Fern Ridge-Tribune News
Creswell Chronicle
Sweet Lorane Community News
June 9, 2022
By Pat Edwards
The Lorane Growers Market is doing well this year, already… and it’s just starting. It’s located on tables in front of the former Lorane Deli and is sponsored by the Lorane Community Association. Members of the community bring excess plants, produce and garden and farm items that they can’t use to share with others in Lorane. Those who are needing the items can pick up what they want—on the honor system—and donate whatever they can afford in the donation box. Proceeds go towards community projects that are overseen by the association.
Thanks to Louise and Martin McClure for filling the tables this past week with many vegetable starts for those who are ready to begin planting their gardens. Their donation of the plants was very well-received by the community and all had found homes the first day they were put out. Thank you, Louise and Martin, for demonstrating and exhibiting the spirit of “community” to each of us. Others, too, have generously contributed this spring and we are only beginning to get into it. Later in the season, the Growers’ Market table is usually stocked with produce from Lorane gardens and orchards that is available to others. Thank you to the Lorane Community Association for maintaining it for us.
Today, Jim and I made the decision that our beloved old John Deere riding mower needed to be retired. It had served us well for many years after much abuse on the rough, bumpy ground and hillsides we challenged it with. After several recent repairs, though, the deck gave out and we decided it was time to invest in a new mower. Our daughter, Gloria, with trailer in tow, picked us up at our house and we headed for town. The long lines of riding mowers we had seen in front of one of the stores only a couple of weeks ago had been reduced to one John Deere and one Husqvarna, both with “Waiting for Pickup” tags on them. There were a few of the less expensive ones, but they weren’t really up to the jobs we had awaiting them. From experience, we learned that they were happiest with level, well-manicured lawns with few challenges… which we certainly don’t have at our home. Inside, we could have invested $5,000 into a different model of the “zero-turn” models, but we didn’t want one THAT bad. The store had two Husqs scheduled to arrive in two weeks’ time, but both were already spoken for—and, even if they hadn’t been, if our grass was allowed to grow for 2 more weeks, we’d have to get out Jim’s old hay baler to process it. So, we headed for a second and then a third home improvement store and they were completely out of the kind of mowers we needed, and weren’t expecting any more until July—late July. When we got home, I checked on-line and everything in the models we were needing was “out of stock there, too.”
So, our options are to continue to borrow our daughter’s mower until we can figure something out or buy a new deck for our old John Deere. I guess I shouldn’t complain… at least I’m not a young mother who is having to deal with trying to feed her baby, who is on a bottle, because there is no baby formula on the shelves these days.
Has anyone heard yet when life is supposed to return to some semblance of normal?
All Things Lorane 