In the Clamoring, Tossing, and Swaying Wind —- Thursday, April 16, 2020

Posted on April 16, 2020 by Dayphoto

Off we went down the next mile to load and haul dirt

When all that HUGE amount of trash came roaring down the canal, into our headgate and then onto the farm

The water washed away all the dirt along the cement ditch

We loaded and hauled dirt for two full days…

With several more days of loading and hauling to go.

Although the day was clear, the sky blue and the sun rippling between clouds; we had wind.

Look closely and you can see dirt dancing on the crisp bright air

Two full days, more days to go

Then water to set (which occurs several times a day)

The end of the day—finally.

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

The Top of Our Mesa has Wind, Lots of Wind —- Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Posted on April 15, 2020 by Dayphoto

One of the things I had to get used to those many, many, many years ago, when I married Terry and we moved to where we live now

Was getting used to the wind. For you see I grew up in the middle of an orchard,

Here, where we live, the wind starts in March and stops around the 1st week in June

It’s not constant —as in never stopping, but it is consistent

Sometimes the wind is playful, sometimes whipping the words out of mouths

Sometimes vicious and mean and ugly, and sometimes just a whisper like lovers’ talk…soothing and caressing, singing a lullaby

I quickly found I love the wind. I love standing outside in the wind and letting it murmuring, or slam into me, hearing it moan, and cry in the treetops.

Wind, water, earth, moon, stars, sun…it’s all a huge part of me.

But I think you already know that. 🙂

From my world to your heart,

Linda

On Easter Morning — Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Posted on April 14, 2020 by Dayphoto

I went out early to wake up the hens, put our freshwater and feed, open their little runway when I noticed how beautiful the sky looked–the first glimmer of the coming day

Easter day was cold, wind blowing, buffeting man and beast, water and earth in a (most) cold and nasty way.

Big clouds filled the sky, dark with the promise of moisture, which never fell

The last set of the day, then home again, home again where warm comfort waited by the welcoming fire.

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

Back When the Moon was Full —- A Study in Black and White—Monday, April 13, 2020

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Dayphoto

I love watching the moon come up…

I enjoy the leaps and bounds of the quickly rising globe of silver, devouring dark and twisting shadows in its trailing silver light

I tried to capture the light it’s self, even with editing I couldn’t make it as beautiful as it really is.

The sky, now neither dark or light, but brilliant in a very special way

The silver rays of light

Sprinkled beauty on the earth; on Boomer, Mindy and I.

From my world to your heart,

Linda

Happy Easter! And Happy Spring! — Sunday, April 12, 2020

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Dayphoto

I had a most wonderful experience…my second time to Face Time with a blog friend from way, way far away.

Julie, from Frog Pond Farm in New Zealand and her husband…had a wee chat with Terry and I, Thursday evening.

Julie has been a faithful reader for many years now, finally meeting her face to face was a huge and wonderful delight.

I love how this technology has opened up the world-wide world to each of us in very unique and wonderful ways.

So here I am, on Sunday, Easter Morning, wishing for each and every one of you a glorious

And Marvelous Easter near and far

And, if Easter isn’t part of your celebrations, then I wish for you a most marvelous and wonderful Spring!

Your friends on a western Colorado farm,

Linda, Terry, Boomer, and Mindy-Cat

Light, Lively, Alive, and There For Us to See —-Thursday, April 9, 2020

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Dayphoto

Well, here you see what happens when trash comes down the canal, lands in the headgate and then comes onto the land

Everything plugged up and flooded all things it shouldn’t

What a mess…Now, this field will have to dry out BEFORE work can begin on it.

While we were sorting out the trash, moving dams, setting up dams and tubes I noticed the leveler (landplane) waiting silently and calmly for its turn (again) — this is an early morning shot

I thought the sunlight treading its way over the sky (this was around noon) lite up the brown manured filled ground perfectly

Then, as the day wore into the evening, where shadows stretched long and wide, I noticed how pretty the leveler looked so strikingly green as the sun started its relaxed downward turn toward the Uncompahgre Plateau.

The slow-spreading shadows of light—seeping onto the ancient land.

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

For Just a Beat of the Heart—-April’s Pink Moon — Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Posted on April 8, 2020 by Dayphoto

We were out setting the water for the last time of the day when I happened to glance to the East

There I glimpsed the Pink Moon of April showing itself behind the Paonia mountains

I had to hurry and get my camera out, for the Moon was rising as if a rush of wind was pushing up, up, up

It truly looked pink–coloring the moon-scape and outlining the moon

The sudden burst of moonlight, in the very quickly growing dark

Spelled contentment (in this soon to be cornfield).

We were patiently working in a moon beamed dream.

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

A Sparkle which Really is Brilliance— Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Dayphoto

Terry is checking the moisture in the furrows—we want the water to sub over under the top of the soil, deep inside of the furrow

You can see the top of the soil showing wet

It seems simple, doesn’t it? And in theory, it is; in practice, it takes lots of monitoring and paying close attention

Sometimes you can walk out on a dry looking row and suddenly sink right up to your ankles…sigh.

The water running beneath the dam is good…this is the water going to the next field — if the water was coming over the top of the dam we would need to start more tubes

The brilliant rays of sunlight on the furrows, in one of the alfalfa fields

It was so pretty, the glow of the rays, the sparkle of the water, the rich green of the alfalfa plants coming together in a perfect way.

Then when I looked up, in the bluest of blue skies, a sweet little bird flew over-head

The work is hard, still nothing to hide from,

I truly could not ask for more.

From my world to your heart,

Linda

Inspiring and Amazing, Swirls of Light —- Monday, April 6, 2020

Posted on April 6, 2020 by Dayphoto

I’ve been wanting to show you this for sometime

But Friday’s with Boomer came first, then the start of the water on the farm came second

But one-day last week we had rain

Which is an essential part of spring, bringing vitality to all growing things (and mud, but that is a very different story than this one)

What I wanted to share with you is this!

As the sunset, the mist created by the rain was the color of rose

I have never been blessed to see such a sight in all my life

The whole hazy effect was very enchanting. Even when the rainy mist turned into shadows.

What a joy! What a blessing!

From my world to your heart,

Linda

The Sound of Water —- Sunday, April 5, 2020

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Dayphoto

After Terry marked out (put furrows) the cornfields, and the alfalfa fields

He made all the earth ditches, which carry the water onto the fields

Then he went back to the bottom each and every field to make the shallow waste ditch….this is the ditch, which catches the water, then moves the water to the next field or to the canal.

Then it was time for us to start the water onto the land. You are looking at Terry opening the headgate and the water starting into the headgate

The water starts down the cement ditch where the trash is forked out by Terry and me

There is always lots and lots of trash; thanks to the cows (it gets caught in their hooves) and the wind.

There are lots of cement ditches on our place, so lots of forking out of the trash.

I always think how grateful I am for my arm muscles and for the ability to straddle the cement ditch — still, at my age. 🙂

Now we start setting the siphon tubes. (See that pooling of water—not good, we have to go out there and dig the furrow out and dam up the spots where the water broke out.)

There is no wasting of the water. Ever. Please don’t think that. We water several fields all at the same time…water that runs by one field is put on another field, the water that goes to the end of the field goes onto another field.

And we work at it constantly. Water checks every two hours to make sure nothing is happening, which shouldn’t be happening—like trash in the ditch causing the water to spill over the side, or trash in the furrow causing two (or more furrows) to run together, or trash in a tube stopping the water altogether.