….and slowly, ever so slowly, the greenhouse comes into being. “In the beginning, uh rather, in the eventuality, Dave and Sally will probably finish the greenhouse….”
But it has taken us way more than six days. In fact, unlike God, we work on the seventh day and rest for six.
So, we are still not done. But at least, except for a bit of caulking on the SE facing windows, we are inside and can work out of the rain. We are about to start on the shelf-tables upon which the plants will sit. I am already imagining the bounty…..which hasn’t helped with the pace of getting it done but it does instill a bit of enthusiasm.
“Geez, Dave, ya gonna get ‘er done before winter sets in?”
Depends on Sal. And I am happy to report that the above mentioned enthusiasm finally being manifested is coming from her. And THAT is what I have been waiting for.
Of course, quilting and yoga and squirrels still take top priority but she is at least ready, willing and able to carry on now. Like all our projects, I dream them up, then I initiate things by buying supplies and making a mess and then I nap. She resists the idea, balks at the purchases, drags her feet through stage one and then helps like forced labour until we are about 25% done. Then her natural drive to accomplish things takes over and she shifts into gear and things start to REALLY get done.
That’s when you put on your safety gear.
The first obvious indication of the BIG shift is when she wakes me from my nap by snapping her fingers and saying, “Hey! That greenhouse isn’t gonna build itself, ya know!”
The second indicator is when she goes to the work site before me (that marks the 25% done stage).
Third indicator is when she carries on when I get tired and return to napping. It’s a beautiful system, really.
Small setback: I was going to show you some pictures but they were already loaded into her computer and that broke when she saw a mouse, shrieked, leaped in the air and, flailing wildly, landed on her screen.
So………………not only are we close to getting a new greenhouse, Sal is probably closer to getting a new computer.
And you wonder what we do all day………….
Our Off the Grid Home 
The best way to spend a few days or longer. Are you using PVC pipe for the green house frame? Saw one made out of pipe and commercial green house plastic.
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No. This is a smidge more substantial. The ‘trim’ alone is more substantial. I made the initial mistake of taking free double pane windows of irregular sizes and trying to design a greenhouse around them as I broke one now and then….so we had the ever-evolving greenhouse design based on the ever-diminishing window inventory burdened by the foot-dragger and the Shingles patient.
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Greenhouse.
Awesome.
The mice will have somewhere warm (other than the hacienda) to hang out.
Nothing like starting veggies and flowers a month or two before the official planting season.
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The ranks of vermin have been vanquished. Two Mickey’s, two traps, 4 blocks of cheese (they managed to get the first two) and two lifeless carcasses. It was a much longer drama (and more expensive) than it had to be but, like Spartans at Thermopylae, we held the line……shrieking and freaking the whole time for some of us, mind you.
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I was in the Queen Charlottes ( Haida Gwaii for you younger politically correct sensitive types) a few years back helping a friend wallpaper 30 hotel rooms in a fishing resort (dont ask…long sordid story). The bunkhouses where us slovenly heathens stayed were INFESTED with mice.
They tried traps, poison, sonic irritants, you name it. They tried it.
My grumpy old wallpaper hanging friend( whom I call Hitler when he’s drinking to really get him going) sez. ” Gimme a goddam 5 gallon bucket”
He half filled it with water. Cut a clothes hanger and bent it straight and stuck it through a beer can so the can would “spin”. Cut two holes in the top of the sides of the lidless, half full bucket. Then put a tiny board ramp up to the top of the bucket and slapped a bit of peanut butter on the sides of the beercan.
‘THAT will never work! There’s no way mice are gonna walk up a ramp to eat” was my critical observation to his handiwork
Next day…..12 drowned mice.
Next day……10
Next day….8
Took about a week. No more mice.
But the Ravens LOVED us when we would go out in the morning and pour(what I had dubbed Mouse-Aggeddon) the “results” out.
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I did the same. Expected results. Cheese and peanut butter on the can. Shoulda worked. Didn’t. Got spring traps. Five of them. Within a few hours, two small trophy heads for the wall.
Go figure.
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Hahahaahaha.
How hard IS it to stuff and mount a mouse?
Or did you leave them as Raven treats?
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Raven lunch.
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I think we have suicidal mice. The wind blew the cabin door open one day while we were out and about. Got home late, only to discover that we had been invaded. So I set 4 spring traps. Tried cheese. Tried peanut butter. Nothing worked. Several days later, after all the midnight scratching and pattering had ended, I found two mice in two separate buckets that we happened to have around in the house. Apparently, they climbed in and couldn’t get back out on their own. No bait or fancy mechanisms required.
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@ Barb
Wow! Well done!
I was X-country skiing about 20 years ago and ended up at an abandoned Glacier Hut in Garibaldi Park…. It was March. The mice, I’m sure, hadnt seen humans in 6 months…..and they were ravenous.
We couldnt cook our supper without them squeeling and scampering for food handouts….It was bizarre.
Well there was no way I was going to sleep and let a bunch of insanely hungry mice “have their way ” with my brand new Coast Mtn knapsack, sleeping bag, boots etc etc etc.
Out came my “always packed” mouse traps.
Set them( with bait) and waited…..and waited. Nothing. Even while the little bastards were running over our feet( no Im not kidding)
We ended up leaving our packs and boots and anything edible hanging from a tree outside in -10 c weather for retrieval the next day.
I woke up on the middle of the night to the sound of gnawing teeth on an empty soup can……Turned on my flashlight ………GAAAAAAAAAA!
Hordes of mice! all over the table! sniffing.licking, squeeking at the canned food and the clean bowls and plates.
Sleepless night. I was worried about my new down sleeping bag…….
Next morning, our pot of melted snow for coffee was full of drowned mice.
ICK ! Doesnt even begin to describe it.
We tossed them outside and washed the pot…several times and then cringed while brewing our coffee..
Half hour later……all the dead mice carcasses were gone?
Apparently , not only does Nature Provide…..it also provides a clean up service!
None of our traps worked. The food was gone and they were still set.
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