Preparing For Spring

Winter in much of the country is pretty simple-cold. In South Texas winter is more of an adventure. Every year winter takes it sweet time arriving. One never knows if it will be cold enough to wear a Christmas sweater before the big day. But usually by late December or early January it finally starts feeling like winter and we here in South Texas are forced to look for our winter coat.

We do have freezes here. Typically we can count each time it drops below freezing on our fingers, with plenty of fingers left over. That is the way January started out. But this year was not typical. In the beginning of February it dropped down into the teens for four days in a row. If records were kept around here I am sure they would have been smashed. Ranchers all over are still repairing the damage from that major freeze. After that freeze it warmed up considerably for a few days, only to drop once again below freezing, but least it was not as cold.

The second half of February, in South Texas style, warmed up into the 70’s. Suddenly the sweaters were put away and the short sleeve shirts were put on. We could have another freeze any day now but right now it is easy to think spring has arrived. Every year a local San Antonio weather man is asked if it is time to plant tomatoes yet, but it is still too early. Even though I have already worn shorts on several occasions, a freeze is likely to happen even as late as April.

It may be too early to plant a garden but it is not too early to prepare. In February I purchased a mini greenhouse to start some seedlings indoors. Many of the seeds have now sprouted and are enjoying the morning sun shining through the community room windows.

Last week I dug a few holes in hopes of finding a place suitable for planting a fruit producing tree. This is such rocky soil that there is no guarantee a tree will make it, but a friend has had some success with her trees. Her success gives me hope because my dream is to have enough fruit and nut trees on the land to supply everyone eventually living here.

This past Wednesday my friend and I drove to Kerrville and visited a few gardening stores. I came home with a 6 inch (15 cm) Bay Laurel tree and a fig tree, among other plants. In case you do not know, Bay Laurel is what we buy when we purchase dry bay leaves in the grocery store. My little tree may be small today but it will be very easy to transplant (only need to dig a small hole) and once it is big will provide shade in the garden and bay leaves for cooking. I intend to plant it in the garden so the deer don’t eat it.

Speaking of deer, they are a problem. So are a lot of other critters roaming the land looking for something yummy to eat. And what could be yummier then a nice green vegetable garden. That is why I have hired someone to install a fence around my garden. This is not a cheap project. The fence must be pretty tall so the deer cannot jump over it. Also, out here one cannot just dig a hole for the fence posts. Instead the rock must be crushed so there is a place to put the fence post. That is why I am not doing it myself.

I am also paying the same crew to install a rain gutter on the cabin and turn a cistern into a rain barrel. Right now that cistern is just sitting there collecting dust and when it rains I can only catch a few 5 gallon (18 liters) buckets worth of water. Once the project is complete and it rains (we are currently in a bad drought), I will be able to hook up a hose and water my garden in luxury, compared to hauling the water to the garden.

So it may not be spring yet, even if it feels like it has arrived. And it may be too early to plant a garden outside, but that is not stopping me from getting ready.

Of course, a fence and plants are all necessary for a successful garden, but so is a place to grow the plants. I spent last summer digging an 8 feet (2.44 meters) by 12 feet (3.66 meters) garden bed down to solid rock. I removed tons of rocks and some dirt. I put the dirt back but since I only dug down about 5 inches, I must build up. Over the winter I have been adding food scraps and dead grass for composting, but I will have to purchase some garden soil. Since only raised garden beds will work out here, I must build the sides of my garden beds. The most logical choice out here is stone. So off and on, when it has been warm enough outside, I have been going out to my little garden and laying my stone wall for the raised garden bed, which is not an easy task.

How To Build A Stone Wall.

1. Search the pile of stones for a stone that will fit nicely next to the stone you plan to lay it by.
2. Remove cat from stone wall.
3. Position stone on wall so it fits as best as possible.
4. Rub cat under chin.
5. Repeat step 1.
6. Once again remove cat from stone wall.
7. Repeat step 3.
8. Remove cat from pant leg.
9. Repeat step 1.

I think you get the idea. I love these kitties but they sure make it hard to get much done outside. I now must schedule some time for petting kitties into my busy schedule.

Until next time, God Bless You

God's Protecting Hand

South Texas thawed out just in time for another arctic blast to hit us. Many folks around here spent the weekend repairing broken pipes from the last freeze. I have visited a number of public bathrooms with signs saying the sink still has no water. Sunday I heard from a number of people who were born and raised in the area who could not remember a time where it had been below freezing for so long. That last storm really was a history making storm.

Sunday after church I drove to San Antonio, visited with a few people, and spent the night. Monday morning I got an oil change, did my shopping (and shopping for two other friends), and then drove home. Before arriving home though I had to make my first delivery to a neighbor. Once home I unloaded the car and checked on the cats, who were fine thanks to my neighbor who had checked on them that morning.

Tuesday morning I drove to Rocksprings to make the second delivery and did a little work in the library. I also stopped at the grocery store for a neighbor and picked up a few items. Out here we have to help each other, it is just part of being neighborly. After I was done there I headed for home, first dropping off the groceries.

Normally I would not attempt going to Rocksprings and Kerrville in the same day but the weather forecasters had been telling us freezing rain was coming, and I wanted to beat the bad weather. So I got my things, picked up a friend who lives a few miles to the west, and we headed for an afternoon of shopping.

The reason I felt such a need to go to Kerrville yesterday was to visit a business in town that sells Derksen Portable Buildings. The people I purchased this land from had started to build a house but instead purchased this mobile home. This past year I have been staring at the foundation that was left trying to decide what to do with it. I still have not made a final decision but one thought is to just buy a portable building, put it on the foundation, and then turn it into a small efficiency apartment. Because of the space it would not be fully functional, but it is just a short walk to the house for cooking and other needs. Like I said, I have not made my final decision, but I do know I need to do something before that foundation rots away.

It is now Wednesday morning. Yesterday it reached about 70F (21c) with gusty winds. This morning it was 13F (-11c) when I woke up. The cats are once again locked in the kitty condo, though they do not appear happy with my decision. It is lightly snowing outside.

I know there are a lot of folks praying for me and I am extremely grateful. God is listening. He is taking care of me. One bad thing about the location of The Ranch is when I drive to Kerrville in the morning the sun is in my eyes. When I drive home in the evening the sun is in my eyes. It is especially bad this time of the year. There is one stretch of Hwy 41 where the sun basically blinds a person. That was the case Monday evening as I was driving home. I just could not see where the road was except for knowing I was in a turn. God took care of me though. Just in time I caught a glimpse of where the road was and was able to adjust the steering wheel so I remained on the road and avoided hitting the road sign I had been heading for.

God would once again have to protect me as I and my friend drove home from Kerrville last night. This time we were on Hwy 27, a hilly curvy road with lots of trees, brush, and deer. There were 4 cars behind me as we drove towards the tiny town of Mountain Home, when out of the brush came 2 deer running at full speed. As the buck ran right in front of my car I managed to hit the brakes and somehow avoid hitting him; miracle number one. The doe came right behind the buck but she chose to run behind my car instead. I am still amazed that the truck, which had been driving to close to me, somehow managed to avoid crashing into me and the doe; miracle number two. There were several more cars behind the truck, who also managed to stop in time; miracle number three. In the opposite direction came another car that also had to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting the two deer; miracle number four. In addition to all the cars, on the opposite side of the road was a bicyclist who narrowly escaped getting run over by the deer who headed straight for him; miracle number five.

As soon as we escaped the deer I looked in my rear view mirror and could not believe my eyes. A car, which turned out to be a contract mail car, was driving on the shoulder and speeding past all us cars. If there had been even one more deer running out of the bushes, that car would have crashed into the deer, and then probably crashed into us. That driver could have easily caused a multi-car accident with fatalities (remember the pour guy riding his bike). As soon as he passed me he moved back into the driving lane and quickly increased his speed and was out of sight. I am guessing he speeded up to at least 70 mph, maybe faster. The speed limit there (before we arrived in town) was 60 mph.

How all of us managed to not hit the deer or another car is truly a miracle. God protected all of us.

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.

What Happened to January?

As I sit here the sun began rising in the eastern sky less than an hour ago. I have been awake for several hours and face a to-do list so long I doubt I will be able to cross off even one item. That is just the way life is out here. If I do manage to complete a task, there are many more waiting to be done. Maybe that is why a month has passed since I last posted, though it feels like only a week ago.

Today began like most mornings. I usually wake up around 5am. Sometimes earlier and then after breakfast I fall back to sleep, but 5 is typical. Since I still live alone I turn the heater off at night. If it is expected to be a chilly night I turn a space heater on in my bedroom and shut the door. Last night was not cold, so no space heater. Upon waking (and after a short struggle) I haul myself out from under my warm covers and go turn the heater on. As soon as possible I am back under those covers.

Once it is warm enough I once again haul myself out of bed to make breakfast. I rarely eat much first thing in the morning, but my body needs something. One of my favorite breakfasts is a breakfast sandwich. I make my own. I like to buy those mini bagels, which I toast. I have a microwave poacher for my egg. I make my own breakfast sausage and just reheat one patty. Put them all together and I have a breakfast sandwich. One sandwich with a cup of tea or orange juice and I have just the right amount of food. Depending on how warm it is in the house, I usually eat at my computer, where I check email, or back to the warmer bedroom to enjoy breakfast.

Since it is winter outside and therefore cold, I usually return to bed after breakfast. I like to snuggle under the covers as I read my Bible. Today I read the first three chapters of Amos.

According to the U.S. Naval Observatory, the sunrise for Rocksprings occurred at 7:33am. Shortly before that I did what I do every day. I put on my shoes and coat and opened my front door. Tiger is usually on the porch to greet me and often her sister, Little Bit, is nearby. They know it is feeding time. Today they ran ahead of me into the cabin where I feed them and have their bed. They jump on the counter eagerly waiting for me to dump some dry cat food in their bowls. Sometimes I give them a quick pet, but today I just hurried into the warm house. I will go outside later today and spend some time petting both kitties and in return they will lick my hands and fingers. (Little Bit-red collar/Tiger-blue collar)

That is how I spend most mornings. In the summer I am out the door as soon as it is light enough to do gardening and other tasks before it gets too hot. But in winter it is hard to motivate myself to get out of bed and do anything. I much prefer to lie in bed under those warm covers, reading a book and praying, and occasionally falling back to sleep.

Even though I am anxious for spring to arrive, it seems like winter is passing by way to fast. There is so much I need to do inside this house and I had planned to get it all done during the winter months. I still need to get that office organized, bookkeeping completed, other rooms organized, etc. From the way this house looks it doesn’t look like I have done a thing.

I have been busy. Right before Christmas I accompanied a friend to San Antonio. She had to take her husband to the airport and really did not want to drive around that city alone. Since I know the city I did most of the city driving. It was a there and back trip, making only a couple stops for shopping.

On January 12 I returned to San Antonio with a different friend. This neighbor is elderly and I had promised to take her to the Sams Club in San Antonio. I buy a lot of stuff for her at Sams Club and this was a chance for her to see what the store had for sale so on future trips she could just hand me some money and a grocery list. It was a very fruitful, but exhausting trip.

I have had to make several trips to Kerrville. Both times I took a third neighbor with me. Over a year ago J lost her house in a fire and then a few weeks later a tire blew and she rolled her truck, breaking her back, but fortunately not suffering any spinal injury. Because of his job, her husband is gone all week, leaving her all alone and isolated on her very rural land. She always welcomes any excuse to get out and go anywhere. Both trips she was very thankful that I had invited her and I was thankful for the company.

This past week it has been warm enough to go outside for an hour or two so I have enjoyed doing some outdoor chores. On those very cold days I often find myself sitting in my rocking chair under a throw reading and trying to stay warm. I have gotten a lot read this past month. The rest of the time I work on the computer of find some other task that needs doing.

Looking Back, Staring Forward

Christmas (and my birthday) has come and gone and there are only a few more days left of 2010. This week one year ago I and a friend drove up to Kerrville, stopped at my realtor’s office to pick up the keys to the house I now live in, and then we drove another hour arriving late in the day. It was the first time to set foot in the house since viewing the property the past October. We walked into a cold, dark, house full of trash. The first task was to get the electricity on before dark. The second task was to unpack the car and set up our air beds so we would have a place to sleep that night. The third task (now dark) was to figure out how to turn the pump on so we could have running water. That first night in this house was truly and adventure.

Twelve months have now come and gone and I am staring straight into the second year of my life (and AOCCCI) here. This past year has been a year of many changes and progress towards the ultimate goal, a place for people with MCS to come and live. The work towards that goal will continue in 2011.

Occasionally when I am in San Antonio people will ask me if anyone has come out to live here yet. The answer is no, but I have had some serious inquiries.

The first inquirer came via a friend of mine currently living in Montana. I had sent out a ministry letter and she passed it onto a friend who could not face another cold winter in Montana. Since it was spring I suggested to him that he remain in Montana tell summer is over with and then travel south to a warmer climate. I have no idea what he eventually decided to do but I have not heard from him since.

The most recent person to consider coming out first contacted me this past fall. After numerous emails she asked me to help her come out here. At the time she was in El Paso and her health was pretty bad. This request came right before Thanksgiving and I had a few commitments preventing me from traveling out to El Paso. Besides, her situation was not desperate, as she did have a place to stay. Around the holidays we kept in touch, she asking me many questions about this place. In the end she decided to drive out to Pleasant Valley Ministries in Georgia. A decision I think was the right decision for her.

I have had a number of other inquirers between these two, but so far no one has decided to come live on this land. I guess no one wants to be the first. But that is okay, since getting this place ready for folks is taking a lot longer than I expected. I am hoping that this time next year, whether or not there are other folks living on this land, that the infrastructure is in place for at least a few folks to live out here. In order for that to happen God is going to have to supply volunteers and donations. It takes money and workers to build. Please pray.

Finally, Happy New Year!

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.

The Newest Feline Residents

The other day I promised to share some more of what is Happening at the Hyatt House later. So let me keep that promise and share a story.

Any good story one must start at the beginning. It was Christmas morning 2009 when a cat showed up at a neighbor’s home. They named her Chrissy (because of the day she first appeared) and started feeding her. A few months later she had a litter of kittens, three of which have survived and are now 9 months old. My neighbors are elderly and on a fixed income. Just the cost of feeding all these kittens has been financial hardship, so spaying all four cats was out of the question.

I have mice. This past summer I have caught in traps at least 3 mice in my bathroom. I can honestly say having to remove dead mice from my bathroom is not something I enjoy at all. I want them gone. The best way to keep mice away is to have a barn cat. My neighbor has offered me kittens. There has just been one problem. I do not want to have a kitty population explosion here and getting four cats spayed is expensive. It would just be wrong to take a couple kittens and have only those spayed, letting my neighbors deal with a population explosion. So I have only thought about this problem, nothing more.

The Saturday after Thanksgiving I returned home, passing through Kerrville (like I always do) and noticed tents. I instantly realized it must be Market Days and decided to stop and take a look. Market Days happens monthly and allows crafters and others to display their wares for sale. I saw lots of booths, wasted money on a food treat, and spoke to lots of people. One booth I stopped at had a program of spaying/neutering feral cats and returning them to where they were found. So I asked someone manning that booth how much does it cost to spay a cat. She pointed me to the booth next door, Freeman-Fritts Animal Clinic & Shelter. So I walked over to that booth and told the story of the kitties and asked about the cost of spaying. I never got an answer. Instead the woman I spoke to said I might be eligible for a grant. She took my name and number and I left.

The next week she called me at home and informed me there was grant money available and all four cats would get spayed and a rabies shot for free. An appointment was made for the following week. I was thrilled beyond measure and so were my neighbors when I told them. This was a huge blessing. Having to get up before 5am in order to get the cats to Kerrville was a small sacrifice to make on my part. I was just thrilled to be able to help us both out.

It has now been almost a week since the kitties’ surgery. Everyone is doing very well. Chrissy and one of the kittens, Yeller, are back home enjoying being barn cats. The other two kittens, Tiger and Little Bit, are with me. It took some time but I and a friend finally were able to make a home for them inside the cabin. They need to stay enclosed until they become attached to me and decide this is a good place to live. Since they were born only a few miles away this is a more difficult task compared to if they had come here on their own. So every day, several times a day, I go check on them and spend time petting and talking to them. Hopefully when they are released they will stick around here and start killing those unwanted mice.