Spinning Round and Round

When I looked out the kitchen window this morning, the temperature was already 50F. The day was cloudy and the snow is receding rapidly. But I hardly noticed. It's time for a farm update.

We are having a horrendous 2008, and so are many of our friends! Our Tom was diagnosed with malignant melanoma and has had two surgeries so far. It's been back and forth to doctors between Park Falls, Minocqua and Marshfield, and I expect the travel to increase. Last week I took Lara for annual bloodwork, and yesterday took her to see our new regular doctor. Today, I took the truck to Wheelway in Fifield to get fixed (the engine malfunction light has been on and we found the engine needed a new valve). Tomorrow I take Lara to Minicqua to see her neurologist, and tomorrow night is the re-scheduled Price Direct meeting at 7:00 p.m. in Phillips. I plan to take the van and hope it runs ok -- Tom says it is leaking transmission oil. Next week I take Tom back to Marshfield for his post-op appointment and maybe get his stitches out. Some time next week I will probably have to take him (hopefully to the oncologist in Minocqua) to get the drain taken out of his leg. Also have the tree and shrub pick up in Phillips next Friday (can't wait to get my witch hazel and hickory nut trees!). And so far this month I've put $240 in the gas tank.

Our other news is about our Sarah. She is hopefully graduating SIU on May 9 (if the Army lets her; she has to go for training during finals week and she is hoping her teachers will give her a grade based on her current work). She is being sent to the Middle East and has already been transferred to a different unit. So, IF we make it to the graduation (depends on Tom's cancer treatment schedule)and since Tom can't drive or lift anything, my sister, niece and I will box up Sarah's stuff while Tom sits with Lara and Ed, take care of the landlord (and just pray that Sarah did the paperwork she was supposed to and doesn't have to pay June or July rent)and we will say our good-byes the day after graduation. I am sure we will be staying an extra night in a hotel somewhere because there is no way I can pack that kid up and then drive 11 hours back here to the farm with stops along the way to catheterize Lara and for Tom to get his insulin. Besides, I'll probably be sobbing the whole trip. Then Sarah will ride back to Chicago and stay with my sister until she leaves to join her unit. She plans to sell her car to one of her cousins (who can duke it out over who gets the car).

Well! What this all means is that there will be no chickens or eggs available this year for sale. I simply will not have the time to care for livestock. (I miss my chickipoos, too!) I am feverishly working to pot up my seedlings in the basement as I can't get out to the high tunnel yet, and I want to get more vegetable flats started. The Wong Bok Chinese cabbage and Copenhagen Market cabbage look really good, as do the Southport Red Globe onions, St. Valery carrots, and collards. Some of the herbs are coming up well (I seem to have more trouble with starting herbs). With all the troubles though, I have a good feeling about the garden this year, so we will just have to see how everything winds up.

With all the snow receding I can see we have a lot of tree limbs down. Maybe I won't have to work too hard to get the wood for my hops trellis and fence posts -- I have to have SOMETHING to do to reduce my stress level! :D

Lastly, on the way to town to get the truck fixed I saw a bull moose between Swamp Creek and The Midway tavern! I slammed on the brakes when I saw it I was so surprised. The thing looked right at me. He had a bull rack and boy did he look scraggy. He was huge! I had heard that there was a moose cow sighted around here but as far as I know, no one has seen a bull moose. Tom said it was too bad I didn't have the digital camera with me.

There are some really tough astrological aspects going on now and more coming up soon, so the hard times are going to continue, especially for people with many water signs and then earth signs in their charts. Just remember that everything passes and sooner or later, one way or another, you will get past the difficulties. Let's all just keep taking things one day at a time!

Waiting for Spring

Well, it's a new year and I've decided to update our blog with a new template. Hopefully you will find it a bit more eye appealing.

It's been snowing off and on for a week now. I took a walk through the woods the other day out to the field to check on the high tunnel and by the time I got back to the house I was ready for a nap! The snow in the woods is pretty deep. I am looking forward to more clement weather. Here's a pic of some deer that like the grass growing beneath the snow on our drain field.

Just because I'm in the house doesn't mean I'm not busy. Besides giving the house a good cleaning, I started a flat of Scarlet Nantes carrots and Southport Red Globe onions. The Hydrastis roots I got from Horizon Herbs are growing wonderfully, and I'm patiently waiting for the Echinacea, Symphytum, and Sanguinaria to sprout. The beginning of March I'll start a flat of cabbages and Forellenschluss lettuce. If you click on the title to this post you will be taken to our 2008 Seed List. Don't know if I will get around to planting everything, but this is what I've got ordered.

I finished the baby blanket and some booties for my neighbor. They turned out really cute. I have also been trying to free-form knit a coat and hat for my Swamp Creek Farm boy dolls. That is tough going, but I'll figure out some patterns and hopefully have the dolls finished before I'm out in the field much.

I am watching the weather closely so I can start tapping maple trees. I bought 10 more tree taps from Lehman's and will have 20 taps this year. I bought a nice fire ring with cooking grate from Cabela's so boiling down the sap will be a bit more organized. I have saved some fat and good hardwood ashes to drip some lye and will make some good old fashioned lye soap, too.

I've been doing a lot of reading. Graham Hancock's Supernatural was really interesting. It is one of those books you need to chew on some. I actually have a couple of books going -- it depends on what mood I'm in. I'm about half-way through a biography of John Clerk Maxwell (one of my favorite scientists), I've just started Graham Hancock's Underworld, still reading The Sacred Bee by Hilda Ransomme, and when I feel more organized, I work through the mountain of reading material I've amassed for researching my aquaponics/kitchen incubator project. Astrologically this is a "planning only" year for me, and I believe it as I often find myself distracted with family duties. Too many things to do and not enough time, so I need to pick and choose my activities and then focus.

I've bought a couple of bins and have been gathering bedding for starting some worms. I read Harnessing the Earthworm by Thomas Barrett and Raising Earthworms for Profit by Earl B. Shields. I have been looking into using earthworms for raising my soil fertility in addition to using green manures. I think worms may be a surprising sideline project for the farm. I think I can teach Ed to tend the worms.

I have been practising my Pimsleur Czech language program. It is rather fun! I have several foreign language programs, and the Pimsleur is the only program I like. I think I shall finally learn a foreign language and "keep" it. Speaking of Czech, I made some Czech biscuits from the cookbook my Sarah gave me for Christmas. It is a great little cookbook, and as a bread baker, the different types of dough the Czech make are very interesting to me. When I get a chance I want to try the strudel dough and make apple strudel.

Time to go so I'll talk to you soon.

Farmers Market Bag Pattern

It is really frigid outside today so I've postponed my fence pole cutting project till the weather's more inviting. Instead, I decided to make my young neighbor who is expecting pretty soon a baby blanket gift. Well, as I was looking through my knitting stitch collection for a particular stitch, this year's garden came into my mind, and wouldn't you know it, along with the knitting stitch pattern I was looking for, I found the crochet pattern I created for a re-useable farmers market bag. And, before I search my yarn bin for some yarn to knit the baby's blanket, here is, for free, my crocheted Farmers Market Bag pattern for you. It is a simple, sturdy bag, and good for all sorts of carrying. I like it because it expands and you can put a whole lot of farmers market goodies in it. Feel free to use this pattern if you like; a note to where you found it is appreciated but not necessary.

Swamp Creek Farm's Farmers Market Bag

Size 6 crochet hook; Size 10 crochet thread

Row 1: Chain 300, join with slip stitch in 1st chain. Attach marker and carry up each row. Do not turn.

Row 2: Chain 3, double crochet in each chain around, join with slip stitch in top of chain 3.

Row 3: Repeat Row 2.

Row 4: Chain 9, wrap thread around hook 7 times, insert hook in top of next stitch and bring up loop; w/r/h and draw thread through 2 loops on hook 8 times. Repeat across row. Join.

Row 5: Repeat Row 2.

Row 6: Repeat Row 2.

Row 7: *Chain 10, skip next 4 stitches, sincle crochet in next stitch. Repeat from * around, join.

Row 8: Slip stitch in next 5 chain of chain loop; *chain 10 s/c in next chain loop.
Repeat from * around, join.

Repeat Row 8, 35 times or till bag is desired size.

Next Row (Gathering): Chain 1, *draw up a loop in each of next 5 chain loops holding loops on needle, wrap thread over hook and draw through all six loops on hook, chain 1. Repeat from * around, join.

Repeat gathering row twice more. Don't sweat it if you don't wind up with 5 chain loops to crochet together. Fold bag in half and crochet remaining bag loops together. Bind off.

Straps: (Make two)

Row 1: Chain 11. Double crochet in 4th chain from hook; D/C in each chain; chain 3, turn.

Row 2: Double crochet in each stitch across for 30" (or desired length if you are a "shorty"). Bind off.

Finishing: Weave each strap through slits created in Row 3. Sew ends of each strap together. You should be able to open and close the bag as you would a drawstring bag.

Recommended care: Using size 10 bedspread cotton, machine or handwash cold, dry flat.

(If this pattern seems backward, maybe it is -- I'm left-handed).