Well, last night was a beautiful night in the holler. I slept like a baby. Morning came just as beautifully as a morning on the edge of summer can be. While I ate breakfast, two deer browsed the edge of my lane just down from my cabin. Then, it was off to work.
My neighbor had mowed the weeds down that were taking over the road, which is nice (and rare). I did my usual once-over with Roundup to keep them down for a while. While I was doing that, I noticed some erosion starting just below the shed, so I put in a couple of diversion bars and did a little patching on the drive. I had also noticed a couple of very large erosion spots on the main road in -- right at the curve on the lower bank that supports the whole road. Thinking "a stitch in time" and all that, I looked for something to fill the crevices with. I had no rock, and filling erosion scars with rock just exacerbates the problem. What I had lots of was cut wood, so I got about three car trunkfuls of ash and honey locust that I cut several years ago and filled the holes with them. As the rain washes dirt down these proto-gulleys, it'll back up and cover the wood, which will slowly decompose and patch the holes. At least, I hope so.
I left Wilderstead about 1:00 p.m. and headed for E'ville. It was spattering rain as I entered Monroe County, and I was worried about getting my lawn mowed. I pulled in home, and lo and behold! some good fairies had mowed my lawn for me! And trimmed around the fence! I'd heard of fairies who helped with tailoring and shoemaking, but I've never encountered lawn care fairies! I'm deeply grateful.
All in all, it's been a great day. The weather is good, the woods are beautiful, the catalpas are all blooming, and my energy has stood up to a morning of hard work and a long drive. Life is very good. Thanks be to God.