This morning the world was coated in a thin layer of ice, and under the crispy ice shell the ground was saturated, making each step slurpy with mud. Despite the cold I felt warm inside my down jacket as I trudged through the mud to deliver hay to the goats and donkeys. I had to break the ice on the latch to the greenhouse door so I could tend the baby chicks in the brooder. The bed of lettuce survived the freeze, and the chicks were content under their heat lamp. Wendigo waited patiently in the cold rain, knowing her breakfast was coming soon.
It's nice to look at the colorful leaves on the trees in the photos I took several weeks ago when we visited the blue bus. The leaves are off the trees now, and the ice crust on every branch is making it harder for me to deny that winter has arrived. We were lucky to get two nice weekends in a row free to visit the bus, enjoy the views, host a picnic, and do some much needed maintenance.
Our closest neighbor to the bus let us know that people had been visiting the bus. We already knew we had hosted uninvited guests, because we had to clean up the trash they left behind. Having a door that wouldn't latch must be the same as an open invitation! We replaced the broken door with a new door, made from a piece of painted plywood, with sheets of metal screwed on to protect it from the weather.
We have decided to revamp the bus interior too. In years past I've had fun decking it out like a little cottage as our frequent weekend get-away. These days, we don't even want to get away! We haven't camped at the bus since we moved to the farm, and the furniture inside is dingy with neglect and moisture. Not to mention whatever cooties the guest might have left behind. So, we took out the iron cook stove that was never used, the futon, the chairs, and sink. We are rethinking how we want to use the bus now that our lives have changed. It's likely that our bus visits will continue to be short day time trips that focus on being outside among the trees.
No comments:
Post a Comment