Yooper Brother Mark's son, Jerad, fastening a rope from a dead maple so it won't fall onto the storage shed.

October 4, 2015 - Sunday
43 degrees/cloudy/calm winds
Pentoga Road

This is the first morning in several days that I've awakened to temperatures above freezing. According to Carl the Weatherman, it's to be seasonally cool for the next several days, highs in the fifties and low sixties, lows in the upper thirties. Perfect.

Saturday was a catch-all day. Sargie wasn't feeling the best and spent most the day trying to get over a nasty headache. She said it was better this morning. 

I went into town and bought a used large double pane glass window, half a patio sliding door, with which to build my solar heater from the Habitat for Humanity Restore. After, I came home and cut up a sugar maple bush so that Jerad could cut the larger dead tree later in the morning. 

I didn't want that dead part that's standing to fall onto the storage shed.

It took some time to haul the branches to the burn pile. Funny, I just got this past spring and summer's collection of brush burned and already, the new pile is growing. It never seems to go away.



Jerad arrived late morning and had the tree on the ground within minutes. 

Fastening a guide rope up high

It's fun to watch someone who knows what he's doing. 



A rope was fastened to the tree, then he made something similar to a block and tackle out of knots, a cut here and a cut there and it was all over.



Neighbor Mike wanted to till this past summer's garden that had gone to weeds, so I took up my large push weed whacker and mowed it for him. 



The last I saw of Neighbor Mike, he was going to play with his new tiller.



Sargie and I took our usual drive just so I could get her out of the house thinking maybe it might help her headache a bit. It seemed to.

We spent late afternoon watching a movie and had a quiet evening.

Sargie works from noon until five this afternoon. 

I need to mow the lawn for one last time this year. I'd like to have it done before the Packers play the 49er's at 3 this afternoon. Of course, I'll be wearing my green and gold and coaching from my recliner.

Mississippi Brother Garry and his beautiful bride of fifty years, Jody, are due to arrive either Tuesday night or Wednesday morning to visit for a few days. We're looking forward to seeing them a great deal. I can promise this, there won't be room to get a word in edgewise on Pentoga Road.

With that being said, it's about time to wake Sargie for the day and think two or three deep thoughts. Naw, it's Sunday, make that only one deep thought.

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

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

What we've been waiting for... a clean barn!

October 3, 2015 - Saturday

41 degrees/cloudy/windy

Pentoga Road

It's a damp wind that's blowing out there this morning, the kind that goes right through a person. The fire in the stove feels mighty good. That, along with a hot cup of coffee, makes the body feel toasty warm. 

Friday began with a trip to the dump. Oops, the transfer station as we now call it. I miss the old dump days. Scrounging around piles of refuse, seeing what treasures others have discarded. 

When Andy was in junior high and high school and covering our garage floor with lawn mower engine parts, we made regular weekly dump runs in search of carburetors, pistons, or some other gizmo. I complained at the time, but actually, enjoyed our Sanford and Son forays. Though we no longer have dumps, per se, I still found myself glancing at discarded piles of stuff yesterday, just in case someone threw out a treasure I couldn't live without. 

My first task back home was to carry this year's harvest of winter squash to the basement. I was careful about leaving plenty of stem with each fruit and hopefully, they'll keep well into the winter months. Sargie and I enjoy our squash.

Finishing the barn was the main goal of the day. 

I'd sweep and put items away, then walk to the the burn pile at the edge of the meadow and rake the remaining coals into a pile to keep them burning.

It was a cool morning and Brutus sat as close as he could to keep warm.

It felt good when the time came to back everything into the drive from the barn and sweep the floor clean.

 This shop/barn project has been a fun undertaking, but I don't mind being perfectly honest and say I'm glad it's done. 

I'm really hoping that I'll be able to fit both four-wheelers, the lawn tractor, the lawn sweeper, both push mowers, the Ford tractor, the snowblower, and possibly, the backhoe, into the barn this winter and still have a path to the shop. I'll have my civil engineer, Mississippi Brother Garry, plan that all out when he and Jody are visiting this next week. He has a barn/shop that has as much or more under one roof than mine.

Neighbor Mike came down saying he needed help unloading a new tiller. He said I could borrow it whenever I wanted, but since I use mostly raised beds, I doubt that will happen too much. Plus, knowing my luck, I'd put a scratch on the thing and have to buy him a new one.

Sargie's off today. She has some achy joints and a headache, so we're going to keep that girl in bed to recover from whatever is ailing her. 

Jerad is supposed to stop out and take down a dead maple tree that is close to the storage building. There is only one way it can fall... away from the building. Any other direction would have disastrous results. Hmm, it's windy, maybe not the best day to cut the tree down. We'll see what Jerad says. Since he worked several years for a company that trimmed and cut trees out of power lines, the boy has an unofficial degree in chainsawology, something I had in my younger years, but relinquished as I grew older. 

Enough sharing of deep thoughts and blathering. It's time to get this uploaded and start the day. 

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

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

All that is left after twenty-four hours of burning

It's that time of year again... pumpkins on the front porch.

October 2, 2015 - Friday
27 degrees/clear/calm
Pentoga Road

Brr. I had to chip ice from Brutus's water pail.

Thursday began by cleaning the barn. I wanted to get a good start before Grady was awake and out of bed. The boy has a way of sidetracking any big person who might be in his general vicinity.



The barn is down to the final stages of being winter-ready. There are many little things to be put or thrown away, but it's about ready for the cold weather and snow that lie ahead.

One problem that was encountered... I wanted to use the tractor to haul a large chest/desk to the burn pile. The thing weighed about the same as a Volkswagen. 



I tried to start the tractor... nothing. The tester showed the battery was good, so there was nothing to do but clean the cables. Thankfully, the first one I took apart was the culprit. The tractor jumped to life immediately after.



The large chest/dresser was eventually hauled to the burn pile.



I took a coffee break and came inside to find Grady up and playing. He entertained his Grandma Sargie and Grandpa for quite a while.

Grady and I hung out in the shop for a while Friday morning. 

He became quite proficient at pounding a piece of wood on an old kitchen chair.



Grady and his BFF, Brutus, had a good day together. In fact, they were rarely apart. It was funny watching each battle over a stick that Brutus had brought out of the woods and was chewing on. The next sequence of pictures say it all:

In the end, Grady got the stick... until Brutus took it away from him and trotted away with it in his mouth.

Later in the day, Grady discovered the two-wheeled dolly. He loved riding on it, being pulled backwards, but sitting so close to the warm pavement caused him to fall fast asleep.

After a ride into town and as Grady was taking a nap, Grandpa snuck out to the garden and hauled the field pumpkins up to the front porch. 

I started the burn pile on fire last night just before dark. I see it's still smoldering this morning. As soon as I'm finished with today's entry, I'll rake the coals into a pile to continue burning all day.

Macrea and Grady spent the night with us and were up and gone early this morning. Sargie's left for work and suddenly, this old house, one that was filled with noise, toys, and laughter a short while ago, is very quiet. Too quiet. 

It's time to start the day. After I get the fire going again, I'll load the trailer and make a trip to the dump. Finishing the barn will come after then maybe I'll squeeze out enough time to solve world hunger and peace.

After all, a man's work is never done. So are the tales from Pentoga Road...

Somehow, I think this year's garden is about finished.

October 1, 2015 - Thursday

28 degrees/clear skies/calm winds

Pentoga Road

I'm sitting here worrying about the darn pumpkins. A few of the bigger ones, plus the giant, are covered in an attempt to keep them from freezing, but several more nights of cold temperatures are forecast. 

I'm still bringing in the flower planters. For these tall and heavy ones, I use the two-wheeled cart.

I need to get the pumpkins in... which means I need to get the barn finished so there's room.

Sister-in-law, Jeanne, with a pumpkin she grew. Hmm, I wonder if she knows they're supposed to be orange?

I spent some time in the garden on Wednesday taking inventory. Other than the root crops, it was fairly well cleaned out before the big freeze. Now the real work of storing the vegetables begins.

I was hoping to leave the giant pumpkin in the garden until it's time to move it to Derek and Leah's, but I'm fearful it will freeze through. Dare I attempt to move it into the barn for the next two weeks? Maybe the middle of the living room just to be on the safe side? Brutus could move to the garden and sleep on it to keep it warm. I may have to move it out of the garden in the next few days. No one ever said this retirement thing was going to be easy. All these decisions...

I spent most of Wednesday morning in the barn, working on building a wood rack. The actual building was easy and simple, but I couldn't decide on the design and exactly where to hang it. I wanted it off the floor and high enough that I wouldn't be bumping my head. The one I cobbled together yesterday should suffice.

Noon came and went. It was a beautiful day and I wanted to go fishing. Should I? Shouldn't I? Should I? Shouldn't I? Satan, get behind me and all that stuff. That didn't do any good. Ah, heck with cleaning the barn. 

I kissed off any thoughts of being responsible, hooked up the trailer, and drove to one of my favorite lakes.

Fishing was just okay, but the scenery was beautiful. 

The leaves are just beginning to change and I'm excited to think that they might be at their peak while Mississippi Brother Garry and Jody are here next week.

The water is beginning to cool down and the bigger fish are moving. It's still slow, but improving. In the end, I caught enough nice bluegills for a fish fry for Sargie and me. 

One of my favorite programs was playing on the small solar-powered radio. Suddenly, the wind blew the boat around and reception was lost. The only way the station would come in was if I physically touched the antenna to ground it. 

Well, that wasn't possible... I was fishing, for cryin' out loud. In the end, Yankee ingenuity triumphed. The radio was grounded and I still caught fish.

I've never been accused of being one of those sensitive, liberal, professors; one who feigned he belonged to an upper class, wore cardigan sweaters with patches on the elbows, puffed a long stemmed pipe, and pretended to think deep thoughts. 

Grady came to visit with us last night and will stay until later today when his daddy picks him up on his way through the area.

The little guy kept us entertained and no doubt, we'll hang out today. He doesn't know it yet, but after our walk, he's going to help me clean the barn. I'll set his plastic bulldozer in the middle of the floor and he can move all the sawdust he wants.

It's almost bedtime and Grandma Sargie and Grady are engrossed in an epic novel. 

Sargie's home today and will be doing her Grandma Sargie thing and no doubt, working around the house. I'm going to finish the barn... no question about it. Those pumpkins have to get under cover before they freeze solid then rot after they thaw. There's still thirty days to go before Halloween. I hope Grady eats a big breakfast and feels strong because we've got a full plate on our agenda today. 

After all, a man's work (and a boy's) is never done.

So are the tales from Pentoga Road...