Cloudy July

The weather has been rather cool this summer, which feels great.  There has been plenty of rain, which has cut back on solar production for what is normally the best month of the year.  A lot of sun was visible today, making for our 7th day this month with 52 kilowatt/hours of production.  Two Julys ago, we had 19!!!!! Overall, we'll have about 450 fewer kw/hrs this month than July 2019.  But it's hard to complain with a lovely breeze and highs barely 70 degrees for the last few days this month.  The forest looks great no matter what the temperature.

Triple berry rum raisin french toast

A morning of work outside deserves to be celebrated with a wonderful lunch.  Raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries, all picked from the hill, joined rum raisin bread for some great french toast.  The raspberry patches still look great, with blackberries just starting to fill in.  The three blueberry bushes have produced many great berries so far, with more ripening.

Mid-July harvest

Raspberries are scattered this season due to the relative lack of sun. However, much magic has happened in the garden.  Another round of lettuce, which has been especially good this summah, was picked today, as well as the lovely items pictured.

Two trimmer tanks

Tropical rain from yesterday yielded to delightful conditions today.  The trimmer went to work on a very beautiful morning. Two tanks gave a good butch to the loop trail and a few other areas.  This will help with raspberry access, although the harvest will be later than normal.  Today's sunshine has been a rare treat this summer so far.  The berries haven't ripened yet, most still green at this point.

Last night's sunset

 A lovely end to an early summer evening last night!!!

Shard bucket

Big wood, kindling, and birch bark get a lot of attention here.  One must not forget the glory of more humble items destined to burn.  Shards from cutting and splitting end up doing great service at the start of many fires.  

The pool cover wood is cut, split, and stacked for another season.  The shed has nearly 4 cords ready to go.  None of the pool cover wood will burn until the Autumn of 2022.  Now we must fill up the area north of the main garage.

The Spirit of Koufax

With every swing, a wood splitter dreams of channeling the grace, accuracy, and power of a Sandy Koufax fastball.  A lot of great pitchers aren't nearly as good as Koufax, though.  Maybe once every thousand swings, the mauls and humans on Hardwood Hermitage find the Koufaxian moment.  Much can still get done when you're less than perfect.  A dead paper birch and spring poled red maple were dropped with the bow saw last week.  Cutting yesterday and today allowed for a major splitting session still this morning.  This wood isn't far from the house on the south hill.