New Week

Didn't feel much like a weekend. Saturday was work interspersed with errands. Sunday was work interspersed with kitchen stuff. Made two loaves of white-wheat that came out maddeningly flat (will I never get bread right?), and an apple butter pumpkin pie that should more than make up for the breads.

Hubs adores apple butter pumpkin pie. It's a Paula Deen-pre-diabeetus recipe, and we were purging the freezer a week ago and discovered some apple butter left over from last year, so seemed as good a reason as any to make a pie. We'll be hitting Sky Top at least once in the next 3 weeks, so there will be more apple butter making in the near future...and applesauce, apple pies, apple muffins....sigh...

I had a single bite, because it's pretty off-limits to yours truly right now. It did not disappoint. :)

Carefully adding more protein to the diet this week, and decreasing the high-glycemic carbs even more. Recognizing that I can't really have crackers or any bread right now, and that's OK. I indulged in a slice of toast yesterday, and it was fine; but this is about losing weight and keeping the gallbladder in check, so I'll do whatever it takes. Plus, I can't lie, much as we talk about how we can't let our emotions be guided by a number on a scale...the fact is that I dropped a whole 10 pounds last week, and my gods, that feels GOOD!

I know I can't keep up that pace; I was practically starving myself last week, out of sickness and fear dictating my food choices, and I know it's not healthy for the body to lose weight that quickly for an extended period. Heck, it could even cause another gallbladder attack! But I'm over the first hurdle, my motivation is set, and my mind is clear.

Mom J and the niece roll into town on Thursday, for a weekend stay. I only hope I've got enough work done where I don't have to be completely antisocial while they're here. Lil Sis and Mom visit the week after; Lil Sis is turning 30 so we're jaunting over to Gatlinburg for a short visit to celebrate. Should be a blast!

Have a great week, y'all!

Image from here.

Friday Check-In

 
It was a quiet week. Yesterday was the first day I started to feel normal again. My belly pain is all but gone, I'm trying some new supplements, and my diet has undergone a pretty severe overhaul. That picture is as close as I'll get to bread for the foreseeable future.

Editor's note: What's wrong with bread? High-glycemic foods cause the pancreas to create more insulin, which in turn causes the liver to create more cholesterol. I know, that was a newsflash to me too! Too much cholesterol filtering through the gall bladder creates gallstones. So, the good news, at least, is that these dietary changes oughta knock any pre-diabetes off the list as well, as I drop weight.

It's a big learning experience, figuring out what I should eat. I made wilted greens the other night to go over a sweet potato, and confirmed that I'm not a greens gal. Recognizing that this needs to happen in stages. Start with the foods you know you like, that you're allowed to eat. Experiment as you go. No point trying to force new foods...that'll only lead to disappointment and potential cheating, and there's no room for cheating right now, not if there's any chance of it bringing back that pain. I definitely got the hint.

The health distractions this week mean I'm a little behind on work. The weather's amazing here, so that ain't helping. The leaves are s...l...o...w...l...y...starting to change. Hubs and I hit the Antique Tobacco Barn yesterday while running errands and came away with a bread box and a hand-crank coffee mill. I hope to start walking again this weekend, gotta see how the body feels.

Have a good weekend, y'all!

Image from here.

A quiet week

This is going to be a quiet week here, probably. One of reflection, of turning inward. There are books to read, I'm starting that e-course, and work keeps me hopping.

I had a health issue this past weekend; Melanie's Gym has more on that. I'm learning what's OK to eat and what is not. I'll be practicing meditation, and in another day or two when my energy is back, I'll start walking again. I thought about walking today even, but I'm still pretty bone tired, and besides, it's soggy outside.

The queues are pretty dry lately, which means more working in the evenings. That sucks a little; I'd rather my evenings be spent with a cup of Tulsi and some knitting or a book. But it is what it is.

We're going from warm snap to cold snap here, so the leaves should start turning more this week. It's nice to have an extra layer on occasionally. Need to assess plants, and buy hoophouse stuff end of week.

Have a great week, y'all!

Image from here.

Friday

Not much to report. An average week. Get up, try to focus. Keep a clean house. Watch expenditures. The simple things.

Tropical Storm Karen is supposed to bypass most of Florida and drench us instead early next week, so thought that image was appropriate. And purty. I so adore fall.

Haven't been driving in a couple of days. Tomorrow, we'll drop off recycling and hit the north farmer's market, and I'm hoping to see more color in the trees. It naturally occurs a little later here, but we're getting close to peak.

New post at Melanie's Gym. Send some strength please that all that talk becomes reality.

Have a good weekend, y'all!

Image from here.

Hello October!

My favorite month. The leaves are taking their sweet time changing up here, but I'm betting that will adjust itself in just a week's time. The pumpkins are out at Whole Foods, and the apple orchards are getting busy. The silly temps are climbing just a bit this week, but honestly, we're talking 70s here, so I'm still my usual happy self.

Can't imagine working in hospitality up here right now...they've got to be losing their minds a little. The government shutdown means the Blue Ridge Parkway stays open, but all the facilities, like visitors centers and bathrooms, are closed. Great for short drives, not great for big, long hikes. Naturally, those closures extend to all the national forests and parks up here too, so bottom line is that if Congress doesn't get their shit together soon, the 2nd largest industry up here (tourism) will take a yucky hit.

I'm a Daily Show/Colbert Report fan, so I just rail against the right and try not to post political stuff on FB, where my conservative friends and relatives can attack. I've never been a debater, which feels cowardly as I type it, but it's also because I look on the whole health care thing from a deeply personal viewpoint, so don't even try to change my mind. I'm self-employed, and one of the uninsured, waiting for January 1st when my pre-existing obese ass can get insurance, thanks to President Obama, so don't whine to me about how the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional, when the Supreme Court made it law months ago.

*****
I'm seesawing a bit, but rallying. Spent yesterday fighting for focus, mainlining carbs, and generally being a grouch. Today I woke up knowing I was going to get stuff done, and sure enough, there's fresh bread and rolls on the counter, homemade waffles in the freezer, and bowtie lasagna to eat the heck out of the rest of the week.

I unearthed the 2nd bedroom this past weekend; sucker had gone to seed before our trip. HP replaced my bum adapter, so I can work on my laptop now without saying a prayer every time I plug the damn thing in. I'm getting a handle on my time management. Life is good.

Image from here.

Getting back to real life

It's been just as hard as I expected, getting back into a groove of work and such. The dishes seem to pile up faster this week, and my focus isn't great. This is pretty normal, the focus anyway, as my work is dry and I have to catch up on it before I can work on any fun stuff, like article/essay ideas or book proposals.

But what's neat is how my thoughts aren't sliding toward indulging in a game of solitaire to blow off steam. Instead I find myself wondering why people make small, curved hoophouses on raised beds or over containers (with PVC and plastic), when attaching elbows and making a rectangular structure might be easier to deal with. Is it that it's more expensive and labor-intensive to do this (I am betting that taking a hacksaw to PVC loses its novelty after the first or second pipe), or is it because the corners afford less heat/more cool to get to the plants? Probably both, but that may not stop me from trying it. Can't wait to tuck into this new book acquisition...haven't made enough time yet in the evenings this week.

These thoughts are on my mind, because Hubs has been keeping an eagle eye on weather lately and informed me we could be looking at frost at night as early as late next week. I've got a serious pile of still-viable plants out there, so it's time to invest in some plastic and rearrange the house to possibly accommodate some of the smaller stuff. My first tomato looks like it's dying off, but there's half a dozen new fruits on its branches!

The herbs will go undercover or come inside. The sweet potatoes will be fine. The peppers and tomatoes need to go undercover, and since they're still growing like gangbusters, I need to get creative with any hoophouse creations...actually, teepee style would be better than rectangles, now that I think about it. But I can already tell I'll also be glad when we get past leaf peeping season (I love having people visit, but this place is starting to get smaller as our dreams expand), as I'm definitely going to need to rearrange the 2nd bedroom to accommodate a mess of plants this winter (never mind that we're wanting to add more herbs).

I totally need a greenhouse. If that realization doesn't get me saving money, nothing will. Since we took our own car to PA (the rental idea fell through), our first saving will go into brakes, 2 new all-weather tires, and an oil change. But rather than taking an "it's always something" attitude, I'm just going to work my tail off and find a way to save. We're so ready.

Bah! Digressing too much! Back to work!

Image from here.

Re-entry

Yup. No pics from PA. My camera acted like it was fine and then took exactly one picture before going back to the blindingly bright outputs it was giving me a coupla months ago. We brought Les's mom's camera, but we don't have her cable for downloading anything. Weather was meh the whole time anyway, but still would've been nice to take more pictures. We got a pile of 'em on the ride back; hopefully some of them came out.

The fair...when you build up a trip like that in your mind, it turns out to be everything and nothing like what you expected. But it was awesome. So much good being done there. Such a great vibe, even with as huge an event as it is becoming. It poured rain for most of the day Saturday, but people's spirits were undaunted. Some folks rearranged their workshop schedules and piled into the indoor classes; the rest of us nuts braved the wet to the outdoor tents, and most of the vendors were real troopers, staying open amidst the downpours. The resort was pretty good about shoveling fresh wood chips in places where the mud threatened and keeping drainage areas open. The animal smells near the live tents were never more than a light scent. Any tech issues with TVs and Powerpoint presentations were sorted out within 5 minutes. Really good management all around.

So much to think about and reflect on...it'll likely be dribbling out of me in the next couple of blog posts both here and at Dark Meadow. How much we learned. How much we want to learn now. How we know we are ready for a dog, ready to purge more, ready to start saving. How neat it was seeing Ed Begley Jr. and Joel and Daniel Salatin in real life. How pretty the Pennsylvania farmland was, and how nifty it was to mingle with Mennonites. How gorgeous the West Virginia mountains were. How much we both look forward to learning more about herbalism now, and creating a home apothecary. How we're already excited to re-attend when it comes to Asheville next spring.

If you're interested at all in sustainable living, homesteading, or farming, it's worth a trip. The selection of workshops is borderline overwhelming, but that's good, because it forces you to pick and choose carefully and they repeat some classes, so if you can't catch it during one block, there's a chance you can catch it (or something similar) at another block. So glad for our cell phones, because Les and I attended a lot of workshops separately and then met up intermittently throughout the day (and that's a common theme with couples). I spent so much of the weekend grinning like I'd just moved to Asheville again. These were my people.

More soon...gotta get to work.

Image from here.

Prep time

You'd think after 9 months of freelancing, that I'd have my time management down. Not even close. Most of the time, I'm relying on shit luck still.

It came through this week in the form of ecomms. Those suckers pay the same as regular sites and take all of 5 minutes (instead of 20). Since we leave Thursday for PA, it means working my arse off Sunday to Wednesday. I'm ahead of the game now for this pay period, and can take today to relax and plan for the trip. It's necessary, apparently. My food choices sucked yesterday and I slept in until almost noon today. Guess I needed it....the sleep, not the Junior Mints.

The windows are open and I'm hoping we can keep them open. It's not supposed to get above 75 today. I'm lingering over my first cuppa while I decide on brunch. It'll be a puttering day. I'll rearrange the plants out front. There are 9 apples on the kitchen table waiting to be turned into something. I'm thinking hand pies for the trip, if I can squeeze their shelf life out til Wednesday-ish.

I needed this day badly. When I get focused on hammering out the quota, my concentration on everything else goes out the window, and things get neglected. I need to find a happy medium there, but it ain't gonna happen this week. This week is about PA, spending money smartly, and having a good time while we learn a whole bunch.

Getting excited :)

Image from here.

44

Something nice and round about that number, I guess.

It was a relaxed day and a good one. Got up without the alarm, made myself breakfast and chilled. Checked email, let work know I wouldn't be on unless ecomms popped up or hell froze over, goofed off a bit. Around lunchtime, I rousted the Hubs and we went to Echoview Fiber Mill here in town. Very small, nifty place...we got a mini tour, chatted up a nice lady and her golden retriever, and I bought a couple of hanks of alpaca.

Then we headed into town. We were far too early for dinner, so we took a meandering route to French Broad River Park and walked a bit. Headed back to town only to discover that the restaurant we were planning to hit doesn't open til 5PM, so with time still to kill, we wandered Lexington Avenue and cased some shops we hadn't popped into before. Hubs made the point that we should really take a day each weekend, park downtown, and walk a particular street to learn all the gems that are down there. Local indy business doesn't have to mean overpriced, and there's so much neat stuff in those stores.

We dined at Bouchon. My city brain was originally craving something more canned, like Cheesecake Factory, which thankfully we don't have in Asheville, until I remembered just how excellent the farm-to-table sitch is here. A little Googling and a craving for French Onion Soup led me to Bouchon, which did not disappoint. Les is a duck fan, and their roasted half duck with cocoa nibs and orange sauce was the best he's ever had. I enjoyed the steak au poivre with fresh steamed veggies and fries, and a house red, and sighed with every bite.

We popped into French Broad for cake to go (first time I've ever been able to walk right up to the counter!). I was half delighted to discover that the cake slice I chose was just OK, that I could actually make it better, thanks to a friend's recipe. But I will always swear by that place for their truffles and brownies, at least; it's really an extraordinary chocolate shop!

It was a wonderful year for gifties: Dr. Hyman's book, which I've been dying for in hardcover; an artisan baking book, which was a delightful surprise from one of my oldest friends; 2 seasons of Law & Order: UK (does the Hubs know me or what?); and a pair of Minnetonkas which should hit my doorstep today!

I'm buried in work between now and the PA trip, so if it goes quiet here, that's why. Have a great week, y'all!

Image from here.

Friday Review

Where'd the week go?

Work, work, work...and Jill is a dull girl, I guess. I'm hauling tail on sites this week in the hopes of taking us to PA with a paycheck that will allow us to not cringe every time we hit the gas pump or a fast food joint. Pay period ends Saturday, but I'm working through Sunday so I can take Monday off for my birthday. My brain should be oatmeal by then.

Can't decide what to do for the birthday that won't cost much money, but will take us outside of our normal routine a bit. I'm blowing off the NC Mountain State Fair (though I'd LOVE to go), because it just looks too pricey so close to the trip. Could go Wednesday when the admission is just canned goods from Ingles, but then there's fair food and ride tickets. Was thinking Chimney Rock State Park, so naturally they're closed on Monday to do tree removals. It's a pinch too early for apple picking. There is stuff to harvest right now, but the yield will be much more impressive in about 3 weeks. Besides, PMS and apple cider doughnuts are a dangerous combination!

Maybe a jaunt to Mount Mitchell or Grandfather...make that Mount Mitchell...turns out Grandfather is more expensive than Chimney Rock :( Another time then...

The broken section of the Blue Ridge Parkway opened back up between Ox Creek and Mount Mitchell, but the speed limit along that entire 21-mile section is 15 MPH, strictly enforced. Should make leaf-peeping interesting. Hope the tourists read the BRP updates before coming or there's gonna be some slow-moving, pissed-off peepers this year.

*****

I'm not happy about turning 44. This is almost completely because we are still childless, and the clock ticks loudly. We haven't been trying, and I'm still regular on my female stuff by the grace of the gods (VERY happy about that, as my mom had lost her plumbing, so to speak, by the time she was my age), so nothing to do but make an effort in that department, and push through the milestone in the meantime.

There's a powerful emotion attached to the fact that we could "easily" create our own child, in spite of our meager finances, but that making a play for a family member who could certainly benefit from our stability is something completely out of reach, because it would require a lawyer and a court fight, and that means money. Because we live in a different state and live on a single salary, we'd be at the disadvantage, when the parents in question are both neglectful addicts without jobs. But these are the Carolinas we're talking about, with their strong laws regarding what constitutes "family". So all we can do in the meantime is stand by and pray. But I also envision a conversation when we go down there for the holidays, one that punctuates to the individuals in question that the only thing holding us back is the money, that shit's gonna get real when we're in a better position, unless they change things for the better.

But because of those roadblocks, there's only so much worrying you can do over a situation like that. So I look ahead to our future instead, one that involves a house and some land. I had a line on a rental in Candler that seemed to show promise "on screen," and made a crack to Lil Sis about how with my luck, it's smack in the middle of a nest of meth labs in the backwoods or something. Within 24 hours of making that crack, I read a local news story about a couple of meth heads who got busted RIGHT DOWN THE ROAD from that rental. Classic! So my searching online will definitely include more homework before I come close to getting my hopes up about a place. Having almost an acre to play with would be nice, but not if your neighbors' mobile home explodes and renders the place toxic. Ah, the things you learn when you get outta the city...

Guess I needed a quick verbal ramble here today. I normally get pensive around my birthday, but since the birthday itself is making me grumpy, I'm just marking time. At least this year, everything else about my life is pretty wonderful. I live in an area I'm absolutely, unabashedly in love with, and things really do fall into place sometimes when you make a big move like that. Sure, there's probably folks out there wondering why I don't go back to an office job with bennies, but we're OK for now and both happy, so why disrupt that? Heck, I'm doing a better job now of keeping the wolf at the door than I did when I was making more money and had bennies.

My food intake has slacked in areas this week (see Melanie's Gym), but I'm keeping up a walking routine (see Dark Meadow Farm) and finding more muscles waking up from hibernation. It's an amazing, albeit exhausting feeling!

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Image from here.

Weekend Review

Yea, OK, we're only halfway thru the weekend, and it's a holiday weekend at that. But it's the first of September, and that makes me all hopeful n' stuff. I don't own any flannel, but September makes me want to remedy that shortcoming.

Instead though, WNC has been seeing a last ditch effort at summer in the last week or so, temps cranking up to high 80s but still tempered by breezes and middling humidity. Yesterday felt pretty hot when we were surrounded by people at the Apple Festival, but I realized as we were heading back to the car, that it still wasn't as bad as Florida, that the humidity difference is still apparent. I got sun and was crazy-thirsty last evening, as my body adapted to the activity and climate we'd been in, but it didn't shred me at all.

Unfortunately, it did shred the Hubs and the MIL. They're both migraine sufferers, and she's no spring chicken, in spite of appearances. Mom J hit the sack early and is still out this morning. I'm thinking of going in there to put a mirror under her nose if she doesn't emerge by 10 AM.

It's rather astonishing to not be shredded after a day like that. My body aches, but I know it'll get better as I wake up and move around today, and I'm taking today off from exercising to rest.

Apple Festival was another one of those activities where I find myself thinking, I'm glad I went, now we won't have to go again for a couple of years. Hitting an orchard is definitely more fun. All of WNC was in Hendersonville yesterday, it seemed, and while the mood and atmosphere resembled a carnival, the crush of people was off-putting. I guess I'm out of practice around big crowds. But I just people watched and grinned like an idiot, to be out in the sunshine and have my body adapting so nicely to just 10 days of exercise and smart eating.

I'm buried in sites this week. It's the last pay period before our trip to PA and we need all the dough we can get. Everything big is paid for, but I'd love to go up there semi-comfortable, to not be worried about where the next tank of gas is coming from.

Meanwhile, there's apples on the counter hopefully turning into the above picture later this week, and sourdough starter in the fridge that will become fresh loaves later today or tomorrow. I stocked up on lettuce at the market yesterday and am still embracing salads. I know my food choices aren't perfect yet, but I'm getting there.

Have a great week, y'all! Happy Labor Day!

Image from here.

Editor's note: MIL emerged around 9:40 a.m. No mirror needed :)

Midweek

The usual going on, but wanted to stop in.

It's a learning week here, a week of creating habits. I'm eating healthier and exercising, and listening to my body. My right shoulder doesn't appreciate the new exercises I've been trying, probably in part because I work a mouse everyday too (and have very minor residual nerve damage from shingles up yonder), so I'm modifying those particular exercises until that part of my bod gets used to the new activities.

I also took yesterday off from exercising, and I'm so glad I did! I didn't hit a wall, so to speak, but I recognized that my body needed a break. Can tell even going back to walking today is going to be a little hard, one of those workouts that you slog through a bit, but I'm undaunted, because I've been feeling so much better.

Allergies kicking up because the local farmers just ran their second cutting of hay. Going back and forth with Sabadil and Advil Allergy.

We killed the chicken pot pie last night. Tonight will be BLTs with farm-fresh lettuce, homemade sourdough bread, and tomatoes from our own plants. Can't wait!

This last week of August is dragging its arse a bit, with highs in the 80s and more humidity. Hoping it drops just a bit for the apple festival this weekend.

Image from here.

New Week - Random Thoughts

I woke up at 6:30 this morning, tried to go back to sleep, then did the math and realized I'd gotten my 7 hours and didn't necessarily need to go back to sleep. So I got up.

There's new posts at Melanie's Gym and Dark Meadow Farm that illustrate all the goodness going on in my life right now.

We had the windows open last night again, and should be able to do that a couple of nights this week. Autumn is on its way!

The MIL is visiting this weekend, so the push is on to get my work done so we can hit the Apple Festival on Saturday.

Dr. Bronner's coconut oil retains the smell and flavor much more strongly than the lesser brands out there. Learned this the hard way on the chicken pot pie I made this weekend. Not an unpleasant flavor, but I'll definitely use less next time.

There are sourdough whole wheat English muffins rising. There's homemade energy bars for snacks.

Such abundance!

Have a great week, y'all!

Image from here.

Midweek

Busy week with doc appointments has me scrambling to get work done. I always forget that with my age and myopia, they'll need to dilate my eyes at eye doc appointments. Or rather, I always remember, or request it, but forget just how long it takes for the pupils to go down afterward. I got home raring to work and couldn't see straight. Took a nap early afternoon and finally was able to get cracking...so naturally I had to write blog posts first (winkwink).

My town is rather microscopic, but it proved handy for a nice wander this morning when I got done with the eye doc and wanted to give my eyes just a bit of adjustment time before getting behind the wheel. There's a shoe store in town that's going out of business, so I popped in to confirm that they didn't have anything I wanted. Met an adorable, friendly dachschund, the owner's pet. Then I hopped down to the Well-Bred Bakery, because they have an éclair I've been lusting after, and if I'm about to get off sugar and high-glycemic carbs, I'd rather know what I'm missing. Total rationalization, I know.

Small southern towns are idyllic in the best ways. I say hi to people and their doggies as I walk, and there's a perpetual friendliness. It's really not possible for me to miss city life less than I do.

Rainy week here. Personally, I'm ready for some fall; the temps have been muggier. Getting juiced to make copious amounts of apple butter and dress in layers.

Image from here.

Weekend Review

We hit the North Ashe tailgate market on Saturday morning. Picked up blackberries, blueberries, eggs, potatoes, onions, ground beef, and Boston butt. We came home and made sausage, egg and cheese sandwiches on Bruegger's bagels. The sausage is from Hickory Nut Gap and the eggs came from a farm in Alexander.

I knocked out my site quota in a really great mood. There's such a comfortable vibe to the market. These days it's busy, but everyone's in a good mood, people bring their dogs, and there's almost always someone playing music. This weekend, there were three guys at one of the entrances: banjo, guitar, and fiddle, I think, treating us to bluegrass that I had to tip them for, because it made me smile so.

Sunday we slept in, then hit the evil big box store for essentials and then some. I don't have a meal plan set up for the week yet, but the next couple of days will be easy to throw together now that the main shopping is done. The bills are paid, so we're pretty strapped again, but we'll make it work.

It's such a balancing act. I bought 2 more shirts at the EBBS that will last me well into winter as bottom layers, and they make me feel pretty; so I don't mind not having the dough now to spend any more on canning jars or lids. I popped the fresh blackberries into the freezer and will address them in 2 weeks, at the next check. But I did find half-gallon jars that will work for the peppers when I dehydrate them, and for storing the starter in the fridge.

I feel pretty rich, for being so poor. There's another blueberry cheesecake setting in the fridge and 2 loaves of sourdough cooling on the counter. The starter lives for now, and will go in the fridge too after tonight. The laundry's done, and I'm getting a jump on sites tonight, because doc appointments this week will mess with my focus and time management.

I hope my happiness is contagious.

Have a great week, y'all!

Friday

Having trouble keeping my mind on work today. We're smack-dab in the middle of the first cool day of August. In Florida, you can't even put "cool day" and "August" in the same sentence. Those are true dog days down there, where all you can do is put your head down and slog through them, and it feels just like that if you're not a fan of swoon-worthy humidity. The relief I experience from living here should really be bottled as a depression cure.

I'm sure we could turn around and crank up to high 80s next week, so I'm enjoying the cool while it's here. But even the 80s aren't really 80s here...I've barely been sweaty or uncomfortable this summer at all. Pesky shade. Must not be working hard enough.

Actually, I'm working plenty hard. The first paycheck since they added Mobile sites to our responsibilities was a pleasant surprise (higher than I'd anticipated), so I'm busting tail to get my quotas up to what I need them to be, because we need every spare penny for the PA trip. I'm thinking again about renting a car (our 9-year old Nissan has been uber-reliable up until now, so I'm concerned about tempting the gods), so there's some financial finagling to be done in the coming weeks.

It's ridiculously pretty up here. My thoughts are on autumn...there's an Apple Festival in Hendersonville over Labor Day, my fingers are itching to play with the sticks and string again, and I'm wondering what shoes won't make me nutty as it turns cooler. I've LIVED in barefeet or sandals this summer, and the change in my feet is fascinating and liberating. The tops of my feet are wider, and my toes love spreading out. There's definitely some toe socks in my future. When we went hiking last Sunday, my feet were dying to get out of my sneakers by the time we were home. They weren't hurting, just itching to spread out. Weird, I know.

Have a great weekend, y'all! Get outside!

Image from here.

Where my brain is today

  

Image from here.

Friday

Where do these weeks go? At least it's been a good one...work is still a little pokey, but my attempts at a clean kitchen are continuing in earnest, I'm keeping the cookie jar filled with homemade goodies (proverbially... we don't actually have a cookie jar), so we steer clear of the crap that haunts the middle aisles of the grocery store, and the weather's still that crazy mild that keeps me grinning.

This week I made these, so I could burn through some of the strawberry jam in the pantry. We have blackberries in the freezer that will turn into jam in the coming weeks, plus I just made that peach jam. Since I was only able to process 3 jars and had extra, one went into the freezer and one went into this recipe, since we didn't have actual peaches on hand. Delish!

It's been a while since I've tried my hand at yeast breads, and my past attempts were pretty mediocre. I make a whole wheat that's yummy, but dense; and I've had some interesting failures in the yeast department. However, the desire to get off store-bought bread has me testing the waters again, so I started a sourdough sponge this morning using the recipe from King Arthur Flour, along with this site for guidance. Just looked over and the questionable looking batter of an hour ago has risen nicely! If I can keep him alive, his name will be Herman.

Mom, Lil Sis, and furrier Lil Sis (Mom's Morkie, Chloe) are coming up this weekend. We'll gallivant a bit, hopefully do some hiking, and eat naughty foods and drink wine, and they'll catch up on shows that are not as easy to access for them, cuz they're both frugal nutters who gave up cable.

One tomato has finally gone red, and the peppers are growing fast. Tied them to stakes today because the weight was sending them over. Guess I should look up if you're supposed to let them do that. So much to learn, like how I was surprised that the dry beans didn't climb. Just haven't read enough yet. Just got a pile of resource mags from Mother Earth News for a song, and Barbara Damrosch's Garden Primer is getting good use this season.

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Image from here.

Weekend Review

Saturday was a work day. It was mind-numbing, not worth discussing further, except to say there's a new step to my editing work that slows down things just enough to make a 6-day work week more of a thing right now.

Sunday. was. awesome. I had specific ideas for work in the kitchen that day and around noon, I hopped to it. Fresh local peaches turned into peach jam. I need to start a notebook on my canning attempts because I learned several things yesterday:

• Peaches don't necessarily have rock-hard stones (pits). 
• Well water may contain noticeable sediment.
• The Ball basket probably works fine for small stuff, like your average jelly jar. But I was working with wide-mouth half-pint jars and the basket only fit two. I fit a third jar outside the basket, and my canning pot has a grooved bottom, so it processed safely; but I'm recognizing that I need to just break down and buy a rack for the pot.

The peach pit thing was jarring. I've always purchased peaches from a grocery store, probably loaded with all the requisite pesticides to make them USDA approved. Those stones are so rock hard they seem impenetrable...I've studied them before, because I've wondered about growing my own tree and researched the subject online. These peaches were from the local farmers markets, a batch from Hendersonville and a batch from a guy at the Weaverville market. Started peeling the Hendersonville peaches first, and sliced the first one clear in half. While my brain screamed WTH, I examined the split pit area, because it was a mess and I was concerned about blight, fungus, or something. But the flesh seemed OK, so I just cut carefully around the stone. The Weaverville ones were beautiful, perfectly ripe and juicy, but I ran into the same issue with a couple of those pits too. I wasn't happy with the Hendersonville peaches at all; they were huge, but not ripe and sitting them out wasn't helping. I'll steer clear of their fruit for a while.

And from now on, I'll use filtered water in the canning pot. The residue on the jars afterward is definitely from our water. I let the water in the canning pot cool and settle afterward, because I was thinking of reusing it on my plants. The sediment settled to the bottom. I felt like a kid doing a science project, seeing that sediment...it just hadn't occurred to me before then, because I haven't had well water since Above All. It doesn't affect the flavor, thank goodness, and I boiled the jars long enough where it's perfectly sanitary IMO, but it does change the smell of the product too, so I'll be more diligent next time.

After the jam was done, I made beef barley soup. I had stew meat from Hickory Nut Gap, a recipe from Martha Stewart, and Bisquick for biscuits. Thought about doing bread from scratch, but I was doing enough that day to recognize where to cut corners. Les is still raving about it. Around 9PM, I was still wired and we needed cookies for the week, so I whipped up some Toll House.

I'm still keeping the kitchen clean, and I'm planning meals so that we eat from home and don't spend money frivolously. Takes a pinch of time, but the benefits are ridic.

Image from here.

Lughnassadh

Did a little shopping today.

Baked peanut butter cookies.

Making banana bread tomorrow morning.

Stocked the freezer a bit.

Been keeping the kitchen clean.

My head's in a good place.

Merry Lughnassadh, y'all! Enjoy the harvest!

Image from here.