My Fair Lady...

OK, so now we are in Fair mode. Our state fair starts this weekend. We will probably go up for dd to run her dog in the beginning agility class. A couple of weeks after that, an adjacent county has their fair and dd and I usually attend that fair just to have some fun and see the sights. At the end of August is our county fair. Dd will probably do some dog demos there and we may enter some of the open produce and craft classes--I always tell dd she has to win enough money to cover her ride ticket! Then at the end of September is our local fair. Our 4-H club will put up a booth, we will enter in the dog show, and will also have things in the open classes.

By the end of September, it will all be over with and life will settle down to a routine of preparing for winter. We heat exclusively with wood, so we need a lot of wood cut and ready for the stove. Of course, we usually have some to carry over from the last year and we cut most of our wood in the spring and early summer. But this year we are trying to get ahead by a year or so since no one knows what the economy will do. I have heard that people expect outrageously high heating bills this winter. Ny brother and his wife came over early in July and we got enough wood in for my mother to have plenty for winter. She does have a propane tank but tries to use it mostly as a back up. Her Vermont Castings stove heats her small home very well during even the coldest weather.

It seems strange to be thinking about winter while it is still July, but that is the way of it out here. I plan my garden, when to sprout seedlings, what to plant where, canning needs, etc. in January so that I can be ready when the time comes. And now I am planning for winter during the hot summer. When living in a rural area, you can't wait until the last minute to get the things you need and want. Our unpaved roads are not always passable, and the supplies may not be in stock when we get to the store.

It always rubs me the wrong way a little to hear people talk about how simple rural life is. I have never had to balance so many different things at one time than I do now, here on the farm. And so much of it fluctuates based on the weather. A bit more heat or cold, a bit more precipitation or drought, a bit longer or shorter season can make huge differences to both my day to day life and my long term plans. Scarcity is hard to deal with, but excessive abundance can be a significant challenge in its own right. There is not a lot of work in this area, and even fewer stable jobs. Poverty brings its own set of community problems to cope with. It seems to me that life here is very complex. I like it, there are many benefits, but it certainly keeps me thinking and hopping.

Wishing I had time to sip some mint tea...
Lori