Getting the ducks in a row before the transition

We were supposed to have been sipping tea while watching the distant mountains set on fire by the rising sun in Hartola by now. But it’s taking a little longer than we imagined. I developed a back pain and the good doctor advised me to take bed rest till the pain subsidies. Thankfully, I’m better now.

Plus the hunt for a good packer and mover has proved to be an irritant and more frustrating by the day. The quotations I’ve got are way above the budget I had set aside for transporting some furniture and other essentials. Anyway, will probably meet one of them halfway where he can make some profit and I too can save a couple of bucks.

Talking about saving a couple of bucks, I bought a couple of very useful, yet reasonably-priced articles which I hope will prove helpful in my plans for the vacant areas of our plot in Hartola – gardening/farming. And it won’t come as a surprise for friends who know me that I bought them from Amazon.

Well, I bought a set of gardening tools which include a small and a big trowel, cultivator, iweeder and fork with a pruning scissors and hand gloves. Although I’ve yet to use them, the quality seems pretty good to me.

I also bought two bottles of Nano Power Garden foliar spray fertilizer which are supposed to be very good for both indoor & outdoor plants. Nowadays, foliar spray fertilizers are being widely used because they are highly effective than soil fertilizers and these foliar sprays, I’m told, start working almost immediately after being sprayed on the leaves of the plant.

Coming back to my preparations for mountain life, to ensure that the upcoming monsoon rains don’t imprison me indoors, I’ve indulged in a pair of gumboots and a raincoat, both manufactured by Duckback. Nostalgia took over when I touched the raincoat. I still remember wearing Duckback gumboots and raincoats way back in my school days. Those things then used to be quite heavy, especially the raincoat, but this one is lighter but the quality seems to be the same as it was in the early ‘80s – the best.

Even the quality of the material of the boots seems perfect to take the Uttarakhand rains head-on. Will give my verdict after the end of the rainy season.

In a nutshell, we are squirreling away what we think would be helpful in Hartola. We understand that by choosing to live out there, we have made a default choice to give up modern conveniences. So, we’ve been trying to weigh the conveniences we will be able to do without in our new home with those which we must have.

Thankfully, at this point of our lives, we understand that it is not convenience, but rather inconvenience that gives life value. And this keeps us hopeful and enthusiastic; and frankly, gives us a purpose.

So until the next post, vaya con Dios!