Self sufficiency to frustration

My brother, after reading about our dryer issues, did some research on a possible quick fix. I was willing to try it, so the dryer was pulled out, unplugged, and the grime that built up under it vacuumed and wiped away. The vent hose was unhooked to pull it out farther and the access port opened on the side. It got a thorough vacuuming inside, but the reset button in the video wasn’t there. Oh well, it is now clean. The vent hose was cleaned out and reattached, it was plugged back in and I had to use the side of the washing machine and the log wall to monkey climb back out. The rack dried clothing from yesterday, though washed and air dried, still had a lot of dog hair on it. I guess the dryer does more than dry the clothes. I tossed hubby’s undies, tees, and socks in the dryer with a slightly damp kitchen towel to try to soften them up and remove hair, and jostling the dryer around must have done something because the clothes were warm when I opened the door.

Before I tackled that job, I tried to put the new belt on the riding mower. There is a nice diagram to show how each pulley interacts with the belt. The belt was removed from the cardboard sleeve and it didn’t want to straighten out. It was twisted in thirds and so stiff. Back in the house to Google how to deal with that and back out to fight with it more, since Google was not helpful. It told me how to put it on, but not how to relax the tight bends from it’s packaging. I got the belt on the deck pulleys, but can’t get it around the engine pulley. I guess I’m going to beg the neighbor’s help and keep my social distance.

Tried to get the gas mower started to mow around the edges in the meantime, but no go on that either. I’m afraid to even try the weed wacker. I guess I should have taken all three pieces of equipment to the shop last fall, but I didn’t. The dryer will require a call in if it quits heating again. But not until this virus subsides.

There was a time in my life when these little frustrations drove me to a solution, but somethings just require help.

Since I can’t mow and it is too windy to garden again, I have spent a lot of quality time with my spindles.

The weekend is nice, maybe one of the mowers will be working and the wind will die down enough to work in the garden.

Making do

When you can’t go out and they can’t come in, you make do. Beginning a few weeks ago, our clothes dryer was taking longer and longer to dry clothes, then over the weekend when I washed sheets and our quilt, it worked for 2 1/2 hours and still didn’t get it dry. Fortunately, I bought a huge drying rack from the Amish furniture store after we moved here. I thought that someday, I would get a clothes line up, but never did. The quilt was folded in half and draped over the rack to finish drying overnight. Knowing that the heating coil has likely failed, laundry is being done more often and in smaller loads and hung on the rack. Also some time in the past, I purchased another rack that hangs over the clothes dryer.

Someday, I will get the dryer repaired.

Along with the dryer failure, I ran out of dish soap. I am a soap maker, so a DIY moment and a bottle of liquid dishsoap was made this morning.

With the pandemic, and the stay at home orders, the panic buying and the changing suggestions, hand sanitizer and masks are impossible items. I grow aloe and still had a bottle of Isopropyl alcohol, so two small bottles of hand sanitizer were made. First we were told not to wear masks, now the recommendation is to wear one if you have to be out as they now believe that the virus can be spread even by breath. I had some cotton fabric that I had purchased for lining a woven bag and had entirely too much. A quick search online provided patterns for DIY masks.

Though we aren’t going out, if it becomes necessary, at least we will have a mask. Two layers of the cotton with a layer of a bandana in the middle and we have 3 layer masks.

Make do when you need to.

Preparation and fun

From early January, we bought double with each food shopping trip. The basement chest freezer that gets utilized as the garden provides and emptied through the winter was not very full this year. By January, the dreaded virus was already in our country and though we had no idea that 3 short months later, we would be on self imposed house arrest to keep our senior bodies healthy. The freezer filled up, but because of the way we were purchasing and loading it, what was in there in what quantity was an enigma. The last trip was loaded in the refrigerator freezer and that is what we have been working on. Today, hubby and I ventured to the basement with a pad of paper and a pen and while I sorted and organized in wire baskets, boxes, and a bag or two, he recorded an inventory. We now know what is in the freezer and about how many meals it will make for us. All of the half gallon jars had been called into use for extra rice, dry beans, and other staples. Flour as well as sugar and salt for canning were already in the large jars. One of the open upper cabinets built by Son 1 when the house was finished, holds quart jars of beans, grains, and other frequently used staples. The other upper cabinets also hold the year’s jams, teas, mugs, and pottery dinner ware. All of the drawers and shelves were vacuumed and wiped this morning and the kitchen cabinets and counter tops scrubbed down. Two utensil crocks were blended into one with the utensils that actually are used and the smaller of the two became the sourdough crock. My sourdough was rejuvenated so bread can be made with it in a few days.

Now we know where we stand as most states have gone to the stay at home orders to try to beat back the virus. With our inventory and the upcoming garden, we should be good for quite a while. Though our daughter would go to the grocery for us, we don’t want her out any more than she absolutely has to be.

The veggie starts are doing better than I have ever had them do, except for the spinach. It must have been old seed. I will get a few plants between what came up in the garden and the house starts.

The house has been getting cleaned much more often than usual. Walks up the dead end road whenever I can get out between rain showers helps keep me busy, along with knitting, spinning, reading, and bird watching.

I have been watching this little guy turn from his winter brown to spring gold. He has almost finished his molt. I love watching the little flocks of them in their roller coaster flight across the fields.

Be safe everyone. We are trying.