We’re still within a few days of an equinox, so the sun rises pretty much due east and sets close to due west. Today it was coming up over the top of The Mountain, peeking through the trees, as I carried my tools toward the burn pit.
I stopped, realizing it was the first time I’d seen that. The scene was beautiful, clear and remarkably deep. And it occurred to me that the dead branches and downed trees I’d removed to create that view were in the pile of brush I was about to set alight.
The rewards validate the effort.
My plan this morning was to use the week’s combustible trash, stuff I’d ordinarily burn in our barrel, to get this fire going. I crammed it strategically into voids in the pile, lit it and stepped back.
Well, that didn’t work. My cardboard and paper didn’t burn hot enough or long enough to ignite brush only one cloudy day removed from being rained on. So I went back to what worked before — essentially, I built a campfire under one end of the pile.
That got the job done. And no, I don’t use accelerants — ever.
The fire burned down to coals in about an hour. It wasn’t the raging inferno I tended last time, still plenty hot but more manageable.
And just in case you’re wondering, today my beard emerged unsinged. My Devils Tower microfiber stocking hat, however, did not.
I collected and stowed my tools and returned to the camper. Done by 10:30am.
Something I said in yesterday’s post might benefit, I suppose, from a little clarification.
Don’t for a moment think that I don’t prefer Country livin’ and Country folk to the alternatives. There’s lots of mutual butt-sniffin’ goin’ on in suburbs and cities, too, and the air of superiority is strong.
In the Country, humility is more common than arrogance, especially toward other Country folk.
I only wish that more of us saw the value of preparedness and staying in touch with what goes on in the outside world. America needs its Country boys to survive.
After dinner at Carolyn’s Razorback Ribs with one of Deb’s co-workers and her husband, we enjoyed the sun’s last rays this evening from The Mountain.
Sunrise deserves equal time here, I think, and Deb gets to see that show every morning on her way to work. She snapped these images while coming down off The Mountain yesterday and today.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable
#LetsGoBrandon #FJB