Fall more than any other time here on the farm brings something different. The infringement of others ! Although unlike some I did not move to the country to lose my contact with the outside world I will not lie and say that I do not enjoy the solitude. After living and working in a large city for many years I enjoy the ability to hang clothes on the line in my nightgown. To sleep with open windows is truly a blessing. And there has been many a night that we have heard noise outside in the animal pens and O Wise One tear out the back door armed with loaded shotgun wearing nothing but a pair of boxers. I still laugh.....
This time of year though we must restrain the animals and kids from the woods and especially the gravel roads. You see we have visitors in the forest. Orange ones...
They are after this!
And then this
Yes deer season has begun. Bow season to be exact.
People come from all over the US and all walks of life to hunt here. Many locals lease their woods and pastures. Many wonder aimless through the woods having little idea who's property they are on : ) God protect them.....and us.
On another note we have been intruded upon in a different way. We have had thefts..
Of what you might ask?
Yes they went into our hay fields and took hay bales. It seems they are stealing hay from hay fields here and trucking it to drought torn areas such as Texas where they are getting 3 times what a hay bale normally sells for here. I'm praying for them but if the old man in the boxer shorts with a loaded shot gun catches them they may be hanging on that wall beside them deer heads.
We have made a monumental decision here at Hickery Holler. O Wise One has decided that he is going to fence in a back yard for me for my dogs. After all these years here on the farm he says that he is tired of having me cry over the deaths of my pets. We have lost 4 dogs in 13 years to a road that yesterday had 6 cars counting the postman travel on it. Lest we not forget the 2 horses and 1 mule (of the mechanical variety). A 4 wheeler and a couple of kids on bikes headed to the fishing hole.
We have come to the realization that people drive fast on the gravel country roads ( and steal hay) because they know that there is no one watching. There are no police cars and never will be. In this economy the county can barely afford to patrol the main roads. We are lucky if the snow plow finds us from time to time! With no one watching there are no repercussions so they drive fast.
Country roads have been made to sound quaint and romantic. But the reality is that in this day and age they have become the dumping grounds for people who have garbage they don't want to pay to have hauled off and disposed of properly. They have become the place to throw out those pets that you no longer want and don't want to pay to leave at the local shelter. And for those of us who live on these roads an unending source of frustration. Picking up and disposing of other people's garbage. Having to find a home for or humanely destroy unwanted pets so that they do not become safety issues for our own pets and children. And we now face the new problems brought on by the methamphetamine labs that pop up in sheds and remote outbuildings on back roads like ours. O Wise One actually witnessed a drug buy the other day down from our driveway on the side of the gravel road. He was a military policeman for years he knew exactly what was going down. The back of the guys truck was full of copper tubing. Wonder where that was stolen from? So for those wanting to move to the country to escape crime BEWARE the country is not without it's own problems.
So I throw this question out there: How do you live your life..when noone is watching?
Do you speed knowing there are no police on that stretch of road?
Do you stop at that stop sign knowing it is 2 am and there is noone else on the road?
When that parking lot is empty do you cut across the lanes?
If you hit an animal and nobody is looking do you keep going?
Is a rule really broken if no one sees you break it?
If you hit an animal and nobody is looking do you keep going?
Is a rule really broken if no one sees you break it?
The above poster hangs over my daughter's night stand. My lesson as a mother to her is: How you conduct yourself when there is no one watching you defines your true character!
Blessings from The Holler
The Canned Quilter
Wonderful post!
ReplyDeleteI have many tales of trespassers and thieves. I think they do the same whether or not someone is watching.
I try to be true to myself. Whether someone saw me or not, I have to live with my own thoughts, so except for a scratch out of the public eye, I behave pretty much the same way.
So much of that is true everywhere now, but I guess especially so in the country.
ReplyDeleteWe will find out, I expect. And it does worry me.
But until people take responsibility for their actions or care enough to think about what they are doing, I suppose not much can be done.
*Hugs* Stay safe. God bless. ♥
The forest at the back of our property is home to many deer. We have 7 acres in a rectangle shape and have a nieghbor on both sides with the same forest that stretches for miles. I was a bit surprised last hunting season to find an orange cap roaming one of my nieghbors property and then onto ours. I thought what guts this guys got to tromp about on private property. The nieghbor wife high tailed it out there to give this guy a piece of her mind, he was looking for the doe he shot.
ReplyDeleteThe only theft we've had in our neck of the woods is nuckleheads breaking into cars, both our nieghbors cars. I don't know if it was because a couple huge burley lookin guardian angels scared them off or cause our truck outside is always locked for reason not breaking into ours.
We do understand how it is everywhere and how the outskirts of town or in the country is used for dumping grounds. Before moving out here we lived in the high desert in California 7 years ago, waaaay out. People drove through, especially on the weekend taking their "country drive" only to dump an unwanted animal & go on their way to enjoy the rest of their trip. Or the meth labs off the beaten paths. The law for motorists I found out the hard way was, "drive as fast as is safe". My daughter only 11 or 12 was out with our beautiful dog as she crossed the dirt road a speeding car hit her while my DD watched. All I can say is I'm glad my daughter was not in the road where we took many walks because of no traffic. It was sad enough to loose our beloved pet.
We are putting up a fence on the back side of our house too, we never thought we would. As I speek the fence people are here to set posts today. It will help me be ok with letting our now, Buddy, go out and be safe, for our chickens to forage with boundarys & to keep our gardens safe from deer snacking & other dogs out. I'm tired of cleaning up after other dogs too, if you know what I mean ;)
I had to laugh about the skivies wearing, shot gun bearing, O wise one... my farmer hubby has done the same thing and it just warmed my heart to hear someone else laugh too.
Be safe, your in our prayers.
Well written post CQ!!
ReplyDeleteEven though another person isn't nearby watching us, there is always ONE who sees everything we do.
We live on a single lane road and normally have very few cars even though there are a few houses out our road. We get the speeders mostly. Teenage high school boys in their redneck trucks speeding. My children aren't allowed to go past a certain spot in our driveway for this reason. The driver would hit them otherwise because they wouldn't be able to see them in time either way coming or going on the road. I only allow the two olders still at home to go to the mail box and they have strict instructions to stop at a certain area and listen if cars are coming before proceeding to the mail box.
Dh hasn't ever gone outside in his skivvies but has in his pj pants a few times.
At first when you said orange, I immediately thought of bobcats. We have those here along with coyotes.
Hugs CQ for a thoughtful post and hugs on the loss of your beloved pets.
Very true post. I agree, the country sure isn't what it used to be. Just today I thought of that as I had to lock my doors upstairs while I went downstairs to do the laundry. So sad !!!
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you
HERE HERE!! You are so right on so many levels. The country is not what it was once upon a time ..but only because the people are not what they were once upon a time either.
ReplyDeleteWe had to fence in our yard a few years ago due to a rescue dog we obtained, but now I'm glad of it. Things are much safer from the road with it..and hunters, yeah, we have those too..and speeders...well..it's the country, so we have it all too. Great Post!