Advent of Snow

Today is the first Sunday of Advent, which I forgot to mention in this morning's post. Advent is all about an upcoming arrival. Guess what made its advent by this morning.........measurable, stickable SNOW! Fun, fun, fun for photographing! I was late in getting cleaned up for church this morning, due to my photo tour around the farm. This fascinating snow trick of clinging to everything in sight will not hang around long.......as we are advised to "make hay while the sun shines", similarly its a good idea to "take photos while the snow clings"! Tex the Cat will second that thought......though he might not admit it!

"Dogs are lazy!".........Yeah, Tigger will second that declaration!

Tex also wanted to show you the snow-covered steps he must traverse.......he claims that his tootsies are a bit chilly. What a wimp!

Look at this.......Buster seems to bask in the newfallen snow, enjoying a well-deserved nap after his efforts during morning milking chores.......efforts at lapping up all the spilled milk he can find, that is.

Would you like to take part in a game of one-on-one? Now......don't go and take that wrong, for crying out loud. Its simply a basketball game!

Or, a picnic.......how about a picnic.......surely there's no double meanings in that proposal! Looks like the seating might be a bit chilly, though.

Or, how about joining me for a cup of coffee on the porch?! Hmm.......no takers on that suggestion, either. Well, have it your way if you must.

A snowy good-bye for now!!

*

X for St. Andrew

For the past 30 years, I've stared at these windows which rise above the altar in my church.

*

Until one day last summer---when I sneaked ino the church's sanctuary to take these photos---I had never taken a close look at the details in these stained-glass windows. For thirty years I had no idea that the little white squares had petal-like designs in them. I did not know that parts of the circles and X's were interwoven, over and under each another. And, I didn't even realize that the color purple was part of this stained-glass design; it doesn't show up from a distance. Could I have been any more ignorant?

*

*
Well, no matter.......I have always enjoyed gazing at these colorful, quilt-like windows which from a distance appear to be full of X's enclosed in circles. Today, November 30, is St. Andrew's Day. Tradition says that St. Andrew was crucified on an X-shaped cross.......if you take the previous link and scroll down the page aways, you will see a painting of St. Andrew on the Saltire, which is the name for the X-shaped cross used on flags and in heraldry.
*
My church's name is not St. Andrew's Lutheran........but, I think it could be called that because of these windows.
*
Have a blessed St. Andrew's Day!
*

Silly Name Meme

I stole this meme from Sherry's blog, A Feather Adrift. Feel free to steal it, play it, and pass it on! It’s the Name Game Meme. If I'm not allowed to hibernate......then at least allow me to attempt to laugh my way through this dark time of year!

*

1. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names): Ann Earl

*

2. NASCAR NAME: (first name of your mother’s dad, father’s dad): Franklin Earl

*

3. STAR WARS NAME: (the first 2 letters of your last name, first 4 letters of your first name): Ralois

*

4. DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal): Blue Cow

*

5. SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you live): Jeanne Klinger

*

6. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite alcoholic drink, optionally add “THE” to the beginning): The Green Fuzzy Navel

*

7. FLY NAME: (first 2 letters of 1st name, last 2 letters of your last name): Lo-He

*

8. GANGSTA NAME: (favorite ice cream flavor, favorite cookie): Praline Chocolate Chip

*

9. ROCK STAR NAME: (current pet’s name, current street name): Mookie Gresham

*

10. PORN STAR NAME: (1st pet, street you grew up on): Sparky Lester

*

*

Holy cow........her name is not Jeannelle.......who'd a thunk it?!

Twin Cities Cyber-Trip

Today we had a visitor from The Twin Cities......that being the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, of course. Up there---"Up North"---was a favorite destination over the years when our kids were younger. We enjoyed many visits to Valleyfair, Mall of America, The Minnesota Zoo, The Science Museum, Como Park, etc., etc.

*

As we chatted with our northern friend this morning, I was goofing around with my daughter's laptop on the side, trying to find some blogs from the Twin Cities. Here's a few that popped up, full of eyecatching photos to enjoy:

*

Mitchster.com - This link is to his Thanksgiving Day post, and I like what he writes concerning what blogging means to him, and how posting photos has opened up a whole new world of awareness for him......"I would have walked right past this sad little stick in the past, but now I know how to give it its day." I like that thought! It echoes my feelings about blogging and photography, too! (The Penn & Teller video is good, too.)

*

Just Roaming the Cities - Nice shots of Minneapolis and St. Paul in this one.

*

Twin Cities Daily Photo - More interesting city shots.

*

Uptown Minneapolis Blog - Cool, artsy city shots here!

*

Dusty Lens - North Metro and Beyond - Some neat black & whites here.

*

*

Ok, that's it for now.......I wasn't even planning to blog today.......blame it on my Minnesota visitor.

*

Are any of you insane enough to go shopping today? I know people who get up in the wee hours of Black Friday morning to go camp out in long lines in front of stores in the freezing cold. Good grief. My daughter works at Kohls and she had to be there at 6 a.m. this morning. She was told to expect a full day of nonstop cash register work.

*

If you are shopping today, I wish you lots of bargains and short check-out lines. As for me---a totally sane person---I'll be here at home, catching up on mountains of laundry ignored during the days of Thanksgiving preparations. I envision a peaceful nap coming up this afternoon, after a walk in the COLD sunshine.

*

Happy Black Friday to you!

*

Mumbai

Have you been hearing on the news about the violent goings-on in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), India? Here is a link to the Mumbai Daily Snapshot Blog which posts photographs from around the city. There is no information about the shootings, but it is interesting to scroll through the posts and view photos from that city.

*

Here is a link to information about Americans and Canadians caught in the violence in Mumbai.

*

And, here is another blog from Mumbai.

*

SkyWatch #20

Welcome to this SkyWatch Friday post........zooming into your eye-space from northeast Iowa, USA. Visit the official SkyWatch site to find hundreds of sky links from around the world!

*

*

From where I live, the eastern horizon is punctuated every day by plumes of steam from

the Hawkeye Renewables corn processing plant about ten miles away, near Fairbank, Iowa. The plant produces ethanol for powering motor vehicles and a corn by-product for livestock consumption. Here's a recent article about this ethanol plant from the Oelwein Daily Register, including an aerial photo of the corn-processing facility.

*

If we pivot about 135 degrees to our left we will see a now-defunct source of power........an old-fashioned farm windmill. This one stands out in a field and used to have a water tank sitting next to it.......the windmill would revolve in the wind, powering an apparatus which pumped water out of a well for livestock to drink.

Sorry......there's not much sky in this photo......but, there's a little bit of SNOW.......and, corn still standing, waiting patiently to be harvested. This could be a SnowWatch or CornWatch photo!
*
Thank you so much for stopping by! Happy SkyWatching! (If you're viewing this on Thursday and are celebrating the U.S. holiday.......Happy Thanksgiving, too! Oh-h, I'm so full of turkey, I can hardly move.......gotta go wash the dishes now.)
*

Jacob's Journal

Thank you for thoughts and prayers for Jacob, the 17-year-old from our community and extended family who had emergency surgery last Saturday night for a bleeding artery in his brain. He remains hospitalized at U of I Hospitals. Here is his mom's Caring Bridge journal entries for this Thanksgiving Day:

*****************

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2008 08:29 AM, CST:
"Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving! Well, Jacob is like a new born baby, he has his nights and days mixed up. We were up all night. He wanted breakfast at 2:00 o'clock this morning. His thinking is a little behind. So we are going to keep him up all day today and make him walk in the halls alot, which we already have done twice today. He is wanting to eat and drink. He will try to bargain for more liquids. He is still restricted on the fluids to 1 liter. His MRI was good. So the more up and about he is, the better. We set goals every day. Today's goal is to STAY AWAKE, walk more and be in the chair for most of the day.
Bye for now.
The next episode of the young and the wrestler will be later today."

*****************

*****************

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2008 03:42 PM, CST:
"We have had major improvements in Jacob's recovery today. The docs have decided to let Jacob drink all the gaterade he wants, but no water. Gaterade has sodium and water doesn't. The more sodium he takes in, the less they have to give him through the iv. So here comes the french fries and cheese burgers. The swelling in his eyes is going down and he can see through his peepers again. He is more alert and is staying awake longer. We had him in the chair for 3 hrs. today all ready. Hopefully, we won't be in the ICU to much longer. If you are thinking of coming down, please call to make sure what room of floor we are on.
Until the next time.
This is the young and the wrestler."

*******************

Happy Thanksgiving!

*

PROCLAMATION OF THANKSGIVING

by President Abraham Lincoln

October 1863:

"It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my Fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens."

*

(Well said, Mr. Lincoln!)

*

*

Here's a link to some Thanksgiving trivia.

*

The Thanksgiving traditions here in our household include church in the morning and then the usual noon meal of turkey, dressing, mashed potatos, gravy, cranberries, homemade crescent rolls. I appreciate the traditional/routine/unchanging menu; no need to make decisions about what to fix! My stepdad---who is practically a gourmet chef---will bring desserts of apple kuchen and homemade Boston Cream Pie.

*

Here's another Thanksgiving Day tradition that somehow got started years ago when the kids were little: Later, in the evening, we watch Planes, Trains & Automobiles as a family, and we laugh our darn fool heads off. It seems to get funnier with each passing year! There's just so many life lessons in that goofy movie. "You're messin' with the wrong guy!"---Try shouting that into the face of adversity. Years ago I had taped the TV version---the profanity is dubbed out---and we still have the tape. I really should try to transfer it to a DVD before it disintegrates.

*

Many blessings to you and yours today!

*

Thankful For Emptiness

Among the myriad blessings in my life, one I'm very grateful for today is this empty corner in my house:

Most likely, all of you who read my blog keep your houses neat-as-a-pin, and its doubtful you'll be able to relate to what I'm writing about in this post. But.....sigh......I'll write it anyway.
*
If you knew me as well as I know me.....which no one does, of course.......you would be cheering because my accomplishment of cleaning up a corner of the house means that my mood must be much better than normal for this time of the year. There have been other years when I felt simply paralyzed as the month of November wore on, with its diminishing hours of light each day, and the upcoming prospect of the holidays, when I'm supposed to be giddily cheerful and happy about everything. What a drag on my family I was at those times. Moms are supposed to be enthusiastic about Christmas decorating and shopping and baking, don't cha know. (Want to imitate a northern Iowa/Minnesota accent? Emphasize an "oh" sound in that phrase, "d-oh-n cha kn-oh-w". My daughter---who is a teacher/coach near Des Moines---gets teased about her "Minnie-soh-ta" accent all the time. And, in my opinion, her husband---who grew up in Des Moines---has a slightly southern accent---like Missouri people do. Funny how that all works. Sorry for the digression.)

*

Do you ever find it a struggle to be what you are "supposed" to be?

*

However, do you want to know what the salvation of my mood has been?.......On a practical, everyday level?........That's right, its BLOGGING. Oh, I could say, "God has freed me from my depression", and certainly, God, being all-knowing, all-powerful, and all that, deserves the credit for anything good that happens in our lives. But, I'm not comfortable talking about God very much. Oh, He's a given in my life, but I feel it can be a turn-off when people are always talking about Him. Talk is cheap---unless you're a professional speaker of some sort, of course. Actions are what counts. (That's not to say that my actions are always---or ever--- what they should be.) Of course, it could be that blogging is cheap, too......but, oh, what a depressing thought!
*
Also, please don't come to the erroneous conclusion that the rest of my house looks like this corner---free of clutter---because it definitely does not! But, at least there is this corner of peace and emptiness to which I can flee when the rest of the house and all the holiday responsibilities seem overwhelming. I'm determined to keep this corner cleared out.......oh, we will put the Christmas tree here......but, after that, I want to keep the area free of STUFF. Then when little ones are here they can play in this corner, or we can put up a card table here for games or for extra seating at mealtimes. Or I can just stand there within the emptiness and gaze blissfully out at the trees in the yard, reveling in this small space which is FREE OF CLUTTER!
*
*
Here's one of my favorite autumn decorations---a wreath of colored leaves made out of old barn wood. At least, I assume it is made from old boards from a farm building. I bought this unique wreath a few years ago at a local craft consignment shop. Its hanging next to the double doors in the photo above. (The porch beyond looks so white because its floor was covered with snow when I took the picture the other day.) I enjoy fall decorations and am sad when its time to take them down. Maybe I should just leave this wreath up! Hey......that's an idea......maybe I'll do that!

*
Here's hoping there's a peaceful, uncluttered spot somewhere in your house.......or in your mind......where you can retreat, even just for brief moments, whenever the need arises during the holiday season! If you don't have an empty spot.......then MAKE ONE!! Push some stuff aside and make room for a little peace and emptiness in your house and life. Take back something that belongs to you in the first place!
*
Happy Thanksgiving Eve!!
*

Sunny Positions

Shucks.........you caught me.........goofing around with photos when I should be kneading roll dough and baking other goodies for the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend.

*

Yesterday, my daughter and I were stopped at a red light on East Fifth Street in downtown Waterloo. The flags in front of City Hall were taking a flapping and glowing position there in the noonday sun, framed against the windows of the Black Hawk County Courthouse in the background.

*

And, this morning, Furby positioned himself comfortably on the leaves, surrounded by the clashing shadows of a November morning.

How do you prefer the scene to be served? In black & white.......or color?

*

Please whisper a prayer for a boy named Jacob, my son's friend and cousin.......the one who collapsed at wrestling practice on Saturday and was rushed to Iowa City for emergency surgery for bleeding in his brain. I've been reading his Caring Bridge updates regularly. Jake is still in ICU because his blood pressure is very high and they're trying to figure out what is causing that. His mom wrote that the bleeding situation was caused by a blood clot, so they need to get to the bottom of what caused it. Jake is a fighter.......you should have seen him play football this fall. He's short, but tough, and always the first one to the scene of the action, often tackling guys much bigger than himself. In his Caring Bridge guestbook are many well wishes from this year's opposing coaches......they all respected Jake's tenacious style of play.

*

Hotmail Problem

For the last few days, when I try to go to the sign-in page for Hotmail, all that comes up is a blank white screen.

*

Am I doing something wrong? If you have Hotmail, has it been working for you? Thanks.

Turkey Day Funnies

These comics arrived in an email the other day:

*

*

*

*

*
The email forward came from a Lutheran pastor, so I figured they were suitable for public viewing........hopefully no one is offended........especially any turkeys out there who might be reading this!

*

*

Yesterday, I shopped for groceries......there was no need to buy a turkey, however......our dairy supply truck driver dropped one off as a gift last week! Tonight I'm driving an hour away to watch a high school girls' basketball game; my older daughter is a JV coach and varsity assistant at a school near Des Moines. Also riding along will be my mom, my younger daughter, and maybe my sister; it will be fun to chat on the way and then watch Daughter do her coaching.
*

I hope your Thanksgiving preparations are going well!

*

Ear Corn Picking

A glimpse into the past:

The man in the photo is my father-in-law. He left us a year ago this week, passing away on his birthday! We miss his stories of old-time farming.......he did fieldwork with horses when he was a boy and milked cows by hand.

*

Here's a story from Sunday's Waterloo Courier, about an area farmer who still picks ear corn. The first photo in the story is cool.......it shows ears of corn shooting out of a cornpicker into a wagon.

*

Sweet Sixteen Niece

I have a dear niece who is turning sixteen today! Happy Birthday, Lovely Girl! She was my 2-year-old son's first customer 14 years ago when he was attempting to get his baby-sitting business off the ground:

*

Whoops.......at least he can get stroller wheels off the ground! Oh, his poor cousin.......what she had to put up with!

*

For an extra dollar per hour, my son the babysitter would provide spelling lessons on the dishwasher door:
*
And, he would hover over his charge, ever ready to provide comfort in times of distress. (It couldn't possibly be the case that he might have caused the distress in the first place.......nah......no way!)

*
Once again......Happy Birthday, Niece! Kindly follow your parents' rules---they have your best interests in mind......use good judgement......drive carefully, etc.......and God bless you always!
*

Snow Graphics

Our area of Iowa was treated to graphic snow artistry yesterday morning. This type of art never stays around very long........soon enough it is erased by wind or sun. You'd better not hesitate long in grabbing your camera and heading outdoors to make a photographic recording!

*

Here's hoping YOU are having a pleasant Sunday! We are! My college daughter is home......fun for me......it brightens my mood to have another female around the house. Just this past year I've come to realize the difference that can make, now that I'm alone with two men most of the time. The hormones are more balanced out with Daughter around. I don't know what's coming over her, though.......she's been taking a rock-climbing class at UNI and is crazy about it, and says she can beat all the guys to the top. She always has been strong.......must be due to growing up milking cows and slinging hay bales.......but, rock-climbing???! Good grief.

*

One of my high school son's football teammates is in our thoughts and prayers today. He collapsed after wrestling practice yesterday and was rushed to U of I hospitals in Iowa City. He had bleeding in the brain and underwent a 4-hour surgery last night during which an arterial bleed was found. How do I know these details? We found his updates on CaringBridge.org, and were able to send a message to him. His mom is Husband's first cousin---typical in small communities where many people are related. Anyway, I had heard of CaringBridge before, but had never visited the site......and what a great service it is! We are relieved now to know that his condition is stable and he is awake and alert and told someone that his night nurse was "hot". So-o-o......that indicates he must be doing OK!

*

Christ the King Sunday

Today is Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday in the traditional Church year.

Advent begins next Sunday.

*

Here is the oldest known icon image of Christ Pantocrator. It dates from the sixth or seventh century and has been preserved in St. Catherine's Monastery in the Sinai desert. Pantocrator means "almight" or "all-powerful". It was used to translate the Hebrew title, "El Shaddai".

Click to the Wikipedia page to read more.

Though I'm certainly not into icons, I do for some reason find comfort in this particular face of Christ. The eyes are eyecatching.......and despite the icon's age, the face looks oddly modern to me.

*

I have a habit of hanging things on trees. Yesterday morning's light etching of snow made the details of this iron cross stand out a bit. Otherwise, the cross is hardly noticeable against the bark on the tree trunk.

*

Many blessings to you this day!!

*

Closer To Truth

Yup.......frightening though it may be.......these are my eyes. Sorry, I've never been into eye makeup or brow-plucking. My eyes are too deep-set for makeup, and I've worn glasses for nearsightedness since 3rd grade.......although, they were removed for this photo, obviously. I've not given in to bifocals yet, by the way.

Today, my eyes took in a fascinating new TV show on PBS.......Closer To Truth. My husband, son and I were eating lunch, engrossed in the Iowa high school football championship games being broadcast on Fox-28 from the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls (by the way.......the football playoffs bring something like $3 million into the Cedar Valley each year). After the 1A game we watched a retaining wall being built on Hometime on PBS. Then it was time for the 2A game to begin, but I had been scanning the list of PBS shows and noticed one called Closer To Truth: ESP, on the new HD PBS channel. Hmm.......sounded like something I'd be interested in, so I shooed Husband and Son to the old living room to watch the football game on our tiny, old tube TV, so I could watch this HD show on our newer TV, which is HD-ready. Bossy and selfish, aren't I?! The guys didn't care, though, believe me.

*
Anyhow the show was fascinating. Here is one of the interviews from today's show. I agree wholeheartedly with Michael Shermer........that there is no "paranormal".......the fact is we simply don't fully understand the "normal" yet......we are largely ignorant of many of the workings of our own mind and the physical world. There were several other interviews in the show that are not on videos on the website yet. One was with Rupert Sheldrake in England, the scientist who developed a controversial "morphic field" theory. I've read about that before. Its how flocks of birds and schools of fish move in synchrony. Sheldrake claims this also occurs in groups of people who are closely connected emotionally by family or social ties. My older son---an electrical engineer---studied a similar theory in college in connection with electricity and magnetic fields. Fascinating! Sorry to be so weird.....but, I love this kind of stuff! The intersection of science and religion.......an intriguing crossroads!

*

By the way again.......today I also went to dtv2009.gov to order the discount coupon for buying an HD-converter box, which we will need for our two small tube TV's. After I applied, it said my coupons (you can order up to two of them) will be shipped on December 12. So.....if you're going to need an HD-converter box, you'd better order your coupon pretty soon.

*

Ok.......over and out.......that's all for now.

*

Shadowy Tails Tale

Were I your Creative Writing teacher, your assignment for today would be to write a "Tale of Shadowy Tails" or a "Shadowy Tale of Tails"........your choice! Your story would be graded by Cal or Dinky or Sasquatch or Tex or Mookie or Tigger or Tux.......once they finish devouring their cat food!

*

Mm-m! Cal assures you this fresh-from-the-cow milk is nose-lickin' good!
*
Whaddaya lookin' at, punk?! So I have milk dripping from my chin......wanna make somethin' of it, do ya?!

*
After the feeding.........dogs pout and cats primp & preen!
And, guys drool and gals rule......sorry, guys......but, you know its true! Heeheehee.


*
These animal friends could care less what day of the week or year today is........but, Happy Saturday before Thanksgiving, anyway!
*

Scribbler Award

A blogger from Iowa, and a superb writer.....Sherry......of A Feather Adrift kindly bestowed this Superior Scribbler award on my blog. Thank you, Sherry!

*

Here are the rules for this award:

1. Pass the award on to 5 others.
2. Link to the giver......in this case A Feather Adrift, linked to above.
3. Display the award as you see above.
4. Link to this Scholastic Scribe blogpost, which explains the award.
5. Link through that Post and add your name to the list of recipients.
6. Post the rules as you see here!

*

Haha.....I recall doing plenty of scribbling when I was a schoolkid. Often, the margins of my notebook pages were filled with odd-shaped letters, symbols, and other whatnots. Blogging certainly is an offshoot of that........scribbling elevated to a somewhat higher level by modern technology.

*

Here are the 5 blogs I'll pass this Superior Scribbler award on to:

1. The Human Race 600.......authored by "Caution Flag".

2. Rhymeswithplague.......authored by Bob Brague.

3. Gravel Roads and Daiquiris in the Dirt.......authored by Deserthen.

4. Peacock Blue.......authored by Nonizamboni.

5. Adventure Girl Wanna Be.......authored by Adventure Girl Wanna Be.

*

*

I recall now that Adventure Girl and Deserthen each kindly honored me with an award a few weeks ago, which I haven't gotten around to posting about. Thank you, ladies!

*

Here's my own personal view on blog awards, and it will probably sound rather scroogy and party-pooperish.........but, I sort of wish that anyone who might think of giving my blog an award would just go ahead and give it to someone else. Mostly because I'm basically lazy and selfish and doing an award post is alot of work! But, thank you so much for thinking of me!!

*

Also, I think I'm going to remove the award banners on my sidebar and put them into one blogpost, which I will put a link to on my sidebar. Does that make sense? Awhile back I visited another blog which had done that and I thought it was a rather good idea.

*

I don't wish to offend anyone with my opinion of blogger awards, so I truly hope none of you feel that way after reading this. Tell me off in a comment if you wish! The connections made through blogging are wonderful and interesting, and are award-like in their own way.

*

Actually, I'm very much in favor of us bloggers mentioning other blogs that we find interesting, and providing links. And, that can be done without the trappings of awards.......but, that is just my opinion, of course.

*

Happy blogging, everyone!!

*

Frightening Discovery

Oh, my goodness.......I just signed onto my Blogger account to make sure today's post looked OK........the Dashboard informed me that "Post-Harvest Fieldwork" is my 666th blogpost! Its the Post of the Beast! Gasp! Gulp! Yikes!

*

I'm going to try to have a good day regardless........the same to you!!

*

Post-Harvest Fieldwork

Yesterday morning, the sound of a howling northwest wind greeted my ears, making it very difficult to emerge from under the warm blankets. Well---I thought---if I can survive feeding calves this morning, then I'll come back into the cozy house and continue working on several de-cluttering and rearranging projects I've haphazardly given birth to the past few days. I'm simply trying to MAKE ROOM FOR CHRISTMAS to happen.......the tree, the decorations.......those things that are expected to appear at will. Does anyone understand this?! And, let's not forget Thanksgiving......which is probably my favorite holiday, but it gets lost in the shuffle.

*

However.......when I got to the barn, Husband announced that he was planning to have me run the chisel plow after morning chores. Whew.......what a relief......that meant I could ditch those silly, frivolous cleaning and organizing plans for the house!

*

Anyhow, this chisel-plowing task provides a good excuse to post about the fieldwork that takes place after the harvesting is finished. Once the grain crops are gathered in, then---weather permitting---farmers turn to the job of tillage, after first hauling manure on the fields if they have livestock.

*

Here is one example of field tillage equipment.......a field cultivator........seen on the road several days ago:

And, next......here is our neighbor.......in his shiny, newish John Deere tractor........pulling a chisel plow, so named for the chisel-shaped tines which dig into the soil. There is a row of disk blades in front of the chisels, to better break up the dirt clods.

By the way, another neighbor---who farms many hundreds of acres---is still busy at combining corn. You can see his red International Harvestor combine in the photo below. He dumps the corn into gravity box wagons, which are hauled back to his farm and emptied into a grain dryer and then into a storage bin. The other day I had posted about another neighbor who uses semi-trucks to haul grain from his fields.


OK......now onto my own mission for the day.......to till a field which had grown soybeans this year, and which has recently been plastered with cow manure. Next you see our dinky chisel plow, ready and waiting to work that manure into the soil, in hopeful anticipation of the next growing season.



The plow is being pulled by an Allis-Chalmers 8785 tractor, with a loader attached on the front. How very nice. Husband emphatically emphasized, "Watch out so you don't hit the electric poles with the loader!", before he turned me loose in the field. The next photo shows the view facing forward from the tractor cab. Yup, by golly, there is one of those pesky power poles coming up ahead. I must negotiate my U-turn very carefully! What do you think that brown stuff is on the ground.......if you say "dirt", you're incorrect.......it is the wonder-working MANURE!

I'm driving in luxurious comfort today.......this cab actually has a heater.......and a radio!! And, a clock, which is of absolutely no interest to me today.
To the right of the cab's air-shocked, springy seat are the hydraulic levers. The one with the green dot on the handle is the only one I'm using today.......pulling the lever back raises the chisel plow out of the ground and pushing it forward drops the plow back down. These features must be utilized during each U-turn at the ends of the field.

The plow cannot be left in the ground when you turn around. Think about it. Soil is a tough medium to pull anything through. Try it. You would probably wreck equipment if you left the plow in the ground during a turn. I've never tried it, and don't plan to. Husband would have my head.......
*
This next photo shows the plow raised up during a turn. It usually takes me a few turns to get comfortably into the routine........pull hydraulic lever back; turn steering wheel sharply, being sure to avoid hitting the fence; press foot on left or right brake, depending on which way your turn is going---you want to brake the rear wheel on the side you are turning to---otherwise you'll go sliding out of control and end up somewhere you don't want to be, and in danger of receiving a serious lecture from the boss! (Ya might even get fired!) Then, once the turn is complete, I press the other side's brake to straighten the tractor in the field, while at the same time pushing the hydraulic lever forward to drop the plow into the ground again. Ya got all that? The tractor is barreling along all the while you're doing all this, so you better know ahead of time what your turning plan is! Be prepared! Planning in advance is the secret to success!
In the next photo, you see the view through the rear window of the tractor. As I sat there, bouncing along.......many, many thoughts wandered in and out of my mind. Life is like plowing, but without a hydraulic system to use......you set your plow into the ground---your row to hoe in life---and away you go, presumably always in a straight line, because should you ever come to a point where you think you want to make an about-face and go the opposite direction.....well, you would do so at great peril, for recall that you can't raise your plow out of the ground......due to having no hydraulics. I truly view life that way right now.
*
In my mind, thoughts of acquaintances, friends and family, living and passed on, came and went, often prompted by whatever song was playing on the radio. The songs and my thoughts seemed so entwined, I felt like contacting the radio station to see if they were employing mindreaders! Don't be alarmed.....that's just my normal paranoia kicking in.*
I've mentioned that the field had been recently covered with a fresh coat of cow manure.......fertilizer for next spring's crop. This final photo shows Husband pulling the filled-to-the-brim manure spreader a few days ago. Fill it to the rim with ___! You betcha!

Hey.......here's a great attitude adjuster!! Find a place where you can be alone, away from prying ears.......and then shout out, "COW POOP ROCKS"!! Or, just say "COW POOP" out loud over and over several times. It really works......you'll start to smile and your mood will brighten. Think of how kids giggle over the word POOP. I'm not kidding! Try it!

*

Interesting Link

Hey, I was just now surfing to a few SkyWatch blogposts.......in particular to the bloggers who had kindly visited my SW post today. Anyhow.......Deidre, the Reluctant FarmChick wrote a very interesting post about her childhood in South Africa. But, she began the post by saying she didn't think she had any stories from her past to tell........it would seem she is mistaken! So, in case you need something interesting to read this evening.....there you go.

Sky Watch #19

Welcome.......today is SkyWatch Friday's 19th edition. I missed a few along the way, most likely. Please visit the official SkyWatch site to find links to participants from around world. Many thanks to the SkyWatch team.....Klaus, Sandy, Ivar, Wren, Fishing Guy, Louise!

*

On Tuesday of this week, the mid-morning sky appeared as shown below. WARNING......gazing at this zigzag sky for very long could trigger a headache! If anyone knows the scientific name of this type of cloud formation, please mention it in a comment......thanks!

[Dewdrop stopped by to identify the above cloud formation.......

it is Altocumulus undulatus. Thank you, Dewdrop!!]

*

Last Friday, right after completing my SkyWatch blogpost, I headed outdoors for an afternoon walk and was greeted by the sight of a parhelion, also known as a "sun dog". Can you find it in the photo below?


*
These scenes come to you from northeast Iowa, USA. Thanks for stopping by!
Happy SkyWatching!
*