Good Neighbors

The neighbor-guest down the hill who's been playing music very loud in the mornings finally got me at a weak spot.  A work morning when I could be sleeping.  The music woke me up this morning at 5.  Seeing red, I threw on some sweatpants and roared down the hill to find a guy with a beer in his hand doing an  imitation of Leonardo Di Caprio, "I'm the king of the world!" on some rocks.  The music was playing from his work van.

I had to yell a few times to get his attention (the music was really loud), but he apologized a thousand times and tried to beer-ily explain his situation.  One of his reasons was that he likes to get away on the mountain for the quiet.  (Um, yeah.  Me too.)  When he started to put his arm around me and suggested that that he'll bring some steaks up or I should come down to dinner, I backed off and got out of there.  I really hope I didn't replace one problem (loud music some mornings) with another problem (amorous, unwelcome neighbor).

I made feta cheese last night with 2 gallons of raw milk.  It drained in the sink overnight, and this morning I cut it up and put it in some brine I made up last night.  I hope the taste of this cheese improves with brining. This might be the first cheese I've made that I don't think is edible.

Here's the young, small orchard.  First, two apricot trees.  Then two pear, and finally, one apple tree over by the dogs.  It seems like I wouldn't need another apple tree, but Esopus Spitzenberg apple was recommended by a few people and I wanted to try it.  I have to get another pear tree next year because according to the nursery, the Seckel needs to be pollinated by two other types of pear and I only have one other.  I need to clean up all the small rocks before I can mow the grass over here, and I should re-seed.  The grass I planted hasn't really come up. Some sort of protection for the little tree trunks would probably be a good idea, too.

[Edit: I went outside an hour+ later (7 am) and the music was on again, louder than before, and he was yelling. This is thorny. The phone number I have for the lady who owns the house doesn't work, although I have some options for getting her phone number. The next time her dogs come over I can read their collar tags, or I can stop by a bar I know she frequents and ask the bartender. Next step is to call and talk to her about this guy. If that doesn't work, would I really have to call the police? That seems a bit extreme. It really annoys me that someone else is rude enough to play excessively loud music at 5 in the morning and I'm the one trying not to piss anyone off. Is it possible that I'm being unreasonable wanting peace and quiet at my place in the woods, and I should just go ahead and let him play his crappy music??]