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Saturday, October 4, 2008

OUCH! That's going to leave a mark!

Why does getting ready for winter have to be so expensive? Our house is heated with propane and I have been playing the 'waiting game' to fill up the tank for the winter. Waiting, because the price was really high over the summer...which is normally not the case, and the price has actually been making it's way down from the really, really horrendous level, to the only slightly less painful level. I am not sure why I called it a game, because games, by nature, are fun, and this is by no means fun. Not even a little bit. Anyway, we finally bit the bullet and filled up the tank on Friday. OUCH!!! For you non-country folk, here's the thing, we have a giant 1000 gallon tank sitting in our back yard that holds the liquid propane to heat the house and the water heater....1000 gallons of propane...for the bargain price of $1.95 a gallon.....plus tax.......you do the math...I can't...it hurts too much. Oops, I mean it was $1.95 9/10ths.....what's up with that anyway? Just say it's $1.96, who are they kidding anyway? More expensive things to buy~

I have more hay coming this week. I am lucky enough to have neighbors that grow nice alfalfa and keep it very reasonably priced, however, I am still going to need a lot of hay. A lot. Once I take all of the critters are off the pasture for the winter, I go through about 2 1/2 bales a day, plus grain. I have about 100 bales in the barn right now, and I will be feeding hay from now until...oh...April probably. I need a lot of hay. Anyone who has livestock will probably understand this, others, not so much, but I get such a feeling of contentment when I have a barn full of hay and I know that I won't have to worry about feeding everyone for the winter. Hmmm, I guess that carries over into the rest of my life too...perhaps you saw my post about canning...I froze 5 dozen ears of corn today, by the way....sorry, I digress....just thought you should know.


I have also discovered that some of my stock tank deicers are not functional and will have to be replaced. They are not hugely expensive, but still, am I the only one that has to replace these dumb things every year? I don't know what happens to them, but they never seem to last more than one or two winters.


I am done complaining now. In keeping with my attention deficit condition, I am on to something else now. Yesterday was a beautiful day at Farmers' Market, and being that it is held right along the riverfront, I was able to watch the pelicans flying in formation in the brilliant fall sunlight. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten the lens that I want for my camera to get better distance shots, but you get the general idea. They are some of my favorite birds to watch in flight. So graceful.


Oh yea, other expensive stuff ( I told you I was attention deficit).

I need to go and get a new contact lens (yes, just one). I lost one of mine about 3 weeks ago and have been running around like a cyclops. What headaches?

While I was out riding one of my horses yesterday, I realised that my cell phone had fallen out of my pocket somewhere along the way. I had a pretty good idea where...somewhere out in my neighbor's bean field....in about a three mile radius. I looked and looked, came home, switched horses 'cause it was going to be getting dark, and I needed a faster horse...still couldn't find it. I headed out this morning with my husband's cell phone so that I could call my number and hopefully hear my lost phone ringing....somewhere out there. I only got about a mile down the road when I heard something....no, not my phone, it was a crack of thunder. Then I saw a flash of lightening.....yea, I want to be riding a wet horse in the middle of an empty field during a thunderstorm...good thing I had the fast horse, forget the phone! After it stopped raining I was determined to go out and find that flippin' phone. I got Jasmine (the fast horse) saddled, climbed up, rode to the end of the drive, looked down....huh, imagine that, phone was sitting at the end of our driveway the whole time, although now it is soaked with rain. Yup, I need a new phone now too.

10 comments:

Big Mama said...

You forgot that she's also the pretty, smart, accomplished horse. She takes after her mama you know...

Michelle said...

Oh Corinne, I feel for you; I really do! When we built this house we opted for electric everything, which here in the NW isn't too painful, and try to heat with wood as much as possible and get that for more labor than cash whenever we can. I'll bet we pay a LOT more for hay, though. Not sure we have enough sheep OR horse hay in the barn for winter, although we got what we could.

melanie said...

If it's any help...you may be able to salvage the phone, Put it in a container of rice kernels (buried) for a few days to let it dry. The rice absorbs the moisture like it does in the salt shaker. After a few days it may be OK...

Miss Effie said...

Your waiting game did pay off. I contracted in May at $2.20 or so. Its just too painful to go back and look at the statement.

What is frustrating is --- in 1999, 9 short years ago, 1000 gallons of propane was $550. Heck! Most of my clothes are older than that!!!

And we will still be wearing Cuddle-duds all winter just so we can keep the heat at a reasonable price!

Tammy said...

Ouch...ouch...ouch... How do they expect people to keep up with this craziness? I've got three cords of wood ordered, and I expect it'll be around $300 OR SO... cheap compared to what you are facing, and should last me a winter and a half. However it's getting harder and harder for the wood guy to find places to cut...so I'm not even sure it's a done deal.. agh.. And the hay I just got was over $600 and I need more square bales. So it goes... Love your cell phone story. :-)
Tammy

Gone2theDawgs said...

Just when you think it can't get any worse for keeping warm over the winter! Yeah, what is it with the 9/10th anyway...just round it up for heavens sake. Our hay prices are astronomical...anywhere from $17-$20 a bale for anything edible.
My cell phone story: I was out doing mounted search and rescue training...my cell phone rang....I went to answer it and promptly dropped it into a puddle of water (imagine that...a puddle of water in the Northwest...) it never recovered. Tried everything. Finally bought one that is weather-proof, military, version...everyone makes fun of how huge it is...didn't I know that they made them more lightweight and smaller now? "Yeah, but it can handle be dropped in a puddle...."

melanie said...

Well, when you get the chance, stop by my blog. I have tapped you for some friendly conversation. And it doesn't cost ANYTHING!

Nancy K. said...

You poor Baby!!!!

How did I possibly miss this post?
I just found it at work today.

If I'd found it sooner, I would have been comforting you and offering you sympathy...

NOT!

Here's the thing: At least you've GOT (had) a cell phone.

and a husband (OK, you do get some sympathy there)

and a barn full of hay and neighbors who grow the stuff

and a full tank of propane

and electricity running to your stock tanks so that you CAN use heaters in them

As to leaving your cell phone laying in the driveway while you rode your house around the county ~ well, I suppose when God finished handing out brains to Marie and I, he didn't have a whole lot left for you.....



;=)

Love you, baby sis!!

Crosswinds Farm said...

Yes, Nicole.

Michelle, I am always surprised to hear how expensive hay is out that way. For some reason I always thought Oregon produced a lot of hay..

Melanie, thanks for the tip. The phone, thankfully, did dry out and actually works!

Cathy, now that I have some fancy new Cuddle duds ;-) I will be cozy!

Tammy, That is awesome that you can heat with mostly wood. We don't have an alternate heat source as of yet, but are hoping to put a multi-fuel (corn/wood pellets)burner in next year.

Wren, I am picturing your cell phone as looking like one of the ginormous phones from the 80's LOL!

Nancy....once again you have put me at a loss for words (no easy feat) you crack me up big sis!
Love you too!

Michelle said...

On this side of the Cascades a lot of grass seed is raised, but the rains are too unpredictable for consistently good hay. That's grown (irrigated) on the EAST side of the Cascades, so add fuel costs for trucking it in to the price the growers have learned they can charge all the horse owners on this side.

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