A season of hard labor.

Photo copyright Aji, 2021; all rights reserved.

Whatever else this is, it's a season of hard labor. That was Wings yesterday, with his two "helpers," setting posts to restring the electric fence in a different spot so that the horses can graze. That's how deadly dry it is here, despite whatever small amounts of rain we get: Everything's sufficiently dead that it's safe for the horses to graze out in certain spots that once held the best grass hay and alfalfa in the county. At least this way the get some exercise. [And that fencepost-setting contraption? It's hellishly heavy. I've used it. It would be nice to have hired help, but we can't get anyone who wants to do this kind of work, even for better pay than just about anywhere in the county.]

The only way we're going to be able to fix the problem is with that well. Unfortunately, we can't even get on the drill list, because of the money, and that wouldn't be before fall at the earliest even if I called them tomorrow; probably not until next year now. I'm so disgusted.

I can't pay anything else, either. I need to come with ~1,500 between now and next week for quarterly taxes and other bills, another ~$2,000 by the 21st for labs, biopsy, and path fees, and I've made exactly zero progress on any of it. I'm sick to death of hearing about the Fourth of You Lie, about colonial celebrations and ongoing invasions. I need to be able to work, but before I can focus on the labor, I need to cover bills, and I can't do it alone. 

The last two months have been hellaciously expensive, with all of the imaging and doctor's appointments I've had to pay for just to have them rule out something extremely nasty; what it IS has everyone stymied now, and it's likely going to cost even more to rule whatever that is in, but it has to be done. I'm also down 3-4 Patreon patrons since May 1st, which puts a BIG dent in what covers our monthly bills. And as of July 1st, I've had to stop posting every single day on Patreon, because I don't have the time and my health can't take it, so I expect to lose more. And my Patreon is what pays our utilities and other monthly bills, so, yes, I'm worried. I'm also exhausted after the last week, and barely functional, so here we are.

But as I said, Wings will have several more new pieces out soon, too, possibly as early as tomorrow or mid-week: at least one major necklace posted last week here, and a minimum of four new Warrior Woman (three actually; one's already sold, but the others will likely be ready and posted tomorrow) and three new Pueblo pins (those last three, with a very cool new twist, and the third one's been done most of this week, but I only had time to get it posted night before last, here). I posted the first two Pueblo pins last week; one has already sold, but you can see the other here. Seriously, go check out the necklace; it's incredible. There's also, unexpectedly, a brand-new sterling silver cuff that I also got posted two nights ago, also here; it's simple, but absolutely dazzlingly beautiful.

I'm skipping all the rest of it because I'm tired constantly, and frankly I don't have the focus right now for anything else. One thing: The mosquitoes are out in force now thanks to the rain, and as you know from the loss of Wings's nephew last year to West Nile, they can be deadly for folks like us. Wings has to spend an inordinate amount of time outdoors right now, and he needs to be able to take repellents with him that are not toxic, so I've added a bunch of them to the wishlist, and they are urgent, especially the 2nd and 4th items on the list. Links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here (priorities are all the mosquito-prevention items, especially the portables and the patio-surface ones, because Wings can take them around the land with his as he works);
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And if you've been contemplating a purchase? This would be a very, very good time to do it; I've got to make up this staggering outlay somehow. There's lots of fabulous new work, so please share all of the links. 

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2021; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.