OK...maybe 12 months between posts IS a bit too long

Just when you thought it was safe to venture into blogger territory again...I'm back!!! Back in Kentucky, back in the holler, back on the farm, back on blogger...all that's the same, but quite a lot else has changed (but not my creatively fractured grammar.)

Actually, Danny and I (and Sam, my brand-new stepson. Well, not brand new--he's in college) made it back to the farm the first week of March, albeit for only a week. Small Farm Girl called me the 2nd of March and said, "Um, not sure if you know, but there are tornadoes heading toward your holler." I thought she was joking, since there had never been a tornado in the immediate area of KentuckyHollers for as long as anyone here can remember. But, as we all know, she wasn't joking. And I sat in Flagstaff, watching tornadoes touch down all around the farm I wasn't sure still existed.

So the three of us piled into my Durango and drove straight through from Flagstaff to Kentucky. No one I could get through to by phone could even get to my farm. Disaster relief had the roads closed.

The tornado touched down in the next county's biggest town, obliterating most of its business district. It then continued into our county, hit the holler to the west of us, the holler opposite the mouth of our holler, went straight down our main access road, destroyed the nearest small town, crossed the highway, tore through three other small towns and finally dissipated a couple counties over. Then 6 inches of snow was dumped on top of the destruction.

We drove into KentuckyHollers at about 2 am on the 5th of March. I was never so relieved and happy to see as when we drove up and saw the farm still standing. Power and phone had just been reconnected that afternoon, so we piled into bed to recover from the drive.

Then next day, we did what we could to secure the house, Danny went to a job interview (why waste a trip?), and I did my best not to cry while driving past all the devastation. Then we all piled into the truck and drove straight through back to Flagstaff. I discovered I was far too old for long-haul road trips.

We moved back for good in July. Within the first two weeks of getting back, the Durango's engine blew (broken piston), we bought pigs, built a woodshed, Danny started his new job, and was called in for an interview with the company he actually wanted to work for. SmallFarmGirl brought back my goats and rabbits, and we started an addition to the barn. Arabella dove right back into ballet, and all of us got roped into sewing costumes and making props for her "Alice in Wonderland" ballet, all of us got the flu, and the power went out eight (I counted: eight) times.

Just to keep things equitable, the week I got my Durango out of the shop (two months later, with a new engine), Danny tried arguing with a deer while driving his Camry. The deer, and the local auto body shop, won. All told, we poured over $13K into our vehicles in 8 week's time. I don't recommend this as a hobby...or even as a diversion.

Things are starting to slow down now. "Alice" is over, ballet is through for the year, both cars are functioning the ways cars are supposed to function (knock on wood), the rabbits are doing what rabbits do (more on that later...that's a hint, by the way!), the pigs are doing what rabbits do (just not with the same partners), the barn addition is mostly done, and I can finally can start working on the house, blog, etc., again.

 In other news, Phelan is moving about 2 hours away!! She is like the uber-homesteader! Her blog was the one that got me started (yeah, KentuckyHollers is all her fault!) So there should lots more interesting things happening around here...which hopefully won't take 12 months to relate, next time.

(P.S. If this post shows up without paragraphs, it's Blogger's fault, not mine. If it does, ignore this postscript. Stupid preview function.)