October 2025 Island Trip – Day 2

It was indeed very cold when I got up this morning… 47º 😳 After doing immediately important things, like putting clothes on, I fetched the new oil heater from the truck and got it going. It’s way fancier than our other oil heaters. Almost too fancy. It’s digital and you can set it for ‘time until start,’ and ‘time until stop.’ There’s something way easier about a dial where you set the time and the little switches on the dial that tells the unit when to run 🙄. Fortunately, you can turn the timer off on this heater. My head does not think in terms of hours until I want the heater to turn on or off. I think in concrete terms of, ‘Turn on at 6AM’ etc. What this one will do is set to a very low temp! Like down to 41º. When I head out of here, I’ll leave it at 48ishº That’s what it takes to guarantee happy plumbing.

I got a lot done today, but not the jacks… They require the trailer being lifted in order for the jacks to be placed under the trailer. I am unclear as to where to place the new jacks, and the ‘bible’ for Stella was not a lot of help. I’m hoping that our GC, coming by tomorrow, will be braver than I am. Otherwise:

• My DH’s office trailer is winterized. I need to check on her temperature the next three mornings and adjust the heater if necessary.
• The pump room heat is on. I also need to make adjustments to the temp in here too.
• I got online with the power company and figured out how much electricity we’re using (plus the well pump), 8/28 – 10/6, verses the house. It’s about a third of the total. This will change starting today with the heaters going to work. I figured out the best way to apportion the electric usage is average kilowatts per day.
• The irrigation timer/valve and deer deterrent sprinkler (motion activated) at the house are put away.
• I, finally, put the two metal pieces that the locking mechanisms for Stella’s back hatch close against back in place. Also reinstalled a pin that keeps a drawer under the back hatch closed.
• I took preserves to my neighbor to the east, even tho she’s in Turkey. Her house sitter will bring them in.
• 2/3rds of the lower barn overhang is prepped for gravel. This means there’s landscape cloth in place, and being held down by heavy objects. This will also keep the tenant’s cat from using the area as a liter box 🐈. I don’t begrudge her pooping in a dry dusty place, but would rather she didn’t.
• The majority of the shrubs on Stella’s slope are trimmed back. One more catmint to go.

A couple of years ago we planted a filbert (hazel nut) in the big garden. This afternoon the tenants told me the incumbent filbert, by the dryer shed, made viable nuts this fall! Filberts need to have a friend to cross pollinate with in order to produce. On my way back to Stella I paused at the garden fence and saw 5 nuts and new catkins on the baby filbert. My mom told me again and again how her filbert would only make these silly nuts that opened while on the tree because it didn’t have another to cross pollinate with. Now it does. It feels like fulfilling a promise I never voiced.