Science! Psuedo-science! Nature! Art! Nonsense!
April 27, 2013
farm, fire, nature, party firewood, garden, nature, red shed, solstice, solstice fire, summer solstice, tilling, tree architecture, winter, wood, woodpile Leave a comment
Prepare for winter of course. No rest for the pattern bound on this planet.
Firewood in the red shed.
Remember that tree? Well it has been almost completely consolidated.
Spring light on the winter woodpile.
It’s not just winter we get ready for in Spring. We have to get ready for summer too.
Freshly weedeaten and tilled. Way too early to plant though.
Dirt.
And the summer solstice fire is growing. (Thanks to the tree.) Architecture by Allen.
Solstice fire at 2/3rds ready.
February 10, 2013
farm, fire, nature black walnut, chainsaw, destruction, firewood, piles, skeleton, solstice, wood Leave a comment
After around 8 hours of work (times 2.25 people), the distinguished tree is dismantled. Plenty of firewood for next winter and wood for the solstice fire too!
Black walnut dismantled
Wood piles
Almost as tall as Ame.
Several cords (splitter required)
Solstice wood (several piles like this)
Butt log
Base by the ball (over 36 inches)
An interesting joint.
Tree skeleton.
January 31, 2013
farm, fire, nature apocalypse, destruction, solstice, wood 4 Comments
Good morning walnut tree.
Morning sun peeks over the mountain.
That’s what happens with 40-50MPH winds, soggy ground from 3 inches of rain, and a formidable old tree that had already begun its ultimate lean.
The butt log is several feet in diameter.
From time to time people wonder where the massive solstice fires come from. Wonder no more!
Down to earth.
An ornamental forest pansy redbud is smashed under the crown in the circle—a second victim of the storm.
Adventures in tree removal begin tomorrow. Anybody want to buy the butt log? It has to be worth a few thousand bucks.
December 23, 2012
fire, party apocalypse, photography, santa, solstice 5 Comments
Santa? Or was that Satan? Showed up and (just barely) prevented the Apocalypse. Even 20 MPH winds and a huge bonfire did not ignite the predicted worldwide conflagration.
Santa (in red hat with ball) prevents the bonfire from spreading to NYC as planned.
December 20, 2012
fire, party apocalypse, solstice Leave a comment
Tomorrow is the end of the world. See you at the solstice party. Betty sent the weather forecast along.
We are very sad that due to the end of the world this year’s umpity-ump-zillionth frozen winter solstice party will be the last. The solstice this year is at end-date of a 5,125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar. So tragic! Sun sets Friday the 21st at 4:52. We’ll light the bonfire shortly thereafter. It’s a sight to see, especially if it is the very last thing that you see ever.
Bring your friends, warm clothing, some food to share, warm clothing, boots, warm clothing, cheesy christmas hats, warm clothing, and a bottle or two of good booze. Kids are welcome, but bundle them up.
We will provide a complete bar, a keg, eating accoutrements, a HUGE bonfire, a barn with an ipod playing 500 xmas songs on random, festive lighting, horses, dogs, a peacock, and goats. Ridiculous behavior seems to be par for the course.
Happy very last solstice to all. We guess that turning the sun around this year is not really that important. It’s the end of the world, and we feel fine.
November 25, 2012
fire, party solstice 2 Comments
December 21st is getting closer. Days are getting shorter. The end of the world is nigh.
To commemorate the end of the world.
December 19, 2011
fire, party solstice Leave a comment
The solstice party was an absolute blast this year. I think we may even have managed to get the sun turned around a few days early. As always, the fire was critical.
Before the lighting.
The lighting. Turn sun turn!
A short (sideways?!) video of the lighting:
Thanks to Drew Kilbourne and Jim DelGrosso for the bits.
December 15, 2011
administrivia, blog business solstice 2 Comments
A few party iterations ago (6? 7?), we started asking everyone to park in the field across the creek and walk across the rope bridge to the party. Please don’t park along the road as the authorities frown on that. Enter the field from Castleman Road where the yellow arrow is (not the driveway where the red do not enter thing is).
Enter parking field at yellow arrow gate. Park, then walk across the rope bridge.
—-[canned directions]—-
Our place is on the Shenandoah river at 754 Castleman Road, Berryville, VA 22611 around 60 miles from Washington (NOTE that most GPS systems and google maps have the house in the wrong location.)
Directions: From DC, get on the Dulles Toll Road (267 West). Then Take the Dulles Greenway Toll road (267) to Leesburg. Get on Route 7 West bypass and go past Leesburg, past Purcellville, and over the Blue Ridge mountain (20 miles). Just after you cross the Shenandoah river on the big bridge, take the first right on route 603 (castleman road).
Castleman winds down by the river. When the road veers back away from the river to the left, our house is the first on the right.
December 14, 2011
blog business solstice Leave a comment
The apothecary shed has gotten into the solstice spirit. Here is a preview of what you’ll see around here on Saturday night during the annual frozen solstice party…other than the huge bonfire of course.
Even the bridge is into the act.
December 2, 2011
What better to do on a clear crisp Fall day than burn brush? This fire pales in comparison to the solstice fire, of course, but it is a good warmup.
Beginning.
MIddle.
End.
See you all for the solstice bonfire in 15 days!
