April 7, Saturday
I woke up around 7:30am, took a shower, and went downstairs. I put some pastries that we’d picked up yesterday into the oven at low to heat up. We also had bread and scones. After breakfast we stayed inside mostly, read, talked, etc. We had lunch, which was leftover supper. After lunch we took off for a walk. Uncle Bill went off towards the lighthouse, Lydia, Lynnea, Londa and Josiah went off to find sheep. I was writing a song so I stayed home. After I finished writing my song I took my iPod and went out. I got some sprints in and also explored one Island that connects to ours at low tide. Then I went out to meet the others. From a long distance away (1mile) I saw what looked like Josiah and Lydia in the mud, not moving. So, I figured they would need my help and I took off. I passed Lynnea on my way down who, saw them, but figured by the time she got down there they wouldn’t need the help. LOL At one point they got out, and then got stuck again. I finally made it down to the water, but they were up and making they’re way to me. When I met up with them I saw that Josiah had mud up to his waist and he was wearing his favourite clothes. A t-shirt he bought as well as his new jumper. It was low tide and they’d tried to cross over and that didn’t work out so well. We learned later from Patrick that that is the trickiest mud and will really get you stuck, he was very surprised that Josiah got both boots out of the mud! They came down towards the house and rinsed off in the channel that was waist deep at low tide. Around 4:30pm Josiah and Uncle Bill took the boat out to make GPS tracks for Paul to use. We (I and the three girls) watched Inkheart and 17 Again. For supper we had a German dish: pasta, eggs and bacon cooked together. It was quite good. After supper we played Up and Down the River. It was quite fun, mostly because several times I had the highest trump cards! : ) After the game was over I rolled out sticky buns for breakfast. Around 11pm I went to bed.
April 8, Sunday
I woke up around 6am, put the sticky buns in the oven to warm up, and went back to sleep. I got up at 7:00am and turned the oven up to cook them.We had breakfast a little before 8am. We left at 8:30am to go to the mainland. We found internet and got the address of a reformed church in Galway. So we went south 1.5 hours to Galway. We couldn’t find the church, so we asked some bikers who were at a Petrol Station. One guy new where it was and went ahead after giving us directions. We followed and came to the church. We were just a little bit early. We met one lady there who was very nice. After the service we had tea with them (which is coffee after church in the US). Then we took the scenic route back to Westport. We stopped by a really cool castle. Probably the coolest site I’ve seen so far! It was a small castle but it still had the wall much in tack, the moat, and the castle building it’s self was awesome! It had four stories and a spiraling staircase to get to each floor. It had arrow holes everywhere, the banquet hall fireplace, murder holes, it was fantastic! After about 30min we left. We stopped at a craft shop and we picked up some stuff, mugs, t-shirts, etc. We went to the Pub where we had internet, got some chips, sent some emails. I meant to post a blog post with the next several days, but completely forgot. I remembered to look up everything else, but forgot about posting on my blog. We left around 8pm, after walking to the Post Office and sending some post cards. Patrick brought the boat, we dropped him off at his house, and we made it to the house by around 8:30pm. Most people were not all that hungry, so we warmed up leftovers and I made popcorn. We played Ticket to Ride (the European version) and I won. Which wasn’t surprising as I’ve played it a lot more times than anyone else. I cam in at 127 points and the next highest person was about 30 points behind. We went to bed around 12am
Monday, April 9
I woke up at 8am. For breakfast we had Muesli. After breakfast we played Sorry. After a small lunch we took a walk at low tide over to Patrick’s Island . They were putting up a new fence. They invited us for tea. So Josiah and I headed back to the house to get Uncle Bill. At least 1.5mile distance. Josiah went along the coast where the terrain was easier but a long distance, and I went along the grass. My route was more up hill and I had to jump fences and go through thorns, but it was shorter. The sunny day was soon overtaken by a rain cloud and severe wind blowing me away from the directions I’m going. Then it started hailing as well. So, now I’m being driven back with rain and hail and being pelted in the face and hands. I make it to the last fence and I’m just going over when my shoe comes off. So I have to go back over the fence, get my shoe and clamber back over again. I made it back before Josiah, by around 3 minutes. I found Uncle Bill wasn’t in the house, he’d gone to collect muscles. So, Josiah arrives, were both soaking wet, and Uncle Bill isn’t here.We both change our clothes and then see Uncle Bill coming up to the house. We met him and told him that Patrick had invited us over for tea. He washed the muscles he’d gotten, and then took a shower and changed, because he too had gotten soaked. First Paul calls Uncle Bill to catch up, make sure everything is going okay, then Patrick calls to say that he just finished the fence and to come on over. So after he called Paul back and we are all changed we walk back over to the Island to Patrick’s house. Padraig (pronouced Poor- Ik), the Irish form of Patrick, showed us the barn and the cows they raise. Then we had tea with them, met his mother. Around 5:15pm Padraig took us out and showed us his chickens, the dogs, their garden, and their two donkeys. Then Patrick took us home in their big boat. The whole time they were joking about us having to swim back because the tide had come in and covered the path that we’d taken that connected the two Islands. We got back around 6pm. Uncle Bill and I made supper. We had muscles as the first course, and then we sautted vegetables and mushrooms with the ground beef and cooked it. We had it over pasta for supper. We also had salad and Cabernet Sauvignon. After supper we played Wild Uno, a version Lynnea taught us. Uncle Bill played and it was really fun! Afterwards Josiah, Lyida and I talked for a little while. At 11:30pm I went to bed.
English Vintner
Sunday, 15 April 2012
Tuesday, 10 April 2012
Ireland Continued
2 April, Monday
I woke up at 7:30am. I came down (the only one up) and was making me a cup of joe, when I looked outside and saw a hare just outside the gate. I was going to get Lydia for a camera, but saw Uncle Bill’s and grabbed it. I was able to get a photo of it before it got away. We stayed on the Island for the day. We had eggs and oatmeal (I soaked overnight) for breakfast. After breakfast we cleaned up and had some good talks about different theological issues, it was good. Uncle Bill went exploring and the rest of us all went over to the red boat to ferry us across. After the girls were across Josiah and I took the boat and got to the same place the girls were walking to, except we got there first. We found out the boat had a missing plug and was leaking water. We went sheep herding and found some sheep to herd. Lynnea caught a little lamb and we were able to pet it. Then we continued to the end of the Island, looked at ruins and explored. I went back with a fence post I had found. Josiah saw me and picked me up in the boat. We took the boat back (with much trouble, so hard to steer it!) and I went in and made myself a cup of tea. I then went back out and saw Lynnea and Londa waiting where earlier in the day we’d ferried them across. I took them both back in the boat, Lydia had met up with Uncle Bill and had gone off exploring. We came back, I made scones for lunch and we ate lunch. Around 2pm Uncle Bill and Lydia came back and they ate lunch. We went out exploring in someones house, it had a really nice yard (albeit it was much over grown) and place, although it looked like at any moment someone might pop out and scare you. As we were coming around the house, Lynnea was in front, Josiah who had not gone with us jumped out and said “booh”! It scared Lynnea and we all laughed. Josiah, Lydia and Uncle Bill were all in on the plan to scare us. After exploring that house we came down to the house a woman had just left from. While exploring I found a cabbage sitting in a thorn bush, I picked it up which led to great argument about whether we should eat it. Finally we went back to tthe site and found an old banna as well and conlcued it was her ‘compost or ‘trash’ pile when she had left. So, with minds at ease we headed back to teh house with a cabbage to add to our meal. We made stew for supper we cut up carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, and unsmoked bacon shoulder. The stew was quite tasty. To accompnay it I made some muffins. After supper we all took a hike/walk (the same thing around here!) to see the sunset. We found a cliff to sit at and took a great many pictures! Then we went down to the shore where, because it is the coast it is the ocean waves that beat upon it. We found a pipe made from plastic and it was about 18ft long. With it we used it to do the caber toss! It was quite fun, I tried it five times but could never do it. Uncle Bill tried but couldn’t quite do it either. Thenw e walked home. When home we got out some cheese and crackers and watched The Stone of Destiny. It finished and Josiah and I went to bed. Uncle Bill did something else, and the girls watched Bringing Up Baby.
April 3, Tuesday
I woke up at quarter till 6am, went back to sleep and woke up at quarter till 8am. we ate Muesli for breakfast, but didn’t wake the girls up till 10am. They stayed up till 3am. We decided to go to the mainland so we packed up and walked to the dock. The wind was incredibly strong and we had hail and rain showers off and on. We got to the dock and found the boat grounded, so we went off walking for an hour. We came back and the battery was basically dead. So we called Patrick and he very kindly brought a new battery to replace it and we headed to shore. We drove to the supermarket where we got more groceries. Then we went to the hotel to get wi-fi. From there we took a long drive down along the coast. It was a fantastic drive, wonderful scenery. At the end we got out and walked down to the beach, a strip probably a couple thousand feet long. I ran along the beach in the waves (just like in Chariots of Fire!) and then went rock climbing around to another short stretch of beach. I climbed out of it and went around the same path along the rocks again with Uncle Bill. Then we got someone to take a pictures of us, and then we took a picture of them. We drove back to tthe dock, on the way back we stopped first at a shop when I brought a hat, and then next door where we picked up some groceries. Then we stopped by the same supermarket we did this morning to pick up some of the cold items and some wine. We headed back to the dock, unloaded, and waited for Patrick. He arrived and took us back, we dropped him off at his Island, and then we docked in front of the house. Most of us got wet from jumping into the water. For supper we reheated teh stew, it was even better, and we had some bread with some Cabernet Sauvignon. After supper we sat by a nice fire and talked. We headed to bed around 11pm.
April 4, Wednesday
I woke up around 7am and decided to make muffins for breakfast. Paul had a recipe book so I looked one up. I made Blueberry Coffee Cake muffins and Uncle Bill made an omelot. After breakfast all of us except Londa took a hike up to an Island because of the very low tide. We found a small lamb and met up with Patrick and his son who owns the Issland and the sheep. We talked and they took the lamb back. We went back to the house and got back around 12pm. we ate lunch and then played Last Word. After that I took the kayak out for a bit and the others started Regarding Henry, a DVD. I came back and finished watching it with them. After the film ended I worked on a Blueberry Rhubarb Cobbler for dessert. For supper we had grilled cheese and tomato soup with a Green Ginger wine. It was quite tasty. After supper we headed out to see the sunset. We all ferried across and went up to teh cliffs. We saw the caber pole, though it was about 30ft in and around 6ft deep where it was. We watched the sky and took pictures. We walked back and ate the Blueberry Rhubarb Cobbler. Uncle Bill is trying his hand at roasting peanuts. After the dishes were washed we sat down to an awesome game of Rook. In the middle it unexpectedly turned upside down. Londa came in the 1st, Uncle Bill 2nd, and me third, though there was a difference between Uncle Bill and I of 200 some points! We headed to bed around 11pm. We will be heading to shore, the mainland around 8am. So we’ll be getting up early and leaving here by 7:45am. It should be fun!
April 5, Thursday
I woke up at 6:40 by Uncle Bill. The others were up or got up later, closer to 7:15. For breakfast we had Muesli with yogurt and milk. After breakfast we loaded up and headed to the dock. We got on, picked up Patrick and we were dropped off at the mainland. We went to SuperValu and picked up a few things, coffee, tea, scones and bread. From there we drove North East and stopped by Foxford Woolin Mill. We went on the self guided tour and afterwards we shopped around. Some of the jumpers were on half off so Josiah, Uncle Bill and I got one. Mine was 80 euro, half off of that. It’s the most money I’ve ever spent on any one piece of clothing. I picked up a hat for 22 euro earlier this week as well. So now I have a sweet had and jumper. After that we drove an hour and a half North and took a walk around the highest cliffs in Britain. We couldn’t stay long because we had to be back by 8pm. We stopped by a craft shop and some of us got a few things. We drove back, stopped by SuperValu, ran in, got 2 loaves of bread and 3 salmon. We picked up Salmon. We drove to the dock and had to get out and park somewhere else because some Irish sailors were in the way. We got past, dropped Patrick off and docked. We got home and we mae supper. I made rice pilaf and Uncle Bill did the Salmon. After supper which finished around 9:30pm and cleaned up. Afterwards we watched a film. We went to bed around 12am.
April 6, Friday
I woke up around 8am. For breakfast we had oatmeal (I soaked it overnight) and Muesli. We cleaned up from breakfast and around 9:30am headed to the light house (a good 2 miles). We talked, we walked, picked up stones and shells. It was low tide and the lowest the water ever gets in the lunar tide cycle. The water drops around 4ft and goes back around 400ft. Such a dramatic tide change, it’s insane! We came back for lunch around 1pm. Josiah made pasta and we had spaghetti for lunch. After lunch we just sorta read books until 3pm when we headed for the mainland. We arrived and did some shopping. PIcked up soem bread and cheese. Then we walked down and got some Salmon from one shop and some Hake from another shop. We walked around downtown, got internet and drove around. Lydia sent off here two postcards. Around 6pm almost every shop closes up. Oh, for Good Friday the licensure doesn’t allow the selling of alcohol. So all the pubs were closed and the stores didn’t sell any alcohol. It was strange to see all the pubs closed! I’ve seen almoste as many pubs as I’ve seen B&B’s! Over this whole trip so far I’ve seen probably around 100 pubs! At 7:15pm Patricks’s son picked us up in the boat. We got home and started working on supper. Uncle Bill used the Hake to make a dish with it. Potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and we used the leftover rice. It was good and tasty! We tried the Irish Cream Ale and it was quite good! For supper we had cider. After supper I washed dishes and Lydia rinsed, we talked about how we would set up a kitchen, people who are OCD about things, the best way to clean up the kitchen, etc. Then we all sat down and read for about half an hour. A little before 11pm I went to bed.
English Vintner
I woke up at 7:30am. I came down (the only one up) and was making me a cup of joe, when I looked outside and saw a hare just outside the gate. I was going to get Lydia for a camera, but saw Uncle Bill’s and grabbed it. I was able to get a photo of it before it got away. We stayed on the Island for the day. We had eggs and oatmeal (I soaked overnight) for breakfast. After breakfast we cleaned up and had some good talks about different theological issues, it was good. Uncle Bill went exploring and the rest of us all went over to the red boat to ferry us across. After the girls were across Josiah and I took the boat and got to the same place the girls were walking to, except we got there first. We found out the boat had a missing plug and was leaking water. We went sheep herding and found some sheep to herd. Lynnea caught a little lamb and we were able to pet it. Then we continued to the end of the Island, looked at ruins and explored. I went back with a fence post I had found. Josiah saw me and picked me up in the boat. We took the boat back (with much trouble, so hard to steer it!) and I went in and made myself a cup of tea. I then went back out and saw Lynnea and Londa waiting where earlier in the day we’d ferried them across. I took them both back in the boat, Lydia had met up with Uncle Bill and had gone off exploring. We came back, I made scones for lunch and we ate lunch. Around 2pm Uncle Bill and Lydia came back and they ate lunch. We went out exploring in someones house, it had a really nice yard (albeit it was much over grown) and place, although it looked like at any moment someone might pop out and scare you. As we were coming around the house, Lynnea was in front, Josiah who had not gone with us jumped out and said “booh”! It scared Lynnea and we all laughed. Josiah, Lydia and Uncle Bill were all in on the plan to scare us. After exploring that house we came down to the house a woman had just left from. While exploring I found a cabbage sitting in a thorn bush, I picked it up which led to great argument about whether we should eat it. Finally we went back to tthe site and found an old banna as well and conlcued it was her ‘compost or ‘trash’ pile when she had left. So, with minds at ease we headed back to teh house with a cabbage to add to our meal. We made stew for supper we cut up carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, and unsmoked bacon shoulder. The stew was quite tasty. To accompnay it I made some muffins. After supper we all took a hike/walk (the same thing around here!) to see the sunset. We found a cliff to sit at and took a great many pictures! Then we went down to the shore where, because it is the coast it is the ocean waves that beat upon it. We found a pipe made from plastic and it was about 18ft long. With it we used it to do the caber toss! It was quite fun, I tried it five times but could never do it. Uncle Bill tried but couldn’t quite do it either. Thenw e walked home. When home we got out some cheese and crackers and watched The Stone of Destiny. It finished and Josiah and I went to bed. Uncle Bill did something else, and the girls watched Bringing Up Baby.
April 3, Tuesday
I woke up at quarter till 6am, went back to sleep and woke up at quarter till 8am. we ate Muesli for breakfast, but didn’t wake the girls up till 10am. They stayed up till 3am. We decided to go to the mainland so we packed up and walked to the dock. The wind was incredibly strong and we had hail and rain showers off and on. We got to the dock and found the boat grounded, so we went off walking for an hour. We came back and the battery was basically dead. So we called Patrick and he very kindly brought a new battery to replace it and we headed to shore. We drove to the supermarket where we got more groceries. Then we went to the hotel to get wi-fi. From there we took a long drive down along the coast. It was a fantastic drive, wonderful scenery. At the end we got out and walked down to the beach, a strip probably a couple thousand feet long. I ran along the beach in the waves (just like in Chariots of Fire!) and then went rock climbing around to another short stretch of beach. I climbed out of it and went around the same path along the rocks again with Uncle Bill. Then we got someone to take a pictures of us, and then we took a picture of them. We drove back to tthe dock, on the way back we stopped first at a shop when I brought a hat, and then next door where we picked up some groceries. Then we stopped by the same supermarket we did this morning to pick up some of the cold items and some wine. We headed back to the dock, unloaded, and waited for Patrick. He arrived and took us back, we dropped him off at his Island, and then we docked in front of the house. Most of us got wet from jumping into the water. For supper we reheated teh stew, it was even better, and we had some bread with some Cabernet Sauvignon. After supper we sat by a nice fire and talked. We headed to bed around 11pm.
April 4, Wednesday
I woke up around 7am and decided to make muffins for breakfast. Paul had a recipe book so I looked one up. I made Blueberry Coffee Cake muffins and Uncle Bill made an omelot. After breakfast all of us except Londa took a hike up to an Island because of the very low tide. We found a small lamb and met up with Patrick and his son who owns the Issland and the sheep. We talked and they took the lamb back. We went back to the house and got back around 12pm. we ate lunch and then played Last Word. After that I took the kayak out for a bit and the others started Regarding Henry, a DVD. I came back and finished watching it with them. After the film ended I worked on a Blueberry Rhubarb Cobbler for dessert. For supper we had grilled cheese and tomato soup with a Green Ginger wine. It was quite tasty. After supper we headed out to see the sunset. We all ferried across and went up to teh cliffs. We saw the caber pole, though it was about 30ft in and around 6ft deep where it was. We watched the sky and took pictures. We walked back and ate the Blueberry Rhubarb Cobbler. Uncle Bill is trying his hand at roasting peanuts. After the dishes were washed we sat down to an awesome game of Rook. In the middle it unexpectedly turned upside down. Londa came in the 1st, Uncle Bill 2nd, and me third, though there was a difference between Uncle Bill and I of 200 some points! We headed to bed around 11pm. We will be heading to shore, the mainland around 8am. So we’ll be getting up early and leaving here by 7:45am. It should be fun!
April 5, Thursday
I woke up at 6:40 by Uncle Bill. The others were up or got up later, closer to 7:15. For breakfast we had Muesli with yogurt and milk. After breakfast we loaded up and headed to the dock. We got on, picked up Patrick and we were dropped off at the mainland. We went to SuperValu and picked up a few things, coffee, tea, scones and bread. From there we drove North East and stopped by Foxford Woolin Mill. We went on the self guided tour and afterwards we shopped around. Some of the jumpers were on half off so Josiah, Uncle Bill and I got one. Mine was 80 euro, half off of that. It’s the most money I’ve ever spent on any one piece of clothing. I picked up a hat for 22 euro earlier this week as well. So now I have a sweet had and jumper. After that we drove an hour and a half North and took a walk around the highest cliffs in Britain. We couldn’t stay long because we had to be back by 8pm. We stopped by a craft shop and some of us got a few things. We drove back, stopped by SuperValu, ran in, got 2 loaves of bread and 3 salmon. We picked up Salmon. We drove to the dock and had to get out and park somewhere else because some Irish sailors were in the way. We got past, dropped Patrick off and docked. We got home and we mae supper. I made rice pilaf and Uncle Bill did the Salmon. After supper which finished around 9:30pm and cleaned up. Afterwards we watched a film. We went to bed around 12am.
April 6, Friday
I woke up around 8am. For breakfast we had oatmeal (I soaked it overnight) and Muesli. We cleaned up from breakfast and around 9:30am headed to the light house (a good 2 miles). We talked, we walked, picked up stones and shells. It was low tide and the lowest the water ever gets in the lunar tide cycle. The water drops around 4ft and goes back around 400ft. Such a dramatic tide change, it’s insane! We came back for lunch around 1pm. Josiah made pasta and we had spaghetti for lunch. After lunch we just sorta read books until 3pm when we headed for the mainland. We arrived and did some shopping. PIcked up soem bread and cheese. Then we walked down and got some Salmon from one shop and some Hake from another shop. We walked around downtown, got internet and drove around. Lydia sent off here two postcards. Around 6pm almost every shop closes up. Oh, for Good Friday the licensure doesn’t allow the selling of alcohol. So all the pubs were closed and the stores didn’t sell any alcohol. It was strange to see all the pubs closed! I’ve seen almoste as many pubs as I’ve seen B&B’s! Over this whole trip so far I’ve seen probably around 100 pubs! At 7:15pm Patricks’s son picked us up in the boat. We got home and started working on supper. Uncle Bill used the Hake to make a dish with it. Potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and we used the leftover rice. It was good and tasty! We tried the Irish Cream Ale and it was quite good! For supper we had cider. After supper I washed dishes and Lydia rinsed, we talked about how we would set up a kitchen, people who are OCD about things, the best way to clean up the kitchen, etc. Then we all sat down and read for about half an hour. A little before 11pm I went to bed.
English Vintner
Tuesday, 3 April 2012
Ireland
28 March, Wednesday
In the morning we left for the airport. We arrived, met Uncle Bill and Lynnea and got our bags ready to check. We happened to see Aunt Judy who was flying back to Miami the same day, that was quite cool. We got through everything fine, although they did have to get out my Dublin cheese and bacteria wipe it. We got on the plane, waited a nearly 45 minutes and the pilot said the weather was too dangerous in JFK airport. So we got off and waited to collect our bags (they carry-on luggage was put with the check because of space) about 5 minutes had passed when the pilot came back on the plane and said everybody on, were going to do this. So, we got on the plane and took off for JFK.We got off the plane in JFK We found a place that sold sandwiches and we shared those with each other. Around 8:15pm we boarded the plane to fly to Dublin. 29 March, Thursday
The entertainment wasn’t working so we couldn’t watch any films. The food was pretty bad, but, I didn’t expect better I guess. I mostly read a book Uncle Bill had brought and slept. I slept for only about 3 hours, but because of the time change those three hours were from about 11pm-6am. I woke up, ate the food they served for breakfast (a little better, they had a banana) and waited to arrive. We got off, got our checked luggage and drove one in a half hours south of Dublin to explore a little as we had time before Josiah arrived. We saw Kevin’s Church (which was fun to sing in!), a round tower and enjoyed driving on the left side of the road in VERY narrow streets! We went to a grave yard and there was a creek there and people through money into it. So I first went down and started collect coins, and then Lydia, and so did Uncle Bill. We had to hide under the bridge when people came, we called it the Gollum game. :) We didn’t get quite enough for any lunch, and Uncle Bill didn’t have cash, so we headed back to Dublin. We stopped at a small cafe for lunch. It was really good, and the waitress had an awesome accent as well as reminding me of an actor (brilliant blue eyes, jet black hair, dark tan complexion) I’ve seen. We left around 4:15pm to go back to Dublin. We picked up Josiah from the ferry and I squeezed in the back with the three girls. We drove across Ireland and stopped at Dunnes Store to pick up some cider and beer (as well as stretch our legs, 4 people in 3 seats?! TIGHTNESS!). From there we drove on to a hostel and arrive around 10pm, quite exhausted as most of us had had around 3-4 hours of sleep! The hostel owner looked JUST LIKE Cadfael, it was very cool! We popped a few cans, wrote in journals and went to bed. All of us were tired, but ready for tomorrow!
30 March, Friday
We woke up around 9am (Lydia and Lynnea slept in closer to 10am), I took a shower, packed my bags, and made some coffee in the hostel open kitchen. They didn’t serve breakfast, but they had a kitchen you could cook in, store your food in. We had no food so we asked the owner where to eat, he suggested a place and after we had had coffee we headed to town ( a couple miles away). We found Jae’s Cafe, it was a bakery/cafe and smelled amazing! Hot brewed coffee mixing with freshly baked goods! We were seated upstairs (they had room for maybe a dozen people, another reason why I love Ireland!) and chose from the menu and ordered. The kitchen was the next room over where they cooked everything to order. Londa and I got scones, Uncle Bill got an omelet, Josiah got a savoury pancake, Lydia and Lynnea got pancakes. We finished around 11:15am and headed towards the Island. We stopped by a grocery store, the equivalent of Aldi, and picked up some stuff. Right before then we were trying to talk to someone crossing the stree and instead it looked more like we were trying to run him over (at 2mph), the dude gave us an angry look and walked across. We later saw him in the store and as he passed us said “bleepin’ Americans”. We felt bad because we weren’t trying to make him angry, oh well. We drove to the dock where we waited for Patrick. He arrived around 3:30pm, we met him, loaded up and boated (is that the right word?) over to the Island. It was a good 20min ride to the Island. We got to the Island, unloaded, found out what was in every nook and cranny and made ourselves at home. We went out on a walk and explored the Island a good bit. We brought some plastic bags with us, so we collected muscles for supper. When we got back around 8pm and made supper. We boiled the muscles in water, and while those were cooking ate bread, cheese and apples with some red wine. The muscles were very tasty, we dipped them in a garlic butter that Uncle Bill made. Afterwards we cleaned up, washed the sihes, and played Rook. We decided to do teams of two, Lydia and Uncle Bill, Josiah and Lynnea, and Londa and I. It was a fun game, despite Lynnea getting the Rook five out of nine times. Uncle Bill and Lydia ended up with the most points and won. After the game we divided up the bed rooms, Uncle Bill got the master, Josiah got a single bed room, as did I upstairs, the three girls got the double bunk beds. I set an alarm for 7am.
31 March, Saturday
I woke up at 7am to my alarm. Actually I woke up around 6:30 and went back to sleep. Unlike some people. I love mornings and will sacrifice sleep for them. I don’t take sleep where ever I can get it because that’s not who I am, or what I do. It’s hard to say if we’ve/I have adjusted to the time change. I think it helped the first day that we were so tired that when night came we slept very soundly. It’s ahrd to say what my body says the time is, because I pay more attention to the light rather than what it feels like. The last tw days we’re only had two meals a day! :) We got up late enough and ate breakfast late enough that it basically counted for lunch. I wanted to go running today because I like doing it and because it is Fun. That is the main reason why I got up when I did. I went out behind the house and retraced where we had gone yesterday, hoping to find a good beach, I went about a mile and couldn’t find what I was looking for so I went back. I took a slightly different route and came out by the front of the house. I went on down to the dock, still in search of a place to run. I found a flat place, 300ft long maybe. I took off my socks and shoes and tried it. Besides the water being freezing cold, the rocks hurt more than I thought, (maybe I’ve gone too long with shoes on) I put them back on and came back. I started running along the beach, and despite the largish rocks the running was quite good. I got in maybe a quarter mile of pretty good running, enough to get my heart rate up and my breathing hard. I came to the house and made myself a cup of joe. Josiah woke up around 8am and went outside exploring/walking with his camera. The others got up around 9am and we ate breakfast. After breakfast I read some from The Golden Thread of Time, the three girls went exploring, and Josiah and Uncle Bill went to the boat to try and figure out the GPS. I went out and skipped stones near the boat. At a little after 10am we all got in the boat and took it out so Uncle Bill could get a little more used to it. We went back to the house, picked up some stuff and went to the main land. We picked up Patrick and went to the main land. We got groceries and got nachos and fish and chips. We were picked up by Patric around 6pm. We got to the house and I ended up jumping into the water to help pull the boat up! We made spaghetti for supper. After suppwe we went outside to see the sunset, we went out behind the house. WE came back to the house, played Rook for a while. Around 10pm we went to bed.
1 April, Sunday
I woke up at 6am thinking the clock said 7am. I went back to sleep (wasn’t hard) till 7:45am. I went outside after a shower. Bright blue sky and a warm sun! It was glorious! Londa was outside (as well as Uncle Bill) and I showed her some spots to take pictures from. I found a boat underneath some brambles, I’m hoping to find out more about it today. For breakfast we had pancakes, I soaked some of the flour with milk to make it easier to digest (healthier). I also made some yogurt that I used for milk in the pancakes. So this morning I made pancakes and they were very good. Last night we found the two kayaks in the shed, I’m hoping to try them out today with Lynnea! I’m also planning to do some swimming as well. The water is very clear, and yesterday when I got in the water I soon adjusted to it. We’re going to church today, a stone church we saw yesterday in town. We got to the church a little before it started, so we sat in the sun outside. The church was very cold, but we met one particular gentlemen who was very nice, he talked to us before and after church. The service was very much like I would think high church tends to be like. The prayers and most everything was written out and read, etc. I was glad we were able to go to church though. After church they had tea and biscuits for refreshment, and we met a few more people, including the pastor/priest? Then we went across the street to the service station to use the toilets. From there we drove around trying to find a place that had wi-fi. We would have been invited over to the gentlemen’s house that we met, except that his son and family were over for Palm Sunday and we wouldn’t’ve fit. We finally found some wi-fi and decided to eat lunch. So we went back to a park and ate lunch and then drove to the hotel to send a few emails. The bread here is quite tasty, as well the cheese. Around 4pm we headed back to the Island. We got back, planned when supper owuld be and went out separate ways. Londa took a nap, Lydia and Josiah went off, Uncle Bill went exploring, and Lynnea and I took the kayaks out. I have to say the two kayaks were quite fun! I came back and Josiah took the kayak out and around the Island. I found the boat again and looked it over. I plan to take it out tomorrow. For supper we had Parsnip and Carrot soup. It came in envelopes and I sautèd carrots to add to the soup. We had soup, bread, and a salad, and to accompany it we had cider. After supper we started a fre in the fireplace and played Clue, Londa won. After Clue we played Catch Phrase. We had a very enjoyable evening. We went to be around 11pm.
English Vintner
In the morning we left for the airport. We arrived, met Uncle Bill and Lynnea and got our bags ready to check. We happened to see Aunt Judy who was flying back to Miami the same day, that was quite cool. We got through everything fine, although they did have to get out my Dublin cheese and bacteria wipe it. We got on the plane, waited a nearly 45 minutes and the pilot said the weather was too dangerous in JFK airport. So we got off and waited to collect our bags (they carry-on luggage was put with the check because of space) about 5 minutes had passed when the pilot came back on the plane and said everybody on, were going to do this. So, we got on the plane and took off for JFK.We got off the plane in JFK We found a place that sold sandwiches and we shared those with each other. Around 8:15pm we boarded the plane to fly to Dublin. 29 March, Thursday
The entertainment wasn’t working so we couldn’t watch any films. The food was pretty bad, but, I didn’t expect better I guess. I mostly read a book Uncle Bill had brought and slept. I slept for only about 3 hours, but because of the time change those three hours were from about 11pm-6am. I woke up, ate the food they served for breakfast (a little better, they had a banana) and waited to arrive. We got off, got our checked luggage and drove one in a half hours south of Dublin to explore a little as we had time before Josiah arrived. We saw Kevin’s Church (which was fun to sing in!), a round tower and enjoyed driving on the left side of the road in VERY narrow streets! We went to a grave yard and there was a creek there and people through money into it. So I first went down and started collect coins, and then Lydia, and so did Uncle Bill. We had to hide under the bridge when people came, we called it the Gollum game. :) We didn’t get quite enough for any lunch, and Uncle Bill didn’t have cash, so we headed back to Dublin. We stopped at a small cafe for lunch. It was really good, and the waitress had an awesome accent as well as reminding me of an actor (brilliant blue eyes, jet black hair, dark tan complexion) I’ve seen. We left around 4:15pm to go back to Dublin. We picked up Josiah from the ferry and I squeezed in the back with the three girls. We drove across Ireland and stopped at Dunnes Store to pick up some cider and beer (as well as stretch our legs, 4 people in 3 seats?! TIGHTNESS!). From there we drove on to a hostel and arrive around 10pm, quite exhausted as most of us had had around 3-4 hours of sleep! The hostel owner looked JUST LIKE Cadfael, it was very cool! We popped a few cans, wrote in journals and went to bed. All of us were tired, but ready for tomorrow!
30 March, Friday
We woke up around 9am (Lydia and Lynnea slept in closer to 10am), I took a shower, packed my bags, and made some coffee in the hostel open kitchen. They didn’t serve breakfast, but they had a kitchen you could cook in, store your food in. We had no food so we asked the owner where to eat, he suggested a place and after we had had coffee we headed to town ( a couple miles away). We found Jae’s Cafe, it was a bakery/cafe and smelled amazing! Hot brewed coffee mixing with freshly baked goods! We were seated upstairs (they had room for maybe a dozen people, another reason why I love Ireland!) and chose from the menu and ordered. The kitchen was the next room over where they cooked everything to order. Londa and I got scones, Uncle Bill got an omelet, Josiah got a savoury pancake, Lydia and Lynnea got pancakes. We finished around 11:15am and headed towards the Island. We stopped by a grocery store, the equivalent of Aldi, and picked up some stuff. Right before then we were trying to talk to someone crossing the stree and instead it looked more like we were trying to run him over (at 2mph), the dude gave us an angry look and walked across. We later saw him in the store and as he passed us said “bleepin’ Americans”. We felt bad because we weren’t trying to make him angry, oh well. We drove to the dock where we waited for Patrick. He arrived around 3:30pm, we met him, loaded up and boated (is that the right word?) over to the Island. It was a good 20min ride to the Island. We got to the Island, unloaded, found out what was in every nook and cranny and made ourselves at home. We went out on a walk and explored the Island a good bit. We brought some plastic bags with us, so we collected muscles for supper. When we got back around 8pm and made supper. We boiled the muscles in water, and while those were cooking ate bread, cheese and apples with some red wine. The muscles were very tasty, we dipped them in a garlic butter that Uncle Bill made. Afterwards we cleaned up, washed the sihes, and played Rook. We decided to do teams of two, Lydia and Uncle Bill, Josiah and Lynnea, and Londa and I. It was a fun game, despite Lynnea getting the Rook five out of nine times. Uncle Bill and Lydia ended up with the most points and won. After the game we divided up the bed rooms, Uncle Bill got the master, Josiah got a single bed room, as did I upstairs, the three girls got the double bunk beds. I set an alarm for 7am.
31 March, Saturday
I woke up at 7am to my alarm. Actually I woke up around 6:30 and went back to sleep. Unlike some people. I love mornings and will sacrifice sleep for them. I don’t take sleep where ever I can get it because that’s not who I am, or what I do. It’s hard to say if we’ve/I have adjusted to the time change. I think it helped the first day that we were so tired that when night came we slept very soundly. It’s ahrd to say what my body says the time is, because I pay more attention to the light rather than what it feels like. The last tw days we’re only had two meals a day! :) We got up late enough and ate breakfast late enough that it basically counted for lunch. I wanted to go running today because I like doing it and because it is Fun. That is the main reason why I got up when I did. I went out behind the house and retraced where we had gone yesterday, hoping to find a good beach, I went about a mile and couldn’t find what I was looking for so I went back. I took a slightly different route and came out by the front of the house. I went on down to the dock, still in search of a place to run. I found a flat place, 300ft long maybe. I took off my socks and shoes and tried it. Besides the water being freezing cold, the rocks hurt more than I thought, (maybe I’ve gone too long with shoes on) I put them back on and came back. I started running along the beach, and despite the largish rocks the running was quite good. I got in maybe a quarter mile of pretty good running, enough to get my heart rate up and my breathing hard. I came to the house and made myself a cup of joe. Josiah woke up around 8am and went outside exploring/walking with his camera. The others got up around 9am and we ate breakfast. After breakfast I read some from The Golden Thread of Time, the three girls went exploring, and Josiah and Uncle Bill went to the boat to try and figure out the GPS. I went out and skipped stones near the boat. At a little after 10am we all got in the boat and took it out so Uncle Bill could get a little more used to it. We went back to the house, picked up some stuff and went to the main land. We picked up Patrick and went to the main land. We got groceries and got nachos and fish and chips. We were picked up by Patric around 6pm. We got to the house and I ended up jumping into the water to help pull the boat up! We made spaghetti for supper. After suppwe we went outside to see the sunset, we went out behind the house. WE came back to the house, played Rook for a while. Around 10pm we went to bed.
1 April, Sunday
I woke up at 6am thinking the clock said 7am. I went back to sleep (wasn’t hard) till 7:45am. I went outside after a shower. Bright blue sky and a warm sun! It was glorious! Londa was outside (as well as Uncle Bill) and I showed her some spots to take pictures from. I found a boat underneath some brambles, I’m hoping to find out more about it today. For breakfast we had pancakes, I soaked some of the flour with milk to make it easier to digest (healthier). I also made some yogurt that I used for milk in the pancakes. So this morning I made pancakes and they were very good. Last night we found the two kayaks in the shed, I’m hoping to try them out today with Lynnea! I’m also planning to do some swimming as well. The water is very clear, and yesterday when I got in the water I soon adjusted to it. We’re going to church today, a stone church we saw yesterday in town. We got to the church a little before it started, so we sat in the sun outside. The church was very cold, but we met one particular gentlemen who was very nice, he talked to us before and after church. The service was very much like I would think high church tends to be like. The prayers and most everything was written out and read, etc. I was glad we were able to go to church though. After church they had tea and biscuits for refreshment, and we met a few more people, including the pastor/priest? Then we went across the street to the service station to use the toilets. From there we drove around trying to find a place that had wi-fi. We would have been invited over to the gentlemen’s house that we met, except that his son and family were over for Palm Sunday and we wouldn’t’ve fit. We finally found some wi-fi and decided to eat lunch. So we went back to a park and ate lunch and then drove to the hotel to send a few emails. The bread here is quite tasty, as well the cheese. Around 4pm we headed back to the Island. We got back, planned when supper owuld be and went out separate ways. Londa took a nap, Lydia and Josiah went off, Uncle Bill went exploring, and Lynnea and I took the kayaks out. I have to say the two kayaks were quite fun! I came back and Josiah took the kayak out and around the Island. I found the boat again and looked it over. I plan to take it out tomorrow. For supper we had Parsnip and Carrot soup. It came in envelopes and I sautèd carrots to add to the soup. We had soup, bread, and a salad, and to accompany it we had cider. After supper we started a fre in the fireplace and played Clue, Londa won. After Clue we played Catch Phrase. We had a very enjoyable evening. We went to be around 11pm.
English Vintner
Monday, 19 March 2012
Gardening 2012
It's been a long time since I was last on. For the last 4-6 months I was not that motivated to garden this year, I felt like I had accomplished something, I'd learned how to do it, and I was moving on. I was some what disappointed because I like gardening; but if I don't have the motivation, it won't happen.
I ordered seeds in January, a much smaller selection than previous years, I was cutting back some. I wasn't as energetic about it this year, and I was going to be gone for the latter half of the summer into Autumn.
Then March happened. We started getting warm weather, much earlier than usual for North Carolina. I started getting plans together for renovating my greenhouse. I started seeing seeing more plants budding, and that was when it happened. I got the gardeners fever. I went to work on getting my compost piles up and going, clean out some old compost, started new piles, dug out the area in front to clear weeds and provide a more level and faster draining slope.
Last week, Saturday morning was one of those Saturdays that you just love. I got up at 7am, which was sleeping in some for me. I had a leisure breakfast and a start to my day. At 9:30am I took our van to Lowe's to pick up 2x4s. The cheapest lumber was treated, so I got 24 2x4x8's. I started the project after an early lunch and continued to 6pm when I had to stop because light was running out, and I had a few other things to work on. I framed up the sides of my greenhouse with 2x4s (before it was 1x6) and secured plexiglass to it. It was quite enjoyable to be out all day in the sun, and it was fun to do some construction work. I love working with my hands!
I now am working on framing up the other half of my greenhouse, putting a level floor in, putting siding on the walls, and a shingled roof that I can collect water from. I will instal two windows in it for lighting. Two weeks ago I spent the afternoon digging out a whole to put my fridge in that I'm using as a root cellar (I calculated that I moved 2 tonnes of dirt in 2 hours). The fridge will be level with my shed floor and I'll have access to it from inside my shed. The shed will house all my tools, wheel barrow, and anything else I might happen to have down by my garden. It will protect them from UV, provide me with some water generated from the roof, and provide a stable place that motivates me to be down in the garden, as well as making it much easier to maintain my garden.
A week ago with the help of my dad I got the right pvc connectors to hook up my rain barrel at the house (330gallons, 1 ton of pressure) to a 300ft long hose that goes down to my garden. I have enough of a drop that I have really good pressure all the way to my greenhouse, which is amazing. So, I now have a hose to water my garden with, something I'd been doing without for the past 3 years. Not only will I have more water to water with, but it will require less effort and my plants will benefit from it. My plan is to take down two other rain barrels (each 330 gallons) and fill them up with water from the hose. If I do that I should have around 1200 gallons of water when we get a drought this year. With the mild winter they are predicting record heat, which I believe in turn will give us at least a temporary drought, I plan to be prepared.
The one other new thing that I have going on is soil blocks. Soil blocks are compressed blocks of soil that you direct sow into for transplanting out later. They eliminate the need for plastic or ceramic pots and reduce transplant shock to almost zero. Because all four sides of the soil block are in contact with air, the roots will not grow further than the block, keeping the roots in check which is one reason why they transplant so easily. The other reason they reduce transplant shock is because you are not taking them out of a pot, you simply take a tray of soil blocks out to the garden, lift it up, put it in a hole, fill around with dirt, water, and your plant is off to a great start. The only cost for starting seeds is the initial cost of the soil block makers, and if you decide to buy the soil mix, or make it yourself. Johnny's Seeds is where I bought mine from, they come in a variety of sizes, from 3/4" to 4". What a lot of people do is start small seeds in the 3/4" blocks, and move them into the 2" blocks and keep blocking them up until transplant time. I bought a 4 2" soil block maker for $30, well worth the investment, most people spend at least that much every year on seed starting supplies.
To learn more about Soil Block Makers: http://www.johnnyseeds.com/t-video_soilblocking.aspx
What do I have started so far?
40 zucchini
40 loofa
6 bushel gourd
13 sweet potatoes (growing them for slips)
40 basil (I plan to do 3 kinds, so far only 1 kind has been planted)
pea shoots (I filled a 6x18" container with peas about 1" apart)
What's next?
Peppers
Herbs
Pumpkins
Squash
Beans
More to come!
Cheers,
English Vintner
I ordered seeds in January, a much smaller selection than previous years, I was cutting back some. I wasn't as energetic about it this year, and I was going to be gone for the latter half of the summer into Autumn.
Then March happened. We started getting warm weather, much earlier than usual for North Carolina. I started getting plans together for renovating my greenhouse. I started seeing seeing more plants budding, and that was when it happened. I got the gardeners fever. I went to work on getting my compost piles up and going, clean out some old compost, started new piles, dug out the area in front to clear weeds and provide a more level and faster draining slope.
Last week, Saturday morning was one of those Saturdays that you just love. I got up at 7am, which was sleeping in some for me. I had a leisure breakfast and a start to my day. At 9:30am I took our van to Lowe's to pick up 2x4s. The cheapest lumber was treated, so I got 24 2x4x8's. I started the project after an early lunch and continued to 6pm when I had to stop because light was running out, and I had a few other things to work on. I framed up the sides of my greenhouse with 2x4s (before it was 1x6) and secured plexiglass to it. It was quite enjoyable to be out all day in the sun, and it was fun to do some construction work. I love working with my hands!
I now am working on framing up the other half of my greenhouse, putting a level floor in, putting siding on the walls, and a shingled roof that I can collect water from. I will instal two windows in it for lighting. Two weeks ago I spent the afternoon digging out a whole to put my fridge in that I'm using as a root cellar (I calculated that I moved 2 tonnes of dirt in 2 hours). The fridge will be level with my shed floor and I'll have access to it from inside my shed. The shed will house all my tools, wheel barrow, and anything else I might happen to have down by my garden. It will protect them from UV, provide me with some water generated from the roof, and provide a stable place that motivates me to be down in the garden, as well as making it much easier to maintain my garden.
A week ago with the help of my dad I got the right pvc connectors to hook up my rain barrel at the house (330gallons, 1 ton of pressure) to a 300ft long hose that goes down to my garden. I have enough of a drop that I have really good pressure all the way to my greenhouse, which is amazing. So, I now have a hose to water my garden with, something I'd been doing without for the past 3 years. Not only will I have more water to water with, but it will require less effort and my plants will benefit from it. My plan is to take down two other rain barrels (each 330 gallons) and fill them up with water from the hose. If I do that I should have around 1200 gallons of water when we get a drought this year. With the mild winter they are predicting record heat, which I believe in turn will give us at least a temporary drought, I plan to be prepared.
The one other new thing that I have going on is soil blocks. Soil blocks are compressed blocks of soil that you direct sow into for transplanting out later. They eliminate the need for plastic or ceramic pots and reduce transplant shock to almost zero. Because all four sides of the soil block are in contact with air, the roots will not grow further than the block, keeping the roots in check which is one reason why they transplant so easily. The other reason they reduce transplant shock is because you are not taking them out of a pot, you simply take a tray of soil blocks out to the garden, lift it up, put it in a hole, fill around with dirt, water, and your plant is off to a great start. The only cost for starting seeds is the initial cost of the soil block makers, and if you decide to buy the soil mix, or make it yourself. Johnny's Seeds is where I bought mine from, they come in a variety of sizes, from 3/4" to 4". What a lot of people do is start small seeds in the 3/4" blocks, and move them into the 2" blocks and keep blocking them up until transplant time. I bought a 4 2" soil block maker for $30, well worth the investment, most people spend at least that much every year on seed starting supplies.
To learn more about Soil Block Makers: http://www.johnnyseeds.com/t-video_soilblocking.aspx
What do I have started so far?
40 zucchini
40 loofa
6 bushel gourd
13 sweet potatoes (growing them for slips)
40 basil (I plan to do 3 kinds, so far only 1 kind has been planted)
pea shoots (I filled a 6x18" container with peas about 1" apart)
What's next?
Peppers
Herbs
Pumpkins
Squash
Beans
More to come!
Cheers,
English Vintner
Tuesday, 7 February 2012
Spring, or is it Winter?
It's hard to tell what exactly the season it is right now in NC. We've had it quite mild, December got pretty cold several nights, but January was quite warm. No snow yet, though I'm still holding on to the chance that we'll get a little snow storm in late Feb. or March that will make winter fun.
Lately it's been rather warmish and rainy, and many people are saying how much they like the warm weather. Here's what I say to them:
I'd rather see the Sunrise and have a frost, than have it warm and raining. At least in the month of February.
Gardening plans are making their way around my head, I still haven't ordered seeds, though I have lots left over from last year's so I won't be ordering many.
English Vintner
Lately it's been rather warmish and rainy, and many people are saying how much they like the warm weather. Here's what I say to them:
I'd rather see the Sunrise and have a frost, than have it warm and raining. At least in the month of February.
Gardening plans are making their way around my head, I still haven't ordered seeds, though I have lots left over from last year's so I won't be ordering many.
English Vintner
Monday, 5 December 2011
Thanksgiving Poem
I wrote this the week after Thanksgiving on my way to work. Some how I often am inspired on my way to work, driving.
Can one week really go so quickly,
The long expected day of the year?
The anticipation builds as the week draws nearer,
And at long last the day is here.
The excitement the friendship
that bonds each time,
Reminds me again God is so kind
The laughing the games that go on each night,
Frost in the morning each day so bright.
And at long last as the week comes an end
I can’t wait for it next year
And the friendships we’ll mend.
English Vintner
Friday, 2 December 2011
Frost
Jack frost plays across the stage
turning everything frost white,
Leaves and twigs frozen in time
Until the light of dawn.
English Vintner
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Garlic
Well well, it's been a while I confess. I've been busy. Work is going well, school is pretty good too. Garden has had some care, but needs more of it. It's raining right now, so I won't go down and work on it, or so my excuse is.
I planted garlic last week. I ordered $60 worth of garlic, which was 3lbs. Yes, thats way more than I would pay for eating garlic, but it will come out to about 10 cents per clove or so, pretty cheap. I got 2lbs of hardneck, or stiff neck (sounds like the Israelites! :) and 1lb of softneck. I planted softneck last year, and softneck is what most people are used to. Stiffneck is more gourmet, their stalks are stiff (hence the name) and they produce a flower stalk which should be plucked.
I have total about 150 bulbs in the ground. I would like to do some more, take from what I have right now that I grew last year, and maybe do another 150 or so. If it does well I will sell some.
I have greens and lettuce under plastic in the garden. I have two 5x20ft beds. I have quite a bit of swiss chard (I LOVE swiss chard), leaf lettuce, romaine type, some other greens, and some carrots. Oh, and plenty of chickweed (a weed in this case).
I am looking forward to Thanksgiving next week! 35+ people! It is going to be a blast, plenty of good food, good coffee, fellowship, games, laughing, crying (from joy!), joke telling, LATE nights, EARLY mornings, and some fun cooking! I can't wait!
English Vintner
I planted garlic last week. I ordered $60 worth of garlic, which was 3lbs. Yes, thats way more than I would pay for eating garlic, but it will come out to about 10 cents per clove or so, pretty cheap. I got 2lbs of hardneck, or stiff neck (sounds like the Israelites! :) and 1lb of softneck. I planted softneck last year, and softneck is what most people are used to. Stiffneck is more gourmet, their stalks are stiff (hence the name) and they produce a flower stalk which should be plucked.
I have total about 150 bulbs in the ground. I would like to do some more, take from what I have right now that I grew last year, and maybe do another 150 or so. If it does well I will sell some.
I have greens and lettuce under plastic in the garden. I have two 5x20ft beds. I have quite a bit of swiss chard (I LOVE swiss chard), leaf lettuce, romaine type, some other greens, and some carrots. Oh, and plenty of chickweed (a weed in this case).
I am looking forward to Thanksgiving next week! 35+ people! It is going to be a blast, plenty of good food, good coffee, fellowship, games, laughing, crying (from joy!), joke telling, LATE nights, EARLY mornings, and some fun cooking! I can't wait!
English Vintner
Wednesday, 5 October 2011
Journey
Life is but a journey, and it’s road is all too short,
For when the road becomes a rut, and mud is turned to dirt
We’ll look on the horizon, and see the setting sun,
But knowing in our hearts, the day has just begun,
It’s hard to see the sun shine, when tears obscure the view,
For tears like rain are falling, like grace for me and you,
Like sharp thorns on a rose bush, they guard their beauty well,
So thorns upon our saviors brow, he died and went through hell,
But earth could not contain this man, who lived a sinless life,
For all the sin within this world, and all this hellish strife,
Could not contain the Son of Man, who died for you and me,
So, life is but a journey, and you decide the road,
But some day then, the journey ends, and your road decides your fate.
English Vintner
Friday, 23 September 2011
Greens
Well, yesterday I planted a little more space with a mix of mustard, spinach, and kale. Now all I have left to plant is lettuce. I have 3-4 different kinds of lettuce I am planting.
I might be able to plant today, but we've had rain or clouds for the past 5 days, I've seen the sun less than 6 hours this entire week. It brought us out of the drought we were in, filled up the creek some (and that creek was bone dry), hopefully it didn't do anything to my sweet potatoes, they say not to water during the last few weeks of growing, so as they don't split. Well, I haven't watered them since I put them in the ground. I let the plastic mulch conserve as much water during the dry seasons...and the water from heaven water them when it rained.
I'm at a stoping point with my Whizbang Apple Grinder right now. I've got almost everything I need, all the wood and all. I've got my disposal even. However, the motor I ordered doesn't work, the shaft is frozen up. I'm not a good engineer, so in trying to take it apart I'll probably lose all the screws. So, then I was going to use my lathe motor. But, a 3lb sledge hammer won't take the spindle that is attached to the shaft of the motor. I've tried just about everything I can think of to get it off. The one thing I haven't tried is torching it trying to heat up the spindle so that it expands and moves. The problem would be if the shaft heated up too, cause then both are expanding....
Ya....and I've been looking online and can't find any cheap motors for under $50. I can't even find very man under $100. We're looking at going apple picking around Oct. 8, a Saturday. I'd really like to have everything ready by then. I have two weeks....If anyone knows of where to buy a cheap farm motor, let me know.
English Vintner
I might be able to plant today, but we've had rain or clouds for the past 5 days, I've seen the sun less than 6 hours this entire week. It brought us out of the drought we were in, filled up the creek some (and that creek was bone dry), hopefully it didn't do anything to my sweet potatoes, they say not to water during the last few weeks of growing, so as they don't split. Well, I haven't watered them since I put them in the ground. I let the plastic mulch conserve as much water during the dry seasons...and the water from heaven water them when it rained.
I'm at a stoping point with my Whizbang Apple Grinder right now. I've got almost everything I need, all the wood and all. I've got my disposal even. However, the motor I ordered doesn't work, the shaft is frozen up. I'm not a good engineer, so in trying to take it apart I'll probably lose all the screws. So, then I was going to use my lathe motor. But, a 3lb sledge hammer won't take the spindle that is attached to the shaft of the motor. I've tried just about everything I can think of to get it off. The one thing I haven't tried is torching it trying to heat up the spindle so that it expands and moves. The problem would be if the shaft heated up too, cause then both are expanding....
Ya....and I've been looking online and can't find any cheap motors for under $50. I can't even find very man under $100. We're looking at going apple picking around Oct. 8, a Saturday. I'd really like to have everything ready by then. I have two weeks....If anyone knows of where to buy a cheap farm motor, let me know.
English Vintner
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