Extremes and Neighbors

Today was a beautiful Saturday, the sun was shining all day and it was warm with just a gentle breeze.  A very mild and mellow day, which was just so nice.  We have had such extremes lately.  We went from the forest fire in my last post to a week of heavy rains and flooding.  Our river that thinks it's a creek was more swollen than I have ever seen it.

The water was way up into the woods along its banks.  These are the same woods that were on fire last week.  You can see big splotches of scorched brown pines in areas.  It's not real noticable now because the forest is still in its winter coat.  I imagine once the spring green starts, the brown will become more pronounced.

These pics were taken 2 days after the water crested.  The water was all the way up to the porch of the house on the bank.

That is our new neighbor's house.  Or is it our neighbor's new house?  I guess maybe both.

The property across the road from us was purchased several years ago by a couple of school teachers from Georgia.  For weekend get aways.  Awesome people.  They have several children.  The older kids were teen agers when they bought the place.  Awesome kids.  Their oldest is now a very grown up 20 something and built this house on the side of the river that thinks it's a creek.

By himself.  With some help from family of course.  But no contractor.  No builders.  Just him.  It's not quite finished yet.  Right before the storms hit he had a sawyer come saw up this stack of felled pine trees that was in this picture I took of the fire.

He had felled these while clearing his house site and he had them cut into planks. To side the house with.  I think it will look wonderful when it is finished.  Like it belongs in the woods on the bank of a river that thinks it is a creek.  And he built the house to live in.  All the time, not just on weekends.

So he is a new neighbor but one we have known for a while.  With a new house.  But the best part is that he is a good neighbor.  J likes him and he likes J.  Of course, it is a bit odd to hear them call out to each other because his name is J too.  M likes him a lot and took over a couple of our big trees that the power company

took down

when the power lines went up.  To add to his pile to saw up for his house.  So the back and forth of neighbors helping each other out has already been established.  A good thing even in the Backofbeyond.  Or maybe especially.  Oh, did I mention that he has a bull dozer he says we can use whenever we need too?  And a horse that he allows little GrandGirlies to ride on?  A really good neighbor.  We like him a lot.

This is our very mellow black Lab, Miss Molly.  With Hank, another neighbor. 

Hank lives with Neighbor J.  But he thinks he is part of the Pack that lives here on the Hill.  That's okay.  We like cute, bouncy, little neighbors a lot too.

And see that straw all over the ground?  That's my red neck winter/wet weather landscaping.  We found out that if you spread that straw on the ground a LOT less red mud comes into the house.  So I am even enjoying straw as a neighbor.  Even if it looks like very red neck rural landscaping.

This is not changing the subject though it may seem like it is.  M made waffles this morning for breakfast.  In my special waffle maker.  As he was plating up, he called me into the kitchen and had me look out the big windows in the family room.  Into the new Pasture Becoming.  We had a few more neighbors stop by for breakfast with us.  So we sat down in the windows and enjoyed our breakfast with our guests.

They looked around a bit.  Checked the neighborhood out

munched on a few tidbits

and then moseyed on home.

 
I like these neighbors a lot too.  So in the spirit of good southern hospitality, I called out, "Y'all come back now!"

M echoed the thought.  But I think I heard him mumble something about his "being ready the next time."  What can I say?  The man is a hunter.