I didn’t think the apples were quite ready yet, but over the weekend a strong breeze knocked dozens of them off the trees, which means they are either ready or just about; yesterday I started collecting them, leaving the uglier ones for Cicero (because he doesn’t care). He’s been spending more time on that side of the paddock, happily munching apples to the point where he’s less interested in any other treats than usual (except for his dinner, which he’s always enthusiastic about). Alas, the way I use the apples requires a great deal more work; I’m going to keep the nicest ones for eating, making pies, etc, then press most of the others into cider, saving some of the middle-grade ones for apple butter. If I had realized how much fruit we’d have this year, I would’ve tried to get the Durabak done earlier in the summer; now I’m stuck having a lot of work over the next few weeks. But what else is new? Well, at least the annex is mostly finished, and though I’ve still got to find places for a lot of the stuff that came from my incall, I think by the time winter arrives I should be basically done with that too. And then, for the first time in many years, maybe I’ll be able to just take it easy this winter and, after my regular chores are done on any given day, just devote myself to pleasant and less-strenuous activities.
