When Jim and I first met, we both lived in separate apartments in Richmond. After dating a few months, I moved in with him (Satan was moving to the East End, and I couldn't afford an apartment by myself). After three years together Jim & I realized that a one bedroom apartment was just too small and we were tired of being able to listen in on all the neighbors (and them listen to us). So we started saving up money to buy a house.
We decided that we wanted a little land - say an acre or so - so as to not be too close to other people. And we didn't have a lot of money, which left out most of the suburban areas around Richmond. After months of looking we found a house that we really liked. Unfortunately, someone else had bought it. So we kept looking until our fantastic and patient real estate agents, Pam Russell and Linda Urgo, said that since we really liked that particular house, why don't we ask if we could have the same house built on a different lot. And thus it came to pass that in March 1995 we had a contract to have our 1300 sq. ft. house built on 2 acres of land. Below is our land at the beginning of tree clearing one sunny Saturday in Spring 1995
Of course, having a contract for a house is just the start. Jim and I next went through the process of getting a mortgage - for the first time ever. We knew nothing at all about the process and so we read a lot. Fortunately my boss at the time recommended the mortgage company she had used to buy her first home. They didn't seem to jerk us around too much and gave pretty good advice as to when to lock in an interest rate. At the end we wound up with an 8% 30 year loan with no points and minimal fees. The house was finished and after the usual worrying caused by final inspections (plural as they needed to be done more than once) and closing, we moved in to it at the end of August 1995. At this same time I had been transferred at work to a new job and location and also needed to replace my trusty 8 year old Ford Festiva (I got a 96 Saturn SL1) so was I experiencing some (OK, a lot of) stress. By November we had our first snowfall in the country, a light dusting. In December we had another light snow; it looked very picturesque. Then in January 1996 we had 2 major snowstorms. More than 14 inches of snow fell both times. We were snowed in for 3 days the first "blizzard"; the second happened on a Friday and everything was plowed by Monday morning. Below is the house after the first big snowfall in the middle of January 1996.
Of course, I had to shovel out the driveway and clear off the walkways and the decks. Fortunately, the neighbors all got together and got someone from a nearby farm to bring their tractor and plow the 1/2 mile gravel drive so we all could get out. (Did I mention that our house is at the very end of that 1/2 mile drive?) Here I am with shovel in hand and no, it is not a snow shovel. I hadn't bought snow shovel because it just doesn't snow a great deal in central Virginia - usually. I now have a snow shovel, just in case.
In the summer of '97 we decided to farm a small portion of our estate. I put together an 64 sq. ft. garden plot on our gently sloping red clay backyard. In this we mixed in a good 50 cubic feet (or so) of organic humus, perlite and top soil. We then planted (in late June, a month and a half behind the planting schedule for the area) 4 Hot Banana Peppers plants, 4 Anaheim pepper plants, 2 Green Bell Pepper plants, 2 Lemonboy yellow tomato plants, 2 red tomato plants (not Beefsteak), 2 rows of Sweet Corn, 2 rows of green beans, a row of carrots, a row of Icicle Radishes, a row of green onions and some marigolds around the perimeter to keep the harmful bugs away. July came and the result is the picture below with just about everything growing fast and healthy - except for the carrots, onions and radishes. Then we had HUGE infestations of Japanese beetles which loved eating two things the most - the rosebushes in the front yard and the green beans in the garden. We were forced to using bug spray on the veggies. Then the raccoons ate all the ears of corn. But we had peppers coming out the ying-yang. The final harvest from the garden was on Nov 3rd, just after the first killing frost. There were still tomato and pepper blossoms on the plants. Next year its just peppers, tomatoes, and garlic.
Actually in the summer of '98, we planted the Aneheims and Banana peppers again, as well as spinach, lettuce, garlic, and the tomato plants, one of those being a cherry tomato plant. The tomatoes grew leggy and didn't produce as much as we would have liked. The pepper plants did well, though with a slow start. Our lettuce and spinach was very tasty and made many fesh salads and the garlic, well, we didn't pick any. We also improved on our herb garden adding 2 more varieties of rosemary, tarragon once again and some beautiful lavender. We also grew basil in the herb and vegetable gardens. Basil really enjoys growing with tomato plants and the smell that arises from brushing against both is very scrumptious. Our last harvest from the garden in '98 was right before Thanksgiving (late November) due to the very mild weather.
Also in the summer of '98, we took down a very large dead oak tree. However, things did not go according to plan. Jim and I were on 2 different pull ropes while my father chainsawed the tree and my mother supervised from a very safe distance. The sawing went on for over 15 minutes without the tree budging. Then with a creak and a crack the tree started falling - straight in my direction. I was tangled in the pull rope when the tree began its descent and couldn't run away. So I did the next best thing; I stepped behind a small oak tree, turned sideways, threw my arms up to protect my head and tried to become as thin as possible. It almost worked. A limb came around the tree and struck me in the middle of my back, knocking me to the ground. The tree limb shattered upon impact and I had severly excruciating pain. At first I sat up in agony before my rational self could regain control. I laid back down with my knees bent and made sure I could feel / move my toes and feet. Meanwhile Jim comes running up in a panic ( I think my mother was too). I tell him to call 911 Emergency. He does and my parents try to remove some of the tree debris from around me. As luck would have it, our neighbors 2 houses up, the Coleman's, are members of the local volunteer rescue squad. Mrs. Coleman is the first to arrive and assess the situation. For some reason I remain calm and not in too much pain (but a lot of discomfort as I have dirt, weeds, bark and ants in my hair, up my shorts, and all over my back); I tell Jim where my wallet and insurance cards are and to go get them. The rescue squad arrives and I get trussed up on a back board and whisked off to the hospital (St. Mary's).
The stay in St. Mary' was brief, if you consider 6 hours in the ER brief. I had xray's donel no broken bones, blood work done - I have healthy blood. Then they needed a urine sample for more lab work.
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