Looking Forward

The seasons have changed and with them I need to shift my "farming" focus from containers on my back porch to planning for next year.
I think we have decided (finally, officially) on plans for a chicken coop. Well, it's more like an A-frame ark that we can modify to be warmer in the winter fairly simply with a little ingenuity. Dad offered all the lumber in his backyard free of charge and I asked to borrow his tools and skills as a birthday gift. Hopefully we will tackle this sometime this winter.
Meanwhile, rain falls on the backyard- my future garden- and I have absolutely no idea where to begin to plan. This presents a problem.
Sure, it seems simple enough. Dig a hole. Put in seeds. Wait. Pick and Eat. Repeat. But- whoa, Nellie- first I guess we should decide WHERE it is going to be. Hmmm... no clue. And apparently I need to prep the ground for next spring, turn it over or something and let the winter work it's magic if we aren't going to go the no-till, lasagna gardening method (which is my preference- why move stuff twice, right?). One version I got of this step involves killing off the grass with Roundup. This is where I think I got hung up in the process because I really loathe Monsanto and am not too keen on purchasing their products if there is any kind of alternative that actually works. All I can find on Google by way of a natural alternative is white vinegar, so I think we will try that, as soon as the ground dries out again enough to try (and I can make sure Rich agrees on placement).
Since we are off and running doing new things around here, we are adding the new freelance gig to the mix. The link is here, and, although the site doesn't display the content yet, there is an article I wrote (really!) about local foods- so check it out...please. And tell your friends.
How's this read for a sleep deprived, kind of rushed update? It will get better- I promise....

Everything Must Have a Beginning I Guess

I just got "hired" as a freelance columnist for Examiner.com for the Akron market writing about green parenting. It is a paying gig, though not very much, as it pays on a per-hit basis (maybe a penny or something like that- didn't really pay attention to that part). Not something that makes a living, but it will give me some kind of publishing cred to put on my resume and include when I send queries out to magazines and such. An added plus is I retain all the rights and can "cross post" anything I want that I wrote.


Should be kind of interesting to try at least. I'll keep you posted as to when I am up and running.

Why I am Shy

Check out this post: The Four Levels of Social Entrapment
This pretty much sums it up- Allie from Hyperbole and a Half had me rolling on the floor. Enjoy!

Unity

The street was paved with red bricks that were worn smooth with age. "Are you okay?" I asked.
Looking down at his feet, he silently shook his head and began to cry. "That was the hardest thing I have ever done," he replied.
Crisp leaves crunched under foot as we walked silently in the sun, the quiet only broken by the occasional acorn as it popped from its cap and plummeted to the ground. Leaving my aunts and uncles behind, we moved swiftly, as if we would simply walk forever. I had nothing to say but "I'm sorry." Somehow the words just wouldn't come.
I held his hand and just let him talk, recalling the days they all played in the creek near the railroad trestle at the end of his grandmother's street. His stories seemed to ease his pain and he shared more memories as we walked on between the gray and weathered stones. She was a remarkable woman, an inspiration, and his best friend.

Bricks gave way to blacktop. We reached the chapel and stopped, waiting for the rest of the family to join us as she drifted further away from us on the wind. "We will still have memories," I said, and we collected acorns and pods from the Catalpa trees to plant at home as a reminder of the day. "We'll have our trees," he said. "We'll just have to take good care of them."

Meanwhile, out across the rolling hills, the earth was preparing for its long rest, pulling on a colorful cloak of leaves and preparing to hold its children near as the days grew colder and shorter. I can do nothing more than keep holding his hand as long as I am given that gift.

Crooked Still is Coming!!

To the Cedar Valley Settlers Festival in North Olmstead this weekend. Thank the Cleveland Metroparks for the free show (and to Jenna from Cold Antler Farm for the recommendation)!

Check them out Sunday the 19th @ Frostville Museum in Rocky River Reservation.
YAY! Crooked Still!

Crooked Still - Half Of What We Know

25 things

25 things I want to do in my life:

• gather eggs from my own chickens
• plant my own garden
• sit on an old quilt under my trees and read
• hug my daughter
• walk in the woods with my dog, going no where in particular
• can vegetables
• knit a whole sweater (adult sized)
• spend a weekend alone in a cabin in the woods with my husband
• build something with my dad
• make a pieced quilt
• make a friend that just stops by to visit unannounced, to sit and have tea
• pick flowers and put them in a glass milk jar on my kitchen table
• buy all my food locally for one week (at least)
• go tent camping with my family in a park
• visit Hale Farm again
• write a novel (or several)
• cuddle with my husband on the couch
• go to garage sales with my mom
• do yoga or hike every day for exercise
• have another baby (?)
• feed a jersey cow
• gather stories from my family and write them down in a book
• take my family out to cut down a tree one year for the holidays, then buy a live one and plant it another year
• grow fruit trees
• card and spin wool to make yarn