I'll Huff, and I'll Puff, and I'll Blo-o-o-ow Your House Down!

Ha ha! This makes 35 posts! I am very proud of myself. I never thought I'd ever, ever post more than maybe five on any single blog. It's not like I'm really good with follow-through. On the things that matter to me, I do fine, but on hobby-like things (such as this blog), I really don't do much cuz even though they're fun, I don't make me do it and neither does anyone else (not that anyone really could make me if I didn't want to...).

When you have some really nice days of spring, you forget about the other half of spring. The part where the wind is blowing so hard that you feel like everything is going to blow away. If I were a flatlander (Kansas and other places with similar terrain), everything really might blow away in a nice tornado. As it is, I've only ever lived in the Arizona desert as well as the nearby mountains, so a tornado is very unlikely. Allthesameanyhow, it feels like we're all going to blow away like the nannies in Mary Poppins.

The Agrarian Times

One of my favorite bloggers, Phelan, has a letter to the President that I think people should read. It's really great, and while you're there, go ahead and poke around the rest of the site.

I'm including the definition to make this post longer. Click on the little sound icon to hear how it's supposed to be pronounced.

a⋅grar⋅i⋅an   /əˈgrɛəriən/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [uh-grair-ee-uhn] –adjective

1.	relating to land, land tenure, or the division of landed property: agrarian laws.

2.	pertaining to the advancement of agricultural groups: an agrarian movement.

3.	composed of or pertaining to farmers: an agrarian co-op.

4.	rural; agricultural.

5.	growing in fields; wild: an agrarian plant.

–noun

6.	a person who favors the equal division of landed property and the advancement of agricultural groups.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.

Spring is in the Air!

I have decided to stick to Blogger when it comes to reading other blogs. I have a very difficult time reading back entries on places like Wordpress. It doesn't make any sense to me and I end up getting very lost.

A friend of mine has stayed over every night this week except Sunday night and Wednesday night. Normally I love having visitors and everything, but these specific friends think they don't have to knock on the door when they show up or ask if they can have a specific item of food before they eat it or ask to use the computer. Instead, they just do. I'm not being stingy. I just like people to ask permission. Most likely, I will give permission, but I still think it's good manners to ask and to knock instead of just doing it because you know that the answer would probably be yes if you asked.

I am starting a compost pile. So far I have only found two designs that I can make. For the first, you make a wooden box with three sides. The fourth, open, side is made so you gradually add board as your pile grows. For the second design, it is just chicken wire arranged in a circle.

The chicken wire design would be easier to make but the wooden box might be more durable. I just don't know. I have considered a free standing pile, but I've decided that the drawbacks (like animals messing with it and the vast quantities of wind we have around here) far outweigh the positives (i.e., no time spent breaking my fingers and cursing the building materials and my idiotic mistakes). So the free-standing pile is out. I suppose something like stacked tires or cinderblocks are also options except then I am faced with the daunting task of finding supplies, while the board and chickenwire ideas I already have the supplies for.

Also, my garden is about ready to be mixed up with some nice, tasty mulch. After laying fallow all year and with no one walking on it, the mostly-clay that is my soil is NOT compacted and is, in fact, quite loose and therefore will be at least a little less backbreaking to till by hand (by hand, rather than by rototiller because this spot has never been gardened and probably has more than a few boulders waiting to munch on a nice, expensive machine). I can't wait to plant!

I've cleared out the tumbleweeds that have grown up right next to the fence and I have yet to pull the weeds that are just starting to grow. I also need to start some of the seeds SOON. It never frosts after Mothers' Day around here and so I have until sometime in May to get my garden ready. Some things you plant a few weeks before the last frost date and so those will go in sometime in April.

Now for some celebration. Since today is the official first day of spring and spring is in the air, I am celebrating. As much as I love snow and cold, I am ready for a change, and so I am celebrating the nice weather for a change.

HAPPY SPRING!
(and Equinox...)

Pictorial Springfest with images from Photobucket (a few of the pictures are of my area):

Oh guess what! I've noticed that a lot of people are frustrated with how slowly Blogger uploads pictures. I have high speed and it was slow for me, so I can only imagine how annoying it must be for those who have dial-up. I have since found a better way. Photobucket uploads faster than Blogger, so I upload the photos there and then copy and paste the html code into my post where I want it. And the pictures stay online in case you want to use them again in other posts. You might try it and see if it works for you.

We moved our trampoline from the back yard to the front. Tonight, we're having a movie and game night with everyone. I can't wait for the fun summer will bring!

Getting Out of a Rut

I've been feeling really lazy lately. Normally, I can read good homesteading blogs for hours, but currently, I am having a hard time concentrating. It's annoying because even books (that addiction of mine) are confusing. So I've been playing games on the computer. You know, all those fun RPGs. Runescape. Pirates of the Carribean Online. And then plenty of puzzle-like point-and-clicks. I really like the Dream Chronicles only now that I've played the first two, I have to sit around and wait for the third one. I also have been having some fun with Escape Room games. I like them but I sorta suck. And I sometimes have to look for hints. I don't like walkthroughs because they give away too much. I like hints that get me looking at something I never considered before. I can figure out what needs to be done. Geez! It's just how that sometimes gets me.

I am slow with the homesteading stuff. I don't want animals at a time in my life when I'm changing so much, so that limits what I can do already. I can mostly just do plants (which I am doing, but way too slowly for my get-up-go-do-now-now-now personality). I also am doing the homemaking thing or whatever. I am crocheting little red and green squares to put together for an afghan. Or I was crocheting little squares...I did two and then couldn't find any scissors to finish it off so I could do another. Then I found the scissors and was no longer interested. Now I'm re-interested and I can't find the book with the pattern. Grrrr!

Then I discovered a great cookie recipe and I took pics and everything for this blog only now I can't find the camera! And I don't want to do it without pictures and I'm too lazy to go hunting for them.

I'm just getting over being really sick and so I am making excuses not to do anything and all in all I'm just procrastinating all over the place to the tune of the New Age internet Radio station I happen to be addicted to.

I am going to go to a bunch of social places (like church) and I am going to do some chores (make my bed, wash some clothes, etc) to get me going and out of this layabout sick person dealy.

And then I am going to go do something fun.

What do you do to get out of a rut?

DeliberateLife.com

I have just caught up on a new blog which I am now adding to my following list. It's called DeliberateLife.com: Killing Apathy for the Fun of It. Nic is working on living a life that is a circle of life rather than a comsumerism tunnel. She has a husband a little younger (I think about 3 yrs) and two little girls, ages around 3 and 5 and she's expecting a third. The oldest little girl, is high-functioning autistic (Asperger's).

The blog is brilliantly written with a totally new look on how life is and why and what we're actually here for. I swear it's worth the time to go back and read starting from Day 1.

On a sadder note, I was reading a blog: Happily Housepoor and I was slowly getting closer to the future, and then I took a break and when I came back a few weeks later, it was gone! So sad. Even if she chose to stop blogging, did she have to delete the blog? I'm sure she had good reason, but it is still sad to see a blog I enjoy disappear.

Catch-All Catch-Up Post

I have been so sick for the past five or six days. Fever, coughing fits, headache, weakness all over, lightheadedness, constant sleep, the works. I'm better now except for small bouts of lightheadedness, a voracious appetite (I am never hungry), and a craving for peppermint tea and lemons.

I try to post at least once a week (my computer day is Friday) but last Friday, I was so sick, even being on the internet was awful. But here I am. I had planned on doing some intensive physical labor on my someday garden and I have a recipe I want to post as soon as I find the camera with the pics on it.

So far, I have been trying to get a compost pile going. It takes three months for compost to mature, I'm told, and that is about when I need it to go on plants and seedlings. So I'm trying to build such a pile rather quickly. I have a little green discarded wastebasket on the front porch into which all my candidates for compost status go. It's not very full, but I am working on it trying very hard not to blame illness for not doing more.

I don't have much more to say and indeed should stop speaking a 19th century British/contemporary American English hybrid. It sounds strange even to my own ears.

I hope I snap out of it.

Learning About Herbal Remedies

I don't know if I want to start now or if I want to do it later, but eventually I want to learn about herbs. My mom knows a lot and she has a couple of shelves in the library full of herb books. There's John Lust's Herb Book. I liked that one especially because there's a section about herbal folklore. And I have a thing for folklore. The whole anthropology/sociology thing is fascinating. People are just so...weird...in some ways they're predictable, but not as a race. Not really. A lot of people like to destroy and harm. We call it a "consumer society," and I think it hurts the earth when we don't manage it correctly. A lot of Christians seem to think that "God made the earth for our exploitation." I can't hold with that because in Genesis is says God put man on the earth as a caretaker. A caretaker is different from a rapist.

But I'm getting off topic. Dr. Christopher is supposed to have some good books but I have difficulty knowing where to start. But start I must. And suggestions on where to begin are begged for lol.

P.S. It is painful to drive with your dad, mom, and little brother in the car. The yell at me what to do (which I mostly ignore) and they yell at each other for yelling at me. It's distracting. And my dad tells me to hug the yellow line over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over over and over and over and over and over and over and OVER and OVER and OVER again!!!

Garden Update

The first step to getting my garden up is to get it ready for planting. The fence is already up, as I before mentioned, but there are some other things I need to do before I can plant in May. The first thing is the ginormous bush smack in the middle. I could leave it there, but there's at least 45 square feet of garden space that it covers...plus most of the bush is dead. So the bush will be my first project. Digging it up and removing it, along with some of the smaller weeds.

Next, I need to improve the soil. It would have been best to start this last fall so that it would have time to break down and whatever. I could list a couple of pages of excuses, including it not occurring to me, but there's really no point. I didn't do it, and so I need to do it now. Our dirt is almost totally clay. Hard as a rock if you get it wet and step on it a lot. Then nothing grows on it and you have a footpath. So, from what I've read about good soil being equal parts sand, silt, and clay, I'm going to need to bring in extra soil. Luckily, the nearest town has a large creek that runs through it with lots of white sand which no one cares if you take some.

Another thing about our soil is it's red color. Not red as in "iron-rich," red as in "virgin soil." No real anything to feed plants. Luckily my garden spot was where our last batch of chickens lived, so there's chicken manure that's been there since last summer. This is good, because chicken manure is high in Nitrogen which would burn most plants if I put fresh straight on. Also, the nearest town has a dairy and they sell their (semi-fresh) manure from their cows for $20 a tractor scoop. My mother is trying to find someone with a truck who will help her get three scoops for her garden. When I get money next, I'll give her some of it and then get her to go get some for her garden and mine. If I remind her often enough, she might actually do it.

I'll probably try my hand at a compost pile next. It might take some time to get my family to put their plant wastes in a bucket to go out to compost, but it's a good idea, and, anyways, I want to try it.

That's my plan for this next bit. There's still plenty to do after all of the above is completed, but if I try everything all at once, I'll overwhelm myself and then I won't do any of it. :)

Think Outside the Bottle Pledge

You may have noticed In my sidebar is a brand new icon to clutter up my blog: "Think Outside the Bottle." I have never seen the point in having water bottled, it's nasty, the bottles just go to a landfill (poluting the earth), and we have delicious local water that's ours free for the taking. Still, the pledge lists other, bigger, better reasons to stop drinking bottled water, and I so I have pledged this pledge:

Think Outside the Bottle Pledge

Because water is a human right and not a commodity to be bought and sold for profit;

Because bottled water corporations are changing the very way people think about water and undermining people's confidence in public water systems;

Because up to 40% of bottled water in the U.S. and Canada is sourced from municipal tap water;

Because some bottlers have run over communities' concerns and the environment when they extract water and build bottling plants to get local spring and ground water;

Because bottled water travels many miles from the source, results in the burning of massive amounts of fossil fuels, and contributes to the billions of plastic bottles ending up in our landfills;

Because worldwide there is a need for investments in public water systems to ensure equal access to water, a key ingredient for prosperity and health for all people; and

Because solutions to ensuring water as a fundamental human right require people acting together and standing up for public water systems,

I pledge to Think Outside the Bottle, which means:

Opting for public tap water over bottled water; and

Supporting the efforts of local officials who prioritize strong public water systems over bottled water profits.

Signed by:
Gemini

Cauldron Ridge Farm

From there I went in search of a new blog to devour. And I found Gina's "Cauldron Ridge Farm." I read it all. From her move to Cauldron Ridge Farm, through two different jobs, graduating with a degree in entomology (that is what you call a degree in bugs, yes?) to her move to yet another farm and the ups and downs of everyday life. She works full time, plus does the farm thing with her two little boys and husband. It's amazing.

Dancing in A Field of Tansy

When I caught up with "A Homesteading Neophyte," I went in search of new blogs that had quality content. I had to get my fix, you see. lol

That's when I found "Dancing in a Field of Tansy." I caught up on that one faster because there are not so many posts. She is artistic and crafty from what I've seen, and she has goats. I like goats. I grew up on goats' milk from our very own French Alpine/Saanen crosses. Some of them were nasty, some of them were gentle but didn't know how to nurse babies, so we fed her kids with a couple of calf bottles and kept them in a box in our living room. Some of them died. We ate some. As a child, I would sit on my parents' bed under the cooler where I couldn't hear anything. Then, after it was done, I came out and watched them bleed the goat. They hung it on a ginormous mesquite tree we parked our van under.

One goat got her horns stuck in the chainlink fence, crying for her mama. We didn't get to her fast enough (and nobody called a vet after the fact), so she went through the rest of her life with her nick twisted sideways.

But I'm off topic again...Tansy has goats, yes, and I like goats.

A New Tradition; A Homesteading Neophyte

I have decided to do a "Blog of the Week" type of thing. Except I'm not reliable enough to make sure I post about a blog I like each week. So instead I am going to post about blogs that interest me whenever it occurs to me to do so. It's kind of the way I live my life. Do it when it occurs to me and hope it occurs to me.

Today I am posting about the very first homesteading blog I ever discovered. I found it last summer. After I read thirty years worth of back issues from Mother Earth News and wanted to know how people homesteaded now (rather than in the seventies and eighties). Well, I googled all sorts of phrases, trying to find the one that would hit the jackpot. "Rural Living" was out "Country Living" brought up another blank. Phrase after phrase, I searched; using every phrase I could think of that would describe what I was looking for. Finally, I found the right one: "homesteading." Bingo! And best of all, I discovered there were blogs that were worth the space they took up in cyberspace. Homesteading blogs. Until then I had only found dumb ones written by dumb kids who wanted to tell the world about their alcohol addictions and how they cut themselves...as though anyone cared.

Well, I found Phelan's "A Homesteading Neophyte" and, starting from her first post ever, I read all the years of experience buried deep in the archives. It was like reading a good book that never ended. And better yet, it's happening now instead of 1979 or 1983 or 1995. That's something that's important, that it's possible now.

Beginning Steps to My First Garden

Last night I had a lovely dream about sheep. I dreamed I had eight sheep and five of them were pregnant. And they had cute little lambs. It was a homesteading dream, or else I wouldn't have mentioned it in this blog.

You probably know from my blog description that I am a teenager who wants to be a homesteader. If you know what homesteading is, you probably know that most teenagers (at least the ones I know) want to be fashion designers and doctors and actors and authors and veterinarians and brain surgeons and singers, and artists, and archeologists. All those subjects fascinate me, yes, but I want to be a homesteader. I want cows and sheep goats and chickens and a garden and cats and dogs and children on a nice size piece of land in the Rocky Mountains where I can live a life that makes sense to me. Right now I'm learning as much as I can about cooking and sewing and crocheting and other domestic chores as well as more homesteady things like gardening and animal husbandry. Most of my experience in the homesteady things up until now has been book learning and blog reading.

I am still working on that, but now I have decided to plant a garden. I figure now is a good time to start when I have a ton of time on my hands (and I'm graduating this spring even though I just turned seventeen last month, so I'll have even more time on my hands, soon). I don't want to do animals just yet because I'm going to do college and and the job thing before I do the homesteading thing and it's a little difficult to take care of a dog when you're busy with college and all that fun stuff. At least you could leave it home and ask your mom to take care of it (I don't have a dog, just so you know).

My mom really doesn't know the first thing about chickens. She likes cats and tiny dogs. The one time I had her take care of my chickens (because I was at youth conference for four days), she didn't give them any water and they started eating their eggs to compensate. So any animals I have from now on will be at a time I can take care of them. Now back to the subject I'm writing this post on: gardening.

Now is about right to start doing the garden thing. There's never a frost after Mother's Day (ironically, it has sometimes snowed for the last time on Mother's Day and then all melted away and been sunny and just like spring the next day, but it has never broken the rule), so anything I want to start indoors needs to be planted in March or April. Therefore planning is in February (or January if you're really organized and motivated, which I am not under normal circumstances).

I am doing a 20'x30' garden this year. I figure it's a good size. I'll be able to have some variety but not be overwhelmed. Plus it's already fenced off with four feet of chicken wire above the ground and 6-8" buried. And these are the plants I want to grow:

• Tomatoes
  
• Cucumber
  
• Zucchini
  
• Onions
  
• Garlic
  
• Herbs (haven't decided which yet, but definitely the kind for pizza/spaghetti sauce)
  
• Carrots
  
• Lettuce
  
• Some berries
  
• Maybe some flowers
  
• etc
  

This is far from an exhaustive list. It's just kind of a general idea, I may add some plants, I may take away some plants, I'll probably add more details and whatnot. You'll see. I'll post my plans as they develop and become more specific and specialized.