Thank You Heir I

It took me about two hours on and off today to bury a 100-foot long, 7/8-inch diameter garden hose for our soon-to-be backup water supply from our neighbor landlord.

In that span I had managed to bury about 20 feet.

Heir I came out to help once he arose from bed, had a shower and breakfast.

And am I glad he did.

In less than a half hour we had completed the task with him doing the grunt work with the shovel and me, burying the hose and tamping the earth with my big fat knee.

He did almost nick my pinkie once or twice but fortunately I was able to pull it in time. And it's a good thing too.

"Whew, you almost got me," I said.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't get you," he said. "I don't want to have to take you to the ER. I want to go to my girlfriend's this afternoon."

Well I feel better now, thank you very much.

Editor's note: There is no photo for this blog as Heir I doesn't like his mug on the internet and with a buried hose, all one would see would be the open expanse of the back 40 and you've seen enough of that already.

Heir (II) Testing

SisIggy, Heir II and I will get up really early tomorrow morning and head off to Salem so the Heir can take a battery of tests and interviews for several scholarships offered by Roanoke College.

We hope he does well.

A Sump and A Pump: Water Issues - Again

"Dad, something is wrong with the sump pump," Heir I told me as he tried to shake me from a deep sleep. That was early Tuesday morning (around 3:30 am to be exact) and after finally waking up I muttered, "unplug it and if water doesn't back up into the basement, I'll fix it in the morning."

I did investigate Tuesday and found the reason the float wouldn't drop, fixed it and thought our worries were over.

This morning, around 5 a.m., Heir I again woke me from my warm bed: "Dad, water is spraying all over the basement," he said. "You got to get up and fix it."

I got up, went into the dungeon he calls home, looked at the pump that brings water from the cistern and indeed saw a fine spray emitting from a plug. I fixed it then by turning off the breaker in the electrical panel and went back to bed.

Later, I investigated and found the pump had run the cistern dry and popped a rubber hose off the pump. After re-attaching it and ordering in another 1,500 gallons of potable water, the problem was solved for now.

Our landlord, however, wants to install a backup plan and tomorrow, Heir I and I will dig a 100-foot trench to place garden hose from our outside water bibb to our landlord's water line. This will work until he can get permanent structure in place later this spring.

And maybe, I'll be able to get a full night's sleep.

Post

It may not look like much of anything -- a couple whitewashed boards lying on pavement but to us, history fell apart today when a passing motorist careened into The White Post.

The landmark is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the original post was placed here by George Washington in 1750. The post provided early visitors directions to four distinct points of reference: Berry's Ferry, Battletown, New Town and Greenway Court, the home of Thomas, Sixth Lord of Fairfax, the original owner of what is now all of the Northern Shenandoah Valley, northern West Virginia and parts of Ohio.

Washington, by the way, surveyed this area for Fairfax in the mid-18th century before going on to other things.

The locust post underneath the structure was not damaged and a new facade will be in place by the weekend.

What A Weekend!

Temps hit in the high 70s both Saturday and Sunday which meant I had to dig out my shorts from winter storage.

I know, the weather won't last but I just had to do it, if for no other reason than to pick on John (not no name) from Wisconsin, who was enjoying another snowy weekend.

We decided another BBQ was in order and we took out frozen Cornish Game Hens we got on a super deal last month. After thawing, I fired up the rotisserie on the grill, skewered the hens and sat back and watched the birds slowly turn on the spit.

Ninety minutes later the hens were done and we were ready to eat.

Taking a cue from Kevin Weeks, we knew plating was as important as the quality of the food. Fortunately, Heir II's stash from his restaurant gig Sunday included a green bean and carrot medley that meshed nicely with the Jadite plates and coloring of the birds.

Sis made homemade dinner rolls that added to the color and the meal was a success.

The Recipe:

1 1/2 cups White Vinegar
1/2 cup EVOO
1/8 cup Tabasco Sauce
1/4 cup Sea Salt
1/16 cup Freshly-Ground Black Pepper
1/4 cup Basil, fresh chopped
1/8 cup Garlic Salt fresh garlic would be better, diced)
1/8 cup Sage
1/8 cup Thyme

Stir all ingredients until salt has dispersed throughout the solution. Stir while basting. Basting should be done after meat reaches 130 degrees internal temperature, about 10 minutes before removing from rotisserie.

Rest meat 10 minutes before serving.

Bon Appetite!

No Name Cafe Was A Hit

SisIg and I really enjoyed the buffet at the No Name Saturday night. As always, the ambiance was superb and the BBQ Pork exquisite.

Thanks for inviting us!

No Name Cafe Here We Come

We're heading to the No Name Cafe later today for dinner but will be back in time to watch all the electronic clocks in the house lose an hour. Catch everyone tomorrow.

Another Sign of Spring

Blink an eye (yea, I know when you only have one, it's even more of a joke) and you miss signs of spring.

Yesterday I witnessed crocuses popping through the soil here at Dirtmanland. Today, I saw they were an inch taller despite Hokie and Abby stepping all over them.

SisIggy saw we now had tulips sprouting in the front flower bed and I saw one of our forsythia starting to green.




I can't wait until I have to get the battery back in the riding mower and mow the back 40.

BBQ on a Spring Day

Yesterday was such a lovely day it was meant to be outdoors. I picked up the back yard of all that had been blown in by the recent windstorms and even got most of the dog droppings (when you have six dogs in a confined area and haven't done the task for a month this can be time-consuming). We want to get it all before we heat up and produce a gas factory.

By lunchtime I commented it would be nice to grill dinner and SisIggy thought that an excellent idea. We settled on BBQ Chicken and I went to the freezer to get four leg quarters so they could thaw.

Then I prepared my sauce:

2 cups catsup
1 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup Rasperry Walnut vinaigrette
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup orange juice
1/8 cup lime juice
1/8 cup Tabasco Sauce
3 T brown sugar
1 t sea salt
1/2 t black pepper
1/2 t oregano
1/2 t tyme
2 garlic cloves
1/2 t garlic salt
1 medium onion, diced

I mixed all the ingredients, brought it to a boil and then simmered it for an hour.

Then I began grilling the chicken while SisIggy prepared corn and a salad and set the table.
Heir II had a girls soccer game he wanted to go see so we (yes all four of us) sat down to dinner at 5:15 pm.

By 6 pm, the dishes were done and we were able to enjoy a nice, quiet evening.

The Crocuses are Coming; The Crocuses are Coming

A sure-fire sign of Spring:

I found this patch of crocuses popping through the ground at the corner of the house today. If I can keep the Aussies off them, I think they will be in full bloom by Saturday. It got into the 70s today and may reach that again tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday.

Eat your hearts out my friends to the north.

Will the Piping Plovers and Sea Turtles Win?

Let's hope the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Park Superintendent can prepare a plan to protect the Piping Plover and Sea Turtles that can satisfy US District Court Judge Terrence Boyle. Apparently, a committee charged with developing a plan could not.

At stake here, from the environmentalist's point of view, would be close NC Route 12 to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic and let nature take its course. That option isn't viable as we all know the Outer Banks depends on tourists for much of its fragile economy.

We've been to the seashore sanctuary several times over the past few years and have encountered areas that were off limits to humans. These sites were confirmed Piping Plover nests and brooding areas and I can't say it was an inconvenience to me to let them have their own space.

There has to be a happy medium for the engangered species and humans to exist.

Defining Skiffs

There's been much discussion over on Bits and Pieces about what a skiff is.

I've used that term to describe the magnificent snows we've gotten here in Dirtmanland this winter.

Monday's storm was no exception. It started snowing around 9 pm Sunday evening and continued through the night. Our first inkling on the magnitude of the snowfall was at 5:20 am when we got the automatic alert phone call from the local school system announcing school was closed for the day.

We awoke two hours later thinking we'd be spending the day shoveling snow so we could meet with civilization. Instead, this is what we saw: Another skiff - less than an inch of snow on the ground.

At least our birds enjoyed winter's respite and our hi-grade seeds.

The wind, however, was blowing 30 mph and, with the occasional leftover flurry, we did have drifting snow across the state road in front of our house:


Two more hours and the sun was out and most of our snow was barren on the ground. Here, our beloved Aussies are enjoying their time outdoors while we contemplated rest inside.

And, so John of Wisconsin (not to be confused with J*** of Nowhere), this is how we live here in Dirtmanland. We'd welcome the opportunity to trade places with you for a season just so as long as the pups can come with us.

Yesterday Is One To Remember -- NOT.

We had snow. Not a lot. Not even a little. But enough to cancel school, which left Heir II home for a day to spend quality time with the family. II slept in, getting up around 11:30 more than six hours after his mother and me.

Heir I got up around the same time, early (hell, a lot earlier) by his standard, which meant chaos for the bathroom.

I had gotten a little work done in the morning hours and the dogs were all taken care of. SisIggy had washed the kitchen floor just as II came out from his bedroom and I, from the cellar he calls home.

Don't you dare come into the kitchen, Sis said just as the basement door opened and Heir I appeared.

What do you mean I can not come upstairs? Heir I asked.

It went downhill from there as the testosterone consumed the house. The Heirs got into it at that point and even I got into the act. Heir I stole my peanut butter and jelly sandwich at one point throwing the bread into the air and onto the carpet where Hokie sniffed and turned away like a trained dog is supposed to do.

The Heirs made up later in the day, just in time for Caisee to arrive for a delicious dinner, including desert, that Sis prepared. I even got back at Heir I, stealing his homemade lemonade as we sat down to dinner.

Then, as we prepared for sleep, we found one of our old and beloved cats was finally succumbing to her cancer. She has lost control of her bladder and Sis ended up on the couch and me, in my chair for the night.

Fluffy and I will visit the vet later today and I unfortunately already, know the results. But she will be better off and we will too for the love and devotion she has given us for the past decade and more.

Yes, school's back in session today and Heir I is still in the dungeon as I type this. The testosterone has lowered to bearable levels as we trudge through another day.

NOTE: Heir II went with me to the vet and he confirmed what we already knew. Fluffy had cancer and it had spread throughout her body. We stayed as he put her to sleep, then left to go to my parents to help on a project.

Dr. Seuss on a Blustery Birthday

Who Knew?

A Skiff of Snow

Could Blow

A Blistery, Blustery Puff of Glow

OK, I admit that is a lame excuse honoring Dr. Seuss on his 105th birthday but it's the best I can do as we wind down from our biggest snowstorm of the season.

We awoke this morning to another skiff, barely covering the grass in the front yard. But the wind was blowing as promised and there actually was snow drifting across the road. Of course, with only a skiff the drift wasn't much.

Oh, to live just a few miles east of here. They got upwards to several inches on the other side of the mountain and even more across I-95.

Do we have to elect Marion Barry again as mayor of Washington to get another 36-inch blizzard. I hope it doesn't take that.