Traditions, Old and New

Happy Halloween Everyone!

And Merry Samhain to all my fellow Wiccans out there!

As you've noticed from my previous posts, I've often declared that this time of year is my favorite, and that includes this holiday!  And holidays, of course, bring about traditions.

Now here's the interesting thing about marriage.  Ok, ONE of the interesting things.  Being happily married to my wonderful husband Mark for seven years now he and I have created a new family unit.  And in that new family unit comes the need to create new traditions for, well, everything.  But mainly holidays.  Now, new traditions are also influenced by old traditions. Like the ones that are your fond, childhood memories of your own family traditions.  The ones that you should keep with your new family unit because they are such fond memories.  And your other half, also wanting to keep those happy, childhood memories of their own going with their new family with you, will bring their traditions as well.  And those will be new to you.

That was a really complicated way of saying that my husband and I both had some old traditions that we did for this Halloween season, and they were ones that neither of us had done before.

Here, I'll tell the full story, with pictures as well!

So, this first tradition is one from my childhood, one that I love dearly.  The hayride out to the pumpkin patch to get a pumpkin!!!  Who wouldn't love that tradition!

So I was surprised, when I suggested that I wanted to do this, that my husband was not as remotely excited about it as I was.  Was there some sort of hayride trauma?  Was there no pumpkins in that patch he went to?

Then I learned the hard, cold truth.  He had never BEEN on a hayride to a pumpkin patch to pick out a pumpkin!  The poor soul!  I realized I needed to fix this pronto!  

So I did, by making him pose for a picture, which I know he hates.  And then we were off to find that perfect pumpkin!

And the ironic thing was that this wasn't the one.  But Mark did get a good workout carrying this one around for me till I did find my perfect pumpkin, which was on the other side of the pumpkin patch. Thanks hon!

But after the pumpkin was found, brought back and safely stored in our vehicle for the ride home, we indulged in our new tradition of Corn Mazes!  This is something that we never did as children, probably because they weren't really around much.  But we discovered them last year and love it!

 

 And Mark got to shoot corn into a barrel using a homemade-pressurized-corn gun.  Right up his alley.

So, after several days traveling in the back seat of my car, the perfect pumpkin came home to sit on our front stoop, and within the first 24 hours was being nibbled on by squirrels.  So it was then brought into our front hallway until we were ready for my husband's Halloween tradition, one I had never done myself.....

...... Carving a Pumpkin!  Now, I know what you're all thinking, how could you get a pumpkin every Halloween since childhood and NOT carve it!  Well, my mom did things a little differently.  As she recently confessed, she wasn't so good with "the whole carving thing", but she is an excellent painter.  So we painted faces on our pumpkins.  Something that is fun as well, but not as cool as putting a candle in a carved pumpkin.  So I was wicked excited to be shown how it's done.

Of course, the first thing I learned is the knives I picked out for the initial cutting-the-top-of-the-pumpkin-off were too dinky.  So he went and got a big knife out of the cutlery drawer and we began.  Well, he cut and I took pictures.  But still, it was very exciting!

Once the top came off, the schmutz had to come out.  Yeah, you heard me, schmutz.  And my husband graciously gave me this job to do.  I made him take pictures.

I found a flat ice cream scoop worked really well getting all the seeds out.

And then, as Mark put it, came the hardest part of the whole pumpkin carving experience, what to carve on the front!  Now I deliberated long and hard about this one.  I wanted my first pumpkin carving to be incredible.  I wanted it to be a huge statement.  I wanted the creativity of the season, the weather, the epitome of decorative gourd season to shine through with my carving of this decorative, well,  gourd.

Even my cat Merlin had ideas on how to do this, which he vocalized quite loudly while I was sitting and thinking.  Or maybe he wanted to have some treats which were right next to the chair I was sitting in.  I'd prefer to think it was the first reason.

So this is what I came up with! 

Don't get me wrong, I had an elaborate fall festival scene in my head, but Mark pointed out that, it being my first pumpkin carving ever, I should probably stick to straight lines and simplicity.

Then the fun part!  Cutting out the eyes..... and nose...... and mouth......

.....till we got this!  Isn't he beautiful?!?  YES!

I was so excited I wanted to name him.  But them Mark pointed out that he had already named it Squirrel Food, and since that's what it will become after today I guess that name fits!

You are beautiful Squirrel Food!

And you look wicked cool in the dark!


Happy Halloween/Samhain/CelebrateRedSoxWorldChampions Day!

It's Been A While....

So you know it's been a while since you've downloaded pictures off your phone when you have pictures from 8 months ago.  Like I did when I was downloading photos from my phone so I could create my Halloween post for this week. (Halloween is this week!)  And then I found all of my photos that I took during the power outage we had during Winter Storm Nemo.  That's last February! 

So yeah, it's been a long time.

But I thought I'd share those photos here with you all, mainly because it was an interesting time and one where I had to put my good homesteading skills to work.

 

So this became the main room of the house, due to the fact that we have no wood stove or fireplace but we do have a gas oven. So that oven became our heat source for the four days the power was out.

That didn't stop my husband or my cats from spending time in the other cold rooms of the house.  Since the living room was open to the kitchen it remained a tad warmer than the rest of the house.  So my husband and cat Hagrid used blankets to keep warm.

My cat Merlin decided to use the sun, though our bedroom was really cold.  But that's where he always takes his afternoon nap.  Old habits I guess.

The saving grace of the situation was that our gas stove and oven were working.  So we were able to at least have a good hot meal, which is heaven during really cold weather.

Though our hot water heater wasn't working.  We do have well water that is gravity fed so our water was running which was good.  So cold water heated on the stove, put in a large bowl to wash dishes or hands, just like a pilgrim housewife.

Though plastic plates and silverware did help keep the amount of dishes to a minimum.

And though the cold would get to you it was lovely reading or playing games by candle light.  That's if the cold didn't make you so tired that you went and slept under four blankets for fourteen hours.

Though this little foray into life without electricity was exciting and did bring out my homesteading skills, there was nothing like that first hot shower after several bone-chilling days to make you feel alive and grateful for electricity.

Warm Days of October Fade Into Rainy November Days

And that is the essence of fall in New England. 

One of the main things I love about fall is the weather at this time of year.  And when I think of the weather what I'm really thinking about is the Indian summer weather.  Warm days where you can still run around in a tee shirt and jeans yet cool evenings where a sweatshirt is needed.

But then....... duh duh DUH...... the rainy November days come.

And so begins the rainy, cold weather that proceeds winter.  That time of autumn that you usually forget about, until it happens.  And that weather came today.

It started with me leaving in the morning to go to my job and, realizing that it was going to rain today, I was wearing a light rain jacket.  Two seconds out the door and I realize that my wardrobe was going to have to change.  It was FREEZING!  Like "I can see my breath in the air and their is some kind of ice covering on the hood of my car that I haven't seen in a while, I think it's frost" cold. So right back into the house I went and came out two minutes later with a much heavier rain coat, gloves, and my farm scarf which makes me look like a hippie.  But my husband says I can't be one because I actually shower.  Thanks hon!

And though it didn't rain till late afternoon, I still had to go back and forth between wearing a jacket to not to putting my scarf and mittens on to not depending on what work I was doing.  Sitting at the computer in an unheated room?  Jacket, scarf and mittens.  Wrangling with cows, a donkey, and a horse while getting them to move into another pasture, though all they want to do is eat the grass that is in front of them? No jacket or mittens or scarf, just jeans, tee shirt and long sleeve shirt under the tee shirt.  Walking back from the pasture you put set animals into?  Still just jeans, tee shirt and long sleeve shirt but wishing you hadn't left your scarf, jacket and mittens all the way back at the barn because the exertion made you sweat and now you're cold.  Now I understand why farmers dress in layers.

But it really hit home today not only that the Indian summer we have been experiencing is done and over with, but now the pre-winter weather is here.  Now it's going to get colder, and greyer, and less colorful, and did I mention colder?  And nothing chills you to the bone more than a cold, wintery rain.  Except when you spill water on your jeans and a below freezing wind suddenly picks up.  That's when you drop everything and get to the nearest heat source, and change your pants.  It's very unpleasant if you don't.

With this sudden onset of pre-winter cold and rain came the realization that winter is actually coming. (Yes I changed that up for all my Game of Thrones fans.  I could have said winter is coming and then I would totally show how geeky I am.)  But it really is.  I think the warm, crisp days of early fall seem to make us have a false sense of security.  Like the grasshopper who played all summer long because winter seemed so far away.  And then you experience a day like this and you realize you need to batten down the hatches and get that firewood set and get out those long johns.

And this is what I thought about today while I was moving wood piles around during the cold rain.  It really does sneak up on you.  And I hate to say it, but I've been more like the grasshopper than the industrious ant.

Time to get ready because, dare I say it, winter is coming (ok, I admit, I'm a geek).


On a side note, I probably have been lured into that false sense of security because baseball is still going on and it's the World Series!  Go Red Sox!

Whatcha Been Readin'?

I love to read.  And I'm a book buying addict.

I can't walk out of a bookstore without buying a book.

The preferred decorations on my walls are bookshelves full of books.

I don't have any space on top of any table/bookcase/box/other flat surface because they are covered with piles of books. (And, unlike what my husband thinks, they are organized in fully functional piles according to topic and newness.)

A good day out involves a good restaurant and several used book stores.

I weep that I get motion sickness because I can't read on long road trips.  That and having motion sickness is not pleasant.

And I've found hours just past by mysteriously when I suddenly realize that one more chapter has turned into the rest of the book.

So, long story short, I love to read.  And I love books.

And I love reading about topics I'm interested in.  While others spend hours reading the latest mystscificantic books, I spend time reading about homesteading, and cooking, and historical diaries of random, middle class, women from Long Island during the Revolutionary War.  Because everyone is interested in that!

The point is that if it's a topic I find interesting, I'm going to read about it.  If it's something I want to study, I will definitely want to read about it.

So, this very long introduction to my reading habits now leads me to something I hope to do many times during this blog.  I want to tell the world what I'm reading, and what I think about it.  Because I know that's what the world really wants to know about. 

Now, there is also my series of self improvement books that I'm reading which I'll be talking about in my other blog "The Pursuit of Happiness" which I have a link to on this website! (I know, shameless plug.)  But, that doesn't stop me from the nasty habit of reading several books at once. So, while I'm reading my monthly self-help book, I've also been tackling my homesteading pile.

Title:  "Gaining Ground"
Author:  Forrest Pritchard

Where did I get this book?  From the Barnes and Noble, on the "New to Paperback" table.

What's the book about?  Forrest is a seventh generation farmer who works to save the family farm by using rotational grazing techniques and farmer's markets to sell his organic, grass fed meats.

And in one sentence I have made this sound like the most boring book in the world.  Or, if you're like me and love to read about farming techniques or homesteading lifestyles, then you think this is going to be a great book!  But it truly isn't as boring as I've made it sound.  It's not just Forrest saying "I'm going to save the farm" and then *POOF* it's saved.  He talks about the process he went through.  The stories of all the mistakes he made, and how he made the most of them.  And it doesn't end with "...and they all lived happily ever after."  It more is a revelation of that the process of managing and keeping a farm viable is constantly changing.  And it's about evolving with the times, and also about thinking outside the box as well.  Though his grazing techniques, his views on butchering, and the availability of his products seem to be readily available now, when he was starting out they were almost non existent in the main stream.  He saw the unconventional farming ideas and went with them anyway, because they seemed to make sense with what he was trying to achieve, which was organic, grass fed beef.

Would I recommend this book?  Yes I would.  I know it may not be everyones cup of tea, but I found it refreshing to read a book about farming and how it's not all rural simplicity and pastoral elegance.  It's about hard work, equally hard standards, and a realization that while that sunset is beautiful I'm also noticing that fence needs to be repaired by that tree over there, and the sun is setting and I haven't finished feeding and what's going on with the truck now that I can't get it started again. 

But farming and cute animals and broken-down trucks aside, it really is a story about how Forrest had the idea to save his family dairy farm in West Virginia.  And he realized that to do that he had to stop trying to follow the standards that were set by commercial farmers all over America at the time.  In fact, the first year he tried that way, he received a whopping $18.16 in profit for that year.  Well, at least he got a profit.  Now I'm not saying that there are not people who are successful with commercial farming techniques out there.  I just admire how Forrest decided to see if there was another way, not only to make a profit but also to make a better, healthier meat product, and a more personal way to get that product to his customers.  By thinking outside of the box, he has truly worked to make his farm viable for the future, as well as not lowering his standards he set out for himself to begin with.

And he talks about all this in a book that doesn't lecture on the topic of cows or rotational grazing habits, but it's a fun narrative of stories that link together.  And he doesn't mind making fun of his mistakes, and yet learning from them as well.

So yes, I would recommend this book even to people who aren't interested in farming because I feel it does a great job keeping you entertained even if you don't care about the rotational grazing habits of cows, or why chickens shouldn't be given the option for freedom, or why farmers of old would put rings into pig's noses.

Overall Grade:  A

Feelings of Fall!

I have to say Fall is my favorite season. 

Now I do like many things about the other seasons.  Nothing is better than walking through the woods after a beautiful snowfall and then return to your warm home to sit with a hot cup of tea and a kitty.  And when the springtime comes and the earth warms, the sun shines longer, and you get the sweet smell of the earth as it thaws you are so happy to have spring fever.  And when you sit on a summer's evening outside, listening to the insects, feeling the warmth of the summer sun radiating from the stone outside, there is nothing more relaxing.

But fall seems to combine all the things you love from all the other seasons into one time of year.  You have the cool evenings where you need a sweater.  But you can still hear the peepers as you sit by the outdoor fire pit (or wish your husband would build the one you got two years ago).  And the sun still warms enough during the day that the smells of the earth are not lost yet. 

There are so many more things to love about Fall in New England.  The foliage is only the tip of the iceberg.  The beauty of the sky and sunlight at this time of year takes my breath away just as much as the many colors of leaves in the landscape.  It's golden, making everything around it golden.  And the sky is such a deep blue that any clouds floating by seem to stand out even more.  And, with the coolness of the evenings, the sweaters come out, though you still need a short sleeve shirt during the day since the sun still warms the earth.  And the food at this time of year!  This is the time when my cooking changes from salads and chicken dishes to pot roasts and root vegetables.  And the apples.  I love apples!  And I love apple picking!  And corn mazes, and Halloween, and......

Well, lets just say I love Fall! 

It makes me feel warm and cool and golden and fuzzy and hungry and good inside and out.

I'm Back!

3200 miles, 7 states, 4 days of driving, 1 week away.

It was a trip full of happiness to see family I haven't seen in quite a while, sadness for the reason why we were there, and relief when the driving was all over.  My husband and I now know that no trip across America should include a day of driving lasting more than 8 hours at a time.  And I should next time check out the World's Biggest Wind Chimes in Indiana.

There will be many stories coming from this very interesting journey.  And there are many things that I've learned from this trip.  And many memories that I will hold dear, and will tell you all about. 

But first, I'm going to take a nap.  All this traveling is certainly tiring.