Mohair

As I sit here at my computer it is the beginning of a new day. I will admit this day is beginning a little earlier then I like it too. I have been up since 3:30am. A nap will be required later today. The sun has yet to rise and I have already read my Bible (Jeremiah chapter 50), eaten breakfast, made a few posts of facebook, and done a little research on the word xerophytes (A plant adapted to living in a dry arid habitat). Once the sun comes up I will be out the door to feed the cats and do some morning chores before it gets too hot. When I have decided I have done enough for one day, I will then take my shower, have a morning snack and probably then lay down for awhile.

Yesterday a friend and I made the hour drive to Kerrville. We each came with long lists of places we wanted to visit and items we needed to purchase. I always make these trips with grocery lists from other neighbors. When you live so far from the stores, you plan accordingly. We petered out before we got everything done that was on our to-do lists, but we had a productive day and bought a lot of what we needed. The main reason we wanted to go yesterday (Wednesday) is because that is the only day the Kerr County Produce is open to the public. They sell vegetables at wholesale prices. We always stock up. After putting our vegetables into the ice chest, we walked over to two different thrift stores where we both found items we needed. I found a great basket for carrying vegetables from the vegetable garden to the house for only $1.25.

Kerrville is an hour drive east, but Rocksprings is exactly 15 miles NW. This is a very rural area and ranching is the main industry around here. I often see cattle, sheep, and goats grazing no matter what direction I drive. Unfortunately due to the extreme drought all are suffering. Many folks have been forced to sell off their livestock due as feed is very expensive to buy and there is no grass for the animals to graze on. Rocksprings is considered the Mohair capital of the world. Mohair comes from Angora goats and due to the rocky conditions here, this area is great for raising goats. Until the 1980’s Edwards County had more Angora goats than anywhere else in the world. After the Mohair became less profitable, many ranchers diversified and so today there are many breeds of goats in the area, along with the sheep, cows, and other animals. But wool from Angora goats and sheep is still big business here.

A few weeks ago I was with a friend and we wondered into the Priour-Varga Wool & Mohair Inc. I had my camera with me and after asking for permission, I took the enclosed shots.

The Big Chill

The last of January I put on a short sleeve t-shirt. The highs were in the 70’s and it was a beautiful sunny day, perfect to go out and spend a few hours doing outside chores. I love days like that.

Around 1:00am on February 1 I was woken up by gusting howling winds, hard rain, thunder and lightning. The storm the weathermen had been promising us had arrived earlier than expected. Unable to sleep I got up to hand wash a few dishes. I have a weather station monitor near the kitchen window and every time I looked at it the temperature had dropped. Around 2:00am I decided it was dropping to fast and decided to bundle up and go lock the cats in there kitty condo (formally a makeshift cabin the previous owners lived in). The cats greeted me with lots of meows (not normal for them to meow so much) and were thrilled when I filled their dishes full of food. I left, closing the door behind me. Now the cold air would have a harder time chilling the kitty condo off.

I was able to fall back to sleep around 3:00am, only to wake up to bitter temperatures. For the next three days it would remain below 20F. Records are not kept out here but if they were kept I am sure a few records would be broken, or some close to being broken. I know San Antonio broke a few records this week. I stayed inside as much as possible, but I have 10 month old kittens to take care of so several times a day I would go check on them. One result of such cold temperatures is their water kept freezing up. So every few hours I would bundle up and walk out to the cabin with room temperature (or often a bit warmer) bowl of water to replace the now frozen water out in the cabin. I also would get up in the middle of the night to exchange warm water for frozen water, so my cats always had water to drink.

One danger of freezing temperatures is frozen pipes and frozen well pumps. Out here our pipes cannot be buried, only covered with caliche. Monday I did walk the length of my pipes to make sure there were no exposed areas. I also have a heat lamp aimed at my well pump.
When I woke up Tuesday morning and realized just how cold it was outside I quickly started turning on faucets to let them drip. Unfortunately the pipes to the small bathroom had already frozen up. I still had water to my bathroom and the kitchen, which I am very grateful for. I have several neighbors who have not been so fortunate. Wednesday morning I learned of several nearby friends whose water had stopped flowing. Since then I have heard of others. I have taken water to my neighbor and a little food.

Another consequence of rain followed by freezing temps—the backdoor lock is frozen. I can turn the deadbolt lock on the inside but I cannot put the key into the key hole. Obviously some water got into the key hole and froze up.

One nice thing about living in South Texas is this kind of weather is very rare and when it does hit—lasts only a few days. It is suppose to start warming up and tomorrow I and the rest of the folks out here should get above freezing.

Before it does warm up though the one event that many children in South Texas never see happened—it snowed last night. I saw on the news this morning that San Antonio basically shut down, partly because they got freezing rain last night before the snow arrived. I went outside around 3:00am to exchange the cats water bowls only to discover it was snowing. We didn’t get a lot of snow, but even a dusting out here is a big deal.

As I write this it is mid-morning and the temperature outside has reached 26, the highest it has been since Tuesday before the sun came up. After days of clouds the sun has come out. We are all now counting the hours tell we can put the thermal underwear back in storage. I am sure the ranchers out here are even more anxious for warmer weather then I am. I personally know folks who must spend hours outside daily feeding livestock. My heart goes out to them as I find it tough just running outside to give my cats’ thawed water. Though it has been a tough week for the ranchers, I have to think about those ranchers in the northern climates. Many of them deal with weather much worse then what I have been living through, not just once in awhile but every winter for months at a time.

So today as you sit down to eat, remember the rancher who went out in freezing temperatures to feed that cow or chickens or…. Some of those ranchers and farmers braved temperatures well below zero with wind chill factors of minus (pick a number). Without them you and I would not have food on our table today. So we need to thank God for them and pray for them daily. They have a very tough job.

The Picture to the right--left side is the kitty condo.

The open door is a small shed.

Differences Between City and Country Life

I have been awake for several hours but the sun has just risen on this first day of a new work week. One advantage of working out of my home is that I can accomplish business and personal tasks at the same time. As I sit here typing I am also washing clothes. I have already eaten breakfast, read my Bible and prayed, read a chapter of a book, ran the dishwasher, and checked my email. If I had to travel to an office away from home, there is no way I could have accomplished all this before 8 o’clock in the morning.

In the past few weeks I have attended two Christmas parties. The first one was for my Rocksprings Church Sunday School class. The second one, just last Friday was for my San Antonio Church Sunday School Department which is made up of several Sunday School classes. I had a great time at both parties. Both parties had lots of yummy food.

The first party we had a White Elephant present exchange. For those who have never heard of a White Elephant present exchange—each person buys one gift and then at the party we all draw numbers and in numerical order pick a gift. If we like a gift someone else has already picked, we can steal that gift or we can pick from the unopened pile of gifts under the tree. The gifts can be nice, a joke, crazy, or whatever. I walked away with bookends made from horse shoes.

The second party we had a musical group as guests. This group is made up of church members who visit a nursing home every Friday to entertain the residents. They are really good and we all enjoyed being entertained, even joining in to sing with them sometimes. It was really nice seeing my old friends and getting lots of hugs. Everyone there was happy to see me too.

I have made several trips to San Antonio this past month and the difference between city and country, big city church and small rural church is very striking.

Folks in the city are more conscience of how they dress. Almost everyone was dressed up at the San Antonio party. While some were dressed up at the Rocksprings party, many were a lot more casual, I do not remember a single dress. The same can be said for Sunday Morning. It is rare to see a suit jacket in Rocksprings, whereas jeans are very common. People dress nicely in both churches, there is just a difference in attitude.

When I drive up to the San Antonio church I see manicured lawns, pruned bushes, flowers, etc. When I drive up to the Rocksprings church the lawn is mowed, but chickens are always roaming the property. Lately there have also been turkeys and even the occasional deer. It is amazing how noisy a flock of turkeys and a few roosters can be.

I have noticed a difference in personality and ruggedness among the members in Rocksprings compared to San Antonio. Though there are a number of frail members in the Rocksprings church, they just seem less frail then those in the city. I know a disabled woman in Rocksprings who must use support to walk. Even with that support she often falls, but she just picks herself up and goes on. This woman never hesitates to get on a tractor and is looking into buying a few goats. I cannot imagine anyone with her disability and limitations who lives in the city doing even half of what she does. But it seems out here no one gives it a second thought. Even those folks who are frail with age related health problems try to do more than their doctor probably advises. I have known many folks in the city who are full of excuses, whereas here in the country people just keep trying. And when someone really is unable to do something, others pitch in and help.

Which is another difference; folks out here help each other. I have received help from church members getting large items delivered out to the house. I know one person who drove to another state to pick up someone’s son and bring him home. His father has health problems and could not have made the trip. I have a neighbor who I often shop for when I go to San Antonio. She has occasionally picked up a few things for me in Kerrville. I could go on and on with such stories. People just help each other out here.

Though there are folks willing to drive people to the doctor, take them to the store, change a light bulb and help out in other ways in San Antonio, I also have witnessed a lot more selfishness in the big city, especially among certain populations. It saddens me how often I was unable to find a ride home from church because people were just too busy to drive a mere 2 miles out of their way. I often had no choice but to walk home. If my car was to break down in Rocksprings, I cannot imagine being stranded there. I am confident someone would help me get home, even though I live 15 miles from town.

Life out here can be hard, but there is a peacefulness too. At night instead of hearing sirens or other loud noises, I listen to the sound of the wind, animals, of just the quiet stillness. I love it out here.

This is difficult land though. Farming is not a possibility out here. Ranching is. This is goat and sheep country. When I drive to Rocksprings I always see goats, sheep, and cows. Sometimes I see deer and other wildlife too. A few weeks ago three people sitting near me were discussing when they could get together to have a church financial meeting. One man could not meet at a specific time because he had to feed. It takes him 2 hours to feed all his livestock, a task I am sure he does daily no matter what the weather is like. On another Sunday after church we had our monthly pot luck meal. The discussion turned to goats. The disabled woman I mentioned earlier wanted to purchase a few goats and so a rancher told her the price of a goat ($80 and above depending on the breed, gender, and age of the goat), and other issues that have to be addressed. I sat there listening with great interest. I love hearing people’s conversations because I learn so much. Life is very different out here and I am enjoying it.

These are just a few examples of the differences I have witnessed between the city and the country. I could share a lot more but these are the ones that pop into my head. It has now warmed up into the mid 50’sF (mid teens C), so I should put on my work boots and head out the door to tend the kittens, take the kitchen waste out to start composting, and tackle a few other outdoor jobs.

I pray both you and I have a good day.

Company

Another very busy month has come and gone. It is hard for me to believe it is already August. Though it feels like yesterday, actually it was eight months ago that I signed the papers on this land and started the process of moving myself and the ministry here. Time sure does fly by fast these days.

The first part of July I was pretty busy. I have never taken the time to sit down and make a list of all the different projects I am working on, I just know there are a lot. Every day I pick whatever I am in the mood to do that day and start working. Slowly I am making progress but I really could use some help. There is just too much that needs to be done for any one person do accomplish. I am doing my best.

The second half of July I did take a break to play hostess. On July 23 I picked up my mother’s best friend from the airport. Back in the late 1970’s my mom and Christine worked together at the Department of Health Services for the State of California. Both were young attorneys and became lifelong friends. I was in high school at the time. So Christine is like family to me and I have wanted her to come out and see the Ranch for some time. Christine now practices law in Jacksonville, FL and getting away was difficult for her but she managed to squeeze in a few days to come out and see me and this part of Texas for the first time. She loved the rural countryside, this land, seeing me, and everything we did. It was a quick trip but she really did enjoy herself.

There was one surprise that neither of us could have predicted. Saturday after a leisurely morning, we went outside to go for a nice walk on the ranch, only to be greeted by three dogs; a Jack Russell Terrier, a pure white Shepherd mix, and a Bull Mastiff. All three dogs were soooo loving and wanted nothing more than some food, water, petting, and rest. I had just purchased a bag of cat food and so we fed the dogs some cat food and filled a container with water. The dogs ate up the food, drank the water and then laid down for a much needed rest as Christine and I went for our walk. The dogs never left the front yard but got up to greet us every time they saw us. We both fell in love with the dogs.

The dogs’ behavior made it clear these were pets who most likely were dumped on the side of the road, unfortunately a common practice among people who can no longer afford their dogs or just do not want them. The Bull Mastiff had a choke chain on and the other two dogs were wearing very old flea collars. All the dogs were covered in fleas, ticks, and showed signs of injury. The terrier clearly got to close to a prickly pear cactus as we pulled a lot of stickers out of her. Our hearts just went out to these poor dogs. That evening we drove to Rocksprings and purchased dog food and some bones for our visitors. The next morning I left a huge barrel of water for the dogs, the entire bag of dog food (minus what they ate the night before) and gave them the bones. Christine had fallen in love with the terrier and thought a neighbor (who just lost a dog) would love her too and might want to adopt her. So on Saturday Christine purchased the terrier a plane ticket and we took her with us. I dropped both off at the San Antonio airport mid Sunday morning.

I fully expected the other two dogs would still be at the house when I returned on Tuesday but sadly both had taken off, leaving most of the food behind. I have not seen them since. I just pray a dog lover found them and is taking good care of them. Some ranchers will shoot stray dogs because it is impossible to take care of all the dogs people dump out in the country. But these dogs are so loving I know they will make wonderful pets.

I did not return home alone on Tuesday. I brought a good friend, Mary, with me who I have wanted to see the ranch since it was purchased. I stay with her every time I go to San Antonio and share with her everything I am doing. She had a wonderful time seeing the ranch, visiting Rocksprings and going on the tour to the Devil’s Sinkhole (a collapsed cavern), a Texas Natural Area where millions of bats sleep during the day each summer. It is quite a site to see these bats exit the sinkhole at dusk to fly 60 miles south to eat millions of bugs each night.

I took Mary home on Thursday. I then did a few things in San Antonio, including having lunch with another friend on Friday. Saturday morning I picked up an order of Angel Food and that afternoon I drove back to the ranch. It is good to be back home.

The past couple of weeks have been an exhausting but exhilarating time entertaining my friends. I am so glad both were able to come out and see my world and that both had a great time. Now it is time to get back to work.

Feasting on Rain

The past week has been a very soggy week. In case you are unaware of Texas weather, south and west Texas got hit hard by rainfall. When it comes to rain, in South Texas it is either feast or famine.

For the past couple years it was famine, one of the worst doubts in recorded history, making Texas a dry, hot and dusty place. Last summer in San Antonio, every high temperature record was broken and then broken again. In fact every day that summer we broke between one to three records as we reached 100f (38c) or above day after day. So when the rains began to come, everyone in Texas began to praise God.

This past week it has been feast. The first three days I saw drizzle to light rain, about 0.20 inch rain daily. Then on Thursday I saw down pours that were unbelievable. At times I could not even see out my windows as they were covered in sheets of water. That evening the rain subsided again into light rain so I trudged through the standing water to my rain gauge to see just how much rain had fallen that day. My gauge only holds 6 inches and it was all the way to the brim. Friday I would see another 1.60 of rain and Saturday a mere 0.25 inches of rain.

This land is very rocky and so it takes awhile for the rain to seep into the ground. As I look out the windows day after day I have felt like I am living in a swamp. I can see pools of water out every window. I literally am living in a marsh right now. Because of all the water I am stuck inside and suffering from a severe case of cabin fever. I want nothing more than to get outside and enjoy nature while I do some outside work. But right now the land is to wet for any outdoor activities.

When I first purchased this property I had plenty of ideas of what I could do to quickly make it a viable place for people in need to come live. But during the past couple months I have realized those first ideas are not practical. At first I thought about a campsite, and though I will allow folks to camp here until better accommodations can be built, this land is very windy. I have lived in windier places but when the wind picks up I think trying to live in a tent would be uncomfortable. Living in a car would be better. Another problem with a camp ground is this land is rocky. Rocks are everywhere and many of the rocks cannot be moved. So, if people want to camp out on the land it will be permitted, but I do not think very comfortable.

Then I got over 6 inches of rain on Wednesday. During the times I was able to look outside the windows I noticed the rain seemed to flow from the north side of the house towards the south side. Though it has not rained today (Sunday) the south side is still full of water while on the other sides of the house the water has soaked into the ground and I just see mud. But on the south side I still see pools of water. This is valuable information. While most of the 20 acres are to the west of the house, I now know how the land flows by the house. It is also apparent to me that all buildings need to be built off the ground. Due to the feast/famine nature of rain around here, placing buildings on cement slabs is dumb. All buildings need to be off the ground so when heavy rains come, the buildings won’t flood.

I admit I am tired of the rain. The forecasters say we should have one more dry day and then more rain is due. Today I learned I had more rain than anyone else I know at church. Most of them got 3 to 4 inches, but one guy saw none. So I am happy to share with him. May God move next week’s rain clouds onto his property. But whatever happens next week with the rain, no matter how bad my cabin fever gets, this past week of rain has given me valuable insight into the land I now live on and is the home of AOCCCI.

Country Living

Living out in the country sure is an adventure. It seems the more I do, the more things I see that need to be done. I have paid a few people to do things for me and a number of friends have come and volunteered their time, but the to-do list just keeps on growing. Some of the tasks I have accomplished is getting a new fridge (the old one was very small and hardly held any food, ordering new flooring (which a friend is going to install for me), and staining the well house (which I paid someone to build). I also painted half the living room with sealant (to cover over the very dark paint the previous owner chose). I have made many trips to Rocksprings and Kerrville for supplies. For instant I bought a compost bin in Kerrville and am now actively composting all my food scraps. I also spread about 20 ounces (bag contained 24 oz) of Texas Wild Flower Seeds. So hopefully in a few months the view out the windows will be even more gorgeous then it already is. This week I learned where I can take trash to for disposal. The cost is $3 a bag. It is high because the trash must be trucked to the dump in another county.

This has been one of the coldest winters in history, following the hottest summer ever in Texas. Spring though has finally arrived and the last few weeks I have been spending a few hours a day collecting rocks. Rocks are everywhere and I mean everywhere. The goal is to build a rock wall skirt around the mobile home. Considering I will never run out of rocks here, it makes since to use them and save money. I average about 5 wheel barrows of rocks a day. Slowly the pile is growing larger and one day there will be enough for my friend to get to work and build the skirt rock wall.

A raised garden vegetable bed is in the planning stage. There are so many rocks in the ground that planting straight in the ground is not possible. I have picked the best spot for a raised garden and next time my friend comes out we will purchased the materials to build it. Today though I planted some apple seeds (I ate the rest of the apple). I have no idea if any of the apple seeds will find a pathway through all the rocks to grow into a beautiful tree, but I am hopeful. There are plenty of Mountain Cedar trees on the property so I know it is possible. I also tossed the seeds from my cantaloupe out into the wind. Hopefully I will have cantaloupes this summer and the critters will leave some for me to enjoy. I plan to do the same thing with watermelon seeds later on.

Speaking of critters, I was told the previous owners had a lot of trouble with raccoons and I believe that report. I have had to pile rocks against the doors to the compost bin to keep them out. One morning I found a large rock moved away from the compost door, the door opened, compost pulled out, and a half eaten apple about a yard away. I hope the raccoon enjoyed the treat. I put the compost back in, put the door back in place, threw the half eaten apple back into the compost bin and went got some more rocks. My friend said he will build me a raccoon proof compost bin.

Even with all the work, I love it out here. I enjoy the solitude, but I also enjoy the company. Though I love having my friends visit me, I really look forward to the day the Lord brings me a roommate. Right now that extra bedroom is being used for storage, but it won’t be long before those boxes will be emptied and the person the Lord brings here can move in. I know it will happen in the Lord’s timing. Until then, I will keep the air beds inflated and the door open for my friends to come and give me a helping hand.

Tomorrow I head back to San Antonio where I will remain for a couple of weeks. I am blessed with lots of friends who are happy to open their home to me when I must be in the big city. I will be attending a fund raiser brunch for Women’s Prayer International on Saturday and then later next week will be having a medical procedure. I hope to return with my friend Rick who has promised to install the new flooring in family room (which I plan to use as a community room/library). So please keep me in your prayers.

Looking For God In The Texas Hill Country

Last time I shared I was getting ready to leave town. Well, bright and early Friday morning I finished packing my car and headed west on IH-10 into the Texas Hill Country. Fortunately I was driving out of town, whereas those commuting to work were going the other direction. So I had little traffic while on the other side of the freeway the traffic was moving at a snail’s pace.

As I shared last time I really did not know where I was supposed to go. I had the general area in mind but as I have joked, God never sent me an email telling me what county to look in. I honestly was prepared to spend five days, sleeping in my car in State Parks and visiting many realtors in many towns. I fully expected to return to San Antonio without finding anything specific but hopefully with a better idea of where God wanted AOCCCI to be located. I did not even bring the checkbook with me that has all the money in it. I just did not expect to need it.

What I expected to happen is not what happened at all. I went looking for God in the Texas Hill Country and I found Him. What occurred last weekend was just plain amazing. Basically, finding a needle in a hay stack would have been less amazing then what I witnessed in a 48 hour period.

When I drove into Kerrville, Texas I had two immediate needs. The first was to buy some window cleaner to clean my outside mirrors. When I saw a store I pulled in, picked up the window cleaner and a brief conversation with the only two employees in the store led me to the Chamber of Commerce, which turned out to be just down the street. Up until their suggestion it had not occurred to me to visit the Chamber of Commerce. Looking back though it was clear God was aiming His light in the Chamber’s direction and I followed it.

Once in the Chamber I picked up some free items that looked interesting and casually mentioned my need of a realtor. The young woman behind the counter said, “I would use this woman” and grabbed Ricki Eichler Real Estate’s brochure and handed it to me.

Once again God was shining His light and fortunately I followed. It would have been very easy for me to veer off God’s path as finding Ricki’s Eichler’s office was not easy. The woman at the Chamber neglected to tell me the highway her office is on gets a new name every few miles. I only learned this after stopping and asking for help. It took awhile but I finally did locate her office. In the process I spotted several other Real Estate offices but it never once occurred to me to stop at any of them. If I had stopped at a different Real Estate office, I would have missed God and/or wasted a lot of time.

Before walking into Ricki’s Eichler’s office, God clearly was directing my path but I had not yet recognized it. But it did not take me long to see God once I was speaking to Ricki. Most of the time when I tell people about AOCCCI, they think I am talking about people with chemical dependency, that is drug addiction. So I am very use to having to explain to people just what Multiple Chemical Sensitivities is. That did not happen when I shared with Ricki the goal of AOCCCI and what I needed in land. Instead Ricki informed me she had once suffered from severe allergies too and just how sick she had once been. I then told her I too had MCS and that God had healed me. She then responded that God had healed her too. At that moment I knew I had a realtor who understood. When I told her I write a newsletter on the mind/body/spirit connection, she said great. God’s lamp was clearly shinning.

Then it was time to get to business. I already knew finding an appropriate piece of land for AOCCCI was not going to be easy. Off and on during the year I had searched the Internet and had picked up a few Real Estate publications aimed at folks looking for rural property. Not once did I ever see anything that would work for me. Usually the land was either way to expensive and promoting huge luxury homes and/or fantastic views (which means not much usable flat land) or properties without any buildings and advertised for hunting. But one thing nice about using a realtor is they have access to multi listing services and knowledge of web sites I have not found. Ricki quickly accessed such web sites. As expected most of the listings in my price range involved only an acre or two or land without buildings, but several possibilities did show up.

Ricki had previous commitments that prevented her from showing me any properties that weekend, so she enlisted the help of another realtor in the office. Though I was shown a property that afternoon, both of them felt another property looked the most promising and Saturday morning shortly after 7:00 the realtor and I headed off for an hour drive to see the property. The seller’s realtor met us near the property and showed us the way. We drove down a caliches road making several turns before finally arriving at our final location. The property features a double wide mobile home, a cabin (which had been turned into a storage building), and a dusty old camper trailer. With 20 acres of flat land, there is plenty of room for a variety of needs.

As I viewed the property, I did not see any real red flags. The few issues I did see would be easy to resolve. The pluses way outweighed any negatives. And then there was the issue of location. On the drive out to see the property I could not help but notice that just down the highway was property that Lee Grover (co-founder) and I had visited back in the 90’s. Last summer I had sensed God telling me to look in the area that Lee and I had looked at property in the 90’s and now a decade later my realtor was taking me to that same area. Once again God’s lamp seemed to be shinning.

I have no idea what the record is for finding a client their future home, but I am sure I am near the top. Ricki and her team showed me two properties in all and I placed an offer on the second one I looked at. I am now in escrow.

Stay tuned for more of this adventure.