And now, the fix

 Much cleaner than the patch we put in. We'll need to wait a few days to make sure it doesn't leak, and then we'll bury it with gravel, then dirt.

The bad news is that the poly main line will eventually need to be replaced. Looking on the bright side of that big expense, we will have the opportunity to design our watering system for the farm. We'll get to determine where we want hose bibs, which also means I'll need to determine what the layout of the land will be and how it will be used. It's both scary and exciting, all at the same time. But isn't everything worth doing scary and exciting?

What did YOU do this weekend?

A harmless question, wouldn't you say? Harmless unless your weekend was filled with angst, sleuthing, digging, flashlights, swearing, trips and more trips to the hardware store, calls to plumbers and well pump companies.

This is how we spent our weekend.

View from the leak, down the hill to our neighbor's back yard

It looks benign enough, but what a pain this was. The moral of the story is twofold.

The patch job done by us. 

1. When it comes time to sell your house, it is REALLY a nice thing to have a fundamental, overall graphic of the property so the new buyers don't fumble around with the really important stuff
2. Do the job right the first time. In our case we will (the plumber is coming on Thursday), in the case of the former owners, not so much. 

When did I become a dog person?

Gracie LOVES to go to the beach

No, it's not a cigar!

Strike a pose

Bailey, our foster dog.

Our original, The one and only Cinnamon

One of These Things .....

One of these things is not like the other

One of these things just doesn't belong

Can you tell which one we're keeping at the farm

Before you finish reading this blog?

Sign made by The Lovey using a salvaged redwood plank from an old (and rotten) portion of the deck.

Making Preparations

In this time of slow growing winter crop and healing of injury, we are making slow moves to organize ourselves: in our heads, on the farm, in preparation for next year. The Lovey and I have created a farm blog. From this point on, all farm related topics will be posted on this site. That is, unless you all revolt like the Netflix customers. If that's the case, then we'll have a second think about our strategy.

In the meantime, here's the beginning of pumpkin pie:

7 pounds, 12 ounces of Sugar Pie Pumpkin. After processing, we have 3 pounds 3  ounces of pulp.
Perfect for 3 pumpkin pies.      

She Said' Yes'!

Congratulations to Number One Son and the Love of his Life!!!! So Excited for you both and thrilled that our son chose such a great woman to share his life with! YAY!

Not all Winter Squash are the Same

So, when we last left our heros, we were trying to guess how much puree can be made from a 15 lb, 2 oz pumpkin. Cinderella pumpkin. Before I give you that answer, let me introduce you to two other pumpkins that were grown on Seven Cats Farm

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present The Valenciano Pumpkin:

This is how it is described in seed catalogs:

"These creamy, white-skinned beauties are about 8-10 lbs in size, round and slightly flattened in shape. Vigorous vines bear uniform fruit with nice thick handles. A unique specialty pumpkin can be both eaten and used ornamentally. Flesh is high quality, dense and sweet. Not as rugged as orange pumpkins, harvest right away and keep protected for best quality off the vine."

This pumpkin weighed 8 pounds, 2 ounces when harvested. I was surprised at the yellowness of it's flesh when I cut into it. Not what I expected from a pumpkin. Sadly I made soup with this right after I roasted it, so I don't know the puree weight. The soup was squash-y tasting. Exactly what I was looking for.

The next winter squash I would like to introduce you to is called Sweet Meat.

Again, as described in seed catalogs:
"Vigorous and spreading, this amazing tasting squash can top 10 pounds or more. Sweet meat squash is soft grey-green to deep green on the outside, the sweet, fine-grained orange flesh is an amazing keeper and great for pies! Excellent grower in our cool California coastal climate. 

Sweet meat makes a great addition to any meal.  Taste almost like a sweet potato.  We have even cut up chunks, put butter on them and popped them on the grill in some tin foil.  YUM!!"

This was harvested weighing 9.3 pounds. Okay, It's AWESOME! It's name really captures what this squash is. I made puree out of this one (2 lb, 3 oz or roughly 25% of it's original weight) and then made pumpkin lasagna. Yum yum. 

So - the answer to the original question? My 15 pound, 2 ounce Cinderella Pumpkin, after being cooked, pureed and hung to drip dry, weighed 3 pounds, 3 ounce, or right around 20% of it's total weight. Who was close?