Bob And Susan

Slash Pile

Bob — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 15:39:06 +0000

This past weekend I burned our slash pile. It’s really hard work. Susan also found a couple more squirrel nests so I burned them in the backyard as well. Buggers….
The slash pile is now two years old so the bottom and middle are old and dry which keeps me from smokin out the valley as happens when you try and burn green wood. This pile also had our old picnic table as well as some of the basement ceiling I tore out this year. Why is is so hard, because you have to rip all the stuff out of the snow around th eoutside of the fire and throw it on to the middle coals. You have to do it slowly because it’s very hot work and you can only put so much snow covered stuff on at a time so it dries out and burns up and doesn’t put out the fire. Despite the hard work it’s always neat hangin around a big fire.

This above was the squirrel nests.

Global cooling (humour)

Bob — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 20:24:19 +0000

I’m going to suggest we take a look at the concept of global cooling. I base this on the 20 + years we’ve lived at our home. I have to plow as there’s too much area to snow blow (though I did snow blow the first couple years) and I pretty much keep track of how many times a year I do that. In the beginning when I first got my tractor I couldn’t wait to get out there and recall the first year tearing the hell out of the place as I was eager to go but the ground wasn’t frozen enough. The novelty of plowing wore off by the end of that year and now I plow when I have to, or a voice tells me that the snow is coming up onto the hood of said voice’s car. Now I have the truck which makes it fun again and am more apt to go out before hearing voices. All in all though I do believe we are getting more snow now that we were 20 years ago and it’s coming sooner. Hence, I declare the world in a state of global cooling and I challenge all to disprove it.

This year we were quick to get ready for the snow and managed to get everything wraped up in a couple weekends. I got all the leaves picked up last Saturday (took me 6 hrs.) and we managed to get them and the manure spread on the gardens, I also got the truck plow and chains on as well as it’s much easier done when not in the snow. We were way early as we don’t get snow until mid November but you never know……guess what, Global cooling and we had our first snowfall 24 hrs. after we put the garden to bed, it snowed Nov. 7th. It’s such a good feeling when it snows and I’m not out there trying to pull garden hoses out of the frozen snow and thawing them in the basement, which has happened since the Global cooling system can catch you off guard.

Can barely see the mtn. top for the storm coming.

Truck’s ready to go.

Leaves are in and will rot and be tilled in the spring.

Great work Susie!

Shelby lookin for squirrels, there’s still hope.

Squirrel update

Bob — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:21:59 +0000

Shelby and the squirrels continue to annoy one another. This day finds the squirrel in the top left of the apple tree, Shelby waiting for the branch to give way…..

Zach in the Hat – March 2011

Bob — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 20:01:54 +0000

Da Bears – Fall 2010

Bob — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 19:45:50 +0000

BOB, SUSIE & THE BEAR pps

What about Zach?

Bob — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 16:55:25 +0000

I can’t put pictures up of Ava without putting up some of Zach. I’m an equal rights Grampa.

Where’s the beef?

Bob — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 16:31:23 +0000

Well, our beef is hangin’ up the Slocan valley at the butcher’s and will be packaged next week. We went in on a Black Angus with some friends. We got him from our friends Brenda & Terry who have a farm just down the road from us. They are fussy about their meat so by growing their own they can have control over how it’s raised. No hormones and other crap. As a matter of fact this year when I knocked out all the apples from the trees (bear proofing), instead of taking them up the mountain I took them to the cattle. Terry came by the other day and we took all the corn stalks and loaded them up for the cattle as well. People talk about buying locally, well I like that Susan and I are growing locally. Susan for years has organically grown our food with many interesting methods, now we are helping to grow our meat, and harvest locally. If only we could plant some toilet paper trees and grow that locally we’d never have to go into to town for shopping…..Oh, I forgot about beer……

Ava’s Thanksgiving visit.

Bob — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 19:15:36 +0000

The pictures tell tell the story…..

Squirrels

Bob — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 18:29:59 +0000

We’ve never really had much to do with squirrels as we’ve always had dogs and cats that pretty much dealt with them. To say nothng of the pack of coyotes living up our mountain. They used to torment Bailey on a regular basis and Bailey would stand under a tree for hours just waiting and hoping one of the little buggers slipped and fell down. Dinner! With the passing of Bailey they have been running around the yard and deck and outbuildings at free will. The other day Susan noticed something had eaten all her flowers in a hanging basket which she attributed to a deer, and she also noticed some onions and peppers missing…..by now you can figure out who did all this. They have taken to building mansions with hay and Susan’s flowers, they’ve gone and taken over the Robin’s nests in Susan’s building and turned them into mansions. Shelby has her work cut out for her and has done a good job as you can see of taking over the reins at the Whitehouse……

Harvest

Bob — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 19:08:30 +0000

Last year Susan found some mould in her garlic patch which was common for many last year as we had a very wet spring, so she didn’t want to plant garlic in that area again this year so I took it over and tried to grow corn for my first time. It’s thought the corn might suck so much out of theland it may correct the soil earier than waiting 5 years as we’ve been told. Nothing in the 32 years Iv’e lived here compares to Ontario corn. Chilliwack and sometimes Grand Forks have pretty good stufff some years. Well, I’m ecstatic over how mine turned out. My neighbour (Mary age 79) grows good corn, very tall so I went and asked her what she did and she told me when they’re a foot tall she puts a 10-0-0 fertilizer. So I did that with organic bone meal but then my Doctor told me that when the fruit appears to put 10-10-10 bonemeal on them as the 10-0-0 is all nitrogen which will make the plant tall but doesn’t promote the corn. So that’s what I did and pictures don’t lie…..and so sweeeeeet!