23rd August 2009

What have I been up? Driving, driving, driving... When it is not house hunting, it is attending my doctor's appointments. Wonder why you have not seen much of me? I did over 6,000 miles in July just for doctor appointments, I am not sure what the totals will be this month. And to save every penny for a home for me, baby and the animals, I have actually been tent camping and in a sleeping bag on the way up and back. My doctor's (I have 2) say as long as I am up to it, it is fine with them. But they said that the next patient they have who complains about driving an hour to go see them, they are going to tell them about me *L*. I do not know any different, so it is no big deal to me. I am able to get my tent set up in 5 minutes flat now.. even in the dark... packing it back up is about 10 minutes in the morning. It is an 18 hour trip for me, one way.

Think I found another small farm to put a bid in on, but I am having someone else look at it today or tomorrow for me who is a contractor. It is a 4 bedroom 1940's farmhouse, which I could SOOOOO work with and on acreage with a very nicethree section barn with a concrete floor and loft.

Photo Above: (UPDATE) The 1940's farmhouse I put a bid on on. I was the highest bidder, but the other party who currently owns the house, backed out after they said it would go to the highest bidder. A couple branches on the Silver Leaved Maple tree need to go (one is sitting on the roof), but if you look past the trunk to the right. you can see kinda see the pastures that go with the house.

BUT... it needs a new septic, it is in a 100 year flood plain, and needs a newroof. You know.. just little things *L*

Someone started to remodel the inside and that is no big deal, as I can finish taping, texturing and painting the walls. I just have to convert a specialty room for their business (no.. not illegal stuff) back into a dining area (I think).

I actually have given up on finding a home and moving it before the baby is born, as I do not think it is going to happen. The problem with some of these bank repo's is that the banks take months to decide if they will take your bid or not. Rather frustrating. It is a "do I wait or move on?". Eventually I will find the right piece.

For fun stuff to keep myself from going completely mad from frustration, yesterday I went to my 'summer home' which I have attended since 1977 as a exhibitor and way before that as a spectator. I went to the Clackamas County Fair which is one of the best county fairs there is out of the hundreds I have attended as a spectator, exhibitor and/or judge. Maybe I am just biased, but fairs are actually judged as well, and this one has won numberous awards. This is the 103rd year it has been going. I would have liked to have been at the 100th anniversary.

My first stop of course was the rabbit barns. I had to see if I could meet up with a bunch of my rabbit friends. Since Judging had been on Tuesday and Thursday, and today is Saturday, I did not see many, but did talk to a few, but looking at the coop cards, I noted alot of the people I knew are still into the rabbit habit. I was also surprised that is looks like my rabbit mentor from when I was 9, until I quit showing in 2000, has gotten remarried! I think he is about 85 years old now. I will have to pop over to his house one day and see what he has been up to and check out his rabbit barns.

The ones I did see at the rabbit show barn at the fair, they were ready to hand me rabbit trio's to get me started again *L*.

I then next went to the poultry barn which is right next door. There were TWO heritage turkeys, a Slate hen and a Narragansett hen (I think). Lots of Call Ducks, no pheasants, few standards, lots of bantams and one Naked Neck. The barn was full, but bantams and pigeons were the most of the entries. I don't think I even saw a single Rhode Island Red.

Off to the hog barns, I was looking for specific breeds to note down who the breeder was. There was not a single breed I was interested in. I did note all the breeds which are more common in my area of BC were not even down here and vice versa. I was back into Duroc country with a few Hampshire's and alot of crosses for the market animals.. which they were moving into the auction ring as I was going through, so I was dodging hogs, kids and hog panels. I talked to a couple 4-H kids after they had been out in the auction ring and sale prices are down this year on all species of livestock. One poor kid barely made enough to cover the auction fee and his feed costs. That is sad as alot of the kids I know/knew
use that money for college. The economy is hitting the 4-H kids too.

Dairy was WAY down. I am used to seeing 150-200 head of dairy cattle and there was half a row, only Holstein and Jersey. The Brown Swiss breeder must be out of dairy now. Alot of llama and beef cattle however. I did see one Murray Grey heifer, I have not seen them in years.. oh and about 5 Brahma.

Heading to the sheep/goat barn, I came across a spinner on a Louet who was spinning up her Border Leicester wool. She had dyed it, and called the batch "Bloody Butcher" after the heritage variety of corn. I have to admit it did indeed look like "Bloody Butcher". She did a very nice job on it.

Not a single Jacob this year. Lots of Katahdin's. One flock of what I think were Horned Dorsets. I was invited to join the local spinner's guild and two wool events which are coming up and they told me to bring the baby if it was here by then. I missed the Black Sheep Gathering this year, but maybe I can con Angelia into going with me next year.

Going to see if any of my "fair friends" (those are the kind of people you have known for years and yet you only see them once a year for a week) were at the Pioneer Village, I noted the village had almost doubled in size. Something I was quite pleased about (and so were they). I went and hassled the blacksmiths and sat down and gabbed to them for a bit as my feet were hurting by this time.

At the gold panning demo, the man asked me if I wanted to try panning. I giggled and told him I just moved down from gold panning country and used to pan frequently up north in the summers when I went to play on the river on a hot day gathering rubies and garnets I found in my pan. He figured out right away where I had lived.. right to where my farm was.. and we had many of the same mutual friends
in 'Moosetown'. WEIRD! Small world. He is heading up there again soon.. too badwe couldn't carpool. I asked him where the gold came from for the demo and he said southern Oregon. If you have not really seen gold, each area has its own distinct colour and such to it. Even up by "Moosetown", gold can be identified what creek it came from, due to its distinct colour.

The Broom Man was still also in the village, although we do not know each other well, other than in passing through the years. I asked him if he grew his own sorghum for the brooms and he was surprised I knew what they were made from. We and his wife gabbed for a bit and then I found out something interesting. Broommaking is a dying art.. so where does Hollywood, particularly a special wizardget his Nimbus 2000? From Warren!!! He also made brooms for many other moviessince then, but the Nimbus 2000 from the Harry Potter movies is the most famous ones. Check out Warren's site at http://www.broomshop.com/

For lack of a better term for it, I went to the 'Eco-Center' and met a lovely couple from eastern Oregon who build really neat things like the fanciest chicken arks/tractors you have ever seen. Julie and Duane Schiedler who own "Celebrate the Season" Urban Farm & Garden center. They make Victory Houses (like a small greenhouse), chicken coops (some complete with wallpaper!!!), raised bed kits, composting systems, etc. For some reason they do not have a website, but they can be reached at 541-CHICKEN (541-244-2536).

Also at the Eco-Center, I took the "no chemical pledge" (umm.. how hard was that for me?) and in return I got a LOVELY "Pesticide Free Zone" metal sign with aladybug on it for whenever I get my new farm.

Wadding over (yeah, some days I waddle like a penquin now) to the crop building, I was pleased to see the entries have gone up. I was also pleased to see the quality of them. I promise if I have a garden in time for next year, I will beentering vegetables again. Why? It is a win-win situation. No entry fee and you get premiums to 3rd place which #1, helps buy seed, #2 it helps showcase our heritage varieties and gets the awareness out there. #3 bring enough entries andit gets you into the fair all week :o)

Making it to the Exhibition Hall, I just realized as I am typing this that I did not see ANY home canned goods. I know they had to have been there, but I must have missed that wing. Darnit! I wanted to see if the entries were down again. I did watch the 4-H cake baking/decorating contest though.

But I did make it to the handspun/handknitted/raw wool section and was happy there were more entires than the last time I was here.
Then I meandered downstairs again and met with Sam, who is the Oregon State Weed guy. I asked him if Orange Hawkweed was down here yet and he said there was a small amount, but nothing like up where I was at in B.C.. We gabbed about native grasslands, weeds and other such agricultural things then he gave me a book on the "Field Guild to Weeds of the Willamette Valley". I also got his card and
will utilize him for future questions and articles. His wife is going to havetheir first baby about the same time mine is due as well. Congrats!

By now I was getting tired as I had been there all day, and went back to the Eco-Center to say goodbye to Duane and Julie and that we will keep in touch.

Oh yeah and a quick walk through to the Pioneer Village again for some fresh carmel kettle corn... and freshed squeezed lemonaide!