Hard to believe 30 days have come and gone and somehow there was a blog post every day! Thank you to Holly Spangler over at Prairie Farmer for getting things organized… It has been great checking in with some of the other farm bloggers and I hope they keep going so I can keep tabs on what’s going on with my favourites!
Today I’m doing double challenge duty by wrapping up the month with a contribution to the weekly photo challenge because this week’s theme (Let There Be Light) ties in perfectly with almost a week of sunshine! November is not known for being bright and clear around these parts, but we have had a remarkably good run recently even if the sun barely clears the top of the fence even in the middle of the day.
Weekly Photo Challenge – Let There Be Light
According to the forecast, we are in for a bit of rain, then clear skies ahead but with another dip in temperature that threatens to once again cause trouble in my watering systems! I tell you, I never used to watch the weather and the forecast the way I do now that my life is seriously affected by what’s going on outside.
Way back when I had a government job and spent my days cozied up in a temperature-controlled office, there were times when I would look up from the work at my desk and actually have to think hard for a minute about what month it was. Not any more. I am counting the days until the winter solstice when the days will again begin to lengthen. When we have these chilly spells, I plan certain chores around the time of day when I have the best chance at the water lines running free. I change my route slightly so in the steepest or slipperiest parts of my rounds I am less likely to wipe out on icy patches. I carry spare gloves in my jeans pockets so I can switch halfway through the rounds and warm my fingers up. I know when the sun comes up and, to the minute, when it sets as this determines when I need to be outside to round up the poultry and put all the birds to bed.
Everything is simpler (you can’t put birds to bed in the pitch dark – even if you can find them, the raccoons might have got there first) and, at the same time, more complicated (not everyone understands that you plan your social calendar based on when the sun sets and not the time on the clock). The variation in day length is pretty drastic here – in the middle of summer I’m lucky to get back into the house before 10:30pm, but at this time of year with the sun going down at about 4:20, that doesn’t leave a lot of daylight hours to get all the basic chores done.
So, yes – I’m all for chanting, “Let There Be Light!” because right about now in the grand cycle of the seasons, I just can’t seem to get enough of it!
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