Aerie Report, April 24, 2010

We had a beautiful couple of days here at the Aerie. It's getting kinda boring saying that but it's true. Dawn has been cloudless if somewhat chilly with temperatures at around the freezing mark. Those clear skies continue through the day and the afternoon gets into the low to mid 60s.

All that has come to an end. According to AccuHunch we are in for close to two inches of rain during the next two to three days. It's already started bit the heaviest rains won't get here for hours yet.

It was the prospect of rain that had me hustling up and down the hill. Once the rain is over, I expect the bugs to get worse and the heat to work its way onto the area. Besides, turkey season starts on May 1 and I want to be out of that area of the woods since my neighbor has asked permission to hunt there.

I also wanted to get the gardens turned over and the onions in the ground before the rain came. Winter had packed the soil pretty tightly and it needed to be broken up so the rain could soak in. And the onions were starting to grow in their plastic bags. (They should have been stored in brown paper bags that would not let any light in, but....)

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I was busy yesterday. In the morning I went out to get the cap on the Tundra and then stopped at the Mansfield Agway to get a dozen bags of topsoil. Then, after lunch, I spent time on the hillside with the chainsaw and ATV. First, I used the chainsaw to cut some more of the tree tops into little, itsy, bitsy pieces--save for those sections that were more than 4" in diameter. Those I cut into lengths for the fireplace.

When the chainsaw decided it had enough and I couldn't get it started again--something that seems to happen after two or three hours and right after I refill the gas tank--I retired it and went back with just the ATV and a length of rope. I made five trips up and down the hill with loads of firewood on the back of the Yamaha ProHauler. Even so, I only managed to get about half the wood I've already cut down the hill before I called it quits.

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This morning I went on the Bird Walk at Hills Creek State Park. Then I broke up soil clumps and spread the top soil on one garden bed. I also planted about two pounds of onion sets--half red and half white--in the other bed.

Then I sat down to do battle with the computer. Firefox was not being very friendly. It would not open half the time. So I tried a couple of things--all time consuming and, ultimately, futile--before reinstalling the program. Luckily reinstalling--without first uninstalling--does not get rid of the myriad of bookmarks I've accumulated over time.

All told, I lost about four hours to the computer gods while fiddle farting around trying to get back on Firefox. I hope it doesn't start misbehaving again.

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Have I covered enough topics without going near politics? I hope so. Politics and our political class (I guess there really are "two Americas" after all) are two topics I want to avoid for fear of raising my blood pressure too high. I'd sooner haul 40 pound bags of topsoil, use a chainsaw continuously for 3 hours, or haul and stack firewood than talk politics right now.

Birds and Flowers

I went on a bird walk today at Hills Creek State Park. A few of the migrants are beginning to arrive and some have moved on. Today's highlight (beside the great weather for a walk around the east end of the park) was the sighting of a Caspian Tern on the lake. We also saw our first House Wren of the year, a couple of Wood Ducks (including one that posed nicely while perched in the trees), a Pine Warbler, a Yellow-rumped Warbler and some White-throated Sparrows on their way to the far north.

Wood Duck in the woods

A former botany instructor and current photography club member was leading a wildflower walk elsewhere in the county today. I hope they saw something as colorful as the Purple Trilliums that are still blooming on the lake shore.

Purple Trillium

The Tundra's new cap

I mentioned that the Tundra has a new Leer cap. having covered, waterproof, and lockable storage in the back of the truck will go a long way to making travel inside the cab more comfortable. Plus, the presence of the cap changes the aerodynamics of the Tundra. They claim that you can get 3-4 miles per gallon more by having a cap or tonneau on the bed of your truck. It'll be interesting to see if that's true.

The Tundra Before

The Tundra After

Terry got lucky.

Terry got home from Jamestown, NY, tonight just ahead of the rain. Well, she would have been ahead of the rain if she hadn't stopped at Wally World for some items for dinner.

She had been in Jamestown for the regional conference for the Embroiderers' Guild of America (EGA). As they usually do at these affairs, there were baskets of goodies to be raffled off. Each chapter usually puts one together and it might include just about anything. Terry bought a couple of tickets and put them in for two baskets she really liked. And, as usually happens, she managed to win one of them. (Actually, it's a surprise when she DOESN'T win one--or more.) Between the bottle of wine, maple syrup, mug and hot chocolate, books on embroidery, pattern books, kits, and everything else in that basket, she estimates it's value as in the neighborhood of $100-$125. Not bad for a $7 investment. If I thought she'd be as lucky with the lottery, I'd be handing her the money every week. Unfortunately(?), her luck only seems to hold for items related to stitching.

Terry's basket of goodies.

While there, she took a class on beading and made a lovely pendant.

Beaded pendant by Terry.

It's about 2-1/2 inches long and is made from some of the smallest beads--size 11 and 15--around a cabochon. Heh. Good thing we just got our eyes checked! As I've told lots of folks: She has got some mad skillz!

Aerie Report, April 22, 2010

Being as it was Earth Day, I spent a couple of hours today playing in the dirt. I weeded the two large garden plots and turned over the earth in each. I can confirm that the black flies are out here, too. I was working in short sleeves and got a couple of bites on my forearms.

I raked out one bed to make it ready for the planting of onion sets. I'm doubling the number of onions going in the ground this year for three reasons: 1) we ran a little short this winter in the home-grown onion department 2) Terry wants some white as well as yellow onions and 3) they require so little attention once they get started. Since we will be gone for much of the summer, that last was a vital part in the decision.

The other bed is where we grew cukes, tomatoes, and string beans last year. It had a thin layer of straw on it over the winter. I turned that in but found the soil to be pretty solid lumps of clay despite the 20 bags of top soil I mixed in there last year. I'll let it sit until Saturday afternoon before adding more top soil and raking it out.

We're not planning much of a garden this year since we'll be on the road for much of the summer. The only other plants that will go in the ground are melons and squash--winter squash, not zucchini. If we put zukes in we would have baseball bats by the time we get home in late August and those aren't good for much except, well, baseball. The melons and butternut squash, as pre-started seedlings from Agway, will go into specially prepared mounds of a mix of topsoil and cow manure. With luck, we should have a bountiful harvest if the borers don't get them. Since we haven't had any borers in the zukes the last two years, we should be okay.

We will not be planting any lettuce or spinach--they will just bolt while we are away and will not get used. Nor will we bother with tomatoes. It's too short a season, and they require lots of water and flower picking to keep them tight. The same for bell peppers. Our season is too short and they just don't do well even in pots on the deck. We'll pass on the cucumbers for the same reason as the zucchini. And string beans? If no one is here to pick them once they start producing, they too will be like baseball bats when we get home! I suppose I could grow navy beans or lima beans but then I'd have to dry them to store them properly.

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Terry went with a few of her stitching friends today to visit the History Center in Ithaca, NY. One of the women she knows had an exhibit of Hungarian embroidery there and she gave them a personal tour and explanation of the materials. They had lunch at Moosewood, a famous vegetarian restaurant.

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We took a little walk outside after dinner this evening and found quite a few wildflowers growing along the ATV/log skidding trail that winds around the hill. Parts of the slope are quite moist so there were violets, spring beauty, trout lillies, columbine (still too early for flowers) and even horse tails. There were another four or five we couldn't identify from memory. I'll have to go back there tomorrow with my camera and see if I can get some pictures. The forecast is for nearly an inch of rain on Sunday and if they are correct, that should mean an abundance of growth early next week.

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I planned to go down to the Mansfield Agway tomorrow morning to get some bags of topsoil, but I got a call this evening that the cap for the Tundra was in and they would like me to be there around 10 AM to get it installed. They're about 30 minutes away and installation should take about an hour. I'll get the dirt after. The cap is too important. My Tundra will have a whole new appearance by noon.

Aerie Report, April 21, 2010

A beautiful day in the north country and down home at the Aerie. Morning temps at the Bolt Hole were in the low 30s although it did reach down to 25 overnight. It was slightly warmer at the Aerie and the afternoon high was 63 degrees under a mostly sunny sky.

The winds at the Aerie were confusing this afternoon and I watched the windmills--which were barely moving at all--swing from the northwest to the west and then the south as a small wave of sun showers swept through.

The shower only lasted 15 or 20 minutes but it was quite hard. Since it was late int he afternoon, the sun was able to shine beneath the cloud that was producing the rain at the Aerie and over the clouds that produced showers to the north. Very weird.

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It was such a nice morning that I decided to eschew my regular path home and follow Route 12B out of Utica down through Hamilton until it met up with Route 12. From there it was on to I-81 to Binghamton and then Route 17 west to Waverly/Sayre and Route 220 into PA and on to Route 6 west and home. Route 12B was a new stretch of road and quite a lovely ride through some nice farm country and small villages.

The route I followed turned out to be about 10 miles shorter than the ones I usually take but the slower speeds meant longer time, but only about 20 minutes. On the plus side, those slower speeds also meant better MPG according to the on-board computer--just a touch over 19 MPG versus the 18 or so I get if I follow the NYS Thruway to the Route 14 exit and down along the western shore of Lake Seneca to Watkins Glen. Of course, I also saved about $6 in tolls.

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Back at the Aerie, I spotted the first Wild Turkey from the deck. We've heard them on several mornings but this was the first of the year. Just one, sneaking through the woods after I stepped out on the deck, but it was proof positive that they are out there. The spring turkey season starts on May 1st.

Break up the Mets!

The Amazin's have won two straight against the Cubbies.

Last night's victory came on and Angel Pagan 2-run homer in the 8th that put the Mets ahead 3-1. (They would win 4-1 after Ike Davis--appearing in his first major league game at first base--got his second hit and drove in a run--also in the 8th.) Jon Niese pitched well but didn't get the win when Nieve allowed an inherited runner to score.

Tonight they won 4-0 behind outstanding pitching by Mike Pelfrey and the resurrection of Jose Reyes (a two-RBI triple in the second inning and 4-for-5 for the night). The gravy came on a pinch-hit home run by Fernando Tatis with Ike Davis on first--again in the 8th inning.

Now, if David Wright and Jason Bay would only join the party....

Bolt Hole Report, April 20, 2010

head out of the Aerie early this morning headed northeast to pick up the trailer. It was a great and glorious day to be out and about. It would have been even better if it was spent in the garden or the woods. But, things have to get done.

The trailer was ready with a note that the battery (12V deep cycle RV/Marine type) was a little wonky with its electrolyte balance and, while working fine at the moment, would probably need replacing soon. Since Alpin Haus had some on the shelf, I figured there was no time like the present. So while they searched for the trailer's keys (too many techs and too many locations for them to put 'em!)--and for the trailer--I looked over the battery selection and made a choice of a nice new Interstate.

I have to admit, I am to blame for the old battery's failure. When not in use, you should recharge it once a month and never, ever leave it out in the freezing weather. I had two strikes against me and I wasn't about to take a chance on number three while we were on the road.

All the inspections and repairs and battery cost me a pretty penny (or closer to 10K of them) but I feel very confident in the working condition of the old girl now. And those 10K pennies? Less than one per mile of this upcoming trip.

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So, after driving 225 miles to Alpin Haus in Amsterdam to pick up the trailer, I drove another 70 miles with trailer in tow to the Bolt Hole to put it in the barn for the next five weeks or so. Come the end of May, it will be taken down to Hills Creek State Park in PA there to be a home away from home, so to speak, while we load her up for The Trip. Easier to do that when we are just 20 miles from the Aerie instead of doing it at the Bolt Hole, 225 miles away. I'd park it in the Aerie's driveway, but it's not quite flat enough nor an easy place access water or electricity. For less than $200 I can have a lakeside camp site for a week, access to a Wally World, several supermarkets and the Aerie while we make out our packing lists.

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When I got to the Bolt Hole I found that Mark was still at his cabin--and that he had parked his truck in the barn to make my place look occupied. We had a nice long talk while he showed me some new game pics of bears (Dufus, mostly) and deer from a spot behind his place. Then he came over to my place to move his truck and help me back the trailer into the barn. One pass is all it took. I'm getting pretty good at this! We also dug out some things from the garage that will go south with me including the box I built to serve as a portable kitchen when we went across country with the kids back in '93. It will be used for canned goods and cooking gear on this trip.

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I stepped outside just after dark to get a jacket I had left in the truck and was privy to the mating flight of a male woodcock. The "peent" call from the ground is followed by a tightly spiraling flight upward during which the bird is whistling the entire time. Up and up he goes until suddenly he stops and swiftly glides back to the ground--some times in the same spot from which he launched his flight, some times to a slightly more promising location--and the "peent" call is repeated. It's one awesome sight!

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The water in the small pond in front of the Bolt Hole is about six inches lower than it was a month ago but it is still host to several frogs an newts--and their masses of jellied eggs. You can clearly see that most of the eggs are already developing into either tadpoles or efts. The little black dot in the center of the jelly is no longer spherical but elongated.

There are another set of eggs in there, however, that do not belong to the common newt or the frogs. These are quite a bit larger and, while still enmeshed in jelly, are single rows about 3/4 of an inch wide. The center of the strips contains a 1/4 inch diameter, very white, orb. These probably belong to a spotted salamander which I've raked out of there in the past. Six inches long, 3/4 to an inch wide, very black on the back, white underbelly and a pale blue-purple stripe where the black and white meet. Add the bright yellow polka dots over the back and you have a very pretty little creature.

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Well, that's about it for now. Tomorrow, I'll be up early to brew a half pot of coffee, do the dishes and then head out the door for the Aerie.

Aerie Report, April 19, 2010

Beautiful day here at the Aerie. The sun is shining brightly and there's a fresh breeze blowing out of the north. The overnight temperature was in the low 30s (enough to put some frost on the truck windshield this morning) and has not risen above 60 degrees which is fine by me.

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Terry went up to Horseheads today for one of her EGA meetings. A handful of ladies got together to do some stitching and gossip about folks who didn't show. The usual.

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I went to bed last night with reduced but still significant pain in my lower left back but, as I expected, woke up this morning with no pain at all. It just takes some serious R & R to get the nerves to stop their silly swelling and the pain disappears like that.

So, of course, I spent four hours on the hill with Mr. Chainsaw cutting tree tops into smaller brush piles and logs into firewood lengths. Four hours seems to be the limit for the chainsaw. It's a homeowner's Craftsman model (42cc bar with an 18") and it's not made to work all day. Fine by me! But I sure wish it had a better way for communicating when it feels it's time to quit. Trying to get it started with that pull cord when it doesn't want to run any more could through a guy's shoulder out.

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When I got back to the Aerie, I spotted a Turkey Vulture floating in the breeze BELOW the cabin. I thought I could smell something in the way of rotting meat myself and wonder if it was trying to zero in on the location. I did see one on the road when I went for the mail around 8:30 AM and it was feeding on a dead rabbit. That one lifted up and made one circle before landing again as I went passed.

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Later, there was a small helicopter moving back and forth down in the valley. Looks like they are ferrying small bags of equipment from Point A to Point B for the gas crews.

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Got a phone call from Alpin Haus this morning saying the part for the trailer's AC was in and they will be repairing it today or tomorrow. The part cost $20 but labor will run around $60.

UPDATE: Trailer is ready for pick-up. I guess my next two days are planned. One day up to pick up the trailer and take it to the Bolt Hole; then an overnight and early departure on Wednesday to get back to the Aerie.

Aerie Report, April 18, 2010

So, got up this morning to 30 degrees at the Aerie (2100' elevation) and a quarter to half inch of snow that started at about 2000 feet and went up the hill. And on the deck, that snow clearly showed the imprints of bear paws. *sigh* At least the bruin found nothing to eat and moved on.

The snow melted before 9 AM ant the sun is attempting to break through the clouds. It's interesting to sit here and watch patches of sunlit ground move across the landscape.

It's not supposed to warm up much beyond 60 until late in the week. Sounds like good weather to get back on the hill with the chainsaw. But the gas crews were up there yesterday and I can see more orange flagged markers. I'll have to keep my eyes open for any drilling and explosives placed for the 3-D seismic testing they are/will be doing.

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The Mets and the Cards are playing again tonight. This one is to be broadcast on ESPN so, yeah, I'll be tuned in to watch. I imagine lots of guys slept late today!

Mets 2-1 in Seven, long hours and 20 innings.

It took nearly 7 hours, 20 innings and almost every player on both sides but the Mets finally succeeded in winning a game that went more than 20 innings. They outlasted the Cardinals last night in a 2-1 contest. As to be expected in such a game weird things happened as players played where they never had before in a major league game.

Alex Cora of the Mets, usually a shortstop, filled in at first base for an inning or two and made a fantastic catch of a foul ball as he fell into the stands. John Maine, Sunday night's starting pitcher for the Mets, came in as a pinch runner. Another member of the pitching rotation, Oliver Perez came out on deck to pinch hit at one point but never got into the game. Starter Jonathon Niese did come in to pinch hit. And starter Mike Pelfrey came entered the bottom of the 20th in relief and got the save.

For the Cards, Kyle Lohse, usually a starting pitcher, played left field for three innings. Filipe Lopez, who hit a grand slam for all the Cardinal runs in Friday night's 4-3 win, started at short, moved to third, pitched one inning (the 18th) and then went back to third base. Joe Mather pinch hit in the 10th inning and then stayed around to play center, third base, and then pitch the final two innings absorbing the loss.

There were many players on both sides that played all 20 innings, but the one that stands out in my mind is Yadier Molina who caught all 20 innings for the Cardinals. He and home plate umpire C.B. Bucknor deserve a day off.

Take a gander at this box score.

The hitters' batting averages certainly did not improve much in this one, but the pitchers' ERAs plummeted as well--and that's a good thing.

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The Mets have played in some of the longest games in baseball history--and usually ended up holding the short end of the stick. They have lost games that went 23, 24 and 25 innings.

They lost to the Giants 8-6 in 23 innings at Shea on May 31, 1964--the second game of a double header!!

Then the Astros beat them 1-0 in a 24-innings on April 15, 1968, at the Houston Astrodome.

They dropped a 4-3 contest to the St. Louis Cardinals on September 11, 1974, at Shea Stadium after seven hours four minutes, and 25 innings. A game that also tied for the longest game played to a decision in major league history. That game ended at 3:13 AM ET.