Make Way

The exercise of clearing out stuff from our storage building resulted in treasures finding new homes, and fresh, open spaces where the items used to be. What a great feeling....like maybe I am regaining a bit of order in my life. It's amazing how possessions can have the power to control us at times. The key, I realize, is management, and that I haven't been managing well. Now I have the chance for a new start.

We had a discussion about space...can it be created?...because that is what I feel like we did. More likely, space is like matter, and can neither be created nor destroyed. It just is. So even if I didn't create space as such, I realized some now-empty room, and I can make use of it in a different way. In the immediate case, I am going to continue the clean-out, and I can do it in the storage building (also known as our laundry building. A long time ago, Peggy would do laundry out there.) Yesterday, we worked outside on the lawn. I guess we don't have to air our dirty laundry in public anymore! Sorry--bad pun.

Greg and I have lived in the lodge building for twenty-two years, and only a time or two have we done a major clean out. The most recent was in 2004 when we re-roofed the building. Actually, it's taken me a few years to finish that sorting project. At least with the storage building, I don't need to look at it everyday. The constant sight of the mess didn't necessarily motivate me to get it done quicker, it just depressed me. Time was the biggest challenge. I guess like space and matter, spare time also cannot be created. But I find if I can remove some things that have served a purpose for us and are no longer needed, then my mind opens up to think more creatively.

One aspect of this cleaning is that we are making room on the screen porch. Since the roofing project, it has been housing old stuff, and we haven't really taken the time to re-do the screens and enclose it again. That will be happening, and none-too-soon for me. June evenings on the screen porch, with daylight until nearly ten, are a treat I really enjoy. It will be nice to reclaim them.

Two More Raven Poses

Greg took these two photos, as well as yesterday's picture, of the ravens. Not only does he have a better camera than mine, he also has a better eye for it. It probably helps that the ravens like him the best, too.

Ravens in our Midst

The raven buddies are still hanging out with us. They were especially vigilant yesterday when we were working in and around the storage building. As we put things outside to sort, discard or ready for the rummage sale, they circled the sky above us. I'm certain that they figured any moment now, a morsel of food would appear for them. Of course, it didn't. But they persisted in the watch. Funny birds.

Today, we had several black bags of garbage in the back of one of the pick up trucks. I watched as one tested the territory, by first landing thirty feet away, then hopping to twenty feet, and then finally zeroing in on his target. There he was in the back of the truck, ripping into a bag. I chased him off...several times. Then a neighbor stopped by with a dog, and the dog happily chased him off. Finally, Greg covered the stuff with a tarp, so they couldn't see the bags any longer. I wondered if they knew that the bags were still there, but underneath. I didn't have time to observe long enough, but I'm curious to know if their "smarts" extend that far. I'm sure I'll get more opportunities to look for the answer. Seems I can't forget a trash bag in a truck or on a porch for more than five minutes before they find it. Good eyesight.

I was a bit concerned that when we were making pizza tonight, we might have these guys for visitors, too. No worries, though, as they made themselves scarce. Just a chipmunk or two to keep an eye on, and so far they aren't bold--0r savvy--enough to have figured out the tables full of temptations. Not so for me....the pizzas tasted great, and the brownies our neighbor John brought were delightful. If it weren't for the no-see-ums eating our ankles, I may have stayed out there longer. Now that's a new way of dieting and portion control!

Hopping Along

Today has been a very busy day. Lots of cabin folks arrived, neighbors stopped in, the gas man brought a delivery of gasoline, and we attempted to find stuff to put out for the first ever Trash and Treasures Gunflint Trail Rummage Sale. Tomorrow, many of the businesses, as well as cabin and home owners who feel so inclined, will host rummage sales. We all know that each other has a stash of treasures....it will be a great day to be out and about, trolling for goodies.

One of my most important jobs today, however, was not related to the sale. Instead, it was about the beer. Two years ago, Greg's trellis for his hops was knocked down by a falling birch tree. He has been growing hops behind the workshop for several years, and they produce a beautiful wall of vines and leaves, and eventually flowers, which can be used to flavor the homebrew that he likes to make. We didn't have time to resurrect them last year, so the vines just grew willy-nilly all over the place, and as a result, we didn't have much of a harvest. When he told me this year that he mostly enjoys just seeing them growing, I was determined to get them back in to operation.

Paul and James helped me. I got new strings tied on, and then the guys hoisted the poles and I put in the bolts. I then strung the twine to the posts in the ground, and guided the new vines over to the lines. A couple of them are already six feet tall! This warm weather has definitely been making an impression on them. As long as we get some rain, the harvest should be good enough for a batch or two of beer. As a back-up plan, we have a spigot nearby, so that I can give the hops a swig or two....they deserve that, right?

Many years ago, when our boys were much younger, Greg worked with them one fall to make a moose calling device. They went out by our powerline to test it out. Back then, Greg was growing hops under the line, as it was a great spot for full sun. The trellis system was a bit different---one twelve or so foot pole for each hop vine, again with a long piece of twine for the vine to grab. They tested out the moose call, but no one answered, so they came in for dinner. It wasn't until the next morning, when Greg was driving by, that he saw the result. Evidently a bull moose had indeed heard the call, and had come looking for what he thought was going to be a lovely lady. All he found was a big old trellis, and he got his antlers tangled in the line, to boot. Such disappointment. Greg could see that the top of the trellis had been snapped off, and that very determined (and angry?) tracks trailed down the hill, as the lonely moose ran off. At least now we know how to make a decent moose call if we ever go moose hunting again!