July 2024 Trip II – Day 2

Without belaboring the entire process, let’s just say I have irrigation success. There was a moment, or 45, of doubt when a couple of the important parts attached to the timer would not stop leaking. I consulted with my DH, went back to town (it’s not a plumbing project if you don’t go the hardware store multiple times in a day), bought replacement pieces, took a few deep breaths, and reassembled all the bits. One very slow drip, verses a small fountain, will not drain the well during a daily five minute watering. The two remaining trees have landscape cloth around them held down with an array of heavy objects. I’m going to tuck rat bait under the landscape cloth tomorrow before I head out. Perhaps it kills voles too… 🙄

I filled Stella’s propane tanks at the hardware store this morning. While not too onerous an undertaking, It’ll be nice to get set up with delivery once the tenants use up the propane in the existing tanks at the house, and we change providers.

All three landscape watering systems have been checked. The tenants know where the shut-offs are for all three, and how to throw the circuit breaker on the well. I’m feeling fairly secure about all things water, and will head back tomorrow.

It’s an odd thing not to be able to reach out to our AN for help. It’s like he taught me everything he could, and suddenly, unexpectedly, I graduated. I’ll be able to consult once he’s home, but the days of him saying, “I’ll pop over after lunch and check it out…” are likely a long way off. Ha! He’d have found that busted hose and shut the stand pipe off in a heartbeat. The well wouldn’t have run dry, my tenants wouldn’t have been inconvenienced, there wouldn’t be an incoming big bill from the well company… I had it good with our AN. Never took him for granted, and yet never foresaw a time when his availability wouldn’t be available.