HAPPY BIRTHDAY EM!!!!

Tuesday October 7th, 2008 @ 8:45 PM

Filed under: Uncategorized

My sister turns 28 today!!!!  Hope your day is fun filled and awesome!

Camp

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Gabriola Day 2

Monday September 29th, 2008 @ 2:36 AM

Filed under: Uncategorized

I woke up and went for a bike ride to see the school and give my cheque for the second half of the course. There are so many hills here that by the time I got there I was so tired, and sweating like mad. The instructor was unloading logs and timbers off a boom truck on the side of the road when I got there, so I got to meet him, but the secretary wasn’t there to take my cheque.

Then I carried on down the road (there is one road that is actually two roads - North Rd and South Rd, which basically do a loop around the whole island) towards the grocery store. Along the way I stopped a few times because I got distracted by things. First a couple of horses, and some sheep. Then, an Alpaca farm with about 30 or so alpacas of different sizes. I took a ton of pictures of them for Andie, but they were too far away to turn out very well. I am going to see about touring the farm though, because I saw a sign that said visitors welcome. Next I came across a place called The Commons. It’s a place where people have community gardens and there is a building which they host a soup kitchen on Mondays and Tuesdays (I was surprised to find out there are homeless people on an island with around 4000 permanent residents, but apparently there are lots of people just living in the bush). I stopped there because I saw a cob wall at the entrance. It was really neat.

After that I made it to a place called Harvest Thyme. It’s a little vegetarian cafe, that sells some organic bulk foods, and vitamins. Lunch was amazing, and possibly for the first time ever I did groceries on a full stomach. Unfortunately the grocery store selection was absolute shit, so I got only a few things, and then headed back.

On the way I was starting to die, so I stopped at this place with a great view called Brickyard Beach. Apparently there used to be a brick manufacturer on the island, and the beach is littered with old bricks. I walked around a bit and looked at all the crap that was laying around. I saw a bunch of little crabs that were pretty cool.

After regaining some energy I got back on my bike. When I got back I ate some dinner, and then talked with the guy I’m staying with. He’s a nice guy, who is an industrial electrician originally from London,England. He’s pretty interesting. He’s fluent in German, and used to have his pilots license, and he’s a theatre actor, so he’s got lots to talk about. Best part is he’s got a sweet dog named Jake who is super old, deaf, and grumpy looking.

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Gabriola

Sunday September 28th, 2008 @ 3:50 PM

Filed under: Uncategorized

I got to Vancouver on Monday morning. My bags got there Tuesday morning. The first day I got to hook up with my friend Dallas, and meet his girlfriend and their roommates. We went to Granville Island for lunch, and walked around downtown for a bit. Then we watched bad tv.

The next day my friend Jeff picked me up and took  me to see Em at her shop. I got my bags, then went back to Jeff’s with him and Dallas. We met up with Em and her friend for dinner at a little place called Legendary Noodle and it was amazing. The hot and sour soup was more like salt and salt soup, but it had great mushrooms in it. I had this shredded potato in some sort of oil, and it was amazing. After dinner we got some pie and then went back to Jeff’s. I stayed with Jeff and Dawn and their kitty Chino for two nights, and then on Thursday Jeff lent me his bike, borrowed his neighbour’s truck, and drove me to the horseshoe ferry terminal. The ferry ride went by quickly, but getting a cab once I got to Nanaimo was a bit of a wait. Once I finally got to the other terminal, I got my ticket, then decided to call the dude I am staying with, to let him know I was on my way. Because I was on the phone I missed the ferry so I had to wait an extra hour. Met a nice dude on the ferry who dances to tribal drums and offered to sell me pot. There aren’t many people using the ferry without vehicles so I had to call a taxi to get to where I’m staying. There are no street lights on the island at all, so night driving is pretty neat. I have uploaded lots of photos to our flickr feed, and am in the process of adding more right now. I plan to update again later, but right now I have to go finish flooring with the dude I’m staying with.

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Global Mala

Thursday September 18th, 2008 @ 4:12 PM

Filed under: Uncategorized

I partook in a an amazing fundraiser/yoga event last saturday that was part of the Global Mala project.  The focus is on raising money and awareness for local groups by doing 108 sun salutations, the charity for our event being the local Humane Society which is a total bonus considering I donate to them anyway.  I had no idea if I could do all 108 but the great thing about yoga is that you can always do a slightly less vigorous version of the poses involved in the salutation if you’re getting tired.  To specify, it was Sun Salutation A which was fortunate as there are less poses in that sequence than B.  I made it through, which I was very happy about, although 5 days later, my legs are still a little sore.   There were quite a few people from the yoga studio I go to there which was awesome, and I think in total about 25-30 people showed up.

There was a band there who was amazing amazing amazing.  I got to see a sitar up close which also was quite the experience.  I felt the music really helped guide us through the toughness of doing 108 salutations. Afterward, there was a vegan potluck and i brought a vegan chickpea chana masala.  Everybody brought such amazing food, and overall i just had such a great time.  Unfortunately I ended up on the front page of the Niagara Weekly in a not so nice picture, but oh well it was worth going!  Outdoor yoga is amazing!

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Timber Frames 101

Friday July 25th, 2008 @ 1:40 PM

Filed under: Timber Framing

This is the first timber frame I help build/erect. It was amazing. Myself, and 13 others who had never done any timber framing, built in five days all the pieces needed to build this structure. The course was eight days in total. The first day was held in a classroom that was actually a structure built by a previous year of students. It was next to another building (the one in the background of the above photo, with the board and batten siding) that was the same frame design as what we built.

The second day we all went to a cabin our instructor’s company was in the process of finishing. It was amazing. It was a cabin, but it was 3 times the size of our house. We spent about 4 hours touring around the house asking a million questions and finding neat details all over, like the two decorative headers in the photo above. Some of the joinery used in this place was pretty crazy, but the coolest joint I saw was on the back deck.

Monday morning we began by examining our pile of timbers, and deciding which sides would face which direction inside, and which spots would be a pain to make joints because of knots or checking. Once we crown all the timbers (I didn’t think timbers that size would have much warpage, but they did.) we set them aside to make space to work. Since in total there was 22 rafters, and only 14 people taking the course, each of us got to make one, and some of us got to make a pair.

On the second day we finished our rafters and began working on knee braces. We did all the layout and cutting/chiseling of the tennons on the knee braces, but the instructor cut all the curves into the knee braces one night on his huge band saw. I was really pleased with my knee brace and that was good, because my rafters didn’t pair up very nice so I was a little discouraged.

After my knee brace success I moved on to laying out a bent post. In total the post had 3 knee brace mortises, a 2″ x 10″ through mortise with a 1-1/2″ shoulder, and a big 2″ by 8″ tennon. The layout took a while, but it is important to do everything as precise as possible (something I really didn’t think I was capable of). I was really pleased with the end result of my post. all the joints fit so nice when we raised the frame. I was really impressed. I cut all the mortises by first drilling with an antique boring machine, then cleaning up the hole  with my chisel. It took me probably a day to do all the layout and the rough cuts. Then another day to make them all nice, and drill the holes for the pegs.

After that I spent my time helping other people finish up little things on their timbers, and then we called it an early day Friday.

Saturday we began at around 9:30, and by 11:30 we had all the bents and plates up, and had only the joists and rafters left to place. We took an hour for lunch, then by 2:30 we had it all in place and pegged. It took a lot less time and work than I had anticipated.

I brought home the plans, because it is a sweet little place that is totally big enough for a couple. Maybe one day I will build it again by myself on our big piece of land we’re gonna have… one day!

I had so much fun and liked the town of Haliburton enough that I would seriously consider going back to do it again another year. And I would love to bring andie, because I think she’d have fun, and be good at it.

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RADISHES! yum

Wednesday July 9th, 2008 @ 9:04 AM

Filed under: Uncategorized

I absolutely love radishes.  The hotter the better!  The crisper the better!  The fresher the better! 

This year we’re growing a bunch of different kinds, white icicle, french breakfast and plum purple.  We’ve been REALLY really good at succession planting.   Every 2 weeks we plant some more radishes, usually along side carrots and lettuce.  This has resulted in a continual supply!  I’m proud of our succession planting this year as it was one of our goals to focus on this season. 

Since we’re harvesting so many,  we need to have a good way to keep them crisp.  I learned this trick from my mom who uses it for lettuce.   I fill a bowl full of water in the sink, then swish each radish around until it’s clean.  The leaves are left on the radish.  Spread out line of paper towels still attached to eachother and place the radishes side by side.  Then, roll up the radishes, place in a plastic bag left open at the top, then put the whole thing in the crisper.  They’ll stay fresh like this for over a week.  We use the same technique for lettuce, green onions, herbs and some other things.  :)  Then, because the water was only used for rinsing, we take it outside and either put it in the rain barrel, or use it to water a plant!

One odd thing though…We had a wierd cold week a while back, and I think the radishes got tricked into bolting to seed.  Since they’re a biennial plant grown as an annual, I’ve never had one seed as we usually pick and eat it in the first season.   I was curious as to how it would seed as saving seed is one of our priorities around here, so i let it keep going.  The flowers were so cute!  4 petaled little flowers with veining on the petals that is reminiscent of dragonfly wings.  Anyway, I pulled it out without saving the seed as you don’t want the seed from a plant that bolted prematurely anyway.   Cool experience though! :)  Happy accidents always turn into some form of garden learning.

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O NOES! Bugz in teh razbear-eez!

Tuesday July 8th, 2008 @ 11:03 AM

Filed under: Pest and Diseases

A couple of weeks ago, Eric and I noticed that our raspberries had some wilty leaves at the top of a bunch of non-fruited canes.  I admit we were a bit lazy and it wasn’t until last week I researched a bit and found the culprit!  Raspberry Cane Borers.  We’ve been cutting off the canes well below the bottom mark in hopes that none of them hatched and bore all the way to the base.  I look at the cane cross section after cutting, and I don’t think any got too far.  I hope just cutting of the cane tops when we see them wilt is enough, there is no other prevention listed.  

We should have fresh raspberries this week though, a few are already red!

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Urban Homesteading…yur doin it rite.

Saturday July 5th, 2008 @ 12:37 PM

Filed under: Garden, Uncategorized

I here people throw around the term ‘homesteading’ like there’s no tomorrow these days. I hear it in reference to everything from an actual organic off the grid farm in which the family sells produce, saves seed and is, for all intensive purposes, self sufficient, to any family that has packed up from the city and moved out to the ‘country’, to then live in a house with a bigger lawn that takes MORE fertilizer to keep green, and consumes MORE gasoline, via a riding lawn mower than their former place in the city. The latter family probably only gardens one or two plants, and perhaps uses chemicals, not to mention the distance they have to drive now to get anywhere. This seemingly common term now has an accompanied snobbish/elitist subtext. It’s like fixed gear bikes, or elite computer nerds. It seems that there’s a sort of statement that is implied if I call myself a homesteader, and heaven forbid I do that, as we live in the CITY! *gasp* TRUE homesteaders, and i use the term loosely, would tear me apart for not being in the country driving my giant fuel guzzling van or truck, or not owning a giant property a big whopping 5 miles out of the city.

I believe that ‘homesteading’ is more of a state of mind, a philosophy to live life by, a lesson by which you treat others in a community. Quite literally, I take ‘homesteading’ to mean a bunch of things you do in order to sustain your home while keeping sustainability and therefore environmental impacts a top priority. I truly believe that Eric and I practice a lifestyle of homesteading that encompasses more self sufficiency than the folks who own acres of land and burn a bunch of fuel in a generator or rototiller. We manage our produce with shovels, spades, hands, and weed hoes. We save seeds from all of our plants to sew the next year therefore bypassing unnecessary shipping or transportation of most of our seed. We don’t use any fertilizer or chemical weed control. We practice proper mixed agriculture through companion/inter planting. We grow a variety of vegetables we can store over the winter. Essentially, we work with the land that we have in cooperation to grow food so we can continue our life in the same manner from day to day.

Homesteading, in my opinion, is about celebrating and honoring the skills that will support and enhance our lives. So owning, operating a farm, creating produce or owning some chickens is for me, only part of the whole package. Old world trade skills such as root cellaring, spinning wool, weaving, carpentry, animal husbandry, holistic medicine, holisitic animal medicine, soapmaking, lye making, etc etc, are just as essential as more commonly thought of homesteading activities. Currently Eric and I are on the journey of learning with most of the things listed above. We try every year to learn new things about storing produce long term and saving seed. I have a spinning wheel and now know how to spin a woolen/worsted wool, wash and pick fleece, card and comb fleece. Eric’s learning the old trade of timber framing. We grow multitudes of herbs, all of them we can propagate ourselves with seed saving or cuttings. I try to put at least 2 new herbs in every year, and I never grow a plant unless it’s got a medicinal benefit. On the soapmaking/hygiene front, we’re growing soapwort this year, and have some good recipes for a soapwort/mint/chamomile shampoo. Every single thing I do, I try to learn how to do it myself. Even food products like tofu and tempeh. The knowledge is out there, most of the time still observed by poorer, less fortunate communities that haven’t had the luxury of a tractor or a grocery store. Quite alot of care and effort are needed to approach these skills, and even more thought and care are required in order to minimize the impact of these activities on the earth that you have chosen to sustain your very life. I think that homesteading and environmentalism go hand in hand, actually, on second thought, I don’t think there’s a distinction between the two. In order for someone to successfully sustain and benefit their lives on a single plot of land, no matter what size, they will have to know how minimize their impact. They will have to know how to do everything in a sustainable manner, otherwise, how would the land provide food and shelter through their lives and their childrens’ lives. If they are careless and suck all the nutrients out of their land in 3 years, then what will they do? We’ve become to accustomed to moving every year, and looking at the land we live on as property rather than as sources of life.

I celebrate ALL of the skills that are necessary for sustaining my life. I love discovering new communities and making new connections with people harbouring the same interests. I think that relationships with other ‘homesteaders’ are some of the most important aspects of the lifestyle. Even though we live right smack in the middle of the city, I believe you can homestead as much here as 15 miles out in the ‘country’. I believe you can be more environmentally conscious here, than out there as the need for cars, tractors, generators, etc, is far far less. I really really believe that homesteading is not about owning land, or a giant farm house. I think those are natural progressions as you accumulate enough money to do so, but ultimately, at the very roots, homesteading, for me, the ‘urban homesteader’, is about joy in the skills that keep us living, community relationships, and above all, not harming the earth.

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A warning to anything with more legs than a quadraped…

Thursday July 3rd, 2008 @ 9:34 AM

Filed under: Kitties

This is what happens when unauthorized stowaways are detected on the ship. Chief leads a small security detail to neutralize the threat and restore peace and order to space.

See the dramatic conclusion after the break…

Read more…

Posted by EA$Y | Permalink | 2 Comments

Arack!

Thursday July 3rd, 2008 @ 9:21 AM

Filed under: creations

I made this drying rack for us to dry chamomile flowers on. Last year I made a rack that was just a screen in a wood frame. It worked fine, and the flowers all dried well, but we noticed that we could have saved a lot more of the seed, if we had of put something under the screen to catch it. This time I decided to make the frame fit over a base that can catch the seed and hopefully make it easier to save more. I made it using cedar nailing strips I bought at the home depot for $1.49 each ( I think they were about 48″ long and 3/4″ X 3/4″), and the glass came from a picture frame that was hanging in our house when we moved in. I mitered and glued everything and stapled down a black t shirt under the glass, so we can see better. The whole thing seems really sturdy and I’m quite pleased with it. The only thing that I wasn’t proud of is how some of the miters join up, but I suppose that’s to be expected when using a broken miter saw to make your cuts. The only thing left to do is to glue some pieces of ribbon to the back of the glass, so that it can be removed easily when we want to collect the seed that fell through.

Tomorrow I leave for Haliburton where I’m taking a course in timber framing. I’m pretty excited. We are going to be building a small structure on the campus grounds and touring the grounds viewing all the previous years complete projects. I really hope I get to play with a beam saw, and I can’t wait to learn how to use the BAC ( Big Ass Chisel ) I bought from Leevalley. I’m going to miss Andie and the kitties a lot since there isn’t any internet where I’m staying, and I’m not certain my cellphone will get reception, so it might be 10 days before I get to see or talk to someone I like. But hopefully when I return I will have some new skills I can use to make all kinds of stuff.

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