Eagles, rodentia, etc.

When I was a kid there was a real push for saving the bald eagle, as it was nearing extinction and was, after all, our country's mascot. Teachers always spoke of eagles in hushed tones, and recommended we visit our local zoo to get a glimpse of the last few. Apparently, the species is in better shape now, but I still get a real pang of excitement every time I see the bald eagle that prowls our farm (apparently the cornfield is rife with rodents. Maybe the eagle should try prowling our house too). As Jay and I were driving in to the farm on Saturday, he (the eagle, not Jay) was picking at some carrion on the road, and he swooped right up over our windshield. Massive, impressive, lovely to behold.

Speaking of mice, I have to admit I have a real problem with the traps. I know we have to get vermin out of our house, but I still choke up when I see the butt end of one sticking out of the snap trap, and I imagine his surprise when, thinking he was getting a scrumptious bit of cheese, he got smushed. It makes me sad. That's all I'm saying. One night after Jay and I went to bed we heard the familiar snapping sound, along with lots of screaming and squealing. Jay, bless him, went down to investigate and as it turns out, one with especially good reflexes had gotten only his front foot trapped, and he was running in circles squealing. At this point I heard Jay gently saying "Go Home! Go Home!" as he had freed the apparently unappreciative mousie, who then ran up our counter to the fruit basket. For the record, I think we've cleared them all out. We have some holes to patch, obviously. Ahh, country livin'.

This last weekend, the farm foursome made some more good progress. The boys installed the concrete subfloor and finished the plumbing in the bathroom - it's now all ready for us to tile with Aunt Becky next weekend. They also installed two new light fixtures (porch, above kitchen sink) and the living room fan - very nice indeed. Bex and I painted the freebie clawfoot (or as Jay says, bear claw) tub, which is now pristine white and gorgeous, and Jay and I installed a door jamb in the stairway door. We also decided that we're going to go ahead and lease the cornfield to Bill Beyrer again, with the exception of one narrow strip we'll use for the orchard, hops, and more pasture for the horses. The other very exciting thing we did was plan for all the vines, flowers, fruits and berries we'll be planting this summer. Can't wait!