Preparations proceed apace for the Castle Relocation.

Yesterday SWWBO and I went out to the soon-to-be new Castle Argghhh! to check on the eviction proceedings of the squatter.

The farm not having had any dairy/beef activity in two years and little to no human activity since the estate sale in March, a critter had taken up residence in the nice, comfy, dry and easy-to-work dirt in the barn.

As we intend to put Willy and Pete, the Destriers of Argghhh! into that facility, the squatter needed encouragement to relocate.

We took the approach many governments do to squatter villages. We had it bulldozed, or, in this particular case, bobcatted. Then we dumped about 13 tons of gravel on top of it, as the place needed leveling and some other site-prep work prior to installation of the stalls. We hope the squatter was out food-gathering and not buried in his tunnels - but if you aren't bright enough to get out from in front of the bulldozer, perhaps your little corner of the gene pool needed some chlorine, anyway.

Regardless, the work was well done, and there was no evidence of the squatter having returned, a good thing.

SWWBO and I then went to do a little shopping. Browsing, really, as we weren't intending to buy just yet. We checked out the farm supply places for their stockage, and pricing on fencing materials, and went out looking at various types of atv/utility vehicles, as one is going to be needful to put out fencing, bringing in firewood, during pasture burns and such. We also did some general "driving the back roads" rubber-necking. Doniphan County, Kansas (two counties north of us, we were headed for Saint Joseph, Mo) is really pretty country, and is completely unlike what most of you *think* Kansas looks like.

Doniphan, Atchison, and and northern Leavenworth counties are all part of the "Glacial Hills" region of Kansas, marking the greatest extent in the region of the glacial epoch of the 2nd Ice Age, circa 700K years ago. The legacy of that is loess soils (a product of the grinding action of ice on rocks, and requires real efforts to control soil erosion, as it's poorly bonded together essentially being rock flour...) and glacial till (sandy, clayey dirt mixed with non-native stone that's been scooped up, carried, and then deposited by the retreat of the glacier), which in our case manifests as a lot of pink granite and very loose soil littering the countryside (that's what's caught my eye thus far, I haven't really done a rock-type survey yet) in addition to the limestones of the Lower Shawnee group that provide the bulk of the stone in the region.

There's also oil in this area - and with gas prices at their current level, there are currently a lot of horse-head pumps nodding up and down. According to the maps, there is an active well on the parcel to our west, and several active wells to our north and east. Yes, the mineral rights come with the land. No, we're not intending to become oil barons.

Back to what we were doing, away from the geography lesson (hey, that's my undergrad degree, I've had to brush it off a bit, I admit).

We intend to *walk* the fences to check them, because we can both use the exercise - but I'm not walking the line (especially along the rocky cliff by the creek) *and* schlep fencing materials with me. Nope. We'll walk 'em and then drive up there to fix 'em as needed. As we're actually going to be a bona-fide farm (crop: brome hay - should be able to make enough to pay the taxes on this place and supply the needs for our horses and mebbe some select horsey friends) we'll even qualify for the farm equipment sales tax exemption - as long as we buy a vehicle with bench/bucket seats, and not a four-wheeled motorcycle. We're looking at Polaris Rangers, John Deere Gators, Kawasaki Mules, etc.

I'm also in the market for a smallish tractor - but that may wait until next year, after we see how expenses run this year. I've got a buddy with a tractor, a trailer, and a truck to pull it with that I might be able to con into bringing out my way if I have a need... Right Leavenworth Centurion? 8^ )

Anybody need a thirty-year-old milking machine?

Just checkin'.

Today will be a trip to Cabela's to procure gun-fodder, targets, and target stands, as we expect to host a small shooting party at the new demesne on July 4th. We'll also take a gander at and endure sales-people pushing the Kawasaki Mules at us.

Speaking of all that... 'tis time to Sit, Shower, and Shave, and head off to Cabelas!

While I'm doing a Urban Yuppy Farmer-wannabe post I might as well use this space to put up installment three of the Armorer's Sister's live-in remodel...

The rebar snakes have slithered away. ☺

Yesterday they began to dig a big hole in the mud. Although there is not enough data to establish statistical significance, I believe we have a trend. Dodger’s urinary adventures appear to be correlated with bobcat use. They use it and he pees. We’ll have to track the trend for a while before we know if the hypothesis is correct.

Boomer, the large-and-in-charge tuxedo cat apparently spends the entire day supervising the project from the window, including telling the workers what to do. They think he is funny.

While they were excavating, they also broke the cable line to 2 television sets and my Internet connection. Teenage girls get VERY upset when there is no Internet because that is how they connect with the outside world. Come to think of it, we weren’t too pleased either. When I left this morning the project supervisor (human, not feline) was outside fixing it. I did not rub his face in the fact that many people are following this little journey, but I may include him on the list.

You will be relieved to know that the ice dispenser has been repaired and now dispenses ice and not parts. Boomer supervised that, too. Including climbing into the repairman’s tool bag. It’s a good thing he likes cats.

Installment two, should you need to catch up - is available here.