Winter Rooster

Rocky and Daughter

We woke up to the merest skiff of snow covering the land.  I went out with my camera to record the contrast on the land shown by this rare occurrence and couldn't resist taking this shot of my original rooster, Rocky who is the patriarch of the flock.  He always, always keeps an eye on me.

We got along just fine after I brought him home about a year and a half ago.  He was nearly full grown, and stuck close to the matriarch of the flock, Ruby.  But he never quite trusted me.  Then one day I tripped over him when I was running to untangle the neighbor's cat from a temporary fence I was constructing in the hen yard.  I was instantly viewed as a mortal enemy and combat ensued.  I have since learned to make my trips to the flock with my trusty broom in hand.

Never the less, it is thanks to Rocky that the flock has been kept safe, and that it has increased.  He and Ruby gave us 4 hens and Sparky.  (Sparky is my teddy bear of a rooster and even now that he is bigger than Rocky, I never have to worry about him.  In fact, I suspect he has run interference a time or two for me by distracting Rocky).

I love this photo because it shows Rocky in his true light.  A devoted patriarch and protector of the flock.

A Sunny Day

Esmerelda sleeping in the sun.

A Word of Explanation

A couple of days ago, I embedded The Story of Stuff video into my post.  I would usually offer a few words (or 1,000) to accompany the post, but I didn't this time.  Partly because I was anxious to finish binding 6 more copies of The Golden Key for customers on our book website.

I got thinking about Earth Day on Friday because Google reminded me that there was such a thing.  I suppose if I still did Facebook, I would have been reminded much more.  But social media aside, the concept of Earth Day kind of annoyed me a little, but perhaps not for the reason you may think.

As I pondered this idea of Earth Day, I suddenly felt like it was only a pretense.  Only a sham.  It's just our culture going through the motions as we continue to destroy the thing that means more to us than anything else could possibly mean to us--The planet that supports us.  Our Home.  Our Mother.  Our beloved planet Earth.  If she loses her ability to sustain life, then we die.  I don't understand why this is not obvious to everyone.  I've been aware of the fragile balance of our environment since I was 9 or 10 years old.  How is it possible that the adults making the decisions to continue the destructive practices we have engaged in for too long would not be aware of something that is blatantly obvious to a child.  The answer to that question is that they are aware, but they have lost touch with their ability to care about consequences.

That describes a sociopath.  Sociopaths are identified as narcissistic with a huge sense of entitlement.  They are lying and manipulative, lacking in empathy or remorse.  They are charming and superficial, and live to please themselves, while disregarding laws, rules and the rights of others.

Those are the people who murder without remorse.  Those are the people who destroy without feeling.  Our society punishes 99% of the population with jail time and sometimes even by execution when they have been found guilty of engaging in those practices.

But the privileged few are allowed to go their way murdering and destroying, with no accountability for their actions.  They are also the ones running things on planet Earth.  They make the laws for the rest of us to abide by, but they--the 1%--are above the law.

Those are the things that cycled through my thoughts as I considered the social media flurry around this particular day, we call Earth Day.

As if we need a day to notice the planet.

But apparently, we do.  And I wondered how many people were profiting from Earth Day.  If I sound disgusted, it's only because I am.

But now something is giving me hope for the first time since the overtures of awareness rippled through with the Occupy Wall Street movement.  In this election cycle we are seeing something I've never seen before as a voter.  We are seeing people --both conservatives and progressives, mind you-- supporting the candidates that are outside of the norm.

And I love that!

To break out of that old routine that isn't serving us anymore.  Now that's progress.

So why did I post The Story of Stuff here?  Because the very first time I saw it, maybe six years ago now, I realized that this was a really good way to get that message out to people.  Here was a whole community of people all actively doing something to deconstruct the old ways of thinking by educating people.

I also wanted to stop censuring myself on my own blog.  I am passionate about resisting the status quo for the sake of the planet.  I think that The Story of Stuff is a good introductory video to hold a conversation around.  It's profound, non threatening/non triggering, and eye opening.

I hope you enjoyed it, and if you missed it, I hope you'll watch it.

The Story of Stuff

Please watch this video.

Baby If You Could Cook, I'd Marry You!

Well, I can.

But I'm already married...

Whenever I go to a pot luck, I'm at a loss.  People have different dietary needs than they did 20 or 30 years ago.  Today I had lunch with friends.  One can't eat grains and one is a vegetarian.  That combination limits the choices a bit, but last night I emailed my friends and announced I would be bringing "a potato, veg, cheese thing".

So here's my recipe for

Potato-Veg-Cheese Thing

One Large Russet Potato
Start with a large russet potato and grate it into a bowl of hot (not boiling), salted water to remove the excess starch.  If you don't do this, your spuds will get sticky as they cook.  Use the large hole size grater because you will be making hash browns.  Rinse a few times if needed to remove excess starch.   Drain the potatoes well before cooking.

Hot Skillet with sunflower oil
Next get a large cast iron skillet with a little sunflower oil and heat it over a medium to medium high burner.  Spread the potatoes thinly over the skillet in the hot oil (without splattering yourself).

The secret to getting really crispy hash browns is to leave them alone.  Just let them cook.  If you turn them too soon, for some unfathomable reason they will mush up, instead of crisp up.

So to help keep you from micro managing your potatoes, now is a good time to grate some onion, using the same grater you just used for the potatoes and set it aside until needed.

Now is a good time to peek at the potatoes.  Using a spatula, test to see if the bottom of the potatoes are crispy.  If the spatula slides under the potatoes fairly easily, than it might be ready to turn.  You should be able to turn the whole thing in one piece like a large pancake.  Once you've flipped it, you will see a nice crispy brown layer of grated potato.  Allow the other side to get crispy.  Add a little drizzle of oil around the outer edge of the potatoes if needed.

When the potato is crispy on both sides remove it to a pie tin and set it aside.

Onion
Now reduce the temperature to low and add the grated onion to the skillet.  I dry cook the onion on a lower temperature to remove excess moisture which might otherwise cause the potatoes to lose their crispness.  Remove the onion when cooked and layer it on top of the potatoes.

Mushrooms
Heat a combination of butter and olive oil gently in the skillet and add sliced mushrooms.  Sauté the mushrooms until they are lightly browned.  Remove from skillet and layer in the pie tin with the onion and potato.

Mixed Veg
Now add a little more olive oil to the pan and lightly sauté a combination of fresh, sliced vegetables.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Today I had on hand, broccoli, asparagus, carrot, snow peas and spinach, and I added a little garlic to the veg.  When finished, layer the veg into the pie tin.

Cheese
Grate a combination of cheeses that you like over the top of the layers, and place in a 350 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes to rewarm the dish and melt the cheese.

There you have it.  Gluten free, grain free, and fine for any vegetarian who eats dairy.  This is a versatile dish which can be made to taste, using any veg you like, or spices.  You can also add meat.  And for a variation you can make a quiche by adding eggs and cream, but you have to use a slightly different method if you want the potatoes to stay crisp.

Comedy Relief

Every evening, after the sun goes behind the trees, and the yard begins to cool off, I go down to the back of my place to work on the fence.  The easiest way to get there is through the hen yard.

Every evening Rocky puts up a little resistance as I pass through his domain.  Last night I decided to bring my camera with me in case I found something fun to photograph while working on the fence.  Since Rocky was crowing I thought I would video him.

He obviously knew he was being filmed (the big ham) so he gave me an extra hard time.  We usually have a brief skirmish which last about 30 seconds, and then he lets me pass.  I ran out of memory on my camera before he was finished with me, and I actually pulled a leg muscle fending him off, while he launched himself at me and bounced off the bottom of my extended boot. (He hates those boots!)

Backing away in retreat, a branch knocked off my hat...it was all just very silly.

And now...Heeeeres Rocky!

Eccentricity Rules!

I spend a lot of time binding books for our small family run press.  And yet it is only one of 4 jobs I work to earn money, not to mention the non money earning jobs I do, which are every bit as important.

I have a bit of a love hate relationship with my binding work.  The hate part comes from the friction caused by Mike and I working together under the same roof and never being able to separate business from personal.  (Word of advice...Don't try this without a net.)

But recently, Mike decided that I was done binding.  He had a call out to a local binder to see if we could afford to outsource our books.  He had the best reasons.

Mike can not help it, he micro manages everything in his life.  And I can't help it...I don't.

Two polar opposites.

It drives him crazy and he'd had enough.  We talked it through and I was finally convinced that there was no getting away from it.  It's just too stressful for Mike to work with someone as quirky as I am.  And his stress affects me, even when he tries valiantly to hide it.

I pointed out to him, that he might still be just as stressed working with a new binder.  To which he replied, "Yes, but I won't be living under the same roof with that person."

Soooo, I agreed to his plan.  But inside I was feeling like a jealous woman.  Here he was "leaving me for another binder.  After giving him the best years of my life!"  All the clichés fit the situation.

I kept telling myself I should be happy to be done with it.  I have way too much on my plate.  But I couldn't help it.  I very much identify with being the binder for Pegana Press and I feel good about the job I do.  Especially since I am self taught.

The phone call from the prospective binder came just after lunch.  And I found myself muttering under my breath as Mike stepped out to the porch to take the call in private.  "Fine! Go ahead and leave me...grumble, grumble."

"You're jealous!", I told myself.  "So what!", I retorted back.  But I suddenly knew, that she wouldn't take the job.  After all, she's a professional master binder.  She's not crazy!

When Mike got off the phone, he confirmed what I already knew to be true.  She wanted more than we could afford to pay.  (She would actually be making more than we would per book if we could somehow convince her to even take the job.)

She had also checked out our website, and she couldn't understand why we needed a binder.  She thought our work was well done, and after reading about my process, said that I was doing all the steps.

My inner voice said, "You tell him, my sister!" Mike also said that she sounded relieved when he told her we couldn't afford it for this current book.  Like I said--She's not crazy!

Hand binding is very detailed, labor intensive, plain ol' hard work!  I picked it up out of necessity and found that I liked doing it.

I know that by trying to find a binder, Mike was trying to give me a break (and give himself a break from the difficulty of having to trust that it will all get done on time, and look just fine).  But I feel like my personal stock just went up.  Because there is no way around it.  I am the book binder for Pegana Press.

He ended our conversation with, "I guess you're stuck with it.  A normal wife would have told me --there is no way I'm doing this!

I responded with, "Yes, but then a normal wife also wouldn't do her dishes outdoors using the wheel barrow as a sink, so that you can mix a tune for a client and not compete with that noise."

And if you think I'm kidding, here is proof.

I know, but eccentricity rules!

Monday Moonday

The Mamas and The Papas sang "Monday, Monday can't trust that day...."

Being self employed, I never have a problem with Monday.  In fact, I'm hard pressed to tell Monday from any other day of the week, since I pretty much work 7 days a week.  (An occupational hazard of the self employed is to learn how to draw those boundary lines between work and personal, which I haven't really figured out yet, but I'm working on it.)

Today was wonderful because I was able to pick up my life again after my marathon sequester last week.  I cleared everything from my calendar in order to make sure that the tax return would get done on time, and hooray! it did.

But not my favorite kind of work.

So today I was able to engage in my favorite kind of work, which is the business of living.  I love taking care of house and home, growing food, raising chickens and seeing clients for energy work.   I love making my own shampoo, deodorant, and toothpaste.  I love it when my skin and hair smell like fresh air and sunshine because I've been outdoors for hours. And I love cooking outdoors, then sitting around the fire afterwards, gazing at the moon and stars to wind down the day.

I'm trying to continue to find time to bind books for Pegana Press too.  Today I think I worked out a schedule where I work on book binding between 8 and 11, and then see clients in my healing practice between Noon and 3 pm.  That way I still have time to fix meals for us all and then I can crash in the afternoon.  I think it's a good Summer schedule, because it allows for working outdoors in the very early morning and the early evening when things are cooler.  I am learning to adapt my schedule to match the ever shifting seasons, especially with the changing weather patterns we are having now...It's the Pacific NW for heaven's sake...We just don't have 87 degree weather in April!

But yes, I guess that is now a possibility.  All potentials exist, and I'm feeling the need to be flexible.  So I have also adopted the practice of Siesta in the hottest time of the day which seems to be late afternoon.  And today I needed it!! And really appreciated it.

It left me feeling energized so I could tackle the super wild part of my yard.  I was just going to build the fence to bypass that area, but I got thinking about it and really, the practical thing to do would just be to clear the blackberry overgrowth and include the old rusty metal storage shed -which I never use- to maybe do something practical with it.

This evening I uncovered a beautiful Hazel (one of my favorite trees) which was being choked out by brambles.  My heart glowed to see it, and I found myself whispering to it, "Do you trust me?", because I wanted it to know I would go carefully and cautiously while I was removing the thorny plants around it.

I also freed up the tall Oregon Grape which was in danger of being covered by long thick blackberry canes.  Now it should be much easier to build the fence in that area, with just a little more work.

I also uncovered some wood and some perfectly good fence posts.  It just goes to show you that treated wood will stand up to the test of time even after laying on the ground, half covered with soil for the past 15 years at least.  I'm going to use the posts to build frames to hang a gate on, so I won't have to contort myself, to avoid getting hung up on primitive wire "gates" to get around my yard.

The fence building project is going slower than I wanted it to.  But I'm trying to keep at it because I'm anxious to plant, and there's just no point planting if I can't protect the garden from my chickens who are talented escape artists.  My goal is to have them moved by the end of this week.  Which will also require some pruning.  I realized that the willow is not only the perfect cover, perfect playground for chickens but also the perfect jumping off point to fly right over the fence.  They might not try it if they are entertained enough with their new environment, but why take the chance?

I'm crossing my fingers that I can plant soon!

This photo shows the full grown Peeps perched on branches 10 to 12 feet in the air.  The fence behind them only reaches 8 feet tall.  In this picture you can see how interested they are in the next tree over, which is outside of their yard, and located just a few feet from my raised beds.  The Peeps began flying when they were still only a week old.  And they're very good at it.

Cooking Out

Sunday morning I went to pick up more fencing materials from Kipperts Korner, so I could get the chickens moved and plant my garden.

When I got home Mike suggested we have a barbecue.

Hmmmm.

We don't have a working barbecue anymore, and I stopped buying propane about two years ago because of fracking.

What to do?

I have a kind of cast iron dutch oven and a wrought iron plant stand.  I put the two together and created a make shift hibachi.  The one thing that always survives a rusted out commercial hibachi is the stainless steel grill that comes with them.  I happened to have one or two on hand.  And came up with this design.

It uses very little wood, gets really hot and makes great coals.

And at night you get a cozy little bonfire after supper.

Hooray!

The taxes are done! The taxes are done!  Now I can go back to living my life again.

Looking forward to building the fence for the new hen yard.

Yesterday, Mike commented on how Ruby was making a lot of racket on the porch, which is unlike her, so I poked my head out to see what she wanted.  She wasn't the only one out of the hen yard.  Two of her offspring were out too.  I heard the cozy low crooning of a contented hen very close as I stood on the porch, and turned to see that one of the Peeps had gone back to the place she was hatched and was building a nest from the old straw that was still left in that spot up against the house.  When she left the nest later, I could see she had laid a big girl egg.  Another hooray!

Marathon 2015

It's day two of spending the day in my pajamas.

Yes it's that time again.  Time to engage in the great tax filing marathon to beat the April 15th deadline.  I can tell my adrenaline is kicking in because I'm suddenly craving snacks.

In days of yore, Mike was always conveniently out of town during this week which left me without transport--therefore unable to indulge in stress induced cravings.

Thinking seriously about sending him to the store now.

Well, back to the numbers...

Raining

We're having a rainy afternoon in the South Puget Sound area.

The cats are snoozing, Mike is reading, and I am working on our income tax return.

Seems like a good day to write instead, but someone's gotta do it.

Hi ho, hi ho, it's back to work I go...

Here's a page from Hearth & Home vol 1 Summer.  I really do have more of them to release, but this one is the only one that made it to print so far.

Chickens in The Trees

Naughty Girl Tag Team

I think Ruby (hen) and Esmerelda (cat) have formed an alliance with their end goal being to drive the humans insane.  Anyway, that's what it feels like for today.

From early in the morning, I have been kicking both of them out of the house.  And no, Ruby does not live indoors with us, but Esmerelda does and she's been crazy naughty all day.  In fact they both have been into things that they shouldn't be.

And at one point Mike caught them on the back porch together.  I'm sure they must have been comparing notes.  It's just been one of those days where I've spent more time removing animals from places and situations where they don't belong.

My last post was on Thursday the 7th.  We had a wonderful time that evening having dinner with friends.  It's not often Mike stops working long enough to socialize.  But he had a great time, and so did I.

Friday I went on my quest to Kiperts Korner Feed store and found exactly what I spent all day Thursday looking for.  Fencing materials, and they were 25% less than anywhere else I could have gone.  Everything was made in the US and I supported a local business, rather than a corporate box store.

Hooray!

Yesterday we spent the day getting the posts pounded into the ground and the first level of 4 foot welded wire clipped on.  After we quit for the day, I found out Mike had injured his shoulder the day before and didn't tell me how badly he was hurt.  After a day of helping me build the fence, he spent the night in agony.  Fortunately, he's much better today, but I didn't want to continue with the fence project because I knew he'd want to help.  It's unfortunate, because if I don't get those chickens into their new home soon, I won't be able to plant my garden.  Ruby got into the garden area so many times today that I lost count.

General mayhem rules around here.

Sticking To The Plan

It's a crazy ol' world.  And you can lay all that craziness at the feet of human beings.

Today I went on a quest to find 8 ft T posts so I could finally build the fence to the new chicken yard and thus make the garden safe from poultry.  You'd think I was trying to build a skyscraper from toothpicks or something equally ludicrous.

Finding fence posts...It shouldn't be hard.

But the world has gotten complicated and me, with my take on what it is to be a responsible consumer, well that just makes it that much more complicated.  I know this, but I am also too stubborn to give in merely for the sake of convenience.

I began my quest by traveling across town to the west side.  There is a Habitat for Humanity store, and I wanted to see if they had fence posts.  Nope.  But they did have my sink.  Not the sink of my dreams, but a pretty incredible one and for a great price.  So I bought it.

Then I went next door to the True Value Hardware store, because on line it said they had 8 ft fence posts, but nope.  They only had 6 ft. posts.  but I did buy a scrub brush, because it was a stiff natural bristle brush set in wood.  And with my stubborn resistance to buying plastic, I snapped it up.

Then I went next door to the Good Will store just in case they might possibly have fence posts, which they didn't.  But they did have really cheap enamel pans and I had been looking for cheap water pans for the chickens...again, not plastic.

Yes, lots of great stuff that has been on my list, but no fence posts so far.

I headed home and said a prayer that Mike wouldn't rain on my parade about the sink.  But on the way I checked out Lowe's.  They also only had 6 ft posts.  Pretty wretched Lowe's.

When I got home, I thought I'd quietly haul the sink via wheel barrow into the back yard.  No easy task, since it took two strong men to load it into my car.  (Double cast iron porcelain sink.)  I eased it into the wheel barrow, and got it as far as the back gate, when Mike came outside and gave me a hand.  He thought it was a good deal and a nice sink.  I think he was relieved that I got it at Habitat instead of at an antique store.

After telling him I'd had no luck finding fence posts, he got on line and announced to me that True Value had them.  I told him I'd been to the one on the west side and they didn't have the size I needed. We decided to try the one down town, so I called them.  Yes, they had 8 ft T posts in stock.

Hooray!  Mike and I drove into town, and he helped a young man load the fence posts into our car, while I was inside paying for them.  When I got out to the car, I noticed that the posts were different, but didn't know why.  When we got them home, I realized that they were made in China.

What's the difference? you may be asking.

Let's just say that for reasons of my own, I specifically sought out posts that were made in the US.  The True Value Website shows that the fence posts they carry are made in the US.  It didn't occur to me to check because I believed their website.  It's the ol' bait and switch.  Maybe not intentionally...but maybe?

I was angry.  You know, the kind of angry when you've been led down the garden path.  Nothing to shout about or anything, but it is typical business as usual in corporate America and it makes me mad every time it happens.

I could just keep them, and get on with my project.  But I knew I would never be happy about it.  I also knew that every time I looked at my fence I would get angry.  I told Mike that I was disappointed, frustrated and getting angrier by the minute.  He double checked the website and saw that I was right.  What probably convinced him was the sticker on the post driver that declared the product to contain toxic chemicals known to cause cancer and birth defects...Translated that means that there is lead in that there red paint.  I also wondered about the paint that was already chipping off the posts.

I told Mike I had to take them back, and he helped me load them back into the car.  He often thinks I'm crazy, but he gets this.

When I got back into town, I suddenly felt happy.  That's when I knew I was doing the right thing.

If you know me at all, you probably know that I work to eliminate plastic from my life, and try to reduce waste, and I am an advocate for organic sustainable local food production.  But that isn't all there is to it for me.  I also take my role as a consumer very seriously.  In my life time I have watched local businesses and even whole economies ruined by multinational corporations and I am not okay with that.  And it has shaped my habits and my strategies as a consumer.  It has been the reason I always choose local first, and often go without certain things for long periods of time and sometimes all together, to keep me from betraying my principles.  It is the reason I shop at antique stores and second hand stores, and the reason why if I have to buy from corporate America (which is everywhere), I want to know where the product was made, because it will be one of the deciding factors whether I buy or not.

Don't get me wrong...I'm not against corporations in general...just their practices and ethics.  There's an old saying that may be familiar to certain movie fans, which goes "Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining."  That about sums it up.

I had no trouble returning the fence posts, but I did have trouble finding something to replace them.  So today I struck out at seven stores.  Even at the big box stores.  So add totally disgusted to the list of emotions experienced in the quest for the simple domestic 8 ft T post.  It's just fence posts for God's sake, not a rare mineral or secret plans or a living coral reef (since we're mentioning hard to find items here).

I returned home totally defeated, and told Mike that I would have to try Lewis County or Mason County next.  Then I suddenly remembered something..."What's the name of that little farm store on highway 99 out by the airport?"

Mike didn't know, but he found it on line.  Kipperts Korner Feed.  I called and this time I asked all the pertinent questions.  "Do you have 8 ft T posts in stock?" "Yes." "Are they the green and white made in the US posts?" "Yes."  "I need a dozen.  Do you have that many in stock?" "We have 500 of them in stock."  Now that's my idea of a farm store.  In response to my enthusiasm, she said "I love it when I give all the right answers!"  I told her she was a blessed angel and that I would be there in the morning.

And Kipperts is local.  Maybe that's why they carry what people need instead of what they want to force us to buy.

Oh Boy!

Look what I found in the straw this morning!  Three eggs.  One is obviously from Ruby, and the others are from two of the peeps.

I used to sort and size eggs when I worked on an organic farm in 2012, and for scale, I can say Ruby lays Large to Extra Large eggs.  These two eggs would be considered Small, which you don't see in the grocery store as a rule.  I think the smallest eggs I've seen in the store were Medium, and in the world of "super size", I'm not even sure you can still get those.

I wanted to see if these small eggs were fully formed and I was so happy to see that they were.

And they were delicious.

#FreshestEggInTheWorld

Thanks Peeps!  I appreciate that you're laying eggs for us.  :)

    

Garden Build Day!!

Hooray!  I have my garden beds.  And they're beautiful!

Three people from GRuB arrived at 10:30 am on the dot with a truck load of soil and this beautiful lumber.



Within 2 hours we had these three beds built and filled and the trellis built, too.







They also left me with these lovely plants.

They were such a pleasure to work with.  Fast and efficient and friendly.  It was a wonderful experience.


And they loved the chickens. :)


I feel good right now, but I wonder how I'll feel tomorrow after shifting that much soil.

I can't wait to see food actually growing abundantly on this land.

Later that afternoon...

I went out and walked the beds, pruning any branches away that would interfere with the trellis and putting down straw to make the paths look tidy.

It began raining in the sunshine, so I had to get a picture of that.

The air smelled amazing.  I love that smell of water in the air.

I spent a moment connecting with the spirit of the land.  It approves.

And look...Pachamama is apparently purple.

Zoë and I were sitting on the porch snuggling while we watched it rain, and I suddenly got the impulse to see the sky behind me.

Oh yeah.  Glad I checked it out.

Seems like a good sign to me.

#FeelingBlessed

First Egg??

Yesterday I cleaned out the hen house because I had a fresh bale of straw on hand and 9 chickens make quite a bit more of a mess than 4.

This is the result of my labors.  A tidy little hen house.  And the smell of fresh clean straw!

While I was in there I found 3 eggs, which is two more than usual.  (Ruby is the only layer currently.  Good ol' Ruby!)  And I've been waiting for the peeps to start their careers as egg layers.  It looks like that is beginning to happen now.  They'll be 20 weeks on Sunday, which from what I read is about average.

It's difficult to tell the scale of the eggs in this picture, but the two on the left were found about two weeks ago and are less than an inch and a half long.  I was hoping they were the beginning of one of the peeps egg laying cycle, but as it turns out, I believe it was the end of Tricksy's.  

Tricksy has a cycle.  She laid eggs steadily for four months when she first started, and then she took a long vacation (March through August to be exact), and since that time, she lays eggs for about two to three weeks in the fall and two to three weeks in the early spring.

Why do I keep her?  Because she takes care of Rocky.  When Rocky's wing was hurt, she was his guard during the day, and snuggled up to his injured wing to keep it warm at night and Rocky is now all better, and back to his ol' self.  

Tricksy and Rocky are like a comfortable couple who have been together for years.  I wouldn't break that up for anything.

So getting back to the photo, the egg on the right is the one I collected on Friday, and is still quite small.  I believe that egg to be a real first effort by one of the peeps.  This photo will give you a better idea of scale...

Look what happens when I add Ruby's egg to the photo.  And a tape measure for scale.  Then you get an idea of how small these eggs really are.

But wait--there's more!

Yesterday was April Fool's Day.  And it looks like one of my peeps has a sense of humor, because I did find a third egg in the hen house.  And here it is...

I kid you not.  

I cracked it open and half expected some alien life form to emerge, but no...nothing more than egg white, just as with any under sized egg.

And so the truth is that I still have to continue exercising patience while I wait to find out if my peeps will be egg layers.  Will I get more of these malformed eggs, or is this just an early manifestation that will eventually lead to perfectly formed eggs of normal size?

So tonight when I went out to the hen house, there wasn't an egg to be found.  All of the nesting boxes were empty.  Patience...patience...

But I noticed that for the first time, all four of the pullets looked different, so their plumage is changing and they are beginning to look like individuals.  I commented to them and said, "now you will have to tell me your names."  Two of them looked at me like they were trying to oblige, but the sun was setting and I was suddenly very aware of how cold I was getting.  So naming day will have to wait.

I couldn't resist taking this picture though.  They all look so cozy and happy.  Which makes me happy.

Amazing that a little 6' x 6' shed will hold 7 full sized hens and 2 roosters comfortably.

Another Gorgeous Day

Yes!  I love this weather.  I love being outside!

I started my day sitting on my front porch --"noticing".  Aaannnd--I actually wrote today.  I think it's been over a year since I've written anything new.  It was a real pleasure.

What I noticed about the mind set around writing is that, there is a certain frame of emotional well being that I have to be in, in order to see a potential story happening.  I have been living in a high stress environment, which is normal for a lot of people, I suppose, but it's not something I look for in my life.

However, today I realized that if I consciously disengage from the to do list spiraling around in my head...again, not really my consciousness of choice...but if I can disengage from that, I see magical things.  And they become stories.  My body remembers how to do it.  The only challenge is to remember to shift into it at odd moments.  Any moment.  Practice...practice.

So this was given to me...

And written down at 9 am on April 1, 2016...

The sun has been up for hours. 

But here-- 

It is only now rising above tree tops and shining through branches still bare of leaves. 

Now--before the dew dries from the grass and with the rays lighting up each individual droplet, standing on each individual tip of grass-- 

Only now, at this exact time when the sun shines on the ground, but is shaded from my face, can I see a wondrous network of shining webs.   

Each individual strand in motion moved by currents of air seems to pulse, much like I imagine neural pathways convey information within my own body.  

I ponder these threads which sparkle and shift with the ripple of grasses.   

To pull back in my vision brings this landscape of countless threads into sharper focus. 

This--so like a laser show pulsing to the bird chorus that plays in 'surround sound' all around me.   

I look closer and see webs waving on the air 

each emanating from a minute spider which could fit comfortably on the head of a small pin.   

They ride the currents on these web strands which act as sails to catch the gentlest breeze, no stronger than a baby's breath.    

My rooster crows   

Beginning a new movement in the bird symphony 

Supported by a gentle rhythmic clucking in the hen section of the orchestra.   

The webs fade from my vision as the sun climbs higher in our sky and the spell is broken.   

I rise from my seat to begin my work day and feel a gentle resistance.   

I turn my head in time to watch a web anchored to my shoulder stretch and break free as the silver thread captained by its tiny spider, goes sailing off 

Rippling on waves of air. 

--Rita Tortorello 

Spring & Outdoor Living

Esmerelda is helping.

It's such a gorgeous day that I'll be darned if I'm going to be stuck indoors even to do my dishes.

So I set up an outdoor dish washing station using this perfect old table my mom found.  Just the right height and size for this job.  It will definitely do until I get a more permanent set up.

And I can keep an eye on the chickens who yearn for adventure and are always trying to get out of their own very large yard.

What??  How did she get up there?

The reason I ran for the camera was because I heard a commotion (Sparky was beside himself and making the dickens of a row!) because there was a chicken on the roof of the hen house.  By the time I got outside with my camera, she was on the clothes line.  Sparky didn't recover until she flew back into the yard.

And look!  I think she laid an egg!!  I saw her sitting next to the nesting box about 20 minutes earlier, and now I see there is an egg there, in it's own little nest in the straw.  She's also busy cleaning up the hen house.  Hmmmm.  I wonder about that.

You can see the little egg in the straw at the bottom of the ladder next to the nesting box.

I think it's time to find out this little girl's name, since she's laying eggs now.  I'm so excited about this.

One more picture and then back to work.

Good job Sparky!  Way to stay on top of things!

Spring Mysteries

Rocky has somehow injured his wing.  

He came flying out of the hen house on Saturday morning like he always does, and landed wrong.  He lay on the ground and I came running over in alarm to see what was wrong.  When he got up his wing was sticking out a bit, and the feathers were disarranged.

I felt my stomach lurch a little and said a quick prayer.  Then began watching him to observe his reactions.  I did some energy work with him, and decided to leave him alone.  I know from experience that it's hard to give your animal space when they are ill or injured, but it really is in their best interest.  I didn't want my over concern intruding on his space.  What do humans know anyway, about the ways of nature.

Later that day I did some more energy work.  And his wing seemed to shift position on his body and look more relaxed.  Also he began preening himself, and his feathers came back into alignment.

I had a full day of work including clients to see for BodyTalk, so I allowed my attention to disengage from him once more.

By evening thanks to the beautiful weather we were having, the temperature dropped and I noticed when I closed the door on the hen house that the hens were snuggled up to him, keeping him warm and he had his head tucked under his good wing--something I've never seen him do.

He's been getting better daily, but there is still a problem with the wing and he has a rough time getting out of the hen house in the morning.  I'm determined to make some modifications in the interior today so he can get up in the mornings without injuring himself further.

With the exception of his wing not getting full extension, he seems nearly normal.  He crows and flaps, chases after hens and eats heartily.  It's a mystery to me how he injured his wing.  Did he do it coming out of the house on Saturday, or was it injured the day before, causing him to crash land on his way out the next morning?  Either way, the sooner I get them moved to their new "pasture" in my little half acre yard, the better I'll feel about the whole thing.  They'll have more cover and more to do.  The space is probably a little smaller, but not by much, and it will be new and interesting.

Animals get bored too and chickens are industrious.  If Ruby is bored, she will find a way to escape and get into a part of the yard, I don't want her in.  As soon as the garden gets planted by mid April, I want to make sure she can't get into it.  And that goes for the cats too, until it's well established.

Spring Weather

The weather has continued to be very fine, with bright sunshine and warmer temps during the day, though bone chilling at night.  Maybe it's just the contrast, because it doesn't seem to be freezing at my place in the night, but I'm reacting more to the cold in the mornings and evenings.  That cold mist that moves in overnight on sunny days.  Brrrrrrr.

But...Stuck Indoors Mostly

Unfortunately, I am mostly stuck indoors right now, though I'd rather be outdoors.  So I realized that I was being a dope!  Yes, I have to work on the income taxes right now, and it takes me a month usually, (because I'm too busy to organize my book keeping while it's happening during the year), but I could perhaps take everything outdoors to work on it??  That is, if I can see my computer screen.  

I must say though, that it has been easier this year, so I must have made some improvements in organization somewhere.

Organization is my biggest challenge at this stage of my life.  I prefer spontaneity to structure, but I am learning a new skill in taking on all these new tasks which require a schedule in order to meet all of my goals.  

My life is an interesting mix of mayhem and magic, which keeps things interesting. 

Having said that...I think I'll go wash my dishes outside now...who knows what might be going on out there.

Addendum

What did I tell you?  Even as I was getting ready to hit the publish button on this post, Ruby came knocking at the back door.  She just wanted to be social.

Zoë Cat Basket

Cats always seem to find the coziest places.

Spring Balance

I am enjoying this Spring more than I any I can remember.  There is just so much to anticipate right now.  Will the peeps lay eggs?  And if so when will they start?  And I’m looking forward to the garden build coming up in the first week of April.  Having a garden! Hooray!

I’ve taken my meditation practice out doors.  Indoors, there is so much going on that the walls seem to vibrate with thoughts, plans, stratagems, and to do lists all whirling around the house.  It’s too distracting.

Outdoors, I can still my mind easily.

Yesterday morning, I went outdoors as the full moon was hovering low in the sky.  I watched it set among the tree line as the sky brightened to the new day.  It set the tone for my whole day.

This morning the sky was too overcast to see the moon.  Instead the focus was on the morning sounds.  Incredible morning music of geese and birdsong.  Occasionally punctuated by the gravelly crowing of Rocky and the answering toy trumpet crowing of Sparky.   Starting the day this way brings me to center.

It carries me through as I do morning chores.  The sound of the metal buckets when I bring water and food to the hen house.  The slap of my wire gate, as it snaps back in place.  I walk the paths of my soon to be garden, and greet each plant, stone, insect or bird which calls out to my attention.

Once indoors, I can take that calm centered-ness with me.  And I light a candle to remind me to stay grounded today as I take on another busy day.  --To remind me to enjoy it all.  Living this way is a choice.  I either make a conscious decision to enjoy it, whatever I spend my time doing, or I become more bogged down, trying to keep my head above the water, mired in stress.

#StayingInLoveWithMyLife

The Kitchen Garden Project part 3

Pictures

Before

This is the quack grass and chicken scratched lawn that was my back yard.   You can see the large Rosemary bush and what is left of the old herb bed on the right side of the photo.  There are little animal trails still evident in the lawn, a remnant from when Ruby was raising her chicks right outside my back door.

Sod overturned in preparation for raised beds

 Looking the landscape over, I realized that the beds would be on a slope.  The ground here originally had a very gradual declivity sloping away from the patio.  Over time, and with the help of a mole infestation the ground sunk even more in this part of the yard, and became over run with weeds and quack grass.

I wanted the raised beds to be level and decided to get the site ready so on "garden building" day there would be no unexpected challenges.  I leveled the beds by placing sod from the higher side of the beds on the lower side, which evened things out nicely.  This photo shows the spot where two raised beds will go, and also the old herb bed in the back ground.

Originally, I thought I might place the third raised bed on the old herb garden site, but I decided on a different location for it.  I've been burying rotten wood and compost in that old herb bed, and hope to coax it back to productivity now that I've removed the invasive alkanet.

Alkanet growing under my Rosemary bush, looking like a harmless ground cover. If allowed to continue, it will overwhelm the entire site. This alkanet can grow to approximately 2' in diameter in all directions with flower stalks even taller.

While digging the sod, I was careful to take the pieces with quack grass and toss them over the fence to the chickens.  They enjoyed scratching through the clumps for bugs and worms, and ate the grass as well.  I've learned not to turn the quack grass in to compost, because the rhizomes continue to grow and invade the garden site  creating a mesh and chocking out all other plants.  The chickens made short work of it, as well as the large dandelion plants I also dug out.

I'm also taking the opportunity to give my back yard a make over, which is why I was so careful when deciding where the raised beds would go.  Now that I've reinforced the chicken fence, and made it taller, it has (at least for now) stopped the chickens from over running my back yard.  I couldn't blame them for wanting to keep coming back, because the chicks began their lives there.  But I have plans for that part of the yard.

Besides growing food there, I want to create an outdoor kitchen and I want to restore the yard back to a place where the cats can enjoy being outdoors.  With the advent of the chickens, the cats have been all but crowded out of their special, safe, fenced in yard.  And Buddy won't even go outside anymore, because he worries about those strange birds in the yard.  He doesn't trust that they will stay on their side of the fence.

And the chickens have attracted the neighborhood cats, making them determined to get into the yard, which they do by climbing a nearby tree outside the fence, and jumping onto our roof.  This is causing stress on my cats and I worry about fights.  My new plan of action includes moving the chickens outside of the cat's yard and into their very own overgrown part of the yard with more cover.  That part of my yard is very wild, so it will require new sturdy fencing and I will have to move the chicken house.  In it's place, I dream of constructing a small green house where I can start garden plants in the winter, but that may be a ways off.

The outdoor kitchen takes precedence because starting this time of year, I almost can't stand to be indoors.  Last summer, the only way I could get my dishes washed was to set up a dish washing station on the patio so I could be outdoors.  I want to have something more permanent and primitive/cute/rustic in design but very functional.  Instead of plastic tubs on the table, I want something more like this...





Preferably with a dual compartment sink.  These are just too cute.  If I had something like this in my yard, I'd love doing dishes.

For now, this is my yard.  Make over on the horizon.

The Kitchen Garden Project part 2

After the pre season orientation for the Kitchen Garden Project, we got into a pretty stormy patch of weather.  So I took the opportunity to go through my Growing Guide provided by GRuB to help get people started.

I made a list of all the vegetables I want to grow.  I made my planting schedule and then I made the garden map.

Today we had some really good weather, so I went outdoors and sort of prepped the area where the raised beds will be.

Because I want to put them on a spot that slopes, I wanted to make sure that the beds would be level.  I dug the grass out in some spots and filled it in at the bottom of the slope to make it level.

During this process, I got a call from the electrical inspector telling me he would be at my house in about 30 minutes, so I set the timer and kept working outside.  I was out back and listening for someone driving in, just in case he was early.

I didn't hear him drive in, but Rocky did.  The best watch dog in the world is my Rooster.  He always tells me when someone drives in.  He uses the same voice to alert me as he uses when a hawk flies through the neighborhood.  Fed Ex,, a contractor, or anyone else, if I'm out in the back yard, I can always tell that I need to go answer my door when he makes that sound.

After the electric inspector left, Mike came outside and took one look at the bed I had just prepped (a 4' x 8' patch of freshly dug earth), and wanted to know what the heck I was doing.  He was suspicious of the dimensions coupled with the fact that he's been kind of a pain lately.

By the end of the day, I had 2 spots ready for raised beds, and a third spot mostly ready.  I just need to transplant some irises and I'll be finished.  It's strange about the irises.  They've never bloomed here.  They used to bloom profusely before I moved them to this location.  This is one of the reasons why getting raised beds with good soil is so important to me.  Plants don't really thrive here.

I also pulled out all of the alkanet which grows like a noxious weed in my yard.  And here's the story about that.

I used to have tons of foxglove in my yard.  I also used to have lots of borage.  And I've grown comfrey in the distant past.  Alkanet fooled me into thinking it was one of these three plants, and so managed to get established on my land.

One year a plant came up in my yard under the birch tree, where the foxglove used to grow, and I was thrilled.  Hooray! I hadn't seen foxglove in my yard for a couple of years.  I was very careful not to mow it, and encouraged it when it began springing up in other places, including my herb bed.

Yikes! This plant was Alkanet.  (Not the purple dye Alkanet, but plain ol' Alkanet).  It gets gigantic, and spreads everywhere!  You should see the root on this thing.  And it choked out many of my smaller herbs.  I didn't think you could kill lemon balm or catnip, but this thing decimated those established herbs and put an end to my alpine strawberries too.  Only my violets moved out of the herb bed, and survived by finding new ground.  They even threatened to overwhelm the huge rosemary bush.

Last year I began removing the largest alkanet plants and it was no easy task, but I needed space for my potatoes, and since my herb bed was destroyed I decided to plant them there.  I have a feeling potatoes don't like ground where alkanet has grown, because they didn't do very well.

Another thing that fooled me, was that I let some small plants come up because I thought it was borage.  Yay! Borage!!  Well, alkanet is in the borage family, so it looks like borage seedlings when it first comes up.

It took me two years to figure out that this wasn't going to be foxglove, comfrey, or borage coming up in my yard, but by the time I identified this intruder, it was taking over.

Anyhoo, Now that I know it, I'll pull it as soon as I see it, while the tap root is still small.  I got most of it today, but I need to check the rest of the yard.  (I also need to check for scotch broom.  That stuff can really get out of hand!)

Back to the Garden Project though...I couldn't seem to stop.  After my weeding frenzy, I dug out a spot for the compost too.

The chickens loved the activity.  I threw the dandelion plants dug from the garden beds, over the fence to them.  And also large patches of quack grass that I didn't want in the compost.  Maybe when it gets hotter, but in its current state the rhizomes would probably grow in the compost pile.

Okay, I guess I have to stop writing because my computer is acting like it's possessed and doing all kinds of things I don't want it to, making it too distracting to enjoy writing.

Oh well.

House & Home

We had a new circuit breaker panel installed today.

Back in November when we were getting our home weatherized, it sort of came up in conversation (over and over) as we were getting the work done.

Not that anyone wants to make recommendations, but when people keep remarking on your electrical panel, you sort of make it a priority to deal with it.

Our Guardian Angel must be on the job.

Now we have a new panel, and it was remarkably painless.  We spent the day in front of the fireplace, because we were without electricity all day.

Last night, while we still had power, I cooked food for today.  This morning around 11 am after I got the fireplace good and hot, I reheated cornbread and baked potatoes and chicken all in the fireplace.  I meant to throw some veg into the chicken pot too, but got side tracked, so we had fruit instead.

We were only without power about 6 or 7 hours, but it really forced us to relax.  I had the added incentive to take it easy, because last night I injured my dominant hand trying to do too much to get ready for today, and I was kind of worried that it might affect my ability to bind books.  So I've been trying to watch it.

Still, it really limited my ability to get any real priority work done.  Cutting the inserts in boards before covering them with cloth to become a case binding, was definitely out.  So was any digging in the garden. I couldn't work on the taxes because my computer battery won't hold a charge, and I didn't really want to go all the way into town just to use my computer.  I had a really hard time sitting still.  Dishes were done.  Couldn't do laundry with the power out.  Couldn't vacuum.

I had a roaring fire going, with lunch heating.  There was nothing else to do, until I realized that it would be the perfect time to map out my new raised beds.

I had started it a few days ago, but hadn't gotten very far.  And the garden map is on paper...old school, so I didn't need my computer.  I spent the next two hours putting together an imaginary puzzle on graph paper, which finally became my planting map.  I had to coax my mind to remember how to think that way.  I used to "garden on paper" all the time, but it's been awhile now.

I am grateful that my injury and the day spent without power, forced me to sit in front of the fire and plan my coming garden.  It was so peaceful, for once.  Mike sat across from me reading, with Zoë on his lap.  And I had Esmerelda with me while I consulted my growing guide and mapped out the raised beds, taking occasional breaks to stoke the fire, and rearrange the foil wrapped potatoes, or turn the skillet.  (Buddy was in hiding.  He hates it when there are people working on the house and he reappeared the moment the electrician drove away.)

By 4 pm we had power back on and the house to ourselves once more.  Mike's first priority was to make coffee and mine was to pick up the newspaper we'd laid down and vacuum the carpets.  And I must add, the electrician was so clean, there was hardly a mark on the paper, and he cleaned up after himself so well we almost wouldn't have known any work had been done.  Friendly and professional.  It was such a relief to have a good experience.

Now it's the end of the day.  The cats have been fed, the chickens are tucked in.  Mike is snoozin' with the ball game on the radio (Mariners spring training schedule).  I'm winding down my day too...It's been a good one.

Buddy asleep on his face.  How does he breath??

Spring Fever

Cleaning frenzies.  Bouts of Gardening.  And, oh yeah...

This.

The egg on the left is an ordinary chicken egg.  The one on the right is the only egg I found in the hen house yesterday.

So that either means one of the Peeps laid her first egg, or that Tricksy is winding down.  (It was in the box she uses.)

And so I still don't know.

But I do know this.  It suddenly occurred to me that my Peeps might not be egg layers because of their parentage.  Rocky is a barred rock, but Ruby is a sex link (hybrid) and I just don't know.

Researching online yielded no information on the subject.  I searched 'Can hybrid chicken offspring lay eggs?'  There's a lot of info about sex link, but apparently nobody bothers about their offspring because they don't breed true.  I found one article that at least mentioned that none of her sex link chickens ever went broody.

In fact, the people at the egg farm/chicken farm I got my hens from (and my rooster), were pleasantly surprised that we got 5 chicks from Ruby.  And responded to the news with a "whoo hoo!" and then said they weren't altogether sure that the eggs would even result in chicks.

I guess, now I just wait to see if my flock is fertile.  I'm trying to keep a sense of expectant excitement about this, rather than worrying about it.  The fact is, they've given me an amazing experience just by hatching out.  I got to watch Ruby lay a clutch of eggs, hatch them, and raise the chicks.  The Peepers gave me such tremendous joy, and turned my life into a circus for awhile.  It's been a real kick!

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the four pullets will be egg layers.  I just can't wait to find out!

The Garden

I've been going through the Growing Guide I got for The Kitchen Garden Project.  My garden will be built on April 7th courtesy of GRuB (Garden Raised Bounty).  Yesterday, I spent some time between downpours cleaning my backyard up a bit in anticipation of this wonderful gift I'm about to receive.

Today I took my little Growing Guide and mapped out the beds.  It's kind of slow going.  I want to grow everything we use.  I know that these 3 beds are a really big deal--96 square feet in all, but I also know that I could easily plant a whole patch of potatoes and strawberries too, beside what I'll be growing in these three beds.

It's hard to be patient.

The Kitchen Garden Project

First things first.  Sparky turned 16 weeks old yesterday, and today he began crowing.  And if you don't think that's just the most adorable and funny sound in the world than you just haven't heard anything like it.  Honestly, I wish I had a recording.

The human equivalent is a young boy when his voice begins to change.


Today was a catch up day with dishes and housework.  At 1:30 Esmerelda had another distance session with healer Sid Snider of Portland.  I got so involved with housework afterwards that Mike had to remind me at 4 pm that we still hadn't eaten.  I made a late lunch for him, and was going to finish vacuuming the bedroom when the belt slipped off and that put an end to that, so I gave in and realized it really was time to eat.

We were kind of sitting around chatting after lunch, when I suddenly realized I had somewhere to be in 10 minutes!!

I have been anticipating this meeting for weeks.  It was on my radar all day long.  But somehow between 2:20 and 5:20 pm it just disappeared from my awareness.  Fortunately, I made the Pre-Season Orientation meeting to participate in The Kitchen Garden Project -and I was only 10 minutes late.

What is the Kitchen Garden Project?

One day --January 31st to be exact--I was visiting my friend Sage Adderley.  She and her family had just moved into a house complete with yard, and she was excited because she had applied for a GRuB garden.  GRuB stands for Garden Raised Bounty.  As she spoke about it, I almost couldn't believe what she was telling me.  A local organization that will build you a garden --free of charge??

She urged me to apply and later that evening she even sent me a link.  I'm so grateful she did.  And I am even more grateful that at the end of a long day, I didn't put off exploring the GRuB website.

Because as it turned out, I did qualify for their KGP (Kitchen Garden Project), and the deadline to apply was January 31st.  It was already after 9 pm on a Sunday evening.  Fortunately, I was able to fill out the form electronically and emailed it off to them with an hour or so to spare.

GRuB Mission Statement

• We inspire positive personal and community change by bringing people together around food and agriculture.
• 
  
• We partner with youth and people with low-incomes to create empowering individual & community food solutions.
• 
  
• We offer tools & trainings to help build a just & sustainable food system.

When they called me less than two weeks later and gave me the news that I had qualified and been picked to receive one of their gardens, I was overcome.  I haven't felt this much anticipation and excitement since I was a kid waiting for Christmas to arrive.  My friend Sage is also receiving a garden.  After the orientation meeting tonight we ripped into our little brown paper sacks of seeds to see what was inside.  She said it first.  "It feels like Christmas!"

Tonight I learned that not only would I be getting 3 raised beds built (4' by 8'), and the soil to fill them, but all the plants as well.  They will be leaving me with seedlings to plant.  They also have other resources available and free classes.  And this project support lasts for two years.

At the end of the meeting, we went up and scheduled our garden building day.  We received A Growing Guide book, filled with info and a brown lunch bag stuffed with seed packets.

I've scheduled my KGP build for April 4.  That's the day when they will show up with a truck load of soil and volunteers will turn lumber into frames for 3 garden beds.  I have 3 spots all picked out and I can't wait.

And here is a picture of the book they put together.  56 pages to help you plan, plant, and maintain your garden, as well as other resources like scheduled workshops and where to find free seeds and other gardening support.

Click the link for more information on the Kitchen Garden Project.

And there is so much more to explore on the GRuB site.  For example The Victory Farm.  

Victory Farm is a safe, non-confrontational environment where veterans work shoulder to shoulder, immersed in the healing nature of the outdoors, agriculture and dirt work. In this environment, we find new meaning and purpose. Stories are shared, new connections are made and roots in community take shape.

There is also the GRuB School.  

For over 15 years, grub has been running agriculture-based alternative education, employment, & drop-out prevention programs that engage local teens in land & community-based projects, working to break cycles of hunger, poverty, inequality, and oppression. From 2001-2011, only 39% of youth who entered GRuB’s youth programs were on track to graduate. Today, 90% have either graduated from high school, are on-track to graduate, and/or have earned their GED and 66% have gone on to college.

GRuB is an amazing organization and I am really grateful for its presence in our community, and that I am now a part of it.