December 15, 2017

It's been almost a month since I've last visited the Fifty Acre Wood. I'm really hoping to get all the boundary mowed so I can move on to other projects. The last time I was out here my mowing duties were cut short when the mower blades got tangled up in barbed wire left by the fence guys hidden in the overgrown weeds.

Today I was able to mow the remaining boundary lines that were dry, that would be about three-quarters of the perimeter mowed. Today's mowing was not without problems though, once again I found the tractor getting tangled up in barbed wire left by the fence guys. Again I had to walk the tractor back in so that I could untangle the wire from the tractor fortunately it wasn't tangled around the blades this time it was tangled around the back wheel, easier to reach and easier to get.

With all the mowing done that I could do, I focused on another nagging chore. I had a section of fence that was knocked down by trees during the storm two months ago so I was able to repair that broken fence.

The tractor performed very well I was surprised I had no problems with it all day. By my record keeping, it takes two days to mow three-quarters of the boundary lines, but I think the whole boundary could be mowed in two days if I don't have to face challenges of getting tangled in barbed wire.

As I was mowing the perimeter I was able to flag areas that need improvement so I could mow without having to go around those obstacles. I also checked the rye grass that Mason and I had sowed near the entrance, that grass has grown well. I also mowed some of the fence line at the front gate to clean that up some.

November 19, 2017

Today is family day at the Fifty Acre Wood. We took the kids out to show them the latest developments. Brenda was thinking we would all walk the perimeter, but after wrenching her newly reconstructed knee, she decided s drive around would be better.

On the way back from driving the perimeter, I changed drivers and allowed Sae to drive. This would be an opportunity that she may not get in Japan, driving a car. She seemed a bit nervous and stressed over the event but did well.

Our last task for family day was to physically mark the home boundaries and location on the plot and possible well location and septic location. After what seemed forever, we finally got it complete and we loaded up and left.

Duration: 3hrs

November 17, 2017

Another beautiful day to be at the Fifty Acre Wood. The sole task of today was to mow, I hope the tractor was up to the challenge. Today no jiggling of the wires needed. When I turn the key on the tractor it started right away.

The first test today was to mow the field in front of the home site to knock down the weed so we could see the pond from the home site and also to clear the brush from the barn site also. After about an hour this task was done and was ready to point the tractor towards the north boundary line and hopefully this time we would have better luck mowing.

I drive the tractor to the spot where it died last time and miraculously it continues to run so I start mowing. After an hour of mowing the north property line, the mower quit turning. I drive the tractor back to the barn to see what was wrong with the mower. After inspecting the mower blades I discovered that there's a bundle of barbed wire caught up in the blades. Nice job fence guys, I found the surprise you left for me. I wonder how many more surprises are out there waiting for me.

<<pic: wire tangle>> <<pic: rec area mow>>

Duration: 5hrs

November 11, 2017

Today's trip to the Fifty Acre Wood included Mason. This was going to be a half day trip just to get him out there and pay him for the day, we spent our time picking up the pallets and trash we discovered was left by the fence builders months ago.

With all the open area, it was a good time to let Mason drive the truck and pickup the trash. After all the trash was collected, I had him stack them into a burn pile. We then went did some brush cleanup around the entrance gate and planted rye grass where we had cleared.

One of our final duties was to dig a hole. One of Mason's items on his list of things he wants to do is to dig a hole, so that's what he did. After two strikes in the ground he was done and so were we.

duration: 2 hrs

October 27, 2017

A beautiful fall day and beautiful weather to get some work done at the Fifty Acre Wood. As most days begin here, I tried the tractor and it wouldn't start. After 30 minutes of jiggling wires and cranking it, I finally got it to start, its a finicky old tractor.

Today is a good day to mow, especially since the mower is attached. I point the tractor towards the front property line to begin mowing. After any hour of dragging the mower up and down the west side (frontage road side) of the property I pointed the old tractor towards the north boundary, after making the turn north it died two hundred yards into the drive. I tried my magic on it by jiggling wires and cranking repeatedly. No luck! Time for a break and a walk.

I walk the half mile to the truck and then proceed to drive into town for some lunch and a nice break so I can ponder my next move. Upon arriving back from lunch I decided I didn't want to waste the beautiful day coaxing the tractor to work, instead, I got out the seed spreader, loaded it with 25 pounds of rye grass seeds and began sowing seeds on the home site. I figure the next time I come back to the Fifty Acre Wood, mother nature would have me some nice rye grass to look at. In all I sowed 150 pounds of rye grass seeds over 3/4 acres, and did I mention I did all this with a push seeder? After three hours of sowing seeds, the home site was saturated with seeds and my feet were tired.

As for the tractor, I just left it where it died, I was tired and going home

Duration: 5hrs
Tractor: 1hr

October 20, 2017

I have this great idea to help with trespassers, install security camera. The only problem with this idea, is that I don't have electricity at the Fifty Acre Wood yet. Problem solved, solar! 

Duration: 1hr

October 10th, 2017

I have Cliff working on clearing the home site, so I left work early today go check on Cliff's progress  at the Fifty Acre Wood. When I arrived I was met by Cliff's uncle, Darrell. I was also going to mark trees for Cliff to take down, but instead "finger-pointed" to Darrell the tress I wanted removed.

I also had Antonio deliver 10 more loads of sand to raise up the drive way and Cliff was going to spread that out. I think the drive way is pretty much complete now except for the final top layer of material.

September 8, 2017

A week after Harvey and roads to the Fifty Acre Wood are opened. I arrived expecting to see destruction of the flooding aftermath, fortunately there wasn't any sign of any destruction. After talking with my neighbor, Rudy, there wasn't any threat of water to his house, so I can assume my house location would have stayed dried. Looking at the container, it does not appear that any water got inside, yet another good sign that this location is good location for our house.

After surveying the area, I worked on getting tractor ready for mowing by removing box blade. The ground was still soft so I thought it wise to NOT attempt to mow. I spent some time cleaning up the container and organizing some of the chaos.

Duration: 3hrs

August 24, 2017

With Harvey threatening the coast, I left work early to go meet Cliff Pouncey to discuss clearing about an acre of land for our home site. 

Cliff was an interesting fellow, he sure liked to talk and I let him talk about whatever was on his mind. At the end of the meeting I felt pretty confident he understood what was required. 

Duration: 1hr