Back to the Farm

This past week was a long one.

My partner and I were downstate working, and when I say working, I mean it was quite a run.

September 11: Jason Aldean.

September 12: John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival & Steve Winwood.

September 13: Wu-Tang Clan.

September 14: Staind.

September 15: TLC, Salt-N-Pepa and En Vogue.

September 16: Lil Wayne.

September 17: Dan + Shay.

September 18: O.A.R.

Eight straight days of shows.

By yesterday, I was ready to get back to the farm.

I dropped my partner off at the airport, visited my son at college, and then made the four-hour drive back to Memory Lane.

Needless to say, I was tired.

This morning I was awake around 8:00.

Not because I wanted to be.

Honestly, I had every intention of sleeping late today, but apparently Wyatt didn't get the memo. But I guess thats fair because while we work, Wyatt sleeps. And after 8 days in the studio all he wants to do is play.

He heard something outside, started barking, and woke me up.

I wasn't quite ready to participate in the day yet, so I stayed in bed until around 11:00.

Eventually I decided I had to get moving. I had packages that were delivered yesterday that needed to be picked up.

When I stepped outside, I noticed several large branches lying on the ground.

Mystery solved.

I'm pretty sure that's what Wyatt heard this morning. Somewhere outside, those branches must have come crashing down, and naturally, the farm's security department immediately went on high alert.

That tree is not in good shape, it has been shedding dead branches all summer, and I think it needs to come down.

Before heading for the packages, Wyatt and I went over to the pavilion to unload something else I'd brought home from downstate.

A garage door.

I found it on Facebook Marketplace while we were away, and with all of the buildings around here that need doors, repairs, or complete rebuilds, it was worth bringing back to the farm.

This door is going on the garage we cleaned out before we left.

With that unloaded, I headed across the property to get the packages.

Since I was already on that side of Memory Lane, I decided to take advantage of the weather and tackle another little project.

Before we went downstate, I had started moving some metal scrap that had become buried in the weeds.

Unfortunately, I disturbed some bees.

That project ended pretty quickly.

Today was different.

It had been raining since around 4:00 this morning. It was cold, wet and generally miserable outside, which seemed like the perfect weather to try again. I figured the bees wouldn't be nearly as active.

I was right.

I fired up the tractor and started pushing the metal out of the weeds so we can finally get it cleaned up.

I had a small window between the rain, and almost as if someone was keeping track, just as I was finishing, the rain started again.

Perfect timing.

I put the tractor back in the workshop and decided that was enough outdoor work for the moment.

Next stop was town.

Laundry and groceries.

Exciting stuff.

But on the way into town, something caught my eye.

A sign.

FREE.

Of course, I was already driving past it by the time my brain processed what I'd seen.

So...

U-turn.

When I went back, sitting there waiting for someone to take it home was a lawn sweeper, the kind you tow behind a lawn mower, tractor, or four-wheeler to pick up leaves and other light debris.

I couldn't believe it.

My partner was literally asking me about these last week.

And here one was.

Free.

It was almost like she manifested it for us.

Whoever put it out was also very thoughtful. Their property sat at the top of a hill, which meant I could simply back the truck up to it and slide the sweeper right into the bed without needing anyone to help me.

Sometimes things just work out.

Lawn sweeper loaded, I continued into town.

I started the laundry and, while everything was washing, headed out for a couple slices of pizza for lunch.

Then it was back to move the clothes into the dryer, followed by a trip to Walmart for groceries and a few supplies.

Nothing particularly exciting.

Just normal life.

On the drive back to the farm, though, I spotted an entire flock of turkeys. Not to be misteken with the Flock of Seagulls.

That's one of the things I missed while we were downstate.

Here, even a drive home from doing laundry can give you something worth stopping to look at.

When I finally got back to Memory Lane, I was done.

Actually done.

After the past week of shows, yesterday's airport run, visiting my son, the four-hour drive home, and today's running around, I finally gave myself permission to do absolutely nothing.

I went inside and rested.

And amazingly...

I actually stayed there.

At least until around 7:00.

Dinner tonight wasn't anything elaborate. Chicken fingers and mozzarella sticks.

Perfect.

Afterward, I sat by the fake fireplace for a while and just relaxed.

The real fire will have to wait for a night when everything isn't soaking wet.

Temperatures are supposed to dip into the high 30s this week.

That's crazy to me.

It feels like we just got here.

There were gardens to plant, grass to mow, buildings to clean out, roads to work on, hummingbirds to watch, fires to sit around, and more projects than I could possibly count.

And somehow...

Summer is already coming to an end.

It went way too quickly.

Maybe that's one of the strange things about having a place like Memory Lane.

I'm always looking toward the next project.

The next building.

The next repair.

The next thing that needs to be cleaned up.

But the seasons don't wait for the project list.

The mountain is already starting to tell us what's coming next.

Cooler nights.

Changing leaves.

Shorter days.

And eventually, winter.

There is still plenty I want to accomplish before we leave for the season.

But tonight, after a very long week, I think it's okay to sit beside the fake fireplace, listen to the rain, and simply be happy to be back on the farm.

Tomorrow there will be plenty to do.

There always is.

~ Making Memories