CATS ON MY LITTLE HOMESTEAD

To begin, I will say for the record that I am not a cat lover, or a cat person of any capacity.  In fact, generally speaking, I really do not like cats.  With that said, I will also state that I am not mean, or cruel to cats or any other creatures, I just prefer not to have them around me.

Now, the current state of events and what led to this point.  This story actually begins a couple of years back, when my former fiancé lived here.  She is, was and will probably always be a cat person, and while here, had what I consider way too many cats (just my opinion).  There were kittens born here, most being very friendly and underfoot whenever possible.  There was one, however that did not like to be messed with and would stay as far away from people as possible.  It was nice enough when caught but really didn't like to be messed with.

When my former moved to her new place, she moved all of her cats, leaving some of them for a time, including the one that did not like people, with her mother who lives about 40 miles from me.  Later (last fall), she moved them to her place which is about another 40 miles farther from my place.  The one that did not like people promptly disappeared.  By early spring, I began catching brief glimpses of this cat at my place, first around the barn, then at the edge of the back yard, always hiding immediately when she knew she was seen.  Like them or not, I can't help having some respect for any creature with the focus and determination to make such effort to be where it chooses to be.  I didn't mind her being here, since she was not under foot and was helping with the rodent population.

In mid-July, I startled said feline while doing some work in the wood shop.  At first, I thought nothing of it but she kept hanging around so I investigated.  Sure enough, right there in my wood shop, in an old chicken nest box behind a board, there were two brand new kittens.  As soon as I left the shop, she promptly moved them to the lawn mower trailer where they would be safe (at least until time to mow the cemetery).  When mowing time came, she moved them again, this time into the old house I use for storage and office.  At this point, I am thinking that this is a temporary affliction, and that as they grow, this wild mother will teach them to hunt outside and they will return to the outdoors.  Toward this outcome, I made a point of not acknowledging them or showing interest in any way.

About a month ago, however, the mother abruptly disappeared and has not been seen since.  Whether she abandoned or was eaten by the local pack of coyotes, I may never know but the result is the same.  I am now responsible for these two adorable little razor clawed demons that follow me everywhere and have a terrible tendency to be underfoot.

Nothing in life happens without a reason so there has to be a reason that I need cats in my life.  Whatever the reason, it looks like I am stuck with cats.  I just hope they grow to be more independent and become good hunters like their mother.  If they do, at least I won't have to worry about rodent problems here on the homestead.

LARGE PESTS IN THE GARDEN

Pests are always a consideration in the garden.  There are all manner of creepy crawlies waiting with baited breath to devour any seed before it can sprout or to nibble and suck on any new shoot.  While these are a nuisance and harmful to the garden, there are also lots of creepy crawlies waiting to nibble and suck at these pests to keep them in balance.  Not using pesticides (which tend to remove the balance by more effectively killing the good ones than the bad ones), a little soapy water and some manual removal of pests to shift the balance in your favor works well.

However, the most notable pests in my garden are not so numerous, but much more destructive.  Yes, I am referring to the local wildlife.  Living in the woods means an abundance of wildlife and they are always hungry.  Over the years, I have tried numerous methods of repelling the local wildlife to no avail.  Blood meal, fishing line and harsh deodorant soap, to name a few.  The deer actually ate the soap before munching the apple trees.  Rabbits seem totally indifferent to any attempt.

These photos should serve as an example of the destruction.  On the left is a picture of my green bean row about a week ago, and the one on the right was taken over the weekend.  As you can see, the more recent picture has a marked lack of leaves.

I had expected rabbits would nibble them a bit, but this was not rabbits.  Tracks show that I have been invaded by deer.  Not only has the large doe I have seen a few times this summer found my garden, but she is also teaching her two fawns where the food is.
The far end of the okra row has also been defoliated and the okra pods which were almost ready to pick are gone.  I had no idea that deer liked okra, but it seems they do.

Over time, deer populations have fluctuated greatly in response to the increase and decrease of local hunters.  The past couple of years with almost no hunting in the area has led to a much larger population.  Since there are not enough large predators in the area to keep the population stable, hunting is the basic means of keeping the deer herd from overpopulating and becoming a nuisance.

Hopefully, next year I can plant enough (and enough variety) to supply the wildlife and have enough left for my own use.  Meanwhile, one has to remember that, unless one is a vegetarian, the garden is not the only source of food on the homestead.

If anyone has suggestions for keeping the wildlife out of the garden, I would gladly try just about anything that I haven't already tried.  So far about the only thing I haven't tried over the years is a wildlife proof fence, and with a large garden such a fence is cost prohibitive.

Thank you for your time and interest, and as always I look forward to your comments.  

LAUNDRY DAY (A Necessary Evil)

Like it or not, clothes get dirty.  On a homestead, with all the outdoor work and sweat, dirty equals very dirty and smelly.  Like it or not (and I don't), laundry has to be done.  No problem, right?  Just throw it in the washer and come back in a while to put it in the dryer.  But wait!  This is not only a homestead, but a homestead that is working toward off grid.

When weaning one's life from the dependency on electricity, sooner or later appliances, including the washer and dryer, have to go.  This makes laundry a whole different activity.  It can no longer be a hurried part of multi-tasking, or something the machine does while we entertain ourselves elsewhere.

One must think what it takes to do laundry.  Simple really, hot water, soap, a way to scrub out the dirt, more water to rinse and a means of drying.

Personally, I start by pumping the water.  Yes, that is an old hand dug well and a hand pump.  The bucket (nasty green plastic thing that I don't like but it serves a purpose) holds 5 gallons which equals about 20 strokes of the handle.  The whole laundry process takes 4 buckets which doesn't take long. This will sound like a lot of work to some people, but it is also a form of multi-tasking, as switching hands on the handle gives both arms a good workout and saves on exercise time at the gym.

But wait!  I said hot water!  Obviously, this well is not producing hot water and is certainly not pumping it through pipes to a water heater.  The electric water heater is another cord that has been cut in the efforts to go off grid.

Heating water is an age old process and my Grandmother's old cook stove still works quite well.  It only takes a few minutes to get the fire started, and other chores can be done while the fire does its work (multi-tasking again).  The large stock pot full of boiling water is enough to make the remaining 8 gallons of water too hot to put your hands in, so it has to cool for a while, leaving time to do more things (on this particular day, it provided time for further testing of building materials for a previous post).

If you need an element of danger to make this all exciting, here it is.  Carrying a pot of boiling water 50 feet across the, not so smooth, back yard should qualify.  A little caution and all is well.

With water in the tubs, it's time for scrubbing.  Nothing quite like an old fashioned wash board.  At this point, I can almost hear people complaining of sore and bleeding knuckles.  I have heard so many stories of knuckle damage from the washboard that I have lost count.  However, I have never experienced that problem.  Maybe I'm just not doing it right, as I never use my knuckles for scrubbing.  I use the flat part of the finger between the first and second knuckle instead, and make a point of not letting skin touch metal.

Hand wringing of heavy items such as jeans, between wash and rinse and after rinse, can make the hands a little sore at times, but nothing too serious.  If one wants to ease this problem, there are hand crank wringers available.  Having had access to one in the past, I will say it makes it easier, especially when there is a lot of heavy items to do.

What soap to use?  I am currently using a good quality, natural coconut oil based soap from the dollar store.  It is a bar soap (which I prefer) and it works quite well.  Home-made lye soap is my favorite, but this will serve until I can find time to make up a batch.

All done and taking advantage of the sun and wind.  The whole process took about an hour from start to finish (excluding heating time).

I won't say this makes sense for everyone, but for me it really does.  For my purposes, it gives me more control for adding more clean to the areas that get dirtiest, like the front of pants legs and shirt collars.  Also, for me at least, it is a peaceful activity that doesn't take a lot of thought, which allows my mind to wander creatively.

As added bonuses, doing laundry this way only takes about half the water, none of the electricity and I don't have to hear the low level noise of the machines.  With the use of all natural soap, the water can also be recycled into the garden for irrigation.

As I said, not necessarily for everyone, but for me it is just another step toward off-grid self-sufficiency.  Thank you, and as always, I look forward to your comments.

BEER CAN BUSHINGS??? (a cheap, improvised repair for old equipment)

As a child, I sometimes had the opportunity to go with my father to the hay fields.  Dad was in the business of baling hay, and had lots of customers in a three county area.  There was always hay on the ground ready to bale, and a breakdown that took more than a couple of hours to repair could let the customer's hay get too dry, so waiting for parts could cause the hay to ruin.

I will never forget the first time I was in the field when the baler stopped tying the bales.  There was a worn out bushing in the knotter.  The baler was old and parts often had to be ordered. taking several days to get them.  On this occasion, one of the haulers was drinking beer while they waited.  Dad took one of the empty cans and cut a strip of metal from it.  He wrapped the metal around the shaft, replaced the hub and proceeded to bale hay.  It worked, and kept working until he could get the new part and fix it right.

Beer cans back then were heavier than they are now, but the principle hasn't changed.  By now you may be curious as to just how this all relates to my small homesteading operation.  Actually, it relates in the form of my early training to deal with whatever comes up.

I don't have powered hay equipment here, choosing to use people powered instead.  For me, that equals scythe and pitch fork, neither of which use bushings.  However, when my scythe blade broke recently, I simply went into my blacksmith shop to make a new one.  It was almost finished when the blower on my forge broke down.

Now we get to how the beginning of this post relates.  Unlike my hay tools, the blower DOES have bushings, and one was worn out, causing the gears to run crooked.  My blacksmith tools are all very old (the blower was old when I bought it over thirty years ago), so finding bushings to factory specification will be difficult, and they may have to be custom made.  The delay could easily take until after the first freeze which means no more hay for the goats.

This is where the lowly beer can (or in this case, the pop can) saves the day.  With a smile and the memory of my dad's beer can bushings, I sacrificed a can.  In a short time, the strip of can metal was in place and the blower re-assembled.  It works well again.  Is it perfect?  NO!  Do I still need to find the right bushing?  Absolutely!  Bottom line is that it works, and will continue to work until I can get the right parts.

I'll let you know how the scythe blade turns out.

WELCOME TO HARE BRAIN FARMS (lets start with a little history)

I purchased this little farm about 28 years ago.  Not a bad place, a bit grown up, fixer upper house and barn, 25 acres with road frontage.  It had some cleared ground, wooded hills and plenty of rocks.  At the time, it seemed reasonable to sell my place with the little, off-grid cabin that most people without four wheel drive didn't visit.  Why did I think this was a good idea??  Lets just say that I was younger, with less clear goals, and there was a woman involved, and we can leave it at that.

Since that time, I have worked toward turning this place into a self-sufficient, off-grid homestead.  Over the years, there has been some progress, some set backs, and lots and lots of distractions.

The house turned out to be one of those fixer uppers that needed (but didn't get), a bulldozer and new construction.  Instead, a lot of time and money that could have been used toward my goals for the place have been spent trying to fix up the house.

During the time here, there have been relationships and marriages, each one lending their own advances , lessons and delays.  Time out for a college degree and short career as a field biologist was also a big one.

In case anyone is wondering where the name came from, it is based on a hateful remark by a then wife, and my purely sarcastic reply.  I am, and always have been, on the search for small ventures which will bring in a little cash, while forwarding the dream of self- sufficiency.  I mentioned to said wife that I thought raising meat rabbits for the market might be a good one.  The reaction was her usual degrading, belittling tirade, none of which I now recall except the statement,"just another one of your hare brained schemes."  My reply was a quick and most sarcastic, "yes it is, and it sounds like a good name for the farm too".  The name stuck, and almost twenty years later, this is still Hare Brain Farms.

This is only a brief historical overview to bring us to the here and now, though I am certain historical perspective will pop up from time to time.  Now, my fiancee and I are moving forward to combine our farms and dreams, (and yes, she and I are on the same page).

Thank you for visiting and I look forward to your comments.