Girls Weekend

This past weekend was Girls Weekend in New Jersey!  David and his dad had a similar weekend in Vail Colorado, skiing with some male friends that they called "Dads and Lads".  Roni came up with the idea to have a fun weekend ourselves, gathering at David's parents house in New Jersey.  Now, this is way out of my box, and Roni knew this, but asked anyway, and to her surprise, and mine, I said yes!

So, Jean and Roni Jo and I had a super fun girls weekend.  We went to museums in New York City, and Newark, NJ.  A couple long walks with Rosie the dog (good thing Rosie is a girl too so she could join us!), watched the Olympics, worked a jigsaw puzzle, had lovely visits with long time friends of Jean whom I am quickly becoming attached to as well, and lunch one day at the famous Millburn Deli.

I got kind of caught up in the fun of the weekend, and didn't take as many photos as I intended and probably should have, but following will be a smattering of images from a few of our activities.

This is an example of creative marketing.  The train station in Shorthills doubles as a bar and restaurant in the evenings, called Box Car  It was so cute!

This is not my first time on the NYC subway, but it's an experience nonetheless.

A subway musician entertaining busy travelers.

This is the building where John Lennon of the Beatles lived.  It continues to be a tourist draw.

Walking along Central Park Ave. West.  It was a cold day, but lovely to be outside.

The iconic horse drawn carriage ride through Central Park.  

Jean and Ellen with Central Park and NYC in the background.

We popped in to the Museum of Natural History for a brief tour.  It currently houses the largest know dinosaur called "Titanosaurs"!  Roni Jo and Alicia went  through a huge dinosaur phase when they were young.  They would have flipped over backwards at the displays in this museum!

The view of Central Park from Peter and Ellen's apartment.  I can only imagine how beautiful this is in the spring summer and fall.  Winter has it's own kind of beauty as well.

Saturday morning, in the pouring rain, we ventured in to Newark to this wonderful museum that housed a permanent art collection as well as the home of the Ballentine's that has been beautifully preserved.  It's so interesting to glimpse in to the past through the thoughtful preservation of artifacts.

The Ballentine dining room was historically preserved.  But, there was a modern display as well, from an artist who did this staging of fabric on headless mannequins.  It was an interesting juxtaposition of past and present.

Another, yet more traditionally staged room in the Ballentine mansion.

Leaving the museum was this clever statue which at first glance looked like someone sitting on a chair, contemplating life.

As you walked past, you noticed that the sculpture is all shoes!  So cool!

Monday morning, before I was due to fly back west, Jean and Rosie and I went for a walk in the woods.  Again, winter beauty, with the promise of more to come with spring, summer and fall!

Rosie loves her walks in the woods.  She's such a beautiful dog.

And lunch at the Millburn Deli which David has been telling me about for several years.  There is a reason it's a local favorite!!!

I need a little practice with taking selfies, so just kind of ignore how goofy this photo is!

Meanwhile, back at the farm, lots is happening.  We're gearing up for spring work.  I am so grateful that I was able to take a few days to spend with Roni Jo and Jean.  It was a real treat!

A girl and her dog!

Charlie and Alicia are fast friends.  A few days ago she came driving up to the house in the gator with Charlie sitting proud and tall on the seat beside her.  It made me smile and grab my camera.

The same day I looked out the window and noticed the windmill shadow on the barn.  We haven't had a lot of sun so it was a treat to see this projection on the barn.

Book Club

Alicia has invited folks around here to participate in a book club.  This is something I have wanted to do for a long time.  Last week we had our first meeting at her place.  Three enthusiastic readers showed up to discuss the book, Bel Canto by Ann Patchett, and enjoy some tasty treats that Alicia prepared.

I have been so negligent about reading for quite some time.  I'm grateful for this extra motivation to pick up a book and get lost for a couple hours here and there.  Next up is a biography about Katherine Graham, and I don't think I can cheat and watch the new movie!

Ground Hog day

This past weekend was our annual sausage grind with the Knapp and Gooley/Mielke family.  Chemyn's long time friend Troy joined us for the day to help with all the various tasks involved.  We were happy to have him contribute!

Here are a few images of a delightful day.

The recipe!

Alicia cutting.....

David cutting......

And Troy cutting!

The cutting crew.

The sausage grinder.

Chemyn cleaning the casings

Louise putting together our flower arrangement.

And preparing the herbs and spices.

At some point, Chemyn found some brush fire fighting gear and thought it was needed around the cutting table!

Charlie insists on sleeping in Baxter's bed, even though it is too small for him!

Custom labels designed by Louise.

Stuffing the links.

A beautiful sunset to reward our efforts.

As we were walking over to the house, the fog was just beginning to roll in up the draws.

Louise fixed an amazing dinner......as per usual!

Salad ingredients for our dinner.

 Troy left before dinner on Friday night, but the rest of us spent the night at the Rolinco Road Resort.  Breakfast was biscuits and gravy, with fresh Farm Sausage gravy.  So good!

Meet Spencer

Near the end of 2017, Reynald bought a new (used) self propelled John Deere sprayer. One of the biggest decisions we have when bringing new machinery to our farm, is what to name it! 

After much debate, we all settled on Spencer the Sprayer!  

I have been waiting to introduce Spencer because Alicia has some wonderful images which she has not had a chance to share with me yet.  So, these first photos are not going to show Spencer off to full potential, but it will give you an idea of the latest addition to the Rolinco operation.

Spencer is so tall that this long entry ladder is needed to enter the cab!

It has taken me a while to warm up to Spencer but now I can honestly say that I think he is quite handsome.

All these tanks will hold water and a variety of pesticides, depending upon what our target spray is.  We only apply herbicide and fungicides in our operation.  

Spencer is a tall drink of water!  Spencer is equipped with technology that allows for individual nozzle control, or designated sections of control.  This is one of the benefits of the new technology.

We have had unseasonably warm weather for the month of January.  Both yesterday and Monday, Reynald and Alicia were able to work outside, changing the Spencer's spray nozzles.  Alicia tells me there are 96 nozzles!  They are changing from the traditional fan nozzle to a pulsating nozzle.  This is fairly new technology which we are eager to take advantage of.  They will cut down on spray drift and also apply the correct amount of product at all times, even when turning corners when one boom is stopped and the other side is whipping around at a high rate of speed!  

Reynald is working here on the electrical wiring associated with the pulsating nozzles.

Alicia, doing the same.  Alicia will be the primary operator of Spencer so it's important for her to understand every aspect of this machine.  

These two are such a good team.

This is a close up look at one of the pulsating nozzles.  

Each yellow tank has a 50 gallon capacity.  Two tanks can be linked together, to add more capacity, depending upon the needs of the season. 

Scott from Spray Center Electronics came out on Monday and again Wednesday to help wire in the electrical and satellite guidance system.

We have two sets of tires for Spencer.  These fat tires which we will use for spring spraying and a much more narrow profile which we will use if we need to apply fungicide later in the season, when the wheat is much taller.  In the past we would hire a crop duster to apply the fungicide.  We have not been pleased with the result, nor with the cost of application.  With the narrow tires we will smash some wheat during application, but not even close to the cost of aerial spraying, with better coverage.

Spencer's chubby tires.

The number of valves and electrical controls that Spencer holds is more than I can keep track of.

 Good help is always appreciated when working on big projects....

Charlie loves this weather.  Cool and sunny.

He especially likes it when Alicia is outside working so that he can keep a close eye on what she is doing!