It's been a mild, dry day. There is still some color; you can see a lot of yellow in the hillside vineyards.
When we got home this afternoon, Brian wanted help getting some firewood out of the pasture. Some time ago Rick had cut down some dead trees in the stand of Dougfirs there, and it was just going to rot if left on the ground. Besides, we need some softwood; the firewood in our shed is all hardwood, making fire-starting/restarting rather challenging. We ended up filling the bed of the Ford Ranger, the vehicle we used to haul off the leaves from the arena last night. Using this truck was, I think, Brian's primary motive for being so helpful; he is feeling proprietary about it. It was used as Rick's associate veterinarian's vehicle years ago, and Rick has kept it as a backup for when his big truck is in the shop. But Rick decided to remove the vet box so Brian can use it to take his driving test and sometimes drive it to school and elsewhere – with permission and if all his grades are Bs or better (and he's paying for the insurance increase from adding him to our policy). Here is the loaded truck, the eager driver, and some daylight views of our freshly raked arena:
That's it for today from . . .
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Nothing like gaining an opportunity to DRIVE to encourage a teenager to be helpful! ;o) We were living out farther and remote when our daughter was of Brian's age and she'd been driving the tractor, truck, etc. way before she legally got her license. When she was finally able to be out on the roads, driving around ye ol' homestead and being eager to help with (ugh) work, kinda went by the wayside in favor of driving much more related to the social scene! Can't blame the kids. It's a big step in their lives. I even almost remember way, way back that far!
I know you are a fan of non-mechanized work when you can get-er-done that way, but you might want to invest in a leaf blower. I'm amazed how quickly the yard guy blows all my many leaves into a pile he can load into the leaf bin and/or his truck. I bet Brian would have enough fun with a blower that he would be easy-ish to convince him to blow your arena. It's good for getting cobwebs, etc. down from high places in the barn. Hey, maybe you could use it to blow dry the sheep! Just kidding.
Mama Pea, Brian has been driving stuff all along, too. I think it's the prospect (he thinks, or is at least campaigning for) of having his 'own' vehicle (as well as his license soon) that has him so eager right now. Hopefully when he grows up, he'll be as helpful to us as your daughter is now!
We do have a leaf blower, Sylvia, but it is underpowered for a thick, wet leaf load and the more powerful ones are pricey. Rick rented one last year to clear the driveway and may do that again this year.
A self-motivated son! The best kind. :)
I also forgot to mention that you should definitely join photo challenges. You take some of the best photos!
There is not a leaf in that arena! Nothing like a little motivation, right? Let's hope the motivation keeps him in good grades and good stead with his parents... I didn't realize there was a Wovember but I am all over it!
It doesn't happen very often, Leigh, so I've tried to give him LOTS of 'strokes' for it. (Thanks for the compliment!)
There are some leaves in it now, Susan, but I knew there were more to fall.
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