Giving Back.

Sometimes I get in a mood and feel a bit down and out. It happens as a Caregiver and it happens around Holidays.
Social Media is not helpul as everyone is posting these great photos of big family get togethers and cheery this ... and cheery that.

Not everything is cheery for some folks during the holidays.

However. Sometimes things happen to pull you out of the dumps.

I pulled the trail cams cards out of the spots where I have them and got this funny video of a nice trophy buck laying down while does trot on by him. This was taken on the second day of hunting season when two neighbors got really nice deer.

 Both neighbors are hunters for the meat and not just trophy hunters. 

I shared this with my young friend Olive on the ridge after she sent a photo of her husband with his beautiful buck.

Yes, I'd photographed the buck her hubby got earlier this year in my meadow. I recognized him. She was worried that I'd be upset and I told her that I'd gotten 'my shot' of him earlier in the year with a long lens, so I was happy for them to have meat for their freezer and a trophy for her husband.

Then I got a text asking if I'd like to visit for a cup of coffee. My answer was Yes, yes, yes, yes... 

I got to spend an hour with her and her little guy Orson, who is just turning 7 months old. Now THAT is a sure fire way to cheer anyone up. Spend time with a crawling happy baby whose face lights up with infectious smiles and whose eyes are so bright and cheerful.

I found out that she had wanted to go out and join the gun hunt, but her husband was busy with coaching the wrestling team in town again this year. I asked if I could watch her kids for her while she went out to hunt.

I saw her look a bit confused at first and then HER face lit up like...well, like a Christmas tree. 

"You'd do that?"

Of course I would! I love kids, I don't even mind crying babies or even fussy babies. Sometimes a person just needs to change the scenery or look forward to an event to change how they feel.

Friday afternoon during hubby's nap time, I'll got watch a 4 year old and a baby while mom gets to go out in the woods and get some much needed ME time on a deer stand. 

It is a win win situation for me. I get some different scenery, she gets a break, and I get to play. Hubby said he was pleased that I'd get to go play with someone my own age.

Hah. Olive has been there for me in so many ways through the past couple of years and rarely can I find a way to help her out. She is a strong minded woman and mom who never wants to impose and is seems always willing to give.

Sometimes Giving Back is just the best medicine.

Just wicked weather

Wednesday was neat we had a snowstorm of sorts and I spent the day just cleaning the house and rearranging things. I don't have a big house so it didn't take all day.
Charlie and I took a small walk around the pastures early and to the creek just to look around. I am always amazed by how green it is in the creek bottom.

Note that Charlie is wearing his 'beeper' collar. He is an avid rabbit hunter

and a demon on squirrels and deer tracks. Well,

he thinks he is. He does still once in a while

catch a luscious scent and take off on the

run.

However one beep distracts him and he races back to 

me.

Thursday was quiet also.

I prepped the lasagna and then started thinking about redecorating for Christmas. I gathered my sticks together and did some experiments with glue and Epsom salts.

Epsom salt and glue on 

a grape vine twist.

Dried Espom salt on a branch.

The real deal. Ice on branches in the woods!

It was messy, but it kept me occupied.

Yesterday morning after chores I decided to take Charlie up the road for a walk and to gather the mail. I dressed in orange and that awful safety green/yellow vest I have. I was staying on the road and I didn't expect the city boy hunters to be out as early as I was.

Charlie on rabbit track. 

He is zoned in.

My neighbor's field corn.

It has not been a good year for 

farmers.

The weather has been relentless. I had to move Little Richard from his pen to a stall inside as there was not a dry spot in his paddock to be had. He was standing with two hooves crowded into a large feed pan when I went to get him.

Make no doubt about it. He is loving the accommodations.

The photo above is the view from the porch. Rain/snow/sleet/freezing rain, and then rinse and repeat. The mules have done well as they have places that are in the woods out of the wind and where the ground is solid.

I have been taking their hay to the round bale feeders to keep them from stomping it into the ground.

Normally I would be out in this weather, but I've seen a few hunters across the way and have heard shooting even in this crap weather. 

I decided to spend the rest of the day deciding how to decorate.

This year there is no tree. This year there is no Christmas Chair. I've decided to see what I can come up with that is not the same as what has been done before.

Out came the old wood boxes, the little nesting box, toys...stuffed toys, beads, fairy lights...and ribbons. 

I needed to occupy myself on such a dreary ugly day. Charlie supervised when he wasn't napping.

Stay tuned for my crazy new ideas for decorating. As always, it is a constant work in progress.

We Like Ice!

Ok.
I like ice. I love to walk along the creek and look for these ice formations.

I took Charlie for a long walk yesterday afternoon specifically to look for these little beauties.

We started on the ridge with the warm sun on our backs as we walked on the edge of a large cornfield that was being combined.

That's Charlie walking ahead with his string on. Yes he still wears it. He still darts off on a scent trail once in a while which is what he is supposed to do naturally.
It seems that if he wears it, he feels like he is tethered to me?

I did have to take the string off when we got down into the thick of things. I don't want Charlie to get tangled up when he is log jam climbing.

Here is what the top photo looked like while I was taking the photo. I had to work around Charlie, water, ice, mud, snow, and bad footing.
But it sure was beautiful!

Remember the pup who wouldn't cross the creek? Now he is a dog on a mission. When we get to a real deep spot he is smart and asks for a lift.

He is also a good photo bomber...

We had a wonderful hike and after I cleaned Charlie up he took up a spot on the couch and went instantly to sleep.

Tonight we are supposed to get 4 to 6 inches of snow. It will be good for deer hunters, but I am bummed. I won't be able to go out and play in it.

I convinced Rich that he can indeed sit out if he wishes and hunt. His knee bothers him a lot. But he found a spot close to home that would offer him a good view of things.
I told him I'd sit with him.

The Kenosha Gang will arrive late tonight, so it looks like a busy weekend coming up.

Opening Morning ~ Dawn.

Friday afternoon the K-town gang arrived. Scout and the kids piled out of the Subaru and hugs were shared by all.
Morris and Scout nosed each other and then trotted off to make their marks in the yard.

I watched in amazement as they began to unpack. I'd cleared the counter in the corner of the kitchen for what I've dubbed as the 'Clausen Corner'. It seemed as though I may have to expand the corner as they'd brought a ton of bread and food.

Eventually everything that was supposed to come in had been deposited in place. By now we'd gotten into a routine. The girls knew exactly where to set their things. They changed into outdoor clothes and ran outside to enjoy what was left of the daylight and the last day for the ... next 9 days of Gun Deer Season/Thanksgiving Week.

It was rather nice outside so the 'Men Folk' visited while the 'Women Folk' visited. The guys started talking about strategy and hunting. The purpose of the trip was to get meat for the family. Of course the guys talked about all the monster bucks I'd captured on the trail camera.

I laughed and said something to the effect that "They will all be in hiding from pre dawn until the sunsets on the last day of hunting season."
I got looks from the 'Men Folk'.  Earlier this week I'd seen about 10 nice bucks on my walk with Dixie through the woods.

This photo got the 'Men Folk' pretty excited though...
I couldn't blame them. This buck is in direct line with the Clausen Deer Stand.

Of course I'd gotten shots of others too.

These shots caused 'buck fever' for all of those who happened to see them.

Over supper we all talked about deer, bucks, hunting, and the weather. There was a feeling of anticipation in the air.

Everyone went to bed early. It would be a predawn morning.

Whispers in the morning. Fresh coffee. Sorting clothes and pulling out 'Hot Hands' to keep warm. Checking pockets, packing sandwhiches and bottled water. Filling a back pack.

These guys were staying put in the stand once they got there. I smiled as I poured coffee and the hunters whispered getting ready.
I loved the electricity that zapped unseen through the house as they dressed. I never go out on opening morning.
I'm the farm caretaker for this day each year.

My job is to make sure that the hunters have something to eat and a place to warm themselves when they come in from the woods. Over the years we've only had a few folks come and hunt. My brother in law did a few times, and Rich's daughter did too. Other than that, it has always just been Rich.
This year however our friends from the east side of the state said they'd hunt with Rich and help out. Plus they were looking to fill their freezer with venison.

I have to say that last year's harvest provided us with months of very good eating. Deer Harvest feeds people.

Daryl and Amanda slid out the door quietly and headed to the woods. The Hunt was about to begin.
I poured a cup of coffee and sat down to enjoy some quiet before dawn.

I stole this idea...

I saw a post on Facebook titled FriendsGiving. My son was tagged in it and I realized that he and his friends must have gotten all together to visit and share a nice meal.

What a great idea.
Saturday is opening day for the annual Wisconsin Gun Deer Season. It is like a sacred day for hunters.
They clean their rifles, check their scopes, hang out the blaze orange coats, and make final preparations for the Big Day.

I normally do not go anywhere on opening day. Period. The shots ring out and the deer are running like crazy either from the Rut or from hunters. Last year two deer provided 6 people with enough meat to last one year. Imagine that.
The hunt season runs through Thanksgiving weekend.

Our friends from the other side of the state are coming out to hunt with Rich. Rich was sure that he'd never hunt again after his stroke. Yesterday he was busy getting things organized for opening day. There is no doubt in my mind that he will be hunting. Our K-town friends are coming for a long weekend.
This way if Rich does get a deer, we have extra hands to help.

Daryl suggested we do a *Thanksgiving* together. I saw the idea on FB and changed it up to *FriendsGiving*.
There is something good about being able to hunt to provide for your family. The deer population is quite large. Ask anyone who has had a deer-vehicle accident, and they will tell you how awful it is.

Anyway.
Friends. It will be nice to have friends to sit down with and have a celebrated meal together.

I can't recall the last time we had a meal with family on a holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas.

The house is ready for the coming chaos of kids, dogs, and adults all going every which way. I'm looking forward to it.
This morning I'll be making some homemade bread, cheesy bread and cinnamon bread.

Our kitchen table will once again be graced by friends, we'll sit around the table and chew the fat. Everyone this evening will be talking about the upcoming hunt. I'll be doing the cooking and the chores.
The house will be full of conversation and laughter.

And that is how it should be.
I am glad I 'stole' this idea.

Tree Stand~ The Sequel

Once upon a time about 7 years ago, on November 19th, 2010 to be exact my husband decided to put up one of those neat fancy cool tree stand thingies.

It is called a Tree Stand.
I wrote about how I thought a hateful woman had invented the Tree Stand to simply get rid of her husband easily in a hunting misfortune. Misfortune my ass.
They are built to kill you while putting them up.

This new fangled Tree Stand was brought by our good friends from K-town. It is a 2 person Tree Stand.
I am sorry but I have a hard time dealing with a one person stand yet alone trusting my weight and one other person's to a TWO person Tree Stand. Add deer rifles and you get another level of excitement.

First you unpack the thing and put most of it together on the ground. Haul it out with a skid steer and a 4 wheeler. Oh, and don't forget an audience.

Poke around with the pieces for a bit and see where in the heck they do fit. Scratch your head and swat at the mosquitoes that have decided to come and watch - no doubt they were texting their other bug friends to come and watch the free show.

After one failed attempt to get it up into the tree. Threaten to shoot it.

Okay the guy in camo is not going to shoot anything. It just looked like it when I took the shot with my cell phone.
Here we are all pondering the next step.

Next step. Climb the tree with a tree climbing thingy and pull it up with a rope.

Sounds great! I was astounded. Sort of. I never saw tree climbing thing like this.

Even Scout was amazed or like me, confused.

As the light kept fading and it kept getting darker, things kept on track. There was a lot of sweating but no cursing as the kids had come up from the creek to join in the adventure too.

I stayed out of the way as I'd be absolutely no help what-so-ever.

After some tense moments the tree stand was hauled upright and sort of held in place as my husband held the stand while the other guy climbed up to secure it.

Now there were two wives biting their nails and getting a bit worked up. Both of us were pleading with the hard headed men folk to wait until daylight to finish the job!
My husband was pretty quiet during most of this as he was the guy on the ground holding the extremely flimsy ladder that was not attached to anything while the other male climbed up and strapped the seat to the tree.

I kept checking to see if I had any 'bars' on my cell phone. Nope. In order to call 911 I'd have to sprint to the top of the ridge. I took a few deep breaths and hoped the Tree Stand Gods would allow this to be erected.
I even thought of what sort of sacrifices I could make to said Tree Stand Gods to make sure the job finished safely ... in the twilight.

No sacrifices were made and surprisingly the guys decided it was too dark to continue, but the Two Person Tree Stand was now anchored.

And we headed back towards the house with the lights of the skid steer to guide us.

Yes indeed. The Sequel to putting up the second tree stand was almost as tense as the first one many years ago. But with the kids there the cussing was held to a minimum. And we no longer had the donkey contingency to watch us. However I'm sure the Dexter Cattle would have loved to give their opinion on the matter.

My friends went back early the next morning before they left and finished up securing the Tree Stand.

On Monday I went back to scout the area out. Hmmm.

Well bust my britches.
The view from the top of the stand was incredible.

And I didn't feel like I'd fall down either. I mulled things over and then took another photo down the ridge road in the other direction.
Well, hot diggity dog!

The powers that be completely misnamed this Hunting Tree Stand Thing. It should be more mobile and called "The Photography Tree Stand Thingy."


Okay. Well maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing after all.

Opening Day for WI Deer Hunt...

So here it is the opening day of the big gun hunt.  Well, I don't mind the season so much ... but I do dislike opening morning quite a bit.  The woods surrounding us are crowded with hunters all eager beavers. 

And it is THE morning for sure that I get the honors of doing chores.  [Oh yeah, I'm honored to say the least.]  How come is it that this is the 9 days out of the year that my husband can actually roust himself out of bed before dawn and actually make coffee?  Not only that, he can be out in the woods by pre-dawn also!  Wow!

So I head out to do chores, I feed the hounds first to make them quiet, but each time a shot goes off, they bark...  Sigh.  One shot to the north of our place...then bam, bam, bam, bam, bam.  I count 5 shots?  Come on Mr or Mz Hunter, if you miss the deer knocking out 4 more rounds isn't usually going to help.

Then I start chuckling.  An image of a Deer in SWAT clothes laying in wait for the Hunter comes to mind.

I finish up feeding the critters who have all been moved much closer to the buildings so they shouldn't be mistaken for anything else.

The hoar frost this morning is gorgeous, there is no wind so the air is filled with a cool misty frosty...well like a fog but not a fog.
Well, after I hang out my laundry, I'm headed to town.  Need to pick up books I ordered for Christmas gifts, need to pick up my order of calendars and cards along with some groceries.

Maybe I'll attack some cobwebs and vaccum when I get back. 
Or...not.

A Hateful Woman or Stupid Man invented Tree Stands

Mark my words.
A tree stand [for hunting] or photography should never have been designed such as they are.

Who was the retard who engineered these things?
I say a Hateful Woman may have designed these for the soul purpose of getting rid of the Husband-Hunter.
*Here Honey, look what I bought you!* she says gleefully.
Honey immediately takes it out to the woods and uses this flimsy tubular thing that attaches to a tree with little bitty nylon straps.

He is supposed to climb this flimsy piece of lightweight tubular metal and deposit his weight at the top of it with a deer rifle.

Honey explains that this contraption is perfectly safe when strapped down correctly.

So...last night I helped my husband put up one of these contraptions.

Let the record show that I prefer the solid ladder that leads to a nice wide platform built on an ancient oak that overlooks a meadow and hillside. Hell, I could bring my dog up there and sit in the swivel chair that is mounted to the 'rubberized' platform. No need to do a freaking balancing act getting up or down.
[Perhaps someone could add a nice little heater and a roof...but hmmm, that would eliminate the outdoorsy-ness of the whole experience.]

Of course the donkeys had to get involved in the process too. Alas, they were held back by the electric fence.


Of all the trees that could have been picked, he picks the worst one ... in my opinion. A fiasco ensues. A dead branch is IN THE WAY, will I climb the wobbly thing while he 'holds' it and saw the offending branch down?
Sure honey...3/4 of the way to the top, I experience second thoughts, third thoughts...and feel the wobbles under me.
Don't look down is my mantra.
Don't think about falling.
Saw.
This effort fails wonderfully as the light fades and I give it up and ascend down the retarded thing they call a ladder.

Determined hubby [the sort who would beat his chest and howl to prove his manliness and we all know that deer hunting is all about manliness] announces that he must finish what a 'woman' could not.
Would I hold the ladder?
What?
It is not strapped or braced, I begin to point this out to him.

He beats his chest [not really] and begins the ascent. The ladder thingy begins to bow and he has to leap for safety.
So he puts up a brace and tells me to hold it.

By now I am ready to run screaming into the night pulling off my stocking cap with chilled hands.
I think: he's going to get up there, the ladder is going to wobble, he'll lose balance and crash into the logs and nasty stuff below. My finger prints are all over this damned piece of crap they call a ladder.
I could laugh if I wasn't so frightened.

He climbs. He saws. I hold on for dear life. Even with the offending dead limb falls and hits me...
It happens as he descends. The ladder begins to sway. I hear cuss words. In the fading light I feel him jump and thump as he lands.
Curse words.
I'm still locked on to the swaying ladder thingy that is not properly attached and is bent also.

He is okay, he yells at me for not holding this thingy steady. I'm like: WHAT? I can hold 200+ lbs 30 ft in the air on a swaying bending wobbling ladder, get real.

I done in.
He affixes the ladder-tree stand thingy properly and I am amazed. It is actually solid.

When he asks if I want a ride back to the house I stomp off through the darkness. I'm sure he wonders why...

I am convinced that only a Hateful Woman or a Very Stupid Man had come up with this tree stand thingy made out of lightweight materials.
Only the truly insane shall climb these things on Opening Day dressed in Blaze Orange and freeze their asses off waiting for a trophy buck to walk past them.

My nightmare was complete.
Yet I survived.