Some very good folk out here on our little slice. One in particular has demonstrated a golden heart. Has come over with his tractor to mow and plow and disc, setting me up Bar None Produce style. Appreciative of the fact that it may take a while before necessary implements find their way into my shed. I could not have had this successful year without him. He’s got every tool and tractor and piece of equipment that decades of farm life requires. Single handidly built all of his outbuildings. Completely remodeled his old house into one of the nicer properties out here. All in his spare time.
Tom had his sixtieth birthday a few weeks ago. And retired from BNSF this past Monday. He hired on with the railroad as a mere twenty year old, spent 40 years working for the same company. Hell of a pension piled on top of a burgeoning retirement account. He deserves it all. That stuff just doesn’t happen anymore. A throwback to be sure.
I spent yesterday afternoon sitting with him. He still a little antsy, not sure what to do. Me the perfect foil, wizened beyond measure in the ways of leisure. Talk turned to winterizing and I queried how best to handle the sand point well out in the barn. Gadzooks! He jumped up and was immediately out to his own and began draining the pump, thanking me for the reminder. His lovely wife Becky and I shared a knowing smile, this cat needs to keep busy.
Linda and I have been out here for almost 18 months now. I’ve never been so comfortable. Our daily runs introducing us to the entire cast of characters, some had never met their other neighbors, ever. Good people. All. Atypical as it might sound, I, we, are actually bringing people together. And a new scene, getting them out for exercise. Answering questions about bikes and shoes and gear and diet and sundry health related issues. Introducing them to what we know best, how to take care of our blessed bodies.
Two Rivers Homestead. Our little slice. We’re being encroached upon from every direction as Omaha’s sprawl continues its march to and through Elkhorn, soon to gobble up Waterloo and Valley and Yutan and Mead and then Wahoo. Lanoha’$ just announced a new multi million dollar development in Valley. Another one in Fremont. West Shore$ to the East, Curtis Acre$ to the North, Mallard Landing, venerable Ginger Cove, all within minutes. But we may as well be a hundred miles away from it all. Proud and strong individuals that will keep to ourselves amidst all the hubub, bub. Our precious acreages still set in another time. Forty years ago. Just as we like it.
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