Sometimes it doesn't get any better than being surrounded by a beautiful lady and your favorite rock. Brutus had been carrying the rock around all afternoon.

May 19, 2013 – Sunday

54 degrees/clear/calm

Pentoga Road

It’s dawning to be a beautiful day. We got some rain overnight, but I don’t believe too much, maybe a shower. Everything is so green and the hardwoods, the maples, wild cherries, fruit trees, and popples, are just one warm day away from being fully leafed out. Spring is quickly transitioning into summer.

All that being said, I thought about setting out the remainder of the tomato and pepper plants today until I read the extended forecast. Lows in the twenties are predicted for the middle of the week and to last through next weekend. I think I’ll hold off. Certainly the plants growing in the Walls of Water are thriving and I believe a couple of the tomato plants will be blossoming in a week or ten days.

Most of Saturday morning was spent making and installing a base plate for the light in the upstairs bathroom. It was a particular challenge since it has a hot roof that slopes. It proved difficult to not only center the light over the vanity and recessed medicine cabinet without hitting the sloping ceiling on one side, but also for the hanging globes of the light to clear the medicine cabinet door.

I cut an oval from a scrap piece of 1 x 6 board, sanded it, routed out the backside (so the wires could be manipulated and fit) then had to jury rig the fastening plate that came with the light… and it goes on and on. The main thing; in the end, the light is centered, it works, the medicine cabinet door opens, and we’ll all live to see another day.

Sargie busied herself painting while I played electrician. She applied second coats to the trim and it looks really nice. Amazing what her hand can do to improve the appearance of a room.

We moved outside where I began work in the barn and Sargie planted geraniums in the outside planters. 

I put tools away, hung, and stored items used during the winter and maple seasons. It’s looking better, but I’m still not finished.

I am looking forward to having the floor blacktopped this summer and building a regular shop inside the barn this fall. I’m out of wall space on which to hang my tools and a bigger shop will allow me to… hmm, make bigger messes? Probably.

Sargie has the back deck looking like a million dollars. Not content with planting only the back flower boxes, she also filled the front window box with impatiens and then turned her efforts to planting several pots with flowers after painting each and filling them with topsoil.

Sometimes a guy just needs a long, tall, cool, drink of water.

She next turned her attention to raking around the woodsheds and that area of the yard. As with the bathroom, her efforts in the yard and planting the flowers changed the exterior of the house completely. 

I planted the gladiola bulbs I'd dug last fall and stored in the basement.

It was time to give Brutus a bath. I changed into shorts and with his tennis ball, a brush, and a bottle of doggie shampoo in hand, the three of us headed for the lake.

We played fetch, we scrubbed, I waded, he swam, and in the end, our puppy was once again white. That’ll last until he goes into the woods this morning and begins to dig and explore.

At one point, I thought we’d lost his tennis ball to deep water. The dog is a good swimmer, but hates getting water in his ears. After a large wave swept over his head the other night, he’s hesitant about swimming too far out and has panicked a couple of times when his head goes under. In fact, I thought I might have to swim out two nights ago and haul him in. Thankfully, he made it on his own.

The ball was several yards further out last night than he wanted to swim. He stood in belly deep water and looked, made an attempt, panicked when water came up to his head, turned around, tried it again, and came back. Several minutes passed and the ball drifted further from shore.

Finally, out of the blue, he waded into the deeper water, performed his very best doggie paddle, grabbed the ball, and swam back to shore. Brutus had fallen from his horse and climbed back on. He’d conquered his fear and saved his tennis ball. All was good in our bulldog’s world last night.

Sargie is working today. I’m going to continue working in the garden, laying mulch, hauling and spreading wood chips. I need to haul some compost to the raised beds to mix with last year’s dirt. With Don coming to begin landscaping in the old popple woods, I need to move some firewood that was cut last fall. There’s also two or three large trees in the area by the garden that need cutting before he comes. I’ll tell you, a man’s work is never done.

Bush cucumbers beginning to sprout in the greenhouse.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road…