no one rides for free

It's lovely to eat food you've grown, foraged, or caught.  I'm undecided if we're living off the land when we go fishing since I know they stock the lakes around here.  Kitson told me that they don't stock them every year, just when the fish numbers dwindle.  We're suburban homesteaders, not doomsday preppers, so what's the big deal?

I never got my fishing license this year, but that won't stop me from getting out in the canoe.  I'm tired of hearing, "FER! Check your rod! FER! You've got a fish!"  I just want to read and write, or draw a picture.  It's comfy in the canoe when one end is full of pillows.

The trout tastes fantastic when we cook it at home and know where our food comes from (although I'd love to steal the trout recipe from the restaurant at Hillside Winery).  Does anyone have a good trout recipe?

you'll never believe what we purged from the house today

On Monday I went downstairs to top up my bowl of cherries, when I came across a snake sliding out of my old skate shoe.

I opened the back door and herded it outside.  Pleased with myself for getting the snake out of the house, I went upstairs.

Today we discovered the snake not only had found it's way into the basement, but that it appeared to be living there.  Kitson asked the internet what to do.  It turns out the best thing to use on a snake is a rake (and garbage can).

Somehow with the help of a rake, Kitson got the snake into a Rubbermaid bin.

We drove it out of suburbia to set it free at the bottom of Campbell Mountain.

It wiggled out of our lives forever (I hope).

purging paper

All my years of writing had accumulated into a pile of notepads.  Any ideas that came to me were scribbled down.  I had to harvest the pearls of wisdom from the perils of their pages.  I could find out what my former self was thinking.  I imagined her with a creative mind.

I've since heard that the mind is cyclical (has a tendency to think itself in circles).  I had my proof.  Mostly illegible, the memos contained bizarre calculations, shopping lists, and revealed obsession with shopping and taking control of my environment.

There were to-do lists.

-get tires switched
-practice finger waves
-Summerville thrift store
-find out the truth about raisins
-become the town eccentric
-get advice from mum about basting interfacing

There were lists that required lots of money.

-fly first class
-ride a limousine
-wear diamond studs
-visit vegas with the girls at work
-hire a trustworthy cleaner

There were lists that were cheaper.

-meditate
-go to the library
-build a sandcastle
-finish my sewing projects (pincushion, cape, curtains, and a dress)
-become half as clever as my mum
-practice music daily or at least once in a while
-cut garbage down to one bag a week
-grow lavender

There were some lists that fell in between.

-visit Portland
-taste wine in Oregon
-see the giant Redwoods
-get rid of entire back lawn to grow food
-join the urban agriculture association
-raise chickens

With our new cleaner lifestyle and throwing away fifty things we no longer have room for old notepads full of lists.  We can't have repeated words cluttering our cupboards or creating cobwebs in our minds.  Urban homesteading is a lot of work, which is why we need to pare down our stuff, which will create space and time.

diary declutter

I found a book called "Get Rid of Fifty Things" which appeared to be full of good advice.  I didn't read the book, only the title, but I've been on a mission to follow its instructions.

I also love lists and the piles of notepads need to be downsized eliminated.  I want to go digital.  What was once cluttering my home is now residing on your computer screen.  Have a nice day!

Stuff I secretly want to throw away
-piano
-printer
-table saw

The piano was picked up last week by a happy family ("Free! OMG!").  The (broken) printer has long since been recycled and the table saw is being borrowed by family for renovations.  They've been renovating for years!