Jason closes his journal... Thanks!! I love you!!

[modern_pioneer]

No the flowers, which are beautiful, will be moved to the lower part of the field this year. Shanor has honey bees just over the hill, and the flowers will help them find my veggies.

Well, I am looking forward to reading more of you entries. Oh, have your wife tell us about her bees. There is a lot of interest around here in bees.

Shanor isn't my wife, he is the local bee keeper.

Butler -- Beekeeper Terry Shanor will speak about his 25 years of beekeeping experiences at 7 p.m. Thursday at Carousel Shelter in Alameda Park. Free. Call xxxxxx or visit www-co.butler.pa.xxxxxx

 

[modern_pioneer]

 

[TanksHill]

Thanks!!

 

[modern_pioneer]

You know, I considered having some bees here, however, there are black bears all over the place here.

I should tell you about what happened last summer. It's okay to LOL and even ROTF at me.

DW and I were down at the garden harvesting some veggies to make a summer salad, while we there, we decided to pull a few weeds and lost track of time. It was around 7 pm when we noticed it was getting late, so I was going in with her to get dinner done.

So we headed up the small part of the hill and got into the middle of the bridge I built. When up from the pond area, we heard a big splash. WE BOTH STOP AND LOOKED AT EACH OTHER, WHAT WAS THAT????? Being braver of the two of us, I continue around to the walkway up to the pond, told DW to get on the side deck and keep the kids in.

SUDDENLY, PHOOOOOSSSHHHHH, ploppppp..... At this time I will admit, I was about to drop a brown trout in my shorts But as I got up to the top of the hill, I saw a she bear with one cub. The cub was fooling around, wet, and the mother bear was fishing. Yes, she was sitting on her back side leaned over, trying to catch female large mouth bass that were bedding.

Now, there is one rule you have to remember, don't get between a momma bear and her cub.

So my first reaction was to raise my arms above my head and growl like a bigfoot. Now I wish I would have got out of there and came back with the camera. But I was nervous and my first bear scare as an adult. Now the bear got up, made a grnting noise and just camly mosied back up the hill keeping her cub near her. the rest of the evening was spent talking about taking photos of the bear next time...

In July, 1979, I encountered my first bear, I was 9 y/o.

My grandfather sent me up the driveway to fetch the days mail, his driveway to the road is 1/8 of a mile. A nice friendly walk, lots to look at, skip some, the carefree stuff kids do. It was really cool thing to do for Grandpa, as we weren't asked very often to get the mail.

Coming back from the mailbox, on the right are some wild blackberry bushes. As I past by them, they began to shake, I could here some cracking and what sounded like something big moving through them. I stop, looked up to the house, just a split second thinking how far the house looked at that second.

Man, I put my little shoes into overdrive and started to run towards the house. We were often warned about the bears around his house, we sometimes could see them crossing the field from the piture window. It took me about 5 seconds to cover 100 feet. During my run, I had dropped the mail.

Trying to catch my breath, I looked back to see where I had dropped the mail, and wouldn't you know it. There was dag gone Grandpa, bent over howl laughing at me, I was mad so ran back down to punch him in the leg. But as I got closer, he was still laughing, I notice he had tears in his eyes, grabbing his side, I started to laugh with him.

For some years, that story would be told by him at xmas dinners, at the VFW bar, and when I would meet one of his friends for the first time.

Thanksgiving dinner 2006 would be the last time he would tell that story and he told it to my son, his great grandchild who was ten and laughed at me almost as hard as my grandpa did. A few weeks later he past on.

Every summer we would spend two weeks with him, and you could always find me sitting on the fender of his ford tractor with a leaf of Red Man chew in my mouth.

 

[modern_pioneer]

Like others here, I spent the last couple years working the garden/soil as well as cleaning up my land. There were lots of dead limbs to gather up, pruning, brush busting and trash/junk yard clean up I hate people who just throw there unwanted junk in the woods, what are they thinking? That some junk collecting animal is going to happen by and clean it up?

See I have this list, and this list is a good thing, however, if I bit off more than I can chew, I am going to be in trouble with the DW. I think I have a way to get everything done on my list by renting some tools.

For the small orchard
2 american butternut
2 almond
2 plum
2 apple
2 peacan
2 cherry
12 white birch (place around the pond)
40 hybrid populars for natural fence

For the bush area
25 raspberries
25 blackberries
3 golden raspberries
2 red current
2 black current
8 grapes himrod/concord
6 blueberry
10 dewberry
150 strawberry plants

Is it me? Or does anyone else see a country side veggie stand in the future?

I can image signage, country veggie stand ahead 3 miles, country food stand to right/left, country food stand ahead slow down, TA-DA Welcome.....

 

[Tallman]

If you plan on opening a veggie stand, you might want to check out the information on the thread posted by smithx9.

You can find it at:

# Sufficient Self - News, Information & Feedback
# Bad Government Food Law HR 875

 

[TanksHill]

Thank you so much for sharing your bear stories with us. I just read them to my 8yo ds while he is doing his homework. He was very interested and sad to hear about your grandfather.

A veggie stand sounds great. I think that is a sure sign your doing ok. Having enough to share.

 

[modern_pioneer]

You know Gina, when I was writting that, I couldn't help but giggle to myself. I can assure you that I am thankful to have such a wonderful Grandpa, wish my Dad had such a kind, tender, loving heart. But it sets a base for me and how to show my love to my grand kids. Mind you, Grandpa wasn't a push over either, but he also was a teacher of the difference between right and wrong. Not much of a yeller or spanker, though I did get it once.

 

[modern_pioneer]

When I clean out my rain water storage tank this year, I think I might run a pipe down two the garden instead of a hose. It seems that the pressure is low for some reason. Down at the bottom of the tank I have a on/off valve, which is hooked up to a a garden hose, that runs 80 feet to my garden.

Steve has some used pvc pipe, and lowes had 11 pieces that had been broken nearly in half, for $6.00. I am going to give Steve some of my compost for his garden, and he will help me to spread mine and said I could have the used pipe.

Sheeeesh.... Do I have spring fever, I think because I have planned all winter for this summers projects. I look forward to the long days, the night sky, I miss listening to the Screech owl couple nested above the pond in the trees. They come out at dust and fly around my property and bording property. They call back to each other as they move towards the field, the event only happens a few nights a week and last only 5-10 minutes.

Sometimes, I have to travel to meet with clients, sometimes to deliver a product because my insurance company will only cover up to 6k for a product. Being on global market place, I have work all over the world. Twice I have had to leave to go to another country for business.

Currently I am bidding a project in the Bahamas, I have never been there. I will manufacture the counter tops here, place them in a connex box along with my tools, a welding machine, and other stuff. Last year I went to New Zealand and Japan. I don't pay for the trips, my clients do. I went alone to Japan, but took the whole family to New Zealand for a week. I only had two days of work to do there, so we took a vacation. I was in Japan three days, and came back home.

 

[modern_pioneer]

Me and my clan

LFT to RGT to Bottom

DD, DW, ME, Nephew, DS