Ukrainian Kibit Tomatoes. Too bad they ripen all at once.

September 8, 2015 - Tuesday
66 degrees/misty/calm winds
Pentoga Road

Since Sargie had to work and take one for the team on Labor Day, she's off today and is taking advantage of the opportunity to sleep in. I'm sitting in the living room by an open window enjoying the early morning sounds of the woods that surround our home. The bluejays have found a dry giant sunflower head and when not squawking a warning for other birds to stay clear, are working hard to loosen the large seeds. A pileated wood pecker is busy pounding away at the half-dead white pine at the edge of the meadow, and a squirrel, somewhere deep in the woods, is chattering a mile a minute. 

Gone are the tiny wrens, those little dynamos that serenaded us all summer. When I hung the bird house last spring, I wasn't at all sure it would be occupied. I needn't have worried as it was a flurry of wren activity all summer long. Rest assured there'll be several additional houses hung next summer in hopes of attracting even more. 

Carl the Weatherman says it's going to get chilly later this week, but Carl's been known to lie. I think most people in the UP have enjoyed the latest bout of above normal temperatures, those flirting with the eighty-degree mark, but it's been the humidity that has left everyone wiping their brows and wishing for an end to the latest heat wave. Friday's predicted high? Fifty-seven degrees with low humidity. Mom's always cautioned to watch what we hope for, that it might just come true. 

With this humidity has come a new problem in raising the giant pumpkin, new soft places on the stem. Rather than panic like I did when the vine split, I went to the hood where my homies hang out, bigpumpkins.com, and talked of my dilemma. The people who digitally hang out there are as sick and obsessed as I am with growing giant squash. I suspect many are old, retired, guys, just like myself who enjoy spending their retirement years in the garden.

Some of the suggested remedies included removing the soft areas and swabbing them with alcohol, then liberally applying sulfur powder.

Do you have any idea the difficulty I encountered in finding sulfur powder on Labor Day in a small northern community? I finally found a bag of sulfur granules at our local hardware store, brought those home, and ground them into a powder as did the pharmacists of old. 



I hated to cut away any part of the stem, even that which was rotten. Being the precise surgeon that I am, I used a spoon from the kitchen silverware drawer and scraped away a quarter-inch layer of mush, liberally swabbed on alcohol, then applied a layer of sulfur.

As of last night, a scab had formed on the stem and it appears to have dried. As of now, the giant pumpkin is still alive and kicking.

The area on the right is missing from when the vine split from the stem a month ago. It's the spot on top that's caused the newest concern. It's been excised, sterilized, and filled with sulfur.

I spent some time Monday afternoon working on the shop, drilling holes, running wire, installing a couple more outlets and the light switch. It's coming. Into my third year of retirement, I'm learning that everything doesn't have to be done all at once. 

Sargie was home around 7 last night and we had a quiet evening of watching television. 

I'm not sure what today will bring. Menards in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, has a sale on insulation. I need ten rolls to do the shop, so we might make a road trip and take advantage of the sale. It would mean a savings of over $50. We talked about going fishing later this afternoon, but that will depend on the weather. My good lookin' boat buddy is a fair-weather fisher lady who isn't too keen on bucking waves while enduring pounding rain. 

It's time to download some pictures and see what I did yesterday. 

After all, a man's work is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

On Sargie's urging, I've added even more outlets, even one in the ceiling.