Harvest Moon Anton’s Diary: Year 1 Autumn Part II

Day 16
How could I have tempted fate by asking if life could get any worse? Thanks to the wasted day yesterday, today I was rushed off my feet; first I had to harvest the sweet potatoes before heading off to Popuri’s house to give her the daily flowers, then I stopped into Yodel Ranch to buy a second cow, Colbrech (I wanted to call her Colbrecht but apparently that name is too long), for my now immense barn. Once that was complete, I finally remembered to buy 12 bags of grass from the Supermarket, before heading to the vineyard to help out again. I was ready to work at 3:40pm, but they would not let me in until 4:50. Nonetheless, I managed to pick eleven bunches of grapes- almost twice as many as yesterday- but still Duke was not happy with me.

Anyway, with all that over with, I returned home to begin planting grass and caring for the animals, but unfortunately I only had time to plant a mere four bags and attend to all the other farming tasks. I have not even foraged, mined or chopped lumber for days.

Day 17
TV shopping is back! The latest episode advertised a pot, which I was quick to order- I must not pass up a culinary-related bargain. The rest of the day was spent doing back-breaking grass planting work in the fields; I now regret my decision to let the place get so infested with weeds, but in all honesty, it was either that or tire myself out fighting a losing battle. A chunk of my day is still being spent at the vineyard; today I collected a record 13 grapes, but it was still not enough for that slave driver Duke. Apparently I am to return tomorrow- how long with this infernal grape harvesting last?

Day 18
As I continue to sink into the latest bout of depression, the weather has changed to reflect my bleak mood. Today I finished planting the grass before gathering flowers and seeing to the various daily tasks; afterwards, I headed to the vineyard in the hopes of being told I was no longer needed, but instead I had to wait outside in the rain for an hour before being sent to collect yet more grapes. Today I managed 16 grapes, which finally seems to be enough to satisfy Duke; however, it leaves me with little time yet again. I did manage to get some foraging in, but my hectic lifestyle has been replaced with an insane one.

Day 19
Damn the vineyard; they want me to come again tomorrow but they can forget it, I have had enough of pointlessly plucking grapes. Why not let Cliff do it all since he is low on cash as it is? For me, it is just a distraction from the more important tasks of farming, mining, foraging and love; for example, today, I spent most of the day just harvesting sweet potatoes with barely any time for anything else. I must certainly give up the vineyard job before it causes my ruin.

Day 20
Why is that every time I say something one day, I end up doing the complete opposite the next? Since it was yet another rainy day, I attended to only the bare minimum on the farm before heading out to buy two more cows- Infernox and Ragnarok- and of course to drop in on Popuri. Afterwards, I had some time left over, so I ended up standing outside the vineyard in the rain after all. Fortunately, today was the last day of collecting grapes, and although I admit that I did a poor job at it, everyone seems generally happy, and Cliff has landed a regular job there. If they ask for help next year, however, I may have to decline.

Day 21
Everywhere was closed today; it was probably due to some stupid festival, but I have had enough of attending those pointless functions. Instead, I decided to slip back into my familiar and much-missed schedule of foraging and dealing with farming tasks (my grass has sprouted but seems disinclined to grow further) before rounding my day off with some lucrative time in the mines (never let it be said that my experiences have in any way diminished my love of cold, hard cash).

Today I stumbled upon a Poisonous Mushroom; although I chose to sell it (I hear that a buyer known only as ‘Sunrise’ orders them in quantity), I almost wish I had kept it as a potential escape from this hellish life. Knowing my luck, however, someone will find me just in time to save my life.

Day 22
Today saw the latest sweet potato harvest, but having endured so many, I am now used to them- I even made time to forage, chop lumber, flirt with Popuri and buy two more cows (Selkirk and Praedaq). I now have five useless juvenile cows and only one milk-producing adult- why must even this most basic of farming principles be so difficult? I cannot even raise beef cattle to send to the slaughterhouse, because for some reason this town has no slaughterhouse, nor any meat animals such as pigs. How I would love to raise pigs, for it would provide some variety, and I could also feed them the dead bodies of the hated villagers. You must forgive me if I seem a little bloodthirsty, but the tedium of farm life is getting to me.

Day 23
Since I didn’t feel quite ready to face the world as soon as I got up this morning, I stayed in for a little while to watch a little Mechabot Ultrador, a most disappointing TV show. When I got outside, my mood was further worsened by the realisation that I had forgotten to water the plants yesterday, setting crop growth back another day. With this in mind, I set about my farm tasks with a fresh determination not to abandon or neglect anything, only to accidentally spill the honey in my enthusiasm.

The afternoon was occupied with the usual foraging and chopping lumber, before a profitable evening was spent in the mines. I got to bed late, but at least my skin was soft and smooth thanks to a relaxing soak in the hot springs.

Day 24
Alas, what a fool I have been- all this time I thought I was on orange heart level with Popuri, but in fact I have been on the lowly yellow heart level, and have only just now attained an orange heart relationship. Thanks to this, not only has Won offered me an outrageously expensive Blue Feather at thirty times the retail price, but I have decided to redouble my efforts at dating by gathering as many flowers as possible before the chill winter sets in (I will store them in my cabinet and give them to Popuri to brighten up her dull winter life). Unfortunately, this plan has resulted in my having to spend half the night grubbing around for flowers on Mother’s Hill.

Worse yet, some of my cows were unhappy today, whilst Elrood did not produce any milk! I give them a luxurious life, but it does not seem to be enough for them.

In better news, I happened to see a Mixer advertised on TV shopping today; although I almost forgot to do so, I rushed to the inn in time to buy it.

Day 25
Thanks to the increased demands of love, my daily schedule has changed once again; I now aim to get all the basic farm tasks done first thing before handing over more flowers to Popuri whenever she happens to be out. After that, the rest of the day is free for mining, foraging and regular dips in the hot springs to restore my flagging stamina. Unfortunately, the new schedule has led to some late nights, but nonetheless I am building up a decent stockpile of flowers with which to continue wooing Popuri in the winter.

Day 26
The penultimate sweet potato harvest of the season came in today, once again requiring me to spend most of the day harvesting them and completing the usual tasks- although as has become customary, I accidentally threw away a sweet potato whilst harvesting. To make up for this irritation, Elrood’s love for me has increased to the point where she is now producing enough milk to fill a medium-sized container; now if only my other cows would mature and start producing milk, my dairy would actually be worthwhile.

My grass is also coming along slowly; I have serious doubts as to whether it will actually be good for anything by the time the cold snap hits.

Day 27
Another rainy day; without the need to water the plants, I had sufficient time to stop in and see Popuri before heading over to Yodel Ranch to purchase two more cows- Postaf and Golemu. If I buy another pair of cows before the end of the season, I will have a full barn, which admittedly means having to talk to them and brush them everyday, but at least could be the start of a great dairy.

The afternoon was spent foraging and mining; unfortunately, this has left me exhausted and soaking wet- and all for the sake of a few extra flowers for Popuri.

To my amazement, some of my grass was ready today; by cutting it down, I can create more cow fodder, thus avoiding the need to keep purchasing it from Barley. I have also purchased a cow bell, for if my cows get out it will be easier to call them in with the bell instead of chasing after them for hours.

Day 28
Today was another of those disastrous instalments that I like to call ‘days on the farm’. Not only did I oversleep by two hours, but when I got up, I was shocked to discover that my new cow, Golemu, had fallen ill! In desperation, I ran to Barley’s to buy medicine, only to end up pacing around outside for an hour whilst I waited for him to open up. Fortunately, Golemu seems to be on the road to recovery, but it was an unpleasant experience that messed up my entire day. I hope I can get back on track tomorrow.

Day 29
The final sweet potato harvest of the year was today, and so I was rushed off my feet collecting sweet potatoes, cutting down the plants and cutting grass, to the point where I nearly collapsed in the fields. Desperate to avoid this fate, I took a quick bath in the hot springs before attending to the animals- by the time the basic tasks were complete, it was already 11pm! I have not even had time to collect more flowers for Popuri.

Day 30
Autumn is finally at an end, and so today was slightly more leisurely than usual; I even bought my last two cows- Hellfire and Teacup- thus filling the cow section of my barn. The rest of the day was spent doing the final foraging of the year, before I worked up a sweat in the mines. This autumn, I have made 117,000G; if only I could deposit it in an offshore bank account.