What does a little girl dress up as when she lives in Maine?
Ivy's the cutest lobster I've ever seen.

November 1, 2016 - Tuesday

51 degrees/cloudy/breezy

Pentoga Road

Hard to believe that I was ice fishing two years ago on this date, especially after working outside all day yesterday in my shirt sleeves. This supposed global warming thing ain't all bad! (For those with whom I've had the discussion, I still don't believe in global warming, so don't cheer too loudly, I've not crossed over the dark side. Cycles, yes. Global warming, no.)

And work is what I did on Monday. After completing my daily stroll, I donned a pair of work gloves and began unloading the trailer of fire wood. I hadn't really intended on doing the entire thing, but the day was young and so was I. (<- paraphrased from some ditty I've heard before.)

By early afternoon, the trailer was empty. I especially like that the wood is already split and I know that I'll be especially appreciative when the time comes to burn it. There's nothing like working up wood when the temperature is -20 and one is working in heavy clothes and mittens.

This will be covered with a large tarp and kept dry.
Two trailer loads equals two months of heat. Not bad for three days of work.

The rest of Monday was spent working in the garden. The first order of business was to remove the pallets and wood on which the giant pumpkins were sitting.

I then waded into the fray and began pulling the giant sunflower stalks.

What I really needed was a chain saw and stump remover

It's amazing how an area that looked so beautiful just six weeks ago can appear so desolate and ugly now. It happens every year like clockwork.

Whoops, I missed a few zucchini squash earlier. These had the texture and feel of baseball bats.

I was delighted to see that the beets, parsnips, carrots, and rutabagas, prospered this summer with the beets faring the worst. Some crops, like the parsnips, won't be dug until next spring and the rutabagas will be harvested a few days before Thanksgiving, just in time for the Mighty Milligan Thanksgiving Day Celebration.

This rutabaga is larger than my hand

So the afternoon went. I raked and gathered, dumped and went back for more.

Pumpkin vines raked into a pile

I'm not certain how many trips I made to the woods with the tractor. Certainly there are some happy deer running around our property whose bellies are filled with garden goodies.

I dusted my hands just before dark and made a mental promise that I'd return to the garden today to finish. 

Sargie was home early last night and we spent the evening watching Dancing With the Stars. She opens the Vision Center again today and I'll be riding with her partway to Iron Mountain then walking back home.

On my agenda after the walk: 

Finish the garden

Take the snow blower to the mechanic's for it's yearly tune up

Winterize the backhoe

Continue to work on perpetual motion and world peace.

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

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

Out in Wyoming, Isabella dressed as a girl Elmo