Modern Still Life
It’s been a busy few months for us and there are a few things that are out of order in our lives. For one, our dining room table is still on the back porch. It’s currently holding bacon and hams that will go in the smoker in a few days. Our current dining room table is an old desk. It’s really small, but there are only two of us so it’s not really a big deal, it works. When I walked by yesterday I had to laugh. With the plate of fruit, an opened bottle of wine and a peppermint geranium plant from the farmers market it looked like a modern still life. It’s not a bad office at all!
Generally I work in the living when I can be mobile, I usually find a sunny spot in a comfy chair, but yesterday I needed a workspace with a surface, so the dining room it was my office for a few hours.
What’s your favorites spot to work in your home?
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Here We Go
Yesterday I sat down with afternoon coffee and a seed catalog. I’ve been thinking about what I want out of the garden this year and greens are at the top of my list. I always grow lots of lettuce, endive and other greens, but I’m hoping to have a greater variety of greens for a longer season.
As I look through the catalog I’ve been looking through my seed stash. Thank goodness most seed companies put dates on the packages because I’m weeding out seeds that are past their prime. I made this handy guide a few years ago, head on over to this post to download a PDF version for your files.
Luckily, I don’t need very many seeds this year. I’m really trying to keep my seed purchased to a minimum this year to use up the stock I have on hand. Seeds don’t last forever and I love to use them up when they still have good germination rates. Next year it looks like I’ll have to purchase a lot of seed, most of my stash will be planted this year. It’s a good feeling to use up the old to make way for new!
What’s your seed list look like for this year?
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Brrrrr…..
“Winter descended suddenly, with bone-chilling cold. The damp, raw wind swept in fem the ocean and entered through cracks in the walls of the hut. It made the fire flicker and hiss.”
Lois Lowry from Son (Giver Quartet, Book 4)
I started reading this series of books this past weekend and have been enthralled with them, reading every second I can find here and there. When I came across this quote yesterday morning I had to laugh. There I was warming myself in front of the wood stove at 5:30 am…
We were up early yesterday morning, the fire radio called about a fire alarm at 4:30 which ended up being a false alarm. It hailed once again an hour later for a car in a ditch. I was up early and it was cold. The outdoor thermometer read -9 and the indoor thermostat read 54 – BRRRRRR. Winter has truly arrived.
I’m thankful that our basement is filled with stacks of lots of dry wood, which we worked on cutting, splitting, and stacking two years ago. Our wood for the next year is already in stacks outdoors to dry this coming summer.
What is the coldest weather you experience during your winter?
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Winter Garden
In my office I have quite a winter garden growing. It’s not for me, it’s for the chickens. I’m writing an article for Grit Magazine about small scale fodder for livestock and thus I’m experimenting with the best methods for small scale fodder systems. Over the past couple weeks I’ve been working on perfectly my system.
It’s certainly nice to see so much green out of the corner of my eye while I work. In a few days these trays will be a carpet of lush barley sprouts ready for the chickens to devour. They grow about an inch a day, which is quite remarkable. I’ve always wanted to have a fodder system for winter chicken greens and I’m thankful for the nudge I needed to finally get it up and running.
Do you have any new experiments going this winter?
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Ahhhh……
I’m looking forward to doing a little bit of this today, hopefully with a book in hand.
It’s going to be a chilly weekend with a winter storm rolling in tonight that’s supposed to dump 4-8 inches of snow on us. You’ll find me in front of the wood stove staying warm!
Do you plans to spend time relaxing this weekend?
