January Thirteenth

It's been a while! Too many trips to the funeral parlor -- been there five times since the New Year began, and that's not a pleasant way to start the year.

It's shaping up to be a cold weekend here! Supposed to get down near the single digits (F) tonight, and I'm getting to the point where I just can't handle that any more. I've decided that of the two choices, I'd rather complain about being too hot than too cold!

But while I'm shivering, I'm looking out at the garden and deciding what and where to plant in a few months. It's almost time to start onion seed, and a few other things follow shortly thereafter.

It's almost book time too! another month or so, and it should be out. Now working on a special book for my granddaughter. She's requested a story about a puppy named Daisy, and I'm hoping I get it right. Not easy writing for a six year old!

Gotta close this -- supper smells great!

 

Merry Christmas!

I hope your Christmas was as good as mine! Got some nice goodies, including a Kindle! It's excellent!
I just ordered a book (Decision Points, by George Bush) and it was quick and easy. Went to the menu, chose the store, searched for the book, ordered it (had enough credit for it), and started reading it, all in less than 30 seconds. Also bought a Dean Koontz book that I wanted to re-read -- same thing.
I do want to get a lighted cover for my Kindle -- they're about $60 at Amazon -- so I can read it at night. Takes me back to when I was a kid, reading at night under the covers.

It's coooold here today, and very windy, so the cold blows right through this old house. Using lots more firewood this year than last year. It's had an extra year to dry out, so it burns fast. I was out moving and splitting firewood several times this morning, and got chilled through. Had to hang out near the woodstove to get warm again. Thankful for this old laptop with the usb wireless that my son-in-law set me up with. I can even ftp into my desktop upstairs (where it's really cold) and get at my files and folders there. I just have to remember to synch them when I update files on one or the other.

Getting lots of seed catalogs already. and will order soon for 2011 garden. I think it will be best to order early, because with this economy going south, some stuff may end up in short supply. I'll concentrate on open-pollenated seed this year, because of that very reason. Best to have some viable seed to save for the future. Call me paranoid, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Just wish I could convince the rest of my family and friends to do the same. Best to learn or re-learn those food producing and preserving skills now, than to wait until the coming panic.

Praying for a great new year for all my friends and family!

Tempus fugeddaboudit!

Time does fly! Been cold and snowy, now rainy and windy, with more cold on the way.
Dorie and I celebrated our 44th anniversary on the 10th, and are looking forward to more of same! I love you, honey!

Trying to get the computer situation stabilized. I've been using an old HP (512mb ram) machine since my Compaq bit the dust, and boy is it slow! I could probably live with it, but it gets so cold up here that my fingers turn blue and it's hard to type. So my son-in-law fixed me up with a refurb laptop, with wireless, and I can drive this old HP from downstairs by the fire. Learning lots!

Still working on that NANOWRIMO novel. I became interested in what my main characters were doing -- should say will be doing, as it takes place way in the future -- and decided to keep them doing it. I hope they remember me.

So far I've received several garden catalogs, and am getting ready to send in a seed order any time now. The way the economy is going, I don't want to take any chances on not being able to get what I want. Also stocking up on canning supplies, etc, and non-perishable foods as well. I'd like to invest in some sort of solar/wind/battery power too, because right now we're at the mercy of a Spanish-owned power company, and I'm just paranoid enough to want to get out from under their thumb.

It's late -- g'nite!

How to stay busy

I know, I haven't posted in several weeks. Been busy as a one-armed paperhanger with jock itch, in a roomfull of rocking chairs, dancing on a fire-ant hill. Or something.

Been foolish enough to add NANOWRIMO to my list of things in progress, and am only 6k words into it. If you've never heard of it, NANO... is a yearly challenge to write a 50,000 word novel, tarting on November 1, and ending on November 30. I've been gonna give it a shot for several years now, and finally got talked into it. It's really good exercise. See more at http://www.nanowrimo.org/ .

Weather's been mild for this time of year. Haven't been out deer hunting yet, maybe this weekend. I write in my head while doing other things, so that shouldn't interfere too much. I try that at work, but customers keep interrupting. :-)

Planted some bargain bin bulbs on Saturday, and saved a bunch of them for forcing real early in the spring. That really breaks up the long dreary winter, and I like doing it, especially with daffodils. After they blossom and die back, they can be replanted outside, and will come up again next spring. I also do some Paper Whites -- a variety of Narcissus. They won't come up again, but their beautiful scent makes it worth it anyway.

Back to nano!
Happy Thanksgiving!

Election Day

Well, it's 7AM here in New York, and we just got home from voting. Seemed like kind of a letdown after all the hype, pomises, and mudslinging we've endured for the past several months. I feel like I know a lot of crap I didn't want to know, about a lot of people I didn't want to know, at least at that level.

But most of the things I've learned about most of those people are not the things I needed to know in order to really cast an informed vote. In most cases I heard why I should NOT vote for a given candidate, and I heard very little about why I SHOULD  vote for a given candidate. And that is wrong. But unfortunately it's all I had to go on in many cases, so I had to go with what little I do know, or surmise, about my choices.

All we can do now is pray that it all works out according to God's will (and I do trust that), and, if you'll pardon the cliche, be the changes we want to see in our corner of the world.

Cold!

It's November already! And before you know it, it'll be time to plant the garden again! :-) I know -- wishful thinking. Gotta shiver through another winter before we can think about playing in the dirt again. Or do we? I think that instead of dumping and storing the planter boxes, I'll cobble up a couple of shelves and flourescent fixtures, and grow some salad indoors. Should be fun!

I picked up a couple halves of chicken, marked down at the store for quick sale, and cooked them up with some onions, carrots, and celery, and some herbs and spices. Ended up with a bowl full of chicken pieces for biscuits and gravy, a few very nice chicken salad sandwiches, *and* ten pints of excellent canned chicken stock, all residing on the shelves down cellar, and ready for some yummy soups, noodles, and other dishes later on.
Then Saturday we did this:

Cari wanted to come down and "Learn how to make applesauce so I can teach mommy!" So we did!
That's a Victorio Food Strainer she's cranking -- best investment we've made for the kitchen in quite a while. They're around $60 at Amazon.com.

Cold again!

Well that was short and sweet! It's raining again, and miserable out. No roof work today, I think.

I'm glad I got the garlic planted, though. Now the only thing remaining is to mulch the strawberry bed with a few inches of straw, but I should wait until the ground freezes and they go dormant. Also could start some more grape vines from cuttings. Just watched a video on how to do that, and now's the time for it.
If you're interested, you can see the video at http://tinyurl.com/2alvj5y . That's Mike McGroarty, who has built up quite a business for himself -- found a niche in the gardening world, and filled it. You can check that out at http://www.freeplants.com/wanted.htm.

Maybe this weekend.

Gotta finish that article and get to work.