February was quieter than it looked from the outside, which, after the chaos of the last few months, was exactly what we needed. While the start of the year has been relatively quiet in the yard, personal lives have been rather busy. I’ve been finding it difficult to find the time to write, and frankly, with the way the weather has been, there hasn’t been much to write about. I’ve also had a couple of non-farm projects that have been absorbing a lot of time. So here is the plan: general farm updates will be monthly, with a few series on more specific topics. That should give me a little more opportunity to craft something a little more interesting, rather than scrambling for something to write about every week!
Things not covered this month;
- Failed attempts at installing a gate to the bottom yard.
- Ongoing issues with my elbow after the fall in the ice.
- The rapidly growing motorbike collection.
So Much Weather
February has seen an uncharacteristic calm on the farm. This isn’t just because it’s off-season, but simply because it has been so hard to get anything done with so much weather.
When we bought the farm, none of the searches suggested we had bought a lake. In fact, for the first half-year since we moved in, there was no evidence of a lake at all. However, after what seems like four continuous months of rain, there definitely seems to be a lake!
The Farm Lakes
We’re predominantly on sand around here, and while in a geographical valley, the house and buildings are all a few meters above the low point. So imagine our surprise when not only does the patio look more like a swimming pool, it has been like this for more than four weeks!
The water seems to be defying gravity and staying firmly in the highest parts of the farm, and not running away as you might expect. Although the lake in the orchard appears to be where the septic tank drainage field should be. I say should, because with that much water on top, it’s no surprise that three of the apple trees died.
Diverting the Villages Pond.
The main field always becomes a bit soggy when the rain comes. There are even some OS maps that show the lower section of the field as having a pond. Throughout February, this has probably been a fair observation. However, the amount of water has had some help from the local road network.
The main road past the farm is quite a bit higher than the field itself. Remember, I mentioned the farm sits in a geographical valley, and the road follows this natural dip in the landscape. Predictably, at the low point, the road has a drain. However, because so much silt runs into it, flooding of the road is a regular occurrence. Some kind soul has taken it upon themselves to dig through the embankment and drain all the water, soil, and general road grime off into our field. We’ll come back to this in a later update, but it’s a gift that’s going to keep on giving!
Husbandry
The cats are pretty much fully grown and creating chaos for the local wildlife. The pigs have a sedentary lifestyle, eat, sleep, rave, repeat. I know many readers are here only for cute cat pictures and pig updates. So, here they are.
Felis Catus
The cats continue to amuse and are typically inseparable. Through this rather wet month, they’ve spent an awful lot of time indoors. This has pros and cons. It’s lovely to see them, and they do enjoy a nice warm lap. However;
Why do they insist on being in my bed all the time! They have their own beds, blankets, a whole couch and the children’s beds, yet they seem to prefer my bed to any of these!
They also look so much cuter when they choose to sleep on top of each other in ‘their’ chair. Cute until one decides to get up, which often results in a bonkers hunter/play moment bouncing all over the van.
They have rather upped their hunting game recently. Having graduated from mice and caterpillars, their biggest food offering in February clearly had them stumped. They usually prefer to leave the offerings lined up outside the bedroom door, so we have something fun to stand in on our way to the bathroom. However, I think this pigeon got the better of them.
It seems crazy that they could snag a whole bird, but recently, Claude has got rather a lot better at climbing. And he’ll climb just about anything, as the picture above shows. I am a little concerned he might get into the owls at some point. I’ll have to keep an eye on that!
Porcine
Life with the pigs has been calm and quiet, which can only be a positive. They continue to eat, sleep and grow at a surprising rate. I certainly can’t pick them up anymore. We have taken to giving them a half-bale of hay each occasionally.
While the intention was for them to graze the hay, they had rather different ideas, seeing the pile of cut and dried meadow as a great place to nap. They don’t even seem to mind having an outdoor nap when the rain is hammering down.
They did, however, manage to block up the auto shut-off on one of the water troughs, leading to a wonderfully boggy area forming. I don’t think this was an intentional mud bath, and it certainly isn’t the weather for ‘natural’ sun block. The overflowing was soon cured by removing the handfuls of sand in the bowl.
Megashed Micro Update
Perhaps not the most exciting update on the mega shed, but a huge milestone for me, the many miles of four-way adapters and extensions have finally been banished!
After the costs of Christmas, February gave a little spare cash to get the ring main installed in some pretty groovy skirting/trunking. In the end, it wasn’t too expensive and makes a huge improvement to the usability of the Mega Shed.
A good spread of sockets and network ports also allows me to bring some key equipment out of storage. Most importantly, the Hi-Fi. There’s a lot of Vinyl for me to get through now.
Arcade Madness
One of the most significant events in February was a major birthday milestone for one of the family. My wife and I have a shared passion for a very specific past time, and I thought it about time she had the equipment for the activities at home.
This meant a trip to Hull one night after work. Normally, this wouldn’t be a big deal; however, the kit I went to collect was a little fragile and rather large, so it needed a trailer. And a rather gentle driving approach. Through rain, hail and even snow!
And this wasn’t easy to find either. Normally, this machine comes in a much larger form factor, and only a handful of companies have ever made a compact one. I was quite relieved to not only find one but find one local-ish, or at least in the North!
I was also cutting it a little close to the big day, which meant I didn’t have to hide it for very long. But how on earth do you hide something this big? I just left it in plain sight, in the trailer, under a giant tarp, and fortunately, the birthday girl was none the wiser.
The Grand Reveal
Those who have heard what I went all that way to buy have suggested I might be bonkers. Some have questioned who the present was really for, and others simply didn’t believe me. However, those who have visited are instantly drawn in.
The four-player machine in compact form, manufactured by Harry Levy, is something my wife absolutely loves. And I have a definite soft spot for. While the machine was designed for old ten pence pieces, it has been converted to 2p coins.
It is, of course, a pusher arcade machine. I don’t know if these are a global phenomenon, but they were and are hugely popular in ‘penny arcades’ in the UK. They’re also incredibly addictive, and in the first few days after the grand unveiling, it was hard to get people off it.
And not only is it incredibly good fun to play, but the machine is also in incredibly good condition. Some minor running repairs have been needed, and a few bulbs here and there, but otherwise, completely working. We’d like to get the payout system working at some point. And being entirely discreet electronics, it is a joy to work on, for me at least.
Coming up next Month
While the rain doesn’t stop, it does at least reduce a little. Long enough to get some work done outside. Relocation of the pusher arcade almost breaks me, and moody skies make for some of the best farm pictures to date. There is plenty of preparation to do for the first grass cut of the year.