Working outdoors..

Winds, snow, weather, and dead trees caused a few of the dead Ash trees to fall over on the fence in one of my summer paddocks. The location is ideal for hot summer days with lots of shade and breezes for the gals to languish in.

The hardwire fence was intact until this fall and winter, then the trees fell across it and I had to do something about it before letting the mules back in. 

And it was a mess of overgrown tree branches from the other side of the fence. Tree branches rosebushes, and vines. It seemed to be a good time to clean things up a bit.

Justin who lives just at the top of the hill cut all of the trees off the fence. Yesterday I spent the day putting the line fence back up and clipping it to the posts.

But first I used my reciprocal saw to cut back the tangled brush, tree limbs and multiflora rose. I went back with my little electric chain saw and took down the bigger limbs and saplings. I took out the broken insulators and replaced them with ones I already had and restrung the hot wire [electric fence].

Another job done. The mules probably wouldn't have even tried to cross the fence even if it weren't repaired. It has been there all of their lives and they don't look to go beyond it. They might if there was no feed in their small pasture.

But it felt like a great project for a cold day. The only thing I may do yet it weed whack some of the offensive weeds that are along the fence area. I used a shovel and dug over 20 burdock plants and several clumps of motherwort.
 

Part of our west yard is rough and steep. It never got repaired after the house was remodeled and I was going to hire someone to take care of it and grade out the bumps and huge divots that no mower can go through.

Two trees were taken down in this spot last year the excavator dug it up even worse. My thought was to hire him to come back and do a lawn make over. However with the current cuts to things by the government and the uncertain economy, I decided to wait and have an estimate done this fall.

I reverted to my 4 hooved mowers.

First, plant the posts. The soil has dried out again, this took a lot of effort.

Plan how to string the hotwire so that it works out in the other pasture....

String the fence....test the fence.

Open the little gate for access and watch the mowers work.

Mowing problem solved for a few months.

Supply 'bucket' for tight places....

Next job up. Some weed whacking and mowing the yard again....

I set my phone for one hour at a time for this work. Then I check in on the hubby. He also has the key fob to the car and can set off the alarm if he really needs me. Though yesterday he kept pressing it because he thought it was lunch time and I should come and make lunch.

Me...run to the house. "Are you okay??"

Him: Yeah, I'm getting hungry.

Roll of eyes and... then I make him lunch.

No April is complete without a visit to...

Duck Egg County Park

Everywhere the spring plants were poking up through the leaves due to the warm temperatures we'd had. I imagine the rain we had helped the plants burst forth also.

Blood Roots

 Dutchman Breeches

Hepatica

No fancy photowork here, just trying to document the flowers for comparison to their emergence in the last few years. 
Conclusion.

Weeks early!

False Rue Anemone with Blood Root in the way!

In the last few years I've found the Dutchman's Breeches and other flowers pictured here between the end of April and the start of May.

What I found most fun was using the 850nm filter which really only allows the camera to record in IR black and white. That means foliage is white and water is black!

I think it is wickedly cool.

The pines are white and the dead grasses are reflecting light. The water absorbs most of the IR light-waves and appear black which is pretty startling.

Lone Trout fisherman walking along the trail 

around the smaller of the two ponds.

The trees and trout fisherman reflecting in the water was really a neat catch.

The white areas are where the grass is turning green and leaves are budding in the trees. 

I like it.

Pretty wild looking and a different twist on black and white.

Today was boring. I reset several steel posts and built a lot for Sven and the Pony to do some trimming. 

So why do you CrossFit?

So the title is not really proper. I know that CrossFit is not a verb, but it has changed so much for me.

Let me be frank. Last year on my 62nd birthday I started to feel a bit fluffy around the middle. Others might not have noticed it, but I did.

The idea of 'going to the gym' was already in my head but ... that was for later, when I had time.

Sure. When does one get that time?? I certainly was too busy for that time. I struggled through replacing some fencing that had to be re-done after the Bulldozer guy came through and knocked down two dead ash trees.

I only had 5 posts to pound back into the ground, but I struggled after each one and had to rest. After two posts were driven into the ground I had to quit for another day. It took me 3 days to pound 5 posts into the ground. I was surely a super wimp.

The post pounder that my husband made doesn't have handles. It is a heavy metal tube with an end on it. He made two of them. Last summer I used the lighter one because it was almost too difficult to lift the pounder over the T-post.

Last week I pulled 10 t-posts out of the ground and reset them.
Bam
Bam
Bam

I literally pounded my way across the top of the creek. 10 posts in no time flat and I wasn't out of breath nor was I fatigued.
I couldn't have done that a year ago.


My hand strength....

My osteoarthritis in my thumb joints and fingers had rendered my hands weak and tender. Some mornings it was hard just to make coffee.

I had some concern with this when I started doing CrossFit.

I told the coaches about my hand issues and they found some modifications for me to do.


I've done modified push ups, pull ups, I've lifted weighted bars and sometimes my hands ache after a work out. However not too long ago, I accomplished a hand stand against the wall. I hadn't been able to do anything like that in years!

I went from not being able to turn a door knob easily to...

Being able to repair a barbed wire fence by cutting it and making loops with MY hands.
Something else I couldn't do a year ago.
As I bent the wire and twisted it ...with nice thick gloves ... I thought about how many times I'd grabbed something and grimaced. I know I am hesitant about my hands but the our coach looks at me, smiles and says *Lubricate those joints!*

I have to say I was pretty damned pleased with myself.

Am I happy?
You bet I am.
Oh these hands still ache like crazy some days. But I'm no quitter.

For *CrossFit-ing* has made a huge difference in this 'ol' lady's life.

I'm thinking about getting that post hole digger out and finally putting up ta new tie rail for the mules next to the outhouse.

I thank all my coaches and workout friends for all of their encouragement.
And my son for his encouragement.