homebody.

homebody - Noun., A person who enjoys the warmth 

and simple pleasures of being at home.

Yep. That's me. A homebody. I enjoy being at home. Especially when it's quiet. 

Sometimes it can be a challenge to make myself get out and do things. Because sometimes I'd just rather be home...being quiet...writing...puttering in the kitchen...soaking in solitude. 

I really don't think that I get lonely. I don't mind being alone. 

Some people don't like to be alone. I get that. But I'm not one of them.

There's a difference between being alone and being lonely. And I like alone time. I need it, really. I don't know if this is a good or a bad thing. It's just the way it is, just the way I am. 

I think I'm OK with being alone at times because most of the time I'm not. I'm at work all day with coworkers and students. Then I'm home in the evenings and on weekends with my family...(although that is getting to be less and less as the boys grow and mature and spread their wings. But honestly, I'm OK with that, too. It's what they're supposed to do.) 

I also make time to be with friends...going to lunch or meeting for coffee or running errands together. My days and hours are full much of the time. 

So when I have a chance for quiet and solitude...I soak it up. 

And I am grateful for it. 

Every once in a while...

Every once in a while....you need to stop what you're doing...forget about the chores...forget about the have-to's...forget about the stress and the worries and the bills.

 Every once in a while....you need a change of scenery...and you need to remember what's important.

Every once in a while...you need to take some good, deep breaths...throw caution to the wind...enjoy your life...and your family...and have fun.

 Every once in a while....you need to seize the moment...take note that there is NOTHING on the calendar...and load your family into the car and hit the road.



That's exactly what we did a couple of weekends ago. And it was good. Really good. It was a Saturday. We just got home from an early baseball game when we realized that we had the whole rest of the day OPEN. We made the spontaneous decision to hop in the car and head to the coast. It's a beautiful drive. It was a drizzly, beautiful day. We listened to loud music...and dreamt of what we were going to eat when we got to our favorite coastal deli. On the way we stopped at an amazing outcropping of climbing rocks. The boys were like billy goats...thank goodness I remembered my camera.

We ate our dinner...and it was as good as we knew it would be. Fish and chips for two...a burger for one...and chowder in a sourdough bowl with a BIG side of fries for the other. Soda in a bottle...at a table by the window. It was good. Conversation was good. Enlightening.

It was getting dark...time to head home. It began to rain...just in time. On the way home we drove through Starbuck's for a dessert of frappucinos. The boys played DJ with the iPods...playing music we all like. I danced and sang...they reminded me that I was driving. Oh...yeah...

It was a good day.

home.

I've been spending a lot of time at home lately. And I love it. Really. I love it so much. A few weeks ago I was spending a lot of time at home in preparation for the boutique. Then the next week was Thanksgiving and the boys were home on vacation so we spent a lot of time around the house. Now this week...I'm sick! (Not the best way to be home, but I'm home nonetheless. So I'm staying warm and cozy and comfy and using this time to peruse blogs and do some meal planning and online window shopping for Christmas.)

I love being at home. Did I already say that? I do. I believe it allows me to be more myself. When I'm home I feel like I'm doing what I was created to do...take care of my home and my family. And that feels good.

Being home so much lately has allowed me to slow down. And in slowing down I've been able to do more, it seems. I am planning meals, keeping the house a little tidier, catching up on laundry (you know...those sweaters and dress shirts and blankets that get left at the bottom of the hamper because they aren't immediately needed? Yeah, I washed those yesterday. Uh-huh.) and, dare I admit, baking. This came out of necessity yesterday...I had no lunch snacks and wasn't feeling well and doing my best to avoid the grocery store. (You know I'm sick if I avoid the grocery store...I like to shop for groceries. I know...) I had some frozen shredded zucchini and some frozen pumpkin puree and decided to turn it into muffins. I found a good recipe...made a few changes such as less sugar, applesauce rather than oil...and whipped up some yummy muffins last night. Baked goods = happy family.

Home. It's a good place to be.

I want to...

Bake my own bread.
Plant a fall garden.
Learn how to make cheese.
Make my own beauty aides.
Learn to make yogurt.
Find something fabulous at the thrift shop.
Watch Anne of Green Gables.
Take a walk with my camera.
Can something delicious.
Learn to use my dehydrator.
Make money doing something creative.
Write.
Learn about natural healing.
Learn more about nutrition.
Learn to bake scones...blueberry/chocolate/lavender scones to be exact.
Get back into my bible.
Make a scrap quilt.
And a pathwork quilt.
And a rag rug.
And a penny rug.
Keep bees.
And maybe a few goats.
Live in the mountains.

There's more...but that's all I can think of at the moment.

What do you want to do? Do tell...I'll be reading your comments while in bed as I seem to have caught myself the flu!

xo

where it all started.

A week from this coming Thursday I will be leaving for my long-awaited trip to Belgium. While there we will also be visiting Paris, France and possibly London, England as they are both just a short trip away from where we'll be based. Paris is a couple hour train ride and London, apparently, is just a 30 minute ferry ride! Who knew? (Um...I should have...but apparently I didn't pay very close attention in my Geography class...ahem.)

Looking at this map I see all of the countries that my family came from...Italy, Portugal, Ireland, Czechoslovakia....all right there on one continent. Interesting to think about my ancestors migrating to the United States...especially as I'm continuing to read A Thousand Years Over a Hot Stove. They worked so hard to get here. And they worked hard once they arrived. They were poor. They didn't have much at all. Noni told a story of the traveling "salesman" passing through selling new leather shoes and beautiful stockings...new dresses and shiny new pots and pans. Her family was poor...and her shoes were always worn and her stockings always had holes in them. So when the "salesman" passed through...it was a big event. I say "salesman" because apparently, as Noni learned later in life, the goods he was selling were very often stolen.

Papa called the other day...said he was "waiting on those beans". I make pinto beans. With a ham hock. And I use my Noni's recipe. So Papa likes them. He called about a month ago to ask if I'd made any lately. And...if I had made them...did I have some for him, too? And I happened to have some in the freezer so I took them over to him. My mom was there caring for him so we ended up all eating dinner together...beans and bread...it was nice. I told him I'd make more soon and bring him some. That's why he called...wondering where the heck those beans were! So later that afternoon I ran them over to his house.

He was napping...but asked his home health aide to wake him when I got there. That made me feel pretty special...he does like his naps. But...I guess that means he likes me even more. I stayed to visit a while. We talked about my upcoming trip...and some of his travels while in the Navy. Then we got onto the subject of life when he was a kid. His father was a coal miner as well as having the duties of running their small farm (with the help of Papa's mother and all of his siblings...11 of them, I think). They grew their own food and milked their own cows. Papa was in charge of giving his siblings haircuts and he knew how to make their shoes! He told me how it was his job to get up early in the morning and get the fire going. His mother would be up getting breakfast ready...leftover polenta, leftover bread, etc.

He told me about one breakfast that was one of his favorites...he would go out early in the morning and gather the button mushrooms from a nearby meadow. Then his mother would turn them into a breakfast of sauteed mushrooms in a thick gravy. They'd eat that for breakfast with leftover crusty bread for dipping. He said it was delicious! Not what we would think of as breakfast food...but when you don't have Cocoa Puffs or Frozen Waffles to slap in front of your kid, you feed them what is available. Talk about eating seasonally.

I have to admit. It was not my intention to talk about heritage or my grandparents. What was on my mind when I began this post was all that I still have to do before I leave for Belgium. My intention was to list it all out here...bullet-points...but it evolved into something else. And I'm glad that it did. I love my grandparents...and love hearing about their lives as children. I told Papa about the book I was reading...and how it seemed to me that, although life was hard and the work was hard and families were poor, it seemed to me that life was a lot simpler in those times. And...to my surprise, he agreed. He has fond memories of his childhood...gathering berries for his mother's wine...building a room onto their house with a dance floor for his sister's wedding...reciting the Lord's Prayer to his mother each morning in Russian. Life was hard...but it was also simple and good and honest. 

Sounds good to me, Papa.

photo assignment: composition and perspective

Recently, some blogging friends, Camilla and Carolyn, started a fun blog, C&C Photography where they will post weekly photography challenges. This week's challenge was: composition and perspective. And I have to say...this was a fun one! I really enjoyed this challenge...and I really liked my subject...the old biscuit cutters I got at the yard sale last weekend for 50 cents!

So...here you go. Biscuit cutters...as I see them.

#1: As the eye sees it...

#2: bird's eye view...

#3: up close...

#4: off center...

#5: out of focus...

...and one extra...because I liked it...

And I just have to tell you this story...

Yesterday afternoon I looked out the window and realized the lighting would be great for this project. So I went into the kitchen to have myself a little photo challenge! As I was setting things up for the challenge...laying out the unbleached, muslin towel...laying out the old, rusty biscuit cutters...my husband watched with a puzzled look on his face. But after I took my first shot and looked at the screen on the back of my camera with him peering over my shoulder he said, "You definitely have an eye for this because I wasn't seeing it. Then I saw that picture and thought 'hey, those things are cool!'."

I'm thinking that was the best compliment ever.

making progress...

Yesterday I made a list of things that I wanted to get done around my house. And would you believe, aside from getting dinner into a Crock Pot and serving frozen corn dogs for dinner instead, I got it all DONE?! I did. And it felt really, really good.

Now, I can't believe I'm going to DO this. But I am. I've got pictures to share...befores, durings and afters. The afters I'm OK with, of course. But the befores? Um...not so much. But...for the sake of progress and accountability...here goes!

Trouble spot #1: my bedside. The before. I wasn't kidding when I told you I was a piler, now was I?

OK, the details. Wicker basket as nightstand. On it? Lotions, books, notepads, remotes, coffee mug...and more. On the floor? Pile of library books. Camera bag. Sewing machine. Sewing basket. Tub of yarn. Tote of yarn and crochet projects. Oh...and for drama, a pair of my cozy socks flung onto the top of it all. Wow. Talk about keepin' it real. This is almost harder than the self-portraits!!

Fortunately...things got better. I found a little table that will work better as my nightstand. Can you see it there behind all of the stuff I pulled from my closet?

I pulled so much out of our tiny little closet...I can't even believe how much I had in there! The area rug was one of the things I had stored in my closet. I decided to actually use it...and I'm glad. I think it looks pretty cute there. You'll be able to see it better in this next picture.

After...

New nightstand with a drawer that contains everything that was previously on TOP. Two shelves for books. The camera bag to the right. It will always be there...handy, at the ready. Still a pile of library books...and that's probably a staple, too. And I'm OK with that. Once a piler, always a piler. We're just trying to minimize the amount of piles, here! And Uggs. Always there. In the summer, they'll be replaced with flip-flops. The point here is that it's a lot better than what it was. And that was my goal. Replacing the round wicker nightstand with this smaller, square piece opened up the space a lot. It feels spacious and roomy. And in this small house, I need that.

Trouble spot #2: counter top.

Bills....paid and unpaid. Notepads. Pens. Pencils. Junk mail. Recipes. School papers. You name it. If it's paper it ends up here. And I am tired of it. I need this bit of space to COOK. Bye bye piles!

Hello counter top! I still need to find a space for the gravy boat in the hutch. And I'm still perusing my new cookbook that I got for Christmas. So I'm OK with these two items sitting here for a bit. It's a neat and small pile. Not a messy one!

Now this next space was one of the biggest thorns in my side. It made me mad...daily.

Trouble spot #3: eating area.What a mess! Piles on the table. Piles on the floor. Piles on BOTH sides!! Ick. And if you can imagine...I walk down the hall every morning from my room and turn right into my kitchen for coffee. So this is what I've been looking at every morning when I get up. No wonder I've been cranky!

And honestly, the piles on the table are smaller than they've been in the past because I've been making small changes over the last few days in preparation for this project. Like the little black chest in the corner...that is new. And I placed it there to see if I liked it. So it's not been there. Before it was a dusty dust-buster and a bag of...piled papers!

This is the other side of dining table. These are our "important papers". Can't you tell? Because they're treated with such importance?

This banker's box has been sitting here for...gosh...too long. I don't even know how long. Then there's my file folder of scrapbook papers I was using while crafting for the boutique...still not put away. And...a humidifier that Chris brought home and set there...and there it has stayed.

Well, after just a little bit of work and moving a few things around...

...The After.

Banker's box? Gone. Neatly store in my closet that now has more room. Humidifier? Behind the table...ready to be used when we need it. The piles? Sorted. Trashed. Recycled. Filed. And the rest? Neatly store in the chest of drawers. The lamp in the corner is a new addition. The lamp itself is old...I got it at a yard sale years ago. And it's the perfect size for this space...tall and skinny. I'm liking it. It casts a really cozy glow in what was previously a dreary corner.

You can see there is still a pile back in the corner of the table. Those are papers that I will take with me to the office on Monday and file there, where they belong. The bowl in the middle of the table is holding cards and notes that I need to respond to...and I will. That's next on the to-do list.

So. There you have it. My dirty laundry...aired for all to see. The good part is that I got it all done. I set a goal. And I accomplished it. I purchased a few items to make it easier. And I got rid of a ton of stuff. Out of my closet alone I got rid of one big trash bag. One big recycle bag. One large shopping bag for a friend...I think she'll like a skirt and several pair of shoes I'm getting rid of....a few still with tags! And four medium sized donation bags that I've already taken to Goodwill.

I also found several items that we can use...a cute area rug, two pretty pictures that I'm going to hang above our bed, a lava lamp for Seth's room (don't ask), a Nerf dart bow and arrow set (Ian's having fun with that) and in the process made room for more and better storage. I even have extra room in my closet on the shelves!

I have to say...waking up this morning to a neat and tidy bedside...and walking down the hall toward a pretty and neat eating area made me a lot less cranky! I feel accomplished...and determined to keep it this way. Not to mention, ready for the next project.

Hmmm....what's next?

I bought Pop-Tarts the other day.

The heading to this post has nothing to do with anything really, other than "coming clean". My sweet friend, D, over at this is my life just posted about the realities for some of us and this whole sustainable living thing we're learning about and working toward and trying to live up to and figure out. She put it quite well...and made me laugh in the process.

As far as sustainable living goes, there's an awful lot out there that we can be doing...canning, gardening, chicken keeping, detergent making, soap making, thrift store shopping, or not shopping at all. Buying local, eating local, eating in season...not eating at all? Solar power, water power, hybrid, electric...oy! It can get overwhelming! And if there's a way to do it...there's a blog to show you HOW.

Don't get me wrong...I love blogs. And blogging. Blogging is a lot of fun and I have met some amazing women because of it. (You ladies are all so awesome...for real) but blogging can also be dangerous. It's like information overload at times. And when I'm reading that so and so is doing this and that...and then I realize that I'm not...because I just bought a pack of frozen fish sticks...distributed in Iowa or something...because I had to work that day and we were hungry now and I didn't plan ahead with my trusty Crock-pot, which I love by the way, but sometimes we're not on speaking terms. So I buy the fish sticks and then I'm feeling guilty anyway so I may as well just buy detergent because I didn't make time to make my own and I'm at the store and it's a really good price and I have about seven loads of laundry...and then I notice the Pop-Tarts were marked down and really, what's a little HFCS in the big picture? Right? Partially hydrogenated oil anyone? Gracious...

Can I just be real here for a minute? Sometimes...you just need to eat a Pop-Tart. Or at least I do. Preferably frosted strawberry...but I'm not picky. Or maybe a Hostess cupcake. Or a...oh never mind.

On a completely different note....today was a good day. We finally CLEANED THE GARAGE!! Yes...that's me shouting from the mountain tops that our garage...our little tiny one-car garage...is clean and organized. And it feels soooo good. We were going to go to the beach but we really needed to take advantage of this time...these three days...and finish some things around the house. We've let it go for far too long...the garage sale and the cleaning of the shed and the garage was way overdue. It was time... And now it's done. Yes.

Then we grilled marinated London broil and zucchini and then I made homemade onion rings on the side. It was all very delicious.

Then...I cleaned the kitchen and mopped the floor...finally.

And now...I'm going to wash my self up and GO TO BED.

All in a day's work...

Yesterday I decided that I was going to do some canning today. I've realized that it's not the actual canning that trips me up. It's the prep. It's a TON of PREP. Washing jars and lids...

Letting them air dry...

Making sure you have all the tools and supplies you're going to need...

And then once that's all set up...it's time to prep the veggies. I found these reusable bags last year at the Dollar Tree. They were four in a pack! Aren't they great? I feel very responsible when I use them.

They're full of okra and pickling cucumbers.

Freshly washed green beans...soon they will be delicious dilly beans.

Thank you to my friend Carolyn for turning me on to these last summer. My life will never be the same.

Sweet little pickling cucumbers.

I tried to get them all about the same size...

Oh okra, okra, okra. I don't care for okra. Not even pickled.

So, why do I have a big strainer FULL of them? Because my sister in law loves pickled okra and her birthday is tomorrow. I think she's gonna love her gift!

Here they are just waiting for the boiling water and vinegar mixture. Fresh one minute. Pickled the next.

If nothing else, it's pretty to look at. I've never pickled okra before...so I hope it turns out OK!

Luckily I cleaned an extra jar...I was able to get 8 jars of pickles instead of just 7. I hope they taste good.

Last year's pickles were a disappointment. They were too vinegar-y. The recipe I followed didn't call for enough dill seed...in my opinion. So they weren't dilly enough for me. Chris liked them. And so did my sister in law. But I just never could come around to liking them. In my opinion, they were always just a bit off. So this year I added extra dill seed AND a little sprinkle of pickling spice. I have no idea what I'm doing...so I hope it works out!

And finally...after a very hot kitchen, a very hot ME and a big mess...the finished product: dill pickles, dilly beans and pickled okra. Ta-da!

Now...just give me two weeks or so and I'll let you know how they all turned out. Except the okra...we'll have to get that report from my sister in law!

Saturday...

The pole beans are blooming...

...and I am getting ready to do some major pickling. Cucumbers...dilly beans...okra (for my sister in law...her birthday is tomorrow!)

Enjoy your Saturday...xoxo

Who knew it would be so easy?

I had no idea that chicken keeping would be so easy! Chickens are low-maintenance, entertaining and useful. They lay eggs, they produce useful manure for your garden, and they provide endless entertainment.

I am relieved that they are so easy to keep. Especially since I talked my husband into them over the course of a year or so. Had they been a big pain in the butt (which they can be now and then...escaping into the neighbor's yard, sneaking into the garden and trampling things...but if we are careful these things don't happen!) I would be feeling really bad right about now.

I will say, I don't know that they're all that cost effective as far as eggs are concerned. I can buy eggs from our discount grocery store for really cheap. BUT, they're not local. They're not organic. They're not free-range or cage-free. Chances are the eggs I've been buying are from chickens with really sad lives. I don't like that...but at this point, budget wins out.

What I'm realizing in this beginner's effort to simplify is that it is more about making a statement. It's about making small changes in a big mess that will, hopefully, add up to a BIG change. And while I know that there are others who do more and are more extreme in their simplifying and statement making, I don't compare myself to them....any more. I have made the decision to be comfortable doing what I am comfortable doing.

Don't get me wrong. I want to do it all. And I want to do it RIGHT NOW. It's in my personality...I get an idea, I think on it, I get excited about it and I want to dive in and do it NOW before making sure if there's even any water to break my fall! Luckily, my husband is the opposite...isn't that usually how it works? He looks before he leaps...thank goodness. And he looks for me, too! If it were up to me I'd have my front grass torn out, fruit trees planted all over the place, raised beds all over the backyard...you get the idea. But, my husband is quite a bit more level-headed than I am...he's the voice of reason...he's the one keeping me tethered to reality. Which, I will admit, can be a bit annoying at times. Do you watch SNL? Remember when Mike Meyers played the boy tethered to the jungle gym at the playground? Yeah. Anyway...

So where was I? Oh...yeah...chickens. Easy. Rabbit trails...they get me every time. I think the key to simplifying is doing your homework. Researching. Studying. Reading all you can about the subject. I've been reading about gardening for years. So when I planted the garden I felt I had a pretty good beginner's grasp on the basics. I researched the chickens. So when we did get them I felt confident that I knew what to do. And so far, I have. I read up on canning and last summer dove in and gave it a try. And, because I had read so much and taken in so much information, it was a success!

I think there's another key, too...take one thing at a time. Make one big change at a time. Get used to it...live with it...manage it...make sure it's for you. And if it is, great! Then move on to the next lifestyle change. I think making ALL the changes NOW would just be overwhelming. It needs to be done in bits...manageable bits. If I were to tear out the whole front lawn because I wanted to turn my city lot into a homestead, number one my husband would have a fit, and rightfully so. Number two, I'd have a yard full of dirt and eventually weeds because I don't know what to DO with it yet. Nor do I have the money to transform it. NOR am I sure that I want to get rid of ALL my grass. It's a romantic idea to live like the Dervaes Family...but it's not practical for MY family. And that's what I have to keep in mind...what works for US. Chances are, we will always have a patch of lawn in our front yard. So, instead of ripping out all of the grass, maybe I will eventually take the little side planter strip and turn IT into an edible landscape. Maybe I will tear out the useless ivy (good luck on this one, eh?) and instead plant a fruit tree or two and some perennial herbs. Maybe...someday.

Until then...I will continue with one small step at a time.

I'm a jam making fool.

We ran out of homemade strawberry jam about two weeks ago. The way we all acted about it, you'd think we'd been out for 10 years and that it was imperative to our survival, like water, or air. We were very spoiled having homemade jam all year long. Very spoiled. And since I refuse to buy it now, we just had to do without until I could make more.

Finally, once I got all geared up to do some serious jam making, I went to my local fruit stand and they were closed. CLOSED. They're never closed! But I had it set in my mind that I was going to make strawberry jam today, darnit, so I decided to go to the strawberry stand across town. I have to say...the berries themselves aren't as good as the ones around the corner from my house. But we were desperate...desperate for jam...are we pathetic or what? Spoiled, I tell you.

Ian agreed to help me, thank goodness. Jam making is always more fun and less work when someone helps you. He's a great berry smasher. He's gotten into label reading and gardening and living a bit healthier. Don't get me wrong, the boy loves a soda or a pack of Starburst as much as the next kid. But at the same time, he is becoming aware of food, and what it does for you, and where it comes from, and what it should and shouldn't contain. Both of my boys are. They make fun of me for being a label reader sometimes...but that's OK, because eventually, when they grow up, they will have this knowledge to draw from. And as long as I at least give them the tools...they can decide what to do with them after that.

Anyway...back to the jam.

We smashed and simmered and boiled and filled and processed...and less than an hour later...we had 8 jars of homemade jam.

As I pulled them out of the hot water bath and set them on the towel, one by one, they made me smile with that telltale *ping* they make when the jars seal and you know you've been successful. I just love that sound...don't you? Isn't it pretty? And yes, it tastes good, too!

If you give a girl a fig...

...she'll want you to put them in a vintage white bowl. And if you put them in a vintage white bowl...she'll want you to take pictures of them. And if you take pictures of them...she'll want you to post about them on her blog.

Because when you have a blog...you relate to life in possible "posts". It's just the way it is.

I got these beautiful figs at the local fruit stand the other day. It's more or less around the corner from my house. And each year when it opens, I know that summer is here. Come spring time I watch for the signs to change from "Thank you. See you next summer" to "We are now planting" to "Grand opening next Saturday!". I love it. And all year I wait for it. That and my own garden are a few things that keep summer bearable for me.

Someday I'll have my own fig tree. But until then I'm content to get them from the wonderful peeps at the fruit stand.

I stopped by yesterday for some corn...but it's not ready until next Tuesday. So I got a giant Vidalia onion instead for homemade onion rings to accompany the paninis we're going to make for dinner later today. I asked the gals who run the stand if it would be OK with them if I took some photos during the week to post on my blog.

"What's a blog?" they asked.

I was expecting this question as they are all older and they all have accents...German maybe? I'm not sure. All I know is that they are SO nice...and this year they finally recognized me from last year...and treated me like an old friend. (It made me feel good...) So because they're so nice the answer was, "Oh sure...sure...of course you can! But can you come about 10 minutes before we open so everything looks nice and full...and so people aren't in the pictures? People get kind of kooky being in pictures on the Internet, you know." I agreed to come a little early...

Stay tuned next week for a little tour of my local fruit stand. I just love it...and I think you will, too!

I've never made bread in my life.

But I'm going to. Soon.

I have been dying to read Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day for months. My intention was to buy it when I had some extra money. But, extra money has not been in my vocabulary as of late...so the book had to wait.

Until I remembered my most favorite thing in the world: putting books on hold at the library online. Man, I love that feature. (Have I mentioned how much I love putting books on hold online at my local library? What? Only 22 times? Well...I LOVE putting books on hold at my local library! I love it so much I even tell strangers! I may even tell the people around the corner with orange trees in their front yard. That would give me an excuse to knock on their door!)

I put the book on hold a few weeks ago and the other day I got the anticipated call that it was IN. Yes!

I started reading it last night and so far, so good. And definitely worth owning. My plan was to actually TRY it today but after reading the intro there is some set-up and preparation involved in making this happen. Thermometers...large covered containers...cooking stones...etc. I have most of the items...but need an oven thermometer and a container to store the dough in the fridge. And...I have to make sure I have the ROOM to store a large container in my fridge. This is where a garage fridge would come in handy. This is always a touchy subject...we have a one-car garage. And it's packed to the gills with...stuff. Much of which we'll be getting RID OF when I can schedule my dang garage sale. And now that baseball season is over...I can.

I digress. Somehow it always boils down to my messy garage! I really need to DO something about that.

Anyway...where was I? Oh yes...artisan bread. Not just bread. But artisan bread. Doesn't bread sound so much more yummy and good for you when it has the word "artisan" in front of it? Yeah...I think so, too. (I think I need to slow down on the coffee this morning...)

So...yeah...I need supplies first. Luckily, I get to keep the book for three weeks. And I can renew once online. So that's six weeks to get ready. That should be plenty of time. Good heavens I should HOPE so. If I can't get a grip inside of six weeks then I deserve to eat store-bought bread full of preservatives and fake sweeteners.

I'll let you know how it goes!

Oh yeah! In doing a search for a decent picture of the book cover I came across the official Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day web site. Nice.

The mood is lifting...

Amazing what a little digging in the dirt and hanging clothes on the line will do for a mood. Who knew?

After griping about the state of my garden I decided to go out and DO something about it. I ripped out the diseased plants and replaced them with healthy ones. I planted more beet seeds, more lettuce seeds and fertilized everything. I watered, weeded and staked.

Then I washed up and got a cool drink of water.

Then I noticed the neighbors cat in my backyard. I was worried that he might be seeing the girls as cooked up fryers like on the old cartoons so I shoo'ed him off and tucked the girls back in their coop.

Then I hung the sheets on the line.

Then I stood back and admired my work.

Amazing how happy it made me to know that I was NOT wasting energy by using my dryer. You'd have thought I won the lottery. I am loving my clothes line. And I think the sheets and clothes dry FASTER than they do in the dryer!!

I'm feeling a little better about this whole "self-sufficiency" thing...