Happy Harvesting

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Posted on May 23, 2013

In a complete turnaround from yesterday, it has been a gloriously sunny day although quite cool and windy. Miss O was delighted when she woke up to sun streaming in the window.

Apart from a trip into Maleny to go to the library and a short stint in the nearby playground, we have spent the day at home. While I have been doing some paid work, my grand-daughter has happily entertained herself with some dolls and a dolls house which I received from Freecycle a couple of years ago. There has been lots of chattering, singing and imaginative play going on.

While we were hanging out the washing, Miss O noticed some lemons on the tree and was keen to pick them. We put on our gumboots and headed downstairs to spend some time in the garden. The first stop was the chicken run to give the chickens the contents of the scrap bucket.

Next, it was time to collect the eggs. Only 2 today.

Quite a number of limes had fallen and there were a few grapefruit ripe but most of the lemons and oranges will be a bit longer before they are ready. We collected up the rotten fruit and put them in the compost bin. We took the extendable fruit picker and picked some avocadoes from high up in the tree. No words can begin to describe the squeals of delight and, “Get it, get it!” as Miss O bounded through the leaf litter, offering encouragement to me as I wielded the long-handled picker.

Finally, I took her out to the front yard where the cherry tomatoes are growing wild and flourishing. It was only a couple of weeks since I had picked 2 kg of tomatoes so I was not sure how many there would be. However, there we plenty to keep us entertained and she was quick to point out to me that you do not pick the green ones and the squishy ones are no good.

Miss O was very keen to pose with her harvest.

We put all of the produce in the bucket and used the wheelbarrow to collect some more firewood from the shed.

The clear sunny day means that the night will be cold so I will light the fire soon as the sun has just about set. We will bring the clothes in from the line and hang them on the airer in front of the fire to finish drying.

All in all, it has been another productive and successful day and it has been lovely to have a helper with whom to share the work and the harvest.

Through Different Eyes

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Posted on May 22, 2013

I have 3 days leave and our 5 year old grand-daughter is staying with us for a few days. She is supposedly recuperating from a tonsillectomy 6 days ago but she is actually just about bouncing out of her skin.

After picking her up this morning, I had a couple of things to do and we were home by lunchtime.

Cooking is one of her favourite activities so we made some buckwheat pancakes to have with our pumpkin soup. It was a cold, rainy day so perfect weather for soup.

It is always amazing to see how much children learn when simple tasks are explained to them. I enjoy having the time to teach her all manner of things.

Today I showed her how to sort the light and dark washing.

We washed and dried the dishes. It was a long process but there was much discussion along the way. She now knows the names and uses of the various utensils – ranging from a potato peeler to tongs and a soup ladle.

She also realised that lighting a fire and stoking it with wood that has been seasoned, cut and stored will make a room warm and cosy.

She is very excited because I have offered to take her to the local library tomorrow to choose some books. We will also be doing some more cooking.

Sharing Sustainability

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Posted on May 19, 2013

2001 marked the inaugural Sustainable House Day. This is held in September each year and owners of homes or businesses with sustainability features can choose to open their premises to showcase these features.

This event is free and you can go to various locations in your area to gain information and share ideas.

We first became aware of this event through the Alternative Technology Association and have seen several properties in previous years.

This year we have registered to participate by opening our home as part of Sustainable House Day.

It is still a few months away so there is plenty of time to register if you feel you have a suitable property or get involved by attending an open house in your area.

Here is the website. There will be more information closer to the time. It is a great opportunity to find more about sustainable living in your area.

Growing Girls and Large Hems

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Posted on May 14, 2013

It is easy to forget how quickly children grow. I made this dressing gown for Miss O in June 2011.

By July 2012 I was writing about letting the hem down here.

Now it has been handed down to Izz and the hem taken back up.

A few weeks ago I took Miss O to Spotlight and chose the fabric for a new dressing gown. It is red with black and white dogs on it. She gave the princess, fairy and other girly fabric a glance but this is the one that caught her eye. The fact that we have a Border Collie (black and white) may have influenced her choice.

Once again, I have put a large hem on the gown and it is still quite long so I expect this one will easily last a couple of years.

Something as simple as a hem that can be let down is not an option on a ready-made garment but by making clothes you can customise them to suit your needs and generally extend their usefulness.

Some Reflections

The Root of All Evil

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Posted on May 9, 2013

The saying goes that money, or more specifically, the love of money is the root of all evil.

Several things have prompted me to consider where we are headed as a society and my conclusion was that greed was the source of many if not most of our ‘problems’. It was then that I remembered the saying and I guess greed and love of money are essentially the same thing.

It seems that we all want something for nothing – best paying job, cheap food, appliances/gadgets, accommodation. We want to earn the most and pay the least. We do not seem to value the effort in producing quality – hand -raised meat, organic food, quality garments and so on.

I started writing this post about a month ago. Since then we have seen a factory collapse in Bangladesh with significant loss of life. I was searching for information about that incident and found this article which shows that this event is far from being an isolated incident.

The recriminations and blame game go on between government, building owners and the corporations who outsource the manufacture of their garments. Do you feel even a tiny pang of guilt about buying products that are made under these conditions? Some say that if we did not buy the items produced in places like China and Bangladesh that these people would not have jobs. Perhaps it would be better for them to have an economy based on sustainable practices that will enhance their way of life rather than being exploited in sweatshop conditions for the sake of us being able to buy a t-shirt for $5.

How do you reconcile what you buy with where it is manufactured and what the ‘real cost’ of it is?

Christmas Shopping

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Posted on May 7, 2013

Yes, you read the title correctly.

I did some Christmas shopping yesterday. Belle and I had previously discussed the possibility of taking the girls to see ‘The Lion King’ when it comes to Sydney at the end of the year.

I received an email advising of the pre-sale release of tickets for ‘The Lion King’ so I have bought tickets to the show for Miss O and Izz for Christmas. Belle and I will take them to Sydney to see the matinee session on New Year’s Day.

By being organised I was able to take advantage of the pre-sale offer and have managed to get excellent seats at reasonable prices.

This is a perfect solution as we will not see the children on Christmas Day this year, nor do they need any more ‘stuff’. Experiences such as attending live theatre and musicals provide so much joy and the benefits are immeasurable. Miss O is still talking about when she saw ‘Mary Poppins’ 18 months ago. How many toys have that sort of longevity?

Why I Live Here

My Day

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Posted on May 4, 2013

Most of what I post is about a particular project or activity but tonight I thought I would share my Saturday with you. Our weekends are precious and we try to make the most of the time.

I work full-time and have a lengthy commute, so during the week it is usually all I can manage to prepare and eat dinner and make our packed lunches. Sometimes I do the ironing but that is about the limit.

The Duke and I are the only ones at home and many things have been simplified and streamlined.

I woke at 5.30am so I quickly hopped up and put a load of washing on. I am trying to be more diligent about using power before sunrise and after sunset. This means we maximise the benefit of the solar panels by exporting to the grid at 50c/kWh and using it (at night) for 28c/kWh.

Once the washing was on I crawled back into bed and read my book for an hour. Then it was time to be up and going.

Breakfast eaten, dishes done and washing hung out. The Duke put a loaf of bread on to bake in the breadmaker. The bed stripped and remade. A second load of washing sorted and ready to wash this evening. Handwashing done.

Floors swept, vanity and mirror cleaned. While I am doing these jobs, The Duke is sorting out finances and adjusting the budget.

That is enough housework for the day so it is time to head outdoors on this gorgeous autumn day to work on some of our projects. It is not quite 9am.

At least one of the chickens has been doing a fine imitation of Houdini recently so we need to make some repairs to the chicken run to make sure they are contained. We use some tent pegs to anchor some of the wire to the ground so hopefully that problem is sorted.

In January The Duke and my brother-in-law replaced a large portion of our front boundary fence. We also put new wire along the front of the house below the verandah. This was not finished off and tensioned and it has been a source of much debate as to exactly how we would do it. A few weeks ago, The Duke painted some timber which he attached to the metal posts at each end so that we could secure the wire. Today we tensioned the wire and attached it to the posts.

Time for a break and lunch.

We also needed to find a solution to securing from the end of the wire to the wall of the workshop and had decided that we would construct a concrete block wall and then top it with a piece of timber lattice.

The Duke painted the lattice last weekend. We had also poured the first part of the concrete footing for the block wall.

Today we laid the first few blocks. It is quite a challenge working in a confined space so we will be very glad when it is done. We are certainly not giving up our day jobs but I am very happy with what we have achieved so far. Once the wall is built to level at the left-hand end in the photo, we will place the lattice on top of the wall and secure it at both ends.

Even though almost everything we have constructed recently has come from second-hand or salvaged materials I am mindful that I do to not want it looking like Steptoe & Son.

I have been working on the design and plans for our vegetable garden fencing and a new chicken run adjacent to the garden. This afternoon we marked out the position of the corner posts and discussed the location of the hen house. We also checked how many posts we already have and it looks as though we will only have to buy a few more. These are mostly the longer ones which we need for the higher fencing around the chicken run.

Once the sun had set I put on the load of washing I sorted this morning. Then it was time for a shower, prepare dinner and watch Gardening Australia (my inspiration). I checked the solar inverter – the panels generated 19kWh today. That is pretty good when it is only a little over 6 weeks until the shortest day of the year.

Dinner was eaten, washing hung out and the final load put in the machine.

The last load of washing is finished and once I finish this post I will hang it out. I use the clothesline under the verandah so it is safe and easy to access at night.

It has been a full and productive day. I am happily exhausted and will enjoy a good night’s sleep.

I hope you had a good day and I am looking forward to doing it all again tomorrow.

Slow Living – April

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Posted on May 1, 2013

Here we are with another month ended and it is time to for a review in the spirit of Slow Living Essentials

I must say that a do feel like a bit of a fraud as there does not seem be anything slow about our lives.

Here are the Slow Living categories:

{Nourish} We have continued to be very diligent with making our packed lunches every day. It is now 9 months since I changed my diet to one which is gluten and mostly grain free. I am feeling much better and as an added bonus have lost 8kg. My main focus has been ensuring that we do not waste any food. This makes for some interesting but nourishing meals. This was made from some leftover bits in the fridge last week. You can read more about it here

{Green} We are starting to reap the benefits of SAM – our Solar Air Modules. It is essentially solar airconditioning and we are using it to very effectively keep the bathroom and bedroom warm and dry. I can reduce the humidity from 90% to 65% in the matter of a few hours. You can read more about it here

sam15

{Grow} It is well into autumn but I have still been picking cherry tomatoes and cucumbers.

{Create} We have made 2 more raised garden beds.

{Discover} I have made a start on putting all of the family history research into a computer program and getting rid of a pile of paper in the process. I am discovering new facts and remembering some previous discoveries as I do it.