Wednesday, December 31, 2014

2015, Realities of Living in The Great North Woods and Farm Diaries

So, the new year is upon us again.
No resolutions here. I have too much damn stuff on my MUST DO list to indulge myself in the mental masturbation of "should dos" and "want to dos" in the coming year.
I MUST put up more fencing. I MUST have a decent garden. I MUST get my milking section of the barn completed before the new kids arrive. I MUST build a chicken house/yard. I MUST get more chickens. I MUST get in a better heating system before next winter. I MUST, I MUST I MUST!
The entire list is way too long to set down here, but, trust me, there is no room for the pipe dreams of resolutions.
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Our water heater bit the big one.
This is bad.
One of my few joys here is taking a long HOT soak in the tub. It is cold here. VERY cold. We weren't able to get a pellet stove yet (expense), so, our heating is just a baseboard electric heater in the upstairs living room. Even with that, it is currently only about 45 or 50 in the living room. Some mornings, even lower to the point I can see my breath. Right now, I am running the clothes dryer to boost the temperature a teeny bit.
I am wearing 2 pairs of socks, thermal underwear, jeans, a t-shirt, sweater and a sweat shirt. This is inside. And I have a blanket over my lap and legs.
This is the reality of living in The Great North Woods here in the NorthEast US. It gets cold here. Damn cold.
You learn to adapt. To live with it.
Or you get the hell out.
We are staying.
So, we will have to get a new water heater, which we can ill afford right now.
Until we get one, I am heating water on the stove to wash dishes and myself. If need be, we can go over to a neighbors for quick showers.
Should be getting the water heater on Friday.
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I plan on starting a farm diary on the 1st. Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and many Colonial farmers kept farm diaries. That way I can flip through the pages and see what worked, what didn't.
I'll be doing it on actual paper, not online.
I suggest everyone keep a farm diary. Even if it's only a line or two a day, it can help you keep track of your efforts.
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Hope everyone has a terrific new year!

5 comments:

  1. It's damn cold here in the heartland too! I went to the "big city" to do some errands yesterday, not knowing my car heater wasn't working. Temp in single digits. When I got home I was so cold I had to wrap up in an electric blanket for several hours to thaw out. Are we softer than the gals of yesteryear? I had double layers of clothes on and a down parka. Maybe I should be making wool petticoats and skirts! Stay warm. Happy New Year!

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  2. Everybody of yesteryear had wood stoves and wood cook stoves to keep warm. They also ate real food. Water was heated on the stove or they had water running thru the firebox and stored. Bath once a week.

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    1. We have a woodstove, but the Darlin' Man is nervous about using it as our locality has had several house fires caused by wood stoves this winter. I think it would be safe...but he is resolved to not use it...sigh...

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  3. Lamb,

    It's very cold here in Oklahoma too. Prices on stoves/heater are expensive.....more so when trying to buy them this time of year.
    Have you check Craigslist for stoves locally?
    Stay warm, sending prayers.

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    1. Craigslist got me so angry! I answered ads, drove all over and found a lot of scam artists! We are getting our furnace in working order and we have a propane gas fireplace that we have to replace one piece on...IF we can find that ONE piece necessary to it's operation.

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Because of a couple of rude people that left comments that included links to porn pages and such, I have been forced to start moderating comments again.