2020 Accountability and Focus: Small Fire, Long Post

It is 6:00 PM. I am watching a small fire I started just after 5:00 PM, burn. My objective was to burn the random things that I have been dumping in the fire pit all week. There are a few sticks to help it burn, but most of what is burning originated from the garden. I've been putting in the plants that are really invasive or full of bug eggs. Sometimes, things go into the compost, sometimes other places, like the fire pit. Z came out and let me know that dinner is at least an hour away. More wood went on the fire. There is no shortage of wood. What I need is a fire blow stick. When dinnertime is here, the fire will get doused.

When I came out to start the fire, it was my hope to use a small magnifying glass to start it. I was also using lint from the dryer stuck into an empty toilet paper roll. The clouds had other ideas though and kept hiding the sun. Instead, I got my magnesium fire starter. I scraped a little bit of magnesium onto the lint and then made the sparks. It took a few times to get the sparks to land, once they did, the lint caught on fire quickly and into the pit it went. Please keep your dryer lint filters clean, that stuff is very flamable.

It is now after 10:00 PM. Dinner was delicious but there was urgent exchequer business that I had to take care of after and some of my thoughts from earlier have floated away in the smoke from the fire. Sitting by the fire and hearing the birds chirp, the wind russle the leaves, and the fire's occasional crackle was peaceful.

This morning I did a loop around the property with the weed wacker. It may seem counter to my yearning for the property to be more green, but I'd also like a path to eventually be winding through as well. So trim a path I did. There were two sightings along the way. The first was a hummingbird. The little thing perched on a tree and watched me for a few moments before flitting away. The other was a woodpecker. The woodpecker didn't stick around long. I should try to get out there more often.

These are all wonderful things and are happy things for today. There is more; I met a friend at a park and we took a nice walk. We sat and chatted for over an hour after walking more than three miles. We are making plans for a small outside gathering of our SCA household in a few weeks. If the weather is wet, I will set up a pavilion or two.

View of house and beyond.

The pond where we walked today.

Trying to take advantage of the fleeting sun.
Honestly, I am not sure if that magnification is strong enough,
but the clouds kept hiding the sun so I'll figure that our another time.