The Lid is On

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Posted on June 18, 2020

It is over 2 years since we commenced building the walkway/pergola entrance to our property at the eastern end of the house.

This is a photo I posted in a blog post in mid-March 2018.

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The 6 sticks marked out the proposed location of the posts. You can also see the newly-planted shrubs to the right of the pergola site.

By July 2018 the majority of the structure was completed as per this blog post.

In September 2018 GMan laid the repurposed pavers that we had salvaged from when the entrance stairway was demolished and rebuilt.

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The mandevilla creepers have been planted close to the pergola and the garden beds on either side have been mulched.

But, there is still no roof covering on the pergola. We would still considering our options.

These things take time but a couple of months ago we finally agreed that we would cover the top with wire and we would also need a couple of horizontal rails to support the wire.

We sourced, painted and installed the timber rails a couple of weeks ago and today we added the wire panels, or as otherwise described, put the lid on.

The finished entrance to the eastern end of our house and the vegetable garden area.

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The shrubs and mandevilla creepers are well-established and we now have a well-defined entrance.

Chairs, Clothes and Other Bits

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Posted on June 17, 2020

We have recently replaced the protective felt feet on the legs of our kitchen chairs. There are four high chairs which fit around our large return bench/meals area.

This project was undertaken two chairs at a time so for several weeks there have only been two chairs in the kitchen at any given time. I realised how much less cluttered the area felt with only two chairs. Since there is only GMan and I here most of the time, there is really no necessity to have four chairs.

The next question was, where could we store the other two chairs so that they would stay clean and be easily accessible when we had additional guests? We found that the wardrobe in the guest room would be perfect but the space was currently occupied. My off-season (summer) clothes were hanging on the rail and the floor was filled with about 100 magazines which are some of my retirement reading material as well as 5 large photo albums.

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I set about working out how I could re-arrange things.

The clothes were moved to the empty hanging space in the third bedroom which is used primarily as my sewing room.

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The photo albums provided the impetus to continue working on sorting and culling my photos – both digital and hard copy. You can read more about that in my post from yesterday. They will live in the library/study until they are no longer required.

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The magazines have been relocated to the drawers of the dressing table in the guest room. I intend to make a start on reading them and expect that once I have finished reading them I will pass them on to someone else who may be interested in them.

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The chairs are now in the wardrobe but easy to retrieve when we need them.

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I am pleased with the final result and as an added bonus I have been spurred into doing some more work on the photos as well as making a start on reading my large collection of Australian Geographic magazines.

Minimalism, Decluttering and Zero Waste

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Posted on June 15, 2020

While each of these concepts or activities are all different and stand alone, they can be inter-related.

Here are some definitions/explanations of the three terms.

Minimalism – is a tool to rid yourself of life’s excess in favor of focusing on what’s important—so you can find happiness, fulfillment, and freedom. This comes from ‘The Minimalists’. You can read the full article here.

Decluttering – to remove things you do not need from a place, in order to make it more pleasant and more useful. From the Cambridge Dictionary.

Zero Waste – is a set of principles focused on waste prevention that encourages the redesign of resource life cycles so that all products are reused. The goal is for no trash to be sent to landfills, incinerators or the ocean. From Wikipaedia.

Minimalism and decluttering are very personal and subjective topics and I am not here to tell you that you must only own a certain number of a particular item or what you should or should not remove from your life or home.

There is no good reason for the order in which I listed these topics but I feel as though decluttering should come first. I think it would be almost impossible to consider minimalism without first removing the clutter.

Identifying and removing clutter is the first step to clearing both physical and mental spaces. However, beware of anyone who tells you that they they decluttered their entire home on the weekend. It is best done as a considered and incremental process otherwise the results are likely to be the same as a ‘crash diet’. You may lose your way and end up in a worse position than when you started.

Below are are couple of photos of my bathroom. It did not always look like this. I do not expect that is how yours should look. It is simply an example.

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It is close to 20 years since I began to question the variety of lotions and potions I seemed to have but I did not throw any away. I gradually used things up and did not replace them. Routines have been simplified and we no longer use shampoo or conditioner. I mostly wash my hair with plain water and occasionally use a small amount of body wash. This was not a conscious decision but a by-product of questioning what we really need. I am not alone as you can see here.

The reason that I mentioned not using shampoo or conditioner is that is a perfect example of how minimalism, decluttering and zero waste can be tied together. My shower shelf and bathroom cabinet are not cluttered and our bathroom needs are minimal. There are no shampoo bottles ending up in landfill or at best, possibly being recycled. Additionally, trying to avoid harsh chemicals and toxins ceases to be an issue.

You do not need to subscribe to any particular philosophy but living an authentic life which works for you is important.

Your thoughts?

Lemon Curd – My Way

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Posted on June 14, 2020

It is early winter where we live and that means we have citrus fruit in abundance. The fruit on the Meyer lemon were ripe and we picked them all as this particular variety does not seem to hold well on the tree.

We gave away heaps as well as freezing some juice and using it generously in drinks and recipes. GMan asked if I would make some lemon curd, also known as lemon butter.

Apart from wanting to use up some of the lemons, I was keen to find a reasonably ‘healthy’ version of this sweet treat. So, I turned to the ever-useful Google.

This is an indication of the usual lemon butter offerings.

4 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
125g butter

After a bit more research I found a recipe which seemed to align with my goals.

2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
Juice of 2 large lemons
4 tablespoons lemon zest

I was keen to try it but moderately sceptical as the proportions are vastly different.

The full recipe is here. My slightly amended version is below.

First I collected the utensils I needed. You can read more about my kitchen utensils here.

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Low Fat Lemon Curd

Ingredients

2 large lemons, juiced
Lemon zest from 2 large lemons
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs

Grate the zest from the lemons and set aside.

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Juice the lemons.

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Place the strained juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Heat on low and stir until sugar has dissolved.

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Lightly beat the eggs in a medium bowl.

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Remove lemon syrup from heat and pour slowly into beaten eggs while stirring the mixture with a whisk. Continue to whisk by hand for one minute.

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Allow to cool then refrigerate.

NOTE:

My concerns were realised as the mixture did not thicken as much as I would have liked. So, I resorted to my back-up plan.

2 teaspoons arrowroot blended with a little water.

Gently reheat the lemon curd until it reaches boiling point the stir. Add the arrowroot mixture slowly and continue stirring constantly. Cook for one minute. Cool and refrigerate .

This version of lemon curd does not have the smooth richness that additional eggs and butter creates but I am very happy with the result. It is definitely worth trying if you are looking for a healthier version of the traditional lemon curd recipe.

Almost Finished

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Posted on June 13, 2020

We are on a mission to try to finish several projects around the place. Hot on the heels of the completed cold frame, we finished replacing the handles on our latest restoration project.

It is now over 6 years since I wrote about the silky oak dressing table/drawers that we restored. You can read about it here. This piece has now been relocated to the guest room.

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The latest restored piece is slightly larger and now has pride of place in my bedroom. It is also silky oak and a very similar style to the other one. The mirror for this one is larger and rectangular rather than oval.

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The final step is the new mirror which we hope to pick up this week.

I do not think we are likely to be restoring any other large pieces of furniture in the foreseeable future but there are plenty of other jobs. We are now working on finishing the top of the pergola/walkway. This has become rather necessary as the mandevilla creeper has now almost reached the top of the wire on the sides of the pergola.

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This was just after we had planted them in September 2018.

Easily Pleased

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Posted on June 11, 2020

Those of you who know me well or have been following this blog for an extended period of time will be aware that shopping is not a great love of mine. For the most part, I have pretty well everything I need. However, my plastic spatula which I have owned for at least 20 years met an untimely end courtesy of the blades of the blender. I realised that I definitely needed one so checked online and found that Big W had Pyrex brand large and small silicone spatulas on special so when we were out and about on Tuesday I attempted to get one of each size. The small ones were sold out so I will look again another day as GMan is keen for a small one to use when making sourdough.

In the meantime, here is the new addition to my collection of kitchen utensils.

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Coincidentally, I had planned to clean out the utensil jars and drawer. Each time I do this there is usually something which I decide is no longer required but I have culled my collection of utensils to a point that everything is worthy of its place in the kitchen.

Like all decluttering/streamlining projects, there is no ‘one size fits all’ as we all have different needs in the kitchen.

I have 2 utensil jars. These hold the majority of frequently used utensils.

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Here they are laid out on the bench.

The hand beater lives in the side of the regular cutlery drawer.

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The contents of the utensil drawer. These are generally too small or too sharp to stand in a utensil jar. Some, such as the vegetable peeler and measuring spoons are used every day while most would be used at least once a month and a few less frequently.

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I have an expanding bamboo divider which helps to keep them in some sort of order. Once I had wiped the drawer and the divider, I replaced all of the items.

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There is one item missing from these photos. The pie slice which GMan is revarnishing the wooden handle.

I have not shown the sharp knives which I keep separately in a knife block.

I have multiples of a few things – measuring spoons, tongs, wooden spoons and pastry brushes but these are all used.

What are your essential kitchen utensils? Have you reviewed or reduced what you have recently?

What We Grow

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Posted on June 7, 2020

One of the by-products of growing your own food is a need for increased creativity when it comes to meals. What we eat is at least somewhat dependent on what is available in the garden.

Bok choy, a type of chinese cabbage, is a quick-growing vegetable. Commercial crops are harvested while they are relatively young and generally sold in bunches of three. We ate some of our current crop while they were small, however, the few remaining plants are now quite mature and strongly flavoured.

New ways to use up the mature bok choy leaves and stems.

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Freshly picked leaves shredded and sauteed with cherry tomatoes, snow peas and mushrooms for breakfast.

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Tonight I made a vegetarian lasagne with layers of lightly roasted eggplant slices, bok choy mixed with ricotta and finally, crushed tomatoes.

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It was topped with a mixture of parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese and flaxseed meal.

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Served with beans and carrots.

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VEGETARIAN LASAGNE

1 large eggplant, sliced
1/2 onion, diced
Handful of large bok choy leaves and stems, sliced and shredded
180g ricotta cheese
Can of crushed tomatoes
Olive oil
1 teaspoon mixed herbs
Salt and pepper

TOPPING

1 tablespoon grated parmesan
1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons flaxseed meal

Place slices of eggplant on roasting tray. Brush with a little olive oil and bake at 160C for about 10 minutes – until soft.

Saute diced onion and bok choy stems until soft, add shredded leaves and stir until wilted. Add vegetable mixture to ricotta and combine. Season with salt and pepper. Add mixed herbs to crushed tomatoes. Place a layer of eggplant slices in dish followed by the ricotta mixture then tomatoes. Repeat until all ingredients are used. Combine ingredients for topping and sprinkle over the lasagne. Bake until heated through and browned on top.

This is not a definitive recipe but simply what I made today. The quantities quoted would serve 3 adults.

A New Neckline

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Posted on June 5, 2020

I bought this top a few years ago and have only worn it a handful of times. In fact, I did not even wear it last winter. When I rearranged my wardrobe recently I decided to make sure that every piece earned its place.

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I put the top on briefly the other day and realised why I don’t choose to wear it. I do not like the feel of high, fitted necklines and this was simply not comfortable.

I had nothing to lose so I set about modifying the neckline. I cut just below the ribbed band. The pins mark the quarter points of the new neckline.

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New ribbing pinned in place.

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The finished article with a new, more comfortable neckline. It will look better once the seam is pressed. I am looking forward to getting plenty of wear out of the top in the coming months.

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Approximately 15minutes of my time was all that was needed to turn this into a garment that I will be happy to wear.

A Trio of Firsts

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Posted on June 1, 2020

Today is Monday, the first day of the working week. It is also the first day of June and, here in Australia, the official first day of winter.

It is almost like a new year. While most people restrict their attempts at resolutions to a new calendar year on the first of January, there are plenty of other opportunities to turn over a new leaf if you choose to look for them. However, the midst of an ongoing global pandemic may not be the best time to consider starting afresh. Or, perhaps it is.

I am thinking of ruling a line under the past few months and moving forward.

For almost 3 weeks I have added a blog post every day. I have never made daily posts for an extended period previously and I have been writing this blog for over 9 years now. It has been an experiment on several levels. Could I maintain this level of engagement consistently now that I am retired? Does self-isolation (mostly) make it easier to write blog posts every day? Do I want to lock myself into writing every day? Will I always have appropriate new content every day? Are readers looking for new content every day? Could I intersperse blog posts every 2-3 days with Instagram posts on a specific Organised Castle Instagram account?

Dear readers, I am really keen to hear your thoughts on the frequency, length, content and photos of my blog posts. Also, do you go back and look at older material or click on the related links I sometimes provide? I look forward to your honest thoughts and opinions.

Meanwhile, I am about to prepare the vegetables for dinner. We are having one of our favourite cool weather meals – roast vegetables and gravy which I will serve with some green beans from the garden.

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While the oven is on, I will also make a Lemon Delicious and some more Cheese Scones to store in the freezer. These are great for serving with a bowl of piping hot soup.

A Bit of Wire

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Posted on May 31, 2020

I am a great fan of wire. It is so useful. My mother reckons that I have inherited my love of wire from my grandfather who, reputedly, could fix anything with a bit of wire. As a farmer, a lot of his skill would simply have been tied to the fact that ‘necessity is the mother of invention’.

Although I grew up in the city, I now live on a semi-rural small acreage and those same skills are required from time to time. Apart from genetics, at least some of my ability to use wire was honed during my career working in operating theatres. The principles of application of wire remain the same, regardless of whether it is a fractured ankle, a fractured jaw or attaching fencing wire to a post.

Here are a couple of recent examples of my handiwork.

Attaching the weldmesh panels to star pickets for the sides of the compost bays.

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