The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—Farm Life Series, Chapter 15, The Fourth Season, Fall, or Autumn, Friday, March 4, 2022

Posted on March 4, 2022 by Dayphoto

Fall announces itself with the first, very cooling, very refreshing rain. That can happen anytime after September into October.

You see, September is still HOT here. Maybe not as hot as October, but it still is warm enough Mom is singing a happy song.

As September drifts along (yes, Dad and I think September moves slowly, the nights start to cool down, then the days get slightly cooler until we get to OCTOBER!

Now if you were to look upon the mountains surrounding our mesa you could see the ‘Colors starting to change. Seeing the colors change means for certain and sure we are in AUTUMN!

By the last Sunday of September, the colors in the mountains are ‘at their peak’ causing everyone who lives below the colors to ‘take a drive’. To see the colors, as they say.

Here on the farm, September means the last of the irrigation is being accomplished. First, one cornfield is finished up (Dad watches the corn kernels to see how hard they are—if they are hard, hard, hard that means the corn can not take in any more water. The plant is done. Finished for the growing season. To keep watering is just a waste of time and effort.) Then the next cornfield and so on, until all the cornfields are DONE for THE Year!

After that, all irrigation is concentrated on the alfalfa fields.

Alfalfa has a GREAT BIG TAPROOT, that must have a nice drink of water to go into the winter. Or the plant will die. Also, Dad likes for the alfalfa plant to have a nice growth on top, several inches of growth to help the plant survive.

After a heavy freeze comes then the plant is sleeping safely for next year. That is when the cows arrive to munch down the alfalfa leaves.

Anyway, back to Autumn. Autumn comes here when all the Cottonwoods turn to gold, the days are warm (NOT HOT) and the nights are cool.

As October progresses to November Mom starts hauling in firewood to make warm toasty fires in the evening.

Oh, yes. Fall smells good. The weeds are drying down, the trees are dropping their leaves, the sporadic rains cleanse the earth.

Fall. It also means HARVEST!

We will leave Harvest for the next installment of the Seasons. Along with more of my thoughts on weather.

Until then—

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 13, The Third Season, SUMMER Woes, Friday, February 25, 2020

Posted on February 25, 2022 by Dayphoto

There are lots of Woes, weather-wise, in Summer.

Sometimes we get Hail Storms.

Yep.

And Heavy Scary Thunder and Lightning Storms.

Scary stuff.

I mean VERY SCARY STUFF!

Like OVER-THE-TOP Scary!

In Early Summer we get Dust storms…these are caused by—you got it—WIND.

Wind coming off the Uncompahgre Plateau across and through the canyons, right up onto the Mesa we call home.

California Mesa.

Then all the worked-up ground becomes DUST and blows right into our eyes, ears, and mouths.

Sure, is a Mess.

If it’s late summer heading into Fall—when the air cools way down and the Earth is still warm…then the canals and water ditches and the river makes FOG!

Mom loves Fog…I told you she was a little strange. Off she goes to go WALKING in the FOG!

Dad and I just let her.

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 11, The Third Season, SUMMER Rain, or, Friday, February 18, 2020

Posted on February 18, 2022 by Dayphoto

Or the lack-there-of RAIN! Usually, the weather people say scattered thunderstorms or rain showers are expected.

Which means, in the mountains, not right here on the farm.

Each and every day Mom goes about with a huge smile on her face…’ it’s Summer, TLC My Cai-Cai…the very best time of the year’! She says to me.

She has GOT to be kidding!

Sometimes the temperatures run right up and over 100*f. Even the shade melts.

I know. I’ve tried sitting in it.

Dad, says ‘it’s so hot it is hard to DO ANYTHING.’

Boy, do I ever agree!!!

Mom is crazy…

she goes about SINGING!

Mom is crazy.

Yes, she is.

Pant, pant, puff, puff

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Wednesday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 10, The Third Season, SUMMER, Means Heat, Friday, February 16, 2020

Posted on February 16, 2022 by Dayphoto

Summer is the season HOT! HOTTER! HOTTEST!

Pant! Pant!

Spring is pretty—I guess. It does have wind, but still, it is cool enough I don’t pant.

Summer starts sometime in May or June. Depends on what the weather wants to do.

Another sure fact is Mom gets out the lawnmower and

SCARES THE HECK out of me.

I hide in the trees so that big machine won’t get me.

Anyway, for this tiny series, I will talk to you about SUMMER!

Hang on! I’m sure you are going to be just like me and be HOT!

(Oh, by the way, Mom LOVES Summer.

Mom IS crazy like I said earlier.)

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 9, The Second Season, Spring, Means WIND, Friday, February 11, 2020

Posted on February 11, 2022 by Dayphoto

Yes! It! Does! All the Time! WIND!

It starts around the last week of February or the first week in March. And it doesn’t stop blowing.

Oh. That maybe a bit of a stretch, but, I think you get it.

Mom is silly. She likes the wind. Well, most wind.

She doesn’t like the kind of wind that picks up buildings and flings them here and there.

But she does like the kind of wind that lifts her hair off her head and flinging it everywhichwayandup.

Mom is crazy.

Just say’n.

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 7, The Second Season, Spring, Farm Work, Friday, February 4, 2020

Posted on February 4, 2022 by Dayphoto

First…yes, each and every time…first is Dad getting one of the tractors out and hooking it up to something. More than likely to the disk.

Then he uses the disk, after which he will plow, then roll, then level, then mark out.

Yep…each and every day in each and every field Dad will do this.

ALL except to the alfalfa field. That requires something different.

In-between all that ‘tractor work’ Dad will figure out something he wants to do BEFORE everything gets too busy.

There will be — hauling stuff to the dump,

or hauling a load to the metal buying place, or maybe even finishing up something he started in the winter.

Spring gets to be B.U.S.Y!

In the meantime, when Mom isn’t helping Dad do something, Mom is getting her yard ready for Spring. This means, raking EVERYTHING, spading up the ground where she wants to plant something new,

plus keeping on hauling in wood.

Because, You See, March is still COLD!

Which works for me!

Because I LOVE the COLD!

Just Say’n.

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 5, The First Season, WINTER!!! SNOW, or How Wet Can You Get, Friday, January 28, 2022

Posted on January 28, 2022 by Dayphoto

Mom says snow is one of those weather things that is—well, a person had mixed feelings about. (Cats don’t have mixed feelings about snow…just so you know.)

Snow is beautiful to look at.

Snow is necessary to have water…. water to drink,

water to irrigate with, and for the land —it nourishes the roots of all the plants…weeds, and good plants.

Sometimes we get blizzards. I’ve really never seen a blizzard, but I have been in the WIND full of SNOW!!! Mom says THAT is a blizzard!

When a cat (or a person) is in a blizzard there is so much snow and wind you can’t see ANYTHING!!

Nothing! It’s scary.

AND YOUR FUR GETS VERY, VERY WET!!!!

That’s when I meow to come inside and stay inside.

I let Mom and Dad go outside and do all those ‘outside’ things they like to do.

After the snow ends…then we start one of a couple of different types of Winter—SO COLD YOUR PAWS STICK TO THE GROUND or Mud Season.

I don’t know which is worse. Mom calls horrible cold an inversion. She says it is pretty. And it does kill all the nasty bugs, but oh, my is it ever cold!

Then there is everyone’s dreaded season—melt. Snowmelt. When that happens, you get MUD!

On your paws, where you have to take your teeth and pull it out, on your lovely fur, where Mom gets a wet rag and washes you all over–

and MUD ON MY TAIL! Horrors!

Then there is mud on shoes, boots, in the house from the back porch to the stool where the shoes and boots are removed.

Mud season is pretty messy.

That is for sure!

TLC Cai-Cai

The Adventures of TLC Cai-Cai on Friday—-Farm Life Series Chapter 3, The First Season, WINTER Storms, Friday, January 21, 2022

Posted on January 21, 2022 by Dayphoto

Mom always checks the weather on the weather apps. She says it gives her an ‘idea’ of what the weather is going to be.

Then Mom goes and looks at the Uncompahgre Plateau—if there is a line of huge big black clouds over the Plateau in the west…

Then Mom knows a BIG STORM is HEADING OUR WAY!

If Mom sees a mass of clouds already in the canyons, dumping moisture then she knows in a few minutes we are going to get ‘it’.

And Mom is always right! The only thing Mom can’t predict is how COLD it’s going to get, by looking at the canyons or the Uncompahgre Plateau, but she can tell by the feel in the air, the crispness,

the look of the sun, as it shimmers through the sky, and sometimes by seeing Sun Dogs.

Then Mom starts warming up the hen house by putting in a red heat lamp. Red—because if you don’t use red the hens will start picking on each other. Something about seeing everything better, I suppose.

She makes the heat lamp turn on when the temperatures drop way down to 10* and stays on until around 9 in the morning when the birds can start taking care of themselves.

As for keeping me warm, she says I’m smart enough I can go outside if I want, or I can stay inside, or I can come and go. She says I decide since I’m not living in the hen house.