What's Up?

Update From The Homestead

We got a lot of work done outside this past weekend.  Across the street from us is an old one room school house from the days of segregation.  It is owned by a few of the descendants of the families that originally donated the land and building for their children to go to school back in the 20s.  They have big plans to restore it and turn it into a community center, but something needs to happen quick or it is going to deteriorate too far.  Anyway, one of my good deeds is to serve as kind of the groundskeeper.  I go over about every 3 or 4 weeks and knock down the grass and weeds.  It is close to an acre with the building in the middle.  Along the road, there is a line of nasty scrub pines that got planted about 15 years ago or so.  Talking with the guys that own it, we decided that I would cut down trees to make the building more visible from the road and more pleasing.  A month or so ago I cut down about a third of them and piled them in the school yard.  They got good and dry and ready for a fire, but I realized the giant hardwoods in the yard would likely catch fire in the overhangs.

This weekend we dragged all of the trees over to our yard where we have a foundation for an old general store that we use as our safe burning area.  We got about half of them in the pit and started a fire.  It went up like no body's business.  Dry pine with all that turpentine sap made it go great.  In less than an hour, I got the rest dragged over and on fire.  A little later I used my pole saw to clear some green branches overhanging my garden and added them to the fire.  It was plenty hot enough to burn those thick green branches to ash.

I finally got my tomato plants moved from my now-falling-apart greenhouse to the garden.  Seventeen plants of five different varieties made it.  I won't have 'maters for July 4th as is the tradition around here, but I should have a good late season crop.  I also got some good volunteer onions planted.  I think my biggest weakness is with gardening.  Not so much as doing it, but in getting started.

We went through some clothes we don't wear and got a good donation for Goodwill.

At work, we are going through benefits open enrollment and there was a basket of eye glasses repair kits on a counter.  I snagged a few and have put them in the Barter Larder along with some soap and shampoo from when we were on vacation a few weeks ago.

I picked up a couple hundred CCI large pistol primers to load some .44 ammo soon.  I have a few thousand Winchester primers that I bought second hand, but my Dillon 550 doesn't feed them like it should.  I'm going to try the CCIs to see if they work (they used to last time I bought some) or if it is a problem with my primer feeder.

Still waiting for my new clutch cable to come in so I can get the Jeep home and back on the road.


Thanks to a Renewing Sponsor

Jeff Gleason, The Berkey Guy, just renewed his two ad spaces.  Jeff was my first sponsor here, and I am very happy that he believes in If It Hits The Fan enough to be a sponsor.  Check out Jeff's site for great deals on Berkey Water Filter systems, Wise brand storage foods, and other survival gear.  Let him know you heard about him here.