Happy Harvesting

In a complete turnaround from yesterday, it has been a gloriously sunny day although quite cool and windy.  Miss O was delighted when she woke up to sun streaming in the window.

Apart from a trip into Maleny to go to the library and a short stint in the nearby playground, we have spent the day at home.  While I have been doing some paid work, my grand-daughter has happily entertained herself with some dolls and a dolls house which I received from Freecycle a couple of years ago.  There has been lots of chattering, singing and imaginative play going on.

While we were hanging out the washing, Miss O noticed some lemons on the tree and was keen to pick them.  We put on our gumboots and headed downstairs to spend some time in the garden.  The first stop was the chicken run to give the chickens the contents of the scrap bucket.

Next, it was time to collect the eggs. Only 2 today.

Quite a number of limes had fallen and there were a few grapefruit ripe but most of the lemons and oranges will be a bit longer before they are ready.  We collected up the rotten fruit and put them in the compost bin.  We took the extendable fruit picker and picked some avocadoes from high up in the tree.  No words can begin to describe the squeals of delight and, “Get it, get it!” as Miss O bounded through the leaf litter, offering encouragement to me as I wielded the long-handled picker.

Finally, I took her out to the front yard where the cherry tomatoes are growing wild and flourishing.  It was only a couple of weeks since I had picked 2 kg of tomatoes so I was not sure how many there would be.  However, there we plenty to keep us entertained and she was quick to point out to me that you do not pick the green ones and the squishy ones are no good.

Miss O was very keen to pose with her harvest.

We put all of the produce in the bucket and used the wheelbarrow to collect some more firewood from the shed.

The clear sunny day means that the night will be cold so I will light the fire soon as the sun has just about set.  We will bring the clothes in from the line and hang them on the airer in front of the fire to finish drying.

All in all, it has been another productive and successful day and it has been lovely to have a helper with whom to share the work and the harvest.

Sharing Sustainability

2001 marked the inaugural Sustainable House Day.  This is held in September each year and owners of homes or businesses with sustainability features can choose to open their premises to showcase these features.

This event is free and you can go to various locations in your area to gain information and share ideas.

We first became aware of this event through the Alternative Technology Association and have seen several properties in previous years.

This year we have registered to participate by opening our home as part of Sustainable House Day.

It is still a few months away so there is plenty of time to register if you feel you have a suitable property or get involved by attending an open house in your area.

Here is the website.  There will be more information closer to the time.  It is a great opportunity to find more about sustainable living in your area.

Growing Girls and Large Hems

  It is easy to forget how quickly children grow.  I made this dressing gown for Miss O in August 2011.

By July 2012 I was writing about letting the hem down here.

Now it has been handed down to Izz and the hem taken back up.

A few weeks ago I took Miss O to Spotlight and chose the fabric for a new dressing gown.  It is red with black and white dogs on it.  She gave the princess, fairy and other girly fabric a glance but this is the one that caught her eye.  The fact that we have a Border Collie (black and white) may have influenced her choice.

Once again, I have put a large hem on the gown and it is still quite long so I expect this one will easily last a couple of years.

Something as simple as a hem that can be let down is not an option on a ready-made garment but by making clothes you can customise them to suit your needs and generally extend their usefulness.

My Day

Most of what I post is about a particular project or activity but tonight I thought I would share my Saturday with you.  Our weekends are precious and we try to make the most of the time.

I work full-time and have a lengthy commute, so during the week it is usually all I can manage to prepare and eat dinner and make our packed lunches.  Sometimes I do the ironing but that is about the limit.

The Duke and I are the only ones at home and many things have been simplified and streamlined.

I woke at 5.30am so I quickly hopped up and put a load of washing on.  I am trying to be more diligent about using power before sunrise and after sunset.  This means we maximise the benefit of the solar panels by exporting to the grid at 50c/kWh and using it (at night) for 28c/kWh.

Once the washing was on I crawled back into bed and read my book for an hour.  Then it was time to be up and going.

Breakfast eaten, dishes done and washing hung out.  The Duke put a loaf of bread on to bake in the breadmaker.  The bed stripped and remade.  A second load of washing sorted and ready to wash this evening.  Handwashing done.

Floors swept, vanity and mirror cleaned.  While I am doing these jobs, The Duke is sorting out finances and adjusting the budget.

That is enough housework for the day so it is time to head outdoors on this gorgeous autumn day to work on some of our projects.  It is not quite 9am.

At least one of the chickens has been doing a fine imitation of Houdini recently so we need to make some repairs to the chicken run to make sure they are contained.  We use some tent pegs to anchor some of the wire to the ground so hopefully that problem is sorted.

In January The Duke and my brother-in-law replaced a large portion of our front boundary fence.  We also put new wire along the front of the house below the verandah.  This was not finished off and tensioned and it has been a source of much debate as to exactly how we would do it.  A few weeks ago, The Duke painted some timber which he attached to the metal posts at each end so that we could secure the wire.  Today we tensioned the wire and attached it to the posts.

Time for a break and lunch.

We also needed to find a solution to securing from the end of the wire to the wall of the workshop and had decided that we would construct a concrete block wall and then top it with a piece of timber lattice.

The Duke painted the lattice last weekend.  We had also poured the first part of the concrete footing for the block wall.

Today we laid the first few blocks.  It is quite a challenge working in a confined space so we will be very glad when it is done.  We are certainly not giving up our day jobs but I am very happy with what we have achieved so far.  Once the wall is built to level at the left-hand end in the photo, we will place the lattice on top of the wall and secure it at both ends.

Even though almost everything we have constructed recently has come from second-hand or salvaged materials I am mindful that I do to not want it looking like Steptoe & Son.

I have been working on the design and plans for our vegetable garden fencing and a new chicken run adjacent to the garden.  This afternoon we marked out the position of the corner posts and discussed the location of the hen house.  We also checked how many posts we already have and it looks as though we will only have to buy a few more.  These are mostly the longer ones which we need for the higher fencing around the chicken run.

Once the sun had set I put on the load of washing I sorted this morning.  Then it was time for a shower, prepare dinner and watch Gardening Australia (my inspiration).  I checked the solar inverter – the panels generated 19kWh today.  That is pretty good when it is only a little over 6 weeks until the shortest day of the year.

Dinner was eaten, washing hung out and the final load put in the machine.

The last load of washing is finished and once I finish this post I will hang it out.  I use the clothesline under the verandah so it is safe and easy to access at night.

It has been a full and productive day.  I am happily exhausted and will enjoy a good night’s sleep.

I hope you had a good day and I am looking forward to doing it all again tomorrow.

 

Slow Living – April

Here we are with another month ended and it is time to for a review in the spirit of Slow Living Essentials

I must say that a do feel like a bit of a fraud as there does not seem be anything slow about our lives.

Here are the Slow Living categories:

{Nourish}  We have continued to be very diligent with making our packed lunches every day.  It is now 9 months since I changed my diet to one which is gluten and mostly grain free.  I am feeling much better and as an added bonus have lost 8kg.  My main focus has been ensuring that we do not waste any food.  This makes for some interesting but nourishing meals.  This was made from some leftover bits in the fridge last week.  You can read more about it here

{Green}  We are starting to reap the benefits of SAM – our Solar Air Modules.  It is essentially solar airconditioning and we are using it to very effectively keep the bathroom and bedroom warm and dry.  I can reduce the humidity from 90% to 65% in the matter of a few hours.  You can read more about it here

{Grow}  It is well into autumn but I have still been picking cherry tomatoes and cucumbers.

{Create}  We have made 2 more raised garden beds.

{Discover}  I have made a start on putting all of the family history research into a computer program and getting rid of a pile of paper in the process.  I am discovering new facts and remembering some previous discoveries as I do it.

{Enhance}  I have gifted 2 pairs of boots via Freecycle.

{Enjoy}  I have celebrated my birthday, met a friend for lunch and spent a morning with another friend – morning tea and then window shopping.

Now I am off to check out some of the other slow living blogs.

Til next month………..

Weeds That Feed

What is a weed?  A plant considered undesirable, unattractive, or troublesome, especially one growing where it is not wanted, as in a garden.

If the above definition is applied then my cherry tomato plants are definitely weeds.  They are not particularly pretty, grow in places where I do not want them and generally get in the way.  I am forever pulling the seedlings out of the ‘formal’ vegetable beds and The Duke must mow over thousands of them in the lawn.

However, we usually have a few that we leave to their own devices in areas where they are not causing harm.  There is one plant which has been growing and bearing fruit for several months on the far side of the driveway in ‘no man’s land’.  It has spread over a heap of mulch and has intertwined with thistles.  I had not picked any fruit for about 6 weeks so I braved the thistles yesterday and was surprised to find all of these fruit just waiting for me.

 

There was about 3.5kg of fresh, full-flavoured cherry tomatoes.  I have cleaned, rinsed and frozen 3kg of them in readiness to make more tomato sauce.  I hope to do that next weekend.  The remainder are spread on a tray to ripen fully and then they will grace the last of our summer salads.

Plants that are self-sown which survive and thrive will be good as they have passed the ‘survival of the fittest ‘ test.  Perhaps that is why we have such success with the cherry tomatoes.  Other self-sown plants which provide use with food include pumpkins and cucumbers.

Do you harvest from any fruit or vegetable plants which just appear in your garden?

The Circle of Life

On Friday afternoon I moved some of the wood that had been left to season.  It is now in the woodshed and will be split and added to the the stash of firewood which we keep for the wood heater.

Once I disturbed the ground, I was surrounded by the chickens who were eager to feast on the grubs and other insects which were lurking under the wood.  They had a wonderful time turning over the soil and looking for tasty morsels.

This weekend we have built 2 more raised garden beds.  One of them is lined with heavy cardboard that I had been saving.  Then we piled in a thick layer of dry leaf litter followed by some lawn clippings.  We will add more soil, compost and probably some mushroom compost which we will buy locally.  These 3 garden beds have been constructed entirely from leftover and salvaged materials.

I started to think about how we manage to use and recycle much of what is generated on our property.

The wood is from tree limbs that have fallen or been lopped on our block.  These will be used to heat our home.  The resulting ash is added to the garden beds, either directly or via the compost.  Any charcoal is saved in a jar of kerosene to use as firelighters.  We grow fruit and vegetables.  The chickens provide us with eggs.  The scraps and peels are fed to the chickens.  The chicken manure is added to the garden beds.  Leaf litter and lawn clippings are added to the compost.

It is all part of a never-ending cycle.

 

Leftovers for Lunch

Every day The Duke and I take a packed lunch to work.  Since I do not eat bread it is often leftovers or a salad.  The Duke will sometimes take some homemade bread, cheese and tomato and make a sandwich at work.

Today, however, I was at home so was not constrained by what I could pack.  At lunchtime I looked in the fridge and pantry and found an assortment of leftover ingredients just begging to be used.

There was a small amount of mashed sweet potato from last night as well as some refried beans, 1/2 can of crushed tomatoes, an opened packet of corn chips.  As part of my planned gourmet delight I also have some yoghurt, cheese, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.

In the interest of minimising the washing up I decided to use the glass dish that the sweet potato was in.  I spread it evenly over the dish, spooned a layer of tomatoes over it, then added the refried beans and the seeds.

I topped it with corn chips and grated cheese and browned in under the griller.

This made enough for 2 serves so I will be having the same again tomorrow.

Served with a dollop of natural yoghurt this was a quick and easy meal which used up a couple of things that could easily have been wasted.

Where Are We Headed?

Today I want to share a question that was posed recently on an internet forum that I read.  The following is an edited version of the original question/statement that was put up for discussion.

“So many people seem to be in such dire straits with health – physical, mental, emotional and monetary problems.  Why? Do you honestly think it is normal?  I don’t.  I think that the world is in melt down.

So much hatred and heartache in the world, the home, the streets and the schools ,these days.

I think that if we could go back to a simpler life of less things and more love and understanding then we would need less drugs for depression, anxiety and emotional related illness.

The word dis-ease is of course a body not at ease, not happy, not content, not reaching its potential and of course we all know the health system is buckling under the weight of diseases.

So why is humanity doing this do you think? We are clever and we do have choices about how we live and how we work and live in our family units and amongst our friends and in our communities and the wider world.

What are people’s agendas?  Is progress the be all and end all of humanity, if in the end it only causes destruction?  I think that we have gone too far and that it is time to pull back from the vortex we are hurtling towards.”

I found this quite confronting and to be honest, downright depressing.  Several people responded and added their view of what was wrong with the world and I could literally feel myself being dragged down.

So I took a dose of my own advice, wrote the following response and immediately felt better.

“There are problems – there have always been problems.

Most of the issues have been thoughtfully identified in preceding posts.  (Original forum discussion not copied here).

So, what to do about it? Whinge? Wring our hands? Worry? These are not productive responses and will only drag you into the downward spiral with everyone and everything else.

Take a step back and heed Ghandi, “Be the change you want to see in the world”.

I do not believe that ‘Dropping out’ is a solution. We are essentially a social species and are not wired to live in isolation.

Make small, incremental changes that are sustainable, otherwise you will be overwhelmed and setting yourself up for failure.

Turn off the TV – or at least skip the advertisements
Do not buy magazines
Limit your exposure to news coverage
Shop during conventional hours (Mon-Fri 9-5 and Sat 9-12)
Support businesses that only open during those hours
Turn off your mobile phone/internet for set periods so that you are not connected constantly
Reach out to your neighbours
Give something back to your community – volunteer?
Participate in local activities
Eat simple meals

It is difficult to change the sense of entitlement, constant anger, greediness etc that we see in the world.

TO DO

Practise the sorts of things I have mentioned
Model positive behaviours to your children, family, friends and neighbours

RESULTS

You will feel calmer, more resilient and positive
This may be the first drip of a new flood

If everyone who is concerned about the direction that society is headed makes positive changes we can make a difference. We are the society.”

What do you think?  I am genuinely interested in how you view society today.  Are we all agents of our own self-destruction?  Can we change things or do we need to?  Are you perfectly happy with your life and your place in the world at large?

Deep Clean & Dressed For Winter

Today I had a deep clean in our bedroom.  I took the mattress and base off the bed so that I could vacuum properly underneath it.  I turned the mattress when I replaced it.

I cleaned the windowsills, cornices and skirting boards.

The valance on the base was washed.

The valance was replaced and the bed remade with fresh linen.  I have swapped the light coloured doona cover that we use during the summer months for this one.

It changes the look of the room.  Although it is the same fabric, the darker colour  feels right for the cooler weather.  I have not yet put the feather doona on the bed – we have a cotton blanket and lightweight polyfill doona at the moment.

The weather is still quite warm at the moment but we will make gradual changes as needed.