Autumnal Equinox and Gratitude

"The Mystic Wood" by John William Waterhouse

It's official- tonight, at 7:29 pm (PST), is the Autumnal Equinox. In Greek mythology, this is the time when Persephone (the Goddess of vegetation) goes back to the underworld to live with her abductor/husband, Hades. It's also the time that the ancient Celts called Alban Elfed, which means "the light of the water". Traditionally, this is the time of the second (and final) harvest of the year, and a time to be thankful for the bounty that spring and summer gave.


Now, I'm not interested in getting into a discussion on religion versus mythology, but thankfulness... well, I think we can all get behind that. This past summer has been one of the most bountiful times I've experienced here in my garden. Potatoes notwithstanding, I've put away more food this year for the winter than I can ever recall, and there's still more coming.

The chickens have been something else, too. Some of the new girls are still getting their systems up to speed, but even with that plus the shorter days, we're still getting on average 6 eggs a day. I'm going to test freeze a small batch of eggs today, to see how they turn out once thawed- stay tuned for more on that.

The beef "experiment" is also a reason for me to be grateful. We got everything back from the butcher last week, and we were definitely right to get another freezer ahead of time. We have 174 pounds of meat, plus an additional 17 pounds of soup bones. In looking at it all, I don't think Alex and I have ever eaten that much meat in a single year, but I suppose I could be wrong. It's a little daunting, to be perfectly honest- so I'll be scouring cookbooks for creative ways to work through it all. (And there's still rabbit in the freezer too! Yikes.)

I've also had time on my hands, for which I am extremely thankful. For the first time in ages, I've had the summer to focus on things that are important to me. Growing food, raising animals, finding a place to volunteer, working on the blog and writing in general... I've certainly been blessed, in that regard.

Last, but absolutely not least, I'm thankful for my family and friends- and you too, dear reader!- I couldn't do any of this without the support of such wonderful people in my life.

What are you most thankful for?

In Which I Show My Dirty Laundry

Recently, one of my favorite bloggers referred to August as "reckoning month". She, of course, meant it in the sense that one has to take stock of what they have and don't have, hay-wise, as we head into fall and winter. Once you know where you stand, you can make adjustments to ensure that everything is in order.

For me, even though I don't have to worry about maintaining huge feed stores (I bought a bale of hay for the rabbits to go along with their bagged food; it'll last at least 3 months- more, if I sell off two of the young does like I'm hoping to do) it is getting to that point in time where I have to take stock of the blog, and how things are working out.

One one hand, I really enjoy the work that I'm doing. I believe in what I'm writing about, and I get to practice what I preach by growing our own food, and doing my best to live a more simple life. I can't say it enough: for once, I'm actually living the life that I've been wanting for years. I'm not cramming some of it into my evenings and weekends or dreaming about it while reading someone else's blog. I get up every morning, whether I feel like it or not, and go feed the animals and tend to the food that I'm growing. It's tough work some days, and there are others where everything just falls into place like it's hardly any work at all.

On the other hand, it's far less rosy. I just checked my various earnings reports, and I've made $11.21 in four months. I know it takes time to build a blog that brings in money, but seriously? Eleven dollars?? I can't even bear to think about how that breaks down as an hourly wage. Realistically speaking, I can't afford to keep doing this the way it currently is- that's just basic math.

So what do I do? That's the question that's in my head these days, more often than not. Do I get a part-time job someplace else, where I can just punch a clock and hopefully save my brain cells for writing in the evenings? Maybe that's the short-term solution- since winter is coming, the outside chores will decrease a bit and I'll have some time on my hands, anyway- but it feels an awful lot like how things used to be. Maybe I should use that extra time to focus on making things, instead- I've successfully sold my handcrafted items before, so perhaps that's the route I should take?

I'm not giving up, though- I refuse to. As discouraged as I may sound in this moment, I'm just frustrated; questioning my decisions thus far and trying to make better ones going forward. I'm not used to being in a position where I don't have the answers. It's overwhelming, and that's not a state of mind that works well for me. I slip into "paralysis by analysis" territory pretty easily, when I'm in this sort of headspace.

What do you do, when you're uncertain about the future?

Garden Tour

I think it's kind of funny that I decided to start a blog in the middle of garden season. I mean, yes- it makes sense given the scope of the blog... but it's that time of year where as soon as I get home from work, I'm outside until the sun sets. Since I try not to blog when I'm at work, this creates a bit of an issue with getting posts up in a timely manner.

So, I created a video tour of my veg garden for you! Feels a bit like I'm cheating, but at least you know where I'm hiding out when I go quiet for a few days. I do ramble in the video, which totally feels weird to me, but it seems passable for a first attempt.

Oh, and going forward, I'll orient the camera correctly so it fills the screen... Hello, Learning Curve! For now, I'd suggest not trying to watch it in full screen mode, as it gets all blown out and pixelated.

Anyway, hopefully it's not too dorky and you all like it. I think it's a good medium to take advantage of when I don't have a lot of time, but it's your opinion that matters most. Let me know what you think!

PS: I've come across some compatibility issues with Blogger comments and the Chrome browser... I'm working on getting that fixed. In the mean time, if you're trying to leave a comment and you can't, try switching to IE. If that doesn't work, email me and let me know so I can have the nice folks over at Blogger troubleshoot it some more.