Seeing is believing!

Have you ever started something and then wondered why you did? I'm sort of at that point with the recent spate of videos I've posted at https://youtube.com/kckendricks. I'm having fun (sort of) learning to edit a cohesive video so that's a good thing. I've joked I'm going to be ninety years old in the nursing home and pulling up these vids to prove to the old codgers I really did operate a John Deere tractor and I really did use a chainsaw. Ha ha. 

But seriously, a conversation with some friends got me to thinking. Myself and another member of our "dinner group" live alone, and we are not afraid to cut down a tree and chop firewood for ourselves. Several other group members have no clue about how to garden, how to can food, how to take their car in for service. They just don't know where to start. I want these videos to show women in my age group that they can do it. 

So what have I been recording?

Using the Brush Crusher on the John Deere tractor to remove fallen tree limbs, brush, to aid cutting firewood, and using the backhoe attachment to dig out stumps and a clothesline post among other things. I'm going to run out of ambition to keep making videos long before I run out of projects. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUYFmD6rG3c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZLTCa_x19g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVIhb51F6hE

Of course, I manage to get video-bombed by Deuce at least once per video. 

I try hard to not allow myself to get annoyed by women who think they can't do for themselves. So many times it's conditioning from their parents. You can take care of yourself. I'm walking proof of that. I had good examples of strong, self-sufficient women to guide me. I had a husband who believed it was part of his duty as a husband to teach me all that he could. His life was my biggest blessing. 

Sooooo, if you'd like to see me in action, visit the YouTube channel. If nothing else, you'll get a laugh or three as I blunder my way through projects here at Holly Tree Manor.

The Lady of Holly Tree Manor/The Hideaway

Holly Tree Manor, The Hideaway, John Deere 1023, strong women, self-sufficient, tractors, chainsaws, gardening, cooking, rural living, country lifestyle, a writer's life, greenhouse, YouTube channel

Expect the unexpected (tree fall)

I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. I would not thrive as a city dweller. It's May 7, 2022, and everywhere I look I see shades of vibrant green! So much green! It makes the heart hurt it's so green.

Springtime in the country means rain, and rain means all sorts of things. Rain puts water into the ground, cleans the air, fills cisterns for farmers, and rain barrels for the gardeners. But too much rain can be deadly. While we're not in a flood plain, we do have a few issues that stem from too much rain. Two-thirds of the mountain is above us, so we have to deal with drainage long after the rain stops. Too much rain softens the ground to the point where some trees topple over, root ball and all. That's what happened last night. 

Around 2:30 AM, Deuce hopped off the bed, barking and growling. Being his doggie Mom, I got up to see if I could figure out why. The obvious culprits, in the middle of the night, are deer in the yard. I don't know how he knows, but he always knows. I switched on the outside lights but didn't see or hear anything above the sound of the rain and wind. Back to bed we went. 

This morning, I settled at the computer and looked out the north window and saw a tree had come down. The root of the tree is on the other side of the stone fence but it fell our way. I could go to the neighbor and ask them to remove the tree, but we want the firewood. And truthfully, out here, our neighbors would expect us to harvest the tree for firewood. If a tree fell the other way, we'd let it go to the neighbor for their woodstove. True country folk are like that. 

It's an easier job than it might appear. After the ground has a chance to dry up some, I'll take a battery-powered chainsaw over the stone fence and make a cut as close to the root ball as is feasible. It should release the trunk and top of the tree and allow it to upend toward our property. 

Expecting the unexpected is part of country living. The unexpected is not always a bad thing. Frequently it's a good thing, like receiving unexpected free firewood. It's even a good thing we'll have to do the work to harvest the wood. It will make us appreciate the gift of heat on a cold winter day even more. 

The Lady of Holly Tree Manor (The Hideaway)