Monday This and That

Taken from our driveway at 4:45 this morning.

Below: taken around 6:30 a.m. 

There is a wildfire in the Lightning Creek drainage east of Sandpoint. 

We heard about it while we were on the boat Saturday, but couldn't really see signs of it.  I think our eyes and minds were all concentrating on the water and the fish poles.

I have read that the fire has continued to grow.  I've also seen the helicopters with water buckets.  This morning's sight was truly dramatic. 

Hoping for they are able to contain the fire. 

We have been very fortunate the past couple of years to not have smoke-filled air for several weeks.

Plus, there's enough of the beautiful Lightning Creek drainage that is rebounding from a huge blaze a few years ago.

We could really use some rain. 

Bridie needs to refine her herding skills with turkeys.  

She knows the basics of "get 'em out of here," but she could learn to direct them all one way.  

When Bridie goes into her pursuit gear, the turkeys do move quickly, but, at this point, it's all directions, including to the tops of buildings. 

This Just Struck Me.  

Maybe that will be the title for a new occasional mini feature on this blog where I read or see something inspiring some "Hmmm, that's interesting" thoughts. 

Here's today's version, a couple of paragraphs from this morning's New York Times newsletter. 

 “It’s the shut up and grind era,” writes Kate Conger, who has a great dispatch about life inside the big companies. 

As one recent Google alumna told her, “the level of fear has gone way up” even as offices still offer free food and high salaries. “I suppose it’s better to have lunch and be scared to death than to not have lunch and be scared to death.”

This is certainly an indication that "the times they are a changing" in all facets of American life.  

Is it really necessary to keep everyone living in fear?

                     ---Photo by Raul Garcia Suarez

My brother Mike and his wife Mary are experiencing a "heavenly state" as they spend the month of August in their favorite little Spanish town called Luarca.

It's on the north coast of Spain, and I will vouch for the fact that it's an adorable and charming place.  We visited Luarca last fall when we spent some time in Spain with Annie. 

And, of course, we reported back to Mike. 

Since arriving there this past week, Mike and Mary have met the local photographer extraordinaire who also publishes a Facebook website featuring daily life in Luarca.  

Here's what Mike had to say in his most recent post.

   Mary and I walked a couple of miles yesterday evening from our AirBnB in downtown Luarca to the San Timoteo chapel located in a beautiful park along the Rio Negro where locals were celebrating the Feast of Santa Agueda. 

 Many of the townspeople were there, and, once again, we met Raul Garcia Suarez, local photographer extraordinaire. 

 Here he posts over 200 photos from the event. He's also the administrator of the "Adictos a Luarca y Asturias" Facebook group which has thousands of members. 

 Anyway, he caught Mary and I for a picture, and it's included in the batch of photos posted here.

The gang's all here.  Well, at least for a few moments.  

Yesterday, I stopped to take some photos of a couple of goats when the whole herd came from across the field to get in on the fun. 

Sadly, a fun and memory-filled weekend has ended, Annie has gone back to Seattle, and we're back to the day-to-day grind. 

Lots more bean picking, some berry picking and attempting to keep the lawn looking nice and flowers from withering in spite of the dryness and the dust. 

We also have a major problem to solve in our barn----how to remove a scary bee's nest from our north stack of hay. 

We discovered it a couple of weeks ago when the crew started putting bales on top of last year's stack.  One of the boys was stung twice. 

So, no more bales went into that section. 

Every morning since then, when I oh so carefully remove flakes of hay from the front section of the stack, the bees, which are relatively small, immediately rise and start flying.  

Yesterday I got the feeling that some seem to be more aggressive each time I show up, circling me and almost dive bombing. 

That's not fun. 

Something has to happen.  We'll probably call pest control to see if there's a way to remove them without ruining the hay.  

The fun and frustrations of farm life go on. 

Happy Monday.