Tales From The Crooked Shed

I lived in a small house on a dead end street at the bottom of a long drive on the island of Maui for sixteen years. I have lived along the scenic byway in the even smaller Hale Mana at the bottom of a longer drive in the wilderness of North Carolina for eight. Stuff rolls down hill and accumulates no matter how remote, what size the house and how long the drive.

I needed the Crooked Shed. I have more stuff again. It accumulates.

Today the painting was finished. The first shelf was hung. The roof peaks were bat barricaded. I have all kind varmints.

There were wild pigs on Maui. I have my own wild pigs in North Carolina.

They are ripping up the Great Lawn. It annoys me. I put in a call to my hunter.

It begins quiet in a blue meadow in the first light of day. The creatures of the night have finished their shift. As the sun rises, flocks of small song birds begin dive bombing the wild flowers. The daytime chorus of migration takes over.

Life always flows through gardens.

I have seen a solitary monarch butterfly feeding in the meadow every day this week. I don't know if it was the same one hanging out and resting for a bit or a new one each day. It was always just one. Monarchs are not very common up here. I see them for a short period mostly in the fall.

Today there were a half a dozen Monarchs feeding in the meadow at any given time. I have three kind milkweed growing up here, but have never seen any signs of them using it to breed. They were all fresh and perfect. I assume they are just passing through. Up here on the continental divide I always wonder which way they are headed.

My pile of collectibles has been sitting out in the weather for a very long time. It was officially turning to junk. The wood in there is officially rotted. After eight years, it is time for this pile to go.

So it began. The collectibles are in flux. The first layer was examined and sorted. Some of it is going to be carted back up the drive and deaccumulated. The rotten wood will be burned. The pile will eventually disappear. Something new can go there.

So how much stuff can a crooked shed hold. That is the question. The exterior decorating has already begun. It will look so much nicer than a pile of junk when people roll down my drive.