Today We Build Callouses

life in Golden Bay is fine. we work in the morning, Kelsey weeds anything and everything. then harvests zucchini. makes lunch. cleans lunch. everyone else stinks of sweat. tiggy is the main source of delight. Though Emerson is more personable, Tiggy shares the cabin with us. We call her, she responds, then walks away. She sleeps under the curtains, and raps on the door, signaling her desire, in or out, middle of the night, or early morning, Micah gets up: "Mrmph,hey Tiggy." "Meeeeow."
Our cabin, named "the Penthouse" is rustic. Wood and big windows, it was the original building on the site. Outside, a fully sustainable vegetable garden awaits us every morning. So do multiple acres of gorse and trees! We dine with the season, so now that means carrots,aubergines, green peppers, tomatoes, beets, sweet corn, green beans, pears, a few strawberries, apples, and, of course, avocado. Our hosts, Chris and Sylvia are on their way to commercial avocado growing. Though in its infancy, there is a steady supply of soft and buttery green for our bread, or salads, or guacamole. Or desert. But for the real treat, Kels and I go for a little liquid golden. Four fully buzzing hives just produced this years vintage, a whopping 320 kilos, flavored from the nectar of all of the citrus trees, apple trees, clover,and the highly coveted Manuka blossoms. This stuff is killer. Chris, Kelsey and I decanted the whole lot into 1, 2, and 5 kilo containers for sale, under safety of closed doors and window. If a bee found the source, they would flock to recapture their plundered reserves. Fortunately, we can savor the spoonful with our green tea for tea break, with musli in the morning, or just straight in the mouth.
However it does come with a price. While raking the grass under the avocado trees, a bee took a malicious interest in me. I followed Chris' advice, and took off. Lost a pair of gloves, but escaped with my life. We all steer clear of the bees and their "highways" as they flock under the heat of the day.
Out side of that, it is up and down the steep slopes for our labor. Time to hit the sack, we are getting up by 7:30, and out to the fields by 8:30. In store for tomorrow, pushing a wood chipper up a steep incline to chew all the treluscerns, a legume, we cut today. Plus moving a huge gum tree for fire wood.