Average

Momma Nature is under no obligation. An average is just an average. Average here is 3-4 inches of precipitation per month. Sometimes, you just want what you want because you had it, and you feel like you deserve it. Well, I don’t know, I feel that way anyway.

“Could we get some more rain here please? We’re trying to grow some veggies and it’s like, super dry”

“Well, if you take a look at the last several years, I have been VERY generous with the rain. Heck, there were a few months there where I was giving you 3 and 4 times the average. So…keep on whining, but I am still hitting my numbers. Call me back when there’s a real problem”

“But 2 years ago you were giving us WAY too much water. We were drowning. We were literally begging you to stop.”

“Sorry, but…an average is an average. I didn’t create language”

“Well, can you send us the…median?”

We got a nice little smack of rain on Sunday. Not enough to get us out of the woods, but enough to get us to the next clearing. It put just enough moisture in the soil for about a day and a half of field work. We got the old crops turned in, the rye and vetch cover from earlier turned down, and a buckwheat and barley cover into said old crop areas. We’ve been letting these tasks pile up, because there is nothing that kills me more than watching the soil blow away in cloud of pulverized silt. The soil has been so dry, it just soaked in that 3/4 inches of rain and the moisture all but disappeared 2 days later.

“You know these hot, windy days are way above average!”

“We’ve been over this. Why are you still talking? I got nature stuff to do.”

So we’ll get back to irrigating, after a few days of…respite? Don’t get me wrong, I am grateful for that little work window. We don’t have the watering capacity to also water our cover crops, generally speaking. But the 10 day forecast feels like 20 when there is little rain in the forecast.

“PLEASE!!”

“If you don’t leave me alone, I’m going to torture you with rain clouds on the southern horizon moving East.”

“FINE. Fine. Wait, aren’t you already doing that?”

“I shouldn’t need to remind you. I am under no obligation.”

“Sheesh. Talk about stingy”

“WHAT!?”

“Nothing!!”