Summer Brings Both Hardships and Gifts
Here comes June! June 1-5
19584 views
Rainbow Haven Acres
Published on June 12, 2017
Team Lanvers immediately got the RV settled at the end of the short gravel road that
led around the back of the village. Tucked up to the corner of the deck that wrapped
around most of the bathhouse and mostly hidden from the road by the saloon-barn,
they would have privacy and space to spread out from their temporary home. Lucy
used the big tractor to trundle their trailer out to the empty warehouses at the old tree
farm and get it inside the one with the undamaged roof.
The next day, the whole gang spent the better part of the afternoon rigging up an
enormous catio built of scrap wood and more of the sturdy hardware cloth. They were
rightly pleased with themselves over the accomplishment. There was even an overhead
run that snugged tight to one small window of the RV and a jerry-rigged flap door to
keep their air-conditioning inside where it belonged. After sniffing over the grass
enclosed in the pen and testing the myriad selections of shelves and bridges screwed
down tight, the kitty sisters settled into their rustic palace.
As expected, by the fourth day since her injury, Alex was getting restless and irritable.
Even just getting back and forth to the toilet, only twenty-ish feet away, was still too
much for her alone. The novelty of the Rambeaus helped because they had plenty to
talk about to keep that busy mind occupied while the body healed.
Thankfully, she was recovered enough to spend most of the day in the lounge seat on
the porch of the green house. Goose and Chewie were tasked with keeping the grouch
company, used to being on long leashes that let them get to the edge of the shade and
sprawl in the hot sun. A little pup tent of cardboard to place over the bruised leg saved
everybody from drama and the fuzzy sisters could love all over Alex, purring and
kneading. Petting the friendly sisters cheered the gimp and made her miss her barn
cats a little less. Lucy even refrained from making any tacky jokes.
At least at first.
Nia insisted that the enormous ostrich eggs, which had been taking up far too much
space in the refrigerator for more than a week, needed to be dealt with. So Kara and
Lucy raided Alex's shop while the rest of the gang got her set up with a well-padded
lap and a board to act as a desk. Armed with a dremel tool, a full suite of tiny
attachments, several bowls, and a cardboard box full of ostrich eggs, Alex was thrilled
to have something to do and got right to work delicately scoring the thick shell of the
first egg she had brought back.
"This one is mine. Call me sentimental. Do you guys like it?"
The question was aimed at Chewie and Goose, curious at the attention being paid to
the strange object by the humans. They leapt up to crowd the makeshift work table,
sniffed, then dismissed the whole thing with head-rubs to Alex's face before returning
to their sunbathing.
That was as good a signal for the rest of them to head out for their various tasks and to
further get Carol and Maria up to speed on farm life.
As Kara paused to pat the kitties, Lucy couldn't keep it to herself a moment longer.
"I've always said pussy loves your sister!"
Kara startled and glared while Alex laughed until she was sore all over again.
By end of day, the entry sign was well on its way and Alex had a stack of neatly
emptied eggs.
Well, she had all but one smelly surprise that had offended even the cats to the far end
of their tethers. Luckily, Sara had been Alex-sitting and ran the stink bomb off to lob it
deep into the forest at the far side of the septic field.
When the story was shared, it made everyone else howl in amusement. With that out
of their systems, they all 'ooh'ed and 'aahh'ed over the eight surviving eggs and the
nearly-complete sign that would announce their presence to the world. Kara had used
Alex's electrical planer on the unfinished side of some old barn wood to get it nice and
flat, leaving the weathered paint on the back. Crossbeams held it all snug and she and
Monica had painted wide stripes in the rainbow. The task had taken longer than
anyone had anticipated with all that was going on.
"Tomorrow we're gonna add in words and I'm going to put a sunflower in the empty
space!"
Kara's excitement was contagious and Monica was all delighted smiles as she added
on, "I get to do the lettering! I have really good penmanship."
"And I don't!" Kara laughed and gave the grinning Monica a side hug.
The second day of June passed quietly enough, with the sign getting finished and the
first coat of heavy sealant painted on the wood. Alex was kept occupied with small
tasks and friendly ginger cats while Carol and Maria finally unloaded their ultralight
craft and began reassembling. It looked like a slightly shrunken plane, barely big
enough to carry one person and would take days to reassemble and test out in the skies.
On the morning of the third, Kara was up bright and early before dawn to put the final
coat on the sign before attending to plant and animal alike. Her main job was the
chickens, not just food and water, but keeping an eye out on how clean the coop was,
any sign of a predator attacking, anyone missing. She walked the hoop houses attached
to the coop to ensure they were still intact before setting her flock free, encouraging
Monica to take over egg hunting duties.
She didn't note it out loud, but there was definitely something growing more persistent
in getting at the chickens. After they got the sign up, she had to carve out some time to
reinforce both this main area and the chicken tractors with the meat birds.
Heading out to the chicken tractors, she found out that they had also been attacked.
The rain tarps were shredded and several birds bloodied up despite the intact hardware
cloth.
Well, the task just got moved to the head of the 'to do' list.
Lucy opted to stay and help Kara, a tripod watching their efforts, while the others
worked to put up the sign. Monica reluctantly stayed with Alex and the cats, who were
ecstatic to have one of their familiar family close by.
"Chewie and Goose are great," Alex said fondly to Monica. "But they definitely miss
you guys. Thanks for letting them keep me company. This recovery stuff is boring."
"Why don't you use the wheelchair to go out there?" Monica asked guilelessly as she
made herself comfortable on the wicker loveseat close by so the cats could pile onto
her lap.
"Well, every little bump is still agony, to be honest. And the farm isn't exactly set up
to be wheelchair friendly. That's why Lucy switched houses with me while I recover."
"We should do something about that," Monica said pragmatically. "There's a girl in
my class in a wheelchair and she's much happier when she can get to a place without it
being hard."
Alex smiled warmly at her first cousin once removed and now her friend.
"I think that's a great idea."
My girls are chatty after our lunch and treat, none of them really paying attention. To be honest,
I'm only keeping half an eye on the screen where Kara and Lucy reinforce the chicken's housing.
There is also some shaky footage of Nia and Brainy with the new arrivals, schlepping the large
sign along a precariously narrow shoulder of road and a weed-choked drainage ditch. Yikes. Then
its digging post holes and setting the sign's feet in place, using scrap wood to wedge the thing
straight and plumb, then carry out heavy buckets of concrete, mixed by hand with a large beater
mounted into an electric drill.
Even with summer solstice just a few weeks away and the days being extra long, the teams
converge beneath near-dark skies, exhausted and filthy. We the audience are treated to brief
moments of the strange family eating hastily-made sandwiches while all things terrestrial become
nothing but black shapes against the riot of color that fades and fades to black.
There's a moment of darkness that has all of us curious, because the credits haven't run when the
scene cuts to Lucy making a shushing motion into the camera she carries. I guess we're in for
shenanigans after all. Sure enough, she slips into a mostly-dark room, the camera adjusting to show
a grainy image of Kara passed out in an ungainly sprawl. Lucy looms over her, but instead of a
prank, merely reaches over and shuts off her alarm clock and sneaks back out again.
Once again looking into the camera, Lucy shrugs, but her eyes are soft.
"She worked hard today, and late! She deserves to sleep in."
"Aww, that was nice of her," Lily chimes in.
Settling down into our family cuddle, my girls seem content to get caught up in the videos again,
the next one a shock of the camera watching an absolute downpour in the darkness. The noise is so
loud, it's hard to make out Brainy's voice
"It is my turn to stay with Alex and we were both awakened by this…"
"Cacophony?" Alex's voice says sarcastically and the camera points down and to the side where
she's slumped into her wheelchair, leg propped up on the adjustable footrests.
"You guys good?" Lucy shouts from the yurt's covered porch nearby, water streaming off every
surface.
"Yeah! We're staying well back from the edge of the porch cover!"
"I'd forgotten how much I like the sound of rain on a tent roof, or non-hard roof if you'd rather, but
this is a little ridiculous!"
"I prefer this porch in this -beep-! Wanna trade for good?"
Even through the haze of night and pounding rain, Lucy is clearly startled and thoughtful. "You'd
do that?"
"You bet!"
"Yeah, let's do that! Later."
The friends laugh and there's a flick of scene to a gray, washed-out morning.
In more ways than one.
Everywhere the camera looks, there are water ruts nibbling away at the edges of road and pier
alike.
"No structural damage is evident upon a cursory examination," Brainy says quietly. "But the
garden has suffered irreversible damage."
"Oh, that's a shame," I say mournfully at the battered garden, so fresh in the earth. Not even a week
old, most of it looks ruined and the gang is quiet and sad.
As it's been a week since Alex's injury, her gathered family and friends agree that she can go with
Lucy to drop Sara off at the Salem train station then off to see what plants they can find to replace
what was lost.
"But only if you keep your -beep- in that chair!"
Rolling her eyes at Lucy's haranguing and moping, "yes mom," Alex is still clearly pleased to be
helping with anything.
There is some random footage of clean up and checking on the chilly, damp chickens and letting
the completely unruffled herd out as the skies clear and hot sunlight once more beats down on the
farm.
"Bet they were sweating in the humidity," Ruby chuckles and Sam jumps in with every bit as
wicked a tone.
"Not used to that I bet! Wussy west coasters!"
They cackle as the farm crew sweats in the sunshine with little pleasure or joviality. When Lucy
and Alex return, the truck is stacked with plastic bins beneath a tarp, overflowing with a riot of
small plants in a variety of pots.
"Give them all a good drink and set them in the sun," Lucy orders as the gang pulls the bins from
the flatbed. "We probably have time to get a few of these in the ground, then we can finish up
tomorrow."
They skip to the next day, the gang busy in the ruined garden putting in fresh plants, none of which
I even recognize. How sad is that? I'm betting most if not all of that is for edibles, and I have no
damn clue what they even grow.
My self-recrimination is interrupted by the camera approaching the green house and Kara's
mischievous giggle. "Wanna see what Alex is up to?"
Caught up in what she's doing on a laptop, Alex doesn't even notice her sister over her shoulder.
There are pictures of dogs on the screen, all of them large breeds.
"How's the research coming?"
Jumping a little, Alex fires off a dirty look and then sits back and sulks. "Uuuuugh. There's so
much info! And really, there should be at least two, but really a few pairs of different dogs seem
like the best idea, and they're expensive! And this is a huge pain in the -beep-."
Kara turns the camera on herself and her expression is serious and amused. "With the local wildlife
taking far too close of an interest in the small, tasty things made of meat, and with potential larger
predators out there like coyotes and cougars, Alex is looking at livestock guardian dogs."
Even as Alex growls and mutters something dire at the computer, Kara grins sappily and turns the
camera back to her sister, now leaning back against the couch, arms crossed, glaring fiercely.
"Because Alex is the best."
A small smile replaces the scowl as the video fades to the closing screen.
"It's funny how opposite they are and yet so close," Ruby muses and jumps when Lily shifts to toe
her in the ribs.
"Like you!"
Acting like she's been shot, Ruby half leaps up to dramatically collapse onto her little sister and
sprawl like a wet blanket. There is muffled squealing that makes Sam and I laugh. Ruby relents
with a wet farting noise to Lily's cheek.
"Love ya, Squirt."
Lily wipes at her wet face and tries to look disgruntled, but fails miserably. In fact, she squirms
away from me to tackle-hug her sister, who distractedly pets her head.
"Love you too, Ruby-Kenoobie."
"Dork."
"Brat."
Sometimes, they'll go on and on with the silly insults, careful to not go too far or get in trouble, but
settle after at a single volley. It's always been amazing to me how they hit it off all those years ago.
There had never been the slightest hint of Ruby holding back when Lily's tiny whirlwind self had
crashed into her life.
Sam doesn't need to echo my thoughts with words, the gentle hand stroking over my head says it
all.
A hot time in the small town tonight! A special video for June 6.
15903 views
Rainbow Haven Acres
Published on June 13, 2017
Setting up the tripod, Kara stepped back and put on her best hostess smile.
"Hi guys! Today we are down a few hands as Carol and Maria took Monica for a day
out in Salem. No matter, for we have a special treat! Tammy down at the general
store, which is also the post office, called this morning to let us know we have a
whole, umm… mess of boxes! Yes a mess of boxes!"
Alex snorted sarcastically, and her smile was wicked. "It's cute how you cleaned up
what she really said."
"I'm not repeating that, Alex!"
While Alex laughed raucously, Kara gave her an exasperated look before returning her
attention to the tripod camera.
"So Nia volunteered to go get it and some supplies she's being all mysterious about. I
still don't know why she needed the big trailer, but I guess we'll find out!"
With morning chores done, Kara wheeled Alex over to the freshly planted garden so
they could inspect it and bring out a couple of hoses to spot water the tender young
plants.
"Bleah, it's already getting hot," Alex grouched as the sun rose higher and Kara could
only nod as she started truly sweating from even this simple work. "We're gonna have
to put a few braincells back on getting some sort of pool or pond or something.
Showers are great for cleaning up, and the bathhouse excels for a soak, but it's not the
same as a pool. Without the time, resources or permits though, it isn't gonna happen."
Kara just sighed wistfully and her head suddenly shot up, making Alex twist around in
her wheelchair to see that Nia had returned.
Like with a lot of problems, Nia had come up with a clever solution, the tripod camera
dutifully catching the sister's gawking faces. The missing two came trotting up, just as
taken aback, though admittedly, it was a bit of a shocking sight. 'It' was a gigantic
galvanized steel tub half again taller than the truck. Up on its side and lashed snugly
into place, it looked absurd. Some wooden blocking and heavy sacks had assisted in
keeping the great thing trapped while being driven about the countryside.
Grinning fit to burst, Nia hopped out of the truck and athletically vaulted onto the back
of it to grab a ladder there. "Your swimming pool!"
She was very pleased with herself, deflating a bit when the others merely blinked at
her.
"It's a stock tank. Classic cheap swimming hole."
There was a note of question in Nia's weakening voice and Kara raised her hand before
speaking up. "Stock tank?"
"A tank or artificial pond used for watering livestock," Brainy supplied helpfully.
"Usually made of plastic or galvanized steel for longevity in the elements."
"Yes, that," Nia agreed and as was the norm, the adorable pair grinned shyly at one
another and looked away. Recovering from their shock, Alex and Lucy just traded
their usual wry looks.
In a quadrangle of effort and Alex splitting her time between the camera and gluing
PVC pipe, the gang set to work. The thing didn't weigh as much as its size would
suggest and soon rested safely on the gravel road. Then it was leveling a spot not far
from the fire pit and digging into the piles of gravel and sand left over from the
roadwork to reinforce the surface. Lucy was ecstatic that the rolls of disgusting old
carpet saved from the barn provided a cushion for the sheet steel. Nia and Brainy in
the meantime were measuring and cutting pipe and fittings from Alex's supplies and
more that had been trucked in. Within the hour, they had water flowing into the tank
and a drain ready for later use.
Lucy was already out of her shirt and Alex was about to follow suit when Kara spoke
up.
"Oh! We got so caught up in the little pool, though, really, it's not that little, that we
forgot about the mail."
They all looked expectantly at Nia, who was clearly confused. "The what now?"
"The mail?" Kara repeated hesitantly and Nia just stared at her for a moment longer
before dissolving into laughter.
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Yes! The mail! You guys are going to love this."
"We're a bad influence on her," Alex muttered in amusement and Kara just chuckled.
Caught up in the excitement of the stock tank, no one had paid a bit of attention to the
large, lumpy cargo beneath the ubiquitous blue tarps. It was a rare trip with the big
work truck that someone didn't come home with something bulky. Unlatching the
straps and tossing them over the lump, Nia took a solid double handful of the tarps,
grinning at her friends and made a good, dramatic presentation, yanking as she spoke.
"Behold the mail!"
The gang blinked at the mountain of large boxes, a mix of cardboard marked 'Carhartt'
and the familiar Amazon smile.
"Good grief," Brainy said in wonder and the women just nodded along. "Are you
certain this is all for us?"
"Yes. Everything is addressed to the farm."
"Well, this would explain Tammy's ire."
Lucy and the sisters spluttered at Brainy's dry humor and moved to help. Alex was put
in charge of the camera to get her involved. It took some flexing for a couple of heavy
boxes, but soon the shocking collection was lined up neatly. Kara slapped her hands
together and rubbed them vigorously. "Okay! Carhartt first as they've so kindly
sponsored us, then the mystery Amazon boxes."
With longing looks at the anonymous presents, the gang focused on their sponsor's
delivery. It was no hardship as the five boxes revealed a treasure trove of all things
Carhartt. For the better part of an hour, the gang admired and laughed over the swag
they'd been sent. There were some new articles of clothing, including very welcome
rain gear and a lot of summer weight t-shirts and cargo shorts that would be put to
immediate use, but the real fun was the sheer variety of accessories.
There was the expected hats, gloves and a replacement pair of work pants for Alex so
she could retire or repair the one the ostrich tore, but there was also socks, tool aprons,
gloves, suspenders, belts, thermal underwear, brand stickers, a handful of blankets of
the sturdy duck fabric backed with fuzzy fleece, and even five pairs of cushioned
insoles!
There was a jumble of dog gear too, a pair of sturdy, squishy beds, collars and leashes,
rear seat covers, all in the familiar sand-colored fabric.
Once everything was unpacked, the gang counted a full twenty two types of bags from
phone cases to really nice backpacks meant for a variety of tasks, sturdy tool bags,
lunch totes, coolers in several sizes, duffel bags and small organizers.
And stashed away at the bottom of each box were good, strong boots for each of them,
one for hot weather and one for cold.
Even Lucy was speechless for once. At least briefly. As she pulled open one of the
boxes marked for her and looked at the sturdy boots meant for sweaty summer work,
all she could manage was a weak sass. "I'm assuming the rep asked Winn for sizes,
and I don't even want to know how he knew."
"He probably has robot doubles of all of us." Kara's delivery was so deadpan they all
stared at her until she chuckled and waved them off. "Oh chill, you weirdos. This isn't
some silly superhero show."
Brainy sounded surprisingly offended as he protested, "certainly not."
Which had Nia teasing, "next you'll be telling us we're aliens."
The shock over the generous donation offset a bit with humor, the gang shoveled
everything sloppily back into the boxes to be dealt with later and turned to the four
Amazon boxes.
"As they're conveniently marked one through four, go for it, Kara."
No one objected to Alex's gentle orders and Kara somewhat hesitantly stepped closer,
jumping when Lucy whipped out a nasty little folding blade to hand over. A few quick
slices and Kara was in the first box, reaching inside to retrieve something.
"There's papers in here. Oh, a letter was printed, cool. Camera still going, partner?"
"Yes. Allow me a moment to ascertain our battery life."
"Sure thing," Kara agreed distractedly as she skimmed over the letter and her eyes
went wide. The way she glanced at the boxes had the others even more curious. With a
nod from Brainy, Kara raised the letter and started to read. "Dear Rainbow Haven
Acres. My wife and I are huge fans of yours, having stumbled over your channel some
weeks ago. Like yourselves, we dream of reinventing ourselves on our own terms.
Seeing all of you as LGBTQ+ or allies, gives us hope that we can do the same. In fact,
we're already moving from just talking about it, to making serious plans! As a thank
you, and to encourage your wonderful efforts, we sent some gifts. Spoilers ahead!"
At Kara's gesture, Nia and Lucy went for the larger boxes, the first thing revealed
completely baffling the whole gang.
"A turkey frying kit?" Lucy puzzled even as Nia's face went even more confused.
"Empty beer bottles?"
Hiding a little grin, Kara waved impatiently at the final box and the mystery was
revealed to the delight of the team.
"It's a brewing kit! Of course! The fry kit comes with a huge-ass pot and propane
burner! And bottles for the end product! Hot damn! I've always wanted to try this and
never had the time!"
Lucy was enormously excited as she pulled out the conical fermenter and Nia read text
from the side of the box.
"Oh neat. This uses yeast that sinks to the bottom instead of floating to the top. So the
conical tank gathers the debris to be removed."
Grinning, Kara held up the letter and read, "we hope that the brewing equipment will
help out when the winter weather comes back."
"Hell yes!" Lucy crowed then gave Kara a crafty look. "You're guarding that last box,
Baby Danvers. Cough up the goodies!"
With a wider smile, Kara reached in to pull out something lumpy in a plastic bag and
held it out to Alex.
"I'm pretty sure this is yours."
Despite the mischievous mirth in her sister's voice, Alex accepted the strange object,
startled to not only find it very lightweight, but soft and squishy.
"Is this a stuffed animal?"
The disbelief in her voice was unmistakable, but as the plastic was torn away and the
plush creature revealed, laughter wracked her frame until it clearly hurt.
It was a dinosaur.
Something T-rex/raptor-ish looking, with felt teeth and claws and an intricate pelt of
fuzzy material, just the right size to cradle the ostrich egg that started the whole saga.
"Oh, this is classic! This is mine, the rest of you can fuck off."
"The letter says, 'to match your dinosaur egg!'"
"Yep, that's what ran through my head too!"
The gang was also delighted in the wire egg basket shaped like a chicken that Kara
was enamored of.
"Ack!" Nia suddenly yelled and raced off. "The pool!"
That signaled the gang snapping back into action, carrying boxes off to the clubhouse
and getting the truck and trailer put away. Then it was time for shorts and suits and
helping Alex to hoist herself onto the makeshift deck edge, Kara cradling the bruised
leg to help get her settled into the cool water. Each of them squawking about the cold
water, the gang settled in for a blissful soak, laughing and carrying on as afternoon
became evening and chores and dinner were completed and they returned to the pool.
None of them even cared that the camera was still running. They were together, happy
and had an exquisite sunset to end an excellent day.
What more could they ask for?