Category Archives: Nature

Vitamin N

Posted on August 14, 2016 | 1 comment

And dead mice!

When I was little, outside play and dirt were the norms. Summers at the ocean were driven by my mom saying “get outside and play, don’t come back until lunch” Wouldn’t happen today.

Our youngest grand was here this last week unexpectedly because her sister was in the hospital. She is not used to being by herself. She is quite resourceful and loves to play outside, soaking up Vitamin N(ature). Dirty to her means the opportunity for a bath, (“can I have colours”) at bedtime. Friends? Way too many friends here.

And dirt! Sand to be particular. It goes in your Crocs and it comes out, too.

Oh, and the dead mice. We have a problem with mice in the barn, but the cats are on it. As for this little fellow, well, he lost his importance to real goats and chickens. Sometimes the Disney variety just doesn’t cut it. They get abandoned.

When the play is over, the only thing left to do is go in for lunch!

1 Comment

Posted in Nature, What Matters

Tagged dirt, kids, mickey mouse, nature, outdoor play, vitamin n

Relax Again

Posted on July 31, 2016 | 4 comments

“the more relaxed you are,

the better you are at everything –

the better you are with your loved ones,

the better you are with your enemies,

the better you are at your job,

the better you are with yourself”

…..Bill Murray

I find the world today so….busy. I shouldn’t, I am retired. I can sign myself out of newscasts and social media but it seems that everyone around me is stressed…..and in a hurry. I live at a lake, calm, beautiful and serene. Every morning you can hear the loons, the geese, the ducks and the coyotes across the lake.

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When you drive the 26km from the lake to town you can see, deer, moose, bear, eagle , hawk, owl, wild horses, ranches, quails, kamikazes chipmunks, free range cattle, mountain vistas and lakes. Why are you in a hurry? Go slow so you don’t miss:

If you watch closely they all of a sudden pop out of a cattle guard, on their way to the lake, and not in any hurry. They even wait for the last duckling.

Or this:

4 Comments

Posted in Nature, What Matters

Tagged #relax #oneword, bill murray quote, go slowly, oneword2016

More Littles

Posted on June 27, 2016 | 5 comments

“There is a trend at Bernecho. Add more, have more fun. We acquired new chickens this week. We have a bad habit of taking things “sight unseen”. Thought they would be older. Not little terrorists!

We call everything that is a baby “a little” Well the morning after they arrived I was up at 5:00 am trying to catch them in the large front yard. Got through the fence. Back to re-fencing for two tiny chickens. But God they are cute. We have named them Muppet and Goldie. Muppet because she is a Frizzle and looks like Animal on the Muppets. Goldie because she is a gold Wyandotte as opposed to Lacey and Ŧilly our silver Wyandotte from last year. We also added two nondescript brown chickens who look like our Betty so we named then VeRONNIEica and Midge.

So much fun, and fresh, organic, free range (not vegetarian) eggs. Why would anyone want vegetarian eggs? The best chicken food is barnyard scratch: bugs and worms, YUM

5 Comments

Posted in Nature, Thoughts

Tagged #iamamodernfarmer, backyard chickens, kamloops, Muppets, organic free range chickens

It Takes A Gaggle

Posted on June 6, 2016 | Leave a comment

To raise goslings.

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Posted in Nature

Tagged canada geese, nature, paul lake, relax

Just Keep Blooming

Posted on June 5, 2016 | Leave a comment

And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.

…..Anais Nin

I took a cutting 4 years ago from a rose-bush that was grown from a cutting 40 years ago which originally came from a 100 year old rose-bush. We should all bloom like this.

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Posted in Doings, Nature

Tagged anais nin, blooming, garden, roses

Taste Test

Posted on June 5, 2016 | Leave a comment

The first meal from the garden!! Red lettuce salad with chive vinegar dressing. YUM!

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Posted in Doings, Nature

Tagged first crop, gardening, west coast seeds, zone 3 garden

The Garden

Posted on May 28, 2016 | 2 comments

A garden is always a series of losses set against a few triumphs, like life itself.

—May Sarton

Maybe that’s why I love gardening so much. A metaphor for life. My life. As a child, I loved my father’s gardens. The fall was beautiful, the beds were filled with chrysanthemums, his favourite. This year as a retiree, gardening has become less of a pretty hobby ( can we say only flowers) and become a passion.

After my second retirement, I was talked into doing a maternity leave at our local food bank. When resource development is your gig , you have to finely craft your message and marketing. You need to really understand what you will be talking about. I learned quickly about food security. This has turned me into a passionate “farmer”! ….the funny thing is…. when I graduated high school I wanted to hitchhike across Europe looking for a pastoral lifestyle to embrace.

So today I have the pastoral lifestyle and the means to learn to produce from my space. What fun.

I have added a greenhouse, and an indoor area for starting seed early, built large raised beds as well as rototilled the back area by the creek to plant potatoes. I am now channelling my Irish ancestors and tilling a very large potato crop. I have over 60 plants yielding 2.2 to 6 kilo each. Never one to embrace moderation I over planted seeds inside and now have 30 tomato plants, 20 pepper plants, and enough squash plants to make my neighbors run for cover. I asked friends to come and shop for free in my greenhouse.

So far I have put squash out too early, we had a light frost. The potato patch is huge and now that the plants are up I know I will have more that we can eat; potatoes. I have squash planted everywhere. I am counting on global warming to help all my tomato and pepper plants! I am not sure how to companion plant…will learn as I go. I am putting this year down to a “learning curve” what works, what doesn’t , and how to fix it. Just like my life.

I still do love the flowers, and natural garden, like hope it is enduring.

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