Water Closet for August 19, 2016
[pullquote] “There is a mouse that watches TV with me. Night before last a Coyote woke me up at 3 AM howling in my yard. Maybe that is why the mouse likes TV. ” [/pullquote] The old Closeteer, a farmhand as a boy on grandfather’s and uncles’ farms, and a retired dairy farmer friend, David “Red” Parsons, write back and forth via snail mail. They are in no hurry. Red has lived all his life in Southampton farm country on a beautiful glacial terrace between the floodplain of the Connecticut River and the Berkshire Mountains. The Closeteer is rooted here in Middleton surrounded by the beauty of Essex County. They met while students at UMass, class of ’56, when the school, one tenth today’s population, was just a couple decades on from being called “Mass Aggie.” Last week Red wrote a letter similar to the one he had recently received from the Closeteer here in the Ipswich River Watershed where once there were many farms. Hamilton, now known for polo grounds and fancy pastures, had about 80 working farms in the mid-19^th century. Red and the Closeteer are very interested in weather. Red and his Pioneer Valley farmer friends daily listen to weather forecasts and frequently look to the sky. Their pastures, hayfields, cow corn, and other crops depend on it. The Closeteer and his Ipswich River Watershed friends, who do not farm, can largely ignore the weather.

Middleton cow corn under stress from three months of drought. On normal years the corn would be twice as high. – Judy Schneider photo

The Middleton Stream Team is sharing Red’s early August letter because we are deep in a drought here, worst than in any other part of New England. His words give today’s folks a glimpse of the world seen through the eyes of octogenarians interested in wildlife, weather, livestock, crops, and other plants. Red still lives in an agricultural area; much of our best land here in Peabody, Danvers and in bottoms along our streams and rivers has gone over to houses, businesses and parking lots where rain, droughts and frosts are of little consequence. We old timers bemoan the loss of a society whose members largely lived outdoors and had firsthand knowledge of where food comes from. Stream Teamer Sara Kallock, who has an organic garden, recently shared this quote from Margaret Atwood. “In spring at the end of the day you should smell like dirt.”
Here is Red’s letter. Notes in parentheses are the Closeteer’s.

Hey Old Closeteer,                                           8-8-16
It’s been a couple months since I wrote. The heat sort of got to me and it doesn’t usually bother me much. It’s warm now but not as bad and I’m sort of getting used to it. It’s still dry here, but I did get one big shot of rain, pretty localized, and my lawn is starting to green up. In June there were 2.5 inches on three different days. In July 5.32 inches on 6 days which includes 3.5 in one very local shower at night at the end of the month. Had 1.9 inches on first of August. (about 8 there compared with 3 that fell here in Middleton in June and July)
Mr. and Mrs. House Wren got pissed off at me and took residence in my newspaper tube. The paper guy at the time was just throwing the paper on the driveway. They managed to raise their family and have now left. Now the new paper guy is putting the paper in the tube. I should hang a birdhouse in nearby lilac bush in case they try for another batch.

Martins Brook, North Reading, major tributary of the Ipswich River is seen here without water. Middleton Stream Teamers Bri and children Dharma and Bodhi with friend. Many area brooks and long stretches of the Ipswich upriver have no flow. – Suzanne Sullivan photo

Not a lot of bird activity around here. The mourning doves are now making some noise, cooing. When you were seeing the Wood Duck ducklings (from Closeteer’s June letter about ducks in Middleton), did you see the male with them? The only Wood Ducklings I ever saw just had an adult female with them. I sort of assumed they were Mallards. Only females raise Turkey chicks and usually two of them team up together.
The Katydids and other nighttime bugs are making a lot of noise now. I hear a 17 year locust now and then, not a big year for them. Should see migrating night hawks in a few days.
My garden is late not that I have much to do with it’s care, since I am pretty much a cripple. (Red’s knees are not strong after 65 years of 80 hour weeks in barns and fields.) The neighbors do the heavy work. I just sort of supervise. Tomatoes and corn should be ripe in about a week. Melons will be later. Butternut squash vines are about to take over the garden. (He also has a few peach trees which like almost all in New England didn’t produce this summer due to winter warmth followed by bud-killing cold.)
The heifer that I got bred is about to calve. I hope normally.
There is a mouse that watches TV with me. Night before last a Coyote woke me up at 3 AM howling in my yard. Maybe that is why the mouse likes TV. I am sure it keeps the Wood Chucks down. I do see a rabbit now and then.
I’ll call and see if we can’t get together.
Peace, Red
Note: When the old Closeteer and Red do get together once or twice a year they drive around slowly much of the day on back roads where modern civilization hasn’t taken over. They happily talk of crops, plants, wildlife, and of course the weather. These were the subjects of much daily concern before the Industrial Revolution overwhelmed us. Now another, the Computer Revolution, washes over us old timers. Unlike the turtles we won’t in time surpass the cyberhares. We hope those speeding by will pause now and then and try ink from a pen on paper. Speed may be good but of late during the presidential campaign we’ve heard of too many unwise emails and obscene tweet communications.
_____________________________________________________________________________WATER RESOURCE AND CONSERVATION INFORMATION
FOR MIDDLETON, BOXFORD AND TOPSFIELD`

Ipswich R. Flow Rate (S. Middleton USGS Gage) in Cubic Feet/ Second (CFS):
For Aug 16, 2016  Normal . . . 6.4 CFS     Current Rate . . . 0.4 CFS
*Danvers Water Filtration Plant, Lake Street, Middleton is the source for actual precipitation data thru July.
** Middleton Stream Team is the source of actual precipitation data for Aug
Normals data is from the National Climatic Data Center.
THE WATER CLOSET is provided by the Middleton Stream Team: www.middletonstreamteam.org or         <MSTMiddletonMA@gmail.com> or (978) 777-4584