Highlight: Once upon a time, there was a hurricane, a pair of scissors, and an okra plant. Who would ever suspect how the accidental coexistence of those three things could lead to a Serendipity Farmhouse emergency and a very unexpected Lesson Learned?

Florence is coming! Florence is coming to Virginia! Batten down the hatches! Stow away everything that isn’t tied down!

And so it was a week ago. Tables, chairs, and garden tools were stowed away. My beautiful, forward thinking wife made sure everything was safe from tropical storm wind and rain – even her garden gloves.

While on our RV trip in Mr. Monte’s bug out buggy, Florence changed course and moved further south and west. The immediate danger was gone. We returned home and set about our normal routine – even in the garden – even though all that had been stowed away had not been returned to its rightful place. And, of course, that included dear wife’s garden gloves.

On the 16th, okra needed to be picked. The beautiful woman, whom I love so dearly, went cheerfully with scissors and bucket in hand. She had everything she needed to pick okra. Everything except her garden gloves.

A snip here, a snip there and soon seven okra pods were in her bucket. Number eight was waiting high atop an okra bush nearly seven feet up. She gently bent the push to where she could reach that eighth pod. Perhaps it was the awkward position; perhaps it was the unusual angle; no matter what it was, as the scissors snapped sharply shut, a small piece of her middle finger slid into the path of the blades. The blood followed soon afterwards

In her stoic way she called to me while heading towards the house. I saw the problem; I saw the blood; I saw this was no simple cut.

First one, then another, first aid kits, hydrogen peroxide, and other emergency items made their way to the kitchen where we attempted to stop the bleeding. There was no combination of bandages, gauze, or tape that would stem the flow. Within minutes, we were in the car heading 25 miles to the urgent care facility.

There was a wait, but not too long. There were experienced medical professionals that had just the right makings for a custom fit dressing. Finally, the bleeding was under control and the wound was properly cleaned.

Today, dear spouse is nursing her wound and she asked me to tell you about here Lesson Learned: Never take a shortcut, always use your garden gloves, and always, always look closely at what your are doing.

There is no doubt that the next batch of okra cooked at SFH will be accompanied by a remembrance of once upon a time, when there was a hurricane, a pair of scissors, and an okra plant.

Weather: The remnants of FLORENCE are heading our way and will dump heavy rains on the region on Monday. The level in the river is low enough to take 2-3 inches. Any more than that, however, may mean moving the cars to high ground and spending a night or two in El Camino Del Monte in the church parking lot.

2018-09-14: High – 77º, precipitation 0.06 (Details – click here.)

2018-09-15: High – 73º, precipitation 0.00 (Details – click here.)

2018-09-16: High – 71º, precipitation 0.02 (Details – click here.)

Plantings: Nothing to report

Harvest: 

2018-09-14: Nothing to report

2018-09-15: Nothing to report

2018-09-16: 8 okra pods, 1 finger