Secret Squirrel

I like water.   Some people would say that it makes sense because I was born under a water sign.  I am a Scorpio.  I almost always have lived close to water:  a river, an ocean, a big lake, an even bigger lake,  another ocean, and then the first ocean again.  I like to play in water, on the water and under the water.  And I think there is something extra fun about camping when you know that you had to get there by water.  Where am I going with all this talk of water you may wonder.  Well to get to my property I have get there by water.  Well I understand I can there by plane as well but right now ferries will do.

I am learning to like my commute.   It takes awhile to get to my fruit trees from the house that has not sold yet, but it slows me down, it calms me.  Keep calm and... oh never mind.   Anyhow with all that said I still was pleasantly pleased with this month's commute. The second ferry was running late.  When I arrived after the drive from the first ferry I expected to wait for about an hour or so.  But the ferry was late.  No this did not mean that I waited for hours- it meant that I drove right on and it left within minutes.  Now the people who were waiting for THAT ferry might not have been as pleased!
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I brought the whipper snapper with me again thinking I that might actually use it as the weather looked a bit drier than last month.  I decided not to bring the rake, as I remembered seeing one in the shed. I planned on bringing the step ladder, I just forgot.  Well, I remembered about 20 minutes after leaving.  So the first stop in town was to investigate step ladders.  I found a really good one, a bit taller than my old one and perfect for the height I need to reach.  I will sell or give away the other one.

So the cherries, yellow plums and figs are done.  This trip was about apples and maybe hazelnuts.  A walk around the property and the first thing I see is no new poo... I think. There were a couple of 'drops' that may have been planted since last month, but not sure.  What I did see was many apples on the ground and many still on the tree.  Time to think about picking...

It was hot and there were so many apples.  I had to sample a couple!  Yummy.  I checked out the hazelnut tree.  I don't think its quite ready.... The husks are still green, but peeling them back and the nuts are brown. They are not falling off yet... 

I decided to do some grass cutting under the hazelnut tree.  I raked a bit with a metal rake that I found in the shed.  The rake has seen better days and only had a short handle, but it worked fine.  I was going to cut under the apple tree, but there were so many dropped ones to deal with first.  Is it just me, or is everyone else humming the Andrew Sisters...

Okay so I sorted through the dropped apples and filled three bins of good ones that were not rotten or had holes.  The dead ones I threw in a big pile... You know, so they can ferment altogether to get the bear drunk when he comes back.

Next I started on the apples on the tree...lots of ping pong balls, but a few good sized ones too. 

I carried the full bins back to the car and I walked around a bit. It appears that there were a few Italian plums after all.

 The next door neighbours came out to chat, which was nice and a rest is always good.  Did I mention it was hot..it's September!  I am not complaining. I am not. I am just stating facts.  

So there I was picking apples when I heard a voice behind me.... " are you the new owner?" I turned to find a woman with three of her pets out for a walk: two little dogs and a llama!

She lives on the street behind me, up the hill.  We talked for awhile about the neighbourhood, the people, the animals, my property and of course fruit trees and llamas.  Apparently the llama (I forgot her name) like walnut tree leaves.

I was not sure I would do it, but I picked every last apple off that tree!  And now I have a lot of apples!,

Now it was time for to head to town for a movie....

After a day of apple picking in the sun I was very excited to finally be able see the movie "Still Mine".  I had wanted to see it since hearing James Cromwell, the lead actor interviewed on the radio a few months ago.  It was at the Toronto Film Festival a couple of years ago.  While very much a touching story of an elderly couple's relationship where the female has developed Alzheimer's, it is also a story of a man building a small house. He starts out with no permit, no plans, his own milled wood (not stamped) and its a fight with city hall to finish it.  Based on a true story, Cromwell plays the 87 year old builder..  The film is slow moving, but it works and I enjoyed it very much.  

Last weekend I attended a Four Lights Tiny House building workshop and well, after watching this movie.... I am ready to start this house building stuff.  Okay so there is still much to sort out and plan, but I am somewhat stuck until my house sells.

I have made a few calls for estimates on a survey of the property to sort out the slope, map out all the vegetation.  Apparently because of the slope I will need a geotechnical survey as well. This is a person who comes out and digs a hole on your property and tells you that you can build a house on that spot.

I have also made a call for an estimate of a rainwater harvesting system with underground storage and a pond less waterfall that keeps the water aerated.  This I will use for the trees, garden, and maybe the toilets.  Hmmm...

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Another sunny day and its time to deal with the hazelnuts....

I stopped in to buy some more coffee, said hi to my friends and asked people if anyone knew about hazelnuts.  I was advised to drop by a farm up near my property and surely someone there would know.  Yes I had done a few google searches the night before... But ya gotta talk to the locals too!

And so the final consensus is that they are ready when the husks are brown, when they fall off the tree.    Also it was agreed that the bears, stellar jays and squirrels would most likely get to them before next month and it was okay to pick them early.  The husks get peeled off and then the nuts are dried out, or you .. 'put them in a paper bag and put them behind your couch, or somewhere where the mice can't get them'.  

I decided a burlap bag would work good to store the hazelnuts in -  read that on the Internet.  I had bought a huge bag of rice at the night market years ago and I am finally getting to the bottom of it.  I brought my rice bag...  

As soon as I started picking it was clear that someone had been eating from the tree, as several of the lower branches were bare of husks or the nut were gone from the husks.  I picked as much as I could reach, even with the new ladder.  And yet I only think I got about half the tree, the rest were too high.  The jays and squirrels would get some after all. 

My neighbour's neighbours came by to introduce themselves.  They said they were glad to meet me and glad I was here as now they will no longer be the new kids on the block now that I am here.  

I decided to take some of the nuts right out of the husks now, I mean it was a sunny blue sky day, why not.   Young Ben the cat came by to say hello, but he did not really help with the nuts though. 

Then I decided to keep at it and husk them all.  I embraced my inner squirrel and I finished the bottom of the bag before sundown.  I packed up the car. The next day I repacked the apples and headed back to the ferry for the trip to the house that hopefully will sell soon.

I can't wait to be watching the sunset and the ocean from the front porch of my small house.