Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Making peace with the rain


This is the year the rain just won't stop in my part of Oregon.
It's also now official: May 2010 is going into Oregon's weather books as the third wettest May on record.

Today is June 2nd, our 18th consecutive day of rain, and here is what I saw when I went outside this morning...

A sodden sky:

Soggy animals:


Saturated soil:

So much rain on the leaves that the branches are bending down toward the ground:

Mud that no amount of straw can conquer:

The goat boys refuse to come out:

Even the strawberries are hanging their heads in dismay:

There's no place left for all this water to go, so it just stands around, looking bored:

It's no secret why Oregon is so green:





Peace, rain:

I'm not going to complain about you any more. I have to believe you'll quit when you're finished.

And at least you're a warm rain:

34 comments:

  1. Your pictures are beautiful,Danni.

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  2. I just wanna say, I'm sick of the rain. I can't make peace with it, but hopefully it's filling up ponds and lakes and dumping a bunch of snow on Hood. I just know that the year we finally get our rain catchment system in, we'll get the driest winter on record...

    Your pictures are so pretty! How do you get your shots in the rain? I'm skeered I'm gonna wreck my camera, so I've been a wimp about it.

    Next time I'm lamenting another day of rain, I'll have to remember to be happy that I'm not a llama. A soggy, rain-soaked llama.

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  3. I had to do the same thing. With a lot planned and out of town guests coming I was so stressed because it won't stop raining. I wanted to show off our beautiful Northwest that, as you know, is the most beautiful place on earth...when it's sunny.
    This too shall pass.

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  4. Okay, really? I was shuddering, but with you 99.7% when you placed the beautiful iris in the water ever so gently with your finger tips. Very sacrificial and peace like....but then...The hand in the water. I think that number just dropped to at least...I dunno, 78.2%. I have to work up to that.
    Those are some soggy critters. Poor Kai. Shes just drippy. And my new little goat guys were not diggin the rain here today, either.
    But man, look at all those lovely green plants. Oregon *is* known for all of its lovely greenness. :-)

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  5. Peace is good! I can only imagine how hard it is to have a farm full of animals and slush around in wetness day after day. I agree with accepting what is. When I catch myself complaining about something like the weather, I try to remember that things can always be worse in some way or another.

    I send you my wishes for a rain-free day. ps. your pictures are beautiful.

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  6. we haven't had 18 days but it sort of feels like it. we had a tornado warning here last night and it was a bit dicey for a while. we had hail and tons of rain and flooding all over the place. more is on the way. but i am like you. it won't be long before it is bone dry again and the rain will stop when it is finished! i don't know if your animals are the same but teddy looks at me like i have some control over this weather!

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  7. Well, that really looks like a lot of rain. Great pictures though! And as you said thankfully it's a warm rain, could be cold and miserable. Just hang in there it will stop.

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  8. We could sure use some of that rain here! We have hit the part of summer where its really hot and the rain dries up!

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  9. I will trade you some hot and humid south GA weather, dry and parched earth, and hot panting animals for that rain!
    Well, some of it, anyway.
    Love, love all the green.
    And, you are a girl after my own heart-making peace with the rain.

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  10. "At least you're a warm rain"...now that's making lemonade. If you're hands get too pruny, hop on a plane for New Mexico - "at least it's a dry heat."

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  11. My sister is in Portland and she's not feeling so calm about the whole thing. She's feeling downright 'aaaauuuugggghhh'. She says there isn't a hint of sun in the 7 day forecast.

    Here's wishing for all you soggy folks and critters up in OR---some sunshine.

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  12. Yes it will quite when its done...it better be soon or I might just hurt the weather man!

    Enjoy our soggy weather and keep moving so the moss doesn't grow on you! Kim

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  13. Farmgirl, We went through that last year here in Maine, thats why we say we have 5 seasons - Mud included :) Just be on the look out with the critters, when it gets so wet they can develop foot rot. But with all things this shall pass. Stay dry.

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  14. Great pics. Glad you made peace with the rain. It is so lucious there. A piece of heaven! Before you know it, the sun and heat of summer will be upon you. xoxo

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  15. I, personally, would like to kick the rain in the butt ... I mean, how much water is truly necessary to keep Oregon the lush green state that it is. So I'm glad you've made peace with it. Now maybe it'll let up and become the beautiful cool summer that we all love!

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  16. I feel your pain. You need to take up goat Haiku too. The goatmother wants to know how you keep the slugs off your hostas.

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  17. We've been experiencing a lot of the same weather, although, we have been blessed with the occasional break in the clouds when the sun beams down and buoys us up again.

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  18. How beautiful your peace is. I felt it from here. Thank you for sharing your love and understanding of nature.

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  19. I'm so glad you've made peace with the rain. I haven't yet... I'm sick of it! Although, it has let up a little today and I jumped at the chance to get out in the garden and take care of some much needed stuff.
    I try to remind myself that it's the rain that makes Western Oregon so beautiful and green!

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  20. Good golly. That is a lot of rain, but your pictures are beautiful. Poor soggy animals... thankfully it's a warm rain. So, what's going on? We're expecting record-breaking heat this weekend... 100 on Sunday! I don't know why or how it started, but I'm always telling our animals to "stay warm and safe and dry." Even if it's 100 degrees out and we haven't seen rain for weeks. So, Danni, you all stay warm and safe and dry, you hear? :)

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  21. love your narration as always....the rain looking bored...that is actually a nice perspective on a rain that won't quit. We get soggy here quite a bit in the winter and it is not a warm rain.

    Hang in there!

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  22. Yes, this rain is nasty. But do you want to hear a really nasty rain story? Our resident raccoon has decided to use our roof for a 'raccoon comfort station'. Do you know what I mean? Can you picture the result? And then the rain washes it all over the roof and down into our flower beds.
    My brave husband just returned from forcefully hosing the disaster off. Standing at the door, he handed me his clothes and muttered, "Please wash these in REALLY hot water!"

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  23. You always have such a positive attitude and outlook. I love the rain...HATE mud! Too bad you can't have one without the other to some degree! If nothing else, the rain made some great pictures for you!

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  24. Cool pictures! I hope you get some relief from the rain soon!

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  25. Great pics, Danni! You are always welcome to come on out to Maryland! We have the green and the heat, but not as much rain as you. ~Lynn

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  26. Hi Jen - Thank you! :-)

    Hey Paula - You'll laugh about my camera...it's a quite old, pocket digital camera - # 4 of the same variety that I am completely in love with. Each one spends time getting dropped, stepped on, used in the rain, chewed on by various critters, and occasionally getting sat on before it's time to order a new (old) one on Ebay. My big (fancy schmancy) Canon never gets taken out in the rain, but my daily workhorse gets taken everywhere with me, rain, snow, hail or shine.

    Hi goatgirl - It is the most beautiful place on earth, isn't it? :-)

    Hey frugalmom - Oh dear, I didn't realize your aversion small pools of water extended to include naturally-filled rain puddles, too. lol :-)

    Hi leslie - It's odd to catch those glimpses of perspective, isn't it? To fuss about the weather when other people are facing challenges so much greater - it suddenly seems unnecessary.

    Hey jaz - Now that's one thing we *don't* have: tornado warnings. I am thankful for that!

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  27. Hello Tina - As I look out the window, I actually see some tiny patches of blue sky up there. I'm trying not to get too excited about this. LOL

    Hey Texan - Well, if I could, I would happily share some of our wet stuff with you dry-folk down there. We certainly have enough for everybody at this point! :-)

    Hi polly's path!! There's a dose of perspective for me again...I am quite unfamiliar with hot & humid, but I hear it can be quite nasty to deal with over an extended period of time. We all have our challenges, don't we? lol

    Hi 7MSN - Your comment made me laugh!

    Hey CeeCee - what's your sister doing in Portland? Oh, and tell her to check out the forecast for tomorrow - we're actually supposed to have some clearing...and a high between 70 & 74...wahoo!

    Hi Martha - Thanks for your comment! I think we've officially added MUD to our seasons this year - I could hardly walk up our hill yesterday evening, for all the slipping, sloshing and sliding I was doing. :-(

    Thanks for your mention about the foot rot - I am actually quite careful with my critters' feet. That last storm caught me by surprise because we've all been sick, so the animals were much wetter than they usually are. If rain is scheduled at night usually, I stall everybody so everyone's feet and bodies have a chance to dry out really well. Their feet are picked and cleaned every other morning, too.

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  28. Hi inadvertent farmer - I've given up on believing our weather forecasters. Actually, I look at 4 or 5 different forecast sources and generalize from there. I also sniff the air, watch the sky and make my own weather forecast - more often than not, I'm spot-on. :-)

    Hello AJ-Oaks - Sun and heat of summmer....ooooh, that sounds SO nice right now! We all could use some of that!!

    Hi CaliforniaGrammy - Yeah, we've had more than enough of the wet stuff to keep us green - enough already!! This is certainly an unusual growing & gardening year, I'll tell you that much. Not sure how well my tomatoes are going to fare after all of this rain stops.

    Hey Marigold - Please tell the goatmother that ours slugs prefer to eat all my other luscious garden greenery before they'll start in on the hostas. Go figure.

    Hi Carolynn - It's funny how a few brief sunbreaks can buoy the spirits, isn't it?

    Hi Suzanne - thank you for your really nice comment!

    Hey lisawith4 - Glad you got a chance to get into your garden for a bit - I ran outside yesterday long enough to muck out the stalls, walk the goats, let the chickens out for a bit....and sprinkle slug bait around my basil, eggplant and celery. I think we got more than an inch of rain again last night...

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  29. Hey morningbrayfarm - You're going to be 100 degrees this weekend? Wow. Just wow. We can occasionally get heat like that, but usually we work up to it. I'd hate to think about us just jumping from where we are right now up to 100 - then you'd hear all the Oregonians fussing about how HOTTTT it is.... (whine, whine).. :-)

    Hiiiii JaneK!!! Yeah, it was soggy all winter here, too...you know it's bad when even the die-hard native Oregonians start complaining about the rain. We all know wet, but there's a limit even for us! LOL

    Hi Zitrone: Wow, that's quite a rain story. And Ewwwwwwwww!!!
    Anyway, I thought that particular raccoon-guy had left town - or is this a new one with the same filthy habit? So, if it all washes into your flower beds, you should soon be able to tell whether it has the same fertilizing abilities as other sorts of manure, right? Maybe you're going to have the BIGGEST ROSES ever this year and have Mr. Poor-Bathroom-Manners Raccoon to thank for them. LOL.

    Hi Sarah - Well....I don't *always* have a positive attitude and outlook...(just ask Marcee). LOL :-)

    Hi Nancy - thank you!

    Hey Razzberry Corner - Oh, you're too kind - thanks for the invitation. My plane arrives at 6:30pm tonight. Can you pick me up?
    ;-)

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  30. Sounds like our summer here in Maine last year. pretty pics despite the rain.

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  31. Just read your last post too. What an awesome Mom you have. My mother could barely handle tending my cats let alone the rest of it. You two are SO fortunate to have each other.

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  32. Hey farmgirl,
    any of your blogging friends have ideas on how to really discourage the nasty raccoon from ..i...ng on our roof? He is back and seems to have brought a friend!!!! Using the results for fertilization is not possible since the odor will have this part of town flee in horror. Bill had to dig a hole close to China and bury it to eliminate the lingering scent.
    HELP!!!!

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  33. Oh! It almost makes me miss Washington!! Except we've had our fair share recently here in ID, which I've enjoyed, except for all the wet critters-they always look so miserable, and the goat girls smell like wet dog when it is time to milk!

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  34. Reminds me of my childhood..."rain rain go away, come back another day".

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