Sept. 18-24, 2022

Weather | 9/18, 0.91" rain, 64°, 85° | 9/19, 0.08" rain, 65°, 82° | 9/20, 68°, 92° | 9/21, 71°, 77° | 9/22, 53°, 67° | 9/23, 0.30" rain, 49°, 52° | 9/24, 47°, 78° |

• Sunday, 9/18: Serious Thunderstorms
  
  • We went through a thunderstorm in the early morning hours that dumped nearly an inch of rain. It's great to get the moisture.
    
  • Mary cleaned the house and hung hot peppers to dry.
  • I hunted squirrels all day. A strong south wind made it hard to spot squirrels in the pecan trees. I shot 2 squirrels, one after the other, towards evening. They munch up pecan nuts well before they're fully ripe, spitting out the nuts and wasting them.
  • We had virga (rain that doesn't hit the ground) go over us and the setting sun revealed a bright double rainbow to the east. Waves of falling moisture made it pulsate, a phenomenon we've never witnessed. It was bright all the way to the bottom color of purple.
    
  • A very bad series of thunderstorms passed by just north of us after dark. A funnel cloud was spotted northeast of us in Illinois and it took out power across the Mississippi River. Half-dollar sized hail fell in LaBelle, which is about 5 miles northwest of us. We just got a short burst of intense rain. I put a video online, but an impressive video taken of that storm was on the West Central Illinois (WCIL) Scanner Radio link on Facebook that I belong to. Here is a link to that VIDEO.
    
    
• Monday, 9/19: More Salsa, Fewer Squirrels
  
  • Mary made a third batch of salsa, putting up 14 quarts. I walked into the house toward the end of canning and spotted a partially burnt potholder on the porch. She said it wasn't one of her brighter moments. That's all I'm going to say about that!
    
  • I hunted squirrels in the morning and late afternoon, shooting two. They are extremely stubborn. I missed a shot at one, that went up the cottonwood tree north of the machine shed and sassed at me for 15 minutes. It returned and I missed, again. It came all the way down the tree and bounced off under the trees. I could hear it moving, because squirrels are as quiet as attacking elephants when they run on fallen leaves. Then, I heard it go up a tree. It returned for a third time, which was unwise. My third shot was right on.
  • Our chicks are 14 weeks old, today. Last year, we butchered at this stage. A high of 95° is predicted for tomorrow. Rain is predicted for Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. We decided we will start butchering chickens Monday night (9/26).
  • I looked up details about adjusting the Stihl trimmer carburetor. I think my throttle needs tweeking. I'll try adjusting it and see if that helps.
    
    
• Tuesday, 9/20: The Last of Salsa Making
  
  • Mary made a fourth and final batch of salsa. She finished off another 14 quarts. She's done with all canning for the season and is quite happy for it.
  • I shot at one squirrel and missed in the morning. A one-hour hunt in the evening revealed no squirrels. I believe hot temperatures kept them away.
  • On a quick drive to Quincy, I picked up what I hope is the last chick feed for this year. I saw 98° on a bank sign.
  • After returning home, we had a black border collie cross in our front yard. I lit a firecracker and it scurried away to the north.
  • Mary picked a massive bowl of strawberries in the evening.
    
  • We watched 2 movies. The first was the 2017 movie, Darkest Hour, and the second was the 2010 movie, The King's Speech.
    
    
• Wednesday, 9/21: Quiet Day
  
  • After so many days of canning, Mary tried to take a break. She managed an hour of cross stitching. Mary also made flour tortillas and fajitas for our midday meal.
  • I tried to adjust the accelerator cable on the Stihl trimmer. It didn't make any difference. After viewing how-to videos on adjusting its carburetor, I changed the settings. It works a little better, but its still not perfect.
  • I checked the pecan trees 3-4 times throughout the day without seeing squirrels.
  • I mowed the Bass Pond Trail where I mowed about a week ago, then weedwhacked and mowed beyond that point. I mowed with a bag and filled the trailer connected to the 8N Ford tractor with grass clippings, then dumped the clippings around the big maple tree in the north yard. Quite a few deer tracks were in the deep grass clippings I put down last week.
  • Rain clouds showed on the radar, so Mary did all of the chores, early, while I was mowing the trail.
    
  • While at the maple, I heard a squirrel and walked over to the pecan trees, slapped my hands, and sure enough, a squirrel hopped from tree top to tree top as I said, "I see you!" I went in to see when Mary wanted to feed chickens, which we did, next. Then, I grabbed the .22 rifle. There was the squirrel, again. I shot, missed, and sent the squirrel packing. I'm sure it will be back tomorrow morning.
  • We ate a watermelon as a late-night snack. These Sweet Dakota Rose watermelons are small, but taste great. Mary says she's going to freeze several, soon.
    
    
• Thursday, 9/22: Readying for Butchering Chickens
  
  • I plinked away at a couple squirrels, but never got any.
  • A quick check of the killing cone we use to butcher chickens showed it was smashed under a rotten railroad tie post that fell down. Another railroad tie post is still standing next to the rotten one, so I'll install a new killing cone on the standing post.
  • I cleaned out compost left in the 2020 compost bin used on the garden this year and filled two plastic garbage cans in the machine shed with several wheelbarrow loads of good compost. I wired a piece of sheet metal on the open side of the bin to fully enclose it.
  • I mowed most of the trail to the killing cone, bagged the clippings, and put them in the empty compost bin. An organic cushion needs to be in place prior to butchering chickens.
  • Mary cut up 8 watermelons and froze 11 quarts.
    
  • She also picked hazelnuts, comfrey, and hot peppers. Mary checked the pumpkins and squash. They need to ripen longer in the garden. She also washed a load of laundry.
  • On our nighttime dog walk, we heard something barking in the field southwest of us. It seemed as though it got closer. It stopped once I shined a flashlight in its direction. Online investigations concluded we heard a raccoon. We never knew that they actually barked, but they do if angry. Here's what it sounds like.
    
    
• Friday, 9/23: Rainy Day
  
  • Rain fell for most of the day. It was cool enough that I wore a coat while outside.
    
  • Wet and wind fails to hinder squirrels. I perched on a chair just inside the east end of the machine shed, out of the rain, and kept an eye out for squirrels. I got 2 of them and missed at shooting a couple others. There wasn't too much else to do on a rainy day.
    
  • Mary hung more hot peppers to dry. She also worked on a cross stitch project.
    
  • We had a wonderful meal of barbecued pork loin, yellow potatoes, and watermelon for dinner.
  • Since it's cool and officially autumn, we brought out the brown Betty teapot and had 2 rounds of loose leaf tea while reading in the evening.
    
    
• Saturday, 9/24: Mom Progressing Nicely
  • Mom texted about her progress since getting her hip replaced. She's moved from a walker to a cane, and sometimes no cane while walking inside. She's performing several exercises daily. Her therapist asks that she get outside and walk a block or two, daily. Swelling and bruising is diminishing. She has a follow-up doctor's visit on Monday.
    
  • Mary froze 21 quarts of watermelon, which finishes them off. She kept out 4 watermelons that we'll eat in the near future. Including a few quarts from last year, we have 50 quarts of watermelon in the freezer.
    
  • She also scythed down tall grass near the compost bins and put the hay in the newly emptied bin, filling it to 18 inches from the top, as a way to add an organic sponge to it.
    
  • I finished mowing the trail to the killing cone that we use for butchering chickens. Near the end of that trail and right in the middle is an old walnut stump that sticks up about 2 inches. I put reflective trail marker tacks on it so we see it in the dark with a light and don't stumble over it.
    
  • A quick check revealed we no longer have large pieces of aluminum flashing to make a new killing cone, so I removed the old one and patched it up with small pieces of flashing and aluminum tape. I grabbed Mary to determine the best height for installation, since she holds each chicken in the cone, then installed the killing cone on the old railroad tie post.
    
  • I shot at squirrels through the day, but missed. They're tricksy little tree rats!