11/28

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Very heavy rain the last two days. Schools closed at noon due to flooding, and buses are running tomorrow on a 2 hour delay. Light snowfall is expected tomorrow.

We'll have to finish the low tunnels in the snow tomorrow. And once the weather breaks, we have a lot of wood to cut and split as we're almost out.

Rachel and I drove out to Knoxville today to close on the Sunbright property. After a year-long struggle, we now own it. We celebrated by buying an Ebbing's silverberry, the same shrub all over Atlanta covered in tasty red speckled berries. It's a great permaculture plant and forms a dense hedge. We'll probably plant it on the west/windward side of the garden.

We also bought a car-full of insulation, layer pellets, a squirrel trap, bird netting for the blueberries, and returned the mop bucket.

Over the weekend while walking up to the coop I saw a squirrel running from the chicken run with something white and round tucked up under his chin. I chased him into the woods but he never dropped it and eventually I lost him in the woods. Since none of our chickens lay white eggs, I assumed it must be one of the wooden eggs. But all were accounted for in the coop. So the only conclusion is that the ducks are now laying and he'd stolen a duck egg. I'd have never have believed it without seeing it with my own eyes, but he carried that egg tucked between his chin and chest while bounding across the grass and through the trees. I'll set out the trap tomorrow.

We'll have to use the cellphone temporarily for future photos as the picture-taking button on the camera's broken. Rachel had handed the camera up to me on the top of the ladder, it got caught on her pinkie and went crashing down to the floor. Outside of the picture-button, the camera seems fine. Maybe we can get it repaired.
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