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October 5, 2024: Darkness Descends

Darker now, way earlier. It was dark at 7:30 a.m. The sun did not come over the rise until 8 :00A.m. I did not get up before 8:00 a.m. because I did not want to clean the horse pen in the dark.

It was overcast all day.

I got home after distributing books in town, then went to clean the horse enclosure. I went outside at 7:30 p.m. I finished with barely enough time to get the enclosure clean before needing a headlight.

Tomorrow I will need to wear a headlight morning and night. The problem is that I have to wear a hat when I wear the headlight because otherwise the headlight slips off. And of course, I do not know where my headlight is.


Story Time at Mat-Su College fair booth


Hrimmi’s poop is runny – this means her large intestine is not absorbing water. I wonder what gives.

Tonight, Pete is at a musk ox benefit, serving up and eating bratwurst. We are still lacking generator power. This means no water for doing dishes, bathing, or drinking.

He borrowed a generator from acquaintances. He told me last night when he got home that it would take just a few minutes to get running. I am not a mechanic, but what I lack in fix it ability I make up for in an ability to see what it’s going to take time-wise, to get something fixed.

I foresaw that it would take a few hours to get generator X fixed. I was right. He was out there, in the dark, working on getting it running at 10:30 p.m., by the light of a headlamp. I thought, huh, if he didn’t have a headlamp that I would have to repeatedly light matches, so that he could see. Actually, I could have used a candle.

Generator X did not start. Our generator is broken, meaning something mechanical is amiss. Pete has conjectured but I have turned a deaf ear. (I have two of them) because he has not figured out what exactly is wrong. I actually want to know exactly what is wrong. I don’t have the time or patience for conjecture.

I will, after I finish writing this dispatch, go to Plan B, which is to take our friends Hillary and Ron on their offer to borrow their generator, which I know works. Hillary told me that it’s on wheels. A generator on wheels – far better than one not on wheels because you can take it places with you, like into the shop, and say, “It has a problem.”

I did not go swimming today, so I didn’t get a shower. Pete has not showered in several days. Now he is going to smell of bratwurst, beer, and bratwurst. This is vegetarian’s worst nightmare.

Do I seem worried? Stressed? Below the weather? Under a dark cloud? Beside myself? Fit to be tied? Anxious? Fitful? All of the above? None of the above? I’d say all of the above. It’s always good that tomorrow will be another day.

Next: 272. 10/6/24: A Day in the Country

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