My overcooked strawberry jam.
Here are five little things that have been filling my days:
- I am back on the ball with the 52 Weeks, 52 Letters Project. I sent a letter to my beloved aunt Anne in Florida, and decided to count a gift package I had mailed to Ashley of Small Measures.
- I bought a new pack of lettuce seeds to replace my old ones which had not germinated. Am now looking forward to picking my dinner instead of shopping for it.
- I’ve been thinking about the episode of Morgan Spurlock’s 30 Days, where he and his fiance try and live a month on minimum wage. You can watch it on YouTube or on your Netflix.
- I’ve been reading Modern Muse’s Plastics Purge blog posts. Julia Park Tracey is trying to spend a month seeing if it’s possible to eliminate plastics purchases. She’s on day three so far. It’s not easy.
- I canned strawberry jam last night. I used the recipe from Ashley English’s Canning and Preserving book. Unfortunately, I was highly distracted with family stuff at the time and overcooked it. Not gift-worthy, but still edible.
What have you been up to?
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Regarding canning (and other such enterprises) – I am reading (another) book that I suspect you would enjoy. It is by your fellow Portander (Portlandite?) Harriet Fasenfest – – – -“A Householder’s Guide to the Universe.” While the book definitely extols the old-fashioned domestic arts (at least in terms of cooking and gardening and preserving), it is also a philosophical treatise against consumerism. I got my copy from the local library, but I like it so much I am thinking of actually . . . . BUYING IT! (!!!)
Thanks, I’ve put it on hold at the library. I’m #56!
Katy
Hey, that very same Harriet — who hails from the Bronx, no less — used to own Bertie Lou’s restaurant in Sellwood! Gotta get that book!
Alas, it is garden planting time for me. Idaho has had an unseasonable cold and rainy spring. This week has been the first week warm and sunny enough to plant! Today I am also going to pick up my Bountiful Basket (which is a produce co op based out of Arizona). I love pick up day; it’s like an adventure to see what fruits and veggies are in my basket, and to plan my menu around it! I have also discovered the joys of Netflix. Yes, after months of internal struggle with my frugal side, I finally caved and signed up. Glorious!!! Now I can watch television shows and movies on my laptop while I’m doing mundane domestic tasks (now I look forward to folding socks and washing dishes). Oh the simple pleasures…………
I have been helping my son and his college roommates clean out the four bedroom house they have rented for three years. All are downsizing so it has been an exercise in decluttering for all. I did find a wonderful group in Petaluma (CA) that recycles and repurposes EVERYTHING to keep things out of the landfill. We are on a tight schedule, and I live in LA, so the availability of a group like that is wonderful: Garbage Reincarnation, Inc.
Ann,
Sounds like a very satisfying chore!
Katy
I teach English at the local college, and when I’m teaching 102 (which centers on a reader called The Changing World of Work), I always make my students watch that particular episode of 30 Days. It leads into excellent discussions about not only budgeting, but also healthcare reform and workers’ rights. Morgan Spurlock rocks!
Been builsing and growing my garden one bed at a time when i have an hour here or there. On a down note, 5 of my baby chixks got eaten by a racoon. My DLH ran outside and was able to rescue one. She was in shock for 2 whole days and we werent sure she would survive. She has and of course has picked up the name “Lucky”. She has also decided im her mama and follows me everywhere, perchin on my wrist, shoulder or bended knee at every given opportunity. I was squatting to plant some seedlings and heard some cooing. I looked down and she had nestled in underneath me in my shade. 3 more chicks arrived a week later and she is happy to have sisters again.
My family of 5 has been living for the past 11 months on minimum wage for our one-year ministry project! Thanks for the link to 30 Days- we have been wanting to watch it, but the last time we found a link it didn’t work. It will be interesting to check out the couple’s perspective and compare it to our (nearly complete!) journey…