Thoughts from Tuesday

April 10, 2012

Today I used the shop-vac in the barn. I shop-vacced insulation people, and the entire time I was thinking, “Seriously. I am not doing this. This is ridiculous.”

Over many, many years dirt and hay and bulbs of garlic had fallen through the slats in the barn floor. And last week we ripped up the floor. So now, before a new floor is put down… I’m supposed to collect as much dirt and hay and bird feathers and layers of onion that I can.

With a shop vac. (Still not sure how this works, seeing as though the vacuum sucks up the pink insulation as well as the dirt. And there is lots of dirt. And lots of hay. And did I mention that there is no floor. So, I’m basically teetering along the beams trying not to fall, trying to look below while trying to shop-vac up as much straw as possible.

This is when I begin to wonder if I’ve just been given then task to see if I’ll actually do it.

This morning I felt nauseous by 10:00 even though the day was gorgeous. My yogurt and banana and piece of toast had worn off and I felt like there was no way I could crawl into the 90 degree greenhouse once more. But I did. And we worked until 12:45. Cutting legs off of tables to keep newly potted plants off the ground before we actually plant them in the ground.

I still feel like not much help at times. If only I were stronger or taller or were, I don’t know, a male. I was more like Carpenter Chris’s helper today; doing things he’d ask me to do- going to get a screwdriver, picking up boards, putting nails in my pocket, marking the spot where he’d later use the saw. It’s still somehow draining.

And unfortunately I forgot to set my avocado out of the refrigerator last night and didn’t set it out until this morning, so it wasn’t ripe. For lunch I had a chicken sausage with a few spinach leaves and shared some chips and salsa with Chris instead.

Then I shop-vacced and tried to make myself useful, sweeping, moving pallets, pulling nails and throwing (more) rotten boards in the back of the wagon.

At 3:30 I’d had enough so I headed out to Greenhouse Old 144 to turn rows. It was excruciatingly hot in there. I knew the sides would roll up, but I had no idea how to do it… so, I worked in the hot hotness turning rows in my long sleeved t-shirt, tights underneath my pants and two pair of socks. I seriously considered taking off my shirt and working in my sports bra, but I wasn’t sure of the farm rules yet. It is only my first ten days still.

Being in the greenhouse earlier today and in the huge grow house this afternoon, sweating while knowing it’s in the 50’s outside made me a little nervous about the summer that is to come. And all the time I’ll be spending planting and harvesting in those very green houses.

Chris joined me and we shoveled our arms off until about 5:30pm. I try to shovel with my entire body. I try to use the stir-up hoe with my thighs and legs. My right arm and shoulder could easily bare the brunt of the work, so I try to thoughtfully and purposefully use other muscles for pushing and pulling and lifting and turning.

No wonder I’m exhausted at the end of each day.

…

Tomorrow night is our “party” at Justine and David's place, Denison Farm. Tonight I prepared no bake cookies for the second time this week and Chris made his famous cream cheese salsa dip. I’m excited to meet some other people interested in organic, sustainable farming that our closer to our age. But at the same time I wish I could be wearing make-up and look fancier and at least showered to meet these new people. I guess it’s just me.

I still find it fascinating when I see bits of last year’s crops peeking up in the greenhouses and in the rows outside: lettuces, carrots, and onions. I like seeing all the pink segmented earthworms crawling away from me and back into their holes when I turn over a huge hunk of black soil. So many earthworms. And spiders. Today I saw a field mouse. He got temporarily hung up in my stir-up hoe…. but I let him get away.

Evidently we are supposed to kill mice when we see them….