited to get going on book two. I thought I had the first three chapters of book two written but now book two is book three. So tomorrow I start on the real book two. My titles are The Art of Love and Murder, Southwest of Love and Murder, and The Legacy of Love and Murder. I'm stoked.

Going Crazy with the Walls Closing In!

I'm as bad a sick person as I am a nurse. I'm not good with sickies - very little sympathy - and I have even less for myself. This is day two for me in bed and it's killing me.

What do you do when you're sick, like take to the bed sick? Television? I'm not a TV person and we don't have one in our bedroom. I'm being good and keeping my germs to myself so no front room for me. Do you read. Oh, I hope so. And preferably one of my books. LOL Or do you just lay and stare at the ceiling or sleep? I've tried to do a lot of sleeping but the pains in my stomach are worse when I am vertical.

I've gotten some writing done, I'll admit, but considering my fuzzy head, I wonder if I'll think it's any good once the virus fog lifts. I sent off my first completed novel and the synopsis for the next two books. I plan on a series - romantic mystery. I'm pumped. Here's my first stab at a blurb for the first book:

Lacy Dahl’s research uncovers secrets about the mother she never knew; secrets that dispute the identity of her father and threaten her life. When Sheriff Chance Meadowlark comes to her rescue, she begins to think their present is more important than her past…until his connection to her mother and a murder spin her deeper into danger and further from love.

When the past and present collide, Lacy discovers that where she came from is not nearly as important as where she’s going.

Ta Da!!!

Rusty loves this sick spell. He spends his day lying at the foot of my bed, drowsily lifting a lid now and then to check on me. I did crawl out of bed this morning and cleaned up the kitchen a bit. I heard from two people to leave it alone and they would take care of it. Hmm...wonder who they are.

I didn't get in on the harvesting this morning which was well overdue. We'd had a string of days of rain and then with the wedding taking up our time (yea!!!), nearly all the veggies were multiplying quicker than bunnies. They don't take time off for weddings or sick days. So I peeked my head out of the bedroom a few minutes ago. I'm not sure I want to come out for a few days. Going to be lots of canning and freezing going on.

The wedding was spectacular. Fun and beautiful and surprising moments. Can't wait for the pictures to come back.

The hot water heater quit heating last night. Finally, our home warranty was useful for something. If you'll remember, it didn't help when the fridge quit. The guy came out within a couple of hours of calling him today and we have hot water again. For a $55 deductible, it's fixed.

I know this is disjointed and senseless but so is my stuffy head. Next week, better news from the farm and retirement and writing. Maybe some helpful hints.

From Slimy to Wormy #44

Okra slime

What a week it was on Tortuga Flats Farm. The wind blew harder than ever, the rain came hard, there were worms in the corn, the baby's heartbeat pattered, the love of friends renewed and I had to write a synopsis for a book.

It's windy here most days at least by mid-morning. But one evening the wind blew so hard we feared for the veggies. Then the rain came. It was coming down at such a slant, everything on the back patio got drenched. And there was some damage. The tomato plants are so tangled together we might have to leave them that way. The tomatillos are in serious need of staking, if we can untangle them from the row next to them. Not sure how the corn will survive. I'd already picked the first twenty or so but have tons more not ripe yet and many stalks are falling over.

Cornstalks battling the wind

And speaking of corn, I think of worms. Every single ear I picked had a worm at the top that had mushed the silk and eaten some of the corn. So gross. I had to hack off the top and save as much of the cob as I could. This is a common problem here and not easily prevented. My neighbor said very casually - oh just ignore the worms. Yeah, right.

Bags of peppers

Meanwhile, several things are ready to harvest and we're getting overrun with veggies. I think about our little plot and the amount of food we have, and I wonder how there are people starving in this country. And are farmers still being paid to NOT plant? That's a whole different blog. Anyway, those nine bags I wrote about last time are frozen and we have fourteen more grocery bags of peppers, patty pan, and zucchini sitting in the kitchen waiting to be blanched and frozen. In the fridge, there are bags of purple green beans and okra waiting for the same fate. (side note here: I love okra, the slime factor when blanching it to freeze can make me gag)

And there is more to harvest but both the fridge freezer and chest freezer are full.

Which brings me to friends renewed. We reconnected with some long time friends, John and Karen Daniel, a few weeks back. Yesterday, we threw up our hands and decided to use the emergency fund to buy a freezer at Costco. We've given veggies away and frozen some. We need more to get us through the winter and knew this day would come when we needed another freezer. Couldn't stall any longer. Then John and Karen show up unannounced on our doorstep. As it turns out, they have a freezer to give us. They don't use it. Can you believe the timing? And they're refusing payment. We'll keep giving them veggies!

I did get the synopsis written and rewritten and still another writing to do. Pulling my hair out? Yeah, I hate them but one of those necessary evils.

The best thing that happened this week - Lance and Christie heard the heartbeat of my grandchild. At 162 beats, the child is coming along perfectly! I'm so looking forward to February...