This and that

Another three hours time-on-task at The Property, four-hours-by-the-clock.

Filling the trench involves skiving the edges and putting the shavings into the trench (foreground), then adding fill sand to bring it up to grade (background). Then after rain settles it, add topsoil and grass-seed.

Spraying weeds. Filling trenches. Toting fertilizer.

As I was getting ready to leave, one of the neighbors walked across the street to check his mail. He wanted to talk.

He doesn't have a lot of time left on the clock. His doctor strongly suggested that it was time for him to check into hospice/palliative care. He refused.

We shot-the-shit about the dangers of speaking poorly of others. I suggested that if nothing else, you can always admire the other fellow's dog. That got a wheezy chuckle out of him.

Last week, he got his Buick stuck and called me over. He REALLY wanted to get the car unstuck before his wife came home and gave him holy-hell for leaving the house. Between the two of us and six buckets of dry gravel, we got him unstuck although he left some outrageous ruts in his yard. As I got about the tasks I had on MY list, I looked across the road and saw him attempting to repair the damage to the grass.

The next time I was at The Property, the old-geezer's wife quizzed me. I denied all knowledge of said-geezer getting stuck (which I will have to confess). She knew I was lying but didn't seem too mad about it.

Quicksilver

Quicksilver accompanied me this morning as I prepared for today's work.

We had to buy donuts to fortify ourself for the strenuous activity. Quicksilver is fond of donuts with chocolate frosting and sprinkles. A gentleman always makes it his business to learn the lady's preferences.

Then we went to the landscape supply emporium to buy a half-yard (1200 pounds) of fill sand. Of course, she dazzled them with her charm but they still charged me full price.

Seeds

It is common knowledge that "root vegetables" do not respond well to being transplanted. The only exception(s) to this are beets and (maybe) daikon. The root of the beet is, apparently, as much a swollen stem as it is a root. So it doesn't matter if the tap-root is all folded up, it still forms a round ball of sweet goodness.

Another weird thing about beets is that each seed is usually multiple seeds, like string of firecrackers. You might think you planted one seed but five or eight plants pop up and you need to thin-out the surplus, otherwise they will all be stunted.

I have to admit that thinning the surplus seedlings from a seedling tray while sitting at a table is much more attractive than doing it while kneeling and bending over in the garden. I only planted 25 seeds (cv. "Merlin") but intend to plant another 25 in a couple of weeks.

Compared to the subsistence gardeners farming the Ukrainian dachas, I am a bumbling newbie. But maybe an old dog can learn some new tricks.

Muskellunge

Muskellunge or "Muskie" are apex predator, freshwater fish very similar to the south's Alligator Gar or the saltwater Barracuda.

While reading the Michigan DNR fishing guide, I learned that the Michigan DNR believes that monster Muskie inhabit one of the creeks near The Property. In fact, anglers are not allowed to keep Muskie from that creek that are shorter than 50 inches (1.27e+10 angstrom in metric). How close does that creek run to the property? According to Google, it comes within 729 feet of The Property.

Unfortunately, Michigan regulations do not allow "unattended lines" which means I am not legally able to set a rig and then go work on The Property and then check the line when I am done for the day.